Chapter Thirteen: The Sudden Assassination

It was a colossal beast, its body over four meters long, covered in tawny fur that blended well into the yellow-earth canyon, offering it a degree of camouflage. Black stripes twisted across its hide.

It strode out from the canyon, its muscles rippling smoothly; even a glance revealed the terrifying, explosive power harbored within. Fang Mu licked his lips, narrowed his eyes, and gripped his rifle tightly, silently calculating the current distance, wind direction, and speed... All knowledge related to shooting was second nature to him, and he quietly made a minor adjustment.

Then, the scope’s image froze; he was waiting for a better moment.

The Gale Tiger was swift—if it wasn’t killed with a single shot, it could easily escape. Fang Mu needed it to move to a more open spot... to ensure he had a chance for follow-up shots.

The Gale Tiger in the scope was oblivious, sauntering forward, its gaze fixed on something ahead, clearly locked onto its mark.

Fang Mu paused, shifted the scope, and immediately saw, about sixty or seventy meters ahead of the Gale Tiger, a beast with yellowish fur, its back to the tiger, digging at the root of a short, thick plant. It hadn’t noticed the predator behind it.

This was a Mole Beast, a Black Iron-tier creature with iron-hard claws, omnivorous, often seen across the battlefield.

Of course, Tiger Roar Canyon held other battlefield creatures as well. It was precisely because of their presence that Gale Tigers roamed here...

Because they were its prey.

There was a food chain within the Evolution Battlefield.

Although human evolvers hunted them, causing the chain to be perpetually on the brink of collapse... it still persisted.

The Gale Tiger crept forward another ten meters, its massive flesh pads ensuring it made not a sound...

But suddenly, the Mole Beast’s ears twitched, as if it sensed something. It turned its head.

At that instant, the Gale Tiger erupted!

Its body unleashed terrifying explosive force; its speed soared to the limit. Over four meters of bulk transformed into a streak of gray, and it crossed more than fifty meters in just a few pounces!

Xia Que’s gaze contracted, his heart shaken.

A Bronze-tier creature...

Truly terrifying!

The Mole Beast reacted swiftly, shrieking as it spun and lashed out with its claws, desperately fighting back.

But its claws missed, while the Gale Tiger’s massive paw slammed into its body.

Its body, barely thirty centimeters long, was sent flying; blood sprayed in midair as the tiger’s claws tore it open.

It flew seven or eight meters before landing.

The Gale Tiger immediately pounced, biting down on its head.

With a crunch, most of its body was severed in a single bite.

The tiger’s fangs and claws were frightfully strong.

Then, it began to chew voraciously.

Fang Mu knew his chance had arrived.

He drew a deep breath, his gaze sharpening.

“Let’s test the power of Firebrand...”

He thought, and with a mental command, the Firebrand gene seed within him, along with a portion of genetic energy, surged into the rifle in his hands.

The next moment...

Bang!!!

A deafening blast—Fang Mu saw a flash of red erupt from the gun’s muzzle, then vanish instantly.

He felt his genetic energy drop by a tenth in that instant!

“Gun-fighting technique really burns through energy!” Fang Mu thought.

Almost simultaneously, a wail rang out below.

He had no time to dwell on the energy expenditure; peering through the scope, he saw the Gale Tiger, caught unawares, a burst of blood blooming on its forehead as its body was struck by a tremendous force that flipped it over.

Immediately afterward, a blaze ignited!

The Gale Tiger screamed, rolling across the ground and sending sand and dust flying.

But the fire was fierce, and its rolling couldn’t extinguish the flames.

---Page 1---

It howled in agony.

That shot had struck its skull directly.

But clearly, the Gale Tiger’s head was sturdier than expected—it wasn’t killed by a headshot.

Though it was badly burned and its skin was torn and blistered, it hadn’t died instantly.

The vitality of a Bronze-tier creature was astonishing!

A full minute passed before the flames began to subside...

Seeing it still had some strength left, Fang Mu didn’t hesitate and fired again.

The target...

Still its head!

Bang!!!

The barrel suddenly glowed with a hint of fiery red.

Fang Mu jumped.

“This... G-class firearms can’t withstand the power of gun-fighting techniques?”

He stared in shock at his G-301, feeling the barrel heating up and turning red.

