As the stowaway was stunned and shocked, Zero turned and kicked off the pile of white bones, using the momentum to chase after Lu Mingfei, leaving a trail of white foam in her wake. Her current speed was no less than that of the airborne Lu Mingfei.
The stowaway, holding an underwater rifle, frantically pulled the trigger, wanting to fire his last bullet, the Rune Ripple loaded in the barrel.
But it was too late.
After the violent gunshot of the SSP-1, the bullet modified by the Equipment Department drilled into his right shoulder, and the sudden, intense pain stimulated him to release his finger from the trigger.
That S-class, with his brilliant Golden Eyes, was practically a pure-blooded Dragon Lord. Anyone who met his gaze couldn't help but hear the Enyan · Emperor echoing in their mind.
They couldn't resist, and not even the thought of resistance could arise!
The armed stowaway, in the golden glow and bubbles, saw the red blood gushing from his body. He suddenly realized the environment he was in, his entire heart felt squeezed, and as he gasped for air, his Golden Eyes turned a fiery red-gold from congestion, and his Rune was chanted to its limit!
At this moment, he lost the composure he had when pronouncing Lu Mingfei's death sentence. In the blink of an eye, he went from hunter to prey. The Rune Ripple, fully unleashed, created layers of ripples that stood like mirrors before him. This was the correct way to use Ripple; those layers of spreading ripples could even block tank shells!
But just as Ripple was unleashed to its maximum, he lost his voice, lost his lock on Lu Mingfei, and lost the ability to think. His life was put on pause.
Lingering Words · Spending the Day.
Even a Three-Generations Breed would briefly freeze for half a second in front of such an ability; how could a hybrid possibly resist its immense power?
The stowaway who had originally targeted Zero was now staring intently at the person who had easily bypassed Ripple. What kind of Rune was that? The Golden Eyes flickered, stopping time, and Ripple was severed in the water. The creature on whom the Rune was cast was disconnected from the entire world in that instant, while the caster of the Rune could stroll leisurely and smash an iron fist into the back of the target's heart!
Draw the gun, then shoot.
The ripples dissipated, and the water calmed. The armed man's companion stared with disbelief.
The intelligence that an S-class without a ribbon is inferior to a B-class is completely unreliable. Just based on that extremely bizarre ability, he's fully worthy of an S-class rating. Damn it, who collected this intelligence?
He swallowed, floated in the water, quickly moved away from the S-class, pulled out his underwater pistol, and fired continuously at Zero, determined to leave before the S-class got close to him.
In the man's eyes, Lu Mingfei at this moment was no different from a devil who would bring him death.
And the devil in his eyes was rapidly approaching him. In the dim underwater light, he saw those devouring Golden Eyes. That color of hell, coupled with the Emperor echoing in his mind, made him frantically swim towards the serpent's head.
But then a short knife pierced his back.
Just before dying, he suddenly smiled with relief.
Ha, what a crappy piece of intelligence. The S-class's partner is also more than just A-class level.
Zero abandoned the corpse in front of her and looked up at Lu Mingfei, who was floating above. She wasn't sure how to comfort the boy who had killed someone; she was never good at comforting people, so she could only watch silently, expressing her trust and support for him.
Lu Mingfei was trembling all over. Only after a series of actions did he realize he had killed someone.
There was no urge to vomit, just disbelief. He looked down at his hands; a smear of red was on the muzzle of the SSP-1, and the corpse was still floating in his line of sight.
In his panic, he saw Zero's gaze—no blame, no fear.
It was still the usual feeling, unchanged by his act of killing. Trust was conveyed in her slightly cold eyes.
Lu Mingfei slowly swam towards Zero.
His heart was pounding fiercely now. His mind had been almost blank the moment he fired, and his hands were still trembling.
I must change my mindset as quickly as possible. I am not an ordinary college student; the university I attend teaches hybrids how to slay dragons. The society I will face is full of hybrids. I must adapt quickly to life-and-death battles where I stand alone.
Just then, Zero swam over and embraced Lu Mingfei, one hand gently stroking the back of his head.
She said nothing, but Lu Mingfei could feel that this was Zero's comfort.
"Thank you," he whispered.
After a brief embrace, the two quickly separated. They didn't have much time; the previous battle had consumed a lot of oxygen. They had to make a choice quickly: continue to explore deeper or immediately surface to deal with the enemies on the Moniyahe.
Lu Mingfei's gaze swept around. Since the divination had given him a hint to find 13, it meant 13 must also be underwater, most likely with the stowaways. Since two people had shown up here, it meant 13 wouldn't be far from them.
The group's goal must be the same.
He wanted to make one last attempt to see if he could find 13 and follow the path of the best omen. If there was no chance, he would listen to Zero's opinion.
13 was the chosen one by the divination, and Zero's background was much more mysterious than he had imagined. It wasn't a bad thing for a novice like him, with little experience, to listen to Zero's words.
Just then, as Lu Mingfei was about to force open a door to draw out 13, a dark shadow suddenly appeared in his peripheral vision. He turned his head and saw it near the bronze wall.
13?
Lu Mingfei wondered about the person's identity. The fact that they hadn't acted meant there was still room for negotiation. Just as he was about to chase after them, a gunshot made him stop.
Zero had fired. The 50-meter distance was just right; the bullet hit the person squarely in the back. A large number of bubbles gushed from the ruptured area in their back. The person immediately lost strength, their legs seemed to become useless, and death was approaching step by step.
The frogman completely lost strength upon reaching his destination and could only sink, and sink further, becoming one of the piles of white bones.
Lu Mingfei looked at Zero, letting out a sigh of relief. He had been distracted by the best omen just now, to the point that even his basic vigilance had disappeared. Even if the other party hadn't attacked him immediately, he shouldn't have let his guard down.
One should not harbor malicious intent, but one must guard against the malicious intent of others.
"Thank you," he said.
Zero made an underwater gesture, meaning something like, "You're welcome."
But what they didn't notice was that as the frogman's corpse fell, a miniature snake-man statue stood on a bronze rod. The broken air tank, by ill luck, got stuck in this lever. As the corpse sank, it also pulled the bronze rod.
And so, Lu Mingfei and Zero simultaneously heard a click of gears turning.
In the lowest level of the palace, in front of a giant dark shadow bound by bronze chains, a bubble appeared, followed by countless surging bubbles. The ferocious face under the bronze mask twitched, and the scale-covered eyes opened. A golden shimmer, like the outer flame of fire, ignited the river water. All the liquid around him boiled, and the alchemy array beneath him emitted a red glow like molten lava.
The bronze chains melted.
The monster from thousands of years ago awakened.
He roared, smashing through the bronze gate, intent on bringing sin and punishment to those who trespassed his royal hall, initiating a bloody revenge.