Chapter 140: Sound Waves

At this moment, the black energy surged even more intensely, making it clearer to the naked eye that those black fumes were not actual smoke, but countless tiny bugs just a few millimeters long. Each bug was extremely small, and when they crowded together, they resembled a dark cloud from a distance.

Every single bug was like the one previously on Zuo Zhicheng’s chest, each bearing a wrinkled, vicious-looking ghostly face. As they flew, the bugs screeched and hissed at one another, their combined cries resembling the resentful screams and furious curses of countless people.

From their appearance to their sounds, the swarm charging forward felt as if the gates of the underworld had swung open, releasing an endless tide of malevolent spirits.

But faced with this terrifying sight, Zuo Zhicheng did not even flinch. Calmly, he turned the muzzle of his gun and fired three shots at the charging Quinlin. Three blossoms of blood sprayed from the upper part of Quinlin’s body, but Quinlin reacted quickly. Before Zuo Zhicheng fired, he covered his head with his arms, so the bullets struck his wrists and arms instead of his head.

The bullets penetrated his flesh but were soon squeezed out by his muscles. The bleeding stopped, and the wounds began to heal.

Seven bullets had been fired, yet not a single opponent had been taken down. Still, Zuo Zhicheng showed no trace of panic. Without even glancing at the black swarm of bugs now just meters behind his head, he simply turned the gun muzzle again and aimed at Quinlin’s knee.

A gunshot rang out.

Even though his physique strength had reached an orange level, joints remained vulnerable spots and could not withstand the force of a bullet.

With a sharp crack, Quinlin’s knee shattered instantly, causing him to stumble and lurch toward the ground. But he reacted swiftly, thrusting his other leg forward, twisting his waist midair, and rolling as he continued to charge at Zuo Zhicheng.

It seemed he was completely accustomed to his Super Rapid Regeneration and had perfectly integrated this trait into his fighting style.

Yet as he rolled and lunged at Zuo Zhicheng on all fours, what awaited him was a flash of gleaming steel.

After firing the eighth shot, Zuo Zhicheng finally moved—just as the black swarm was half a meter away.

With his Infrared Vision, he had already discerned the flow of energy around Quinlin’s body, anticipating his movements a step ahead. He thrust his dagger toward Quinlin’s brain.

It looked as though Quinlin had thrown himself forward, offering his own head to the blade.

Quinlin’s vision was filled with the blinding gleam of the dagger. At the same time, an overwhelming killing intent struck him, freezing him to the marrow. Though he desperately tried to block the incoming blade with his hands, the distance was too close—there was no way he could react in time.

Like a final flicker of consciousness before death, memories flashed through his mind.

‘Alice and the other two, temporarily forced back by his artifact…’

‘Earlier, it seemed like I blocked his attacks with my arms, but those shots hit my wrists and shoulders. Now I realize—it was all to disable my arms, making it hard to defend against this final strike.’

‘After neutralizing the threat of my arms, he went for the knee. Only one knee, so I could still attack, leading me right into this last trap.’

‘Could he have calculated even this step? But how is that possible?’

‘From start to finish, was I his only target?’

In Quinlin’s view, he couldn’t see Zuo Zhicheng’s face beneath the hood—only a pair of icy, death-filled eyes gazing indifferently at him.

As if he were merely squashing a bug.

Such thoughts made Quinlin, hanging on the brink of death, feel something he hadn’t experienced in a long time.

It was so familiar.

Back when he was just an ordinary human, he had felt this almost every day.

The terror brought by bandits, armies, blood and fire, swords and blades.

After decades, that feeling—fear—had finally returned.

In that split second, Quinlin’s heartbeat almost stopped. But just as Zuo Zhicheng’s tactical dagger was about to pierce his skull, a shrill sound—sharp enough to pierce one’s soul—echoed in both their ears.

It seemed this was not destined to be Quinlin’s last day. Just as he was about to step into the underworld, the surrounding black mist trembled violently. Countless black bugs screeched and roared, their collective sound waves traveling at 340 meters per second toward Quinlin and Zuo Zhicheng’s ears.

Blood trickled from both their ears simultaneously. Under the assault of the sound waves, their movements lost balance, and they stumbled, falling in the direction they had been moving.

The tactical dagger merely grazed Quinlin’s forehead, leaving a deep gash. Blood gushed out, covering his entire face.

Though the wound was severe, as long as he wasn’t dead, for Quinlin, recovery was only a moment away.

As for Zuo Zhicheng, he felt dizzy, and his limbs grew severely uncoordinated. Clearly, the sound wave attack had seriously affected his cerebellum or central nervous system, causing imbalance and weakness in his arms and legs.

‘Didn’t expect this old man to be so troublesome.’ Zuo Zhicheng pressed a hand to his ear and temple. The dizzying sensation from physical injury couldn’t be overcome by willpower or physique strength alone.

He glanced with effort toward the four Ghouls. Alice and the other two Ghouls, whose heads he had shot earlier, were slowly getting up, their wounds gradually healing.

Quinlin, also affected by the sound waves and suffering from loss of balance, covered his ears and slowly backed away. But with his Super Rapid Regeneration ability, he was clearly recovering much faster than Zuo Zhicheng.

Seeing this, Zuo Zhicheng knew it was time to leave. He sheathed his dagger in the pouch on his leg and reached into an inner pocket.

The next moment, before the four Ghouls could fully recover, a massive, overwhelming black cloud swarmed in, completely engulfing Zuo Zhicheng’s body from head to toe.