81: Lao Qin, you did a great job.
Fang Bai was stunned by the scene before him.
The open space in front of the girls' dormitory building had long been dyed a viscous dark red. Piles of demon beast carcasses were stacked like small mountains, with severed claws and broken bones glinting hideously under the setting sun.
In the center of the mountain of corpses and sea of blood stood a figure whose clothes were soaked through with blood, making it impossible to tell if it was the demon beasts' or her own.
She stood there stiffly, her head slightly lowered. A few strands of long hair, matted with blood, clung messily to her cheeks, obscuring most of her face and hiding her expression. Only her forward-stretched hand, its knuckles white from exertion, gripped the head of the last demon beast beneath her feet with a deathly hold!
That hand had long since lost its strength, maintaining its posture only through the last remnants of sheer obsession.
The wind carried the stench of blood from the ground toward him. Fang Bai's throat felt constricted, and he couldn't make a sound.
He looked at the statue-like figure, his heart swelling with solemn respect!
He didn't know who she was, only that she was a venerable hero.
Fang Bai walked over. Without a doubt, the figure had long since stopped breathing. Likewise, all the demon beasts in the vicinity had been slain!
He shifted his gaze from the woman to the dormitory building behind her.
One could guess that, in her final moments, she had been protecting something.
However, the dormitory building had also fallen; there wasn't a single breath of a living person left!
In fact, the entire No. 3 Middle School had fallen!
This was Fang Bai's alma mater. He still remembered the image of the Principal and Old Qin smiling as they saw him off a few months ago.
"Is everyone dead?"
Fang Bai remained silent. He quietly dug out all the demon crystals from the demon beasts in the area. Taking one last look at the woman's body, he ultimately chose not to bury her.
A hero's moment of glory should be remembered by everyone!
Just then, a series of roars from not far away caught Fang Bai's attention.
He frowned and immediately rushed toward that direction!
...Meanwhile, on the street, the fierce battle continued.
Several Blood Ghouls were besieging Old Qin. His body was also drenched in blood, and even more tragically, his left arm was missing!
Old Qin's face was pale. Holding a butcher knife he'd found somewhere in his right hand, he stood before the demon beasts, his aura not diminishing in the slightest!
He could no longer worry about those students. Fortunately, except for the Blood Ghouls, the other demon beasts had been cleared by him!
"Cough, cough... It seems I'm going to fall here today..."
Old Qin coughed a few times, his face growing paler. The bleeding from his left arm had stopped, but it was still seeping. If he didn't receive timely medical treatment, he would eventually die from excessive blood loss.
Old Qin didn't feel the slightest fear of his impending death. Many years ago, he had already put aside concerns of life and death.
He used to be a Wall Guard. Every warrior who stands upon the wall has already accepted that they are effectively dead!
"I've lived long enough. Tsk, tsk, it's just that this year's bonus is gone!"
Old Qin laughed heartily. Then, gripping the butcher knife tightly, he walked step by step toward those Blood Ghouls!
"Roar!"
A Blood Ghoul struck first, pouncing straight at Old Qin!
A glimmer of light flickered in his deathly eyes. He skillfully leaned back and immediately slashed open its abdomen!
In the next second, Old Qin's figure blurred as he rushed toward another Blood Ghoul. With a flurry of slashes, the Blood Ghoul's body was cut into several pieces!
However, Old Qin was also struck by a third-rank Blood Ghoul's claw across his chest. A claw mark deep enough to see bone appeared, and he was sent flying over ten meters, falling heavily as the butcher knife slipped from his hand.
He was tired, so very tired!
His Alien Energy had long been exhausted. Even his current physical condition was just the residual heat after an explosion of potential!
The Blood Ghouls surrounded him, seemingly ready to feast on this powerful human. However, they were in no hurry, appearing to intend to toy with him first.
Old Qin lay on the ground for a good while before recovering a bit of strength. He struggled to stand up, his eyes bloodshot.
He seemed to have guessed the Blood Ghouls' intentions and grinned. "Do demon beasts play this game too?"
"Giving the enemy a chance to breathe is a grave mistake!"
His weak body suddenly erupted with an astonishing power. In an instant, he threw a punch!
A surge of majestic Alien Energy burst from his body!
It turned out that from the beginning, Old Qin had been avoiding using Alien Energy to build up momentum and accumulate power. At the critical moment, he would deliver a fatal blow to his opponent!
This strike was delivered with the intent of mutual destruction!
Boom!
A Blood Ghoul's body was directly pierced through by this burst of energy!
Old Qin also lost his strength because of this and collapsed backward.
Roar!
Enraged by Old Qin's sudden attack, the Blood Ghouls stopped toying with him. They only wanted to devour this human and turn him into their nourishment!
A hint of helplessness flashed in Old Qin's eyes.
This really was the end!
A Blood Ghoul leaped up, its sharp claws already reaching for Old Qin. Under this strike, he would surely be split in two!
Just then, a slender hand reached out from behind him and casually caught the Blood Ghoul's claw with one hand!
At the same time, Old Qin felt a warm, large hand against his back, and a sense of power stabilized his body!
Simultaneously, a gentle voice rang out: "Old Qin, you've done well!"
Hearing that familiar voice, Old Qin's blurred consciousness suddenly cleared slightly. He was somewhat surprised, as if unable to believe it, and slowly turned his head toward the owner of that hand.
In his line of sight, a face with a wide, toothy grin appeared. The youth was still as boyish as ever.
"Fang... Bai?"
Fang Bai grinned. "Yo! I thought Old Qin had forgotten about me."
"How could I..."
Old Qin chuckled. "I'll remember you swiping my lighter for the rest of my life."
Fang Bai: "..."
His right hand firmly restrained the Blood Ghoul while he chatted with Old Qin.
"Why didn't you run?"
"Run where? There are so many students; I couldn't just leave them."
"Your own life is what's most important!"
"You don't understand. Once you've experienced it, you'll know."
"Alright, I don't understand, but I respect it. But then again, if it were me, I'd have run long ago instead of losing an arm for nothing."
"Heh... I'll get an extra disability allowance in the future..."
"..."
Fang Bai's gaze swept over Old Qin's empty left sleeve, his eyes becoming uncharacteristically cold.
He didn't have many close friends, but Old Qin was one of them. To him, Old Qin was like an introductory mentor.
Finally, Fang Bai looked at the Blood Ghoul and said in a frigid tone, "You. Are. Fucking. Dead!"
Boom!
A terrifying power of lightning radiated from his palm!
In an instant, the Blood Ghoul was blasted into nothingness by the lightning!
The other Blood Ghouls roared and pounced toward him. Fang Bai said calmly, "Freeze!"
Swish, swish, swish!
From the shadows of the Blood Ghouls, tentacles reached out and directly restrained them!
"Today, every single one of you motherfuckers is going to report to the King of Hell!"