Chapter 49

As the adventurers from Miracle City galloped through the streets of Los Angeles, four adventurers from Hurricane City stood atop a skyscraper, overlooking the city.

Vampire Brad had transformed back into human form, and his wounds were almost healed. At this moment, he stood behind the old captain, devoid of the arrogance and dominance he displayed in battle, instead humbly lowering his proud head, like a student who had made a mistake.

"Do you know where you went wrong?" The old man, leaning on his cane, did not turn around, but his voice carried a natural authority that made the brave Brad shudder.

Brad bowed slightly and said, "I was wrong to seek glory and rush ahead. When I sensed their location, I shouldn't have gone to assassinate Sarah Connor alone!" Hearing this, the old man shook his head slightly and said, "It seems you still don't understand!" He turned around, looked down at the frightened vampire, and placed his cane on Brad's shoulder, saying slowly, "Young man, it's inevitable to be ambitious and eager for success. You didn't do anything wrong in that regard. However, I can tolerate impulsiveness and risk-taking, but I cannot tolerate failure!" Before he finished speaking, the old man swung his cane and struck Brad's face with a loud slap! The powerful vampire almost fell, and a red mark quickly appeared on his face.

Despite this humiliating attack, Brad remained silent, straightened his head, and bowed even lower. The old man continued, "Many heroes, after achieving success, recount to their juniors the critical moments of their past, unaware that this is a privilege of the successful! Out of a thousand people who risk their lives, only one can return victorious, and he becomes a hero! If you fail, you are nothing! We are adventurers, struggling on the brink of life and death. We don't aspire to be heroes, but we must be successful!" As he spoke, the old man bent slightly, bringing his head level with Brad's, placed a hand on his shoulder, and said firmly, "Because here, only the successful can survive!"

Brad nodded heavily, "I understand, Captain!"

"Very good..." The old man stood up, glanced at the morning Los Angeles, and asked casually, "Brad, can you still find their location?" The vampire confidently replied, "As long as they are within five kilometers, I can smell her scent!" He placed his finger at the tip of his nose, closed his eyes, and seemed to focus. After a few seconds, Brad suddenly opened his eyes and said in surprise, "Strange, I can smell her scent, but it's getting fainter, as if something is covering it up!"

The large, fat Max asked in a gruff voice, "Is it because they are near the edge of your detection range, making the scent blurry?" Brad shook his head, "No, my sense of smell is a bloodline ability. As long as they are within range, the distance won't diminish it. Moreover, I can clearly smell that they are three kilometers southeast... This strange feeling is unprecedented, as if the woman's blood scent has changed!"

The old man's eyes narrowed, and he pointed southeast with his cane, saying, "It seems they have found a way to evade your tracking. Regardless of the reason, we must act quickly while we can still detect them!" He then turned to the only woman in the group, the summoner wrapped in a cloak, and asked, "Medea, how much T-virus do you have left?" The woman replied, "Three vials." The old man waved his cane, "Find a bustling residential area and release the virus into the water towers!" Medea hesitated, "But with only three vials, it will be hard to ensure the concentration!" The old man shook his head, "We can't afford to be picky. I don't expect all of Los Angeles to become a city of the dead, but there must be enough chaos! This is the final step of the mission, and we can't afford any mistakes!"

Medea nodded, chanted a spell, and summoned three winged, rotting demons, handing them the T-virus and giving them instructions. The demons nodded and flew away. Brad then transformed back into his vampire form, sprouted wings, and flew southeast. The remaining three, lacking flight abilities, descended from the building and followed Brad from a distance.

Meanwhile, in Miracle City, as the sun rose, the morning rush hour began, and the previously clear streets became congested. The adventurers, including Sun Wenxing, were also caught in the traffic. In Sun Wenxing's car, three ordinary people were protecting Sarah Connor. Jiaoli's IV drip was still half full, and it was estimated that this was far from enough to change the scent of her blood.

Suddenly, the crowded street became noisy and chaotic. Many pedestrians pointed at the sky, and some even took out their cameras. Sun Wenxing poked his head out and saw a small black shadow rapidly approaching. With his adventurer's enhanced vision, he clearly recognized it as Vampire Brad!

