Thriller Paradise Chapter 171: The Protagonist's Onslaught (16) - Novel Cool

Chapter 171: The Protagonist's Onslaught (16)

Chapter 171: The Protagonist's Onslaught (16)

Meng Jing Chan swung his blade with blinding speed, his technique unpredictable and devious, pouring every ounce of strength into his assault.

Feng Bu Jue became a blur of motion, his blood shadow flashing as he launched attack after attack, his power clearly surpassing Meng Jing Chan’s.

Both understood clearly that against this derivative being, even with all their might, victory was uncertain. Testing and holding back were pointless.

Blows rained down in a deadly dance, but K3, fighting alone, defended flawlessly, showing no signs of weakness. In raw power, he doubled the strength of both combined. His skills were honed in life-or-death combat, and every battle had been a fight for survival.

The three fighters reached a delicate balance. The two players temporarily suppressed K3 with their relentless assault, but they couldn’t land a decisive strike. If the battle dragged on for a few more minutes, Feng Bu Jue would lose his combat effectiveness, breaking this fragile equilibrium. Yet neither had the capacity to shift tactics first.

“You’re a bit slow,” K3 suddenly remarked casually amidst the unrelenting exchange, “Not strong enough either.” His right arm erupted with energy, activating a localized air shield that sent Meng Jing Chan’s blade flying.

A sharp tingling shot through Meng Jing Chan’s palm, surging up his entire arm as the sword slipped from his grasp.

“You’re not bad,” K3 said to Feng Bu Jue, “but your combat experience and technique are abysmal.” He closed the distance in an unexpectedly simple maneuver, slipping into Feng Bu Jue’s right blind spot. His elbow smashed toward Feng Bu Jue’s ribs.

Lucky for Feng Bu Jue, the echo armor absorbed the blow. The spiritual sense body technique’s enhancement also allowed him to raise a defense just in time. Though the elbow strike sent him reeling ten meters back, his vitality value decreased by only 10%.

Of course, that 10% meant the spiritual sense body technique’s duration had shortened by twenty-five seconds.

“If you can’t do better, this fight ends now,” K3 declared. “I still have four more to handle.”

“A weakness after all…” Feng Bu Jue suddenly sneered, his gaze sharp and icy.

“What?” K3 asked, outwardly composed but inwardly uneasy.

Meng Jing Chan had already retrieved his sword, gripping his trembling right wrist with his left hand. Clearly, he hadn’t surrendered—this setback wouldn’t force his surrender.

“No matter how powerful a derivative being is, stamina isn’t infinite,” Feng Bu Jue said, regrouping and charging again. “Your protective air shield requires energy too. I’ve figured it out… Whenever you reach a certain consumption threshold, you unleash a move far stronger than your current level.” Playing cards flew from his hand one after another, forgoing combinations for simultaneous strikes.

“Killing your opponent is ideal, but even if you can’t, forcing them to retreat lets you recover,” Feng Bu Jue continued, rushing forward alongside the barrage. “Your stamina recovery rate defines your behavior pattern. The stronger your strikes, the closer you are to defeat. When you use your ultimate move, you’ve already run out of options.”

Let me explain—K3’s air shield was a passive defense technique. When hit by powerful attacks (a folding stool to the back clearly didn’t count), it automatically activated to neutralize the impact. Unlike echo armor, it protected his entire body, even against close-range attacks.

The air shield could also be activated actively, as K3 had demonstrated—localized bursts, full-body explosions, or amplifying ranged attacks.

But such a convenient and powerful ability came at a cost. When stamina dropped below 30%, the air shield’s passive protection disappeared, leaving K3 vulnerable. Hence, his combat style was to attack relentlessly before reaching that critical threshold, turning the tide by forcing his opponent to retreat.

Each time K3’s stamina consumption exceeded half, he unleashed a devastating strike. As Feng Bu Jue deduced, even if it didn’t cripple the enemy, it pushed them back, giving K3 a chance to recover. While players struggled with stamina depletion, derivative beings regenerated vitality and stamina at rates incomparable to humans—ten times faster, like cultivators absorbing spiritual energy from the heavens.

Feng Bu Jue recalled X-23, another Level-3 Derivative Being, who had steadily defeated Pan Fenghua without overwhelming power. Yet this opponent seemed absurdly strong, as if even a GM would fall in an instant.

But Feng Bu Jue had pierced the illusion—these were false impressions. K3’s combat style carried a deceptive advantage, making him seem capable of endlessly escalating his strikes.

“You’ve used this trick successfully many times,” Feng Bu Jue said as his cards struck K3 from all sides. Though blocked by the air shield, the cards glinted with spiritual energy as they slashed toward K3’s throat.

Meng Jing Chan reappeared, his sword aiming silently at K3’s back.

Clang—

The blade bent, but the tip never pierced the air shield. Meng Jing Chan’s strike had been his utmost effort. Though his vitality remained intact, keeping up with Feng Bu Jue’s pace had drained his stamina.

Feng Bu Jue’s card-wielding hand was seized mid-strike, the attack incomplete.

“Your ideas are decent, and the continuous attack strategy makes sense,” K3 said, his expression grim. “But your execution lacks.” With a twist, he tore Feng Bu Jue’s right forearm clean off, bone and all, blood spraying outward.

The pain simulation was extremely realistic, though dulled by the system. A full-strength simulation might have knocked Feng Bu Jue unconscious.

