Chapter 14: Saved Again?

"It's over!"

Most of Lu Li's focus was occupied by controlling his soul soldier; there was no time to accelerate his escape now. The soul soldier's heavy strike would not be enough to kill Chen Hao instantly. A desperate situation! In that instant, Lu Li even prepared himself for a fight to the death.

Suddenly, however, a flaming arrow appeared in his field of vision, striking Chen Hao’s shoulder with pinpoint accuracy! The surprise attack caused Chen Hao’s movements to falter for a split second. Lu Li seized the opportunity, advancing instead of retreating. If he couldn't hide, then he would fight until one of them died!

His right arm instantly transformed into a blade, striking in unison with the mantis soul soldier. Two soft sounds—*puchi, puchi*—echoed, and Chen Hao froze on the spot.

"Did I get him?"

Lu Li didn't dwell on his surprise; he hurriedly twisted his bladed arm and slashed horizontally. A massive gash tore open across Chen Hao’s stomach. Blood sprayed everywhere, and the man lost all strength to resist.

"Lu Li!" Xu Xiao cried out, sprinting toward him.

Only then did Lu Li realize that the flaming arrow had been fired by Ma Han. Had he been saved by this "saint" Xu Xiao again?

"Lu Li, are you okay? Are you hurt?" Xu Xiao scanned him up and down, her beautiful eyes filled with uncontrollable worry.

"Uh, I'm fine... thanks..." Although Lu Li couldn't stand Xu Xiao’s saint-like nature, he couldn't deny that without Ma Han’s critical strike, he wouldn't have been able to kill Chen Hao.

"What are you thanking me for? I told you, I’m the class monitor; it’s my duty to look after my classmates." Xu Xiao’s face flushed slightly.

"Yeah, yeah, the monitor is so concerned about every classmate, it’s just that classmate Lu Li carries a bit more weight, that’s all..." Ma Han leaned over with his hands behind his head, a teasing grin on his face.

"Ma Han! Stop talking nonsense!" Xu Xiao’s face turned even redder. To ease the awkward atmosphere, she looked toward Chen Hao. The scarred, bald man was surprisingly tenacious; despite the gaping hole in his stomach, he hadn't breathed his last yet.

"Wang Chao, do me a favor and go call Wang Xuyan."

Wang Chao trotted over, looking confused. "Monitor, you aren't planning to save him, are you? This guy shot Teacher He earlier; he doesn't seem like a good person..."

Xu Xiao furrowed her delicate brows and sighed softly. "A life is a life. Go on. If Wang Xuyan refuses to come, tell her I am willing to pay with Origin Crystals as a reward."

Wang Chao couldn't argue with her, so he turned back the way they came.

Xu Xiao still seemed uneasy, so she turned to Ma Han. "Ma Han, you go with Wang Chao. I’m worried it won't be safe for him to go alone."

Ma Han, who had just been about to sit down for a rest, froze. A meaningful smile immediately spread across his face. "Got it, got it. Then you take care, Monitor. It might take a while for the fatty and me—how about an hour? Should that be enough?" After saying this, he gave Lu Li a suggestive wink.

"Go away! Hurry up, or I’m afraid he won't be savable," Xu Xiao said, punching Ma Han lightly.

Only after sending the two of them away did Xu Xiao look at Lu Li. Her expression was strange. "Lu Li, was it you who killed Ying Zi'an and Tian Yuhao?"

Lu Li shook his head and squatted down beside Chen Hao. The man was foaming at the mouth with blood, his breathing labored. Yet, seeing Lu Li approach, he glared with wide, furious eyes, filled with resentment. Using the last of his strength, Chen Hao threatened, "Lu Li, is it... Heh... If I die, the Zhao family will hunt you down... *cough, cough*..."

"The Zhao family?" Lu Li blinked, his expression turning icy.

Seeing this, Chen Hao assumed he was afraid and looked smug. "That's right, the Zhao family! A player like you... is nothing compared to a massive power like them... I advise you..."

*Puchi!*

Before Chen Hao could finish his sentence, Lu Li’s blade was driven mercilessly into his mouth!

"Lu Li, you!" Xu Xiao stared at the scene, never expecting Lu Li to be so decisive.

Lu Li didn't look back; he simply spoke to Chen Hao’s corpse, "I won't trouble the Zhao family to come looking for me. I’ll pay them a visit myself one of these days!"

Only then did he turn to Xu Xiao. "No, only Tian Yuhao and this Chen Hao were killed by me. Ying Zi'an was shot to death by Chen Hao."

Xu Xiao was left feeling unsettled. Was it really appropriate to kill someone right in front of her and then calmly recount the facts? Could a normal person be this cold? At that moment, she felt that Lu Li was a stranger. It was as if he had been struggling in the dark apocalypse for a long time, rather than being a student who had just experienced the end of the world like her.

Ignoring the stunned Xu Xiao, Lu Li leaned over again to activate his Soul Devour skill on Chen Hao’s body.

[Consumed Lv.4 player soul. Soul points +8]
[Plundered ability — Bloody Slaughter (Platinum)]
[Retain soul consciousness? (Yes/No)]

Lu Li hesitated for a moment but chose to retain Chen Hao’s consciousness.

He was definitely going to destroy the Zhao family—whether it was due to the power struggles of his past life or the deep, blood-soaked grudges yet to unfold in this one. As a member of the Zhao family, Chen Hao might come in handy later. Even if Chen Hao refused to cooperate, he could always erase his consciousness then.

Next, Lu Li devoured Tian Yuhao’s soul. This time, there was no option to retain consciousness, and it only provided him with 1 point of soul power.

After looting the three corpses, Lu Li arrived at the treasure chests. There were two blood-red Slaughter Chests and seven pitch-black Upgrade Chests. Lu Li rubbed his hands together and, ignoring Xu Xiao’s gaze, opened them directly.

The seven upgrade chests provided him with a total of 14 Tier 2 Origin Crystals. Adding the 4 from Ying Zi'an, he now had a staggering 18 crystals. Even so, Lu Li didn't absorb a single one. He just shoved them into his pants pocket and approached the two slaughter chests.

Chests that had a chance to drop Mythic equipment! Let’s see how his luck was.

Lu Li opened the first chest with high expectations. When he saw what was inside, his expression immediately turned bizarre. There was indeed an item in the chest—an equipment item. But this equipment... damn it, something was wrong! It looked like... a skirt?!

Lu Li pulled the pink plaid miniskirt from the chest and, with a heavy heart, cast an appraisal on it.

[Item Name: JK Schoolgirl’s Tempting Miniskirt]
[Quality: Perfect (Automatically binds within 60 seconds of acquisition).]
[Function: When worn correctly, it unconditionally raises the rank of your talent.]
[Note: Art or vulgarity? I can no longer tell. I only know the moon is perfectly round; not to admire it would make me seem unrefined...]

This was completely inappropriate! Not to mention that the item was a miniskirt overflowing with a youthful, girlish vibe, even if Lu Li were a pervert with a cross-dressing hobby, this equipment’s function would be useless to him! After all, his talent, [Soul Devouring], had no rank. How could he raise the rank of something that had none?!

And! What was the deal with this "automatically binds within 60 seconds" crap?!

Lu Li frowned, his gaze drifting involuntarily toward Xu Xiao...