I am the Clone of a Death Row Inmate

Chapter 37: Chapter 37: One-Shot Kill

The moment Feng Bqing appeared, Li Gaojie refrained from activating his own light of evolution, instead concealing his figure as he crept toward Liou Wenxin.

But Li Gaojie never imagined that Feng Bqing had actually lost his mind!

In his mind, a Saint-level expert should have been guaranteed to win.

Feng Bqing’s departure had left Li Gaojie completely on the defensive. His only option now was to take a desperate gamble: hold Liou Wenxin hostage. That way, the others would hesitate to act, giving him a chance to survive.

Based on his observations, Liou Wenxin had no combat ability, and Su Ze, the man beside her, was just some pretty boy who relied on artifacts. If he could end the fight quickly—by killing or repelling Su Ze—he could easily get control of Liou Wenxin.

The only thing he had to be wary of was that skull-shaped, psychic-attack artifact.

Seeing Li Gaojie lunging at them, Su Ze reacted just as quickly, flashing in front of Liou Wenxin to shield her.

Su Ze met him head-on with a Rhino Charge, showing no intention of backing down.

At best, Li Gaojie’s strength was comparable to Gao Long’s. Su Ze had been able to kill Gao Long in a single blow before, and now that he had the Regeneration Body skill, his power had improved even further. There was no reason to fear someone like Li Gaojie.

Whether it was explosive power or recovery, Su Ze was confident he had the upper hand.

”You’re courting death!”

Li Gaojie roared, unleashing his strongest attack. He formed his hand into a claw and lunged for Su Ze’s heart.

His hand seemed to transform into a wolf’s head, its bloody maw gaping wide as it lunged at Su Ze. Even the wind it stirred up sounded like a wolf’s howl.

Su Ze didn’t defend or retreat. He, too, used his strongest attack: a combination of Ant Power and ”Needle Strike,” stabbing a single finger toward Li Gaojie.

The piercing nature of the Needle Strike allowed Su Ze’s attack to instantly run through Li Gaojie’s body.

With this strike, Su Ze deliberately avoided Li Gaojie’s heart, instead piercing through his abdomen and shattering his spine.

Li Gaojie’s attack was a step too slow. The excruciating pain of being impaled sent his hand off course, and he struck Su Ze’s left chest instead.

With a sharp CRACK, intense pain flared in his left chest. Su Ze could clearly feel that two of his ribs were broken. ’But it doesn’t matter,’ he thought. ’This is a good chance to test the Self-Healing Ability of my Regeneration Body.’

Li Gaojie was in a much worse state. He staggered back a few steps, unable to even keep his balance, before Su Ze kicked him to the ground.

The fight was over in a single exchange.

The few who had witnessed the fight were dumbfounded. The four Hunters stared at Su Ze, re-evaluating him. The eyes of all of them, including the two Cocoon Stage Hunters, were filled with utter shock.

Li Gaojie, with a commission of fifty thousand, was defeated in a single blow by Su Ze, who only had a commission of ten thousand?

Although Su Ze had performed exceptionally during the beast horde’s attack, they had believed it was only because he was relying on the power of an artifact. They hadn’t acknowledged his personal strength.

But now, without relying on any external aid, Su Ze had incapacitated Li Gaojie in a single move using his own raw power. Such strength absolutely made him a powerhouse among those in the Pupa Stage!

Moreover, as far as they knew, Su Ze had only just entered the Pupa Stage. Li Gaojie, on the other hand, was at the peak of the Pupa Stage. He had absorbed three vials of Tier-2 extract and was on the verge of breaking through to the Cocoon Stage. And yet, someone that powerful had been defeated by Su Ze in a single blow.

If Su Ze reached the peak of the Pupa Stage, just how strong would he become?

Fight someone in the Cocoon Stage?

Even Mrs. Yun and Liou Wenxin, who had long known Su Ze was strong, were shaken to the core now that they had truly seen him in action.

The two of them were worldly and experienced, so the strength Su Ze displayed wasn’t enough to overly shock them. But when they considered his age... seventeen! That was what was truly terrifying.

It meant Su Ze possessed enormous potential, enough to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the top geniuses of the Six Nations.

Su Ze himself, however, didn’t think it was anything special.

’Strong?’

’I paid for this strength!’

’Just think about how much all the extracts I’ve absorbed and potions I’ve consumed cost.’

