Chapter 130: Chapter 97: Ah—Stop Hitting Me

At this moment, Wei’en had few magical options. He had to upgrade the Blink (Death God) Spell to escape faster or have a chance in combat.

Blink (Death God) Level 2 (1/300), (2/300)... Blink (Death God) Level 2 (300/300).

[Blink (Death God) Level 2 (300/300). Upgrade?]

[Upgrade.]

[Congratulations, your skill: Blink (Death God) has been upgraded to Level 3. Effect: Blink distance increased by 100%, Spiritual Power consumption reduced by 10%, Phantom Clone +1.]

[Note 1: At Level 3, Blink (Death God) will generate 2 Phantom Clones, possessing 20% of the user’s Spirit level and 20% of the user’s toughness level. Duration: 20 seconds.]

[Note 2: Phantom Clones have a hidden trait: the ability to cast Charm Spells. They cannot Charm creatures whose Spirit level exceeds 150% of the user’s.]

’A 100% increase in distance means a 100-meter range. And they can’t Charm anyone with a Spirit level over 150% of mine... so, anyone below 180?’

Wei’en skimmed the details, his mind racing as he immediately grasped the new effects of his Blink Spell.

He completely ignored the part about the Phantom Clones having 20% of his base stats. ’With stats that low, they probably can’t even take a single hit from the two behind me.’

"Yenish."

Hearing the voice from behind, Wei’en reacted instantly, growling, "Hold on tight, Tina!"

"Tina, understood."

’Secret Master, Blink!’

Among the Xiaoxis floating in mid-air, watching their two pursuers, the Secret Master turned to face forward. "Nico, Ruke."

Immediately after, Wei’en and Tina’s figures suddenly disappeared, leaving only two Phantom Clones in their place.

Elno’s blade sliced into a Phantom Clone. The yielding impact made his eyes go cold. ’They got away?’

"Mens, Di."

The remaining Phantom Clone stared at him and unleashed a Charm Spell.

"Ngh?"

Elno’s expression went slack. He began swinging his long knife wildly. "I’ve finally got you! You’re dead meat!"

"Die! I’ll hack you to pieces!"

"Hahaha... Tiki, I’ve avenged you, Tiki!"

Though Collins was also affected by the charm, his Spirit level was far higher than Elno’s, and he broke free in an instant.

The writhing tentacles covering his body occasionally struck the tunnel walls, corroding pits into the stone.

"Huh? Elno, what’s wrong with you? Snap out of it!"

BANG...

Wei’en, who had blinked away, noticed this as well. He stopped running, drew his pistol with a flick of his wrist, and fired a volley of bullets at them.

Six bullets flew high and low, blanketing the entire passage and cutting off their escape.

"You little bastard! You think a gun is enough to deal with us?"

Annoyed, Collins shielded Elno, his tentacles shooting forward to block the bullets.

[You have hit Colins Vazquez with your pistol, triggering Death Trait - Senescence. Instant Death Progress: 1/30. Evaluation: Disgusting creature. Reward: Survival Points +3.]

[...] 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

[You have hit Colins Vazquez with your pistol, triggering Death Trait - Plague. Instant Death Progress: 6/30... Reward: Survival Points +3.]

’It can pierce his defenses?’

Wei’en’s eyes lit up. He set Tina down and quickly reloaded.

’The Charm Spell won’t last long. I have to hit him now, while Collins can’t move!’

BANG, BANG, BANG...

"Senescence, Plague contamination?"

’How is this possible?’

’How could those bullets be contaminated with the power of Death Traits?’

’Could that kid be a follower of the Death Sect? But weren’t they wiped out?’

But this was clearly not the time to be thinking about that. Collins could already feel his tentacles becoming contaminated.

The dark stain of the Plague contamination was particularly concerning; it was replacing his own green corrosive mucus and creeping up his tentacles toward his body.

"Damn it, Elno, if you don’t wake up now, we’re in trouble!"

As he yelled, Collins shed the tentacles pierced by the bullets, preventing the contamination from affecting his main body.

Seeing the dozens of bullets flying toward him, he knew he couldn’t block them all. He had no choice but to wrap Elno in his tentacles and drag him out of the line of fire.

He only used his tentacles to block the shots he absolutely couldn’t dodge.

"Who the hell are you? Why do you wield the power of Death contamination?"

Collins never imagined that an Inauspicious One who hadn’t even reached the rank of Captain could give him so much trouble with just a gun.

[You have hit Colins Vazquez with your pistol, triggering Death Trait - Calamity. Instant Death Progress: 1/30. Evaluation: Extraordinary Bloodline, heh. Extraordinary, hahaha... Reward: Survival Points +3.]

[...]

[You have hit Colins Vazquez with your pistol, triggering Death Trait - Plague. Instant Death Progress: 1/30... Reward: Survival Points +3.]

’Huh?’

’The Death Trait progress reset?’

Wei’en frowned. He watched Collins, who was constantly shedding tentacles and growing new ones. ’Isn’t an ability like that a bit too overpowered?’

’Unfortunately, the passage is too narrow for my [Ballistic Control] to be fully effective. Otherwise, Collins wouldn’t have dodged so many bullets.’

"Ngh, Collins? Quick, put me down—"

Elno, wrapped and being corroded by the tentacles, finally snapped out of it. The intense pain made him scream.

"You’re finally awake! Quick, help me block these bullets!" Collins yelled, shoving him forward. "But be extremely careful. There’s something wrong with that kid’s bullets."

"What’s wrong with them?"

Now aware he had been hit by a Charm Spell, Elno’s face darkened. He flashed to Collins’s side, his long knife a blur as it shattered the incoming bullets one by one.

"Any hit that lands inflicts some kind of contamination."