Xu Que mimicked Ji Bodai's previous provocative gesture, greeting him with a mocking salute.
Ji Bodai panicked; no matter how powerful he was, he couldn't break through the fifty-centimeter-thick titanium alloy door!
"Xu Que, you... It's been a while," Ji Bodai forced out an awkward smile.
"Indeed, it's been a long time!" Xu Que replied, his lips curling into a cold, sinister smile as he slowly approached Ji Bodai.
Just as Xu Que was about to get closer, Ji Bodai narrowed his eyes, suddenly drawing a long sword and thrusting it toward Xu Que.
*Clang!*
The sword stopped firmly before Xu Que, its tip held between his two fingers.
"Impossible?" Ji Bodai panicked, his mind racing. He had never seen such a thing before.
"A C-class like you, how could you harm me, an A-class?" Xu Que's words pierced through the air like a sharp blade, snapping Ji Bodai back to reality.
"You... You're the [Avenger]!" Ji Bodai's eyes widened in disbelief, as if he were encountering Xu Que for the first time.
"Congratulations, you answered correctly, but there's no reward," Xu Que said coldly.
With a casual push of his right hand, the sword in Ji Bodai's grasp was effortlessly moved aside.
Feeling the cold breath of death, Ji Bodai gritted his teeth and quickly gathered wind energy in his left hand.
Seeing Ji Bodai using techniques from his past life so soon, Xu Que couldn't help but feel even more amused.
"Go die!" Ji Bodai triumphantly slammed his left fist toward Xu Que's chest.
But in the next instant, he froze.
A flash of lightning swept around Xu Que's body, causing Ji Bodai's wind attack to vanish completely.
Xu Que reached out with his left hand and grabbed Ji Bodai's, twisting it with a gentle yet forceful motion.
*Crack!*
The sound of breaking bones echoed, and Ji Bodai let out a painful howl.
"Die!" Ji Bodai yanked his sword back and wildly slashed at Xu Que.
But strangely, Xu Que didn't budge. A wall of swords seemed to form around him, deflecting every strike.
Seeing Xu Que's bizarre method, Ji Bodai stepped back, fear creeping into his heart. He was truly terrified now.
"Xu Que, don't come any closer!" Ji Bodai pleaded in panic. "It was Liu Ruyan, she seduced me on purpose! I know nothing about your situation!"
Xu Que snorted, his smile growing even more menacing.
Seeing Xu Que's terrifying grin, Ji Bodai grabbed a nearby instrument and hurled it toward him.
"Don't come any closer! I understand your feelings. If you let me go, I'll agree to anything you want!" Ji Bodai pleaded hysterically.
Xu Que easily dodged the flying objects, and in a blink, appeared right in front of Ji Bodai.
With his right hand, he seized Ji Bodai's wrist and squeezed with such force that Ji Bodai screamed like a pig being slaughtered.
"Let you go?" Xu Que's voice quivered with anger. "Do you have any idea how much suffering I've endured?"
"Oh, wait, of course you don't. You understand nothing."
Xu Que seemed to be muttering to himself before continuing, "Don't worry, I won't kill you just yet. I haven't finished tormenting you."
With those words, a sword plunged deep into Ji Bodai's thigh.
*Shunk!*
Blood splattered, and Ji Bodai screamed again in agony.
"I'll leave you one leg, to keep you hoping," Xu Que's voice whispered in Ji Bodai's ear.
But it sounded like the whispers of a demon.
Xu Que dragged Ji Bodai out of the lab. When they reached the door, he glanced back at the so-called researchers.
To those who dared use others' lives as experiments, Xu Que had no words to say. But he couldn't help but admire the military leadership for daring to use such people. Their vision was clearly blind.
In his past life, none of the special training camp members became strong. The reason was that these researchers always believed they had discovered the correct method to unlock the bloodline, oblivious to how dangerously misguided their persistence was.
"Who instructed you to research bloodlines?" Xu Que asked nonchalantly.
Upon hearing this, the dozen or so researchers all turned their gaze toward a middle-aged man.
Xu Que looked at the calm man and asked, "Did you instruct them to study bloodline injections?"
"Yes," the middle-aged man nodded.
"How did you discover that extraterrestrial bloodlines could be injected into humans?" Xu Que pressed.
"It was Captain Fang who, by chance, discovered that some extraterrestrial blood could merge with human cells. So, we boldly embarked on this experimental plan," the middle-aged man explained.
"Captain Fang?" Xu Que frowned, certain that he didn't know this person, nor had any strong individual named Fang appeared in his past life.
"His name is Fang Xiu, the head instructor of the special training camp," the middle-aged man quickly added.
Xu Que finally pieced the puzzle together, but it didn't concern him anymore, as the special training camp no longer existed.
"Thank you for your answers. I'm quite satisfied," Xu Que smiled, and with a flick of his wrist, a blade of sword energy shot toward the researchers.
None of them had expected to die so swiftly despite having done nothing.
Ji Bodai, witnessing Xu Que's methods, forced a painful smile and asked, "Are you really Xu Que?"
Xu Que looked down at Ji Bodai, his smile mirrored, "What do you think?"
With that, Ji Bodai received a trade interface from Xu Que.
Confused, Ji Bodai didn't understand Xu Que's intentions, but still, he reached out with his mutilated hand and confirmed the transaction.
"This is the gift Liu Ruyan desperately wanted to give you," Xu Que remarked.
Ji Bodai was completely bewildered. What did this mean?
"I suggest you take it. After all, she didn't hesitate to PU me for this. She's said every vile thing imaginable," Xu Que added.
"Xu Que, you're a fucking psychopath!" Ji Bodai screamed hysterically.
Xu Que smiled. "You're right. A psychopath who's been tortured by you for ten years."
Ji Bodai was utterly confused. What did Xu Que mean by that?
"Xu Que, there must be some misunderstanding. You've only been in the company for two years, and all the plans are from Liu Ruyan. You should be seeking revenge on her, not me," Ji Bodai pleaded.
"She's already dead. What do you want me to do?" Xu Que teased.
Ji Bodai froze, unable to comprehend. He never imagined that Xu Que could be even more ruthless than he was.
"Alright, let's begin the real game," Xu Que said as he drew his sword and lightly tapped it against Ji Bodai's skin.
With each tremor of the blade, deep, horrifying but non-lethal wounds appeared on Ji Bodai's body.
Ji Bodai had never seen such a perverse method. He thought his own psyche was twisted, but compared to Xu Que, he was nothing but an innocent child.
After agonizing screams, Ji Bodai collapsed unconscious, his face covered in tears.
Xu Que thrust his sword into Ji Bodai's recently wounded thigh, then swiftly pulled it out.
*Shunk!*
Blood gushed forth, and as the intense pain hit, Ji Bodai let out another pig-like scream.
"Please, kill me! Give me an end to this!" Ji Bodai begged, unable to bear it any longer, his mind on the brink of collapse.
"Kill you?" Xu Que's smile was chilling. "Don't worry. I'm definitely going to kill you. You almost reminded me just in time."
Upon hearing Xu Que's words and seeing his smile, Ji Bodai instantly regretted his alliance with Liu Ruyan. He regretted not controlling his own desires.
As Ji Bodai wallowed in his regrets, Xu Que took out a stack of scrolls from his inventory.
"What do you mean by this?" Ji Bodai asked, terrified as he eyed the scrolls.
"I'm going to heal your wounds, then we can continue," Xu Que said, picking up a low-grade healing scroll and using it on Ji Bodai.