Heavenly Ranking

Chapter 4 Spirit
"Quiet."

After killing the leopard-man, Ji Fuyou felt an unprecedented sense of peace.

Surrounded by mist, it was pitch black.

It could easily become a filming location for a horror movie.

But he no longer felt any fear.

Looking at his cracked palm and smelling the blood that belonged to either himself or the leopard-man, he even felt a sense of peace.

At that moment, Ji Fuyou seemed to see something.

He lowered his head, ignoring the blood, and searched the leopard-man's corpse, whose head had been pierced.

Soon, they managed to pry out an irregular crystal with a diameter of one centimeter from inside the leopard-man's skull.

Before he could get a clear look at the crystal, it melted rapidly upon contact with the wound and blood on his palm, transforming into a special energy that flowed into his body.

Ji Fuyou was startled and violently shook his arm.

But it was too late.

After the energy entered his body, he clearly felt his body temperature gradually rise, as if he had a fever.

"what!?"

He stared at his palm.

Just then, a sharp shout came from the mist.

"Put down the Source Crystal!"

The next moment, a dark figure suddenly pounced out.

A strong wind is coming!

The instinct accumulated from dying hundreds of times in his dreams made him instantly stand up straight. In that instant, the power of his legs and waist merged into one, and his body, like a spring, transmitted all the power to his arm that was tightly gripping the crowbar, and he smashed it fiercely in the direction from which the strong wind was coming.

Cruel!

Decisive!

Without hesitation!

No matter what emerges from the fog!
Kill them all!

"Oh!"

At this moment, the scorching energy within Ji Fuyou's body seemed to find a direction to be released, pouring into his arm, making the force of his strike seem to explode the air, producing a muffled sound.

"Grass!"

The figure who suddenly lunged out from the fog, delivering a flying kick, felt the force of the blow—enough to shatter even bricks—and cursed.

He spun around quickly, and a metallic glint appeared on his arm as he blocked the attack.

"boom!"

A sudden sound!

The crowbar and the hastily blocked metal object collided heavily, creating sparks visible to the naked eye.

However, although the figure blocked the blow, the power contained within it caused his body, which had lost its balance in his hasty change of move, to be sent flying by the force of the blow.

Only then did Ji Fuyou realize that what he had used to block his attack was actually a sword!

A blade was opened...

A sharp sword that can kill.

kill!?

Ji Fuyou's pupils contracted sharply, as if he had entered a state of stress. The intense power within him surged, allowing him to strike again without hesitation after sending the figure flying with a single blow.

He strode forward, raised the crowbar high, aimed it at the head of the unbalanced figure, and with all his might, brought it down on the head.

"stop!"

Just then, another sharp shout suddenly came from the side.

The next moment, Ji Fuyou, who was holding the crowbar high, felt a chill run down his spine and explode deep in his mind.

An unspeakable fear, like a series of cold, venomous snakes, swiftly slithered through his entire body. The chill it carried made his body feel as if it had fallen into an ice cave, freezing him in place, as if he were being crushed by a nightmare, unable to move an inch!

This feeling……

That damn feeling again!
Failure, cowardice, and fear that cannot even make the slightest movement!
fear!?
What are you so afraid of?!

die!?

If I can overcome fear and defeat death once, I can definitely defeat it a second time!

"Move! Move!"

The intense heat in Ji Fuyou's heart even surpassed the feverish heat in his body.

Deep within his consciousness, a flame of resentment and defiance seemed to be ignited!
"Move!"

The fire in his heart instantly dispelled the stiffness that had gripped him like he was in an ice cave.

He suddenly regained control of his body and started moving again.

The raised crowbar was also brought down hard.

"A psychopath!?"

From within the mist, a suppressed cry, tinged with pain, rang out!

but……

This did not affect the speed at which Ji Fuyou crashed down in the slightest.

However, the earlier intimidation caused him to miss the best moment to deliver a fatal blow. With a slight delay, the figure that had been blasted away tumbled and crawled away, escaping his attack range.

The blow slammed into the ground, sending dirt and debris flying everywhere.

The force is so great that it can shatter a human skull.

Beat to death!

This is clearly a move towards a fight to the death!

"Stop! We are government employees! Not enemies!"

At this moment, a desperate cry, piercing through the pain, echoed once more from the mist.

Immediately afterwards, a man in his thirties strode out.

Ji Fuyou stopped.

He didn't suddenly believe the man's identity.

But...

He has a gun. He carries a gun.

The gun wasn't pointed at Ji Fuyou, but the natural fear that ordinary people living in a stable society have of firearms forced him to stop.

