Just as Yin Shui'er reminded Xu Mu, a rift suddenly tore open on the bloated belly of the grotesque, and pairs of small, red hands with sharp claws pushed their way out.
"Trouble!"
Yin Shui'er's heart sank. Ghost infants were the most troublesome of the Tier 1 grotesques. Their growth was extremely demanding, requiring vast amounts of human blood for sustenance. The green blood that had flowed out after they killed the mother was precisely the final nourishment they needed. At this stage, their combat ability would be several times stronger than the mother's!
Yin Shui'er hadn't expected to encounter such a powerful grotesque in the village. If it were just her alone, it would be manageable, but the problem was Xu Mu, in the courtyard, was not a super-powered individual!
"You leave quickly. I can't guarantee your safety."
Yin Shui'er's expression turned grim, her pupils shifting back to deep blue. She rushed back into the fray, knocking Xu Mu aside as a surge of water crashed down from the air.
"Ya-ya!"
The ghost infant's cry, though childish, sounded like it was from hell, sharp and terrifying. Xu Mu felt his eardrums about to split and stumbled to the ground.
Yin Shui'er's long hair billowed, and numerous bubbles appeared in the river, making the water element even more violent. She intended to seize the opportunity before the ghost infant fully emerged from its mother's womb.
"Crack!"
But at that moment, a small, blood-red shadow seized an opening, its sharp claws piercing the small river. With a leaping motion, it shot out of the water onto the ground and charged towards Xu Mu, who was not far away.
Yin Shui'er's expression changed drastically, her heart filled with anxiety. She quickly channeled a stream of water with one hand, attempting to stop the ghost infant. However, the creature was too fast, and it was too close to Xu Mu. The only effective ability she possessed was insufficient to intervene in time!
As the ghost infant lunged with its claws, Xu Mu stopped and turned, meeting its small, terrifying eyes. Instantly, a chill ran through him.
The coldness, as if from hell, made Xu Mu certain that this ghost infant was far more dangerous than any beast he had ever encountered!
"Ya-ya!"
The ghost infant's sinister laughter filled the entire courtyard. Its long, sharp claws had already torn through the young man's clothes.
Xu Mu drew his hunting knife, intending to counter. But with his speed, a successful counter-kill at this distance was impossible. Was this it?
"Damn it!"
Xu Mu's pupils shrunk to their smallest point as he faced the ghost infant.
In a daze, he saw a vision of his own heart being ripped out by the creature!
...
...
The house was on the verge of collapse. Xu Mu stood beside a pile of rubble, his face bewildered, as the ghost infant had vanished from his sight.
The next second, Xu Mu looked down and found the ghost infant in front of him, its tiny face smeared with black blood, the claws at the tips of its hands already piercing the cloth of his chest.
What else could he do? The young man gripped his hunting knife tightly, knowing in his heart that he no longer had a chance to draw it. The ghost infant's claws were infinitely faster than his and would tear through his chest first.
"Senior Brother, save him!"
The shadow of death loomed. In that instant, time seemed to slow down. Xu Mu could still hear Yin Shui'er's slightly frantic cry. He didn't know who this Senior Brother was, nor did he believe anyone could save him now.
Yet, for some reason, faced with death, Xu Mu felt no emotional turmoil.
The chaotic elements in the distance, the grotesque before him, and the hunting knife in his hand... all of it felt inexplicably familiar, even comforting.
Suddenly, Xu Mu felt as if he wouldn't die.
A hint of white crept into his eyes, like the heavenly light that once illuminated the world.
Xu Mu's left hand drew his knife in an instant, slashing at the dark shadow before him.
"Crack!"
Like the crisp sound of a knife slicing through cabbage, the hunting knife cut through the ghost infant's body, splattering copious amounts of腥 green blood.
Simultaneously, Xu Mu rotated his wrist, angled the hunting knife, and then slammed it heavily onto the ground.
"Boom! Crack!"
The ghost infant's body was utterly pulverized. The ground caved in, wood scattered everywhere, and the terrifying impact created spiderweb-like cracks on the surrounding surface.
"Swish!"
At the same time, the moment Xu Mu slammed his knife down, a thin, white stream of energy flashed before him, also splitting the ghost infant's body in two.
That sword energy came from another super-powered individual.
Yin Shui'er's river ceased its torrent, and the pit on the ground grew larger. The ghost infants were all reduced to corpses. The battle was over.
But this time, Yin Shui'er did not dispel her pale blue pupils; instead, the water element energy became even more concentrated.
She turned her head to look at Xu Mu.
His ragged clothes were still stained with green, bloody gore. The young man stood motionless, holding his hunting knife.
Yin Shui'er suddenly smiled. Eight ghost infants. As a super-powered individual from the Demon Extermination Division, she had unleashed her strongest abilities and only killed seven.
The remaining one had broken through her defenses, only to be killed by a village's ordinary night watchman with a single sword strike.
His movements were casual, his expression composed, as if a farmer had just killed a frog.
...
"This is very strange."
Charles observed the young man's body repeatedly, particularly his unsettling white pupils. His sophisticated electronic brain was filled with confusion. Could it be that during the day, that guy could now seize control of his body?
