Han Ning struggled to push aside the debris pinning him down in the ruins, the excruciating pain from his left arm making his vision darken.
Gritting his teeth, he used his still-functional right hand to cast [Rejuvenation]. A faint green glow enveloped the bone-deep wound, barely stopping the bleeding.
"Thankfully... the Tree Skin Art protected my body, otherwise that monster would have severed my entire arm..."
Han Ning recalled the terrifying strength of the giant lizard - completely beyond his current ability to withstand.
With the Tree Skin Art's protection and Rejuvenation stopping the bleeding, he only suffered some external injuries and still retained combat capability.
But Han Ning didn't immediately rejoin the fight.
Leaning against a cold shelf, he panted heavily while scanning the battlefield.
Chen Yan and Lu Minghu were dodging frantically under the giant lizard's attacks.
Liu Feng and Zhou Wan stood slightly further back, desperately trying to support the frontliners.
Though it looked like an intense battle, in reality the four were just scrambling for their lives without any chance to counterattack.
This monster... was beyond them!
"We can't win this, absolutely can't win! I'll cover you! Minghu, get Han Ning and retreat now!"
Liu Feng in the field had also realized their predicament.
Seeing Chen Yan covered in blood, he quickly used his ability to move a large wooden plank, temporarily blocking the lizard's line of sight.
The two frontliners seized this opportunity and retreated from the frontline under Liu Feng's cover.
When passing Han Ning, Chen Yan didn't even glance back as he charged toward the mall entrance.
Lu Minghu hesitated for a second before gritting his teeth and dragging the severely injured Han Ning out of the rubble.
Liu Feng continuously used telekinesis to block their escape route with various debris.
Meanwhile Zhou Wan fired arrows to distract the lizard's eyes.
The five fought while retreating. Fortunately the lizard wasn't particularly fast, allowing them to escape the abandoned mall in complete disarray.
Fearing the lizard might pursue them, they didn't linger but waded through flooded streets, swimming all the way back toward their residential area.
...
Back at their relatively safe apartment base, the atmosphere turned icy.
Han Ning let Zhou Wan bandage his wounds while coldly staring at Chen Yan. He spoke:
"There was no debris under your feet. Why did you fall at that critical moment?"
The monster wasn't even targeting Chen Yan, who had been positioned at the creature's flank yet took no action.
As their designated tank, his entire role was to use his strong physique to draw enemy fire for teammates.
Chen Yan couldn't meet Han Ning's gaze, panting heavily as he defended himself:
"That thing was too strong! I... I froze up in fear, couldn't react in time to help you..."
"Couldn't react? More like you never intended to help at all."
"What are you implying?!" Chen Yan jumped up as if stepped on, "We still got you out in the end, didn't we?!"
"Got me out?"
Han Ning's tone became eerily calm,
"Was it you who saved me, you fucking coward? Weren't you the first to tuck your balls between your legs and run like a scared dog?"
Hearing this direct insult, Chen Yan's face darkened instantly:
"Don't you dare slander me! Who could react properly in that situation? You think you're the only one contributing? When I was holding the frontline..."
.
"You call me a liar? Say that again and see what happens?"
Han Ning narrowed his eyes. Before Chen Yan could finish speaking, a thick, dark green vine suddenly shot out from his hand.
"Look out!"
The other four on the scene paled at the sight.
Liu Feng's eyes flickered with light as he reached toward the vine.
Lu Minghu leaped into the air, striking at the vine.
Zhou Wan stood to the side, watching coldly.
Chen Yan finally showed a hint of panic, hastily dodging to the side.
Under Liu Feng and Lu Minghu's interference, the vine's trajectory shifted slightly, but its momentum remained unchecked as it struck Chen Yan.
Thud!
The tip of the dark green vine pierced directly into Chen Yan's left shoulder.
Drops of blood trickled from the vine's thorns.
Grimacing in pain, Chen Yan gripped the vine and, with great effort, slowly pulled it out.
Meanwhile, the other three blocked Han Ning, preventing him from attacking again.
"Enough, Han Ning. For my sake, spare his life," Liu Feng said, locking eyes with Han Ning, his gaze pleading.
Han Ning snorted and dismissed the vine.
After two seconds of silence, Liu Feng spoke again:
"Old Chen, apologize to Han Ning. You were clearly in the wrong earlier."
"Who the hell does he think he is? If we weren't stuck in this place, I could've called a few guys to beat the crap out of him!"
Clutching his bleeding shoulder, Chen Yan's face twisted with defiance, as if he'd heard some ridiculous joke.
"Let me make this clear—it's either him or me. Feng, you choose!"
"You—!" Liu Feng's expression contorted as he glanced between Han Ning and Chen Yan, about to speak.
But then, Han Ning suddenly cut in:
"Don't bother choosing. I'm leaving the team."
"Different paths don't lead to the same destination. Leveling up? Hah… you guys can do it yourselves."
He saw Liu Feng's hesitation.
It was Chen Yan, that idiot, who had pulled this stunt.
And yet, Liu Feng still hesitated.
Without a backward glance, he turned and walked away.
Liu Feng didn't stop him, watching as Han Ning left.
Only when Han Ning's figure had completely vanished from the room did Liu Feng frown and say:
"Han Ning's just angry right now. I'll go apologize to him later."
"His strength is crucial. Without him, our hunting efficiency will drop drastically."
Chen Yan sneered.
"Why bother? Sure, our efficiency will drop, but we'll get more energy to split."
"Besides, we've gotten stronger these past few days. Hunting smaller Crocodile Lizards shouldn't be a problem."
...
The cold metal door clicked shut behind him, cutting off the faint sounds of argument and the downpour from the hallway.
Inside Room 803, only the monotonous patter of rain against the glass and the soft shhh of Snowflake's scales scraping against the floor remained.
Hiss?
Snowflake seemed to sense its owner's dark mood. It nuzzled against Han Ning's leg, its cool head brushing lightly against his calf.
Han Ning walked to the couch and sat down.
"Liu Feng and Chen Yan clearly knew each other before the transmigration. With Chen Yan's damn attitude, sticking with them would only lead to trouble sooner or later."
"Chen Yan…"
He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to suppress the boiling rage.
If not for the Tree Skin Art, he would've been dead or severely injured.
This wasn't over yet.
If it weren't for the other two stopping him and out of consideration for Liu Feng, he would have killed Chen Yan on the spot.
Facing four Awakened at once, he wasn't confident.
Anger wouldn't solve the problem.
Han Ning gradually calmed down.
Without the team, he could only hunt alone.
The efficiency would certainly be lower than before, but it wasn't all bad.
He still had Snowflake.
Han Ning's gaze fell on the little creature at his feet.
After days of relentless feeding and Energy nourishment, Snowflake had quietly grown to nearly a meter in length, its gray-white Scales becoming thicker and harder.
Most importantly, through the Soul Contract, Snowflake was absolutely loyal to him.
"Without them, I can survive on my own, and... it might not be worse!"