“Of course, G-class guns use ordinary materials, and gun-fighting techniques are so powerful—no wonder they can’t handle it. Looks like I’ll need a new gun.”

He sighed inwardly.

Gun-fighting techniques were formidable, but demanded much from firearms. G-class weapons could only be used a few times.

But there was no rush.

He was hunting a Gale Tiger.

And Gale Tigers were worth a fortune.

Even a Black Jade Worm could fetch two thousand star coins—how much more for a Bronze-tier Gale Tiger?

Selling it would bring at least tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands!

Then he could easily buy a higher-grade firearm.

Of course, guns fused with gene materials were still out of reach...

Prices ran into tens of millions, even billions—enough to make one dizzy.

“Probably three more uses of gun-fighting technique left—need to be careful...” Fang Mu estimated.

These thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. The Gale Tiger below was hit by a second Firebrand shot to the head, spraying even more blood.

It howled even more miserably, the flames on its body flaring up again.

This time, after being struck, it had no strength left to stand. It lay there, barely alive, burning, its whimpers growing weaker. Yet its eyes turned toward Fang Mu’s direction...

It had spotted him?

Fang Mu felt a jolt of surprise, then quietly marveled... Creatures at Bronze-tier truly were extraordinary.

Their senses were so acute.

He was over five hundred meters away, lying in ambush above—yet after the second shot, it found his position... Compared to Black Jade Worms, it was many times more sensitive.

When he’d killed Black Jade Worms from three hundred meters, even after three kills, they hadn’t figured out his exact location...

The difference was clear.

Of course, sensitivity mattered little now. The Gale Tiger was already shot, and the destructive power of Firebrand was overwhelming. Two more minutes passed, and even with its vitality, it moved no more.

The flames gradually faded, leaving behind a nearly charred tiger corpse...

Fang Mu finally exhaled, excitement flashing in his eyes.

This was the first Bronze-tier creature he’d hunted!

A perfect achievement!

He was only at Black Iron-tier!

Slaying a higher-tier enemy!

---Page 2---

Only gun-fighters could accomplish such a feat...

Glancing about and confirming no other battlefield creatures were nearby, Fang Mu crawled out from his hiding spot and raced toward the tiger’s corpse...

The spoils needed to be secured quickly.

...

...

Seven or eight minutes later, Fang Mu reached the Gale Tiger’s corpse.

Looking at the beast before him, over four meters long, like a small mountain of meat, Fang Mu was deeply shaken.

After all, no matter how many videos one watched, seeing it in person was a different matter entirely.

He licked his lips; the Gale Tiger was completely charred, its hide ruined, even much of the flesh beneath burned.

The power of Firebrand was truly formidable...

But clearly, it wasn’t enough to reduce the Gale Tiger to ashes. Fang Mu wetted his tongue, preparing to stow the tiger in his spatial armament.

His hand was about to touch the tiger’s body—

But suddenly, a piercing pain erupted in his skull, sharp to the extreme and appearing without warning!

The pain was utterly inexplicable, catching Fang Mu off guard so that he couldn’t help but groan, his body trembling.

And at that tremble—

Crack!!

Suddenly, Fang Mu felt a terrifying force slam into him, sending him flying sideways, and at the same instant, a burst of blood exploded from his right shoulder.

He was stunned.

In midair, he stared blankly at the blood spraying out...

What was happening?

He was utterly confused.

Bang!!

Then he heard a distant roar.

A gunshot?!

His body flew nearly five meters before crashing to the ground; Fang Mu’s head spun from the impact.

He hadn’t even had time to look toward the source of the shot before the sharp pain in his skull flared up again.

Like a startled cat, Fang Mu finally reacted, disregarding everything else and rolling desperately on the ground.

Bang!

In the nick of time, the spot he’d just occupied erupted with dirt...

A second shot.

But it missed.

Fang Mu had no time to think further. After dodging with his rolling move, he forced himself up and rolled quickly to the other side of the Gale Tiger’s corpse, the momentum so great that he crashed headlong into the giant carcass...

It took him a while to shake off his dizziness and regain his senses.

“Someone... is sniping me?”

His face showed disbelief.

Who was it?

Why would they do this?

Fang Mu found it hard to understand.

He’d always kept a low profile, rarely causing trouble, even if in school he’d inevitably clashed with others... but surely not to the extent of someone wanting his life?

He was both shocked and furious.

---Page 3---