Chapter Twenty-Three: A Temporary Withdrawal

"Damn it!" Lin Lei cursed through gritted teeth, enduring pain so intense it nearly sent him into shock. He dared not linger for even a moment and threw himself sideways again, activating "Plunder" on the corpse of a second-tier demon ghost.

This third-tier giant had slaughtered at least three or four hundred demon ghosts, yet Lin Lei had only managed to absorb less than half of them. Corpses of demon ghosts littered the area around him.

As he activated Plunder, a warm current surged through his body, and his once-empty stomach was filled in an instant. A ringing echoed in his ears, and a wild, bloodthirsty red gleam flickered in his eyes. This was the third demon ghost he had plundered, and the surging source energy brought with it a fiercer wave of corruption.

Lin Lei immediately summoned the power of tranquility, steadying his emotions!

Boom, boom, boom! In the blink of an eye, the giant monster charged at him again. Even gravely wounded, its explosive power still far surpassed Lin Lei’s. But this time, Lin Lei was not about to let it anticipate his movements. He made a sudden diagonal roll, narrowly dodging its attack.

He tossed all his flash grenades and smoke bombs at once. The giant monster’s claws lashed out again. Lin Lei raised his blade to block.

With a metallic clang, his blood churned and his body was hurled once more into the darkness.

At that moment, the flash grenades exploded, flooding the area with searing light. The giant monster froze, its movements stiffening.

Flash grenades released both blinding light and noise; even such abominations were affected when caught off guard.

Lin Lei seized the opportunity to slip into the drifting smoke, swiftly shifting his position and putting distance between himself and the behemoth. At the same time, he activated the concealment of the [Night Stalker].

The concealment of [Night Stalker] could not be entered instantly; otherwise, Lin Lei would not have found himself in such a predicament. But as soon as he melted into the darkness, all sound, scent, and source energy vanished from him. The giant, enraged and helpless, could not find Lin Lei and eventually turned back toward the spot where Lin Lei’s alloy blade had fallen.

From a short distance away in the darkness, Lin Lei watched as the giant monster seized his blade and several demon ghost corpses, then lumbered away.

Letting out a breath, Lin Lei felt a wave of helplessness.

"Third-tier abominations are just too powerful..."

Wen Xiang was arrogant, but was Lin Lei really superior? The truth was, the monster’s rampage and its battle against the demon ghost horde had created a rare opportunity—one he would regret missing.

If he could take down the creature alone, he could plunder it outright. Working with Wen Xiang would never afford him such a chance.

Watching the giant monster vanish into the gloom, Lin Lei hurried forward again, devouring every demon ghost corpse he could find.

His gluttony energy surged past his previous limits, reaching over fifteen hundred! In fact, had the giant not taken several second-tier demon ghost corpses as food, Lin Lei could have accumulated even more.

"My current gluttony energy is more than enough to plunder several living second-tier demon ghosts..."

In truth, he could have hunted even more demon ghosts, gathered more gluttony energy, and ‘devoured’ that third-tier giant alive.

But each living second-tier demon ghost required nearly five hundred gluttony energy—devouring a third-tier one would take ten times that, if not more. He simply couldn’t amass it all at once.

Shaking his head, Lin Lei turned and melted into the darkness, retracing his steps.

Suddenly, a bright flash erupted in the distance, lasting several seconds before fading.

"A flash grenade!" Lin Lei’s eyes gleamed. He dashed toward the source of the light, but by the time he arrived, only a dozen demon ghost corpses remained.

"It must have been Zhen Shuang. I didn't expect her to be this fierce."

Zhen Shuang was a support specialist, far better at empowering others than fighting herself, and her own combat skills were limited. But the demon ghosts’ weaknesses were obvious, and her supportive abilities could be used on herself as well. Even with the combat strength of a standard source wielder, her power after enhancement was not low. Since there weren’t many demon ghosts here—just two second-tier—she could handle them with relative ease.

"I just wonder where she’s gone..."

His gaze swept the darkness, but the gloom was so heavy that even his sharp eyesight could not pierce far.

He shook his head and devoured the demon ghosts on the ground, then moved on.

Soon, his nostrils flared. Amidst the thick stench of blood, he caught a faint trail of blood scent stretching into the distance.

Since plundering three second-tier demon ghosts, his sense of smell had become almost preternaturally acute. Raising an eyebrow, he followed the blood scent forward and soon heard the sounds of battle in the distance.

Quickening his pace, he shed his concealment and rushed toward the commotion.

"It really is Zhen Shuang!"

Clad in a black combat suit, her slender figure shimmered with a faint golden aura as she fought more than a dozen demon ghosts. Two of the monsters at the front were clearly larger—second-tier.

Her suit was tattered, her body streaked with blood, and she was clearly in dire straits. She hadn’t used any more flash grenades—likely having run out.

"Zhen Shuang, I’m here to help!" Lin Lei drew a spare dagger from his belt, shouted, and charged forward.

At the sound of his voice, Zhen Shuang’s spirits lifted, her eyes brightening. She quickly shifted toward him and asked, "Do you have any flash grenades left?"

But Lin Lei was already at her side, dagger slashing as he lunged for a second-tier demon ghost.

When she saw his condition, Zhen Shuang was stunned. Her own state was poor, but Lin Lei looked utterly wretched—drenched in blood, armor in tatters, even his helmet twisted beyond recognition.

She hurriedly extended her hands, a golden glow enveloping Lin Lei. Warmth flooded his body, easing his limbs and filling him with strength. He felt revitalized, and with a swipe of his dagger, he lunged at a second-tier demon ghost that was about to pounce on Zhen Shuang.

Zhen Shuang cried out in alarm, "Be careful, that one’s second-tier!"

Even as she warned him, Lin Lei was already upon the creature, leaping forward. The dagger in his grip swept in a sharp arc.

A hiss—and the demon ghost toppled backward, its neck nearly severed, blood spurting in a crimson jet.

He landed lightly, not even glancing back.

"I know," he replied, and charged at the second of the two second-tier demon ghosts, dispatching it with another decisive blow.