Chapter 34 Mountain Rain is About to Come

With one adversary dispatched, Lin Lei did not pause for even a second before cutting down a second.

Even without activating his various boosting effects, he could still dispatch these tier-three source energy practitioners with effortless ease. Although their abilities were bizarre, most of them belonged to the physical category, making it an extremely simple fight for Lin Lei. From the moment he charged in to the killing of the two tier-three practitioners, only a few seconds had elapsed.

All the surrounding source energy practitioners, friend and foe alike, stared at the scene with complex and shocked expressions.

"No wonder Lin Lei was able to break the investigator examination record..." Several investigators wore looks of astonishment, sighing deeply in their hearts.

"We cannot match him!"
"Retreat, retreat, retreat!"

The remaining Blood Sakura Society source energy practitioners decisively abandoned their ongoing brawl with the investigators, scattering toward the dense forest.

"Leave that one to you!" Lin Lei stopped the blade in his hand, shouted toward the remaining few investigators, and then turned to chase after the fleeing practitioners.

This time, however, he deliberately slowed his pace, following the remaining practitioners as they plunged into the woods and out of the investigators' line of sight before unleashing his full power.

Charging forward at extreme speed, he blinked and caught up with the person running at the back, felling them with a single slash of his blade. Simultaneously, the bone sword in Lin Lei's hand extended like tree branches, its runes flickering as it combined with the power of "Sealing Suppression" to trigger the "Sealing Suppression" version of blooming.

Under the influence of "Sealing Suppression," the body was completely pierced through by the bloom. Upon death, it failed to transform once again into a "Son of Flesh and Blood"!

"The ability of [Sealing Suppression] really can terminate the transformation process of the Son of Flesh and Blood!"

Given Lin Lei's current strength, even if this fellow had transformed into a Son of Flesh and Blood, Lin Lei could easily handle him. However, being able to confirm that his [Sealing Suppression] could restrict this bizarre phenomenon naturally provided Lin Lei with a practical and effective countermeasure when dealing with higher-level Sons of Flesh and Blood.

Having dealt with that person, he pressed on toward the two remaining fugitives.

In less than ten seconds, he successfully caught up with and eliminated both of them.

With no outsiders present, he naturally proceeded straight to "Plunder"!

To him, the energy cost of plundering a mere few tier-three instances of gluttony was practically negligible. Combined with the earlier tier-four "Red Corpse," it hadn't even used up a fraction of his gluttony energy reserve.

The abilities of the three individuals were [Boiling Blood], [Blood Blade], and [Blood Plague], respectively.

[Boiling Blood] went without saying; it was not the first time Lin Lei had plundered this ability. Plundering it once more did not yield a massive enhancement, but any improvement was welcome.

[Blood Blade] was essentially a castrated version of [Blood Manipulation], allowing the user to manipulate blood to condense weapons—the least useful of the bunch to Lin Lei.

[Blood Plague] allowed the user to project their own blood out of their body, dispersing it into the surroundings to form a sea of blood mist and inflict damage upon enemies. It could be used in conjunction with [Blood Curse], an ability Lin Lei had previously plundered. This similarly served as a supplementary addition to Lin Lei's comprehensive capabilities, acting as an area-of-effect skill for dealing with weaker source energy practitioners or anomalies.

"I wonder if I can trigger the effect of [Blood Plague] while transformed into blood mist..."

Lin Lei's eyes gleamed as he immediately began experimenting while no one else was around. Upon activating the [Mist Transformation] ability, his physical body transformed into blood. If the blood mist were struck by a special attack, his own blood would suffer depletion, as the mist itself was blood!

Thus, the result did not disappoint Lin Lei's expectations: while maintaining the [Blood Mist] state, he could indeed activate the [Blood Plague] effect. However, while in the blood mist state, he could not activate [Blood Manipulation] or [Blood Blade] to control the mist into solid weapons.

"Once I enter the [Mist Transformation] state, I can no longer alter my established form..."

The more abilities he possessed, the more their intricate combinations would manifest in diverse ways—sometimes complementing one another, sometimes proving mutually exclusive or contradictory. All of this required Lin Lei to slowly experiment on his own, summarizing the effects of various abilities through experience.

As his thoughts churned, Lin Lei heard the distant sound of helicopter rotor blades spinning. He re-condensed his physical form, leaped up into a tall tree nearby, and looked up at the sky to see a helicopter arriving from afar. With his current eyesight, he immediately spotted the logo belonging to the Investigation Bureau emblazoned on the aircraft.

Ever since the group was attacked and broke free from that minibus, they had already sent out a distress call to the Investigation Bureau. Given that the incident involved multiple tier-three source energy practitioners, the investigators' response had been remarkably swift, dispatching a helicopter.

"They've arrived quite quickly..." Lin Lei raised an eyebrow and soon turned back.

...

Ultimately, aside from the driver and the tier-three investigator who died on the spot, two more severely injured, unconscious investigators passed away later due to worsening wounds.

Wen Xiang, a tier-two practitioner, managed to survive despite severe injuries thanks to the protection of a defensive source artifact. Although the investigators' casualties could be considered minimal compared to the Blood Sakura Society's losses, the death of two tier-three investigators still constituted a heavy blow to the Investigation Bureau.

Inside the Deputy Director's office.

Deputy Director Gongyu had lost his previous scholarly demeanor, wearing a face of extreme fury instead.

"The Blood Sakura Society again? Weren't they practically finished? Where are they still pulling the strength from to launch an attack?!"

Before him, Hodge wore a grave expression. "There is more to this matter... Director Gongyu, take a look at this field report and you will understand..."

"Hmm?" Deputy Director Gongyu frowned as he took the document handed over by Hodge. The more he read, the uglier his expression became.

"How is this possible? One tier-four, five tier-three? Even during the Blood Sakura Society's prime, it would have been difficult for them to field such a lineup. Did Ning Hongying make a move?"

Hodge shook his head. "According to the investigators at the scene, that tier-four was formerly the 'Red Corpse,' who was only a tier-three in the Blood Sakura Society previously. The other five tier-three individuals are also not from the roster of past tier-three members..."

Deputy Director Gongyu's expression shifted sharply. "How could this happen?"

Hodge's expression was grim. "I suspect that the remaining source energy practitioners of the Blood Sakura Society completed a collective source energy advancement through some special method..."

Deputy Director Gongyu's expression grew extremely grim as well. "If that is truly the case... then Ning Hongying..."

Hodge sighed. "Even if the Blood Sakura Society gains a few more tier-four practitioners, it wouldn't amount to much... But if the Blood Sakura Society adds a tier-five practitioner, it will pose a massive hidden danger to the safety of Biyang. Especially given the current situation the Blood Sakura Society finds itself in, Ning Hongying is capable of doing anything!"

Deputy Director Gongyu narrowed his eyes. "The director has only just left Biyang, and the Blood Sakura Society immediately begins its provocations and retaliation... This is by no means a coincidence."

Hodge's eyes carried worry as well. "Then what... should we do?"

Deputy Director Gongyu's eyes turned icy. "Investigate! When the Blood Sakura Society strikes again, they will inevitably leave traces. Doesn't Li Xueshu still have '2-038'? Have her head to the scene immediately—"