novelSusiti Chapter 24 Corrosion
Chapter 24 Corrosion
The camp was eerily quiet in the latter half of the night.
There was no wind. The torches at the camp gate burned straight up, casting a dim yellow light.
Wu Liu squatted in the corner of the barracks, leaning against the wall, and fell asleep.
The days of fright and exhaustion had worn him down. He dreamt he was still on the mountain, sitting on that large rock, surrounded by silver. Then the rock collapsed, and he fell—
The door opened.
Wu Liu's eyes snapped open.
A dark figure stood in the doorway. There was no sound, no breath, only a cold, metallic glint emanating from the figure's hands.
Wu Liu wanted to shout.
His mouth had just opened.
A hand covered his mouth.
It's very cold. Like holding a block of ice.
Then--
A flash of light.
At the same time, in the Liubaiying tent area.
Shen Bai suddenly woke up.
He didn't open his eyes. His hand was already on the hilt of the knife.
Something's not right.
There was a bloody smell in the air.
It's very faint. It's drifting over from the rear barracks.
He got up and lifted the curtain.
There was a person standing at the entrance of the rear barracks.
A man dressed in black. His face was covered by a black cloth, only his eyes were visible. He held a short knife in his hand, the tip of which was dripping blood.
Shen Bai and he exchanged a glance.
The man's eyes were empty.
There was no hesitation. No murderous intent. Only coldness.
task.
Shen Bai immediately understood. They were here to kill him.
He didn't move.
The man was also looking at him.
The two men, ten paces apart, stared at each other for less than a moment.
Then the person moved.
It was as fast as lightning.
It didn't charge—it vanished. It disappeared from the spot, and the next moment it was in front of Shen Bai. The short knife slashed upwards, aiming straight for his throat.
Shen Bai drew his sword.
With a clang.
The two knives clashed. Sparks flew out and landed on the ground with a sizzling sound.
The man didn't stop. The knife was blocked, and with a flick of his wrist, he struck again. The second strike was faster and more ruthless.
Shen Bai took a step back.
The second cut grazed his chest, making a gash in his clothes.
The man's third strike had already come.
Just then—
A streak of silver light rushed in from the side.
Old Ghost's Knife.
Old Ghost rushed out from behind the tent and slashed the man in the back with his knife. The man groaned and staggered.
But he didn't fall.
He turned around and looked at the old ghost. Then his chest lit up.
A pale silver light burst forth from his body and flowed into the short knife in his hand. The blade began to tremble and glow, like a red-hot iron bar.
Flow patterns.
Erosion.
Shen Bai and Lao Gui both took a step back at the same time.
The man raised his knife.
A silver light shot out from the tip of the knife, like a line cutting through the air, heading straight for the old ghost's neck.
The old ghost ducked to avoid it.
But the silver line took a turn.
Old Gui's shoulder was grazed. His sleeve ripped, and a bloodstain seeped through.
Old Ghost didn't make a sound. He gripped the knife tightly and continued to charge upwards.
At the same moment, on the other side of the camp.
Lin Yu also woke up.
When he woke up, the bed curtains had been lifted. A man in black stood beside his bed, his knife already brought down.
Lin Yu rolled away to avoid it.
The knife slashed the bed, splitting the pillow in two.
Lin Yu's silver spear was leaning against the bedside. He reached out and grabbed it, the tip of the spear drawing a silver arc in the darkness, heading straight for the man's lower abdomen.
The man leaped backward and dodged.
He dodged Lin Yu's gun, but not Lin Yu's flowing patterns.
Lin Yu's palm lit up.
A pale silver light shot down his wrist and into the gun. The tip of the gun began to glow, like a cold star.
He drew his gun.
It's not a tap—it's a scan.
The spear tip flashed, a silver light bursting forth like a line slicing through the air. The man dodged to the side, but not completely. The silver light grazed his ribs, and he groaned, staggering a step.
Lin Yu drew his gun and fired another shot.
The gun went straight for his chest.
The man raised his hand to block with his knife.
when.
The knife was knocked away.
Lin Yu's spear tip was pressed against the man's throat.
The man's eyes were fixed on Lin Yu through the black cloth. There was no fear. Only coldness.
Then his lips twitched.
Lin Yu saw that his mouth was chewing.
He's biting something.
Without a second thought, Lin Yu pushed the tip of his spear forward half an inch.
But it was too late.
The man's body had begun to tremble. Black blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, down his chin, and dripped onto the ground.
He looked at Lin Yu, and a slight twitch appeared at the corner of his mouth.
