Chapter 56 - Sacrifice

The pigsty had only been filled with thick smoke, and after Yang Can had instructed everyone to come out and keep silent, he then led them into the workshop.

The Skinning Artisan pulled out a Skinning Knife and made a cut on everyone’s back; within seconds, the pigskin lost its moisture and naturally peeled away.

“We’re saved!” A group of people cried tears of joy, especially a few pregnant women who, trembling, kept thanking the others.

“Brother!” A child ran towards Xu Huo, and as Sima Xiao’er was holding things in both hands and could not move freely, he hastily crouched down, just as the child threw himself into his arms.

He whispered, “Stand quietly by your sister’s side, and don’t speak, okay?”

This child was the same little pig that had previously leaped out of the pigsty.

He nodded his head and turned to squeeze in beside the pregnant women.

Sima Xiao’er breathed a sigh of relief, then turned back to the Skinning Artisan and said, “Release all these people, and I will give you back the painting.”

The Skinning Artisan huffed and puffed, “I can let go of the others, but not those six little ones.”

“You don’t have a choice!” Sima Xiao’er brought the flame closer, and as the edges of the painting turned black, the woman inside reacted more violently, desperately attempting to leap out of the painting with her arms squeezed under the tape.

“Think about it: you only want the little pigs, and you can catch them at any time, but where will you find another one of these props?” Sima Xiao’er threatened, while simultaneously calculating the time, knowing things wouldn’t bode well once the Skinning Artisan’s left leg healed!

“Release them now!” Qin An pulled the whip tightly—they were running out of time!

At that moment, the Skinning Artisan, who had been holding the knife, raised his right hand.

The players were watching him nervously when suddenly they heard a cold laugh, and it felt as if they had been drenched by a bucket of cold water!

“Another Skinning Artisan is out!” Qin An yelled, but before he could muster any strength, he only saw several flashes of cold light, and his whip was cut into several segments and fell to the ground—the Skinning Artisan slowly stood up.

“Although I don’t fancy this factory, business is business.

Once a deal is settled, one mustn’t renege, which is a rule that has to be observed in any industry.”

He looked at the horror-stricken people behind the players and pulled his mouth into an arc, “Dead pigs or alive, they’re all the same to me.”

No sooner had the words fallen than he began to dart around the workshop at an unimaginable speed.

In the blink of an eye, several figures slammed against the wall sequentially, and before their short gasps could take shape, they abruptly ceased as clouds of blood splattered out uncontrollably…

Everything happened so quickly that no one had the strength to fight back, and Xu Huo, standing at the other end of the workshop, watched as the grey shadow flashed before his eyes, his pupils dilating uncontrollably!

“Bang!” All he managed to do was move to the side, and then he was smashed through the wall behind him by a tremendous force, rolling into the fur storage area!

And those hanging furs suddenly seemed to come alive and furiously swarmed towards him, each one wanting to cling to his skin!

Xu Huo was quick to react.

He rolled to the opposite window, swiftly tore off the animal skin on his body, and pulled out a lighter.

But before he could light it, he was kicked across the room by the Skinning Artisan and pinned against the bedroom door wall!

“Cough!” Xu Huo spat out blood, his vision going dark.

Less than ten seconds had passed.

Peng Fengnian and his companions had all suffered severe injuries, and out of the ordinary people, seven or eight had their throats cut, their bodies still standing in place.

The rest were paralyzed with shock, not yet recovered from their fright…

In less than ten seconds, the Skinning Artisan had turned the tide!

“You’re the one who hid in the pigsty,” the Skinning Artisan said, looking at him.

Xu Huo wiped the blood from his mouth and stood up against the wall.

The Skinning Artisan and Red-nosed Karl shared one body, and neither could share sight with the other.

That’s why the Skinning Artisan didn’t know Red-nosed Karl had a visitor, and Red-nosed Karl didn’t know the Skinning Artisan had found something amiss in the pigsty and skinned a player alive.

Yet they were aware of each other’s existence.

Red-nosed Karl would keep the office clean, and the Skinning Artisan had reserved space in the cupboard for magazines and photo albums.

So, when Red-nosed Karl couldn’t handle the situation, the Skinning Artisan would appear.

Not being able to make a quick decision and force Red-nosed Karl to release the prisoners meant their plan had failed.

Against the Skinning Artisan’s person, they had absolutely no way to rescue anyone!

His gaze swung between the Skinning Artisan and the two fur skins sandwiching human hides: to flee or not to flee?

Just then, Sima Xiao’er suddenly got up, grabbed two children, and ran toward the warehouse, shouting, “The way we came in must be a way out!”

Everyone seemed to awaken from a dream, and the still workshop sprang into action.

Tang Pei’s wound also healed while the Skinning Artisan’s left leg self-mended, but she hesitated briefly and, following Sima Xiao’er’s example, picked up a child with one hand.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t as lucky as Sima Xiao’er.

Before she could reach the warehouse, a Skinning Knife flew through the air and stabbed her in the throat!

“The pigs should be kept alive,” the Skinning Artisan said, stepping out from between the furs.

“Tang Pei!” Xian Dazhi yelled, grabbing a hair scraping machine with one hand and throwing it at the Skinning Artisan!

This move bought Peng Fengnian and Qin An some time.

They rushed toward the warehouse, determined to rescue the children and the pregnant woman before leaving.

However, by now, the other people had also reacted and were running madly to the warehouse, blocking the doorway so tightly they couldn’t get in!

“One at a time!” Sima Xiao’er shouted from inside.

“You block the people for me, let the children and pregnant women pass first!”

Those outside flashed a look of understanding upon hearing this.

Peng Fengnian gritted his teeth, turned around to face the Skinning Artisan, and suddenly produced a white light sphere emitting a strong glow from his hand.

He yelled at Xian Dazhi, “Quick, come here!”

Xian Dazhi looked in response, but before he could move, a spray of fresh blood burst from the side of his neck.

This honest player fell at the feet of the Skinning Artisan.

With a flick of his hand in the air, a long needle, threaded through, pierced out the other side of Xian Dazhi’s neck and returned to his hand.

Shrouded in the bright light, Peng Fengnian and Qin An also witnessed this scene and felt a chill in their hearts.

Peng Fengnian tried to stay calm and said, “Players seen by ‘The Eye of the Mighty’ are immune to props for three minutes; we should be safe for at least these three minutes…”

However, before he could finish his sentence, a skin suddenly fell from above and covered Qin An beside him.

His upright figure bent at the hands and feet, his waist sagged, and in just two seconds, he became a Shar Pei dog, then was dragged by the thread on his tail out of the safe zone!

“How is that possible!” Peng Fengnian’s pupils trembled.

The Eye of the Mighty was supposed to work on any player.

The Skinning Artisan shouldn’t even be able to see them clearly right now, let alone use props!

Qin An, turned into a Shar Pei dog, was dragged stiffly before the Skinning Artisan.

As the Skinning Artisan stepped on his head, about to cut his throat, he suddenly turned his head sensing something:

Xu Huo held a piece of wood stolen from the secret room; the burning end was aimed at a suspended wolf skin.

He was watching him!