Chapter 107: Self-Mutilation

The two strange men looked almost like twin brothers, yet it was obvious that the one on the right, the man in the top hat, was the true leader. He rarely spoke, but whenever he did, his tone was nearly one of command. Hearing him, the top-hatted man on the left immediately nodded and answered without hesitation, “Good! Then kill them all!”

The words had barely left his mouth when he raised a hand, and a howling wave of icy air came rushing toward them.

Chen Xiao’s eyes widened. His mental force spread rapidly outward, attempting to form a barrier before him.

In an instant, an invisible umbrella seemed to appear in front of him. The surging chill slammed into it, scattering into a cloud of white frost.

But before Chen Xiao could feel pleased with himself, he immediately realized that something was wrong.

Although the mass of ice and snow released by the man on the left had been blocked before him by his mental force, Chen Xiao suddenly shuddered all over. He realized something was amiss—but it was already too late.

Around the place where he stood—in front of him and behind him, above and below, throughout the sewer—the walls were rapidly spreading with a white, frozen sheen. Even his hair and clothes were instantly covered in frost.

Temperature!

Chen Xiao understood at once, but his body had already stiffened. His arm had been frozen rigid. When he forced it to move, it made a series of cracking sounds.

“Hmph! The last time I saw you, I knew you were just a rookie.” The man on the left looked at Chen Xiao, whose entire body was covered in frost. The frost continued to thicken, gradually forming a layer of ice crystals. “You think mental force can deal with me? Hmph! Mental force can block anything tangible, but it can’t block temperature! Foolish boy—temperature is intangible!”

He gave a cold laugh and flicked his fingers rapidly. Clump after clump of frigid air poured forth. In the space of only a few breaths, Chen Xiao had been frozen into an ice man. His entire body was sealed beneath a thick layer of ice, making him look like an ice sculpture.

Alice, kneeling on the ground, had already fallen into despair. When Chen Xiao had suddenly rushed in, a glimmer of hope had risen in her heart. Although Chen Xiao was her enemy rather than her ally, compared with these two top-hatted men, the boy was far less frightening.

The man on the left had frozen Chen Xiao solid with a single move. His expression was full of disdain.

“Does the Service Society only send children out these days?”

Phoenix had still not appeared. The man in the left-hand top hat looked down at Yasha, who was struggling painfully at his feet.

“This is your last chance, Yasha. Will you agree?”

Before Yasha could finish speaking, the man on the left suddenly felt a tightening in the hand he was holding. He turned his head and saw his companion—the top-hatted man on the right—coldly say, “He’s not dead.”

“What?”

“That boy. He’s not dead.” A strange glint appeared in the right-hand man’s eyes as he gave a cold snort.

Sure enough!

The enormous ice sculpture before them suddenly emitted a series of crisp cracking sounds. Clearly visible to the naked eye, fissures spread rapidly across the thick ice, covering its surface with fine cracks. The cracks continued to spread and widen.

At last—

Bang!

The ice shattered. Countless fragments scattered across the ground, and Chen Xiao burst out from within like a tiger breaking free from its cage. With a furious roar, he forced the ice apart with sheer strength.

He shook the ice from his body and drew several deep breaths, staring intently at the two men before him.

He had indeed been careless just now. Once he had been sealed in ice, even if he had not frozen to death, he would probably have suffocated.

Fortunately… fortunately, he still possessed Class B strength. In that desperate moment, he had relied purely on brute force to break through the ice imprisoning him.

The moment he escaped, Chen Xiao did not pause. He lunged forward in great strides. His strength was immense; with a push of his foot, he sprang into the air like a cannonball. His right hand clenched into a fist, and he brought it crashing down toward the head of the top-hatted man on the left.

The man on the left was startled as well. He raised a hand and swiftly conjured an ice shield above his head. But under Chen Xiao’s Class B strength, a single punch smashed straight through it.

His fist was about to strike the man on the left when, at that precise moment—

The man on the right suddenly gave a cold laugh.

“Hmph!”

That single snort seemed like a heavy hammer striking Chen Xiao’s heart. The sensation was so strange and unbearable that he nearly vomited blood. It was as if his heartbeat had suddenly fallen into chaos. Suspended in midair, his body staggered, his movements thrown into disarray and slowed considerably.

Taking advantage of the opening, the man on the left hurriedly retreated two steps, still holding his companion’s hand. Those two steps were just enough to evade Chen Xiao’s fist.

Crack!

Chen Xiao’s punch struck the wall behind where the two men had been standing, smashing a deep crater into the brickwork.

The man on the left frowned and stared at Chen Xiao.

“Hm? Mental force combined with strength? Is this boy a dual-ability user?”

The man on the right shook his head. “It doesn’t look that way.”

The man on the left snorted. “He’s just a child.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a white light seemed to flash from his eyes. Then, centered on the place where he stood, an intense wave of cold instantly spread outward.

In an instant, the temperature in the area seemed to drop by an unimaginable degree. Frost rapidly appeared across the floor, the walls, and the ceiling. A moment later, several sharp cracks rang out. Even the old metal pipes embedded in the walls were frozen so violently that they burst apart under the pressure.

