Chapter 30: Gloomy Phantom City Arc (7)
Chapter 30: Gloomy Phantom City Arc (7)
The police station had no power, so no lights burned inside. But the darkness wasn’t absolute. Moonlight filtered through iron bars and shattered windows, casting faint illumination across certain areas. It wasn’t much—just enough to keep Feng Bu Jue from stumbling blindly. Most of the building remained pitch-black.
Feng Bu Jue had sprinted through the initial stretch of the station, partly to prevent the bloodless corpse from circling back and partly because that corridor was relatively lit by light pouring through wall gaps. The first floor was expansive, but with so few illuminated spots, locating the staircase to the second floor proved difficult. He groped through the gloom, opening every door and rummaging through unlocked drawers, finding nothing useful.
His other senses sharpened as his vision failed him. Soon, he caught a pungent scent—thick, metallic blood.
Following the stench, he reached a dark corner. His hand brushed something sticky on the wall. Tracing downward, he felt something… like bone? Rotten flesh?
“Hmm… Head’s been twisted off,” Feng Bu Jue muttered, realizing he’d found a corpse. His fingers pressed against an exposed cervical vertebra.
“I thought the whole city was empty of both living and dead… But this station’s hiding something.”
Unfazed, he continued his search. Not to identify the corpse’s gender, but to determine its occupation by clothing. Soon, he found shoulder insignia—a police uniform. He began patting down the body.
Seconds later, he located a holster—empty. Tracing the corpse’s arm to its hand, he found a pistol clutched in its right fist.
[Item: M1911A1 Pistol]
[Type: Weapon]
[Quality: Common]
[Attack Power: Moderate]
[Attribute: None]
[Special Effect: None]
[Equippable With: Shooting Proficiency F / Mechanics Proficiency F]
[Note: This isn’t a movie. Remember three things: 1) Disengage the safety before firing. 2) Brace for recoil. 3) Don’t forget to load bullets.]
Feng Bu Jue stashed the gun and resumed his search. He found a flashlight on the corpse’s belt, but when he switched it on, no light emerged. A broken lens explained why.
Sighing, he pocketed the useless device. Compared to the pistol, the flashlight would’ve been more practical. The corpse itself was a warning—why had this officer been decapitated despite holding a gun? Clearly, bullets alone couldn’t stop the bloodless corpse.
With the flashlight broken, Feng Bu Jue relied on touch again. He found only a set of keys in the corpse’s pocket. Time was short—the others outside couldn’t hold much longer. Even if the pistol wasn’t a guaranteed solution, it was better than nothing. Ranged weapons gave them an edge. Alone, the officer had failed, but with three fighters—shield, blades, and now a gun—the odds improved.
———
Outside, Long Ao Min was nearing his limit.
Though his shield blocked every claw strike, his Vitality Value had plummeted from full to 64%. The bloodless corpse’s raw power was monstrous.
The fight had forced him backward, but he’d taken few direct hits. The shield absorbed most impacts, though the Ultron Shard’s “Refraction” defense only mitigated ranged attacks. Against blunt force, it offered no protection. Each blow drained his stamina.
The creature’s AI was simple—relentless claw strikes. No kicks, no elbows. Monotonous, but deadly. Five Long Ao Mins wouldn’t have lasted otherwise. Worse, the monster fixated on targets. Even as Wang Tan Zhi harassed it, the creature swatted him away half-heartedly or ignored him entirely.
This predictability emboldened Wang Tan Zhi to attack riskier openings, though his fruit knife barely scratched the surface. Long Ao Min seized opportunities too, landing a few pipe wrench strikes. Only one connected with the head—a glancing blow. Still better than Wang’s futile slashes.
Feng Bu Jue had chosen the wrench for Long Ao Min’s height. Only someone tall could strike the creature’s head with such a short weapon. At 1.8 meters, Feng and Wang would’ve been jumping at air.
Long Ao Min’s gamble paid off once—crushing the skull with a wrench. The creature roared, enraged, and retaliated with a sudden strike. Long Ao Min’s shield faltered. The blow sent him flying, his Vitality Value plummeting to 12%. He collapsed, blood spilling from his mouth.
The creature clutched its wounded head, howling. The wrench strike had hurt.
Gu Du and Ji Mo rushed to help Long Ao Min, but the bloodless corpse advanced. Then, unexpectedly, a shadow blurred into motion.
Wang Tan Zhi.
Silent until now, he vaulted onto the creature’s back, knees locking around its shoulders. Before it could react, he plunged his knife into the wound Long Ao Min had carved, twisting the blade deep into its skull.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
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