This defied logic!
At this moment, Xu Mu's body swayed slightly, and his pupils gradually shifted from white back to black.
"What happened to me just now?"
Xu Mu looked at his hands in bewilderment. He hadn't lost his memory; in fact, he recalled every detail with perfect clarity.
He exerted force, drew his knife, decapitated the ghost infant, and with a backhanded sweep, shattered its body. It was a perfect, seamless counter-kill.
But how could he possess such strength?
"I don't know what happened. Perhaps it was a bug."
Charles cycled through thousands of possibilities in his mind: intermittent possession, split personality, muscle memory... but he didn't voice any of them to Xu Mu.
As the only highly intelligent robot on Blue Star capable of understanding human emotions, failing to provide a precise answer to his host was deeply embarrassing.
"Your very existence is bizarre, so it's not entirely unreasonable for more strange things to happen."
After a long pause, Charles expressionlessly managed to utter this sentence.
"It's all related to the Apocalypse anyway. Your current strength is too weak to ponder these things yet."
"Apocalypse, Apocalypse. I don't need you to tell me," Xu Mu said, clutching his chest with a lingering sense of dread. The ghost infant had torn his clothes, and now, apart from a pendant, his chest was bare.
"Hmm? What is this killing intent!"
Suddenly, a chill ran down Xu Mu's back. He felt as if a fierce tiger was silently staring at him. He spun around abruptly.
A woman with a slender figure, phoenix-like eyes, and red lips stood there. There was no tiger behind her.
—A tigress.
Yin Shui'er stood there, clenching her fists, her chest heaving, staring intently at him.
"Damn it!" Xu Mu jolted. How could he have forgotten about this woman?
This was going to be a huge misunderstanding. Yin Shui'er surely thought he had lied to her earlier!
"Heroine, my hand moved on its own. It has nothing to do with me." Xu Mu slid the pendant to his back, then seriously dropped his hunting knife and raised his hands in surrender.
Yin Shui'er stared at Xu Mu, her eyes glinting with dangerous red light.
Before setting out, she had guaranteed the Governor that she would complete this mission perfectly and write a mission log to share and exchange knowledge with others at the upcoming Superpower Exchange Convention.
And now, she, a dignified super-powered individual from the Demon Extermination Division, had been tricked by a village night watchman. If this got out, other organizations would undoubtedly magnify the incident, damaging the reputation of the Demon Extermination Division. She would be the one to disgrace the entire royal court and the empire!
"Don't believe me, I'm truly innocent!"
Xu Mu kicked a piece of wood that had fallen on his foot, a bitter smile on his face. He wasn't lying to Yin Shui'er. Just moments ago, he hadn't even noticed the ghost infant approaching him, so how could he have instantly killed it?
And these cracked fissures on the ground, he had no idea where he got such strength from!
"Calm down, calm down! Getting angry makes you old and causes wrinkles!"
Xu Mu beamed, cautiously observing Yin Shui'er. Then, his body stiffened abruptly. Yin Shui'er's eyes were red.
More precisely, her eye sockets were red, but it was clearly not the precursor to a beast hunting prey.
"Crying... crying?"
Xu Mu was stunned. He had actually made a super-powered individual from the Demon Extermination Division cry. This was truly unprecedented!
"Calm down, Junior Sister."
A gentle voice reached Yin Shui'er's ears. Tears welled in her eyes, and the girl sniffled, turning her head towards the west side of the courtyard. Her voice hoarse, she said,
"You are absolutely forbidden to speak of what happened today."
"Absolutely!" Xu Mu nodded his head vigorously, like a pecking chicken. How dare he refuse? Women were made of water, but Yin Shui'er's composition was as hard as pure steel. If she became unhappy, his life would be forfeit!
"Which faction do you belong to? Confess truthfully!" Suddenly, Yin Shui'er turned her head sharply and asked fiercely.
"This..." Xu Mu's face fell into a苦 expression. He was a nobody, an ordinary person. Where would he have any faction? If they really delved into it, he technically belonged to the court.
After all, his job as a night watchman was indeed a minor official position of the ninth rank.
"If you don't speak, it will be assumed you have none," Yin Shui'er snorted coldly. "Starting today, your status is promoted from Night Watchman to an auxiliary member of the Demon Extermination Division!"
Before Xu Mu could formulate a response, Yin Shui'er tossed an auxiliary member's badge of the Demon Extermination Division from her waist.
"Ah?"
Xu Mu nervously caught the identification badge. He had deceived Yin Shui'er, yet she was recruiting him into the Demon Extermination Division?
"Heroine, we have no enmity. Is this really necessary!"
Xu Mu shivered. It was clear that Yin Shui'er intended to keep him close and then slowly torment him, like an eagle playing with a chick.
"You can refuse," Yin Shui'er said, tilting her chin playfully and pointing behind the young man. "As long as you defeat him."
Xu Mu blinked, then followed the girl's gaze. Ten paces behind him, at the edge of the giant pit carved out by Yin Shui'er's ability, stood a person.
He had black hair, wore a bright red official robe, and held a slender sword in his hand.
He was Yin Shui'er's Senior Brother.
...