As soon as the violent explosion erupted, Bright City’s entire security system was activated. Piercing alarms echoed throughout the city as security robots were quickly deployed.
Inside the public communications of the Bright City’s Church Army, chaos and noise ensued:
“What happened?! Where did the explosion occur???”
“Intruders… Intruders have been spotted at the north gate!!!”
“What?! How did the satellites and radar not detect them?!!”
“….”
In the midst of the blaring alarms and chaotic communication channels, the security officer responsible for Bright City’s outer walls monitoring was the only one barely keeping his composure.
“Report on the intruders’ situation immediately! How many are there? What’s their internal organizational structure? What’s the number and energy level of their weapons, and what level are their mechas? Now! Get the intrusion footage up now!”
These were basic questions that should have been answered as soon as the intruders were detected. However, despite the security officer Loren asking two or three times, there was no response from the sentinels in charge.
“….”
Suddenly, the public communication channel went silent. Only the sound of continuous gunfire, explosions, and collapsing structures from the front line could be heard, causing slight tremors on the ground.
“?”
Security officer Loren, both infuriated and bewildered, slammed his fist on the table and sternly reprimanded the guards through the communication channel,
“What’s going on!!! The enemy is at our doorstep, and you can’t even count how many there are? Now everyone’s gone mute, huh?!!!”
“….”
At this moment, the personnel responsible for radar and surveillance detection simultaneously fell silent. After a long pause, they cautiously responded,
“Radar and surveillance did not detect any large-scale force or organization…”
“Signal monitoring did not detect any mecha core signals. Preliminary assessment indicates the intruder did not bring any mechas…”
“The energy reaction at the explosion point is around 1300, preliminarily confirmed to be a K235-type single-soldier electromagnetic cannon…”
“….”
With each piece of feedback, the security officer’s mind became increasingly perplexed.
“What’s going on with these results?!! Are your eyes malfunctioning, or is the system?!”
“No… we’ve cross-checked multiple times.”
It wasn’t that they didn’t want to answer; it’s just that the results were too bizarre. Therefore, they repeatedly verified the data before confirming it.
Furrowing his brows, the man deduced an unbelievable conclusion based on the information gathered so far. If the feedback was accurate, the intruder was likely a single person, without any mechas or large-scale attack weapons, breaking in solo.
This result was simply inconceivable!!!
Hence, the security officer didn’t immediately voice his thoughts. He just widened his eyes in disbelief, as this scenario was too strange and unlikely, completely unlike the enemy invasion he had imagined.
Until the combat footage from the front line was brought up—
Or more accurately, the intruder took the initiative to find them.
The first thing the footage showed was a hand covering the lens. Then, the person adjusted the angle, directing the camera at their face.
A black-haired young man wearing a mask appeared on the main screen in the security control room. Behind him were several of Bright City’s security mechas, eerily standing still without any intention to attack.
At this moment, everyone braced themselves, expecting the intruder to make some arrogant taunt or reveal a terrifying invasion plan. But the next second, Huo Xianfeng casually waved at the camera,
“Hey, good evening everyone. Have you already eaten?”
Everyone on high alert: “…”
They suddenly choked up.
Have we eaten?
Have we eaten??!!!
Are you here just for a friendly visit after a meal????
No one expected the intruder’s first words to be such nonsense, and in their shock and disbelief, not a single person responded.
In the footage, the young man’s deep, dark phoenix eyes reflected the distant explosion’s flames. Despite his calm expression and relaxed tone, it felt as if a fierce fire was burning within him.
He let out a soft “hmm” and very politely asked,
“Could you please tell me the way to your nearest military weapons storage?”
Security Officer Loren: “………….”
Everyone watching the video in the same room: “…………..”
For a moment, they all wondered if they were dreaming.
The intruder was asking them for directions?
And asking very politely???
“Weapons…Storage…?” Someone absentmindedly repeated. The young man in the footage clearly heard it and nodded, his tone casual as if he were going to the supermarket to buy groceries,
“Yes, I’m planning to go there and blow it up.”
Everyone: “…………”
“?”
“????????????????”
At that moment, no one could control or even imagine their own expression.
What? Are you crazy or are we crazy???
No, this world must be crazy.
How could someone openly invade a military base and then ask for directions???
And asking for the most important weapons storage, and blatantly stating his intentions????
Even the usually stern and serious Security Officer Loren couldn’t help but twitch his forehead, barely holding his expression.
Too arrogant!
Simply too arrogant!!!
These casual words were more humiliating than the sharpest direct sarcasm.
