Doomsday Jigsaw Puzzle

Chapter 426: Chapter 43: Don’t Mess with the Ronin Who Has a Cat

(I can’t use extra updates for the Silver Alliance, progress is 55/100.)

Bai Wu didn’t delay, and the high efficiency of Zero also meant he couldn’t afford to be slowed down.

The cooperation model between the two had always been like this, one in charge of controlling the overall situation on the information level and issuing tasks, the other responsible for completing them.

It was like a dimensionally reduced Tang Jing and Zhao.

"It seems that this provocation is also bait, but the bait might not realize it’s bait, just like the Queen of Hearts."

Bai Wu was eager to uncover the several Ks hiding behind the scenes.

However, before several Qs were completely out of play, it would be difficult for these Ks to show their true faces.

But he didn’t mind.

Not long ago, Zero had used signal bandwidth feedback during the voyage, continuously utilizing Angel Envoys to act as "bats," and had already found the breach made by the collision with the giant cruise ship.

It was like establishing a sea route. Even though there were still Ks lurking around, Bai Wu had many cards in hand.

He also wanted to try his hand against a K.

The airborne vehicle mentioned by Zero soon landed, with the smiling face mask logo of the Zhao Family printed on it. Bai Wu had thought this was customized by Zero.

But when Tang Jing saw the logo, he blurted out:

"So Mr. Zhao has already contacted you?"

"Mr. Zhao? Which Mr. Zhao?"

Am I not Mr. Zhao? Bai Wu thought to himself that the identity Zero had arranged for him was indeed Mr. Zhao.

Tang Jing briefly mentioned Zhao, a man wealthy beyond many generations and possessed with a sense of justice.

He also mentioned the origin of Zhao’s mask, saying that seven hundred years ago, an ancestor of the family met a perfect person who brought the family some opportunities to become rich.

After a moment of reflection, Bai Wu caught on. The perfect person, could it be Bai Yuan?

That matched what Bai Yuan had said before.

So the identity Zero had arranged for him... was it that of Zhao? Well, now, it seems he had directly taken over the Batman behind his junior disciple...

He was keen to meet this Zhao, but with time pressing and the warplane already landing in the villa’s yard, the exchange with Zhao would have to wait.

Next, he would head for the distant Meinan. Bai Wu had a premonition that the ship... might not be the enemy of humanity.

...

...

Yuansheng Country’s maritime area, South Sea.

The sea area that was almost boiling not long ago has finally cooled down, and the violent ocean revealed its calm side.

However, the traces of gluttony from not long ago still lingered on the sea’s surface.

The wreckage of giant warships, various human items from shattered cabins, and crashed warplanes.

Some materials sank to the seabed, while parts that were lighter in nature floated on the surface.

There was no sign of human life.

Not long ago, this place merged blood mist with sea mist, and amidst the sound of cannon fire, there were human screams.

But now there was nothing left. If one ignored some debris, it was as if nothing had ever happened here.

In a while, the sea will have completely absorbed these remains, and it might be a very long time before human civilization finds these things in deep-sea exploration.

But stories of the sea are always unfolding.

The giant cruise ship responsible for all of this was headed towards Crescent Seaport of the Mainland Meinan Country. The accident along the way would become a story with someone’s arrival.

And in another part of the sea, another story was taking place.

...

...

Yuansheng Country’s maritime area, now the border of Susla.

It was at the place where Ark’s colossal wheel broke through Hei Wu, a young man floated above the sea, his expression one of contemplation.

He was an African American, from Fuyue Old Island. On regular days, he was a hardworking university student working his way through school.

But he had assumed many identities, by relying on a top hacker from the same camp, he had changed many identities.

His dark muscles seemed to contain explosive power. Standing over two meters tall, such a figure was rare to see, even on Fuyue Old Island—and he was that uncommon type of handsome African American that one could distinctly recognize.

Just in terms of physique, this was the near-perfect body that countless African Americans on Fuyue Old Island aspired to.

But it was precisely his dark complexion that made the tattoo on his wrist something people didn’t easily notice—

Club, Q.

Club Q stood on the sea, looking towards the gap in Hei Wu.

The monster invasion that had taken place in Aulora Manser City not long ago had already spread across the world within an hour.

In response, the proud Heart Q had paid a huge price.

And the hidden Spade Q had ignited the war between mankind and the cruise ships. As for Club Q, he continued his preparations for a Mechanical Descending God.

In Club Q’s view, all this was too arrogant.

The entity powerful enough to crush Heart Q—if not dealt with, or if certain possibilities were not sealed off, such sudden strong adversaries would only continue to emerge, endlessly.

Thus Club Q, who had always lurked in the shadows, decided to come and have a look at the source.

