Chapter 53: The Way Out
The sound of rapid footsteps echoed through the garage as Ashamed Father crouched low and broke into a full sprint, slamming his shoulder and back into the car robot's steel frame.
A force powerful enough to bring down a wall only managed to make the machine stumble a single step.
The chainsaw grazed Xie Lingxi's side and bit into the cement floor. Spinning at full speed, it carved a deep, thin groove into the ground.
Zhang Yuanqing snapped back to his senses. The muscles in his legs swelled as he exploded forward with a speed he never knew he had. In an instant, he was at Xie Lingxi's side. He grabbed the girl by the shoulders, yanked her backward and tossed her toward Xi Shi. In the same motion, he wrapped both arms around the robot's arm which was wielding the chainsaw.
"Everyone, on him! Take the weapon!"
His voice rang out like a bell, cutting through the panic that gripped Fire Demon and Great Sage Equal to Heaven. Both lunged at the car robot simultaneously. The hot tempered Fire Sage slammed into its back while Great Sage grabbed the chainsaw alongside Zhang Yuanqing, trying to wrench it free.
"Everyone must die! Everyone must die...!"
The speaker in the car robot's chest continuously blared its declaration. Electricity crackled and buzzed. Its mechanical arms clicked and twisted, then swung outward violently, hurling Zhang Yuanqing and Great Sage Equal to Heaven through the air.
Zhang Yuanqing hit the ground like a sandbag, the impact leaving him dizzy and disoriented. Great Sage, on the other hand, adjusted his center of gravity midair, executed two backflips to bleed off the momentum, and landed cleanly on his feet.
Zhang Yuanqing identified Great Sage's class the instant he witnessed that move. Wood Demon? This guy is a Wood Demon?
At the Transcendent tier, a Level 2 Wood Demon was also known as a Wood Ape, and was blessed with innate climbing talent and extraordinary agility. The move he'd just pulled off couldn't be done with raw strength alone. It required a specialized technique, and after running through the possibilities, Wood Demon class fit him best.
Clang, clang, clang!
Ashamed Father's fists repeatedly rained down on the car robot's steel body like a hailstorm, but the machine simply swept one arm and sent him flying, then hefted its chainsaw and gave chase.
In the midst of a crisis, the plain-looking middle-aged man displayed combat prowess and agility that completely defied his humble appearance. A fierce, almost savage light seemed to gather in his eyes as he used the parked cars around him for cover, sprinting, diving, and rolling to dodge one chainsaw strike after another.
Every second was a brush with death.
"Screw your grandpa!" Fire Demon yelled as he charged forward, cursing all the way. He leaped into the air, legs pressed together, and landed a drop kick square in the back of the car robot.
But the machine's feet seemed bolted to the ground with some kind of bracing system. Its steel frame shuddered, yet its feet didn't budge an inch. It spun around instantly, the chainsaw arm sweeping back in a vicious arc.
Instinctively, Fire Demon threw up a hand to block the oncoming attack.
Splurt!
His right palm separated from his wrist in an instant, slapping wetly against the floor.
He crashed to the ground after it, letting out a bloodcurdling scream as he collapsed.
By then, Zhang Yuanqing and Great Sage Equal to Heaven had circled back around. The former rushed in to engage the car robot while the latter dragged the wounded Fire Demon to safety.
Clang, clang!
Zhang Yuanqing slammed both fists into the steel chest. It felt like his bones were about to shatter. Those punches of his, strong enough to beat an eighty-year-old man to death, had been reduced to harmless little love taps.
The car robot's list of targets grew from one to two.
Zhang Yuanqing relied on his Nocturnal Specter physique to narrowly dodge one lethal strike after another, his mind racing all the while. He couldn't win. He couldn't run. This dungeon was going to wipe an entire party. With all their skills sealed, how could anyone possibly survive against the car robot?
But even an S-rank Spirit Realm dungeon would not assign a literally impossible task. There had to be a way to beat it. He just hadn't found it yet. If only there were a place of shelter like in the Mountain God Temple...
A flash of inspiration struck.
"Get in the cars! Get inside the cars!!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.
Everyone froze for a split second, then it clicked. Great Sage Equal to Heaven latched onto the idea like a drowning man grasping a lifeline. He fumbled his car key out and mashed the unlock button.
A dozen meters behind him, the car they had opened earlier chirped twice.
