Chapter Thirty-Six: Bloody Battle (Part One)

2B bit her lip and stood up stubbornly, her breathing already erratic, but the blade in her hand once again pointed at Xie Liu. This time, however, her hand trembled slightly. Ace glanced at 2B, whose emotions were in disarray, then at Xie Liu, from whom the murderous intent had receded like the tide. A look of surprise appeared on Ace's face. “No wonder even 2B was caught off guard. How did you manage to completely conceal your presence?” As he spoke, he released his grip on Xie Liu’s katana.

Xie Liu withdrew his blade and retreated slowly, trying to distance himself from this man. “No special technique, really. I’m just naturally harmless.” Ace’s gaze remained probing. “You certainly seem harmless now. But behind that facade, you’re a deadlier assassin than any other.” Xie Liu just smiled, noncommittal, and once more raised his blade toward Ace.

“Oh?” Ace looked as though he’d found an amusing toy. “You want to fight me?” Xie Liu nodded. “You’re strong. I yearn to fight you.”

Ace turned his body sideways to face Xie Liu. “Then, as you—” He froze mid-sentence. Before he could finish, the cool-looking man in black suddenly turned and fled, shouting as he ran, “This one’s trouble! The wind’s getting strong! Time to scram!”

“You…” Even Ace was at a loss for words, watching the black-clad man run further and further away, his mind blank. “Do you have any sense of an assassin’s dignity?”

“You do, and that’s enough. I don’t. I was wrong, big brother! I’m just an extra, don’t involve me!” At this moment, Xie Liu wished he had two more legs. Was he crazy? This guy had just revealed his identity—the only S-rank special operative in the Special Forces League. Xie Liu’s brain wasn’t addled; he’d realized the truth the moment Ace caught his blade barehanded. If he went head-to-head now, he would die for sure, and it wouldn’t even take a second.

“Lishen, stop holding back! Deal with them so we can get out of here!” Xie Liu shouted in his mind. Just as his thoughts reached out, he felt a sudden darkness overhead. Ace’s slightly angry face appeared before him. “And someone like you thinks you’re fit for the Hunting Squad?” Ace sneered, swinging his palm at Xie Liu’s chest. Xie Liu tried to dodge, but Ace’s move was too fast. Before he could react, the blow landed squarely on his chest.

“Ever been hit by a train? No? Well, try being slapped by Ace.” Later, Xie Liu would joke with his comrades, but in that moment, he truly felt like he’d been hit by a speeding locomotive.

In an instant, all consciousness fled his body. Xie Liu saw his limbs flailing like strips of cloth, utterly beyond his control. The world before him blurred, as if dissolving into mist. Only Ace’s face remained clear, growing ever more distant. Then came a thunderous roar, and Xie Liu fell into darkness.

What just happened? was the only thought echoing in his mind. He felt like a corpse lying in a frozen wasteland, his limbs numb and cold. He didn’t know how long it was before a warm current began to spread through his body. There was a suffocating pain in his chest. He opened his mouth and suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

“Ah… It hurts like hell!” Xie Liu screamed, rolling out from a pile of rubble. He pulled out a piece of steel plate, shattered by the blow, from his chest. “They say anyone who walks this path gets stabbed eventually, but this is just ridiculous.” He wanted to keep complaining, but he could feel his chest caving in, the broken remains of his lungs crushed and oozing blood.

Xie Liu crawled out of the wreckage, his senses gradually returning. Only then did he realize he was lying in the corner of a building that had been smashed to pieces. He wiped his face and found not only blood in his mouth, but also flowing from his nostrils, ears, and even the corners of his eyes. That single blow had nearly killed him!

“Not dead? Tougher than I expected.” Ace looked at Xie Liu, who rolled out like a corpse, with some surprise. At that moment, 2B moved. Her blade flashed as she advanced toward the fallen Xie Liu, but Ace stopped her. “Go secure the target’s escape. Don’t waste time. The Hunting Squad is already on the way.”

2B shot a resentful glance at the half-dead Xie Liu, then turned and left. Ace looked up to see several people still locked in combat with Gong Hou and Lin Yang. His body shifted suddenly, prompting Gong Hou and Lin Yang to leap back and widen the distance. Only then did they notice Xie Liu lying motionless on the ground.

