Ch: 146-155
Chapter 146 Arrest
After dealing with the black-clothed bodyguards in the hallway, the Bearded Man and the Young Man's targets were only the bodyguards still inside the room and Ansi.
Ansi was currently in his room, listening to music and taking a bath; he had no idea that death, sent to take him on his final journey, had already arrived at his door.
"Screech!" With a crisp sound, the lock on the door was torn to pieces by the Bearded Man's sharp fingers, and the two of them then stepped into the room.
The room had dim lighting, with only the bathroom light still brightly lit.
Loud music was playing inside, along with Ansi's singing along to the music.
Although his singing was off-key and terrible, one could tell from it that he was very happy and relaxed.
Warm hot water enveloped Ansi's large body, washing away his fatigue and irritation.
Tomorrow, he was going to see his old man, a decrepit old man on the verge of death.
It was likely that tomorrow's meeting would be their last; the old man couldn't hold on any longer.
Once he died, Ansi would become the new Rubber King, possessing endless wealth.
"Hahahahaha." Thinking of this, Ansi, who was singing loudly, couldn't help but burst into laughter.
At the same time, the Young Man and the Bearded Man had already arrived at the bathroom door, dragging the two bodyguards who had been waiting to ambush them when they entered.
Because the two of them came in too quickly, the two bodyguards didn't even have time to let Ansiescape and could only hastily confront the enemy.
Hearing Ansi's laughter, the two of them also couldn't help but laugh; this fat-headed, big-eared rich second generation still didn't know that his death was imminent.
Ansi, who was bathing in the tub, was startled when he suddenly heard laughter.
"Is anyone there! Where did everyone go?" Just as Ansi was nervously shouting for his bodyguards, two black figures were thrown in from outside the bathroom.
Ansi only glanced down before immediately letting out a horrified scream.
It turned out these two figures were the corpses of the black-clothed bodyguards who had been guarding his room.
These two bodyguards had now lost their lives; their neck arteries had been slit, and blood flowed onto the bathroom floor, slowly spreading towards Ansi.
Just as Ansi, terrified, curled up in a corner of the bathtub, the Young Man and the Bearded Man walked in from the bathroom doorway.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Mr. Ansi, how pathetic you look," the old man disguised by the Bearded Man couldn't help but tease, looking at Ansi.
Hearing the Bearded Man's words, Ansi asked with a trembling voice, "W-who are you? Why are you doing this? Don't kill me, I have a lot of money!"
"If you let me go, I can give you a lot of money!"
Hearing Ansi's words, the Bearded Man's eyes flickered, as if he was somewhat moved, thinking if he could extort more money from this fat pig before he died.
But in the few seconds he hesitated, the Young Man beside him had already taken over the conversation and said indifferently, "Don't think too much, Mr. Ansi."
"Since we have accepted the employment, we will certainly complete the task according to the employer's wishes, otherwise we would also be punished."
Hearing the Young Man's words, the Bearded Man, who had been somewhat moved, also chuckled and echoed, "That's right, we are a professional team."
"No. Let me go, I..." Ansi still struggled, unwilling to give up.
But this time, the Bearded Man interrupted him decisively.
"Alright, there's no need for any more unnecessary words. Just prepare to go on your way."
After speaking, the Bearded Man walked to the bathtub. While restraining the struggling Ansi, he gently slit his neck with his index finger.
Afterward, the Bearded Man stood up again and joined the Young Man. He then took out his phone and filmed Ansi's gradual loss of life.
Poor Ansi lay in the bathtub, his hands weakly covering the wound on his neck, trying to make a final struggle for his life under the gaze of the two men beside him.
But this struggle was destined to be futile; his hand couldn't cover the torn wound.
"Ho, ho."
Blood continuously flowed from the wound, simultaneously drowning Ansi's trachea and throat, leaving him only able to make such sounds.
This performance did not last long; in less than thirty seconds, Ansi's eyes gradually dimmed and lost their luster.
His body slowly and weakly slid into the bathtub, submerged in the water that had been stained bright red.
The video recording on the Bearded Man's phone also stopped at this moment.
After recording the video, the Bearded Man and the Young Man sent a mission report to their Blackwater contact.
Soon, their contact replied with a message.
The Bearded Man looked at the message on his phone, let out a pleasant whistle, and then said to the Young Man, "OK, the mission is complete now. Next, I'll take you to some interesting places to have some fun."
As the Bearded Man spoke, he revealed a slightly lewd smile.
The Young Man scratched his head when he heard the Bearded Man's words, then showed a shy smile.
"Is it really done?" Suddenly, another voice sounded behind the Bearded Man.
When the Bearded Man heard the question, he subconsciously said, "Of course it's done, I'm not..."
He stopped mid-sentence because he suddenly realized that the Young Man in front of him hadn't spoken, so whose voice was it?
Before the Bearded Man and the Young Man could react, they each received a sudden heavy blow to their necks.
In an instant, their consciousness also plunged into darkness.
When the two of them woke up again, they found themselves hanging upside down from a withered tree.
They tried hard to turn their heads, observing the surroundings.
A moment later, they confirmed that this was a desolate Gobi Desert.
Once outside Las Vegas, such Gobi Deserts were everywhere.
It was already night; a bright crescent moon hung in the sky, with countless stars scattered beside it.
Gusts of cool wind swept across the Gobi Desert, kicking up small stones and sand from the ground.
The two men, hanging upside down from the tree, immediately had their eyes blurred by the wind and sand.
Their hands and feet were tied, so they couldn't wipe their tears, thus they could only let the tears from their eyes flow towards their eyebrows and hair.
"Oh! S***! What exactly is going on?"
The Bearded Man blinked his eyes and shouted loudly.
The Young Man beside him had the same confusion as the Bearded Man, but he didn't show it.
He rationally analyzed the current situation and then said to the Bearded Man, "I remember we seemed to hear a voice before we passed out, and it sounded like a man."
"Since he didn't kill us directly, he must want to know something from us."
"Or maybe he wants to get revenge on us, but I shouldn't have any enemies. Do you, senior?"
The Bearded Man also calmed down when he heard the Young Man's words. He was now constantly thinking in his mind about what enemies he had, or with whom he had recently formed a grudge.
A strong will to live made his mind race; his mind had probably never moved so fast in his life.
Chapter 147 Torture
Just as the two of them were brainstorming non-stop, two figures silently emerged from behind them.
Meng Ran circled to stand in front of them, then squatted down and stared at them with his pair of "bright and piercing" pale eyes.
The Bearded Man and the Young Man looked at the terrifying face before them, and their hearts immediately trembled with fear.
"Oh? It seems you recognize this face of mine!" a hoarse voice came from the demon's fanged mouth.
"Gulp." The two of them nervously swallowed, the demon's sudden appearance making their throats feel dry.
"D-Demon," the Bearded Man said, his voice trembling, as he looked at Meng Ran.
Jie jie jie jie ~
Seeing that they recognized him, Meng Ran also let out a grating laugh.
After the chilling laughter ended, he continued to speak to the two: "That's good, it saves me the time of introducing myself."
"So, let's get straight to the point."
"Tell me, where is the Blackwater Company headquarters?"
Hearing the demon's question, the Bearded Man and the Young Man instinctively exchanged glances.
Then, the Bearded Man said with a trembling voice, "S-Sorry, we are just the lowest-level mercenaries, we don't know where the headquarters is."
