118 Taking the Field Personally (4000)
Bullets danced chaotically in midair, striking the charging C13 squad with only one effect: the kinetic energy of the bullets slightly slowed the pace of the five running men.
The luminous membranes on their bodies rippled gently like a lake’s surface; these bullets were insufficient to penetrate the defensive light shield generated by the Ring Force. Instantly, a sense of calm settled in their hearts.
One could not help but feel some hesitation without firsthand testing, but now all doubts had vanished.
“Kill!”
White Wolf roared wildly, swinging his strong arms continuously through the air. His sharp steel claws sliced a curved arc, severing the arm of an armed man and easily cutting through a fragile neck.
Blood gushed out as the man clutched his neck in terror. But the blood streaming through his fingers could not be stopped; the warmth of the blood carried away his remaining life.
*Splurt!* *Ah!* *Ah!*
Like a tiger crashing into a flock of sheep, the C13 squad unleashed their deadly skills upon the armed men. One by one, black-clad figures screamed and collapsed.
Severed limbs, heads, and blood splattered everywhere.
Some viscous entrails even flew about.
Within just ten seconds, the entire armed force was reduced to two survivors. These two had given up resistance, wildly turning to flee halfway through the fight.
White Wolf withdrew his claws from one man, then let out a frenzied roar and pounced like a starving tiger.
*Swish!* *Swish!* Two severed heads dropped to the ground.
The expressions of horror froze eternally on their faces.
“Gangzi, all clear?”
White Wolf glanced back. Gangzi pulled his right hand away, revealing a face charred and mangled by fire, the white bones visible beneath the burnt flesh.
“All clear.”
Gangzi shook his hand and nodded.
“Good. Follow the original plan. You take one person to capture the underground black boxing ring’s boss, I’ll take two to clear this place. Remember, try not to kill the boss; if you can’t avoid it, act freely. We might get scolded later…”
White Wolf gave his instructions, then suddenly recalled something.
“Right, the Holy Flame Society has also stationed a secret Ring Force user here. We might encounter them when we rush in, so be careful. Especially you, Gangzi—you tend to lose control…”
“Got it, don’t worry.”
Gangzi flashed an OK sign.
The C13 squad split into two groups, entering through two separate passages of the underground black boxing ring.
One minute passed, and there was no movement in the hall.
Only the thick stench of blood lingered in the air.
Two minutes passed, still no sign of life.
At three minutes, a pair of eyes cautiously peeked out from a nearly bullet-riddled chair.
Filled with anxiety, they scanned the surroundings.
They’re gone! They left!
Old Tang exhaled heavily, a weight lifting from his heart, and quietly lay down again.
Many pairs of terrified eyes watched Old Tang.
“There’s no one in the hall. They must have left…”
Upon hearing this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Gang wars bring disaster to innocents! At least a dozen “innocent” spectators had died in the crossfire. If they hadn’t taken cover quickly, they wouldn’t have survived.
After a moment, Old Tang and four others stood up and hurried into the passage, first briskly walking, then breaking into a run.
*Huff, huff, huff…*
Though the passage was short, the five felt it unbearably long. When Old Tang finally grasped the doorknob, he was panting violently, his legs numb.
With a creak, the door opened, revealing another scene of carnage—a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
Seven or eight bodies sprawled awkwardly on the floor, blood pooling across the entire hall.
Seeing the gory cross-sections of the bodies made Old Tang’s eyelids twitch uncontrollably. Beside him, Lili vomited outright, tears streaming uncontrollably.
Little Book Pavilion
If she had known it would be like this, she would never have come.
Blood blocked the way, forcing them to tread over the gore, feet splashing in the puddles.
*Crunch!*
Old Tang stiffened.
A few steps forward, he looked back.
An eyeball had rolled out and was crushed underfoot.
Suppressing his nausea, the group fled the entrance of this underground black boxing ring disguised as an adult store.
Outside on a deserted street, fresh air rushed in. The five all turned pale, gasping for breath.
Old Tang bent his knees slightly, hands on his thighs.
His vacant eyes muttered, “I’ll never come to such a hellhole again. Not even a slightly rough neighborhood. I swear it, really…”
“Old Tang, what’s that on your head?”
Across from him, a boy suddenly exclaimed.
Old Tang’s hand reached up confusedly and pulled out a bloodied, sticky intestine tangled in his red hair.
“Ugh!” Old Tang immediately vomited.
---
“Ugh!” Lili nearby couldn’t hold back and also threw up.
Both vomiting, they forced themselves to walk toward a distant block. Being too close to the underground black boxing ring might still be dangerous. Even if they had to vomit, better to do it far away.
The five hurried away, with Shengya, the class beauty, bringing up the rear. She seemed least affected of them all.
Shengya’s eyes flickered as she suddenly touched her earlobe, though she wore no earrings.
************
In the Sunset City district, another bustling underground market.
The C11 Witch Squad was carrying out their mission to destroy an underground black market.
Unlike the C13 squad, they had no orders to spare the black market boss’s life—they could kill at will.
On a bustling street, a slightly dim alley flickered with ambiguous lights.
A few drunks lay slumped against walls.
Suddenly, five graceful figures entered the alley. Their elegant silhouettes clearly marked them as beauties.
Immediately, a drunken man staggered forward, leering.
“Hey, sweetheart, smile for me!”
His pockmarked face flushed red as he swayed to block their path, a lecherous grin spreading.
*Smack!*
A slap suddenly struck his face.
The man wanted to curse the ungrateful bitch but suddenly found he could not speak.
His entire left side went numb; eyes and mouth paralyzed. He lightly touched his face with his right hand.
A piercing cold radiated from his palm.
