novelraw Chapter 325: Envious of Myself?
Chapter 325: Envious of Myself?
Su Zhan endured the intense pain, propping himself up slightly, his gaze falling on Xu Hao, whose face was somewhat pale. "Xu Hao, your teleportation range... is this far now? You actually made a Special-risk seventh-stage Aberrant lose track directly?"
He clearly remembered that when Xu Hao was in the Dew Realm, each teleportation was only about five meters.
Before Xu Hao could answer.
Liu Ziming grinned with shared pride, rushing to speak. "That's right, Brother Su, you have no idea. Haozi is incredibly awesome now.
A single teleportation can reach a maximum distance of five hundred meters.
That's a full one hundred times farther than when he was in the Dew Realm!
And that's not even the most crucial part! The most crucial part is the frequency.
His current highest record is performing three consecutive teleports of that distance within one second.
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh—!
You blink, and he's gone without a trace.Carrying you from the canyon over there, a few whooshes and he flashed to this remote corner of Black City. That winged guy would need to be a ghost to catch up!"
Xu Hao, feeling a bit embarrassed by Liu Ziming's praise, gave a light, concealing cough. "Liu Ziming is exaggerating. It's just average, still needs practice.
And consecutive ultra-long-distance teleports place a huge burden on the spirit and Spiritual Energy."
The unconcealable fatigue on his face was precisely the aftermath of using his Life Soul at a high intensity, sparing no cost to save Su Zhan.
Su Zhan took in Xu Hao's exhaustion, a warm current surging in his heart, adding another layer of guilt.
But he knew that saying thanks now would feel distant.
Between brothers, some things are better kept in the heart.
He instead asked the question he was most concerned about at the moment. "Where are we now?"
He had to figure out their location as soon as possible. Black City was the safe zone in his plan, and he needed to plan his next route and strategy based on that.
Feng Jue stated succinctly. "Right in Black City."
Surprise flashed in Su Zhan's eyes.
Feng Jue continued calmly. "We knew you wanted to come here. This place is indeed the most suitable for you to hide right now. We've rented this room for a while."
"We've been running missions outside these past few years and found there's quite a lot of business here in Black City too. For convenience, we simply set up a foothold here as a base."
Liu Ziming took over the explanation, with a hint of smugness. "Brother Su, don't look at this place being shabby, small, and pathetic. The reason we picked it back then was precisely because its location is remote enough.
There's nothing around, let alone surveillance cameras.
Easy to come and go, easy to hide our tracks."
Su Zhan listened carefully.
Liu Ziming patted his chest, guaranteeing. "Rest assured, we came in absolutely clean.
We all relied on Haozi teleporting us directly inside. Didn't use the official entrance, didn't leave any traces.
Qin Bai and those grandsons from the Transcendence Society, rack their brains all they want, they'd never guess you're already lying in Black City right under their noses!"
Listening to Feng Jue and Liu Ziming, one after the other, clearly explaining the whole story, the location's advantages, and the safety measures,
Su Zhan felt moved in his heart.
All the worries... they had thought of them for him...
His heart felt incredibly settled.
This lawless land he had schemed meticulously and gone through life and death to reach, had actually been entered by him in such an unexpected way, so easily, and without leaving any trace.
It was really good...
Feng Jue leaned forward slightly, lowering his voice a bit. "Su Zhan, the injury to your Life Soul..."
Su Zhan cut in straightforwardly. "Not healed."
Those two simple words instantly froze the atmosphere in the room.
The smile on Liu Ziming's face stiffened.
Xu Hao's gaze dimmed, filled with guilt.
Feng Jue's lips pressed into a cold, hard line.
They all clearly remembered that near-wipeout mission years ago.
It was to protect them that Su Zhan had forced himself to overdraw, suffering a devastating backlash, causing severe damage to his foundation as an Awakened individual. His strength had stagnated ever since, forever unable to advance further.
This heavy price was etched in each of their hearts.
Su Zhan smiled carelessly, a smile carrying the broad-mindedness that comes after weathering storms, his tone light as he changed the subject.
"Alright, enough with those expressions. A blessing in disguise, who knows? Look at me now, isn't my Aberrant strength sufficient? I just took down a Special-risk third-stage big guy."
Shock filled everyone's eyes.
Took down a Special-risk third-stage?
Had Su Zhan's strength already reached that level?
As expected, the Captain is still the Captain. Back when he was determined to stay in his Awakened form, he was always a step ahead of them. Now, in his Aberrant Form, it's even more heaven-defying.
This isn't just a step ahead anymore, it's several floors ahead.
"But speaking of this, I finally understand now. Back then, how did you three dare to attack me?"
Su Zhan's gaze swept over the three with a hint of teasing, finally landing on Xu Hao. "So it was relying on Haozi's teleportation trick. Fight if you can win, and if you can't, whoosh, you can run without a trace. No wonder you had such confidence!"
His teasing words dispersed the previous heaviness.
"Brother Su, the way you put it, that was tactical probing."
Liu Ziming immediately regained his lively demeanor. "Probing, understand? Mainly to confirm your identity. Besides, Haozi's life-saving divine skill must be used on the cutting edge."
Xu Hao also smiled helplessly. "Captain, don't make fun of me. My ability is just convenient for running away. In terms of real frontal combat power, it can't compare to Ziming's Purple Thunder or Feng Jue's Startling Swan Sword."
Feng Jue gave a slight nod, tacitly agreeing with Su Zhan's statement.
With Xu Hao here, their mobility and survival ability had indeed improved by leaps and bounds.
The atmosphere became harmonious again.
The brothers, in this dimly lit rental room, started chatting, going back and forth about Xu Hao's teleportation ability.
"Ah, Brother Su, you have no idea. Cultivation has gotten slower and slower these past few years. Every inch forward takes an immense amount of effort. After the Tide Realm, every step is as difficult as climbing to the sky."
Liu Ziming nudged Xu Hao beside him with his elbow. "Haozi, do you feel the same?"
Xu Hao nodded seriously. "Yes. The required time increases exponentially. And the control over the Life Soul also requires more comprehension. It's not something you can break through by just bitter cultivation alone."
Liu Ziming then turned his gaze to the ever-silent Feng Jue. "Poker Face, your sword path comprehension is deep. Are there any shortcuts?"
Feng Jue didn't even lift an eyelid. "No."
Liu Ziming, having sought his own embarrassment, pursed his lips, then looked again at Su Zhan leaning against the headboard, his expression envious. "So that's why I say Brother Su is amazing.
It's only been a little over two years since we last saw you, and your Aberrant strength has already surged to the Special-risk level.
This rate of improvement, even a rocket isn't this fast, right?
I'm really dying of envy!"
Su Zhan just smiled faintly and didn't respond.
Envious of myself?