"Really, really don't know, we are really telling the truth."
As if afraid the demon wouldn't believe the Bearded Man, the Young Man hurriedly added after the Bearded Man finished speaking.
Hearing their answers, Meng Ran didn't say anything; he just sneered and then stood up.
Just as the Bearded Man and the Young Man couldn't figure out what the demon in front of them was thinking, several dark tentacles suddenly shot out from the demon's body.
These dark tentacles gleamed with a black light, then fiercely pierced through their inverted limbs, nailing them to the withered tree.
"Ah!"
Suddenly subjected to such painful attacks, the Bearded Man and the Young Man couldn't help but let out fierce screams, breaking out in cold sweat.
After piercing their limbs, Meng Ran didn't immediately pull out the tentacles; instead, he continued to let them twist in the two men's wounds.
Listening to the screams of the two in front of him, Meng Ran continued to say coldly, "I'll say it again, tell me, where is Blackwater's headquarters?"
"If you don't answer my question, or if you say you don't know, then I can only let you die."
The Bearded Man and the Young Man hadn't expected the demon to completely disregard their words and immediately resort to violence.
The excruciating pain from their limbs made them scream repeatedly.
The Young Man's mouth remained stubborn; he continued to speak while gasping for air, "We really, really don't know!"
"Our rank is too low; we usually only contact our liaison online and have never been back to headquarters."
Hearing the Young Man's words, Meng Ran already had a plan in mind.
After analyzing their behavior, Meng Ran had determined that the Young Man was the tough nut to crack.
Between the two of them, the middle-aged Bearded Man was clearly the easier one to deal with, as his will was not as firm as the Young Man's.
Thinking of this, Meng Ran also had a plan.
Then he winked at Gwen, who was standing behind the two.
Seeing this, Gwen also walked out from behind them and stood in front of the two.
Since the Bearded Man and the Young Man recognized the demon, it was only natural that they would also recognize Gwen.
They knew that this masked female hero was Ghost Spider, but they couldn't quite figure out Ghost Spider's purpose in appearing at this moment.
Before they could think much longer, the demon in front of them provided the answer to the question.
The demon said faintly to Ghost Spider, "Since he's still being stubborn, there's no need to be polite with them."
"One is enough; you go deal with the other one."
"Oh, and make sure it's clean; don't leave any traces."
After hearing Meng Ran's words, Gwen nodded, then shot out a web to wrap the Young Man into a large cocoon.
After doing this, Gwen explained, "This will do; he'll suffocate in about a minute."
As if to confirm Gwen's words, no sooner had she finished speaking than the Young Man, wrapped in a cocoon, began to struggle violently.
The Bearded Man, hanging nearby, was so horrified by the sight that he couldn't speak; the demon was indeed as ruthless as the rumors said.
Meng Ran looked at the violently struggling Young Man, then gestured to Gwen.
Seeing this, Gwen picked up the cocoon and left.
In the Bearded Man's view, this action undoubtedly meant that the Young Man was being taken to another place to have his body destroyed.
After Gwen left, Meng Ran turned back to the Bearded Man and said, "So, what are your thoughts?"
"Are you going to continue saying you don't know, or are you going to honestly tell me what you know?"
"As long as you tell me what you know, I'll let you go."
After threatening him, Meng Ran began to coax the Bearded Man.
"You know that troublesome fellow is dead now, so even if you tell me what you know, no one will know you're the one who spilled the beans."
When Meng Ran said this, the Bearded Man's expression immediately changed; he began to ponder.
The current situation was indeed this: if he didn't tell the demon what he wanted to know, he would die immediately.
The Young Man's fate was still vivid in his mind, and he had long heard of the demon's methods for dealing with enemies; he had no choice but to believe.
Seeing the Bearded Man's expression soften, Meng Ran continued to persuade him, "I know you won a lot of money tonight. Now that he's dead, all that money belongs to you."
"Will you choose to take this money and continue to live lavishly? Or will you join him now and sleep forever beneath this Gobi Desert?"
After Meng Ran finished speaking, another tentacle appeared on his body. The tip of this tentacle transformed into a blade, then instantly cut the ropes binding the Bearded Man.
Freed from the ropes, the Bearded Man immediately fell to the ground.
Just as he awkwardly got to his feet, Meng Ran slowly said to him, "You are a smart man. You should know what choice is beneficial for you."
"I'll give you one minute to think. If there's no answer after one minute, I'll assume you've chosen to die."
"Although this Gobi Desert is sparsely populated, there should be plenty of scavengers. I believe your body will be reduced to bones within three days."
After speaking, Meng Ran stood still, looking coldly at the Bearded Man who was slumped on the ground.
The Bearded Man leaned against the dead tree, panting heavily, while thinking. The penetrating wounds on his limbs still ached faintly.
Not knowing what he thought of, he suddenly looked up at the demon in front of him.
But when he saw the cold, pale eyes under the hood, as well as the ferocious mouth and scarlet tongue, he shivered again in fear, then quickly lowered his head.
He had no time or inclination to think about how the demon knew he had won money; he only felt a chill run through him.
Now, only two paths lay before the Bearded Man. One was to betray the organization, but no one would know.
If handled properly, he could still live a carefree life with that money.
The other path was to strictly guard the organization's secrets, at the cost of his immediate death.
The demon would make him disappear silently from this world, to sleep forever beneath this desolate Gobi Desert.
No one likes death, so after a moment's thought, the Bearded Man made his choice in his heart.
He mustered his courage, raised his head, and looked directly at the demon's terrifying face.
He swallowed nervously, then stammered, "I-I'll tell you. I'll tell you everything you want to know. Please, please spare me."
Chapter 148 Plan
Having resolved the turmoil in his heart, the Bearded Man straightforwardly divulged all the information he knew.
After he finished relaying everything he knew, he looked with some nervousness and apprehension at the meditating fiend standing before him.
Suddenly, the fiend raised his head, his pale eyes fixed on the Bearded Man, silently contemplating.
Seeing this action, the Bearded Man grew even more tense; he knew his fate rested entirely in the hands of the terrifying figure before him.
"I am very satisfied with your performance," Meng Ran said to the Bearded Man in a hoarse voice.
Upon hearing Meng Ran's words, the Bearded Man immediately let out a sigh of relief.
However, before he could rejoice for long, he felt another heavy blow to his neck, then his eyes closed, and he lost consciousness.
Meng Ran had instantly teleported behind him and knocked him out.
After doing this, Meng Ran contacted Gwen through his earpiece: "Ghost, it's done here. You can come over now."
Not long after he finished speaking, Gwen returned, carrying the large cocoon that the Young Man was wrapped in.
She had been standing not far away, waiting for the results of Meng Ran's interrogation of the Bearded Man.
The earlier statement about suffocating the Young Man in the spiderweb was merely meant to scare the Bearded Man.
As mentioned before, Gwen would leave a breathing passage in the spiderweb when wrapping someone like this.
So, currently, the Young Man was merely knocked out by her.
These two people could not die yet, at least not before Meng Ran and his team reached Blackwater Company's headquarters.
Otherwise, if they died and their chips self-destructed, Blackwater Company would surely detect an anomaly.
"What should we do with these two now?" Gwen asked Meng Ran, gesturing with the Young Man in her hand.
Meng Ran responded to Gwen, "We can't kill them yet; we'll have to take them back to base with us."