“You!”
*Smack!*
Another slap landed.
The man froze like a lifelike statue, except his body was covered in a faint frost.
“Captain, what do we do with him?” asked a girl with a ponytail.
“Let him stay here,” the cold figure ahead replied calmly. “The freezing will lift in two hours. That’ll be punishment enough…”
The figure slowly turned, revealing a delicate, slender face.
Bing Li, captain of the C11 Witch Squad.
She was also White Wolf’s lover…
They reached the alley’s end, stopping before a bar. Neon lights formed the sign above: The Golden Rose.
“Work efficiently! We’re close to Nan City; the Holy Flame Society might send reinforcements…”
Bing Li reminded her team.
“Understood!” the four replied in unison.
The Ring Force surged as their light shields instantly enveloped them.
They had already activated their powers in advance.
Once the door opened, only slaughter awaited.
Bing Li narrowed her pale blue eyes, pushed open the door, and darted inside like a leopard.
Her arm sliced through the air, a blue chill enveloping it. A blue ice blade appeared along the outer edge of her arm, radiating an icy aura.
“Hm?!”
Bing Li halted abruptly.
Her team rushed forward.
“What’s going on here?” one murmured.
Before them was indeed the Golden Rose bar.
But the scene was far from what they expected—completely deserted.
The floor was a chaotic mess, littered with broken glass shards.
Several bodies lay atop the bartender’s counter, blood slowly trickling from their wounds like small serpents.
One soldier stepped forward to inspect.
Standing back up, she said, “All were killed with a single blow. The killer must be very tall and powerful.”
The others gathered, examining one corpse’s injuries.
Its entire chest was collapsed; most ribs broken. Through the gap, half-concealed entrails were visible.
Another corpse had its neck twisted like a twisted rope, with parallel black and red marks.
Comparing finger widths, the assailant’s hand was extraordinarily large, each finger two to three times as thick as an average person’s. Perhaps a giant transformation ability or a special rune.
After half a minute, at the edge of a passage leading downward, Bing Li gently traced a huge jagged breach in the wall—big enough to fit half a person.
The edges were uneven and concave, as if torn apart by hand.
Combined with the huge footprints along the stairs, the mangled metal handrails, and bullet marks on the walls, the team formed a grim picture: an intruder pursuing a gunman.
The gunman fled desperately down the stairs, while the massive intruder barreled after him like a wild bull, repeatedly smashing bent metal rails and enduring a hail of bullets.
Heavy footsteps thundered, each nearly shattering a stair.
Finally, the intruder leapt, grabbing the corner to change direction and continued the chase.
Sure enough, just ahead in the passage, they found the gunman beaten into a pulp.
It was impossible to tell how many people he had been, as blood, flesh, heads, and torn clothing were mixed together.
“Such brutality…”
One witch shrugged, blinking.
“Be careful. Although this intruder seems to be an enemy of the Holy Flame Society, if we encounter him, he might mistake us for foes…”
Bing Li pondered and gave a warning.
“Understood.” The group nodded.
They then proceeded to search thoroughly.
Within the Golden Rose’s underground black market, all armed personnel had been wiped out.
The deaths happened nearly simultaneously, indicating the intruder had slaughtered the entire place in minutes—an incredibly powerful foe.
In the underground black market boss’s office, the C11 squad discovered two dead Holy Flame Society Ring Force users.
They lay on the floor, eyes wide open in death.
Nearby, on a luxurious leather sofa, a bloated, pig-like headless corpse reclined, clutching a seductive woman in a red dress—both missing their heads.
Behind the sofa on the wall, two large radial black-red stains sullied the pristine paint.
The heads of the black market boss and the woman must have been pulverized and splattered there.
“This killer’s bloodlust is immense…”
One witch was stunned by the gruesome carnage—was such savagery necessary?
Bing Li sighed softly.
Her phone displayed a message.
A team sent to check surveillance reported all cameras had been destroyed beforehand.
The intruder’s identity was not captured on any footage.
“Looks like someone else finished our job…”
Bing Li shook her head and waved her hand.
“Pack up. Report everything truthfully to headquarters.”
---
Meanwhile, in the Shalik Tower.
A man in a trench coat entered through the revolving glass doors, brushing his coat as if dusting off dirt.
Inside the building, the smooth marble floor gleamed, with elevators at each corner of the lobby.
The man headed toward Elevator No. 4.
Six burly men in black were orderly boarding the elevator, each tall and muscular, emanating a fierce aura.
They nearly filled half the elevator.
The doors began to close.
Suddenly, a black figure slipped inside.
The six men frowned at the newcomer.
The trench-coated man reached out as if to press a floor button but hesitated and withdrew his hand.
“Oh, so you’re also headed to the fifth floor…”
*Click*. The elevator doors shut.
One minute later.
*Ding*, the elevator doors opened.
The trench-coated man stepped out.
Behind him lay a heap of twisted corpses.
He brushed off his coat and exited through the revolving doors.
Soon after, a scream pierced the fifth floor.
Chaos erupted throughout Shalik Tower.
---
Not far away, on a sparsely populated street, the instigator Xiunan strolled quietly.
With a wave of his right hand, the illusionary mist enveloping him dissipated.
The rune mist frog from his apprentice ring vanished instantly.
He continued forward, the dim streetlights his only companions.
Tonight, the moon was bright but the stars sparse.
A cold wind swirled among the leaves.
Xiunan suddenly stopped, turning to gaze into the dark depths of a side alley, a look of helplessness on his face.
“I truly wish for one more chance at a brutal interrogation—to wipe out the ancient society’s lair… so I wouldn’t have to be troubled by you filthy vermin anymore…”