Loren, unable to bear it any longer, abruptly turned around and sternly issued an order—
“Locate him immediately! Deploy all nearby security forces! Extreme violence and a certain range of internal damage are allowed! At all costs, bring him back!!!”
After giving the order, the security officer sharply turned back, issuing the most vicious threat:
“Brat, don’t let me catch you! Otherwise…”
Huh?
He stopped abruptly mid-sentence because the young man who should have been on the big screen was now gone.
“……..”
The man turned his head, his tone extremely angry.
“Where is he——?!”
At this moment, someone cautiously replied, “Sir… Sir Loren, he left when you were loudly issuing the order. He also said… he also said…”
“Said what?!!”
“Said thanks for the directions, he already found it.”
“…………”
… Found it?
How did he find it????
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Did he say where the weapons storage was just now????
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“……….”
One person?!!!
Probably no one could have imagined that someone would dare to so blatantly invade Bright City. This place was a military stronghold, not only housing numerous mecha and war machines but also being the site for developing various new weapons.
Bright City was heavily guarded, with tight surveillance within a radius of kilometers, and even satellite weapons in the sky. In short, even the Imperial Army, with its formidable First Legion, led by Commander Zhou Jiuya, would have to think twice before attempting an invasion. Yet—
Yet someone had the audacity to march in single-handedly, wielding an electromagnetic cannon.
This isn’t a dream, right?!!
“Wait…”
The dazed security officer suddenly snapped back to reality. He grabbed the collar of the guard beside him and urgently demanded,
“What did you just say?! Where… where is he headed????”
The guard stammered, “H-he s-said was heading for Weapons Storage… No. 3…”
“……..”
The security officer felt blackness pass before his eyes.
Boom——!!!
At the same time, less than 200 meters from Weapons Storage No. 3, another explosion erupted. Huo Xianfeng leapt out of the flames, and in the next second, he was pursued by a swarm of drones. Maneuvering deftly in mid-air, he narrowly avoided the dense barrage of bullets and projectiles.
In the next moment, the young man descended from the sky, crashing through the hemispherical glass dome below with a loud “bang.”
Crash——!!!
Amidst the cascading waterfall of glass shards, Huo Xianfeng landed, rolling on the ground to dissipate most of the impact. Just as he moved away, the spot where he landed was hit by a magma laser, turning it into a pool of metallic liquid.
At that moment, the ground shook with a deep rumble. The roaring of mecha engines came from all directions. Fully armed security forces, including drones and mecha soldiers, swarmed towards Huo Xianfeng like sharks scenting blood in the water.
Blinding red alarm lights flashed everywhere, and the sharp alarms blared incessantly.
Bright City’s outer city declared a Level 3 combat readiness state.
“Warning, warning!”
“Intruder, you are surrounded. Surrender immediately, or your safety cannot be guaranteed!”
“Repeat, intruder, you are surrounded. Surrender immediately, or your safety cannot be guaranteed!”
“Repeat…….”
Huo Xianfeng frowned, feeling annoyed by the noise. He picked up a shard of broken glass.
Smash——!
The sound system inside the wall shattered instantly.
Silence fell over the world.
The young man glanced at the blood-red lights outside, then immediately entered the buildings. He was outnumbered, and using the buildings to diminish the enemy’s advantage was the best strategy. Unlike before, he didn’t immediately take out the surveillance; instead, he made sure to reveal his location to the enemy as much as possible.
This was also a feint. Huo Xianfeng needed to buy time and space for Jiang Ci, who was going to charge Bai Ze.
He roughly determined the direction and headed straight for the Weapons Storage.
As for how Huo Xianfeng knew the Weapons Storage’s location…
It was probably thanks to Nora’s insight.
The Zergs were especially sensitive to the energy contained within metals, and to them, human’s military weapons storage was simply a large gathering of energy. However, troops also needed weapons, which meant that the defending forces gathered together would also form a massive energy cluster. So, when Security Officer Loren mobilized all the defensive troops to capture Huo Xianfeng, they would start to move.
Thus—
The largest, stationary energy cluster left behind was the Weapons Storage.
Huo Xianfeng’s guess was proved correct, as most of those he encountered along the way were interceptors rather than pursuers. This indicated the enemy was lying in wait on his route to the Weapons Storage.
This confirmed—
He was on the right track!
Beep, beep, beep——
Dozens of mechas quickly pursued, with radars detecting Huo Xianfeng’s rapid movement within the building. In the next second, cannons rotated out from their shoulder mounts.
Aim!
Fire!
Boom——!!!
The shells shattered the metal outer wall, violently ripping through the air inside. The intense explosion and rapidly rising temperature caused countless air currents to clash and explode in all directions.