"Once we get to the base, we'll lock them up, and then we can start preparing our operational plan against Blackwater Company."
Gwen nodded in agreement, then looked at the unconscious Bearded Man and said to Meng Ran, "So, we'll take them out after Blackwater Company is eliminated, right?"
"Exactly," Meng Ran said, nodding at her words.
After the two finished communicating, Gwen shot out another strand of webbing and also wrapped the Bearded Man into a large white cocoon.
Because the fighter jet they arrived in could only seat two people, Meng Ran had Gwen take the Young Man back by plane first.
He had already notified Mary Jane to send another plane over.
The plane was estimated to arrive in about forty minutes, and then he would take the Bearded Manback to base.
By the time all this was done and Meng Ran and Gwen had both returned to the base, it was already 11 PM.
Meng Ran placed the Bearded Man and the Young Man in the newly converted prison cells at the base.
He also gave both of them a significant dose of sleeping pills to prevent them from waking up while he and his team were out on a mission.
After completing all this, Meng Ran went to the conference room, and the operational meeting regarding the assault on Blackwater Company officially began.
Meng Ran first briefed them on the general overview of his and Gwen's operation, including the sudden changes that occurred midway.
After that, he began to discuss the important information that the Bearded Man had provided them.
Meng Ran picked up his phone, opened a map with red dots, and addressed everyone.
"I've marked the exact location of Blackwater Company's headquarters on the map and sent it to everyone's phones."
"As you can see, their headquarters are located in Colorado, in a remote hilly area."
After stating the location, Meng Ran put down his phone and continued to speak to everyone with a serious expression.
"According to the Bearded Man, Blackwater Company's headquarters have very strong security. Under normal circumstances, they keep a portion of Inhumanss and some non-Inhumans armed personnel stationed at the headquarters."
"Because this is a special period, they have already recalled most of their Inhumans teams to the headquarters."
"Therefore, our operation will face a Blackwater Company with even tighter defenses than usual."
"Based on all available intelligence, we estimate that the enemies we will face are roughly one A-Class Ability User team and four B-Class Ability User teams."
"Besides that, there are many C-Class Ability Users and several teams of armed personnel."
Most of the above information was provided by the Bearded Man, with some parts inferred by Meng Ran based on all the clues.
Actually, this situation had exceeded Meng Ran's expectations; he originally thought it would be quite good if a C-Class Ability User knew the location of the headquarters and had not hoped for more information.
However, what he hadn't expected was that although the Bearded Man was only a C-Class Ability User, he had been with Blackwater Company for over a decade and was a seasoned veteran.
Aside from information he didn't have permission to know, such as anything above A-Class, he knew more or less about other C-Class Ability Users, including B-Class Ability Users.
The numbers and specific personnel of Blackwater Company's B-Class Ability User teams, C-Class Ability User teams, and non-Inhumans armed forces were all obtained from him.
Since he didn't know about A-Class Ability Users, the information about one A-Class Ability User team was Meng Ran's inference.
This inference was based on Liu Xiu's previous statements about the classification and number of Inhumanss, combined with previously collected information about Blackwater Company.
Because A-Class Ability Users are already relatively few among all Inhumanss, it was inferred that Blackwater Company would have at most two A-Class Ability User teams.
Counting the A-Class Ability User team that was wiped out during their last capture of Liu Xiu, Blackwater Company's headquarters now only had one A-Class Ability User team remaining.
After introducing the existing information, Meng Ran continued to look at everyone and said, "With our strength, dealing with these people should be no problem at all."
"However, we still need to be careful, as Mutants' abilities are all strange and varied, and carelessness could lead to losses."
Upon hearing Meng Ran's warning, everyone nodded.
"So, when do we leave?" Peter asked, eager to try, after hearing Meng Ran's words.
Harry, standing nearby, looked at Meng Ran after hearing Peter's words and then chimed in, "Yes, I can't wait to fight them."
Meng Ran smiled slightly at their words and then softly said, "Don't worry, once we're ready, we can leave anytime."
"Actually, I'm also a bit impatient, wondering what new abilities are waiting for me to acquire."
Everyone laughed at his words; they also knew Meng Ran's ability.
To Meng Ran, Blackwater Company was like an apple tree full of fruit, plucked every now and then.
It could be said that Blackwater Company had contributed quite a bit to the abilities Meng Ran currently possessed.
Chapter 149 Investigation Team
Western Colorado, USA.
On a rugged, reddish landscape, a cluster of modern buildings stood out, clashing with the natural scenery.
One could see office buildings, aircraft hangars, and even runways within this complex.
The cluster of buildings was nestled between several hills, as if guarded by giants.
Nature's masterful hand had forged this natural barrier, and this was where Blackwater Company's headquarters was located.
Blackwater had established a massive circular cordon outside these hills.
They had strung high-voltage electric fences along this circular perimeter, and set up a guard post every kilometer, sealing off the entire area tightly.
In the top-floor office of the main building, Saike stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the distant hills.
He had now suspended all of Blackwater Company's operations, and all teams that had completed their missions had been recalled immediately.
For other teams that had already begun missions or had received mission assignments, Saike had also ordered them to remain outside after completing their tasks, without needing to return to headquarters to report.
All these arrangements he made were to deal with the masked hero named Ghost, and his team.
The thought of Ghost made Saike feel uneasy all over; he quickly diverted his thoughts elsewhere, then lit a cigar, smoking it while pondering.
"It's already been two or three days, why is there still no news from headquarters?"
"Logically speaking, the special envoy should have reported the situation here immediately upon returning to headquarters."
"Given Blackwater's current dire situation, why is headquarters' reaction still so slow?"
"Could something be wrong?" Saike took a puff of his cigar and scratched his head, finding it difficult to understand.
Just as he was deep in thought, a knock sounded on his office door.
Hearing the sound, Saike turned and sat back in his chair, then called out loudly to the person outside the door: "Come in."
Hearing him, the person outside pushed the door open and entered. It was Landu, Saike's subordinate.
During the period when Aoum was parachuted into Blackwater, not only did Saike go from being the top leader to the second-in-command, but Landu, who was originally the second-in-command, also dropped a rank.
Fortunately, Aoum finally left a few days ago, and Landu, along with Saike, began to regain their footing.
Landu walked up to Saike, handed him the folder he was carrying, and began to report: "Boss, according to your instructions, all teams are either on standby outside or have already returned to headquarters."
"Here are two lists; the first is a tally of the teams currently outside, and the second is a tally of the teams that have returned to headquarters."
Saike took the folder from Landu and opened it to look.
After a while, he asked Landu: "So, headquarters still has one A-Level Team and three B-Level Teams, right?"
Landu heard Saike's question and answered loudly: "Yes, one B-Level Team was on an external mission at the time, so it hasn't returned."
"Besides the A-Level and B-Level, most of the C-Level Teams are also at headquarters."
Saike responded with an "Mhm" after hearing Landu's reply, then continued to instruct: "Have the A-Level Team remain in this building on alert."
"Then, the B-Level Teams will patrol the outer perimeter of our buildings, and the C-Level Teams will conduct rotating patrols further out."
"Remember to maintain the high-voltage electric fence, and tell those on guard duty to keep their eyes peeled. If anything happens, sound the alarm immediately."
As Saike gave his instructions, Landu nodded repeatedly by his side.
Just as Saike was almost finished with his instructions and was reaching for his cup to drink water, the phone on his desk suddenly rang.