He instinctively bolted toward it, took a few steps, then remembered Fire Demon. He doubled back, hauled the injured man up, and they sprinted for the car together.
Xie Lingxi, her face pale, fished the car key from her pocket and pressed the unlock button. A few meters away, a black SUV beeped twice, its taillights flashing.
"So that's where it is! Sis Xi Shi, let's go, hurry!" she cried out in delighted surprise.
Xi Shi sprinted toward the vehicle. Xie Lingxi clutched at her waist and staggered after her, not forgetting to look back and call out, "Over here, over here!"
"You go first," said the middle-aged man, his voice low and steady as he ducked beneath a chainsaw strike.
He saw Zhang Yuanqing hesitate and frowned. "Your skills are too green. You don't look anything like an experienced Spirit Realm Walker. If I leave, you're dead for certain."
Can't I just be a class that isn't good at fighting? Zhang Yuanqing grumbled internally, but he didn't try to be a hero. He turned and ran.
He dashed to the SUV, yanked open the rear door, threw himself inside, and stuck his head back out. "Hurry!"
Ashamed Father immediately disengaged from the car robot and broke into a dead sprint toward them.
Vroom, vroom!
The car robot's engine roared to life inside its body, and roller wheels on the soles of its feet propelled it forward in pursuit.
Ashamed Father's face was taut with exertion, veins bulging on his forehead, his expression twisted and ferocious as he ran for his life. But he still couldn't outrun the machine.
"Other side!" Zhang Yuanqing yelled.
He slammed his door shut and threw open the one on the opposite side.
Ashamed Father dove to the left, narrowly dodging the sweeping chainsaw, and scrambled around to the other side of the car on all fours before diving through the open door.
The door slammed shut behind him.
Vents near the car robot's ankles hissed as jets of gas bled off its momentum. Chainsaw in hand, it rolled to a stop beside the vehicle.
All four people in the car held their breath.
Half a minute of silence passed. Zhang Yuanqing exhaled with immense relief.
He watched the car robot standing outside, looking left and right, and smiled. "Looks like my hunch was right."
Xi Shi immediately turned to him with eyes shining with admiration. "You're amazing! You truly are a seasoned Spirit Realm Walker."
Ashamed Father glanced at him.
Did he figure out I'm a rookie? Zhang Yuanqing wondered.
He offered Xi Shi a slight smile. "I'm just good at observing."
Xie Lingxi blinked her bright, dewy eyes. "Are you a Scout?"
He smiled and said nothing. Of course not. How could I possibly be an eyeball worth 75 gold!
The young girl didn't press further, instead calling out sweetly, "Thank you, uncle. And thank you, Bro Wang Tai, for saving me just now."
Ashamed Father gave a small nod.
"We're teammates. Helping each other is the only way we'll get through this," Zhang Yuanqing answered, earning him a look of gratitude and admiration from the girl.
The car robot still hadn't left, so no one dared exit the vehicle. Zhang Yuanqing took the opportunity to close his eyes and review everything that had happened since entering the parking garage.
Xie Lingxi doesn't seem like she belongs to a close combat class. Xi Shi played it safe, so I can't pin down her class yet. Fire Demon is most likely a Fire Sage. You can fake a bad temper, but not that flawlessly.
As for Ashamed Father... tsk. He reminds me of Ou Xiangrong.
He hadn't been able to identify the middle-aged man's class before, but after that fight, Zhang Yuanqing could feel the thick killing intent radiating from him. That, together with the real skill he showed in close quarters combat, instantly reminded him of Ou Xiangrong. The two of them gave off remarkably similar vibes.
Isn't he a little too mild-mannered to be an Enchanting Demon, though? Then again, Ou Xiangrong's mind was already falling apart by that point, so he's not a good benchmark. If the uncle really is an Enchanting Demon, then given the opposing faction dynamics, there's a strong chance he's the evildoer. Should I take him out after this segment ends?
However, to successfully make it out of the underground parking garage, they needed manpower to search for keys and to work together against the car robot. Under those circumstances, the odds of the killer making a move dropped significantly.
While he was still mulling it over, Xie Lingxi's cheerful voice broke through his thoughts. "Oh, I found another card!"
***
【Ding! Your conditions have been met. Do you wish to eliminate a team member? If no choice is made within thirty seconds, this opportunity will be forfeited.】
【Ding. You have forfeited this opportunity.】
***
Inside the car, everyone's attention turned to Xie Lingxi as she pulled a metallic card from the sun visor on the passenger side.
