Chapter 30 This is the Ambition of the Unlucky

"Are we still making small talk? I’m about to turn cold." Lu Luo emerged from the Red Shell’s belly, blocking its path to Gu Fangyi. Chu Qi also coordinated from the side, trying to create some interference for the Red Shell. Lu Luo continuously dodged the Red Shell’s attacks, inflicting mental damage on the creature with the Wraith Blade’s phantom pain. Even with the Observer’s overclock mode, his injuries, physical exhaustion, and the prolonged strain on his eyes and brain from using the Observer began to slow Lu Luo’s movements. "CRACK!" The Red Shell’s pincer grazed Lu Luo’s arm again, and the searing pain of the Fire Poison coursed into his body. Just then, the Red Shell actually raised a pincer towards Lu Luo in a somewhat human-like gesture. [Translation: "You’re going to die, pathetic human!"] [Continuing to analyze Red Shell’s weaknesses...] [Your fractured ribs have punctured your internal organs. Fire Poison is spreading at 1.1 centimeters per second throughout your body. You have no healing items or antidotes on you. Your condition is critical.] The Observer doesn’t know shit. My current situation seems dangerous, but I’m actually as steady as an old dog... Ptooey, ptooey, as steady as Mount Tai! This fight was one of necessity; Lu Luo had no other choice. He had to dodge the scorpion tail stinger. With his current Constitution, he couldn’t withstand a single hit from it. Dodging the stinger demanded immense stamina because its attacks allowed no room for error. Unlike the pincers, he couldn’t afford even minor scrapes or collisions from it. If he were hit by the tail stinger, it would mean certain death. So, to maintain the battle against the Red Shell, Lu Luo had to fight arduously. He was waiting for Gu Fangyi. The scorpion’s tail stinger had already been hit multiple times by Gu Fangyi’s Dark Energy Bullets, and cracks were beginning to appear on its carapace. If Gu Fangyi could land a few more shots, the Red Shell’s tail stinger would inevitably break. That would be Lu Luo’s chance to counterattack. Even if Gu Fangyi failed, Lu Luo still had over 40 units of reserve energy—enough for two to three uses of the Fusioner—which could turn the tide of battle. After all, I’m a top-tier detective who’s watched over 800 episodes of Conan, plus all sorts of bizarre and imaginative anime. In terms of killing methods alone, I’ve mastered over 800. I can execute many incredible tactics and cunning maneuvers with the Fusioner. My imagination and ability to think outside the box are things even the Observer can’t match. ... "BANG! BANG! BANG!" Zhou Kai, steadying Gu Fangyi’s hand, fired several more shots. All three hit their mark, and the Red Shell’s tail stinger was on the verge of breaking. But Gu Fangyi’s hand was trembling uncontrollably, causing Zhou Kai’s hand to shake with it. "Hey, hey, Gu Fangyi, can you stop shaking like this? If you keep shaking so much, I can’t hold the gun steady, man!" "Sorry... ugh," Gu Fangyi apologized, then started coughing violently, spitting up a large pool of blood. Blood also started to trickle from his nostrils—it seemed unstoppable. His vision was now completely blurred; he couldn’t clearly see the tail stinger. His mind was a chaotic mess, and he felt he could collapse at any moment. Yet, Gu Fangyi’s willpower was extraordinarily strong at this moment. He suppressed his coughs and endured the pain from overusing Dark Energy and the corrosive Fire Poison, saying to Zhou Kai, "I’m sorry, Brother Kane, I can’t see anymore. But I’ve infused Dark Energy into this gun’s last bullet. Hold the gun steady. Aim for the white dent I made on that monster’s tail stinger. I believe in you. You can do it, Brother Kane..." Gu Fangyi was a reserved person. He rarely addressed others with familial terms like ’brother’, which was evident from his interactions with Lu Luo. Lu Luo and Zhou Kai could casually call each other Brother Kane and Brother Luo, but Gu Fangyi found it hard to do so. This time, however, he had taken the initiative to call Zhou Kai ’Brother Kane’ because he truly wanted to win. These words drained all of Gu Fangyi’s remaining strength. As soon as he finished speaking, his body went limp, and he nearly collapsed. The silent Zhou Kai caught Gu Fangyi’s limp body, carefully laying him on the ground. "You guys are too much, one after another! Lu Luo is eyeing my Second Sequence, and now you’re dumping this on me too! Are you all just picking on the honest guy? What did an honest guy ever do to you? Always trying to fleece the honest guy, why don’t you go bother Lu Luo instead! Forget it, forget it! It’s my lot in life to be the honest guy, I guess!" Muttering to himself, Zhou Kai raised the handgun Gu Fangyi had entrusted to him. "Even though the card dealer seems to target me every single day, even though my teammates often screw me over, even though my gacha draws are always nothing but blue skies and white clouds... I still believe I can make this shot! Because this is the desperate hope of an ’unlucky one’!" "BANG!" As Zhou Kai fired, the bullet arced through the air as if its trajectory was fated. Though completely unaimed, it curved incredibly, flying unerringly towards the scorpion’s tail stinger. "CLINK!" The Red Shell’s tail stinger snapped, meaning its strongest and most threatening weapon against Lu Luo was now useless. Lu Luo, Wraith Blade in hand, burst into laughter. Chu Qi, beside him, was utterly bewildered. They’re on the brink of death; what’s so funny? She would never understand that without its tail stinger, the Red Shell posed far less of a threat to Lu Luo than she imagined. While translating, the Observer didn’t forget its main duty: finding the Red Shell’s weaknesses for Lu Luo. [Red Shell Weakness Analysis Complete: Primary weakness is its mouthparts. Although its external mouthparts are very sharp, the interior is extremely soft. Secondary weakness is the seventh segment of its upper carapace. This is the starting point of the Blue Shell’s molting process and also its most vulnerable area.] "That’s enough!" The moment the Observer provided the first tip, Lu Luo acted decisively. Without the rapid thrusts of the tail stinger, he could now more easily predict and dodge the Red Shell’s attacks. "Hook." [19 energy points consumed for one transformation: Iron Sheet -> Hook] [2 energy points consumed for one transformation: Stone -> Blinding Lime Powder] Lu Luo scattered a handful of the blinding lime powder specially created by the Fusioner, momentarily obscuring the Red Shell’s vision. The iron sheet in his left hand had been transformed by the Fusioner into a cluster of barbed hooks. He threw it accurately into the Red Shell’s mouth and yanked hard, the barbs catching in the creature’s soft inner mouthparts. "HISS!" Enraged, the Red Shell thrashed wildly. Lu Luo pushed Chu Qi aside and leaped onto the Red Shell’s back alone. Chu Qi stared, speechless, as Lu Luo landed on the Red Shell’s back. He was already gripping his blade tightly, preparing to thrust fiercely into the seventh shell segment. "SQUELCH!" Finally, Lu Luo’s blade pierced through the fragile shell segment. Green blood, characteristic of a Red Shell, sprayed from the wound. Lu Luo didn’t stop. He wrenched the blade free and stabbed again, and again—seventeen times in total—until the Red Shell finally collapsed lifelessly. See? I told you everything was under control! [Pick up the tail stinger! Pick up the tail stinger! Pick up the tail stinger!] Lu Luo’s expression turned odd. Is it really that valuable? Why is it so excited? Though puzzled, he still picked up the tail stinger, wrapped it in a piece of cloth, and tucked it into his pocket. Then, with another swing of his blade, he beheaded the still-struggling Round Mirror Void. Unfortunately, the Second Tier Specter Species didn’t leave a corpse behind.