Bang, bang, bang——!
Numerous windows shattered abruptly, the piercing sound nearly breaking human eardrums.
But this was nothing to Huo Xianfeng. He found a dead angle to avoid the first round of high-energy explosions, then quickly turned over and leapt out through a broken window before the second round hit.
Seeing the rapidly moving dot on the radar, even the mecha pilots couldn’t help but curse,
“Damn! This guy can really run!!!”
“Who the hell is he, slipping away like a loach???”
“That’s the latest energy cannon, and he’s still not dead?!!!”
“Fuck, this guy’s practically a monster——”
“………”
A monster?
——Probably.
So far, Huo Xianfeng hadn’t even scratched his skin. Even running for so long was just a warm-up for him.
But one had to admit, Bright City was indeed formidable, far surpassing the Winter Day Planet’s security team and the White Solitude City’s factory. Here, Huo Xianfeng had barely pulled a few dozen meters ahead of the pursuing mechas when he turned a corner and faced a group of security robots head-on.
One had to admit, the enemy’s coordination and mobility in their pursuit and encirclement were flawless.
Raising his eyes, the boy made no reaction. His deep black eyes reflected countless red lights.
At this moment, Huo Xianfeng no longer had time to dodge before the cannon shells fired. The space was too narrow, and the incoming artillery fire was as dense as a torrential rain. No matter which direction he tried to escape, he wouldn’t escape this deadly barrage.
In that instant, Huo Xianfeng stood his ground, looked up, and gazed at a nearby mecha.
Beep, command confirmed.
Woosh
A barrage of laser beams surged forward, enough to turn any ordinary person into a sieve, reducing them to a puddle of blood and flesh. But in that instant, a massive energy shield shot forward like a flying sword, embedding itself in the ground right in front of Huo Xianfeng, precisely blocking the beams that were meant to pierce through the intruder.
Whoosh—
The rest of the surrounding beams pierced through the walls, leaving numerous charred holes. The damaged metal walls, still extremely hot, began to flow down like melted chocolate.
“What the…”
Everyone was stunned by this scene.
The mecha pilots turned to look at the traitor in their ranks, taking a moment before snapping back to reality and shouting angrily.
“Ace, are you out of your mind!!!”
“Did you just save the intruder?!!”
“Enough talking, arrest him…”
The mecha that had fired the energy shield hovered in mid-air, its pilot pale and trembling as he tried to explain,
“No… it wasn’t…”
It wasn’t his command.
But no one was listening to his explanation anymore. Saving the intruder in front of everyone made it hard not to suspect him of being an accomplice. The next moment, before he could say another word, he was blasted down by the team leader.
“Lock him up and interrogate him later. The rest of you, follow me and continue the pursuit!!!”
“Yes, sir!”
By this time, Huo Xianfeng had already located the weapons storage.
It was an enormous metallic structure, a hemispherical fortress standing nearly a hundred meters tall. The main entrance alone required one to tilt their head back at a seventy-five-degree angle to see the top.
But before Huo Xianfeng could look up, the pursuers had caught up. Dozens of mechas, some hovering in mid-air, some on the ground, along with a swarm of drones and soldiers wearing mechanical prosthetics, surrounded him. In short, they formed a small assault force.
In almost an instant, Huo Xianfeng was blocked at the entrance of the weapons storage.
“Wait,”
The lead commander seemed to receive an urgent order and spoke loudly on the public communication channel,
“Attention, the orders are to capture him alive!”
The soldiers and mechas, who had been about to attack, hesitated and switched to less lethal weapons. Even so, their dense encirclement left little room for the intruder to escape, no matter how skilled he was.
Moreover, the intruder had no mecha and only a handheld cannon, making him seem like no threat at all.
Huo Xianfeng stood quietly at the weapons storage entrance, glancing down at his wristwatch.
With Xiao X malfunctioning, he needed something to keep track of time, so he had taken an electronic watch from Bai Ze’s storage.
This action, barely an attack, caused many to lower their guard. They aimed their guns and cannons at him, targeting every vital point on his body.
A mecha pilot at the front stepped forward and shouted,
“Hey kid! Listen up, surrender quietly and you might live a few more minutes!”
The next second—
Bang bang bang!!!
A dense rain of bullets hit the ground three meters in front of Huo Xianfeng, leaving numerous bullet holes in the smooth surface.
“……”
Huo Xianfeng raised an eyebrow slightly.
He knew this was a threatening gesture with a clear intent to humiliate.
“Huh?”
“The kid didn’t dodge? Is he scared stiff?”
