Chapter 205 – A Blessing in Disguise

It was impossible to tell how much time had passed before the thunderous rumbling echoing through the underground space gradually subsided.

Dust still filled the air.

Rubble continued to tumble down.

But the mountain-shattering, earth-rending impact had finally ceased, signaling the gradual end of the catastrophe.

As the dust slowly settled, what appeared before them was no longer an intact landscape but a scene of devastated ruins.

“Cough, cough…”

Scarface and Baldy each pushed aside a piece of debris that had been pinning them down, emerging from the corners of the ruins while coughing violently.

“What… what was that just now…?”

Both men still wore expressions of sheer terror, their eyes filled with lingering fear.

Clearly, Su Ming’s world-obliterating strike had shaken them to their core.

Only then did the two snap back to reality, quickly scanning their surroundings.

Their faces immediately darkened at what they saw.

“Ugh…”

“Ergh…”

Amidst pained groans, numerous figures lay scattered throughout the ruins, pinned beneath various pieces of rubble and debris, barely clinging to life.

These were unmistakably the Underground Professionals that Scarface, Baldy, and Brute had brought with them.

“The entire force has been wiped out?”

Baldy muttered with both anger and disbelief coloring his expression, uncertain whether he felt more rage or terror.

Scarface similarly wore a grim expression, though he found this outcome unsurprising.

How could a group of lower-level Professionals possibly withstand power that even they found terrifying—even if it was just the residual force?

Therefore, the complete annihilation of the lower-level Professionals was hardly unexpected.

More than that, Scarface was concerned about something else.

“Where’s the big oaf? And what about those guys? What happened to them?”

Scarface’s words prompted Baldy to quickly come to his senses.

Exchanging a glance, the two simultaneously dashed toward the area where Su Ming and Brute had previously been fighting.

They didn’t even spare a glance at their fallen subordinates around them, fully demonstrating the cruelty and heartlessness of Underground Professionals.

Under these circumstances, it didn’t take long for them to reach the site of Su Ming and Brute’s battle.

There lay a massive crater filled with shattered rocks and fractured bedrock, as if a nuclear bomb had just detonated there—making it hard to believe this devastation was caused by a single punch.

Scarface and Baldy entered the crater together and soon found their companion amidst a pile of rubble.

However…

“……”

“……”

Both Scarface and Baldy fell into silence at the sight before them.

There, at the very center of the crater, lay the massive stone giant.

His body had been shattered into pieces.

His life had completely faded.

Just like the surrounding rubble, the stone giant had been utterly pulverized.

That single punch had shattered his rock-hard body, blown apart his massive form, leaving him scattered about like a demolished stone statue.

Scarface and Baldy even found the stone giant’s head, seeing the last traces of terror frozen on his face and the overwhelming despair in his eyes.

This scene left both men utterly speechless.”A single strike… and he killed an Upper-Rank Hunter who had undergone Demonization…?”

Baldy uttered these words with extreme difficulty, his voice sounding parched and strained.

“Who is that guy?” Scarface’s expression shifted unpredictably as he spoke: “Is there such a terrifying figure among the Six Great Families?”

This question left Baldy completely unable to respond.

How could he answer?

They hadn’t taken Su Ming seriously from the beginning, assuming that with three of them present against a single Upper-Rank Professional, victory would be easily within their grasp.

Moreover, what capabilities could an Upper-Rank Professional from a backwater like Longyao City possibly possess?

As Upper-Rank Professionals from the largest mercenary organization in the underworld, Scarface, Baldy, and Brute had all previously battled against Upper-Rank Professionals from the most prosperous, massive, and powerful Base Cities in the continent’s heartland.

The strength of those Upper-Rank Professionals was simply incomparable to those emerging from remote places like Longyao City.

After all, those professionals possessed combat techniques with more ancient Legacies and had access to richer resources. The alchemical weapons that people here treated as priceless treasures – while not something lower-rank professionals could casually obtain in those super Base Cities – were still attainable for any Upper-Rank Professional who wanted one.

Why did Gao Xu, merely a Four-Star Hunter, have such a great reputation among Upper-Rank Professionals?