"Wait a moment, I still have something to say," Saike told Landu, then put down his cup and picked up the phone.
"Hello?" Saike answered the phone with a routine greeting.
But as soon as he heard what the person on the other end said, his expression immediately turned serious, and he responded loudly: "Yes! Yes! Understood!"
After answering, Saike wanted to say something else, but before he could finish, the other party had already hung up.
Saike listened to the dial tone, feeling a mix of helplessness and anger.
He took a few deep breaths, then placed the phone back on the desk.
Seeing Saike's reaction, Landu couldn't help but wonder what had been said on the phone.
However, in the now visibly serious atmosphere, he naturally couldn't bring himself to ask.
He simply stood there quietly, waiting for Saike to speak first.
After hanging up the phone, Saike leaned back in his office chair, his brow furrowed as he slowly massaged his temples.
A moment later, he finally looked up and said to Landu in a low voice: "More people are coming from headquarters."
Saike was clearly annoyed; he lit a cigarette and continued: "An investigation team is coming. They're coming to investigate the mission failure from a few days ago."
"And from their tone, it seems they mean business."
"This wasn't our responsibility, was it? We were just following the special envoy's orders, weren't we?"
Hearing Saike's words, Landu was also somewhat surprised.
He cautiously asked: "Boss, doesn't headquarters know about our current situation?"
Hearing Landu's words, Saike clearly became even angrier.
He took a puff from the cigarette in his hand, then furiously threw it to the ground, roaring in anger.
"Motherfucker, those damn investigators wouldn't listen to a word I said."
"I had only just started speaking, and they impatiently hung up the phone."
After his outburst, Saike panted heavily, trying to calm his inner rage.
After taking a few deep breaths, he turned to Landu and said: "Those sons of bitches will be here in an hour. Go and consolidate the information on Ghost and his team beforehand."
"When they arrive, I'll throw the data in their faces and let them see what the situation really is."
"Understood," Landu immediately replied after hearing Saike's instructions.
He knew that Saike was just speaking out of anger; as for throwing the data in the investigators' faces, he would just pretend he hadn't heard it.
After responding, Landu looked at Saike's expression again, then gently comforted him: "The arrival of the investigation team will also help strengthen our forces."
"And once they learn about Ghost, they will definitely take it seriously."
"Once headquarters sends people to deal with Ghost, we won't have to suspend all our operations like this anymore."
Saike let out a long breath after hearing Landu's words, then sighed and said: "Ah, I hope so."
After speaking, he waved his hand.
Seeing the gesture, Landu discreetly exited the office, leaving Saike alone standing by the desk.
Saike walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the picturesque scenery outside, but his brows remained tightly furrowed.
He had a bad feeling, a sense that something was going to happen today.
Chapter 150 Action
In fact, Saike's premonition was not wrong at all, because the Six-pointed Star Alliance was already on its way.
Since all combat personnel were dispatched this time, Meng Ran and his team directly took the largest plane from the hangar.
This plane was covered in a special black coating and was as big as a football field.
Its overall lines presented a mechanical aesthetic that was both sleek and robust.
This was a proud creation of Meng Ran and his companions, as this plane was not only equipped with advanced weapon systems but also had stealth capabilities.
This stealth didn't just refer to radar invisibility; it also included visual invisibility, meaning that even if the plane was parked right in front of you, you wouldn't be able to see it.
Meng Ran had witnessed this technology once before on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarrier, so he was eager to implement this idea on the Six-pointed Star Alliance's fighter jets afterward.
Unlike the technology used for the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier's stealth, the Six-pointed Star Alliance's plane relied on the black coating on its exterior.
This black coating was a special scientific research achievement, developed by Meng Ran and Peter together.
During the previous period of calm, they had also researched many other black technologies.
Once everyone was ready, Meng Ran input the coordinates into the plane, then activated the autopilot, handing control over to Xiaobai.
Since it would take some time to reach the designated location, everyone on the plane took out playing cards and started a game.
Because there were five people, they couldn't play the 'Fight the Landlord' game Meng Ran had taught them before, so they could only play Texas Hold'em, which they had seen last time in Las Vegas.
Among the five of them, only Harry knew how to play this game beforehand; besides him, the other four, including Meng Ran, hadn't played it much.
So, everyone was pretty much equally bad, playing terribly.
By the end of the game, except for Harry, everyone else had pretty much lost all their chips.
The most exaggerated was Peter; he not only lost all his chips but even had his face covered in paper strips to pay off his debts.
Only Harry was the biggest winner in this game; he held almost everyone's chips, and the taste of victory made him secretly delighted.
After all, as the one who always ranked last in combat power within the team, he finally had a skill that allowed him to look down on the entire group.
"Oh, my goodness! I swear I will never gamble in my life. I'm just too bad at it!"
Peter mumbled as he pulled the paper strips off his face; he really had no talent for gambling.
Meng Ran, hearing Peter's mumbling, patted his shoulder and laughed, "It's a good thing you played with us first. If you went directly to a casino with your skill level, I estimate all your organs combined wouldn't be enough to pay off your gambling debts."
Liu Xiu also began to express his opinions after hearing Meng Ran's words.
He pointed at the piles of chips in Harry's hand and said, "But big brother, aren't we also really bad?"
"Look, you only have two chips left, and I only have one. Only Sister Gwen is doing a bit better, with 10 chips."
Hearing Liu Xiu's words, Meng Ran's hand, which was patting Peter's shoulder, instantly froze in the air, and the atmosphere became awkward.
Gwen, seeing Meng Ran being exposed again, immediately covered her mouth, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she smiled.
Harry's mouth was almost stretched to his ears, and the piles of chips in his hand trembled and fell to the ground as he laughed.
Meng Ran's face was full of black lines; he lowered his frozen arm, then beckoned to Liu Xiu and said in a deep voice, "Come here, Xiu'er, big brother needs to tell you something."
Meng Ran: (￣ ε (# ￣) ☆ ╰ ╮ o (￣ dish ￣ ///)
Liu Xiu: _(` 」 ∠ )__ Died.
After Liu Xiu experienced Meng Ran's brotherly 'love education,' the plane finally arrived near its destination.
Everyone got off the plane and looked at the heavily guarded border in the distance, their expressions becoming serious.
Meng Ran slowly closed his eyes and began to perceive the situation in this area.
A moment later, he opened his eyes and said to Gwen and the others around him, "The deployment situation and positions are roughly similar to what we understood before."
"There's a massive high-voltage barbed wire fence outside, with an armed guard post every kilometer."
"Inside the barbed wire, there are two more defensive lines. One is closer to the central buildings, and judging by their energy fluctuations, they should be B-Class Ability Users."
"There's another defensive line positioned between the barbed wire and the B-Class Ability Users, which should be C-Class Ability Users patrolling in teams."
"In the innermost building, I can sense the presence of 5 A-Class Ability Users."
Everyone had initially been marveling at how Meng Ran's perception ability was so much more useful than thermal imaging.
But when they heard there were 5 A-Class Ability Users, their expressions were no longer calm; they became serious.
It wasn't that two extra A-Class Ability Users would significantly impact the outcome.
After all, given their current strength, even two more A-Class Ability Users wouldn't change the fact that Blackwater was about to be annihilated.
The main reason was that Meng Ran's current observations showed a discrepancy in numbers compared to the previous intelligence, which indicated that the previously collected and estimated intelligence might have been wrong.