Its gold-painted surface bore a single line of text: "You have earned one opportunity to use an item."
An opportunity to use an item? Zhang Yuanqing noticed Xi Shi, Xie Lingxi, and the middle aged man all perk up, their eyes gleaming faintly.
Compared to the Concentrated Life Elixir, a card that allowed item usage was far more valuable. An item used at the right time could solve a crisis outright. Life Essence could save a life, but it couldn't nullify the underlying danger.
Just then, the car robot outside screamed "Everyone must die" as it reluctantly rolled away.
At the same time, the countdown reappeared, but this time, the limit was two minutes and forty seconds—twenty seconds shorter.
Xi Shi's beautiful eyes went wide. "What happened? We lost twenty seconds. Does each appearance of that car robot reduce the timer by twenty seconds?"
Xie Lingxi offered her own theory. "There's another possibility. Opening a car costs us ten seconds."
All four of them fell silent. Either way, it was bad news.
Xi Shi's face was ashen. "S-rank dungeons are way too hard. I never want to go through one again in my life."
Huh? There are other dungeons besides S-ranked ones? Zhang Yuanqing quipped bitterly to himself.
The four of them opened the car doors and happened to see Great Sage Equal to Heaven supporting Fire Demon as they approached. Fire Demon's wrist had been crudely bandaged with a torn sleeve, but it wasn't doing much to stop the bleeding. In the few minutes they'd spent hiding, blood had already soaked his pants crimson. His face was deathly pale from the blood loss.
"He's not doing well," Great Sage said as he drew near, gesturing toward the wound.
Since he was reluctant to elaborate, Fire Demon spoke up himself, his voice feeble. "Little girl, that card of yours. Hand it over, now."
Xie Lingxi wrinkled her nose. "I need to keep that to save my own life. Why should I give it to you?"
Fire Demon erupted in fury. "I knew it. You've been putting on an act this whole time. Crack you open and you're rotten inside."
Xie Lingxi pouted, her voice full of grievance. "How can you say that about me? I'm not even an adult yet."
Zhang Yuanqing looked at her, then at Fire Demon. What is this girl doing? She wants to let our numbers dwindle now?
Their task wasn't finished. Searching for keys required manpower. If they didn't save Fire Demon, he would die for certain, costing them a team member and future progress as well.
After a brief moment of thought, Zhang Yuanqing spoke up. "Let's put it to a vote."
Everyone except for Xie Lingxi voted in favor.
With a disgruntled huff, she reluctantly flicked the Concentrated Life Elixir card at Fire Demon.
【Ding! Injury detected. Would you like to use "Concentrated Life Elixir"?】
"Yes."
Ethereal spring water poured from the metal card and enveloped the stump at Fire Demon's wrist. Seconds later, his flesh and blood began to regenerate, and bit by bit, a new hand grew back.
Color flooded back into Fire Demon's deathly pale face, and he looked revitalized.
Now that the injury issue had been resolved, Great Sage Equal to Heaven spoke again. "I noticed the time for finding keys got shorter. What's going on?"
Xi Shi relayed the theories they had formulated from inside the car, and Great Sage furrowed his brow.
"Damn it," Fire Demon snarled, "a few more rounds and that car robot won't leave at all, will it? It'll just keep killing until we're all wiped out?"
Zhang Yuanqing sighed. At S-rank difficulty, that was probably exactly what would happen.
Everyone recalled the car robot's combat power and felt a chill run down their spines.
Xi Shi swallowed hard and said urgently, "Stop wasting time. We need to find the controller and shut down the car robot's power before the worst case scenario hits."
Xie Lingxi glanced across the sea of densely-packed vehicles. They stretched as far as the eye could see, and further still, beyond the reach of her eyes.
Her delicate brows knitted together. "How are we supposed to search all of these...?"
Anxiety and despair swelled in every heart. First find the keys, then find the controller. After a few cycles, what had started as a three-minute window would be completely gone.
Zhang Yuanqing let out a heavy sigh, then spoke up.
"I have a plan. If it works, we should be able to clear the parking garage."
What?!
Those words hit the team's ears like a chorus of angels. Every head whipped toward 'Wang Tai', their eyes wide with shock and hope.