It looks like he's laughing.
Then he collapsed.
Shen Bai and Lao Gui were entangled together.
The silver light on the black-clad man's knife grew brighter and brighter. Old Gui's shoulder was bleeding, but he didn't back down. He gripped the knife tightly and slashed upwards again and again.
Every strike was made with all one's might.
Shen Bai charged in from the side.
A pincer attack.
The man's silver blade protected his front, but not his sides. Shen Bai's knife slid down his ribs, leaving a cut.
The man groaned.
But his flowing patterns are still there.
The silver light suddenly surged, bursting out of his body and spreading outwards like ripples.
Shen Bai and Lao Gui were both forced back three steps.
The man took two steps back to steady himself.
His eyes darted around in the black cloth, looking at Shen Bai, then at Old Ghost.
Then he made a gesture.
He threw the knife away.
He stood there empty-handed, his chest gleaming with a brilliant silver light.
He rushed over.
Shen Bai went to meet him.
Two beams of silver light collided.
With a loud bang.
The airflow spread outwards, bending the surrounding tents.
Shen Bai took two steps back, his arm numb. He saw the man's silver light surging, as if it would engulf him entirely.
Just then—
A gunshot flashed from behind the man.
Lin Yu.
Lin Yu's silver spear pierced through his back and emerged from his chest. The spear tip, stained with blood and gleaming silver, flashed in the night.
The man's silver light vanished instantly.
He looked down at the gun lodged in his chest. He stared at it for a long time.
Then his mouth started moving.
Lin Yu quickly covered his mouth.
But it was too late.
The man bit something. Black blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, staining Lin Yu's hand.
His eyes were fixed on Lin Yu.
It was still that empty, cold look in his eyes.
Then he collapsed.
Rear barracks.
Iron Shield stood beside Wu Liu's corpse.
Wu Liu lay on the ground, his throat slit, the blood staining the ground red. His eyes were wide open, his death unresolved.
Iron Shield's hand rested on the hilt of his sword, motionless.
He heard a noise and turned around.
Three dark figures rushed out from the shadows and pounced on him.
The iron shield was raised to meet the attack.
With his first strike, he felled one.
The second blow landed on the second person's shoulder.
The third man's knife slashed down from his left shoulder.
The iron shield couldn't completely dodge. The blade embedded itself in his left shoulder, striking the bone.
He grunted, and the knife slipped from his hand.
The man drew his knife and was about to slash again.
Iron Shield grabbed his wrist with his right hand. The two froze, their faces pressed together.
The man's eyes, hidden in the black cloth, were as cold as two blocks of ice.
Iron Shield looked at him and suddenly smiled.
Then his left hand—his severed left arm—suddenly clamped down hard.
The man was pinned down and unable to move.
Just then, Old Ghost rushed over from behind and slashed the man in the back with his knife.
The man fell down.
But the last dark figure rushed out from the shadows and lunged at the iron shield.
The iron shield was now without its blade. He dodged to the side, avoiding his neck, but not his shoulder—
The man's dagger pierced his left shoulder.
It wasn't cut in. It was stabbed in.
Iron Shield let out a muffled groan.
He grabbed the man's wrist with his right hand, dragged him in front of him, and forcefully strangled the man's neck.
The man's neck was being strangled, and he couldn't breathe. He struggled desperately, but the iron shield's arm was like an iron clamp.
Old Ghost rushed up from the side and slit the man's throat with a knife.
The person stopped moving.
The iron shield loosened its grip, and the man's body fell to the ground.
Iron Shield stood there, his left shoulder covered in blood. His face was pale, but his eyes were still bright.
Old Ghost looked at him.
"How are you?"
"It's nothing," Iron Shield said, "just a superficial wound."
His left arm hung limply, unable to exert any strength. But he didn't utter a sound.
Its daybreak.
Shen Bai stood in the center of the camp, looking at the corpses on the ground.
There were five in total. They were all men dressed in black, their faces covered with black cloth. Suicide squad members.
Lin Yu stood beside him, his silver spear still stained with blood.
Old Ghost stood on the other side, his shoulder wrapped in cloth, which was already soaked with blood.
Iron Shield stood there too, his left shoulder bandaged, the bandage soaked in blood.
Chen Qingzhi squatted on the ground to examine the body.
He turned one of the assassins' faces over and removed the black cloth.
The assassin looked young. In his early twenties, he was fair-skinned and clean-shaven, and looked like a scholar.
Chen Qingzhi opened his mouth.
The teeth are black.
