Chapter 416: Chapter 32: Speed and Power
Red arcs flickered, and most of the remnants on the ground turned to ashes and scattered, leaving only one piece of the torso intact, from which the red arcs emanated.
"Injuries of this extent can be recovered?"
Olivia’s eyes widened slightly, finding it hard to believe the scene before her.
But the Ice Queen Olivia was not an ordinary woman; although surprised, she quickly accepted the situation in front of her.
The surrounding soldiers had consciously retreated. This was a battle between monsters, and they wouldn’t dare intervene, as they would die even if they were caught in the aftermath.
A dozen seconds later, Sloth’s body recovered.
"Fighting is so troublesome, I just want to sleep."
Although Sloth emanated a murderous aura, what he said was demoralizing.
Against an enemy like Sloth, provocation is useless; Su Xiao maintained his usual style: never wasting words and resolving the matter with the sharp blade in his hand.
His body leaned forward, and as he stepped on the ground, he charged forward.
Unlike Sloth’s imposing charge, Su Xiao left some room for maneuvering, always ready to respond to unexpected situations as he approached the enemy.
Su Xiao easily closed in on Sloth, given how fast the enemy was charging; he simply didn’t give Sloth a chance to charge.
Dragon Slash swept across, leaving a faint blue radiance in the air, dispersing after a short while.
Puff.
The blade cut through unhindered, and a thick arm flew up.
Sloth grunted, possessing strong pain endurance. The intense pain from burning 50 mana points was nearly torture, yet Sloth showed little reaction.
After taking a slash from Su Xiao, Sloth retaliated immediately with a fist the size of a sandbag hurtling towards Su Xiao; its speed was terrifying, to say the least.
Whoosh~.
The chilling sound of breaking wind arrived as Sloth’s punch tore through the air, something Su Xiao had only seen when the Spider Queen fired bullets.
He must not be hit; lacking an undead physique, a hit would leave him half-dead even if he survived.
But despite Su Xiao’s thoughts, the enemy’s fist showed no sign of slowing down; it even sped up.
"Shave."
In a moment of crisis, Su Xiao had a flash of inspiration and used Shave in the opposite direction.
Nobody ever said Shave had to be used to charge forward, retreating was also an option, albeit slower.
Bang.
Sloth’s fist slammed into Su Xiao’s chest, sending him flying back with a swoosh.
Boom.
A deep pit was gouged out of the iron wall, sprayed with splattered bloodstains.
Su Xiao slid down the wall, not falling down.
"This is not good."
Although Edward disapproved of Su Xiao’s style, they had a common enemy, and seeing Su Xiao "defeated" made him apprehensive.
In the original story, Olivia defeated Sloth using the cold climate of the northwest, but Sloth wasn’t using his full power back then.
In fact, even in the final battle, Sloth didn’t go all out, being too lazy.
But things were different now; Sloth sought revenge, and his hatred temporarily suppressed his laziness.
"Prepare to open—"
Olivia was about to give orders but saw Su Xiao standing up, which puzzled her. Her first thought was that Su Xiao might be a homunculus, but she dismissed the idea after a few seconds, based on the intel from the Fullmetal Alchemists that homunculi had high recovery powers.
Not far away, Su Xiao stood up, with blood dripping from his chin, a total of more than a dozen wounds over his body, and dislocated ribs, but fortunately not broken; his 35 physical attributes were not just for display.
"Peh."
Su Xiao spat out the blood in his mouth and shook his head, feeling dizzy.
His life value had dropped to 27%. That punch was indeed harsh; if not for his high stamina attributes and the life value bonus from his Spirit Shadow Physique, he would have been killed in one hit.
The opponent not only charged quickly but also speedily unleashed attacks.
Taking out an Intermediate Alchemy Potion, he drank it, and not only that, he grabbed a bottle of liquor.
[Rum]
Quality: Blue
Type: Consumable
Effect: After drinking the rum, movement speed increases by 15%, pain resistance increases by 60%, Power +3, Agility +3, Stamina +3.
Rating: 60
Description: Never provoke a drunk person.
...
He drank the rum in a few gulps, warmth appeared in his abdomen, and the oppressive feeling in his chest dissipated, with those wounds no longer excruciating.
"I was careless."
Su Xiao felt a little self-reproachful. Since entering the Steel Refinement World, everything had been smooth sailing, leading him to underestimate the homunculi.
’Battle lesson (Painful Edition): Never underestimate any enemy because of brief success.’
Although his body was in subtle pain everywhere, Su Xiao was smiling; this lesson came in time, and coming out alive was a gain.
His vision cleared up, and his life value quickly recovered to over 90%. The Intermediate Alchemy Potion didn’t have such an exaggerated effect; it was Bubu Wang who healed him.
Skill 3: Loyal Guardian (Active): Consumes 50% mana, restoring 60% of the master’s life value within three seconds, with a cooldown of 24 hours.
Bubu Wang was not just watching; it was always ready to support Su Xiao.
The wind pressure hit his face as Sloth, the speed demon, charged once again.
Su Xiao would not make the same mistake twice; he swiftly sidestepped, simultaneously holding Dragon Slash horizontally in front of Sloth’s charging path.
With a slick motion, Sloth was sliced into two.
Sloth, cut in two, crashed into the wall like two heaps of meat slapping against it.
Before Sloth could recover, the blades flashed repeatedly, forming a net that directly shredded Sloth.
Quickly recovering into a human form, Sloth, who had gradually figured out the enemy’s fighting style, started to fall behind.
Clang!
Blades lashed out, blood splattered everywhere, and while agilely dodging Sloth’s charges, Su Xiao left a series of slashes on the enemy’s body.
Although he was badly struck by that punch earlier, Su Xiao had the rhythm of the battle firmly in his grasp.
Sloth’s kill count increased rapidly, once, twice, thrice...
Ten minutes later, Su Xiao’s breathing was somewhat ragged, not because he was out of stamina, but because of the earlier heavy injuries.
The Dragon Slash in his hand emitted a bright blue light, a bit blinding; Blue Steel Shadow had been maximized for ten minutes, triggering the Magical Power Explosion Effect.
Sloth panted on the ground, his Philosopher’s Stone nearly depleted.
The blade swept across, the attached True Damage enough to astonish other Contractors.
"Dying... so troublesome, I just want to sleep."
The Philosopher’s Stone inside Sloth shattered, and without its support, his body gradually disintegrated.
[You have killed Sloth・Sloth]
[Sloth was a key plot character, gaining World Source 5.7%, bringing the total World Source to 28.3%]
[Your Talent ’Soul Eater’ activates, permanently adding 15 mana, current mana at 974 points.]
[You obtained Treasure Chest (Purple)]
[Achievement quest Conviction completed (5/7)]
...
Even after killing Sloth, Su Xiao still took out an Alchemy Secret Medicine and drank it.
This thing shouldn’t be used consecutively; otherwise, the effect diminishes sharply. If used three times or more, it may even become ineffective, requiring a few days to counteract the drug resistance; drinking a bottle every ten minutes is just right.
The nearby plot characters should not be trusted; Su Xiao would not entrust his safety to others.