No one wanted to feel this loss of control over the situation.
Gwen asked Meng Ran somewhat seriously, "5 A-Class Ability Users, could our intelligence be wrong?"
Meng Ran shook his head upon hearing this and said in a deep voice, "It shouldn't be that our intelligence was wrong. Except for the A-Class Ability Users, everything else is roughly consistent with our estimates."
"Only one team of B-Class Ability Users is missing, changing from four teams to three. It should be that one team was on an external mission and was ordered to stand by outside."
After speaking, Meng Ran pondered for a moment, then continued to explain, "I estimate that some special situation may have occurred, for example, monsters sent people to Blackwater."
"You know, a few days ago, we killed an S-Class Esper and three A-Class Ability Users."
"S-Class Espers are only found at headquarters, so it's likely because of the death of this S-Class Esperthat monsters sent people to Blackwater."
After speaking, Meng Ran turned to look at everyone and smiled, "Intelligence is just a reference. Our current strength is powerful enough to crush them directly."
Gwen and the others also smiled when they heard Meng Ran's words; with their current strength, they certainly could do that.
After reconnoitering the situation, the members of the Six-pointed Star Alliance began to discuss their attack methods and sequence for later.
At this moment, Saike had no idea that the sense of crisis he felt was about to come true.
Chapter 151 Fluctuation
While Meng Ran and the others were discussing the attack plan on the outskirts, inside Blackwater Headquarters, Saike was conversing with an investigation team from headquarters.
A man in a suit, wearing glasses and with slicked-back hair, sat on the sofa in Saike's office.
Behind him stood two burly men, wearing sunglasses and with stern expressions.
The man in the suit took a sip of the coffee in his hand, then frowned involuntarily before placing it back on the table.
Saike sat on the sofa opposite the man in the suit. Seeing the man's actions, he suppressed his annoyance and asked softly, "Mr. Will, is the coffee not to your taste?"
Will shook his head at Saike's question, then said coldly, "It's not important. I didn't expect it to be that good anyway."
Hearing Will's words, Saike's mind instantly gave him countless mental middle fingers.
After Aoum was sent to Blackwater to complete a mission last time, Saike's impression of these people from headquarters had grown increasingly worse.
When Aoum first arrived, Saike had even hoped that Aoum could put in a good word for him, so headquarters might consider transferring him back from Blackwater.
But after the failure of that mission, Saike had given up on that idea. He now only hoped that headquarters would open its eyes and not implicate him in the mission's failure.
However, now headquarters had sent an investigation team, and their attitude was so unpleasant, making it unbearable.
He already felt as if things were developing in an uncontrollable direction again.
Will glanced at Saike, then took out a document from his briefcase.
After taking out the document, he didn't immediately open it. Instead, he looked at Saike and said loudly:
"Headquarters has been monitoring your recent movements, and you've done well."
"Headquarters has also had some issues recently, so we currently can't mobilize forces to come over."
"The method you're currently employing is very good. Just continue with it for a while."
Hearing Will's praise, Saike didn't appear particularly happy.
He knew that the investigation team wouldn't have come just to give him a few verbal commendations; there must be some other important matter.
Sure enough, a few seconds after Will finished his praise, he immediately turned to the previously failed mission.
"Headquarters is already aware of the failed mission from last time. Aoum also reported the relevant situation after he returned to headquarters."
At this point, Will looked at Saike and said, "As for the last mission, do you have anything to explain?"
Saike pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Regarding the failure of the last mission, the main reason wasn't on our side."
"The main reasons were the mission target and the team he was with."
"Are you referring to that fiend and the Six-pointed Star Alliance?" Will's eyes narrowed slightly as he asked Saike.
Saike nodded in response to Will's question, saying, "That's right, it's them."
"The main reason is that their strength far exceeded our expectations."
After speaking, Saike handed Will the information that Landu had just compiled.
"This is the information on the fiend and the Six-pointed Star Alliance, Mr. Will, you can take a look."
Will took the information but didn't open it.
He put the information down, then took out the document he was holding and handed it to Saike.
"This is Aoum's account of the mission's failure. You can take a look."
"According to him, the reason for the mission's failure wasn't just due to the opponent's strength."
"It was more because of you. As the person in charge of Blackwater, you had some dereliction of duty."
Will looked at Saike, whose knuckles were white from gripping the document too tightly, and said in a calm tone.
Saike held the document and read it. The more he read, the more his anger flared, and the more his hands trembled.
He had never expected Aoum to be so shameless, actually shifting all the blame onto him.
To shirk his own responsibility, Aoum had even fabricated excuses like Saike not following orders, providing incorrect intelligence, and acting without authorization.
Saike's anger was uncontrollable. He slammed the document onto the table and shouted loudly at Will.
"He's spouting nonsense! I've never even heard of these things he's talking about! If you don't believe me, you can ask my subordinates!"
"That bastard is just trying to shirk responsibility! He wants me to take the fall for him! He's dreaming, wishful thinking!"
Saike shouted in anger, pounding the table with his hand.
Will, sitting opposite, showed no expression as he watched Saike's agitation.
He merely raised his hand, flicked away non-existent dust from his shoulder, and then calmly told Saike, "Please calm down. This is why our investigation team is here."
"Headquarters certainly won't just believe his one-sided story. We will stay here for a few days, collect relevant data and information, and then objectively summarize it for headquarters."
Hearing Will's words, Saike slumped back onto the sofa, taking deep breaths to calm his agitated mind.
Will looked at Saike, then continued, "Don't worry, headquarters will definitely not wrong anyone. We will conduct an objective investigation and evaluation."
"However, I suggest you perform exceptionally well these next few days, and hold out until headquarters sends someone to deal with that fiend."
"By then, I believe the credibility of your testimony will also increase significantly. This situation will be beneficial to you, wouldn't you agree?"
Saike calmed down upon hearing Will's words. Indeed, his anger was useless now. Aoum had already said what he needed to say, and Saike could only try his best to prove himself, as Will suggested.
He took a deep breath, then said faintly to Will opposite him, "Thank you for your suggestion, Mr. Will. Even if not for that purpose, I will still complete my work diligently, as it is my duty."
"That's good." Will heard Saike's words, and a strange smile appeared on his usually impassive face.
In truth, Will's arrival was primarily to find some "evidence" to corroborate what Aoum had said.
As for Saike, this poor man had already become a pawn. Once headquarters could free up resources to deal with that fiend, his final usefulness would be over.
Everything Will had just said to Saike was merely to ensure he would continue to work for the company without worry during this final period.
"Then our meeting for today ends here. I will take my people to find the information we need." Will said to Saike as he stood up.
Just as Saike was also about to stand up and say something, a sudden, inexplicable fluctuation emanated from afar.
Chapter 152: Heavenly Hills
As this inexplicable wave swept through, Saike and Will both felt their heads were about to explode from pain.
Fortunately, after the wave passed through them, it only left them with a few seconds of intense pain.
Once the wave subsided, they gradually recovered.
"What's going on?" Will asked Saike, who was also clutching his head.
He was experiencing a splitting headache from this sudden wave.
Upon hearing Will's question, Saike also rubbed his head, preparing to say something.
Just then, an even stronger wave appeared, sweeping through and, like before, engulfing the entire complex of buildings.
This time the pain was more intense than before, and Saike, before he could answer Will's question, tilted his head and fainted.
Will was not much stronger than Saike; he also fainted under the intense wave.
