Chapter 152: Threat and Countermeasure

"No, please don't!"

Xue Feifei screamed at the top of her lungs, but it was all in place.

Right after being injected, just like the previous time, Tantuan began to scream in piercing agony even while unconscious.

"Ah, ah, ah!"

The cries were exceptionally harrowing, every single one of them feeling like a dagger stabbing straight into Xue Feifei's heart. Tears burst from her eyes as she completely broke down. Grabbing the hem of the raincoat-wearing woman's trousers, she pleaded, "I beg you, you can do anything to me, just stop hurting her..."

"Hahaha, hurting her? You foolish mortals, this is a precious treasure. We have to use it sparingly, and giving it to this little girl is already doing her a favor. How can you still be dissatisfied..."

The woman in the raincoat completely ignored Xue Feifei's reaction. Laughing hysterically, her hands kept moving, slowly pushing the medicine from the syringe into Tantuan's body.

"Stop! Let her go!"

Just at that moment, a loud shout rang out not far away, causing the laughing raincoat woman to instantly choke off like a stuffed duck, cutting her voice short.

"Kong Zhe..."

Seeing the figure appearing in the corridor ahead, Xue Feifei, who had already fallen into despair, finally regained a shred of clarity in her eyes as a weak voice escaped her lips.

However, before she could feel any sense of relief, she suddenly felt her neck seized by a hand and was hoisted up from the floor.

"Cough, cough..."

A sensation of suffocation washed over her. Xue Feifei instinctively began to struggle, her small hands striking repeatedly against the large hand choking her, yet it was all in vain.

That hand possessed immense strength, clamping onto her like an iron vise, impossible for her to shake off no matter how hard she tried.

"Stay back!"

The explosive man looked with strict vigilance at the man appearing not far away, tightening his grip slightly on the woman's neck.

"—Otherwise, I can't guarantee what will happen to her!"

The explosive man threatened with a ferocious expression, though in his heart, he desperately wanted to charge over and tear the man opposite him limb from limb. Yet, reason told him that if he actually did so, the one most likely to be torn apart was himself.

Behind him, the raincoat woman hurriedly sped up her movements. As soon as she finished injecting the contents of the syringe, she pulled out the needle and tossed it aside at random. Then, she too glared with intense caution at Kong Zhe not far away, exercising the utmost vigilance.

Aside from that bizarrely shaped weapon, this person could release that searing flame capable of harming her.

The agonizing sensation of her body being scorched by fire that day was still vivid in her mind. The raincoat woman swore she never wanted to experience it a second time in her life, instilling in her an instinctive terror of Kong Zhe.

Especially since tonight was the night of the full moon; because of the Boss battle, skills could be used freely even within the safe zone, making her utterly terrified that Kong Zhe might rush over to fight her to the death.

Subconsciously retreating a step, the raincoat woman quietly hid behind the explosive man.

Kong Zhe frowned as he looked at the two figures opposite him, then glanced down at the empty skull-patterned syringe on the ground.

Was that the injection Xue Feifei had mentioned?

No wonder Xue Feifei lost emotional control whenever she brought this up; even Kong Zhe felt a chill run down his spine just looking at the skull pattern on the ground.

It appeared the enemy had injected Tantuan yet again. Just what on earth was this substance?

Why on earth were they injecting it into Tantuan?

Kong Zhe shook his head. Now was not the time to dwell on this; the current situation was extremely unfavorable for their side.

Even if both opponents came at him together, he wasn't afraid. Yet it seemed neither of these two intended to fight him directly, choosing instead to use Xue Feifei as a hostage to prevent him from making any rash moves.

"Let the two of them go right now, and I can spare your lives today!"

Kong Zhe's mind raced rapidly. After a brief silence, he spoke in a deep voice.

"Huh?"

Hearing this, the raincoat woman on the opposite side let out a sneering laugh. "Are you out of your mind? Get this straight, we are the ones holding the leverage..."

Before she finished speaking, a tentacle suddenly burst out from the window beside her, piercing straight through her with lightning speed.

"Hmm?"

Amidst the splashing of water, warning bells sounded loudly in the explosive man's heart. The man before him was far too tricky to deal with. He refused to believe that the other party would appear before them without any backup plans. Indeed, those backup plans had now arrived.

Far more than a single tentacle had entered through the window; they had split into a dozen scattered strands, attacking him and the raincoat woman from every direction, with two even targeting the two hostages in their hands.

How could the explosive man let the enemy succeed so easily? Tucking Xue Feifei further behind his back, his other hand lunged to grab his companion.

Since he had remained constantly alert to his surroundings, he reacted almost instantly. Finally, just before the tentacles struck, he caught Tantuan from the raincoat woman's side.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

Successive explosions erupted on the spot, blasting apart all the incoming tentacles.

