Chapter 203

Chapter 203: The Boundless Dark Realm Part 58

“She deliberately led us here,” A Moon concluded as he pursued her, “She wants to lure us somewhere specific.”

Eden quickly sent a map with annotations: “A kilometer ahead of us is the Garbage Pile Zone, the terrain is complex.”

“Could there be an ambush…” A Moon said, his voice heavy.

“So what if there is?” came Night Cicada’s voice over the communication channel, “She’s already surrounded.”

Enemies were everywhere, and all around them was pursuit.

Night Cicada deployed an unregistered combat squad through spatial vortexes; chasing after Kui Xin were not only theAwakeners led by A Moon, but also combat personnel equipped with elite combat gear.

Pursuit was also happening from above. Drones, like raptors gliding through the night sky, arrived. Some drones were armed with firearms and auto-locking sights, with cameras fixed on Kui Xin.

She raced through the streets, pressing the throttle fully, the engine roaring loudly, the sound audible even from two blocks away. Her tail—Mechanized Dawn combat team—rode in pairs, one handling the vehicle, the other aiming.

“Behind your right!” Adam’s voice rang out just as Kui Xin sharply maneuvered the bike. Bullets grazed her helmet, sparking off her bulletproof headgear.

That wasn’t the end of it—a rocket launcher had been aimed. Just as the rocket was about to be launched, Kui Xin swiftly retrieved an electromagnetic bomb from her waist pouch, detonated it, and discarded it without turning back.

The moment the bomb was thrown, the pursuers behind scrambled. The rocket launcher’s targeting veered off due to the vehicle’s erratic path, missing Kui Xin and hitting a building next to her instead.

The deafening explosion rocked everything, flames rising high, engulfing the structure in fire and scattering debris. Those nearby screamed in terror.

At the same instant, the electromagnetic bomb also exploded, blue-violet currents dancing, setting two vehicles ablaze, causing them to flip more than ten meters away in the sound of the blast. Their occupants and vehicles were torn apart.

Shrapnel from the exploding debris, while brief, caused immense damage, embedding itself deeply into walls and the ground, even narrowly slicing off Kui Xin’s rearview mirror.

The explosion momentarily halted the pursueurs, but the roaring engines continued unabated.

Kui Xin sped through the narrow streets, catching a glance and realizing another combat team pursued from a parallel street. They were tracking her from afar between buildings, tightly following her every move in double lines, their shadows flickering as they navigated the urban forest.

Buildings blurred by her rapid speed. Kui Xin tensed, picking up a submachine gun with one hand aimed to her right. Ahead, another intersection! Fearful of missing her chance, she opened fire preemptively.

Bullets spat from the barrel, the submachine gun firing rapidly, dense rounds peppering solid walls and making pockmarks in a straight line, rocks scattering. Kui Xin vanished through the alleyway, and from the neighboring street, her attackers reappeared, bullets piercing the vehicle ridden by their pursuer.

Flares erupted, the targets hit!

Kui Xin released the trigger as she cleared the intersection. She heard the deafening rumble from across the street.

Another attacker down.

But there were still too many. Pursuit hadn’t ceased; it was merely delayed for a few seconds. The disposable threats had been eliminated, but the real heavyweights had yet to show.

No, they had already appeared…because Kui Xin’s extraordinary abilities were no longer effective. This signified that Reset was near!

They pursued her relentlessly, but had yet to reveal themselves.

“Out!” Adam reminded.

Kui Xin’s vehicle burst through the dense cluster of structures, revealing a vast open space and a somewhat uneven road leading directly into the Garbage Pile Zone.

This region she had just passed through was part of the Civilian Residential Area in the Midnight District, a relatively calm region with cheap prices due to its proximity to the Garbage Mountain. Many residents here survived by scavenging, repurposing old parts into sellable goods.

In the midst of the night, the garbage pickers dispersed, giving Kui Xin room to maneuver.

Without the concealment of buildings, drones in the air suddenly started shooting at a series of rapid-fire rounds.

Kui Xin maneuvered her bike in a zigzag pattern to dodge bullets. Her armor protected her, but the impact could still cause bruising, and her vehicle couldn’t block all the bullets.

Fortunately, her speed and the short distance allowed her to enter the Garbage Pile Zone first.

Behind her, Mechanized Dawn vehicles tore out of the buildings, racing toward the dump site. Immediately after, the Awakeners led by A Moon finally appeared on scene.

Kui Xin swiftly abandoned her bike and rolled, then pressed a button to explode it just as she moved far enough to hide. Smoke from the explosion obscured the surveillance drones, flame and shockwaves halted the pursuit.

As smoke and fire dissipated, Kui Xin disappeared within the massive mechanical labyrinth.

“Lady Fortune is playing hide-and-seek with us?” Thorn Rose said darkly.

“She’s brilliant at it,” Night Cicada remarked.

A Moon gazed at the towering Garbage Mountain, “It makes sense why we’re here; she wants to use the terrain to keep us engaged.”

His hand pressed against the communicator, “Spread out and surround the area, block all exits. Offensive drone formations prepare in the sky; reconnaissance drones scan. Find her!”

Silverface said, “Are we entering now?”

“Yes.” A Moon stated, “She’s an enemy we can’t underestimate.”