“Don’t worry about these people. Escort the target out,” Ace ordered A17 and the others. A17 asked, “And what about you, sir?” Ace’s gaze fell on Gong Hou and Lin Yang, who had already reached Xie Liu’s side. “I’ll keep these two company for a while.” Noticing 2B’s slight movement, Ace added, “Don’t worry, I won’t kill that one. He’s yours.”

Elsewhere, Gong Hou and Lin Yang conferred. “You get this guy out of here. I’ll hold off the enemy,” Gong Hou said. Lin Yang nodded, scooping up the semi-conscious Xie Liu. “Don’t touch his chest. His ribs are all broken.” Lin Yang’s expression was grave as he glanced at Ace in the distance. “You be careful too. That guy is dangerous.” With that, he disappeared with Xie Liu.

“Spatial abilities?” Ace didn’t look surprised, given he’d just encountered a time-manipulating esper. “Powers are entertaining, I’ll admit.” He thought for a moment, then turned his attention to the only remaining burly man.

“Surely you’re not going to run as well?” Ace sneered. Xie Liu’s earlier flight had lowered his estimation of them all to well below passing.

“Much as I’d like to, now’s not the time,” Gong Hou replied, shaking his head and spinning his battle-axe, whipping up a whirlwind before himself. “And since you dared injure my teammate, I have to hit back!”

“Oh?” For once, a trace of delight flickered across Ace’s face. “Good, come at me!” Before he finished speaking, Gong Hou was already moving. “Remember, I’m Lishen!” His voice and body arrived before Ace almost simultaneously. A hint of surprise crossed Ace’s calm features as black mist rose and he drew his blade, the Dark Silent, from the void to block overhead. At that very moment, Gong Hou’s axe came crashing down.

Gong Hou’s strength was astonishing—even Ace hadn’t anticipated its magnitude. As he blocked the axe, the ground beneath Ace’s feet caved in, radiating cracks through the concrete and snapping the steel bars below. The spider-web fractures spread outward from the two of them.

“Impressive strength,” Ace said, his face now serious for the first time. In pure power, he was no match for Gong Hou. “I take back what I said—there’s merit in these powers after all.” Gong Hou found the comment odd, but Ace spun his Dark Silent blade and said, “Again!” In a flash, his body blurred, appearing beside Gong Hou faster than the eye could follow. The black mist-shrouded blade cleaved down, sparking against Gong Hou’s armor. Gong Hou staggered back two or three paces, swung his axe, and struck back. The two exchanged a dozen blows in quick succession, each clash sending gusts howling. The ground at their feet shattered and split with every collision.

Lin Yang, carrying the gravely injured Xie Liu, appeared before Ye Ling. He set the unconscious Xie Liu down. “Treat him,” he said, then pressed his hand to his ear. “Spirit Ghost, can you check Deadeye’s injuries?”

“It’s not good.” Even Spirit Ghost put down his comic book. “Half his lung is gone, all his ribs are broken. He’ll need to reach a city hospital to survive. Lucky for him, his body’s mutated; any ordinary person would already be dead.”

“I have a Microstructural Regeneration Device. Will it help?” Lin Yang asked. He’d gotten it from Reiko Tongchuan and had been reluctant to use it. Spirit Ghost paused. “It’ll work. It’ll stabilize him within ten minutes. With his constitution, he should wake in fifteen.” Lin Yang nodded, flipped his right hand, and produced a palm-sized metal cylinder. Glancing at the unconscious Xie Liu, he muttered, “Don’t you dare die on me, you troublemaker.” With that, he pressed one end of the device to Xie Liu’s arm and activated it.

Seconds later, Lin Yang discarded the cylinder. Seeing color return to Xie Liu’s pale face, he breathed a slight sigh of relief. His task done, he picked up his lightsaber and stood.

“Where are you going?” Ye Ling, already terrified by the sight of Xie Liu covered in blood, cried out when she saw Lin Yang arm himself. He paused. “I’m going to hold off that man.”

“But you saw what he’s capable of! He’ll kill you!” Ye Ling’s voice trembled in fear. Watching Lin Yang’s slim figure depart, a wave of terror rose in her heart. Lin Yang paused at her words, then turned back, his face beautiful and resolute. “My comrade is still there. I have to go, even if it means dying.”

Ye Ling stood rooted to the spot, watching his slender frame vanish at the end of the street. In a daze, she looked down at the unconscious Xie Liu beside her. At last, her legs buckled and she sank to her knees, covering her face as she began to weep. “What should I do?”