Apocalypse Forecast

"White-named face, I'm coming to save you, LALALALALALA!!!!!"

Accompanied by a fancy shout, Yuan Zhao came roaring with a water dragon he had formed by gathering all his Source Substance. The dragon instantly turned into a sieve under a hail of bullets, spraying water droplets everywhere and reducing its size by half in an instant.

With Yuan Zhao's angry roar, the water dragon surging up from the ground opened its mouth. Like a high-pressure water pump, it shot out a column of water. Despite not being very powerful, the jet managed to scatter the crowd and even revealed those who were hiding invisibly within its area of effect.

The shrunken water dragon morphed into a blurry, massive horse, carrying Yuan Zhao. It was unclear whether it was a horse riding a horse or if he had become a centaur. He raised his Manure Fork and directly skewered the person in front, flashing a dazzling smile at Huai Shi across the crowd, looking as if to say, "Are you moved that your big brother came to save you?"

Huai Shi had no words, just rolled his eyes.

"Watch your back..."

A stray Cavalry Sword suddenly soared into the air, slashing towards Yuan Zhao's neck from behind at a tricky angle. Yuan Zhao, panicking, awkwardly deflected the Cavalry Sword with his Trident. His face turned pale. Then, under the sweeping strike of an iron fork, his two horse legs shattered instantly.

The galloping centaur's movement faltered, and then every gun was aimed at Yuan Zhao's face.

Huai Shi sighed.

The situation is dire. I might as well continue raining down justice.

Then, he heard the young man's furious roar, "Get lost!"

Yuan Zhao roared, swinging his Trident and smashing it down in front of him. Water waves swept through. The heavenly horse neighed, turning into a curtain of water that barely blocked some bullets. However, more bullets soon struck his body, even tearing his face as blood sprayed wildly.

But the heavenly horse continued its charge, storming forward amid the young man's roars and shouts. The Trident swept across, and the last waves of water spread out, cutting a swath of sharp blades that forcibly cleared the crowd.

"I'm determined to save you today!"

At the end of his strength, Yuan Zhao roared, moving forward.

Guo Nu waved his hand. A brawny Guardian hoisted a large shield and slammed it into the ground. Pressing the heavy Tower Shield forward like a wall, he thunderously rolled towards Yuan Zhao.

The next moment, a rumble erupted.

Yuan Zhao stepped forward and turned around. The Trident bent into a faint arc through the air. As he stepped and pushed forward with his palm, it suddenly snapped open, its blades glowing with molten brilliance.

The tip of the spear flew out like a dragon, pierced through the great shield, and then smashed the head behind it like a watermelon, continuing to fly forward.

Yuan Zhao, swiftly pursuing, caught the spear again. Sticky blood shook off its shaft as he came within ten steps of Huai Shi.

At his feet, a pair of pale golden boots that Huai Shi hadn't seen before suddenly lit up.

His speed, which had already reached its limit, surged once again!

"All of you, get lost!"

On his hands, the bracelet-shaped Border Relic glowed. Yuan Zhao's arms suddenly turned crimson, flames of the same color ignited on the spear blade and, with a piercing stance, suddenly burst into brilliant light.

On his ear, a strange earring that clearly didn't suit him showered down a blessing of light.

Where the hell did he get all this divine gear from! Huai Shi's eyes were nearly popping out.

Then, he was overwhelmed by the roaring sound.

Yuan Zhao stepped forward once more.

Facing all the Sublimators, one step.

The blood drained from his face, leaving the youth pale as a sheet, yet his pupils were swirling with the light of Thunder.

Following that, Thunder roared forth from his hands.

It was indescribable how fierce and swift the thrust of that spear was.

It was as if it truly had transformed into a bolt of lightning that cleaved through the stormy downpour and hurricane, tearing apart the boundary between heaven and earth, launching a desperate throw that completely pierced through the vast heavens and earth.

It pained every onlooker's eyes.