His two black-clothed bodyguards behind him were also on their knees, clutching their heads in agony.
The wave seemed to tear at their minds; they all felt a sharp pain emanating directly from the depths of their souls.
After the wave passed, the black-clothed bodyguard took another half minute to recover before standing up from the ground.
They stumbled over to Will, then took a syringe from a briefcase and injected him.
"OH! S***!" Will woke from his coma with a curse.
He rubbed his head and took deep breaths, trying to calm the throbbing nerves in his brain.
"Give him a shot too, wake him up," Will said to one of the black-clothed men beside him after seeing the unconscious Saike.
The black-clothed man heard Will's words and quickly took another syringe from the briefcase, then injected it into Saike's body.
As the injection was administered, Saike also woke from his coma.
He slowly sat up and shook his head; feeling the still throbbing nerves, he gently rubbed his temples, trying to alleviate the pain.
When Will saw Saike wake up, his first question was, "What's going on? Has the base been attacked?"
Saike shook his head at the question, then said in a deep voice, "I don't know what happened, but I think it must be related to the evil spirit."
"Evil spirit?" Hearing Saike mention the evil spirit again, Will's head immediately began to ache again.
Unlike Saike, he hadn't dealt with evil spirits multiple times; all his knowledge of them was limited to them being one of the reasons for the last mission's failure.
As the two sat on the ground rubbing their heads, they suddenly felt a shadow cast from the floor-to-ceiling window.
As the two hurried to the window to check the situation, the horrifying sight outside the window made their hearts tremble.
They saw a hill not far away flying through the air, slowly drifting towards their location.
"M F, what is this?" Will and Saike were stunned by the sight outside the window.
Before they could be surprised for long, Will's two black-clothed bodyguards began to quickly lead them away from the building.
Seeing the hill about to crash down on them, one black-clothed bodyguard directly punched out a Impact, then broke through the wall and ran out with Will and Saike.
Just as they had run to a place not far from the complex of buildings, a violent roar came from behind them.
"Boom!" The reddish-brown hill fell straight down from above the complex of buildings.
Without the support of that strange energy, the hill was in free fall, relying entirely on gravity.
In less than a second, the hill made intimate contact with the buildings below.
The reddish-brown hill shattered upon impact with the buildings, and the broken boulders shot out in all directions, like a shower of reddish-brown meteors.
Some broken boulders also flew towards Will and Saike, but under the protection of the two black-clothed bodyguards, neither of them was harmed.
One of the black-clothed bodyguards unleashed a powerful Impact with his fist, pulverizing the incoming boulders.
The other waved reddish-brown energy with his hand, turning the incoming boulders into powder.
The crumbling boulders did not last long; after a moment, the huge roar gradually ceased.
At this point, the Blackwater Company headquarters was completely unrecognizable; all the buildings were buried under reddish-brown dust.
The moment the roar stopped, a small gray Whirlwind blew from the side, sweeping away all the reddish-brown dust.
Without the dust cover, everyone could clearly see the situation before them.
All the buildings were crushed under broken earth, leaving no trace of their former appearance.
"That Whirlwind?" Will asked Saike beside him.
Saike replied, "That is the ability of an A-Class Ability User in our A2 Squad."
"It seems they also escaped the recent attack."
"I just don't know how many others escaped."
"Our losses this time are too heavy."
Saike frowned, looking at the now ruined Blackwater Company, and said with some worry.
Will also frowned upon hearing Saike's words; he hadn't expected the evil spirit, which he hadn't taken seriously, to cause them such heavy losses.
Just then, three more figures suddenly appeared beside Saike and Will.
The black-clothed men beside Will immediately became alert, shielding him behind them.
Saike, on the other hand, showed no reaction; he simply looked at the three suddenly appearing individuals and then introduced them to Will.
"This is our Blackwater Company's A2 Squad; they are all A-Class Inhumanss."
Will relaxed his guard upon hearing Saike's introduction, and at the same time, he waved his hand, telling the black-clothed men around him not to be so stiff.
Saike continued to introduce the three A-Class Ability Users to Will.
He pointed to a buzz-cut man wearing wind goggles and said, "This is Whirlwind; the Whirlwind that blew away the dust just now came from him."
After speaking, Saike then pointed to two tall and short bald men with rough faces beside them and said, "The tall one is called Lightning; his ability is teleportation. They appeared suddenly just now because he brought them."
"The slightly shorter one is called Director; his ability is to create illusions."
After Saike introduced these A-Class Ability Users to Will, Will nodded at them.
The Inhumanss also nodded in acknowledgment to Will.
Chapter 153 The Miserable Black Water
After they finished introducing themselves, Saike asked Whirlwind and the others about the situation.
Upon hearing Saike's question, Whirlwind, still somewhat shaken, said, "Those two fluctuations and the mountain's attack came too suddenly."
"I estimate that Inhumanss below B-Class wouldn't be able to withstand those two fluctuations; they would either pass out or die directly."
"As for the mountain attack just now, I originally intended to wake up more people after the fluctuations disappeared."
"But the final attack came too quickly; we didn't have much time to wake up those who had fainted."
"So, in the end, nearly 90% of the people were buried under these stones, and the remaining 10% are probably just some B-Class Inhumanss, besides us."
Hearing Whirlwind's report, Saike and Will's moods immediately grew heavier.
They expected the losses to be significant, but they hadn't imagined them to be so severe.
Blackwater Company, which had numerous staff members not long ago, now only had these three A-Class Ability Users and three teams of B-Class Inhumanss.
And after the recent hill attack, it was unknown how many of those three teams of B-Class Inhumanss were buried and how many successfully escaped.
Just as the Blackwater Company members were at a loss and heartbroken over the heavy losses, the Six-pointed Star Alliance members had already arrived before them.
Looking at the two ordinary people protected by several Inhumanss in the middle, Meng Ranimmediately understood that these two must be from Blackwater Company or the Monster Headquarters.
He looked at the group not far away and chuckled in a hoarse voice, "Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, such powerful Inhumanss actually have to be subservient to two foolish ordinary people, obeying their commands and arrangements. How pathetic."
After his taunt, Meng Ran looked at Saike and Will and asked them coldly, "Finally, we meet. Those little rats you sent before were quite fun, but they weren't very resilient."
"So, to save your time and my time, I've come directly to your doorstep. Happy?"
"You must have liked that gift just now, right? After all, it was so 'precious'."
Upon hearing Meng Ran's taunt, Saike couldn't help but feel a surge of anger.
But no matter how angry he was, he couldn't show it, because he knew the strength of the Evil Ghost and the Six-pointed Star Alliance.
The people currently present simply couldn't defeat the Evil Ghost and his group.
One must remember that the last mission involved three A-Class and one S-Class.
But even with such a top-tier lineup, they were defeated by them, so it's clear how terrifying the Evil Ghost's strength truly is.
The moment he saw Meng Ran and his group appear, Saike's heart had already sunk to rock bottom.
He could only stare intently at them, then whispered to Will, "Sir, if you can contact headquarters, do so as soon as possible."
"We might all die here today. You must transmit the intelligence back to headquarters and warn them not to take the Evil Ghost lightly."
Will had already witnessed the methods of the Six-pointed Star Alliance, so he didn't say anything after hearing Saike's words, merely nodding subtly.
At the same time, he quietly reached into his pants pocket, where a small satellite phone was kept.