“Weren’t you talking about blowing up the weapons storage? Now you can’t even get through the door, hahaha…”
“………”
At that moment, a dozen massive mechas stood guard in the rear, while in front, dozens of soldiers equipped with mechanical prosthetics slowly closed in on Huo Xianfeng. After all, the orders were to capture him alive.
Now, with countless pursuers in front and the tightly closed weapons storage door behind him, he truly seemed to be cornered with nowhere to retreat.
“…….”
Huo Xianfeng didn’t say a word. He glanced back at the locked door, then hoisted the cannon onto his shoulder.
“Wait a minute!!!”
“This guy isn’t thinking of using—”
Boom!
A deafening explosion swallowed all the voices, and the ground shook violently for a few seconds.
But when the blinding light faded, the massive metal door in front of him remained intact, save for some charred marks.
—In other words, it didn’t blow open.
“…….”
Huo Xianfeng raised an eyebrow, clicking his tongue softly.
There was a moment of silence, then an outburst of mocking laughter.
“Kid, do you know what an A-class defense metal door is?!”
“Trying to blow it open with just a single cannon, are you dreaming?!”
“This is hilarious, someone actually tried to blast open an A-class defense door with a handheld cannon. I’ll be laughing about this for a year!!!”
“………”
Clang!
The heavy metal cannon was dropped to the ground by the young man, rolling a bit before stopping.
Someone, thinking this was a sign of giving up, mocked,
“Oh, hitting a wall and finally turning back, huh? Just now—”
Huo Xianfeng ignored the taunts, dropping the cannon and turning to walk toward the door.
Due to his position’s angle, no one saw that the young man’s left eye no longer looked human. The sharp, cold vertical pupil shone brightly in the shadows.
He found a suitable spot and slightly raised his hand.
With a blank expression, he punched forward!
Boom——!!!!!
The terrifying impact shook the ground within a hundred-meter radius, causing even the mechas standing on the ground to stumble slightly from the violent tremor.
Crack——!
A fissure appeared under Huo Xianfeng’s fist. Then—
The smooth metal door caved in, with a diameter of nearly ten meters.
Crack crack crack!
Countless tiny cracks spread outward from the center of his fist, like electric currents radiating in all directions. Under the dazed gazes of everyone, the A-class defense door shattered easily in a loud boom.
Pa——
Someone imagined they heard a slapping sound.
“………..”
Nobody spoke. They even forgot that the person in front of them was their target, whom they had to capture alive no matter what.
The expressions on everyone’s faces seemed uncontrollable at this moment.
For example, some looked like they were dreaming.
For example, some looked like they were thinking, “are you fucking kidding me?”
Breaking an A-class defense door with bare hands—this usually required an S-class mecha, specifically a heavy-duty physical attack mecha. But here was someone who did it effortlessly with his bare hands.
“………..”
Someone gasped audibly.
What kind of monster is this…
Is this something a human can even do?
The massive shock and the scene beyond comprehension left most people unable to think. Countless eyes, whether shocked, dazed, or terrified, were fixed on the young man’s back.
In the next second, Huo Xianfeng turned slightly, let out an ambiguous chuckle, and then, right in front of everyone—
Hands in his pockets, he swaggered into the weapons storage.
“………..”
That was a mockery, right?
It must have been a mockery!!!
<hr>
Ten minutes later, Jiang Ci saw a massive explosion.
This wasn’t a simple explosion caused by a single cannonball; it was an entire weapons storage blowing up.
The intense flames almost turned the night into daylight, and the third-level alert status in Bright City was instantly raised to the first level.
—This was the signal they had agreed upon.
Jiang Ci pulled up his black hood. His current outfit covered him almost completely, leaving no gaps. There was a breathing mask on his face, which could automatically provide oxygen and filter out other alpha pheromones that might affect him.
His body was clad in a special combat training suit, capable of blocking his pheromones. Over this, he wore a large black cloak that allowed him to blend easily into the night. Additionally, to conceal his gender identity, he carried Huo Xianfeng’s pheromones, making anyone believe he was an alpha. Even He Zhun might not recognize him in this attire.
“A-Ci, we need to hurry.”
“…Alright.”
Jiang Ci turned and looked at Nora, who was beside him, adjusting her crooked hood. In the end, Huo Xianfeng had left her with Jiang Ci for protection.
Bai Ze brought up the coordinates given by Huo Xianfeng. Their goal was to recharge, preferably by finding an energy reactor. If that was not possible, they could resort to dismantling some mechas for power fuel. However, a double S-class combat mecha like Bai Ze required high-quality and abundant energy, making the energy reactor the best option.
