Several healing and support contractees were injured or killed in a short period, catching the attention of Xi, who sent Luli to investigate. However, even Luli couldn't immediately identify the culprit's whereabouts. In the rear of the Tianqi Paradise camp, after Su Xiao killed an auxiliary contractee, he vaguely sensed someone approaching. "Finally found you, detestable assassin."
Luli, accompanied by three others, a male earth elemental contractee, a sensory female contractee, and a muscular man wielding a massive hammer—this man stood at least three meters tall and appeared cumbersome but undoubtedly possessed significant strength, possibly developing a single attribute with a strength attribute reaching 80 points.
Luli wasn't alone; she typically accompanied her sister or operated within a team. Her team consisted of five members: Luli herself specialized in control, melee, and ranged combat; the earth elemental contractee focused on defence; the sensory contractee located enemies and connected the team mentally during combat, ensuring better coordination.
As for the muscular man, he had one task: to attack when Luli controlled the enemies. His abilities were focused on enhancing attacks geared toward instant kills. The core of the team was Luli, whose strong control abilities Su Xiao had experienced once before, trapping enemies in illusions and distorting their perceptions.
"Southeast, 26 meters, behind a stone pillar." The female sensory contractee relayed this information to Luli and others. "OK, let's start with a shot to force him out." Luli, being the team's commander through mental communication, decided that she was the most capable and had the skills for command.
"Hmm." In the mental connection, the male sniper in the distance spoke. This mental link was facilitated by the female sensory contractee's ability, allowing the five to communicate telepathically to avoid strategic leaks.
Swish! A bullet struck. Stone chips flew as a half-weathered stone pillar nearby snapped in half, its upper portion landing in pieces like tofu. A light blue energy shield flickered into existence behind the broken pillar, shielding a man in a black windbreaker.
"Unexpected, encountering an 'acquaintance.'" Su Xiao observed Luli not far away. For some reason, he recalled a nursery rhyme, despite not knowing its name—he listened to that ridiculous nursery rhyme for hours, sung off-key with fluctuating tones.
"Retreat!" Luli instinctively wanted to escape, possibly suffering from 'Su Xiao phobia.' The two previous encounters left a deep impression—one nearly cost her life, and the other used her for manipulation.
"Luli, stay calm." The earth elemental contractee, a composed middle-aged man, advised her. "Dealing with powerful lone contractees like this is what we excel at." Upon hearing the advice, Luli calmed down. "The opponent is strong, powerful, bordering on abnormal. Our chance is only once."
"Understood."
"Clear." With a composed demeanour, Luli quickly formulated a strategy to deal with Su Xiao.
"Strategy C." As Luli spoke, Su Xiao suddenly vanished from his spot. "He's here!" Boom!
A wall of earth formed not far from Luli and her team. Luli and the sensory contractee retreated. Also retreating was the muscular man with the giant hammer; although he seemed clumsy, he had a poor defence. His abilities were focused on attacks.
Ding! A flash of a blade shattered the earthen wall, making Luli's four teammates realize the power of Su Xiao's attack. If he got close, casualties would follow, disrupting their formation and leading to their defeat.
"Mad Illusionist: Enchanted Illusion." Luli used a technique to mislead Su Xiao's senses, trapping him in an illusion. Su Xiao's surroundings changed; Luli disappeared along with her teammates. It wasn't the first time Su Xiao had experienced this. He immediately activated a counter shield, forming a circular energy shield to protect himself.
His perception, vision, hearing—all were misled. Only his sense of touch remained intact.
Click, click... A layer of granite adhered to Su Xiao's calves, securing him firmly to the ground. He was curious to know if this was real or an illusion.
Su Xiao held the Slash Dragon Flash in his hand. The Disconnection Line on his left hand scattered on the nearby ground, waiting for enemies to approach. However, under the influence of the 'Mad Illusionist: Enchanted Illusion,' even if enemies approached, Su Xiao couldn't perceive it.
"Just 230 meters left, soon..." Muttering to himself, Su Xiao didn't know what he was saying.
Crack! A bullet pierced Su Xiao's left shoulder, ignoring the counter shield, piercing through his body. Judging from the impact, it was likely a sniper rifle bullet. Whether this was an illusion or reality was uncertain.
The actual scenario was Su Xiao standing in place. About ten meters away, Luli's hands were clasped together, focused on confusing Su Xiao. The earth elemental contractee created high-density granite to fix the surrounding counter shields to the ground, restricting Su Xiao's movements and making it easier for his teammates to attack.
The female sensory contractee's fingers pointed to the ground, desperately blocking the surrounding perception. The male sniper in the distance continued to shoot, bullets deflected by the counter shield.
"What kind of ability is this? It's stopped seventeen bullets. This won't work; Luli, how much longer can you mislead him?" The earth elemental contractee spoke, creating a four-meter-tall stone golem facing the counter shield, vigorously pounding it.
"Three minutes at most. In two minutes, the Enchanted Illusion will become unstable." After a moment of contemplation, Luli looked at the muscular man with the giant hammer. "Dawn, go ahead, try to break that guy's energy shell with one strike."
"Got it." Dawn nodded, holding the giant hammer in both hands and rushing toward Su Xiao. However, his speed could have improved. Despite his lack of speed, Dawn's attack power was astounding, leaving people amazed. When he reached Su Xiao, he raised the long-handled hammer high and struck with all his might.
Boom! The hammer struck the counter shield, releasing a shockwave that shook the ground within a dozen meters—the granite surrounding the counter shield shattered from the powerful shock.
With a crack the counter shield showed fine cracks. Blood dripped from the corner of Su Xiao's mouth; he was injured from the recoil. After the strike, Dawn staggered back a few steps, then plopped down, dropping the giant hammer with a clang that left a shallow pit in the ground.
PS: (Two more chapters coming soon)