He wanted to dial the satellite phone and send out an emergency distress signal.
In fact, Will's small movements had been fully observed by Meng Ran, but he didn't stop him. He knew that no matter what method was used, no message could be sent from this area.
This was because Little White and Mary Jane had already blocked all signals in this area via the invisible fighter jets in the sky.
So, no matter what Will thought or did, he couldn't transmit anything outwards, not even a punctuation mark.
Meng Ran looked at the Blackwater Company personnel standing ready before him and didn't immediately attack; instead, he narrowed his eyes again.
He was sensing how many Inhumanss were still alive in this area.
In less than a few seconds, Meng Ran had finished sensing the situation in the entire area.
After sensing, he quietly said to the people beside him, "I just sensed the number of surviving Inhumanss."
"Now, this entire area only has A-Class and B-Class Inhumanss left."
"C-Class Inhumanss and those ordinary armed personnel have either fainted or died under the mental Impact of the two of us."
"Coupled with Xiu'er's hill attack just now, there are now only these five A-Class Inhumanss and the remaining B-Class Inhumanss in front of us."
"Some B-Class Inhumanss are still buried in the ruins. I sensed that a total of seven B-Class Inhumanss are still alive."
After the previous offensive, the once impregnable Blackwater Company headquarters had become like a sieve, riddled with holes.
Such a result was all thanks to the three waves of attacks that suddenly launched.
Of the three attacks just now, the first wave of mental Impact and the final hill bombardment were both Liu Xiu's doing.
After the last crisis, he had awakened the psychic and spiritual powers inherited from his father.
The first wave of mental Impact just now was an outward manifestation of his spiritual energy.
As for the second wave of hill bombardment, it was the result of Liu Xiu gaining a deeper understanding and stronger control over his gravity ability.
The middle wave of mental attack came from Meng Ran.
He acquired the mental attack skill after possessing the A-Class Ability User "Lang" last time.
With this skill, the immense mental power within Meng Ran's body finally had an outlet to vent.
Previously, although he possessed powerful mental power, he never had a suitable method to utilize and release this mental power to turn it into an offensive means.
After the last possession, he finally filled this void.
It was precisely because his mental power was exceptionally strong that the mental Impact he unleashed was more powerful and had a wider range than the mental Impact unleashed by Liu Xiu.
After explaining the findings, Meng Ran quickly arranged for everyone, "Xiu'er and I will first deal with these five A-Class Ability Users. The rest of you stay here for now, and then you'll deal with those B-Class Inhumanss."
"When dealing with those B-Class Inhumanss, if the situation is tense, do not hold back. Your safety is more important than their abilities."
"Also, pay attention to those two ordinary leaders; don't let them escape. We should be able to get some information about the monsters from them."
After hearing Meng Ran's instructions and arrangements, everyone nodded.
Then Gwen and the others dispersed to the back and began to search for traces of B-Class Inhumanss.
Meng Ran and Liu Xiu also prepared for battle. They stared at the five A-Class Ability Users not far away, their eyes burning with fighting spirit like flames.
Chapter 154 Lightning
The A-Class Ability Users surrounding Saike and Will immediately became alert when they saw Meng Ran and Liu Xiu looking at them.
Whirlwind sensed that a battle might be about to begin, so he said in a deep voice to Lightning beside him, "Lightning, find an opportunity later to send Mr. Saike and Mr. Will out of here first."
Lightning nodded when he heard Whirlwind's words, then said, "Then you two have to hold them off first, otherwise, if I stop, I might be discovered by them."
Because Lightning is an A-Class Ability User, his teleportation ability is stronger than that of the B-Class Ability User Meng Ran possessed at the time.
His teleportation allows him to teleport anywhere within his line of sight, without the specific ten-meter restriction.
However, because the area is hilly, he might need to stop at least once to get Saike and Will out.
Whirlwind also nodded at Lightning's words; he knew Lightning's ability, so he and the others would have to quickly hold off Evil Ghost and Black Armor to create an opportunity for Lightning to teleport.
Not far away, Meng Ran, seeing the subtle exchange between Whirlwind and Lightning, immediately reacted.
He instantly vanished from his spot, suddenly appearing beside Lightning, and then kicked him away.
Lightning and Whirlwind had not expected Meng Ran to act so quickly.
Before they could react, Meng Ran had kicked Lightning back into the rubble.
When Whirlwind and the other Inhumanss reacted and prepared to help Lightning, a strange energy suddenly descended, instantly pressing them to the ground, unable to get up.
Saike and Will, being ordinary people, showed no reaction, as Liu Xiu had not applied gravity to them.
After all, they were just ordinary people; the gravity applied to Inhumanss could not be similarly applied to them, otherwise, they might accidentally be crushed into meat paste.
Saike and Will, seeing the situation was bad, prepared to run, but unexpectedly, Meng Ran, who had just kicked Lightning away, suddenly reappeared behind them.
Meng Ran grabbed their collars and threw them backward.
At the same time, he shouted forward, "Ghost, catch!"
As soon as Meng Ran's voice fell, two spider silks shot into the air, wrapping Saike and Will into two large white cocoons.
After wrapping them into cocoons, Gwen gently pulled back, catching the two flying from the air.
Seeing Gwen had dealt with the two, Meng Ran felt relieved; now they couldn't run away.
The ability to teleport has always been the most troublesome due to its extreme mobility.
If they didn't deal with Lightning and secure those two people beforehand, and they managed to seize an opportunity, then the Six-pointed Star Alliance's operation today would be completely meaningless.
At this moment, the other Inhumanss on the ground had already withstood the pressure and were slowly trying to get up.
Meng Ran ignored them, still leaving them to Liu Xiu, while he himself continued to charge at Lightning, who had just climbed out of the ruins.
Lightning had just climbed out of the ruins; Meng Ran's powerful kick had severely injured him, and he was hit before he could react at all.
Because he didn't have time to use his teleportation ability, he took the kick head-on.
Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth, and he endured the sharp pain in his side, pushing away the rubble above his head and climbing out.
Just as Lightning hadn't had time to catch his breath, a sense of crisis suddenly enveloped his heart.
He instinctively used his teleportation ability, transporting himself to an open space in his line of sight.
Just as he had teleported, a loud bang also came from where he had been previously.
Lightning quickly looked up, only to see a large hole smashed into the ruins.
The figure of Evil Ghost stood in the middle of the hole, with blue electric arcs flashing beside him.
Lightning's heart trembled when he saw such a scene, unable to imagine the consequences if such an attack had landed on him just now.
"It was dodged," Evil Ghost said softly, looking at Lightning, who stood not far away, maintaining maximum vigilance.
Lightning was also panting heavily, looking at Evil Ghost, thinking to himself, "Damn it, I didn't dodge the first move and was severely injured."
"Now my body is struggling, I need to seize every opportunity."
"But how can I possibly hurt this guy?"
Lightning quickly calculated in his mind; the disparity in strength made him feel a sense of despair.
Just then, Evil Ghost, who had been in his line of sight, suddenly vanished again.
Lightning's nerves immediately tensed up; he constantly made small-distance movements to evade the attack that could come at any moment.
Although this seemed foolish, he had no other choice; he only hoped he could stall for more time, which might bring a turning point.
Sudden warnings like the one he just had were rare; he dared not gamble his life on a vague feeling.
At this moment, Meng Ran was standing in a hidden spot, watching Lightning constantly change positions in the field.
