Chapter 123: Chapter 123: Energy Crystal
Xie Ning gazed calmly at the man lying on the ground.
This was the first person she had killed since her rebirth into this apocalyptic world.
’He didn’t know what was good for him, insisting on chasing me down and demanding to know if I was a Superpower User. Well, if he had to ask again and again, then I guess the answer is yes, right?’
If Xie Ning had the leisure to look in a mirror at this moment, she would have discovered a moist film veiling her eyes.
Now, she was surprised to find that the corpse on the ground seemed to be turning transparent.
She could see the energy source in his chest slowly float up, rising higher and higher.
It was as if it were being drawn by some unknown force.
Xie Ning subconsciously took a step back. A rice-grain-sized Energy Crystal burst from Boss Pi’s chest and shot straight toward her.
She retreated another two steps, and the Energy Crystal hovered in mid-air, emitting a faint glow.
Xie Ning frowned and cautiously extended her hand, allowing the faintly glowing Energy Crystal to land gently in her palm.
The Energy Crystal of a First Rank Spiritual Ability User looked more translucent than a Zombie Crystal Core.
She recalled that in her past life, some people had specialized in hunting other Superpower Users—just like hunting zombies—to study the Energy Crystals inside their bodies.
Xie Ning couldn’t help but shudder.
In her mind, zombies and humans were ultimately different.
Killing zombies and taking their Crystal Cores was something she could do with a clear conscience.
’But a human’s Energy Crystal... This thing probably isn’t very useful to me, is it?’
Xie Ning pinched the rice-grain-sized Energy Crystal between two fingers, holding it out at arm’s length to get a look at it.
The disgust in her eyes was plain to see.
’Give it to Xiao Gu?’
Just as that thought crossed her mind, she watched the Energy Crystal between her fingers slowly dissipate.
Shock not only flashed through Xie Ning’s eyes, but her heart also trembled violently, as if rocked by an earthquake.
’So before, did I really absorb that Spiritual System Crystal Core from the First-tier Zombie all by myself??’
Before she had time to carefully investigate the energy source inside her body, four or five brawny men ran out from a side door.
"Over here."
Xie Ning, still carrying a large cloth bag full of miscellaneous items, heard the shout and immediately bolted for the supermarket’s back door.
"Boss Pi was killed by that little bitch."
"Fuck! Just wait ’til we catch her, see if I don’t fuck her to... ugh." The foul-mouthed brute hadn’t finished speaking before his eyes bulged, and he reached up to feel his gushing neck.
A Metal Spike had materialized there out of thin air.
Blood snaked down the long spike.
"She’s a Gold Element offensive Superpower User, not a Space-type support!" someone cried in alarm. "Watch out!"
A Metal Spike shot through his back, pinning him dead to the ground.
"AHHHH!" Seeing that things had gone south, the other three brutes immediately turned tail and fled.
Just as Xie Ning was about to give chase, a large blade came slashing at her from the side.
"You murderous demon! I’ll kill you!" It was the young follower who had been with Boss Pi. His eyes were bloodshot as he hacked at her with his blade.
He slashed wildly several times, but only managed to hit the walls on either side, failing to land a single blow on Xie Ning.
"You talk as if you’re so heroic and righteous, like your own hands aren’t stained with blood," Xie Ning said sarcastically, kicking the young man in the stomach.
"A bunch of thugs ganging up to bully a weak girl." ’I wasn’t bullied only because I was strong enough to handle them!’
’Otherwise, if I had fallen into their hands, would my fate have been any better than death?’
The young man crumpled to his knees from the force of her kick, his body hunched over and his face contorted in pain.
Xie Ning turned and ran into the supermarket, quickly sweeping apples, oranges, and pears from the shelves into her large cloth bag.
The young man, still hunched over, stubbornly chased after her. "You bitch, don’t you run! Put that down! That’s all our... "
BANG! After the gunshot, a bloody hole appeared in the young man’s head, and his body fell to the ground with a thud.
Xie Ning whipped her head around to see a cold metal gun barrel aimed right at her.
"I’d advise you not to make any sudden moves. Bullets don’t have eyes!" The woman with long, flowing hair stared at Xie Ning guardedly, then gestured with a slight lift of her chin.
One of her subordinates quickly stepped forward and snatched the yellow cloth bag from Xie Ning’s grasp.
"There’s fruit and cookies," the subordinate said, his eyes lighting up.
"Ms. Yao, don’t waste your breath on her. Just kill this shameless bitch."
"Yeah! She caused that chain-reaction crash with our cars, got the cameraman and the others killed, and all our footage is ruined."
Xie Ning glanced over and saw seven or eight grimy-faced young men and women trailing behind the woman in the leather jacket and pants.
The woman was perched on ten-centimeter stilettos, and her curvaceous figure was alluringly encased in the leather.
While everyone else was covered in dust and grime, she remained exquisitely beautiful.
Her face was covered with a layer of whitening foundation, she wore long false eyelashes, and her eyeliner was drawn deep and dark.
She stood out from the crowd like a crane among chickens, so glamorous she was dazzling.
Xie Ning raised an eyebrow, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Why don’t you just rip the horn out of a car and carry it around to announce your arrival?"
"You’re courting death." A flicker of anger crossed Wang Qingyao’s eyes.
She had originally planned on letting the girl go on account of her youth, but she hadn’t expected her to be so fearless.
She pulled the trigger. The bullet flew out, heading straight for Xie Ning’s head.
PING! A sharp, metallic sound rang out.
The bullet was knocked off course by another one fired from behind, embedding itself in the wall with a dull thud.
Wang Qingyao’s heart leaped in surprise. She turned her head and saw a tall, slender figure.
It all happened in a flash. Everyone heard a soft SQUELCH as a sharp Metal Spike suddenly pierced through the side of Wang Qingyao’s neck.
With a sickening CRUNCH and the heavy scent of blood, it burst out the other side.
"AHHHH!" The scene erupted into chaotic screaming. Everyone stared at Xie Ning, their eyes filled with accusation, outrage, and disbelief.
"You killed Ms. Yao! You damn lunatic, how could you be so cruel?" The woman who spoke was shaking her head and crying, but she didn’t forget to back away, terrified that Xie Ning’s elusive Metal Spike would materialize and kill her.
"Your Ms. Yao tried to shoot me in the head, but I didn’t see you call her a lunatic. Your companion said to kill me, and I didn’t hear you say he was cruel." Xie Ning gave a smirk that wasn’t a smile. "Your whole worldview just revolves around yourselves, doesn’t it?"
The woman was left speechless.
"Little sister, are you hurt?" Gu Chen rushed to her side with several men. Behind them, they had the three brawny men who had previously escaped under guard.
"I’m fine." Xie Ning shook her head and glanced at the three men. "What are you all doing here?"
"You were too reckless, running off this far alone. Your mom and the others were worried sick!"
Xie Ning rubbed her nose. She had snuck out precisely because she was worried her mom and the others would nag her.
"Alright, alright, I’ll go back now."
"But there’s still a lot of stuff here. Have your people take it all."
Xie Ning walked up to one of the trembling subordinates and snatched back the yellow cloth bag he had taken from her.
"Where are my things?"
"Wh-what things?"
Xie Ning gave him a resounding slap across the face and stared at him coldly. "My things!"
The subordinate was utterly miserable. Crying, he fumbled all over his body, tremblingly emptying everything he could find into the cloth bag.
Lighters, cigarettes, car keys, small cookies, chocolates, and so on.