Wasn’t it precisely because he possessed exceptional Blade Art and a high-quality alchemical weapon?

The fact that such a Gao Xu was even considered capable of holding his own against Five-Star Hunters demonstrated how significantly advanced combat techniques and powerful alchemical weapons could affect a Hunter’s strength.

Upper-Rank Professionals like Gao Xu were actually quite common in those super Base Cities.

Scarface, Baldy, and Brute all possessed their own alchemical weapons, and their combat techniques had been honed through countless acts of killing and plunder – murderous skills that made them consider themselves far superior to Upper-Rank Professionals from Longyao City.

This had been evident during their assault on the Wang Family, where few of the Wang Family’s Upper-Rank Professionals could match them, and they consistently held the upper hand in confrontations.

Under these circumstances, combined with their numerical advantage, their contempt for their opponent and confidence in an easy victory seemed perfectly reasonable.

Yet reality had brutally shattered their arrogance.

And in the worst possible way.

Brute had been instantly killed by a single punch without even getting the chance to use his alchemical weapon.

Remembering that earth-shattering punch, Scarface and Baldy felt chills running down their spines, unable to help feeling grateful they hadn’t joined Brute in surrounding Su Ming.

Otherwise, if their opponent had desperately unleashed that punch, whether the one dying would still have been this big oaf would have been uncertain.

Had they actually participated in the encirclement, the ones dying might not have been the big oaf, but the two of them instead.

Thinking of this, Scarface and Baldy couldn’t help but glance at Brute’s gruesome corpse, their expressions turning extremely grim.

“Where are they?”

Scarface tentatively asked this question.

“No movement, probably escaped.”

Baldy couldn’t see anyone besides their own group, surmising that their opponents had taken the opportunity to retreat.”Then what should we do?”

Scarface immediately followed up with a very serious question.

What should they do next?

Chase after them?

But if they chased after them like this, would they face that earth-shattering punch again?

At this thought, neither of them could muster any desire to pursue.

Although they regarded Brute as a big oaf, always considering him simple-minded and brawny, thus looking down on him everywhere, it had to be said that in terms of attack and defense, Brute undoubtedly far surpassed them.

Brute, having transformed into a stone giant, possessed a sturdy body and overwhelming strength. Even Scarface and Baldy didn’t want to confront him head-on.

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that Brute was extremely confident in his own power, refusing to even bring out alchemical weapons and insisting on trading blows with Su Ming.

He must have been unwilling—unwilling to accept that his strength had lost to someone who appeared “skinny as a rail.”

In the end, this mindset left him without even a chance to regret.

And if even Brute ended up like that, there was no way Scarface and Baldy would believe they could withstand that earth-shattering punch.

But if they didn’t give chase, should they just give up?

Being ridiculed would be a minor issue; what they truly feared was being held accountable afterward and facing punishment.

‘Sin’ was no charitable organization. Once a mistake was made, the punishment was extremely severe.

Hadn’t they seen it last time? When the ritual was disrupted and the Wang Family took the opportunity to steal the “Sword” and escape, the Vice Captain, in his fury, had several people explode on the spot, turning into mincemeat.

This was an underground organization. None of its members were kind-hearted souls; killing in a fit of rage was merely a basic operation.

Although the two were Upper-Rank Professionals, and their status in the organization was incomparable to that of lower-rank professionals, they wouldn’t be casually killed as outlets for anger.

But as the saying goes, while the death penalty might be avoided, living punishment was hard to escape. In a place like ‘Sin’, suffering punishment while alive could sometimes be more terrifying than death.

This left the two in a dilemma.

Until a voice jolted them awake.

“What are you doing here?”

Accompanied by a cold voice, a figure appeared like a ghost, entering the sight of Scarface and Baldy.

Scarface and Baldy were startled at first, then realized who had arrived and quickly lowered their heads.

“Lord Crow!”

The newcomer was none other than Lord Crow.

This black-clothed expert, who had been relentlessly pursuing Wang Yihan, surveyed the devastated surroundings and then looked at the mangled corpse of Brute on the ground, his brow deeply furrowed.

“What happened?” Lord Crow said coldly. “What occurred here?”