He was well aware that Heart Q’s preparations were extensive, that monster was powerful, and that outside Hei Wu it was unlikely to encounter such a formidable opponent, only Inside the Mist was it possible.

If he didn’t create some form of obstacle at the crack in Hei Wu, the very point where that gigantic cruise ship made contact with the World Beyond the Mist, and do it quickly—

Then it was very possible that more powerful enemies would emerge from within Hei Wu.

Club Q’s actions were undoubtedly correct.

He had also found the key to the problem, Hei Wu itself could not be sealed, but at least it could be disguised by some means.

Club Q thought so, and acted accordingly.

It’s just that his luck... or perhaps his fate, was not so good.

As he gazed at the gap in Hei Wu, contemplating why that ship could break through, during his moment of hesitation—

A wooden boat appeared in his line of sight, and the man on the boat looked travel-worn, yet clean.

The man on the boat had his eyes closed, as if he had a vision problem. On the man’s shoulder was a cat.

As the wooden boat neared the edge of Hei Wu, Club Q finally got a clear view of the man’s face.

In contrast to his towering frame, this Sheng Country man with closed eyes seemed very short.

Very short, and very frail.

As if he could die at any moment, his vital energy weak, as though he was always lingering at death’s door. Yet, he was always alive, seemingly stuck in a near-death state.

It was unimaginable that such a person could conquer the seas.

The man wore a blue uniform, which made him look like the leader of some organization, except that the uniform was very tattered.

Club Q felt much more relaxed in his heart,

Minutes later, the two men, a dozen meters apart, gazed at each other across the calm sea.

The so-called gazing was nothing more than the owner of the wooden boat, with his eyes closed, being sized up by the cat.

"This way is impassable."

As all the Qs were proficient in multiple languages and seeing that the other was a Sheng Country man, Club Q spoke in Sheng Country’s language.

As expected, the man on the boat nodded slightly. He seemed ready to change direction. It was the cat on his shoulder that appeared dissatisfied, meowing a complaint.

It was at this moment that Club Q had a thought and said,

"Although I have never met you and we have no grudges between us, you have come to know the location of this place. Even if you are blind, I can’t take that risk."

Club Q’s figure flashed, and he instantly appeared on the wooden boat.

Perfect Mutation Entry: Instant Presence. Perfect Mutation Entry: Extreme Iron Cutting. Perfect Mutation Entry: Rapid Transformation. Perfect Mutation Entry: Mimetic Camouflage.

Club Q was very powerful; he didn’t need to summon any monster because he himself was a monster.

Using Instant Presence, he made his way onto the wooden boat. His towering frame, standing over two meters tall, and the average figure of Wu Jiu, at a meter and fifty-nine, made the boat’s owner seem minuscule in comparison.

This person was indeed Wu Jiu.

After drifting on the ocean for many days, often losing his way in the waves, he ultimately found the right direction thanks to the calls of the cat.

Whenever he seemed to stray off course, the cat would get visibly angry, its tail erect, hissing at him.

Only when he made the right choice would the cat nod its head, sporting a look that seemed to say, "Not bad at all."

Of course, Heart Net could let Wu Jiu sense some things, but not the details of expressions.

At present, Wu Jiu was very weak, his body afflicted with various fatal conditions.

Yet, the presence of the cat ensured he didn’t die, his body keeping him alive at the most minimal level... and he began to slowly adapt to these conditions.

Historically, no one had ever survived this long outside the Tower, not a single person.

But Wu Jiu had done it. He could indeed be said, as Bai Wu had mentioned, to be a man blessed with great fortune.

While Bai Wu still needed to spend time searching for Q, Wu Jiu could stumble across it purely by luck.

Yet, the world always had such fortunate individuals, and Bai Wu was glad this person was Wu Jiu.

Having set a record of surviving for twenty-four days, Wu Jiu had now made a new, almost unbreakable record.

His body had undergone some changes during the prolonged resistance to negative conditions.

"Are you going to kill me?" Wu Jiu’s voice was weak as well.

This gave Club Q even more certainty:

"I have no dislike for people from Sheng Country, but unfortunately, you came from the wrong direction," he said.

After these words, the distance between Club Q and Wu Jiu closed once again.

A punch, too swift to be seen, slammed heavily into Wu Jiu’s face.

This was a punch powerful enough to kill the opponent, and in the next second, Club Q could use Instant Presence to move—

In that moment as the man from Sheng Country was blasted away... to truly zero out his critically low life line.

That was the calculation, and indeed the Sheng Country’s short man did fly out.

But his footsteps only lightly deviated from the body of the boat.

Club Q’s strike lacked any sense of substance...

He had certainly hit his target, and it was a direct hit, but it was as if he hadn’t hit him squarely.

The weak Wu Jiu, in the moment the punch was hurtling towards him, realized that his frail body couldn’t dodge the attack.