Others might find such swarm-type attacks troublesome, but with his explosive abilities, they were the easiest for him to handle.

As for Xue Feifei and Tantuan, because they were both shielded within his ability's protection range, they naturally suffered no blast damage. As for his companion, the raincoat woman... he couldn't care less about that big-chested, brainless female. As long as she didn't get blown to death, she'd be fine.

He had originally contemplated using the hostages to coerce Kong Zhe, but the moment he actually laid eyes on Kong Zhe, those plans were instantly thrown to the winds.

As expected, this man was simply too terrifying. The longer he stood in a standoff with him, the more dangerous it became, as unpredictable lethal traps could materialize out of nowhere at any moment, fatal if one was careless even for a second.

He simply couldn't read this man, so he had already made up his decision: forget about threatening the other party; the moment his companion recovered, they would immediately flee with the hostages.

Although sneaking away in such a defeated manner seemed somewhat humiliating, a gentleman takes his revenge ten years later; once they returned to headquarters and claimed their mission rewards, they would no longer need to fear this man, and revenge could wait until then.

Thinking this with a hint of smugness while keeping watch for a sudden strike from Kong Zhe, the explosive man suddenly sensed something amiss. A faint rustling sound came from behind him, giving him a jolt of alarm.

"Who's there?"

The man in the distance was still standing in place, unmoving. Yet while his entire focus had been pinned on that figure, he had failed to notice that someone had already closed in on him.

He only felt his right hand holding Xue Feifei suddenly grow empty. Turning around with a fierce roar, he caught sight of a figure completely draped in a cloak crouched low. The very Xue Feifei he had just been holding hostage was now cradled in her arms, while this figure's other small hand was reaching out toward the girl he currently gripped in his left hand.

A jolt of shock ran through the explosive man as he instinctively took a step back, pulling the remaining girl tighter against him.

One had already been snatched away by the opponent; this was now his sole remaining hostage. If even this one slipped away, he was truly done for today. Setting aside the organization's punishment for mission failure, the menacing man glaring at them from across the way would never let the two of them walk out alive.

A surge of anger welled up within him. Fortunately, this intruder had merely snatched a person; had she driven a blade into his back instead, his death would have been unjust in the extreme. The explosive man let out a cold snort, raising his palm directly toward the cloaked figure.

"Eek!"

Xiaolei admitted that playing the thief for the very first time was undeniably a bit of a thrill. However, looking at the towering figure before her with a ferocious expression on his face, she was instantly startled and instinctively wanted to close her eyes.

Yet, Kong Zhe's instruction instantly flashed through her mind.

"Never close your eyes during battle!"

Thanks to the training of that previous night, Kong Zhe's words felt as though they had been carved into her very bones. Confronted with this crisis, though her legs felt somewhat weak, she executed the most correct response instantly.

Mage Armor, Shield!

A transparent barrier enveloped her entire body, but that wasn't enough; she immediately retreated without a moment's hesitation.

Virtually at the same time, a series of violent explosions erupted right before her eyes.

A few seconds later, as the smoke and dust of the explosions cleared, the explosive man furrowed his brows. The two women had already appeared behind the young man, and judging by their appearance, they had suffered zero injuries.

"Cough, cough..."

Xue Feifei collapsed onto the ground, coughing violently. Her neck was bruised deep purple. She suspected that had Xiaolei not rescued her in the nick of time, she might have been choked to death right then and there.

"Feifei, are, are you alright?"

Worried expression plastered across her face, Xiaolei hurriedly supported her, patting her back to help her catch her breath. At the same time, she quietly cast a healing spell upon her.

Bath of the Moon Goddess. As an advanced healing spell, alongside restoring health points, it possessed stronger pain-relieving and stamina-recovery properties than ordinary healing magic.

A sacred radiance enveloped Xue Feifei, finally allowing her to feel a bit better. Yet anxiously, she turned her gaze toward Xiaolei and Kong Zhe.

"And Tantuan! Tantuan is still there! You have to save her!"

"Right! Don't panic!"

Xiaolei nodded hastily.

A wave of self-reproach washed over her. Such a pristine opportunity—she could have rescued both Xue Feifei and Tantuan together, yet her own hesitation had squandered it.

In truth, she knew deep down that now that the enemy was fully on guard, making another move would become infinitely more difficult.

"D-Don't come any closer, or I swear I'll drag her down with me!"

Seeing Kong Zhe display intentions of charging forward, the explosive man frantically tightened his grip on the girl while issuing a vicious threat.

"No, please don't!"

Overwhelmed with anxiety, Xue Feifei grabbed hold of Kong Zhe, terrified that he might actually rush over.

Seeing her tear-streaked face, Kong Zhe frowned.

In truth, moments like this were precisely when one must never let the enemy perceive any softness or hesitation on their part, lest it undermine their momentum and allow the opponent to push their advantage further.