“If those two Gms fought me using your strategy, they might have a sliver of a chance if they were lucky,” K3 coldly added, tossing Feng Bu Jue’s severed arm aside. He kicked Meng Jing Chan in the shoulder, sending him flying backward with a spray of blood, crashing into a distant tree. “I told you—he’s not fast enough, nor strong enough.” His gaze returned to Feng Bu Jue. “As for you… you simply don’t know how to fight. You’re wasting effort.”

K3’s right arm flared crimson again, the scarlet aura surging forth like dark clouds swallowing the sun, devouring Feng Bu Jue’s blood-colored energy in an instant.

Feng Bu Jue’s vitality value plummeted due to the severe arm injury and bleeding effect, dropping toward 1%. The spirit sense body technique had only seconds left to hold. Whether the skills remained active or not, Feng Bu Jue had no chance of dodging K3’s next strike.

“You’re not even worth me unleashing my ultimate move,” K3 sneered, already charging his Scarlet Dragon Fist Flame again. “This punch I couldn’t land earlier? It’s more than enough for you.” He wasn’t wrong—if Feng Bu Jue hadn’t used that whip kick earlier, the fight would’ve ended already.

In this fleeting moment, Feng Bu Jue’s mind raced: Should I say something to transfer the Protagonist’s Grace away? Getting another piece of Equipment destroyed would suck… Or maybe just quit? I’ve fought enough. I already lost. I knew from the start I couldn’t beat him, but to go all-out like this and still not grasp a single chance… damn, it stings.

A dragon’s roar echoed. Crimson light blazed. The red dragon energy coiled around K3’s right arm, erupting from his fist like a tidal wave, hurtling toward Feng Bu Jue’s chest.

Feng Bu Jue’s first thought? Oh crap, is this gonna shatter my echo armor? I only got this thing a scenario ago!

Boom—

The energy slammed into an invisible barrier. But it wasn’t the echo armor’s sound wall…

【Your psionic weapon data has been updated.】

【Your item -500 has been consumed. Current stock: (19/20).*】

“What?!” Feng Bu Jue heard the system prompt and immediately saw the barrier—a golden phantom of a playing card, nearly door-sized, blocking K3’s deadly blow.

Death Poker’s special effects were threefold:

【Special Effect One: Infinite (Automatically generates one consumed card every five minutes, stopping at fifty-four total).】

【Special Effect Two: Combination (Enhances power when attacking with specific card suit combinations).】

【Special Effect Three: Spirit Seeking (The psionic weapon will always home in on the target the user intends to attack).】

But now, a fourth effect had just activated:

【Special Effect Four: Card Shield (Randomly consumes ten cards to create an unbreakable shield).】

Whether this was due to Feng Bu Jue’s increased proficiency with his psionic weapon or the Protagonist’s Grace forcing it, it was impossible to say… Coincidentally, after prior consumptions and now ten more cards lost, only one card remained.

What baffled Feng Bu Jue even more was the *-500 consumption—sure, it was a panacea, but it didn’t restore vitality.

“How is this possible…?” K3’s face twisted in shock.

Following his gaze, Feng Bu Jue looked down and saw his arm regenerating at an alarming speed—marrow, meridians, bones, flesh, skin… grotesquely knitting together, glowing with streams of jade light. The severed right forearm fully mended within seconds, though the sleeve of his shirt didn’t reappear.

So, the forced *-500 consumption had repaired his arm.

“You won’t just die, huh?!” K3 roared, his fury escalating. Ignoring his own stamina value consumption, he erupted with energy again, crossing his hands in an X-shape before thrusting his interlaced fingers forward, unleashing a net-like shockwave of force.

Since Feng Bu Jue’s bleeding had stopped with his arm’s restoration, his vitality value halted at 17%, sparing the spirit sense body technique.

The earlier Scarlet Dragon Fist Flame had created some distance. Feng Bu Jue now had room to maneuver, twisting sideways in an awkward but successful Kite Flip to evade the shockwave.

“Tch,” K3 spat. “Don’t think you can keep dodging forever. I’ve been watching you—your high-speed state won’t last long.”

“Huh?” Feng Bu Jue shot back with a cocky grin. “That’s none of your damn business… I won’t drop this state until I beat you.” Pure bravado—the skill would auto-deactivate in under a minute.

“Die!” K3 bellowed, lunging forward with three punches: heavy, fast, crushing. A trio of attacks blending power, speed, and energy—a balanced, ten-point combo.

【Your Equipment “M1911A1 pistol” has been destroyed.】

【Your Equipment “Eye of hostility” has been destroyed.】

【Your Equipment “Robot must die” has been destroyed.】

“Damn!” Feng Bu Jue blurted, not caring about the lack of witnesses.

This time, his vitality value didn’t drop—the punches were fatal blows, so they shattered his Equipment instead…

K3 had no idea the items in Feng Bu Jue’s satchel had vanished. He stared in shock at the unscathed figure standing firm after three hits: “You still won’t die?!”

“Die?!” Feng Bu Jue’s eyes blazed. In a flash, he yanked out the 【Mario’s pipe wrench】 and swung it at K3’s temple—

Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!

K3 took a beating, blood pouring from his head. He raised his arms to block, but they too crumpled under the strikes.

“Die! Die! Die!” Feng Bu Jue roared, raining blows. “Consumption too high in a short time? Huh? Stamina value below your shield’s threshold?!” He unleashed a flurry of wild, desperate punches, overwhelming K3 like a furious monkey mauling a master.

Stunned by the initial blows, K3 staggered backward, shocked that Feng Bu Jue stood unharmed after his three-hit combo. Retreating once, he found himself cornered, battered relentlessly.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end

Report