The sudden, intense cold made Chen Xiao feel as though all his movements had become sluggish. The frigid air that surged over him seemed to freeze the blood in his veins. Breathing became difficult; every breath sent a piercing pain through his lungs.

Gritting his teeth, Chen Xiao forced one hand upward and then swung it fiercely toward the man in the top hat.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two invisible blades of mental force shot forward.

Mental-force cutting!

At Chen Xiao’s current level, his mental force could do more than manipulate objects. It could also form razor-sharp cutting power—strong enough to slice a tree trunk in half.

But the top-hatted man merely gave a cold laugh. With a light turn of his palm, he summoned an ice shield before himself, blocking Chen Xiao’s mental-force blades. Although the shield was cut into several pieces, it successfully stopped the attack.

Chen Xiao snorted. His lungs already felt as though they were about to freeze solid, and he could barely remain standing. As he swayed, his gaze fell upon the metal pipes lining the walls and the iron platforms scattered throughout the area.

“Explode!”

He forced the three words out through clenched teeth.

Boom!

Metal Molecular Detonation!

Under the forced ignition of his supernatural power, the metal sewer pipes already sealed in frost, along with the surrounding iron platforms, suddenly erupted with a thunderous roar. The detonation of the metal molecules triggered a chain of explosions, instantly blasting the ice apart.

Flames surged violently through the passage.

The fire seemed about to swallow the two top-hatted men, but the man who controlled the cold merely cried out in surprise. He quickly swept his arm in a wide arc, and a layer of ice immediately enclosed them both.

There were many metal pipes in this cramped space. At this moment, the effective range of Chen Xiao’s metal-molecular detonation happened to cover the entire area. Although his ability was not yet strong enough to detonate every piece of metal, it still produced a tremendous series of explosions.

The flames immediately dispelled the cold, and Chen Xiao felt a surge of relief. Panting, he staggered backward two steps and leaned against the wall.

But when the flames faded, the two top-hatted men were still standing inside the ice.

The ice protecting them had been badly damaged. The man on the left, however, had assumed a strange posture. He looked almost like a mother beast, clutching the man on the right tightly in his arms. He had even turned his body so that his own back absorbed the full force of the metal explosions.

The suit across his back was in tatters. Several places had been scorched by the flames, and blood was flowing from others. Fortunately, the surrounding ice had sealed the wounds. Even so, the sight was shocking.

The man on the left wore a complicated expression. After turning around, he first carefully examined the companion he had shielded. Seeing that the man on the right was unharmed, he seemed to relax only then and let out a breath.

Then he frowned at Chen Xiao.

“This boy knows far too many things. Since when did the Service Society produce such a little monster? That move just now—the metal detonation—isn’t that Black Knight Qiu Yun’s ultimate technique?”

The man on the right still wore the same cold expression. Although his companion had been injured protecting him, he showed not the slightest emotional reaction. He merely glanced at him calmly.

“How are you?”

“I’m fine.” A trace of concern appeared in the left-hand man’s cold eyes. “You…”

“I’m all right.” The man on the right replied coldly. He then ignored his companion and fixed his gaze on Chen Xiao.

Yet the indifference in his eyes suddenly gave way to eager interest. He stared at Chen Xiao as though a miser had suddenly discovered a massive diamond.

“What do you think of this boy?” he asked coldly.

The man on the left hesitated. “…Very good.”

“Good. Take him back. He’s more valuable than Yasha.” The man on the right spoke coldly. “If you can’t handle him, I will.”

The man on the left hesitated again. “But your body…”

“It doesn’t matter.”

The right-hand man’s voice suddenly became much harsher. The man on the left seemed almost afraid of him and immediately closed his mouth.

Although Chen Xiao found the exchange somewhat strange, he had not truly been injured. He had merely been frozen for a while, leaving his body uncomfortable.

Now, watching the two men, he clenched his fists.

“What? You still want to fight?”

The man on the right suddenly smiled.

It was the first time he had smiled. His smile looked almost like weeping, with his brows furrowed and an indescribably eerie expression at the corners of his eyes.

For no apparent reason, his smile made Chen Xiao feel anxious and unsettled. Irritation surged through him. With a furious shout, he charged forward first and swung a fist.

But after he had taken only one step, he saw the man on the right suddenly raise a finger and drive it viciously downward.

He…

He…

He had not stabbed Chen Xiao.

He had stabbed himself!

His finger plunged into his own shoulder with a wet impact, sinking deeply into the flesh and opening a bloody hole. Blood spurted out like an arrow.

The bizarre action left Chen Xiao stunned.

What was wrong with this man? Did he have to mutilate himself before every fight?

What kind of strange habit was that?

The thought had barely crossed Chen Xiao’s mind when he suddenly cried out in pain. A sharp agony erupted from his left shoulder, and his upright body staggered several steps to the side.

When Chen Xiao looked at his shoulder again, he found a bloody hole there, though he had no idea when it had appeared. Blood sprayed from the mangled wound. The injury had been inflicted just beneath the shoulder joint with astonishing precision, and one of his arms immediately went limp.

Horrified, Chen Xiao raised his head and stared at the top-hatted man on the right.