The Sublimators blocking the way were instantly shredded into a blood mist by the advancing spear tip, disappearing in a flash. Lin Yu's furious scream echoed. The Alchemy Furnace vibrated. The shadow creatures, hired by the offering according to the contract, once again assumed their ferocious forms and lunged at Yuan Zhao.

Right after that, they were torn to shreds within the surge of that thrust—even the Alchemy Furnace they resided in cracked, and the Weak Water condensed by the Molting Snake Mark slowly seeped out from within.

After the thrust, the brilliance of the Thunder vanished in an instant.

And within the crowd, Yuan Zhao and Huai Shi's figures were gone. Only a straight gorge remained, leading directly into the distant dense forest, carving out a trace of emptiness before finally plunging into the rolling river waters.

Vanished without a trace.

They had fled.

In the protracted silence, everyone stood still, stunned. After a long while, nearly insane screams erupted.

Lin Yu bellowed, her eyes burning blood-red under this unprecedented humiliation.

"After them!"

She held the Alchemy Furnace she had so painstakingly found, her trembling fingers caressing the large crack on its surface. Finally, she screamed like a madwoman, "What are you staring at? After them, all of you! I want that bastard and that motherless whelp from the Yuan Family torn to pieces!"

Guo Nu and Xi Jiang exchanged glances, their expressions instantly turning bitter.

「Later」

As the river's current fluctuated, Huai Shi felt himself finally dragged ashore by Yuan Zhao. After a long period of suffocation, he began to cough violently.

Finally catching his breath, he raised his head and asked the question that had been weighing on him for a long time, "Where did you get all this equipment?"

Yuan Zhao grinned proudly, but under Huai Shi's skeptical gaze, he eventually shrugged helplessly and looked away. "I have profound resources! What do you know! I thought we probably couldn't win, so I ran ahead to Ginza. I got Sister Ye to fix my leg, and then I borrowed a few more pieces of gear... But mainly it was due to my own skills, you understand! When I launched that spear, it scared the hell out of them!"

"Alright, you're amazing."

Huai Shi sighed. You have the ability to borrow gear, so why the hell couldn't you borrow a few more good brothers to come over and slash these sons of bitches to death? This time, having successfully played the hero who saved the White-named face, that kid will probably become unbearably cocky. But, after all, he saved me, so I won't dampen his spirits just yet. Let him bask in his triumph for a while.

Shaking his head, he got up to survey the surroundings. Hearing the approaching footsteps from upstream, his brow furrowed instantly.

"We need to go."

But Yuan Zhao didn't respond.

Yuan Zhao was sitting on the ground, leaning against a tree, as if he wanted to hide his back.

His complexion was deathly pale.

Huai Shi looked over, and Yuan Zhao forced a carefree smile. Then, he couldn't hold back anymore and GAGGED, vomiting a mouthful of blood. His expression twisted uncontrollably as he burst into tears. It hurt.

Blood mixed with river water slowly trickled down his back, falling to the ground, dying the tree a dark red.

Huai Shi was stunned. He reached out, forcibly turned Yuan Zhao around, and saw several deep, bone-exposing wounds, as well as shattered organs and bones within.

Threads of shadow were entangled inside, eroding his flesh and decaying his innards.

Maggots quickly hatched, flying out from the mangled flesh...

Gunshot wounds, Cavalry Sword slashes, and Curses.

Huai Shi's expression darkened as he stared at Yuan Zhao's snot-covered face. "Why didn't you say something earlier..."

"Cut the crap! I'm the big brother... Big brother, understand!" Yuan Zhao glared back with effort amid convulsions. "Saving a little brother... just saving a little brother, what's the big deal?"

Huai Shi was taken aback and sighed ruefully. "You just called me that a couple of times. You're not really that stubborn, are you?"

"You already called me big brother, and now you want to take it back?"

Yuan Zhao, with some unknown strength, grabbed his collar, scolding angrily, "Being a little brother for a day is still being a little brother, got it! In the future... in the future... don't you dare compete with me for a girlfriend... or else... or else you'll face the 'three blades and six holes'..."

