The Creatures That We Are

Chapter 560: Stopping Point

The light element bullets still flying in the air turned into thin, narrow cones and shot toward Gao Yang. The hundreds of projectiles turned him into a hedgehog.

At the same time, a Black Gold dagger pierced through Huang Qi’s black heart from behind—it was the Black Gold dagger Lithe Snake had gifted Gao Yang.

Huang Qi threw up blood. Only then did he realize that he had been fooled by Gao Yang’s double again.

But...how?

He had been keeping his eye on Gao Yang. When did Gao Yang conjure a double and swap with it? He knew that while Gao Yang was swapping with his double, he couldn’t use another Talent, yet Gao Yang had continued to use Fire Punch until then; while the attack wasn’t strong, it was the skill he knew.

Realization hit Huang Qi. Gao Yang had hidden in the building on purpose, and he had been waiting for Double to cool down.

The Gao Yang rushing out of the window was already his double, while the real Gao Yang had been hiding throughout, not making any move.

Level 6 Double allowed him to sustain his double for 90 seconds, which would have 25% of his stats and could use his Talents to 25% their original strength.

The distance his double could teleport was shorter, and the number of times it could teleport in a short time frame was lower. However, Huang Qi had failed to notice all that since he was too preoccupied with shooting at Gao Yang.

To fool his opponent, Gao Yang had gone head-to-head with Huang Qi with his double for a full minute.

And indeed, Huang Qi didn’t suspect the one he was fighting to be a double for even a second.

“Fire Punch!”

Gao Yang didn’t think the stab in the heart would be enough to kill Huang Qi. While his mind was at its most coldly rational, he didn’t hesitate to shoot fire elements into Huang Qi’s chest through the Black Gold dagger, burning Huang Qi’s heart mercilessly.

“Aghhh...”

Huang Qi screamed in pain. Gao Yang didn’t stop.

Five seconds later, a small fire dragon growled and shot through Huang Qi’s chest. The man stopped screaming. The black heart in his chest was gone, leaving only a charred and gory hole, through which an expressionless Gao Yang could be seen.

He fell to his knees and toppled to the side.

Gao Yang went up to him to catch him.

—Deactivate Psychic Armor.

Gao Yang’s emotions and rational thoughts regained the original balance. He stared at the pale man in his arms, his hands trembling. He didn’t know what to do.

Huang Qi’s eye sockets were empty, and he bled black blood from his nose and mouth.

With difficulty, he moved his lips, extending a hand.

Gao Yang paused before clutching Huang Qi’s hand. It was cold and rough, like a stone at the bottom of a lake. He remembered that the first time he shook Huang Qi’s hand, it had been warm and strong, giving one a strong sense of comfort and security.

“...Was I...a good companion?” Huang Qi said weakly.

“Yes.”

“Was I...a good husband...?”

“Yes.”

“Was I...a good father...?”

“Yes.”

“Haha...” Huang Qi smiled contently, without regret. “I can’t walk with you further.”

His smile stiffened, and his hand went slack, slipping from Gao Yang’s grip and falling to the ground. The wedding band on his charred ring finger glittered under the crackling fire.

Gao Yang shook violently, his stomach twisting, overwhelmed by the powerful urge to throw up.

He laid down the body and blankly picked himself up.

He turned around and took a step forward, yet his legs were shaking. He was going to fall.

—Activate Psychic Armor.

—Seal all emotions.

His pale face regained color, and his eyes, which had become unfocused with pain, lit up again, his emotions calmed. His body stopped shaking, and his steps picked up.

He walked with increasing speed until he was running as quickly as he could.

He didn’t turn around.

...

Meanwhile, on top of the Green Mountain, the fire was blazing with greater intensity. At the entrance to the sealed tourist site, Xing Kong quickly jumped over a burning tree trunk to make it to the cavern Blood Amber was hiding in.

He came to a sudden halt.

A drop of cool rain fell on his nose. It hurt a little.

He looked up and wiped his face, realizing that it was a melting piece of ice.

Plop, plop, plop.

A localized downpour of hails rained down on him, which couldn’t have happened naturally in Li City during late autumn. It must be artificial.

Xing Kong narrowed his eyes, and indeed, there was a cluster of grayish blue clouds high in the sky, from where rain and hails poured down to douse the fire ravaging the forest.

There were two people amid the clouds.

Heavenly Dog hovered high in the sky with white headphones around his neck. From his left sleeve hung a sturdy white bandage, which was wrapped around a girl’s waist to hold her.

She was in her twenties, dressed in a loose witch outfit consisting of white shirt and red dress, her grayish blue hair in a hime cut. Her facial features made her seem aloof. Her skin was as fair as jade, and her figure was slim and lacked curves.

She splayed her hands, her deep blue eyes glinting as blue energy rippled out of her. She had summoned a hailstorm to put out the fire at the top of the mountain.

She was an Elite under Azure Dragon, now a Protector called Six Rime.

Six Rime’s Talent was God of Water, serial number 33, Element-type. With the Element Rune Circuit borrowed from the Twelve Zodiac Signs, her Talent had reached level 4 and then quickly went up to level 5.

A month ago, she also acquired Frost. She didn’t need the Rune Circuit to level up a Talent of the same Rune Type; thus, the Talent quickly reached level 5 too.

“Miss Six Rime.” Heavenly Dog’s teeth had started clattering. “It’s so cold. How long is it going to take?”

“Ten minutes.” Six Rime’s voice was soft like a young girl’s would, but her face was completely devoid of emotions like a robot.

“Achoo—” Heavenly Dog sneezed. You should’ve told me, and I would’ve put on a down jacket. Would I be compensated for catching a cold at work?

...

“Fuck!” Xing Kong cursed before continuing to rush to the cavern. He didn’t take more than two steps before he stopped again, however. Someone was standing in his way.

He took a good look.

It was a middle-aged man with a tall, wide, but lithe build, dressed in black shirt and pants that were easy to move in. On his back was a long blade, and there was a shortsword at his waist.

He had sunken cheeks, an unkempt beard, and messy natural curls. On his left temple, the word “tiger” was tattooed in green.

His dark brown eyes were on the small side, but bright and piercing, which marked him as a threat.

When he grinned, though, the killing intent he radiated instantly evaporated.

“We meet again, my friend.”