Chapter Forty-Four

Strike first and gain the advantage! Whoever acts first is more likely to seize the initiative in battle. In a fight for life and death, notions of chivalry and courtesy are nothing but nonsense. Ye Chong had never been burdened by such habits. Although he wasn’t sure if these people had come to make trouble for him, there was no doubt they posed a latent threat. Ye Chong’s instinct was always to eliminate danger before it could harm him, and this time was no exception.

The group fanned out into an arc, clearly intending to encircle Ye Chong. If he couldn’t discern such an obvious tactic, he might as well slit his own throat. Their chaotic formation was utterly worthless in Ye Chong’s eyes, especially after witnessing the disciplined ranks of the Oakleaf Squad and the Red Strange Hawk’s unique wolf-pack tactics.

Ye Chong raised his left arm and fired directly into the densest part of the crowd.

Seeing Ye Chong summon his mecha before they even reached him, the entire group was caught off guard. Some seasoned veterans quickly slowed their steps and slipped quietly to the back of the group.

They never expected that, despite their numbers, he would dare to strike first.

The fifty-thousand-grade heatline gun, though somewhat lackluster on Jin Mailang, was terrifying for those with only basic protection. A beam as thick as a wrist blasted into the foremost target.

The air near the scorching heatline twisted from the extreme heat. The first target’s left arm was vaporized at the elbow; the fresh wound darkened from bright red to burnt yellow in an instant, and the blood dried up as swiftly as water poured on desert sand. The heatline, barely diminished, pierced the second target’s chest, creating a hole as wide as a wrist, revealing the scorched abdomen of the man behind him. Only then did the first victim’s agonized scream erupt, quickly followed by the screams of the second and third.

The carnage stunned everyone—their scalp tingled, and they scrambled desperately to distance themselves from the three victims, throwing the crowd into chaos.

Baili Nan drew a sharp breath. Using a mecha weapon against unarmored men—he finally realized that, compared to his master, even pirates were merciful! Clever as ever, Baili Nan darted behind Ye Chong as soon as the shots rang out.

Inside the cockpit, Ye Chong wore a cold smile as Jin Mailang’s heatline gun unleashed a barrage on the panicked mob. Truth be told, Ye Chong’s marksmanship was abysmal. Though he’d trained in the consciousness base, he’d never practiced shooting in reality; his body simply couldn’t match the muscle memory. With such a dense crowd, it was harder to miss than to hit—yet Ye Chong managed several errant shots, much to his own embarrassment.

Sweat streamed down Bei Er’s bald head. He never expected this ruthless opponent to open fire without so much as a word! He’d intended to take Ye Chong alive—dead, he was useless. Watching the heatline gun reap his comrades like a scythe of death, Bei Er realized their own heatline guns, only eight-thousand-grade, were useless against Jin Mailang’s armor. Without a power rating of at least a hundred thousand, nothing would harm it! In a panic, he shouted, “Put on your mecha! Hurry!”

Only then did the crowd snap out of their blind panic. They hastily summoned their mechas.

But standing so close together, few paid heed to their surroundings—everyone just wanted to hide inside their armor and avoid the terrifying heatline. The result was utter chaos: the bulk of the summoned mechas squeezed the crowd into a mess, some people were crushed to death by the massive machines.

Bei Er watched in despair, covering his face, unable to bear the sight, tears welling up.

A perfect opportunity! Ye Chong drew his overclocked magnetic blade, his left hand thrusting with a parrying dagger, and charged like lightning into the chaotic crowd. Like a tiger among sheep, the description could not be more apt. Compared to the parrying dagger in his left hand, the overclocked magnetic blade in his right was a true instrument of slaughter. He targeted the vital points of the mechas, and the blade’s super-frequency vibrations shattered them instantly, sending fragments and limbs flying. Many who failed to summon their armor in time perished beneath the barrage of high-speed debris.

When the magnetic blade struck flesh directly, the results were even more horrific. The human body couldn’t withstand such intense vibrational frequency; at the moment of impact, the person would be torn apart from the point of contact, scattering pieces everywhere. Great blooms of blood erupted.

Compared to this, those killed by the parrying dagger were fortunate—the cold, gleaming blade struck swift and true, each blow fatal. Often, the victim saw only a flash before darkness claimed them.

Bei Er, too, could not escape. His shiny bald head rolled far away, his eyes wide open in anger, refusing to close.

Baili Nan trembled uncontrollably. This was a massacre—the side with more people was being slaughtered! The blood-soaked scene would haunt him forever. Watching Ye Chong stride through the puddles of blood, Baili Nan could no longer contain himself and vomited violently.

Equally haunted were the two onlookers watching from afar.

The Monkey muttered with a pale face, “Is that guy even human?”

The burly middle-aged man beside him was just as shocked. “So ruthless! Attacking without even knowing the enemy’s intentions—his methods are too vicious. We can’t afford to provoke someone like him!”

The Monkey patted his chest in relief. “Boss, good thing we used Bei Er to test him first, otherwise…”

The burly man nodded in agreement. “Bei Er is no match for Big Bei. He’s vain and incompetent, a terrible commander. No wonder Big Bei never handed him the leadership of the Renault Society. If Big Bei were here, things would have played out differently! But this guy is truly unpredictable, doesn’t play by the rules.”

The Monkey replied, “Exactly, he doesn’t care about any rules!”

The burly man warned, “People who ignore all rules are the most dangerous. Never provoke someone like him.”

The Monkey nodded with lingering fear. “Understood, even if you beat me to death, I won’t mess with him! Boss, the Renault Society suffered a heavy blow this time!”

The burly man shook his head. “Big Bei took most of their core members to Red Star Beach. The ones here are just mid- and low-level personnel. Still, this loss will hurt them badly! We usually can’t do much against them, but now… hmm…” A sinister gleam flashed in his eyes.

The Monkey asked excitedly, “Boss, are we going to take on the Renault Society?”

The burly man shook his head. “No rush! Monkey, you did very well this time. Big Bei will surely find out who tipped off Bei Er. Go lay low for a while, have some fun, wait for the heat to die down, then come back. The money’s already in your account.”

“Yes!” Monkey replied respectfully.