At this moment, the figure who had escaped Ji Fuyou's attack range ran to the man's side, both shocked and furious: "Brother Pei, he tried to kill me! He just... tried to kill me..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was stopped by a cold look from the man.

At this moment, Ji Fuyou also saw clearly that this was a young man who looked to be around twenty years old, wearing a jacket, with dyed yellow hair, and dressed a bit like a hoodlum... like a certain popular celebrity.

"Brother, it's a misunderstanding."

The man quickly replied, "My name is Pei Zhaoye. I am an executive captain in the armed forces department of the Star Shield Group, hired by the government to deal with the orcs on Mount Fulong."

As he spoke, he glanced at the leopard-man corpse beside Ji Fuyou: "That's the one you killed."

StarShield Group.

One of the large enterprises in Xingguang City.

Federal government employees enjoy extremely high benefits; if any employee is injured, even millions of dollars wouldn't be enough to cover the compensation.

To avoid losses, government departments often outsource some dangerous jobs to relevant companies.

These two are clearly of this nature.

"Orcs?"

Ji Fuyou's eyes never left the man: "Where did you come from?"

"The explanation given to the public was that it was a failed product from a biochemistry lab."

Pei Zhaoye said.

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment: "Internally, it's naturally a different story. If you're interested in knowing more, we can find a place and talk about it in detail."

The young man glanced at him, somewhat resentful.

Ji Fuyou didn't answer, but continued to ask, "What is a Source Crystal?"

"A precious resource."

Pei Zhaoye glanced at Ji Fuyou with some envy: "It is only produced by a very small number of orcs and monsters. You have already experienced the effects."

"Strengthen the body?"

Ji Fuyou Road.

He could clearly feel the heat emanating from the crystal enhancing his strength, physical abilities, and reflexes.

"Correct."

Pei Zhaoye nodded.

"So……"

Ji Fuyou stared at him: "What is a mental mutant?"

Pei Zhaoye met Ji Fuyou's gaze, but there was deep envy in his eyes: "In this world, there are a very few people who are born with keen senses and can often detect some crises that are not easily noticed by ordinary people. For example, criminal investigation experts may undergo mental changes when they are severely stimulated and break through their own limits."

He remarked with some emotion, "Every person with a mental mutation is a born mentally gifted individual!"

"A person with mental abilities?"

"Those who can utilize mental power, like hypnotists, can be considered level one mental power users. However, their use of mental power is quite superficial; those who are more advanced..."

Pei Zhaoye paused for a moment: "Like what I did just now, to subdue your mind, that's a way for a level three mental energy user to use their mental power!"

"Level 3 psychic..."

"The source crystals produced by those orcs and monsters have different colors and effects; most of them enhance physical strength, and some..."

Pei Zhaoye pointed to his head: "Strengthen the spirit."

He didn't go on to reveal the specific details.

Ji Fuyou nodded.

"Okay."

He asked, and Pei Zhaoye answered.

This kind of information compensation is actually a tacit apology.

"Can we sell this orc carcass?"

Pei Zhaoye smiled and said, "It's a contribution, I can offer 10."

"10?"

"Correct."

Pei Zhaoye nodded.

Ji Fuyou glanced at the leopard-man's corpse.

This thing...

Even if you could kill him with a gun, is he worth 10?
"can."

He complied.

"There's no signal right now. Give me a number, and I'll transfer it to you once I get out of the mountains..."

Pei Zhaoye seemed to feel that this was deceptive, so he took off the watch on his wrist: "The Piaget New Century series tactical watch is both beautiful and practical. Its market price is 13, but considering depreciation, let's say 10. Is that okay with you?"

Ji Fuyou doesn't understand watches.

But I've heard of world-class brands like Earl.

"can."

"it is good."

Pei Zhaoye handed over his watch and a business card at the same time: "If you want to know more, or if you are interested in people with mental abilities, you can contact me."

Ji Fuyou accepted the business card and watch.

Pei Zhaoye simply put the leopard-man's corpse into a body bag.

The technique was very skillful.

"It's best to keep tonight's events a secret to avoid causing unnecessary panic among the public... Oh well, no images or photos can be taken in the fog anyway, and no one will believe it if I tell anyone."

As Pei Zhaoye spoke, he easily lifted the leopard-man corpse, which weighed over a hundred pounds.

The two of them turned and left together.

Ji Fuyou watched the two of them disappear into the mist, but he did not lower his guard.

A full minute later, he gripped the crowbar and strode away.

(End of this chapter)