Powerless

“This person seems immune to all physical damage, and her destructive power is terrifyingly strong.”

Ning Yu had witnessed Chen Xing’s abilities before. The first time they met, the strange beams of light had astonishing destructive power, and their sheer numbers were overwhelming.

She was practically a humanoid machine of destruction.

Now, the two of them were bombarding Chen Xing with all kinds of weapons, yet she remained completely unharmed.

All the flames and explosions couldn’t even get close to her; they simply dissipated into nothingness.

It was as if she didn’t exist in this dimension, yet they could clearly see her standing there.

Ning Yu and Shen Yiyue were already retreating rapidly using their grappling hooks.

Ning Yu’s points were running low after the recent battle, especially since they hadn’t managed to completely kill Leviathan. Shen Yiyue’s condition wasn’t great either.

Facing Chen Xing head-on was clearly not a wise strategy.

Or, to put it another way, they had no idea how to fight someone like her.

Chen Xing watched as the two of them fled, still standing motionless, as if she didn’t care at all about their escape.

She simply raised her hand, fingers extending from the sleeve of her dress, and dark lightning began to gather in her palm, as if under her control.

In the next moment, countless light screens lit up in the sky, forming perfect circles that neatly surrounded Ning Yu and Shen Yiyue.

These were all summoned by Chen Xing. Inside the light screens, swirling orbs of light twisted and turned, with black and white cubes at their centers constantly rotating and combining, like Rubik’s cubes being solved.

A terrifying energy rippled through the air, firmly locking the two of them in place.

This person was leagues stronger than Leviathan.

How could she be taking orders from someone else?

Ning Yu was puzzled, but she and Shen Yiyue were already completely trapped, back-to-back.

“Follow me, Yiyue,” Ning Yu whispered, quietly moving toward the edge of the building they were on.

Shen Yiyue, standing back-to-back with Ning Yu, heard her words and began to move as well.

The light screens around them seemed to have finished gathering energy. The swirling orbs inside them grew brighter, and the black and white cubes spun to their limits, becoming unrecognizable.

“Annihilation.”

The black teardrop pattern at the corner of Chen Xing’s eye glowed brightly as she clenched her raised hand.

All the orbs of light finally released their energy, unleashing a barrage of terrifying beams toward Ning Yu and Shen Yiyue.

Each beam was as thick as a pillar, with crackling electricity dancing along its edges, surging forward with overwhelming force.

Ning Yu had already anticipated this. The moment the beams were fired, she grabbed Shen Yiyue and leaped off the building.

If the attacks were coming from all directions, it would be nearly impossible to defend against them, so Ning Yu chose to change their position at the last second.

However, the beams were as tricky as Ning Yu had expected. Some of them adjusted their trajectories mid-flight, aiming directly at Ning Yu as she fell.

Ning Yu twisted her body in mid-air, pulling Shen Yiyue into her arms and positioning herself to take the brunt of the incoming beams.

She summoned Blood Kite to her back and activated [Blood Mirror] just as the beams were about to hit her.

All the beams reflected off the mirror, shooting back in the exact directions they had come from.

Unfortunately, [Blood Mirror] didn’t last long, and some of the delayed beams arrived after the mirror’s effect had worn off.

In her [Future Reading] state, Ning Yu noticed this and pushed Shen Yiyue away just as [Blood Mirror] was about to disappear.

Even though she had activated [Future Reading], Ning Yu had no leverage in mid-air and could only rely on her grappling hook to maneuver.

She managed to dodge most of the remaining beams, but one struck her directly.

“Xiao Yu!!”

Shen Yiyue, who had been pushed to safety, landed safely using her grappling hook. But when she saw Ning Yu get hit, she cried out in panic.

A searing pain shot through Ning Yu’s abdomen, followed by an intense burning sensation.

Damn it!

The sheer force of the beam sent Ning Yu crashing into the ground, and even her grappling hook couldn’t stop the impact.

“It... hurts....”

Warm liquid trickled down from her head, obscuring her vision. Pain radiated throughout her body, as if her bones had been shattered.

The burning sensation in her abdomen felt like her soul was being tossed into a furnace.

But Ning Yu’s indomitable will kept her going. She slowly pulled herself out of the rubble, with Blood Kite helping to clear the debris off her.

Above them, the light screens were struck by the reflected beams, which were even more powerful than before. The screens flickered on and off, as if they had been overloaded and temporarily disabled.

However, the light screens that hadn’t been hit by the reflected beams remained intact.

“Xiao Yu, how are you?!”

Shen Yiyue rushed over, placing her hands on Ning Yu’s body and beginning to heal her wounds.

But Ning Yu’s injuries were too severe, and Shen Yiyue’s healing was noticeably slower. Shen Yiyue’s hands trembled, sweat beading on her forehead, and her lips turned pale.

Ning Yu looked down at the wound in her abdomen. It was a horrifying puncture wound, and the surrounding flesh had already begun to discolor.

The beam’s attack had carried the T-virus.

Seeing Shen Yiyue struggling, Ning Yu weakly pushed her hands away and whispered,

“Don’t waste your energy... reboot.”

Shen Yiyue looked up, meeting Ning Yu’s gaze, and nodded silently. She pulled a pistol from her weapon case and pressed it against Ning Yu’s forehead.

“Bang!”

A spray of blood erupted as the bullet pierced Ning Yu’s head, and her lifeless body slowly fell backward onto the ground.

“Not again....”

Shen Yiyue’s hands fell limply to her sides, her eyes filled with despair.

Tears blurred her vision, making Ning Yu’s figure seem indistinct, as if everything had become unreal.

“I’ve become a burden to Xiao Yu....”

“I still couldn’t protect her....”

“Can I really... still....”

Her hands clenched into fists, nails digging deep into her palms as if she was holding onto something unbearable.

She clenched so hard that her hands trembled uncontrollably, blood seeping from the wounds in her palms and trickling down her arms in twisted lines.

“Even though... I’ve tried so hard, I still....”

Her fists slowly rose to her forehead, trying to hide the fact that she was sobbing uncontrollably. Her lips pressed tightly together, quivering as she fought to keep herself from making a sound.