As he spoke, he couldn't help grinding his teeth, his face contorting. Tears and snot covered his face, and he couldn't hold onto Huai Shi anymore. He slid weakly down the tree trunk.

Fighting back a sob, he stared earnestly at Huai Shi's face. "Now... now I don't owe you anything, you hear me!"

"I owe you."

Huai Shi didn't want to argue anymore. Looking at Yuan Zhao's convulsing, twisted expression, he sighed and concentrated all the Source Substance he had just regained into his Axe Blade.

"Don't hold it in. Need my help?"

Understanding Huai Shi's intention, Yuan Zhao spat and stretched out his neck.

"Bring it on."

He shot Huai Shi a glance. "Remember to run fast... Never mind, you're such a calamity, you won't die that easily anyway."

With that, he closed his eyes.

Huai Shi nodded, slowly raised the Axe Blade, and aimed it at Yuan Zhao's neck. But suddenly, Yuan Zhao opened his eyes and instructed, "Hang on, remember to return my things to Sister Ye, and this spear, don't lose it..."

"Okay."

Huai Shi nodded.

So, Yuan Zhao closed his eyes, bracing for the end. But he quickly opened them again, a hint of concern showing. "Make it quick, I'm scared it'll hurt."

"...Okay."

Huai Shi sighed in resignation, motioning for him to stretch out his neck again. Yuan Zhao looked at him uneasily one more time, then finally closed his eyes. But his eyelids fluttered open again.

"Oh right, and..."

"You're such a pain!"

Huai Shi interrupted impatiently, and the Axe Blade fell.

Yuan Zhao disappeared.

A Golden Coin fell to the ground.

In the end, still just a hopeless chuuni Little Brag. It's hard to feel happy about this...

Huai Shi propped himself up with his Axe. Recalling the dumbfounded look on Yuan Zhao's face before he vanished, he couldn't help but laugh.

But as he laughed, he stopped.

His gaze grew darker.

Listening to the footsteps drawing nearer in the distance, Huai Shi silently stared at the blood-stained part of the tree trunk, lost in thought.

Should I leave? I probably should. If I leave quickly now, none of them will be able to catch up. But is it over just like this? Just because I offended some crazy woman while cooking?

He glanced at the Axe in his hand, sighed, and asked Red Gloves beside him, "Do you think I should leave?"

"Go," Red Gloves said.

"But I don't want to go," Huai Shi scratched his head and emphasized, "I really don't want to leave."

Red Gloves didn't respond, just silently took the Sacrificial Knife Huai Shi handed over, looking towards where the enemies were.

Huai Shi readied his Axe again. He picked up Yuan Zhao's left-behind gear: a pair of light gold boots, a Power-amplifying Legacy Bracelet, and an earring that replenished a bit of Source Substance.

With the Source Substance replenished, the Mountain Ghost's Stigma could be restored. By extracting vitality, his wounds could heal quickly, and he could manage to move about, albeit barely.

So, it was all right.

At least I can still give them a proper send-off.

"No need," Red Gloves said. "There's always another day."

"You know, I didn't actually need him to save me; I could have handled it all by myself. Sending him away... more than half of it was because I thought he'd just be in the way if he stayed," Huai Shi muttered, gazing at the pool of blood as he spoke to himself. "But he really did come to save me..."

Red Gloves was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "You're regretting it."

"Yeah, regret," Huai Shi whispered. "If only I had used the flyer Little Cat gave me sooner, why would I owe this favor? No, I should have been more cautious, not so arrogant as to think I could take on two Border Mercenary Groups on my own. But what I regret the most is that, before he came back to save me, I never really considered him my friend."

He chuckled softly. "I was just trying to use him..."

"There's no need," Red Gloves' voice was cold. "This is just a game."

"Isn't it just?"

Huai Shi shrugged, gripped the Axe handle tighter, and looked towards the approaching footsteps in the distance.

"So, I want to play a game with them..."