novelraw Chapter 82 buff successfully refreshed.
Chapter 82 buff successfully refreshed.
They still caught up with us!
This was exactly what Zite had anticipated.
The team of bounty hunters had no choice but to flee into the buffer zone before being overtaken by the terrifying behemoth.
Ziete's intervention will inevitably introduce variables.
In the first playthrough, a convoy of Blue Shield pickup trucks blocked the way in a narrow canyon. In the second playthrough, following Jiang Luo, we entered the tall grassland.
After speaking with Jiang Luo on the phone and learning that she was traveling in a military off-road vehicle, Qi Te realized that he had just passed by her when he left the city.
However, neither of them knew this at the time.
Based on this, Zit concluded that his guess was true. Upon seeing the military off-road vehicle, the bounty hunter instinctively wanted to approach; after all, in most people's eyes, military personnel were certainly not weak in combat.
Judging from that reckless gray SUV that charged around without regard for others' lives, it was clear that the young hunter was no good. The reason Jiang Luo went missing during the second playthrough was probably because he was tricked by that guy.
Given that the dragon egg would attract the pursuit of the golden salamander, and considering that guy's shamelessness, the core of Qi Te's perfect strategy this time was to prevent the other party from having any chance to follow the Blue Shield Caravan and Jiang Luo.
However, without obstacles or targets to follow, the bounty hunters had no choice but to flee for their lives.
The fastest route from Whisper Valley to the buffer zone is undoubtedly a straight line. As long as the bounty hunter isn't intercepted along the way, the golden dragon will inevitably chase him into the tall grass, and perhaps even into the buffer zone.
Even if the probability is small, Zit will not ignore this possibility.
On the way to the border, G4, who loves to give explanations, gave a very detailed account of the layout of the defensive towers and their firepower configuration within the buffer zone.
As long as you enter the buffer zone before the hunters catch up, there is a defensive tower 100 meters ahead.
The incendiary bombs were long gone, and all the oil drums had been thrown out when dealing with the swarm of Devouring Insects.
The final leg of the journey could only be completed by human labor.
Xu Su took the lead, wielding his twin swords and cleaving through dozens of vines that swept towards him.
Those Blue Shield members who still had ammo unleashed a barrage of fire, while those who ran out of ammo relied on their superpowers. Zit, lying prone on the roof of the vehicle, continuously sent alerts to D3 and G4.
Being outside the carriage was obviously the most dangerous, but forced by the swarm of insects, they had no choice but to wade through the fire, and there was no time to open the door and hide inside.
Screams rang out intermittently as three more field team members were swept away by the vines.
Stopping at this point would be tantamount to suicide. Captain Xu, the only one with rescue capabilities, had to lead the way and couldn't spare a moment to spare.
The main vehicle broke through the tall grass, and the other vehicles followed closely behind, rushing into the buffer zone.
At the same time, the oppressive roar of a dragon resounded once more.
"Holy crap, what was that sound?"
Ji Chenyu felt a chill run down his spine. Although he couldn't see what kind of creature was coming from the sound, just hearing it made him instinctively feel an indescribable sense of fear.
The other passengers in the carriage felt the same way and all shivered involuntarily.
"They're here!"
Cao Yingchong frowned, then turned around and quickly condensed a wind blade.
Thorn wolves, ghost moth lizards, and gnawing hyenas—unusual creatures whose names you may or may not know—constantly burst forth from the tall grass. Even the spiny hyena, hampered by its weight and clearly not fast enough, relentlessly pursued them.
In addition, two-headed head-catching flies, four-winged bat butterflies, gorilla vultures, and various other unusual avian creatures also pursued them at full speed in the air.
On the wasteland, six pickup trucks looked like six people running on the beach, while behind them, a beast tide surged like a raging sea.
This time, Qi Te didn't hand the collection box to Liu Baichuan, but instead took it to the roof of the vehicle. Seeing the fastest and most hungry pack of thorn wolves flanking him from both sides, he decisively opened the collection box.
The poison dart toad, about 60 centimeters long and yellowish-brown in color with bumps all over its back, jumped out of the box and immediately emitted yellow gas.
The potent toxin spread instantly, paralyzing the dozen or so thorn wolves at the forefront. Propelled by their forward momentum, they were sent flying straight away.
The pursuing wolf pack was slowed down considerably by the poison and the corpses of their companions.
"Well done!"
Uncle D3 exclaimed in surprise, then blinked strangely, feeling as if he had said those words before.
The driver saw this scene through the rearview mirror and was so frightened that he almost stepped on the gas pedal.
Let alone these field security personnel, even Captain Xu Su, who has carried out several high-risk missions, has never seen such a terrifying scene in his life.
Xu Su stood on the roof of the main control vehicle, his brows furrowed and never relaxed.