He let the punch hit him squarely, but in the moment of contact, the muscles in his neck displayed a twisted kind of coordination.

The immense force mysteriously dissipated by more than half.

The scene Club Q had envisioned, where his punch would send the man flying, didn’t happen.

It was as though someone was prepared to leap deep but found they had only tiptoed lightly.

On the contrary, it was Club Q who, in that instant, started to frantically defend, as Wu Jiu’s counterattack had arrived.

The sharp blade was too fast to see, and Club Q barely dodged the strike by instinct.

His figure retreated rapidly, leaving the boat and once again standing on the surface of the sea, with a hint of caution in his eyes.

"Now I’m certain, you really want to kill me."

Wu Jiu held the long knife in his hand, contemplating what Bai Wu would do in this situation, how to extract information, how to milk the last bit of value from someone before death?

But he didn’t ponder the question for long because his opponent was attacking again.

Wu Jiu sighed softly.

"I really am not like Bai Wu, only capable of being a brute with a blade."

If Bai Wu could hear this, he might think it was his captain showing off.

Instant Presence activated, and the perfect Mutation Entry granted Club Q almost the ability to traverse space; he was confident his opponent couldn’t defend against it. freeweɓnøvel.com

But as he appeared behind Wu Jiu in an instant... Wu Jiu vanished too, reappearing behind him.

"You can’t kill him, you need to get out through that gap first,"

Wu Jiu was struck by a punch, surprised by a sudden consciousness communication that appeared in his mind.

Fortunately, his skill in neutralizing his opponent’s power had reached perfection; a strong force that belonged to a dying man... yet inexplicably impossible to kill.

In this brief time, Wu Jiu thought of many things.

"Could it be this cat?"

Once he had this thought, many of the strange events that had happened these days seemed to make sense.

Several times, Wu Jiu felt he had reached his limit, almost unable to hold on, but in the end, he miraculously survived.

Especially that time in the fungalmat, when he faced the Insect Queen, Wu Jiu couldn’t remember how the gigantic insect queen died; somehow she just... mysteriously died.

He didn’t dwell on it. Instead, following the guidance of the voice in his head... he slowly made his way towards the large gap in Hei Wu, entering another world.

Club Q seemed to discern his opponent’s intentions and tried to suppress him, but Wu Jiu had Instant Shadow.

This was a sequence with an effect almost identical to the perfect Mutation Entry, Instant Presence.

If both could teleport a short distance, in the end, it came down to who had the shorter interval between teleports, the longer distance, and the more accurate directional control.

Club Q had this confidence until he was astonished to find... the other always teleported precisely half a zhang behind him—

Not a hair’s breadth amiss.

Whenever he needed a brief moment to recover after teleporting, the other had already launched a second... or even a third Instant Shadow.

In this battle of the same abilities, he was utterly dominated by the man who was supposed to be dying.

It was like a person who mastered a hunting skill suddenly facing a veteran hunter seasoned by countless battles.

Club Q, suddenly fearful, wondered how this man, who should be near death, could still have such formidable power?

Finally... after a series of Instant Shadows, Wu Jiu arrived outside the Hei Wu gap, officially stepping into the World Beyond the Mist.

At that instant, Wu Jiu could clearly feel his life force rapidly recovering.

It wasn’t like in the High Tower where all negative attributes disappeared instantaneously, but gradually, with every second... the effects of those negative attributes waned.

"It seems to be effective indeed... yes, the voice in my mind, must be the one who saved me these past days."

In fact, Wu Jiu had this thought for a while, but it was only after the voice appeared in his mind that he finally dared to confirm it.

Light returned to Wu Jiu’s eyes, once shrouded in darkness and blindness, at this moment, he felt his vision was coming back.

Easily dodging Club Q’s Instant Presence punch, he patted the little cat on his shoulder.

The cat seemed to enjoy it.

Feeling his body continuously recovering, Wu Jiu’s breath became even more calm. His pursuit for strength led him to constantly improve along the way.

Now, he had reached a state of Heart Like Still Water.

Club Q, who initially had the upper hand, now felt the danger level of the opponent rapidly increasing.

"I haven’t felt so good in a very, very long time... I almost forgot what this felt like."

Wu Jiu looked upwards, revealing a slight smile, enjoying the sensation of the shackles dissolving away from his body.

He stood above the sea surface, basked in the sunlight, as if he had become one with the heavens.

"Although not fully recovered yet, but..."

The flash of a blade suddenly streaked across the sea surface.

"To deal with you..."

Club Q suddenly perceived the view in his sight... tilting.

"It’s already more than enough."

The sea breeze was gentle as the sword returned to its sheath.

Wu Jiu continued to pet the little creature on his shoulder, treading on the waves, walking deeper into the World Beyond the Mist.

Behind him lay a headless corpse, with Blood Flow streaming.