Fortunately, nearly all of the city’s security forces were drawn away by Huo Xianfeng, allowing Jiang Ci to move smoothly. Even so, he found it challenging. During this sensitive period, even a light breeze made him uncomfortable, with tingling and soreness crawling through his nervous system, and he had to exert all his strength to suppress it.
“Turn left!”
“…Mm.”
Although Bai Ze was not a hacker as skilled as Xiao X, it could still temporarily disable some outer city surveillance. Additionally, mecha recharging energy reactors were not highly classified locations, so unlocking the password was not too difficult and the progress was incredibly smooth.
Beep—
The door opened.
Jiang Ci crouched down and swiftly slipped inside, followed closely by Nora. The next second, the door slammed shut and automatically locked.
Inside, Jiang Ci looked up and saw a massive energy reactor, even larger than the one next to the Forbidden Abyss’ wreckage on Winter Day Planet.
Everything around them was eerily quiet, making Jiang Ci feel uneasy. Even if the security forces were drawn away by Huo Xianfeng, it was impossible for this place to be completely deserted.
“Hiss——”
Nora suddenly turned her head, as if she had sensed something dangerous, letting out a low growl similar to that of a cat.
The next second, a blazing electric ball came rushing toward them. With Flowee right next to her, whom the King had ordered her to protect, Nora didn’t dodge. Instead, she charged straight ahead.
“Nora—!”
In a situation where both the enemy and the attack came out of nowhere, the best approach was to avoid it. However, Jiang Ci didn’t have time to pull her back as Nora had already rushed out.
Bang—!
Nora’s right arm, which transformed into its Zerg form, instantly cut through the light ball. Unexpectedly, numerous electric cables burst out from inside, wrapping tightly around her and violently throwing her into the wall.
Boom!!!
In the next second, a chilling cold wind attacked from behind him and as Jiang Ci turned sharply, a burst of blinding white light erupted from his palm.
Bang—!!!
In a split second, Bai Ze barely managed to transform into a simple military knife form to fend off the sudden attack.
When Jiang Ci took a closer look, he realized it was a huge scythe. The sharp tip was mere centimeters from his pupil—any closer, and the outcome would have been disastrous.
“Oh my, such quick reflexes~”
A soft, pleasant female voice came in front of him, and Jiang Ci clearly saw her face: light pink curls, a white robe of the Illusory Church styled like a cheongsam, gold patterns on the snow-white backdrop…
The key point was that the gold patterns were the same as those of Leinster.
Boom—!
Jiang Ci swung his knife fiercely, forcing her back. His crimson pupils slightly dilated and his face was solemn.
This woman…
—She was an Archbishop.
With a delicate and beautiful face and a petite figure, she looked like an omega, but why couldn’t he detect any omega pheromones from her?
No, no, that’s not the main point.
The main point was why was she ambushing here?
And how he would escape from here after recharging Bai Ze.
……..
Countless questions flashed through Jiang Ci’s mind like lightning, but Cecilia didn’t give him much time to think. She had only been briefly forced back, and in the next second, she attacked with even greater speed and ferocity.
“Such strong alpha pheromones…and it’s actually not…”
It turns out it isn’t Little A-Ci?
Cecilia frowned, showing a look of disgust and murderous intent.
“How annoying!”
Clang—
With a thunderous clash, fiery sparks burst forth. Jiang Ci grunted; the immense force made his hand tremble slightly. He wanted to pull back immediately, but in the next instant, the God of Death’s scythe was already closing in on his eyes.
Bang!
In a life-or-death moment, Jiang Ci abruptly retreated, narrowly dodging the attack. However, the tip of the scythe caught his mask, tearing it off. But at this time, there was no time to worry about it.
He swung his knife with his backhand, intending only to force her back. Unexpectedly, the strike pierced through Cecilia’s left shoulder.
Splat—
Blood splattered.
…How could this be?
Jiang Ci’s eyes widened in astonishment. Given the skill he estimated from their earlier exchange, she shouldn’t have made such a basic mistake.
But in that moment of surprise, a tremendous force struck.
Bang—!
Jiang Ci was pressed down to the ground by Cecilia. Her beautiful face loomed close, showing no sign of pain from her wound—only joy, a nearly fanatical joy.
Her fingers trembled as she touched his face, calling out,
“Your Holiness, Your Holiness…”
“Minmin…”
Thanks for the chapter
Well this should be interesting. Thanks for the chapter!
Still love Cecilia no matter what. I AM A CECILIA TRUTHER（≧∇≦)
Thank you for the chapter ♡♡
Thank you for the chapter 😍
Dang, cecilia is down bad for a-ci’s mom 😳