’Not to mention, the value of a skill like Divine Grace of Evolution is immeasurable.’

Su Ze planted a foot on Li Gaojie’s chest. ”Talk. Who sent you?”

Anyone could see that Su Ze could have delivered a fatal blow just now but had intentionally left Li Gaojie alive, precisely so he could interrogate him.

The others snapped back to their senses and gathered around. Mrs. Yun, though her back was stooped and her steps faltering, still dutifully shielded Liou Wenxin behind her.

All eyes were on Li Gaojie.

Coughing up blood, Li Gaojie sneered back, ”And why... COUGH... why should I tell you?”

”Honestly, it doesn’t really matter whether you talk or not. We’re safe now, anyway.”

Su Ze shrugged, his expression nonchalant. ”I’m only asking to satisfy my own curiosity. If you’re willing to talk, I’ll give you a quick death in return.”

Knowing he couldn’t escape death, Li Gaojie didn’t bother acting tough. Spitting up blood, he haltingly explained what had happened.

It turned out that not long after Liou Wenxin had posted the escort mission at the Black and White Bar, someone had approached Li Gaojie and Gao Long. It was the same man in a suit who had previously lured the beast horde to attack them.

The man in the suit wanted Li Gaojie and Gao Long to infiltrate Liou Wenxin’s escort team and report their route and other information back to him.

Unable to refuse the generous payment the man offered, Li Gaojie and Gao Long had conspired together. They agreed that Gao Long would join the escort team as the inside man, while Li Gaojie would secretly trail the group.

That way, even if security was tight and Gao Long couldn’t easily pass along information, Li Gaojie would be their insurance policy, able to contact the man in the suit at any time.

To ensure Li Gaojie wouldn’t be discovered while tailing the team, Gao Long had agreed to lend him his Tier-1 artifact, ”Traceless Walker.”

They had arranged to meet at the Black and White Bar the next morning, where Gao Long would hand over the Traceless Walker. But Li Gaojie never expected Gao Long to stand him up.

As the escort team was about to depart and Gao Long still hadn’t appeared, Li Gaojie grew anxious. He had no choice but to join the team himself, using a trip to the bathroom as an excuse to send a message to the man in the suit.

”And Feng Bqing? Was he one of yours, too?” Su Ze asked, frowning.

”I... I don’t know. After the beast horde retreat...ed, I was going to leave, COUGH, but he sent me another message... told me to stay with the team... and keep feeding him information. He said he’d give me dou... double the pay... if I could capture...”

From Li Gaojie’s halting story, Su Ze and the others learned that the man in the suit had promised him a vial of Tier-3 S-Class extract as a reward if he could capture Liou Wenxin. For Li Gaojie, who was on the verge of his second evolution into the Cocoon Stage, this was an irresistible temptation.

On top of that, there was Feng Bqing’s appearance. Li Gaojie didn’t know if Feng Bqing was working with the man in the suit. If he wasn’t, then once Feng Bqing made his move, he probably wouldn’t leave anyone alive.

That’s why he had resolved to make a move on Liou Wenxin. If he could get her under his control, he could use her to curry favor with Feng Bqing and beg for his life.

He just never imagined that Feng Bqing would lose.

At this point, Li Gaojie’s eyes filled with regret. If he had just known when to quit while he was ahead and hadn’t been so greedy, he wouldn’t have ended up like this.

From Li Gaojie’s confession, it was impossible to tell whether Feng Bqing had found them on his own or had received information from the man in the suit.

Seeing that there was nothing more to be learned, Su Ze gave him a quick end.

This was the second time he had killed someone with his own hands, and Su Ze was already much more accustomed to it. In this world, he had to adapt.

”Let’s go. We’ll try to get out of the Black Rock Mountain Range before dawn.”

After finding no decent loot on Li Gaojie’s body, Su Ze urged everyone to get moving.

By now, his broken ribs had mostly healed. The Self-Healing Ability of his Regeneration Body was incredibly effective.

He took the initiative to carry the injured Mrs. Yun on his back. As he did, he exchanged a look with Liou Wenxin, who was walking beside him. Their eyes conveyed a great deal.

Over the course of their journey, their trust in each other had deepened, but so had their questions.

They needed to have an honest conversation.

However, with other people still in the group, it wasn’t the right time to lay their cards on the table.