Chapter151

Seeing Park Su's hesitation, Xu Nuo quickly reassured him, "Don't worry too much. Remember, I'm a Taoist; I use spiritual energy, not esper abilities. Unless they can completely cut off my connection with the spiritual energy in the air, they can't stop me from using my Taoist techniques. Even if they could, the talismans I have around us would be more than enough for us to escape. Trust me, Park Su."

Hearing Xu Nuo's confident words, Park Su blushed slightly, realizing that since the conflict began, he had been the one instinctively protecting Xu Nuo. Perhaps it was time to rely on him as well. Given Xu Nuo's track record, his plan was likely to succeed, so Park Su obediently withdrew his wood ability.

Within minutes, the grass net was burned away, and Wu Dong finally laid eyes on the youth his confidant had described, indeed to his liking. That skin, those legs, that butt - all signs of a premium specimen, with an adorably cute face, now flushed from the heat, looking like a high school student. His almond-shaped eyes gazed at him with such innocence that Wu Dong was almost aroused, eager to take him back to his room for some fun.

After the grass net was gone, Park Su immediately felt the piercing gaze from the fire esper, which made him feel like needles were pricking his back; he was disgusted to the core. Remembering Xu Nuo's words, he knew the biggest threat here was this man. If he was still around, Park Su might not even meet their leader before ending up in bed with him.

Without hesitation, Park Su commanded the hidden green ivy to act. In the next moment, both the robust man and Wu Dong were bound by the mutated green ivy. The blue leaf blades skillfully embedded themselves into their flesh, and now at the peak of the third tier, the green ivy could control the size of each leaf, each one laced with a slowing toxin.

Originally, these toxins were primarily aimed at zombies, yet they remained effective against humans; as the two felt their muscles stiffening amidst the pain.

However, the civilians around them were unharmed by the pothos, though they were momentarily too stunned to react. Seizing this opportunity, Xu Nuo had already dispatched those closest to him wielding water guns.

Yet, he soon realized that not all with water guns were ordinary; among them were several speed-enhanced individuals.

He reasoned that if he were to convincingly feign being hit, he would indeed have to commit to the act, thus resigning himself to fall at the hands of these speed-enhanced adversaries.

Nonetheless, before that, he was determined to watch Park Su eliminate the fire-enhanced Wu Dong; while fighting, he communicated telepathically to Park Su, "Enough jesting, dispatch them swiftly; we have further roles to play."

Park Su understood that this referred to their impending act of feigned capture. However, as this was his first use of the pothos at its third tier, he was keen to explore its capabilities further.

Unexpectedly, the pothos now bore toxins, and seeing the state of the two men, it was clear their wounds would not heal swiftly.

Although they had committed many vile deeds, he had not yet enacted his own malevolent act upon them. He was resolved to kill them but saw no need for prolonged torment, thus commanding the pothos to end their suffering swiftly.

Upon receiving its directive, the pothos expanded one of its leaves, its edge glinting before swiftly ending the lives of the two, without a moment's hesitation.

The ordinary folk initially gathered around the pothos, witnessing this scene, recoiled in fear, each one dreading becoming Park Su's next target.

After dispatching the two, Park Su reduced the pothos to a smaller size, instructing it to find a relatively safe place to conceal itself, yet not returning it to his dantian.

For now, in Park Su's perspective, he was still an ability user, and who knew if his powers would be suppressed later, allowing him to summon them back.

No matter what might happen, at least for now, the pothos could still move freely outside, and from their long association, he knew their actions were somewhat independent from his abilities, linked only mildly through his dantian.

Thus, as long as his dantian remained intact, they should be relatively unharmed.

Therefore, should any mishap befall him and Park Su, rendering them combat-ineffective, these two could effectively serve as a peak third-tier ability user, potentially aiding their safe retreat.

As the crowd watched the pothos retract, realizing it was under Park Su's control, they breathed a sigh of relief but grew increasingly intrigued by his capabilities.

His command over such a large, mutated plant suggested formidable strength; capturing him for their use would undoubtedly yield an abundance of new serums and resources.

Thus, invigorated as if by a shot of adrenaline, each individual became more fervent in their pursuit to capture him, knowing that even a single drop of the serum on his skin would suppress his abilities.