"They died from biting through the venom sac," Chen Qingzhi said. "Just like the previous two."
He stood up and looked at Shen Bai.
"Mission failed."
Shen Bai remained silent.
"Wu Liu is dead." Chen Qingzhi's voice was flat. "They came for this. To silence him."
Shen Bai clenched his fist inside his sleeve.
He looked at the corpses on the ground.
Five people. All five were corrosive beings. All were in their early twenties. All had blackened teeth.
"The Cui family," Shen Bai began, his voice low, "has a corrosive influence."
"Not only did they have them," Chen Qingzhi said, "they were even willing to use them. Five died, and they didn't even blink an eye."
Shen Bai remained silent.
He looked at those faces. Young, unfamiliar, and dead faces.
He remembered what Wu San had said that day.
"The Cui family is the one behind it all."
Now he knows what kind of people the Cui family are.
They are willing to use their own people.
They were willing to silence them.
They were willing to give it up without even blinking.
Chen Qingzhi squatted down and continued to search the corpse.
He pulled a piece of cloth from the arms of one of the assassins.
It's very old; the edges are all worn rounded. There are words written on it.
Chen Qingzhi glanced at it, and his expression changed.
He stood up and handed the cloth to Shen Bai.
Shen Bai took it and unfolded it.
The following words were written on it:
"Portrait of Shen Bai from Liubai Camp"
Below is a face.
Shen Bai's face.
There was also a line of smaller print next to it:
"Suppress all the eroded beings around this person."
Shen Bai looked at the portrait.
His face was painted very carefully. Even the shape of his eyebrows and the size of his eyes were clearly marked.
He looked at the line of text.
"Kill them all."
He tucked the cloth away and put it in his pocket.
"I understand," he said.
Chen Qingzhi stood still, without moving.
He looked at Shen Bai's face.
Shen Bai's expression remained unchanged. No anger. No fear. Nothing at all.
But Chen Qingzhi saw his hand.
The hand was inside the sleeve, clutching the piece of cloth.
Chen Qingzhi didn't speak. He turned around and continued examining the body.
Shen Anning walked out of the tent.
Her hands were covered in blood. Her sleeves were also covered in blood.
She walked up to Shen Bai and stopped.
Shen Bai looked at her.
"How many were injured?"
"One," Shen Anning said. "That new recruit. Liao Qi."
"How is he?"
"He's not dead. His intestines were pierced. I stitched them up. Whether he lives or dies is up to fate."
Shen Bai remained silent.
He stood outside Liao Qi's tent, not going in. From inside came Liao Qi's groans, intermittent, like a leaky bellows.
He paused for a moment, then turned and left.
Shen Anning looked at him.
"And you?"
"What?"
"hurt."
Shen Bai lowered his head and looked at himself.
There was a gash on his chest, his clothes were torn, but it was a superficial wound. There were also a few shallow bloodstains on his arms.
"External injury".
Shen Anning reached out and pressed on his arm.
Shen Bai frowned slightly, but remained silent.
"The bones are fine," Shen Anning said, "but the muscles are injured. Don't use a knife for the next few days."
Shen Bai remained silent.
Shen Anning turned around and walked into the tent.
She walked a few steps and then stopped.
"Your hand."
Shen Bai lowered his head and looked at his hands.
There is a black patch on the back of my right hand.
It was very small, like a burn mark.
He used 60% of the flow pattern.
Shen Anning looked at him.
"Seven days have passed. What exactly do you intend to do about the Cui family's matter?"
Shen Bai tucked his hands into his sleeves.
"Wait a little longer."
"How long will it take?"
"Wait for the next batch. The Cui family won't just come once. Next time, capture them alive."
Shen Anning glanced at him.
She didn't ask any more questions.
She turned and went into the tent.
The body was burned.
Liao Qi didn't make it. At dawn, Shen Anning came out of the tent, her hands and sleeves covered in blood. She didn't say anything, but squatted by the fire to wash her hands.
Nobody asked her.
Shen Bai stood in the center of the camp, looking at the ashes.
Five suicide squad members. Wu Liu. And one new recruit.
That night, Liubai Camp lost.
The mission was not completed. People were not saved. One of our brothers was even killed.
He stood there and watched for a long time.
Chen Qingzhi walked over.
"What should be done with the body?"
"It's burned. It's already burned."
Shen Bai turned around.
"rest."
He said.
"We will repay the Cui family's donations one by one."
The curtain fell.
The fire was still burning.
It was already daylight.
(End of Chapter Twenty-Four)