Finally, a tall defensive tower came into view not far to the right.
"Slow down appropriately and turn right."
The driver immediately followed the captain's instructions, slowed down slightly, adjusted the direction, and rushed towards the defense tower.
At this moment, that tower is like a door to life.
90 meters, 80 meters, 60 meters, 50 meters...
Gunshots rang out.
"We're saved!"
Inside the carriage, many students exclaimed in surprise.
However, Qi Te, who was lying on the roof of the car, suddenly widened his eyes.
Just as the first bullet was about to hit the main vehicle, his heightened senses alerted him that something was wrong.
The height and trajectory of the bullets clearly indicated that they were not heading towards the herd of animals behind the convoy.
Without thinking twice, Qi Te pounded on the car window: "Stop the car, stop..."
Before he could finish speaking, the main control vehicle in front suddenly overturned to the side.
Qi Te wanted to notify Ji Chenyu, Cao Yingchong, and the others in the car, but unfortunately, it was too late.
Still basking in the joy of their escape, the students stared in astonishment at the still-rolling control vehicle. Before they could even process what was happening, a hail of bullets rained down upon them.
Along with it came the deafening roar of cannons.
Uncle D3 immediately crouched down, shielding Zit tightly beneath him. With his defense level, ordinary bullets were no match for him.
Even the RN sniper rifle, powerful enough to penetrate ten centimeters of titanium alloy, cannot break through its defenses in one shot.
'Ding ding ding'
The bullets made a crisp sound, like striking solid rock, and the sound was incessant.
The firepower was too intense. Uncle D3 struggled for less than ten seconds before his shoulder was blown through. He was sent flying backward by the powerful impact of the sniper rifle, crashing into the hood of the pickup truck behind him.
"Uncle!"
Qi Te exclaimed in surprise, and the moment he looked up, his pupils reflected a spot of light that shot towards him like a meteor.
The speed at which a sniper rifle fires is too fast to dodge.
He knew he was doomed, but he still instinctively raised his hand.
"It's reopening again!"
Zit thought to himself, but to his surprise, the bullet, which was about the length of a palm, fell straight down after piercing the glove with a crisp "ding".
"What happened?"
Qi Te was extremely surprised, but the next second, the pickup truck beneath him suddenly overturned.
With his feet firmly hooked into the railing, Zit had no time to free himself. Like a matador bound to the back of a bull, he was tumbled and rolled around before being slammed into the solid ground by the incredibly heavy iron bull.
........................
"Ugh~~"
Qi Te suddenly regained consciousness, then winced in pain and almost fainted again.
I never want to experience the feeling of broken bones, torn muscles, and skin torn open, like being mashed into mashed potatoes, again.
The intense pain subsided quickly, and Zit, panting heavily, took off his gloves.
He pulled out the thickest syringe from the collection equipment and tentatively pricked his palm.
"Hiss~"
A slight pain, like being pricked in the palm, made Qi Te gasp softly, and he frowned in slight confusion.
"What happened?"
Didn't the buff refresh successfully? Even sniper bullets can't penetrate it, yet a tiny needle can break through its defenses.
Was it just a hallucination before death?
No.
Zite was absolutely certain that he hadn't misread it or was hallucinating; at the critical moment, the bullet had indeed not pierced his palm.
He suddenly thought of Old Mo, whose healing ability he obtained from. Therefore, the defensive power that blocked bullets most likely came from Uncle D3.
But why is it no longer working?
Qi Te's mind was working at full capacity as he quickly recalled all the details and soon came up with a possibility.
The reason self-healing ability is a fixed buff is that, in a moment of crisis, Senior Sister Wanwan drained Old Mo's life force and transferred it to herself. However, she herself does not have the ability to absorb life force; it was only because Uncle D3 protected her with his body in a critical moment.
In other words, at that moment, he replicated the opponent's defensive ability.
This kind of replication is temporary, a one-time buff.
In conclusion, after waking up in the second playthrough, no changes were found in the body. It wasn't that the buff refresh failed; it was just that no changes were noticed.
And the new superpower he had just acquired was—replication.
Although it's not a fixed buff, and it's currently unclear whether the time limit is calculated based on duration or ends with each death, or whether the replicated ability has restrictions such as sequence or level, it is still a practical ability.
Qi Te pulled out the needle with considerable satisfaction, and saw that the pierced palm healed at a speed visible to the naked eye, before any blood had even come out.
"Has your self-healing ability improved?"
With that in mind, Qi Te simply took out the dagger that Uncle D3 had given him and forcefully slashed his palm.
Sure enough, as soon as the warm blood surfaced, the wound, which reached deep into the metacarpal bone, quickly healed.
1, 2, 3...
In just five seconds, the wound closed and the hand was restored to its original state.