Along with this interrogation, a subtle aura locked onto Scarface and Baldy.

The two held their breath for a moment, then hurriedly reported everything that had happened here.

“An Upper-Rank Professional from the Six Great Families killed our Upper-Rank Professional?”

Lord Crow’s frown deepened.

“That’s exactly it!” Scarface added urgently. “That person’s power is terrifying. He didn’t even use Demonization, yet he killed the big oaf with a single punch!”

“He’s the one who caused all this destruction,” Baldy chimed in quickly. “And the ‘Sword’ and ‘Blood’ are with him too.”

This statement stirred something in Lord Crow’s heart.

He remained silent for a while, then spoke again, his tone still cold.”Interesting. Among the Six Great Families, there’s actually someone like this who managed to infiltrate. I’d like to see for myself whether his power is as astonishing as you claim.”

As he spoke, Lord Crow closed his eyes and focused for a moment before turning toward a certain direction.

“It seems he went that way.”

Seeing this, Scarface and Baldy once again held their breath.

This Lord Crow remained as terrifyingly perceptive as ever, actually pinpointing the enemy’s retreat direction so quickly.

Such perception might even surpass the Spirit Sense of an Upper-Rank Sorcerer.

“Follow me.”

Lord Crow paid no attention to what these two were thinking, simply tossing out these words before darting off in the direction he had sensed.

This time, Scarface and Baldy didn’t hesitate and immediately followed.

Although that mysterious fellow’s power was fearsome, Lord Crow was undoubtedly more terrifying by comparison.

With Lord Crow present, they were certain to capture their target this time.

……

Underground Ruins, Shelter.

In this temporary shelter used to house severely injured personnel who couldn’t move, Su Ming’s group quietly arrived.

“Quick! Bring out all the alchemical potions!”

“Who else is injured?”

“Check if anyone got left behind!”

The Bai Family’s female Hunters immediately sprang into action upon entering.

There was no helping it.

Although they hadn’t been completely wiped out like those Underground Professionals under the Silver Arm Power Aftermath, each of them had still been affected, sustaining injuries ranging from minor to serious.

“Huff… huff…”

In a corner of the shelter, Su Ming leaned against the wall, breathing heavily.

“Are… are you alright?”

Bai Ruxiang stood nearby, watching Su Ming in this state, unable to conceal her worry and tension.

Wang Yihan, who was holding her Sword, also stood to the side, her face filled with lingering fear.

“You’re too reckless!” Wang Yihan said as if still shaken. “Such a terrifying technique, and you used it without even giving us a warning! I thought we were all going to die!”

Mentioning this incident, not just Wang Yihan, but even Bai Ruxiang’s eyes showed traces of terror.

As for Xu Yanyan, she didn’t need to be mentioned – her face turned pale as if recalling some extremely terrible memory.

At that moment, they had truly believed they would perish in that world-destroying catastrophe, their fragrant souls vanishing forever.

Fortunately, Su Ming seemed to have considered their presence beforehand, throwing the Silver Arm’s punch with his back to their group while standing in front of them to absorb much of the impact, giving these female Hunters a chance to escape death.

But the result of this action was Su Ming’s current somewhat disheveled state.

Not only had he expended one-tenth of his magic power, but his body had also borne considerable strain from the tremendous force. Though uninjured, he felt sore all over and completely exhausted.

“I thought if I only used one-tenth of my magic power, it shouldn’t be this exhausting.”

Su Ming smiled bitterly.

The real issue wasn’t the consumption, but rather that Su Ming had absorbed much of the impact force for the female Hunters.

Otherwise, Su Ming wouldn’t have retreated immediately – he could have found an opportunity to use the Silver Arm’s power to instantly eliminate Scarface and Baldy, achieving complete victory.

“What a pity…”

Su Ming couldn’t help muttering these words with some regret.Last time against Gao Xu, he had to retreat due to the side effects caused by the power of the [Silver Arm], and this time was no different.

It seems that the more powerful the strength, the less convenient it is to use than imagined.

Thinking this, Su Ming had no idea that after his retreat, a terrifying presence had arrived.

A loss may turn out to be a gain.

(End of Chapter)