The whole nation is trying to survive on the cable car; I'm choosing one of three options at ea

Spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the cement ground beneath Su Mu's feet. He leaned back slightly, his heels dragging a deep groove in the pavement... taking three steps back.

Bai Liuxi's body flew backward, tumbled half a circle in the air, landed on the ground, and staggered back two steps before regaining her balance.

Su Mu had a slight advantage.

Bai Liuxi's hand rested on her waist, reaching for a silvery-white object... about the size of her palm, irregularly shaped, like some kind of metal. Her fingers gripped it, making no further move, but the gesture itself was a threat: if you move again, I'll use this.

Su Mu didn't know what it was. But judging from the faint energy fluctuations emanating from it... this wasn't an ordinary weapon; it was some kind of trump card. It could be an explosive, some kind of disposable offensive equipment, or something else entirely.

But whatever it is, he doesn't intend to let her use it. It's not that he can't win, but that there's no need.

He lowered his spear, the tip pointing to the ground, and his fighting spirit subsided somewhat.

"I meant no harm," he said, his voice not loud, but exceptionally clear on the quiet street.

Bai Liuxi's fingers remained on the silvery-white object, not letting go. Her eyes were fixed on Su Mu, like a cheetah poised to pounce. Blood was still seeping from the wounds, but her expression showed no pain, not even a furrowed brow.

In the distance, the burly man, standing at 2.45 meters tall, had already raised his shield, placing it between Bai Liuxi and Su Mu. His battle axe twirled slightly in his right hand, ready to strike at any moment.

The lean man was still leaning against the GG signpost, but his previously half-closed eyes were now open. There was no emotion in those eyes… no surprise, no tension, only a cold, appraising scrutiny, as if assessing the value of prey. His right hand hung at his side, less than ten centimeters from the Tang sword at his waist.

The air between the three of them was so tense it felt like a string about to snap.

Su Mu didn't move, but his thoughts were racing.

Lin Yuwei's two words... "Be careful"... came at the perfect time. She had seen Bai Liuxi approaching from the shadows and issued a warning in the shortest possible time. This meant that she had been monitoring his location, or rather, she had been monitoring all movements in this area.

How did she manage to evade the perception of someone of Bai Liuxi's caliber?

You need to know how long it will take before the other party discovers you while you're observing.

Moreover, the fact that she chose to send the message at this time indicates that she judged Bai Liuxi's attention to be drawn to the battle, which was a safe window of opportunity. This judgment was very accurate... so accurate that even Su Mu was somewhat surprised.

But that was the end of her message. She didn't send a second message, didn't specify her location, and didn't explain why she had been out of contact. Su Mu guessed that she must have had some difficulties... Perhaps the act of sending a message itself would reveal her location, or perhaps she was in a state where she "couldn't be distracted."

Regardless, he didn't press the matter. The fact that she could still message him meant she wasn't dead and still had some mobility. That was enough.

As for Bai Liuxi... Su Mu noticed that after the battle, the woman's gaze briefly swept over a corner deep in the dark area.

It wasn't a casual glance, but a targeted, scrutinizing look. The gaze was like that of a hunter who had spotted the tracks left by his prey, but wasn't sure if the prey was still there.

Su Mu glanced in that direction out of the corner of his eye. There was only a collapsed brick wall and a few clumps of withered yellow weeds. The moonlight couldn't reach it, and it was pitch black, so nothing could be seen.

She didn't see Lin Yuwei, but she vaguely sensed something.

Behind the collapsed brick wall, nestled among withered weeds and broken bricks, Lin Yuwei was curled up, motionless.

She held her breath as low as possible, but her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was going to jump out of her throat.

She wore a translucent cloak as thin as a cicada's wing, which was almost completely transparent in the moonlight. Only when you got very close could you see a faint distortion of light.

This is the strange item she found... [Environmental Assimilation Cloak (Green)], which, when activated, allows her to blend into her surroundings and become almost optically invisible, but produces a slight light distortion when she moves.

It was thanks to this cloak that she managed to follow Bai Liuxi's team for nearly two hours while being chased by "that thing".

It wasn't about tracking, but about "using" them. There were too many and too powerful monsters in this dark area; she couldn't possibly go very far on her own.

While Bai Liuxi and her group cleared out monsters along the way, she only needed to follow far behind to safely traverse most of the dark area.

She had seen this squad fight.

The burly man used his shield to withstand the impact of level six or seven monsters, and killed one with a single axe blow; when the lean man drew his sword, she couldn't even see where the sword was, she only saw a silver-white arc flash, and the monster fell; and Bai Liuxi... that woman, she had seen her fight an eighth-level rock golem alone, bare-handed, in less than ten seconds.

Every time Lin Yuwei watched Bai Liuxi fight, she would re-evaluate the definition of the word "powerful" in her mind.

Until she saw Su Mu and Bai Liuxi fight.

She initially thought Su Mu would be easily defeated. She knew Su Mu was strong... he could block bullets, jump from the seventh floor to kill a giant single-handedly, and wipe out an entire foreign squad by himself... but she didn't believe Su Mu could contend with someone of Bai Liuxi's caliber. They were beings from two different dimensions.

But the result was completely unexpected.

Su Mu not only didn't lose, but he also gained the upper hand in the direct confrontation. The woman who had been using an eighth-level monster as a punching bag was forced to retreat step by step in front of Su Mu, suffering several wounds. In the end, she was forced to use some trump card to barely stabilize the situation.

Lin Yuwei huddled behind the broken bricks, her heart pounding like a drum. Watching Su Mu sheathe his spear and raise his hands, only one thought occupied her mind... Just what kind of monster was this man?

She recalled the caution and struggle Su Mu had shown when facing the giant blue axe-wielder in the haunted house a few days ago. Back then, he had to slowly whittle down the monster's strength with his pistol and was being chased by it. Now, only a few days later, he was already able to face off against an opponent of that caliber head-on.

This rate of growth cannot be explained by "effort" or "talent".

But she had no energy left to think about such things. Her hands gripped the edge of her cloak tightly, her fingertips turning white from the force. If Bai Liuxi took just a few more steps in this direction, if that lean man's gaze shifted even slightly in her direction, she might be discovered.

She held her breath and remained motionless, like a stone.