Chapter 101: Stalling for Time

At this moment.A squad leader-level Aberrant Purge Division member.

The communicator hanging on his chest emitted an urgent report: "Aberrants holding hostages found in the parking lot, requesting backup!"

Su Zhan frowned.

Although he really wanted to know what was happening upstairs.

He also knew that level of combat was beyond his participation.

And as a student of Vermilion Bird Academy, it would be somewhat inappropriate not to help when encountering this situation.

He genuinely wanted to be a good citizen now!

So he immediately turned and rushed toward the underground parking lot.

Reaching the entrance.

He immediately heard crying and roaring coming from inside.

Su Zhan looked up.

In the dim parking lot, three aberrations were holding over a dozen panicked employees hostage, using them as human shields.

Clearly, they believed that rather than waiting to be captured inside the building, it was better to fight for a chance to escape now.

The three aberrations had already partially mutated.

One had arms transformed into bone blades.

Another had arms turned into thorn-covered tentacles.

The last one was covered entirely in gray-white keratin, including his head, as if wearing bone armor.

Aberrant Purge Division members had blocked the exit, but hindered by the hostages, didn't dare to attack rashly.

"Step back! Or I'll kill them!"

The Bone-Blade Aberrant roared fiercely, pressing his blade against a female employee's throat, blood already seeping out.

"You can't escape."

The squad leader said coldly: "The entire building is locked down. Surrender is your only way out."

"Way out?"

The Thorn Aberrant sneered viciously: "To be captured by you and tortured to death?"

His thorny tentacle wrapped around a middle-aged male employee's neck, slowly tightening, making the man's face turn red, almost suffocating.

Thorns pierced into the man's neck.

Blood sprayed out directly.

Within 3 seconds, his hands hung down weakly.

Excessive blood loss, dead.

"Stop!"

The leader immediately shouted to stop.

But the Thorn Aberrant hadn't ceased, his other hand still holding a female hostage.

"Please, don't kill me!"

The captured female employee begged tearfully, her legs weakening.

"Shut up!"

The Bone-Blade Aberrant shouted fiercely, then looked up at the Purge Division members: "I'm just showing you we will really kill people. Now, let us leave, otherwise—"

He slashed suddenly, immediately cutting open a bloody gash on the female employee's shoulder.

She screamed, almost fainting.

Su Zhan stood silently to the side.

After all, he didn't have any good solutions.

Judging by the three aberrations' auras, their strength ranged between low-risk fifth tier to low-risk seventh tier.

His current strength didn't allow him to eliminate all three aberrations without harming the hostages.

But if even one remained unresolved, hostages would definitely suffer.

At that point, any hostage deaths would be blamed on him.

This responsibility, he couldn't bear.

Not far away.

Lin Yu noticed Su Zhan had arrived, his eyes lighting up before he hesitated briefly, then crouched and approached:

"Big brother, what should we do now?"

Only then did Su Zhan notice this young man was also here. Hearing this, he couldn't help but chuckle wryly.

This young man was already like a desperate patient seeking any doctor.

He was indeed a Vermilion Bird Academy student, but he wasn't a god.

Their cultivation levels were similar to his—he couldn't possibly eliminate all three without harming the hostages.

So he could only say: "Follow your squad leader's commands."

"But Captain Chen told me to flank them and look for opportunities..."

Lin Yu's voice was full of uncertainty: "I, I've never operated when the enemy is holding hostages before..."

"Then go."

Su Zhan interrupted him.

Lin Yu opened his mouth, then finally lowered his head and retreated.

Su Zhan shook his head helplessly.

This young man still had too little experience, and his personality... was somewhat timid.

The squad leader of the Aberrant Purge Division, whom Lin Yu called Captain Chen, continued: "You can't escape. Even if we let you go now, the Aberrant Purge Division will hunt you down to the end!"

"Enough nonsense!"

The Bone-Armor Aberrant growled: "If you don't step aside now, we'll kill a few first!"

He grabbed a young male employee, his bone claw gripping the man's crown, needing only slight pressure to crush the skull.

"Don't be impulsive."

The leader raised his hand, signaling the Purge Division members to retreat slightly: "What do you want?"

"I've already said—all of you step back! Let us leave!"

The Bone-Blade Aberrant roared furiously.

The blade pressed another half-inch into the hostage's neck, blood droplets rolling down the blade.

Captain Chen placed his right hand behind his back, secretly making a standby gesture to snipers in the distance: "We can let you leave, but you must release the hostages first."

"Bullshit!"

The Bone-Armor Aberrant suddenly tightened his grip on his hostage's throat, gray-white bone claws sinking deep into flesh: "Do you think we're three-year-old children? If we release the hostages, would we survive?"

Crack!

A crisp bone-breaking sound.

The captured hostage convulsed violently.

The aberration intentionally only crushed part of his throat bones, making him suffer without immediate death.

"Stop!"

Captain Chen's temples bulged with veins: "We can negotiate terms!"

"Final chance!"

The Bone-Blade Aberrant raised his hand preparing to slash the hostage.

"I need to request instructions from higher authority!"

Captain Chen raised his voice: "This decision exceeds my authority!"

Hearing this, Su Zhan immediately understood Captain Chen's intention.

High-level awakeners like Wang Mingyuan and Qin Bai were still upstairs.

Right now, Captain Chen was buying time.

When those two arrived, eliminating these aberrations would be more than sufficient, and all hostages could be saved.

"Hahaha!"

The Bone-Blade Aberrant laughed wildly, slashing his blade—the hostage's ear flew off with blood: "Waiting for your two high-level awakener masters, right? You think we don't know those two are upstairs?

Starting now, we kill one every ten seconds!"

"Ten!"

The Bone-Armor Aberrant crushed his hostage's arm.

"Nine!"

Another female employee had her thigh slashed open by the bone blade.

"Eight!"

The thorn tentacle wrapped around a bespectacled young man and slammed him hard against a concrete pillar.

They weren't delivering fatal blows yet, but were using actions to show everyone.

If their demands weren't met within 10 seconds, they would truly start killing.

The hostages' emotions completely collapsed at this moment.

"Please! Just let them go!"

"Officers! I have an 80-year-old mother at home! And a 3-year-old child! You can't use our lives as bargaining chips!"

"Isn't the Aberrant Purge Division supposed to protect citizens?! Are you going to let us die here?!"

"Just agree already!"

"Do you need to see us dead before you'll act?!"

Captain Chen gritted his teeth, eyes filled with struggle.

Behind every screaming hostage was a complete family.

One death meant one shattered family.

...

"One!"

The bone blade rose high, aimed at a little girl's crown.

"LET THEM THROUGH!!!"

Captain Chen roared: "Everyone clear the passage!"

The Aberrant Purge Division members gritted their teeth, eyes filled with anger, but completely helpless.

Soon.

The Purge Division members began removing barricades.

"Good, the correct choice."

The Bone-Blade Aberrant laughed.