Once his strength waned, they could douse him with more serum until his powers were entirely neutralized. Without their abilities, these two young men were just ordinary youths, making their capture much simpler for the numerous adversaries.

Though Park Su had prepared himself for capture, being eyed with such voracious, wolf-like stares still sent shivers down his spine.

Fortunately, with Xu Nuo providing cover, they managed to take out another group of opponents. Seizing the right moment, they staged an "accidental slip," allowing a speed-enhanced water gun wielder to splash a bit of serum on him.

The moment the serum touched him, Park Su felt his abilities encased in a layer of membrane, making them harder to access.

This amazed him; in his past life, he had never heard of such a potent serum. Logically, if such a substance existed, it would have been a significant asset in controlling territories, yet there had been no whisper of it.

His hesitation slowed his movements, and seeing his reaction, the opponent knew he had been hit, gaining confidence and increasing their assault with the water guns.

Xu Nuo played his part, showing signs of being affected five minutes later, and thus, their capture unfolded naturally.

Soon, both were subdued, and with the serum covering Park Su, his abilities were indeed nullified. It was as if a thick layer enveloped his body, preventing his powers from passing through.

Initially, Park Su was somewhat panicked, but upon channeling his abilities through his dantian, he found he could still leak a little power out. Crucially, this allowed him to communicate with the pothos and the hallucinogenic dandelion, revealing that the serum had no effect on them. This meant his true combat strength was still intact, capable of annihilating their captors if necessary.

This realization brought him considerable relief; in this life, he was loath to entrust his fate to others. He quickly checked on Xu Nuo with mental communication, noticing he too was covered in serum.

Xu Nuo, however, was nonchalant. "Sure, it affects the abilities a bit, even absorbs some of my spiritual energy. But don't worry, the impact is minimal—my spiritual power is less than ten percent sealed by this serum. Dealing with these people, or even doubling their numbers, would be no issue."

With Xu Nuo's assurance, Park Su relaxed, and they played their roles as weakened captives surrounded by their captors.

Those who had kept their distance now felt relieved and began to gloat. One man even shouted about giving them a lesson, but Xu Nuo coldly glared at him, pulling a dagger from his spatial ring, "Even without my abilities, killing you all won't be a problem. Care to test that?"

The man, intimidated by Xu Nuo's killing intent, quickly retreated to minimize his presence. However, not all were so easily cowed; those with guns were less intimidated, especially since Xu Nuo's glare wasn't directed at them, and they held the advantage with their firearms. Would they fear an ordinary man?

One of them, particularly cocky, retorted, "I really don't believe it. Let's see if your knife is faster or my gun. You've hurt so many of our brothers; taking you out here and now would be justified. After all, you're not a wood-type ability user; our boss won't care if you're dead."

With that, he cocked his gun, aiming directly at Xu Nuo, seemingly ready to shoot at any moment. Park Su was taken aback by this sudden turn of events but instinctively positioned himself in front of Xu Nuo, simultaneously signaling the pothos to sneak up under the gunman's feet.

"If it comes to it, I'll ruin this plan, but I won't let anyone harm even a hair on Xu Nuo's head," he thought. Aloud, he said coldly, "If you dare touch him, you'll have to walk over my corpse!" However, fearing a sneak attack from behind, Park Su quickly snatched the dagger from Xu Nuo's hand and held it to his own throat, "If you lay a finger on him, I'll die here and now. But let me warn you, I'm a third-tier ability user, on par with your boss, not some common first-tier.

Joining your group could bring you an abundance of serums and resources. Consider your options; we're already suppressed by your serum, with no other recourse. I can still commit suicide, and if you hold my weaknesses, I might be more inclined to agree to your terms. Choose your outcome wisely."

Though many of their comrades had been killed by Xu Nuo, Park Su's words made them hesitate. Mentioning he was a third-tier wood-type ability user forced them to swallow their anger and decide to take him to their boss for handling.

While they might not consider killing Xu Nuo anymore, they planned to teach him a lesson when he was separated from Park Su, to avenge their fallen brothers.

Thus, Park Su and Xu Nuo were escorted into the city. Before leaving, Park Su had the hallucinogenic dandelion send a seed back to inform his team of their safety, easing his mind as he followed the group.