The Glorious Transcendent-Chapter 55: The Return After a Massacre

Between the trees, a figure moved quickly, showing no signs of stopping.

"I’m still within Mao City’s boundaries," Wang Tu ran fast.

His heart was pounding rapidly, and he started feeling that someone was approaching him quickly.

"Unless I enter Yang City’s boundaries, I won’t feel safe."

His focus was solely on escaping, caring about nothing else.

"No, no!" Suddenly, someone fell on him and knocked him to the ground.

Wang Tu rolled on the ground until he collided with a tree in front of him.

He pulled himself together and stood up, still terrified.

"What do you want from me? Come out now!" he shouted, gripping a sword in his hand.

He was pretending to be brave—he didn’t want to give up right away.

What if he showed fear and begged for mercy, only to find out that the one chasing him was just another first-rank sinner like himself?

But he was so afraid that he had lost all sense of his surroundings.

In his heart, he prayed that his pursuer wasn’t one of Mao City’s four leaders.

He began looking around like a madman, hoping to catch any trace.

It didn’t take long before he found the one who had been chasing him.

"Fu Ren!" Wang Tu rushed toward the corpse in front of him.

The body had two broken arms, and where the head should have been, there was a mix of flesh, bone, and blood.

"Dear god!" His brows furrowed, and a look of disgust spread across his face.

Wang Tu wasn’t sensitive to such scenes, but what made him sick was the idea itself.

"Is this a threat?" His body trembled at the thought.

On paper, Fu Ren was stronger than him, having undergone more refinement cycles — yet he ended up with his head crushed.

And more than that, his killer had tossed him straight toward Wang Tu.

"How?... Wait, does that mean he can sense my location?"

With that thought, Wang Tu dashed away at full speed, leaving Fu Ren’s corpse behind.

"I’m never coming back here."

Being tracked and located by a second-rank individual — no sinner would ever accept such a thing.

***

In the city.

Night still lingered.

Kogan, Mei Lan, and Mei Li stood on one side, while Jin Chao and his partner Dai Li stood on the other.

Their expressions were grim and bitter.

A few scattered members of the patrol surrounded them here and there.

The place was quiet, lit by a pure white light that gave it a spiritual, almost sacred feeling.

Ray Kang stood at the front, with a man beside him.

The man’s hands were clasped behind his back as he stared at the pile of corpses stacked on the cart before him.

Ray Kang had reported the attack, prompting the city to dispatch an entire unit of Rank One individuals to retrieve the dead and investigate the incident.

All twenty members of the squad had been killed—

Except for Ray Kang,

His partner who had already returned home,

And Jin Chao along with his partner Dai Li, who both looked far too terrified,

As if the attack was still ongoing in their minds.

And then there were Kogan, Mi Lan, and Mi Li, who had already calmed down—

In addition to two slaves who hadn’t even suffered a single scratch.

"In both instances your team was attacked, the losses were severe," the man spoke.

He was one of the Four Leaders—Ho Ji, a Rank Two.

Ray Kang remained silent.

The leader’s words were true.

And as the team captain, he had to shoulder the responsibility.

"But this time is different," Ho Ji continued.

"According to the surviving members of your team, the second attacker was also a Rank One individual. Possibly Ning Lu, or perhaps Fu Ren."

"Once, Wang Tu joined forces with Fu Ren, Ning Lu, and Wang Yi. They began targeting Rank Two beasts—

And they even succeeded in hunting down a few of them."

Leader Ho Ji looked at Ray Kang.

"It’s a miracle that some of your team survived. I don’t know why they suddenly retreated, but if they had continued their attack, they might have surrounded you in the end. And even if you managed to escape, I don’t think your partner would have been able to."

Ray Kang clenched his fists.

He knew that if these attacks continued, something unexpected would definitely happen.

’Maybe Sui Chang Li should stop going on essence retrieval missions,’ he began to think this was a good idea.

That would mean she wouldn’t get her salary, but at least she would be safe, while Ray Kang could rely on himself.

Both partners usually work together to support one another. In many cases, one of them sacrifices all the essence they’ve collected to help their partner ascend to a higher grade.

"I think you should take a break from work," Leader Ho Ji said.

Ray Kang looked at him, surprised.

"Your squad is finished. We need to rebuild it now. I’ll find you a new group — you can rest for now." With those words, Leader Ho Ji turned to leave.

But then, he suddenly stopped.

"Right, there’s someone in your squad who lost her partner."

Ray Kang looked at the leader, then turned his gaze to Mei Li, a hint of sorrow rising in his heart.

He truly cared for his squad members — even the new ones — and always tried to find solutions for them. But unfortunately, this time, there was nothing he could do.

’Looks like the time has come,’ Mei Li felt a strange calm settle in her heart.

Perhaps this was her fate — to end up with an unstable partner.

Leader Ho Ji finally reached her.

"If you have any essence, please hand it over now."

Mei Li shook her head. "I don’t have any."

Leader Ho Ji placed his hand on her head.

Under the sorrowful gazes of Jin Chao and Mi Lan, a faint gray light glowed from the leader’s palm, slowly sinking into Mei Li’s head.

Moments later, her expression softened, and her face turned void of emotion.

Kogan looked at her, but his expression remained unchanged.

No one gets anything except what they deserve.

"Let’s go," the leader gestured to Mei Li.

She followed him without saying a word, and they walked away from the others until they disappeared.

"Mei Li..." Mei Lan wiped her tears.

On their way back, Mei Li had given her all the free essence she had—700 in total.

Now, with the essence Mei Lan already possessed, she completed another refinement cycle, with some free essence still remaining.

Jin Chao placed his hand on Dai Li’s back, and they left for the inn.

After that, Kogan and Mei Lan also departed, heading home.

Ray Kang was left alone, staring at the corpses of his team members.

His expression was grim.

Just yesterday, they were laughing, jumping around with joy—full of energy and hope.

But within a single night, they were all gone.

A tear slipped from his eye, but he quickly reached up, wiped it away, and walked off immediately. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Bai Tong, Wei Tong, Wei Li, and ten others lay in the cart, awaiting their slow disappearance.

Any being that contains essence will begin to evaporate after death—but the speed depends on how much essence their body held.

As for humans or animals with no essence, they remain as corpses after death.

In this way, humans are able to feed on certain animals.