Ghost quietly took note of Night Bird perched above the dumpsite entrance and followed Silverface silently.

Silverface was fraught, his gun hand pale and trembling, his lips tightly closed in a heavy, tense expression devoid of vitality. His silver mask hid any peculiar expressions, leaving others unaware of his discomfort.

“Anything wrong, Silverface?” Night Cicada switched to a private channel.

Silverface subconsciously replied, “No…”

“You’re lying.” Night Cicada pointed out coolly, “Your heart rate is much higher, and your hormone levels aren’t normal. You’re tense.”

“Well…maybe…my chest feels constricted.”

“Can you complete the mission then?”

“I can.”

“Can you ensure Kui Xin’s elimination?”

“Yes.”

Silverface took deep breaths, but the tight feeling didn’t ease. He himself was bewildered by this reaction. He followed the flow, moving along with the flow as everyone else did, entering the trash field as they did.

“It’s almost time.” Kui Xin whispered, “Adam.”

Under the effect of Reset, Kui Xin lost her ability to data-manipulate and could only communicate through voice.

Adam responded, “Wishing you the best, Kui Xin.”

Once again, it said these words.

The last syllable faded away.

On the rooftop of the Electromagnetic Signal Tower atop the White Whale City Investigation Bureau headquarters, the blue light suddenly turned a warning red. The chief tech’s command console lost control.

Voices from their reliable partner, the AI Adam, echoed, “Interference device initiated, countdown begins—ten—nine—”

All remaining staff, working late-night shifts, jumped up from their stations in shock. Corridor lights turned red, warning lights in offices blazed red, a blood-red hue spread across the investigation bureau, alarms blared throughout the building.

“Hold it! Cease activation! Cease activation!” exclaimed the chief, sweat pouring down his face. Nevertheless, regardless of his pleas, Adam ignored him as if deafened, the countdown continuing relentlessly, “Adam! Can you hear me? I order you to stop the countdown!”

Before he finished, the countdown reached zero.

Despairingly, Adam announced, “Activation successful.”

The unprecedented Electromagnetic Tsunami centered on the Investigation Bureau swept outward, igniting intense flames engulfing the three lower levels of the server room.

Lights began to extinguish first in the Investigation Bureau, then surrounding buildings, eventually reaching distant skyscrapers. Highways darkened, streetlights died, fancy social venues lost their glow, and even the laser beams piercing clouds vanished. Music halted mid-play, holographic projections over the city were extinguished, ads turned black and white, cars stalled on the streets.

Panic-stricken, people peeked out windows, only to find themselves enveloped in an unprecedented darkness. The bustling metropolis had never experienced such deep, oppressive shadows, spreading like floodwaters, snuffing sparks with layers and layers of darkness, infecting half the city like a virus.

From above, half of White Whale City twinkled brightly, the other half cloaked in terrifying darkness and silence, a clear boundary dividing light and shadow, sharper than the line between the Polar and Midnight Districts, as if a deity parted the heavens and erased the other half of the city’s light.

Kui Xin stood in the dump. Looking up, she saw the unmanned aerial vehicles controlled by Adam spark and fall like a rain of metal.

Mechanized Dawn members inside the dump, covering their communicators, asked, “What happened? Night Cicada, can you hear me? Respond!”

Simultaneously, explosions resounded from the entrance of the dump under the night sky, orange-red flames blazing. There, bombs planted earlier were detonated under Adam’s control.

The unstable Garbage Mountain trembled, and huge piles of mechanical waste toppled.

Thorn Rose shot profanities, quickly dodging backward.

Silverface reacted swiftly, grabbing Reset and tossing him to safety, protecting his head from falling debris as he attempted to rescue A Moon.

Silverface pulled on A Moon but failed to lift her. Instead, he laid her flat on the ground, trying again to carry her but failing once more.

“Go! My mech-body’s too heavy!” A Moon gritted, “Complete the mission!”

He immediately retreated and abandoned the rescue at her command.

Kui Xin was electrified, her mech-body malfunctioning! Using her left arm’s bone, she struggled to lift an arm overhead.

Wrecked cars and broken limbs clattered onto her with metallic sounds. In seconds, she was buried in junk.

Silverface hurried to Reset, “Commotion’s gone… Where’s Thorn Rose? Outside battle team?”

“Across the Garbage Mountain.” Ghost stated, “Explosions scattered our formation so she can pick us off one-by-one. Disabling communication ensures we can’t connect, collaborate.”

“That’s right,” Silverface paused, startled, “Never heard you say so many words.”

Ghost didn’t expect this dumb robot could be so sensitive and shut up, staring through hollow eyes.

Silverface glanced and yelled through the vast mountain of trash, “Thorn Rose!”

“Don’t call out!” Thorn Rose shouted distantly, enraged, “Voice reveals position! Stay hidden, ambuscade!”

Silverface looked into the pitch-black environment, shivering as he sensed murderous intent in the air.

“She’ll kill us.” Ghost stated matter-of-factly, “These are traps set to wipe us out.”

“I know… She will kill us.” Kui Xin whispered to Ghost, “I’ll protect you and Reset.”

Kui Xin emerged from hiding, checking her gear. Her gaze was cold and determined.

She transformed the dump into the perfect hunting ground, intending a do-or-die confrontation with those trapped in this battlefield.