"Quick, Brad is catching up! Inject the needle into Jiaoli!" Sun Wenxing shouted. Shi Niu in the back seat responded, took out a syringe, and injected it into Jiaoli's hand that wasn't receiving the IV drip. Even with her robust constitution, Jiaoli felt a wave of nausea. The syringe contained a high-purity perfume, an emergency measure for critical situations, which was usually avoided. Injecting perfume into the body was absurd, but adventurers' resilient constitutions allowed them to endure it. With the enemy closing in, Sun Wenxing, gritting his teeth, decided to take the drastic measure and injected the potent drug!

This move worked. As Brad flew over the street, he suddenly lost the scent of Jiaoli's blood and could no longer pinpoint her location. Although he knew the adventurers from Miracle City were on this street, the hundreds of cars below made it difficult for him to find a starting point.

Seeing the vampire hesitating in the sky, Sun Wenxing couldn't help but cheer quietly, "This really worked!" But his joy was short-lived as he heard the sounds of fighting and screams nearby. He sent out two mechanical spiders to investigate and soon received information that a group of weapon-wielding skeletons and zombies had entered the crowd, beginning a frenzied slaughter. The terrifying appearance and brutal attacks left the ordinary people defenseless, and even the nearby police officers were too frightened to fire their guns, fleeing in panic.

Sun Wenxing used the Miracle Emblem to inform the other cars, "The enemy has reached this street, but our disruption method has worked. They can't pinpoint our exact location. They are now using zombies and skeletons to search systematically. Everyone, get out of the car and mix into the fleeing crowd. Don't attack these creatures to avoid alerting them!" Sun Wenxing then got out of the car with Sarah Connor, followed by Shi Niu and Jiaoli, and joined the fleeing crowd.

Ma Le and the others also got out of the car and followed the adventurers, pushing and shoving through the crowd. As they moved further away from the chaos, a sudden wave of terrified screams erupted from the front. The adventurers looked up and saw a giant armored warrior wielding a long sword, cutting down people in a frenzy at a nearby bridge entrance.

"That's the summoner's ace, Oni Blade!" Sun Wenxing shouted into the Miracle Emblem, "Quick, change direction! If we get caught by it, we won't be able to escape!" The group immediately turned, but they were surrounded by zombies and skeletons, and no matter which way they ran, they would be discovered! Just as they were at a loss and preparing to fight, a tall figure emerged from the crowd and charged straight at the armored warrior. At the same time, a voice came through all the Miracle City adventurers' emblems, "You run, I'll hold it off!"

It was Ma Le! Persian Cat, in a panic, shouted into the Miracle Emblem, "You fool! Are you looking for death?!" Ma Le, already charging at Oni Blade, gathered his strength and delivered a powerful punch, knocking the two-meter-tall monster to the ground. With his 65 strength, he dragged it into the bridge entrance and shouted, "Don't worry about me, I have a way to survive. You run!" Seeing someone step forward, Sun Wenxing was naturally pleased and led the adventurers to continue their escape. Persian Cat, after a glance at the bridge entrance, stomped her foot in anger and followed.

On the Hurricane City side, Brad, from his vantage point, was the first to notice Ma Le charging at Oni Blade. Recognizing the one who had severely injured him before, Brad was filled with rage and flew down toward the bridge entrance. The summoner, receiving a notification that Oni Blade was under attack, immediately informed the others, and the old man and Max also rushed to the bridge entrance.

On Ma Le's side, when he first charged at Oni Blade, his hands had transformed into iron fists. Taking advantage of the enemy's lack of preparation and the momentum of his charge, he delivered a powerful punch to Oni Blade's face! The adventurer's panel displays standard attack power, which represents the typical attack strength in normal combat. However, the actual attack power in battle fluctuates around the standard value, depending on the situation. This time, Ma Le had a long-distance run-up, and the punch, delivered with full force, dealt nearly 150 actual damage! This was actual damage, after armor reduction, and with the "Killing Punch" talent's critical damage of 65, the total damage exceeded 200, shattering Oni Blade's helmet and sending it flying far away!