Free Web NovelChapter 1312: Chapter 23: Suicide Squad
"Would a third-tier contractor have this kind of firepower?"
A bald middle-aged man spoke. His face was round, which should have appeared kind but looked numb and vicious.
"Bai Ye... I remember now, this guy was on the reputation rankings during the sea battle but was soon pushed down by fifth-tier contractors."
The emaciated man, confirming there was no danger here, leaned against the wall.
"No, this guy is still on the list now."
The long-legged sister took a deep breath, seemingly seeing something that shocked her.
"What?"
"Look at the current rankings; there’s a ’surprise’."
At this, the other four all checked the reputation rankings.
[Third Place: Bai Ye (Third-Tier), Pirate Reputation 2860 points.]
...
The five exchanged a glance.
"What should we do? Should we proceed or not? Even if we don’t make the top five, when this world ends, pirate reputation will be converted into World Source or Paradise coin. With 1430 pirate reputation, based on the info from the bald guy, it can at least be converted into 30% World Source. With this World Source, our team can reach at least an A+ rating."
The long-legged sister swallowed her saliva; the benefits brought by 1430 pirate reputation made her heartbeat involuntarily accelerate.
"Screw it, retreat. A third-tier in a fourth-tier warzone can get this much pirate reputation, it’s not something just long-range sniping ability can achieve. This lone ranger, if you dare rush, he’ll teach you a lesson using close combat weapons in minutes, so retreat!"
The emaciated man turned around and left, and after a few seconds of internal struggle, the others also retreated towards the direction of the battlefield.
The five retreated, but seven fourth-tier contractors continued to approach King’s Highland.
Su Xiao was in a high place; of course, he noticed the enemies approaching. Two were already close within 2000 meters, the fastest.
A black shadow flashed past in the sniper scope; Su Xiao didn’t fire. At this distance, the hit rate of shooting at moving targets is too low. He’s waiting for the enemy contractors to get within 800 meters. At 800 meters, even for fast-moving targets, he has a 60% chance of hitting. The Ant King was sniped this way.
Seven men dressed in black quickly navigated the buildings, their attire unified, even their steps synchronized.
These seven moved quickly, often hiding in the shadows of buildings. They’re not clones of one person but genuine seven contractors.
These seven have some reputation within the fourth tier, all possessing assassin-like abilities, known as Black Rats to outsiders, self-proclaimed as the Shadow Group.
The seven met in the first tier, originally nine. Due to their shared assassin-like abilities, they had common topics, and one of them suggested forming a small adventure group.
From tier one to tier four, the Shadow Group had up to 30 people at its peak; surviving the trials, only these seven reached tier four.
Seven assassination-type members, it’s imaginable their targets are mostly lone plot characters or independent contractors.
Seven assassins can unleash enough damage to instantly take down a same-tier tank. Though their reputation isn’t great, these seven have managed to do quite well, successfully advancing to the fourth tier two Derivative Worlds ago.
With a whoosh, a shadow swept across the street, hiding within an alley.
"Shadow Two, the target hasn’t reacted."
The figure dressed in black clung to the wall, seemingly on a long-range call with someone.
"He’s still in the Donquixote family’s villa area? If so, then he’s not skilled at hitting moving targets. If he’s specialized in long-range ability, it’s unlikely to have such shortcomings; the target is suspected to be a well-rounded lone ranger."
The man in black sneered quietly; he was adept at dealing with lone rangers.
"Mm-hmm, understood. I will use shadow clones to attract fire."
The man in black formed seals with his hands quickly, with a bang, white smoke rose, and more than a dozen shadow clones appeared.
"Rush in altogether after three seconds, 1600 meters remaining, keep it within 10 seconds. Alright, let’s do this."
The man in black ended the call, taking a deep breath.
Meanwhile, inside the fourth floor of the villa area.
Su Xiao observed several high-rise buildings via the sniper scope. Based on his observations, four people approached King’s Highland. Whether there were more, that remained unknown, as there were too many buildings below.
Just as Su Xiao was about to start shooting and instantly kill one, numerous figures dressed in black burst from the buildings behind them, at least dozens. Su Xiao’s eyebrows raised; he hadn’t anticipated this scenario.
It’s like two sides agreeing to a fight, one side rolls up in a van, and out of this inconspicuous van rushes over a hundred people.
Shadow clones, mirror images, light refraction, shadow clones, seven exhibited various clone skills, charging towards King’s Highland from all directions.
Su Xiao stowed away Duke of Extinction and the hydraulic buffer stand; trying to distinguish the real from the fake clones with the naked eye was impossible.
Ten seconds later, those dozens of black-clad figures rushing to the bottom of King’s Highland and entered the shooting blind spot, starting to climb towards King’s Highland with their bare hands.
Moments later, those figures reached near the villa area. The villa area was very quiet, with not a single pirate guarding it; Dressrosa only needed guards at two locations, one being the underground port, the other being the SMILE Factory (Artificial Devil Fruit Factory).
The SMILE Factory was bustling now; that place was a focal point for enemy contractors, with most of the Donquixote Family camp’s contractors defending there.
The seven of the Shadow Group gathered together, exchanging puzzled glances, wondering why the enemy hadn’t fired for a ’lucky’ shot?
What they didn’t know was, every shot Su Xiao fired equaled the consumption of 1000 Paradise coins. Su Xiao had observed these seven’s speed, decent but clearly not the strong ones among the fourth tier.
The seven vanished simultaneously, each activating invisibility abilities, with two even activating counter-detection abilities.
The seven approached the villa area, noting the specially reinforced fourth floor.
Seconds later, the seven arrived below the villa; at that moment, a tall figure leapt down from above the villa.
With a loud boom, the ground cracked extensively, cold air permeating.
The seven immediately communicated in the team channel, debating whether to join forces and instantly kill this Minotaur falling from the sky.
After A Mu landed, it raised the War Hammer, smashing it directly onto the ground.
A loud noise rang out, bone-chilling cold permeated, as the seven scattered quickly to avoid being affected by the cold.
With a crisp sound of shattering, the villa’s front door broke open, pale red aura spread, and the seven almost simultaneously let out a muffled groan, feeling faint pain on their bodies; this was Su Xiao’s Release of Breath ability.
A strong scent of blood wafted from the villa, followed by the sound of footsteps.
Su Xiao stepped out of the villa, holding Dragon Slash, his gaze locked onto a contractor in stealth mode. Although this person was now invisible, under Su Xiao’s intuition ability detection, it was as if they were standing right in front of him.
Gazes met, the Shadow Group member immediately realized their exposure, black light flickered on his body, seeming to activate some speed-boosting ability.
Clang!
The long knife gave a crisp ring, blood splattered onto the stone tablets on the ground, and Su Xiao, at some point, had appeared behind the shadow member. No matter how fast the opponent’s speed was, could it be faster than Penetration Space ability?
With a thud, the Shadow Group member collapsed onto the ground, a deep slash mark on their back. It must be said, fourth-tier contractors are indeed much stronger than third-tier contractors; a fragile assassin wasn’t even instantly killed by Su Xiao.
Though not instantly killed by Su Xiao, he severed the opponent’s spinal cord with one slash.
Dragon Slash flipped in Su Xiao’s hand, long knife thrusting down, with a gush, the long knife pierced through the contractor’s skull. Their body convulsed, pupils rapidly dilating.
The contractor slaughtered by Su Xiao with two slashes appeared, the remaining six stepped back in unison, clearly shocked by the fearsome two slashes.
PS: (Ahem, though the recent updates have been a bit late, the update schedule is pretty steady, huh... Oh my, I’m sorry, don’t hit the face.)