Meng Ran expressed great understanding for Lightning's seemingly foolish behavior; after all, not everyone had a spider sense like them, which could give a warning when danger approached.
Meng Ran watched Lightning continuously move, while simultaneously launching attacks with blade light from his hands, and speculating about his abilities in his mind.
Meng Ran could now use his hands to perform blade techniques; although their power was not as great as using Cutting Cloud, it was completely sufficient for the current situation.
After this brief observation, he gradually figured out Lightning's teleportation ability.
Lightning's next teleportation location was always where his gaze had just been; although this movement was small and subtle, it did not escape Meng Ran's eyes.
Now that he knew the specifics of Lightning's teleportation ability, Meng Ran had a corresponding plan in mind.
His figure moved, and he vanished from his spot.
Lightning, who was constantly moving in the field, was now panting and pale-faced.
Although Evil Ghost no longer showed his figure, the explosive blade light never stopped.
Facing such a situation, he dared not let down his guard for a moment, constantly using his ability to the fullest to counter the incessant attacks.
The result of this effort was that although he was panting heavily, he had not suffered any further injury.
Just as he nimbly dodged another blade light attack, an unexpected change suddenly occurred.
Chapter 155 An Qi
Just as Lightning dodged a burst of blade light and reappeared at a nearby location, countless black spikes suddenly rose from the ground beneath his feet.
Along with these spikes were electric currents with blue arcs of light.
These spikes mercilessly pierced Lightning's limbs, and the attached electric currents completely paralyzed him, causing him to instantly faint.
Although this moment was brief, it condensed countless pieces of intelligence and precise judgments.
If Meng Ran hadn't thoroughly understood Lightning's ability just now, he wouldn't have been able to predict Lightning's landing spot in advance and then instantly use such a skill.
Meng Ran's timing for this skill was perfect; he seized the brief few microseconds between Lightning's current teleportation and his next teleportation.
He first used an attack to force Lightning to use his teleportation, and then, based on where Lightning's gaze was just now, he set up a pre-emptive trap.
The Thorn Hell he just used covered an area as large as a football field, encompassing all possible landing spots for Lightning's next teleportation.
Therefore, no matter where Lightning teleported, he would be within the range of this skill, meaning he had no escape from this attack.
Seeing Lightning hit and faint, Meng Ran also teleported to his location.
The venom, which had transformed into spikes, now retracted back into Meng Ran's body.
Meng Ran looked at the unconscious Lightning on the ground, then walked over and broke his limbs, and pulled out a bag to put over his head.
This way, even if Lightning woke up, he wouldn't be able to move; his limbs were broken, preventing movement, and his vision was blocked, preventing teleportation.
After dealing with him, Meng Ran left the area; there were still a few people left to deal with, and he would come back to collect the spoils after they were resolved.
While Meng Ran was dealing with Lightning for those two minutes, Liu Xiu was simultaneously handling the remaining four Inhumanss.
Over time, the gravity suppression he exerted on the four Inhumanss was slowly weakening.
On one hand, his gravity suppression was dispersed among four people, so it wasn't as difficult to resist.
On the other hand, the four A-Class Ability Users had also recovered from the sudden suppression and were now using their abilities to resist his suppression.
Liu Xiu had actually anticipated such resistance, but he didn't care.
Because he knew Meng Ran would quickly resolve the battle, he only needed to stall these few people for a while.
When Meng Ran returned to fight alongside him, he could deal with these people with ease; otherwise, although his ability was powerful, it was ultimately difficult for two fists to contend with four hands.
Moreover, the abilities of these Inhumanss were still unknown, and he dared not let his guard down; just as Meng Ran said, everything should be done in the most secure way.
Just as both sides were still in a stalemate, Liu Xiu suddenly felt the scene before him begin to change.
The ruins of Blackwater Company, and the four Inhumanss still crouching on the ground resisting his suppression, all disappeared, replaced by a place he remembered very well.
This was his home, the place where he lived happily with his parents when he was a child.
Liu Xiu sat blankly at a dining table like this, although now he had a strong body and was over 1.8 meters tall.
But in this scene, sitting at the dining table, he could only barely show his neck and head.
Just as he was sitting in a daze at the dining table, a beautiful woman with long golden hair sat opposite him, then smiled gently at him, "Xiuer, eat quickly, or the wontons will get cold soon."
"This is the first time Mom has made them, you know~ Your dad always says I'm clumsy, but when he comes back, I'm going to surprise him too."
Anqi said to Liu Xiu while resting her arms on the dining table, cupping her face, and looking at him lovingly.
Liu Xiu looked at his mother, who had suddenly appeared opposite him, and felt a lump in his throat for a moment; he wanted to say something but couldn't speak.
So he just looked at his mother opposite him, carefully examining this familiar face that he had forgotten for a long time but was always hidden deep in his heart.
Apparently seeing that Liu Xiu was still in a daze and not eating properly, Anqi rubbed his head again and urged, "Xiuer, why aren't you eating yet? Are you feeling unwell somewhere? Or are you afraid Mom's cooking is bad?"
After speaking, Anqi seemed to recall her past cooking disasters and smiled apologetically at Liu Xiu, "Ahem, don't worry, Mom has been researching for a long time this time, it definitely won't be like before."
At this moment, Liu Xiu was in tears, but Anqi, sitting opposite him, seemed to notice nothing unusual and just looked at him lovingly, just like that morning many years ago.
This current scene was actually a memory Liu Xiu had from his past; although he was sitting at the dining table now, Anqi, sitting opposite, was looking at his childhood self.
Liu Xiu wiped away his tears, then reached out his hand towards his mother's face; he wanted to feel his mother's warmth once again.
Just then, the scene before Liu Xiu suddenly began to change; Anqi opposite him was no longer sitting at the dining table but was kneeling amidst a pile of ruins.
She seemed to have just gone through a battle, surrounded by bloodied and mangled corpses, with countless enemies still advancing towards her.
Anqi looked at the advancing enemies, then smiled and raised her hands; her smile carried a hint of relief and a hint of regret.
As she raised her hands, an indescribable power surged forth, sending all the advancing enemies flying backward.
At the same time, a soft sound rang in Liu Xiu's ears.
Accompanying this soft sound, Anqi, in front of him, bled from all seven orifices and then fell to the ground.
"No!"
Seeing this scene, Liu Xiu's eyes instantly widened; he shouted loudly, then wanted to go forward and help his mother up.
But at this moment, he was like air, passing right through Anqi's body.
"No! Why! Why must it be like this! Ah!!!"
Liu Xiu knew this was the scene of his mother dying in battle while covering his and his father's escape.
No matter how much time passed, seeing these images now still left him heartbroken, shattered, and furious.
Although he had never witnessed this scene firsthand, he knew the situation was similar to this.
Liu Xiu knelt powerlessly on the ground, pounding it; he knew these scenes should be some strange method of the enemy, but he still couldn't observe it all without emotion.
"Blackwater! Monsters! Die! You all must die!!!"
Liu Xiu knelt on this virtual battlefield, his eyes bloodshot; with his roar, space also began to vibrate.
At the same time, in the real world.
Liu Xiu, floating in the air with his eyes closed and crying, suddenly became ferocious; with the change in his expression, a wave of power also vibrated from his body.
On the ground, the four A-Class Ability Users, who were almost free from the suppression, suddenly felt the gravity on them begin to intensify again.