The raging, pitch-black flames filled Zhou Chen with a revulsion that came from the depths of his soul.
So evil.
So deep.
So cold.
It was as if what burned was not fire, but a darkness filled with despair and death.
'Does everyone have a Second Stage these days?!'
BOOM!
Old Yang raised his shotgun and fired. A volley of steel pellets whistled through the air, and the massive impact sent the corpse flying. Blood gushed from its sieve-like wounds as it crashed heavily to the ground.
Wisps of pitch-black flame rose from the wounds. Immediately after, the black flames erupted from the corpse like a flood bursting through a dam, instantly setting the entire body ablaze.
Within the pitch-black, fiery flames, the corpse could be faintly seen cracking open like a cocoon. A humanoid silhouette struggled inside, trying to break out.
"Stop staring, run!"
Old Yang turned and jumped down through the collapsed hole.
Zhou Chen quickly drew his gun and pulled the trigger. Two pale meteors shot out, leaving conspicuous trails as they accurately struck the figure within the fiery, pitch-black flames. Only then did he turn, jump down, and run straight through a metal gate that had opened automatically from a damaged circuit.
A massive warehouse came into view. It was at least four hundred meters from the entrance to the far end, with goods piled as high as mountains and as vast as a sea. The sheer size of the place was immense.
But according to the information provided by the intelligence department, this transit warehouse was never supposed to have an underground area.
The truth was obvious: this was where Xi Feng had been storing smuggled goods for years.
However, looking around, the place was empty. There didn't seem to be any smugglers on guard.
Old Yang was using brute force to pry open one wooden crate after another, hoping to find useful supplies or weapons, but there was nothing inside besides gold, silver, and jewels.
Zhou Chen also started smashing open crates. As he worked, he asked, "What was that thing?"
"It's a Fire Slave, a type of Abyssal Creature. The best way to kill it is to shatter the Crystal Core in its body, but it'll kill us long before we can do that.
Damn it, how did one of Xi Feng's Ascenders get infected and turn into an Abyssal Creature out of nowhere... Did they screw around with a few Abyssal Cursed Objects?
Anyway, in our current condition, we're no match for that thing. Let's see if we can find anything good and resupply first."
Old Yang picked up an ornate dagger from a crate and examined it for a moment. Discovering it was just a decorative piece, he cursed under his breath, tossed it to the floor, and continued rummaging.
'Abyssal Creature…' Zhou Chen mulled over the term. Although he had become an Ascender and joined the Special Operations Team, for various reasons, he had yet to systematically study the lore of the Extraordinary Realm. All he knew was that "Abyssal Creature" was an incredibly broad umbrella term—so broad that even Corrupters were classified as Abyssal Creatures.
But it wasn't hard to see that thing was definitely not friendly.
"Team Seven, Team Seven, what's your status?" At that moment, a teammate's voice came through the comms channel.
"We got hit by an explosion. Condition is bad. Also, we took down the Ascender with the Bone Saber Ability, but he mutated into a Fire Slave after death," Old Yang replied.
"A Fire Slave… Damn it, is it an Abyss infection? We're screwed if all these guys turn into Fire Slaves!"
"This is Team Three. We were also hit by an explosion, but no major issues. We just teamed up with Teams Two and Four to take out two Ascenders—one with the Iron Fist Ability and one with the Blood Blade Ability. Since there's a chance they'll turn into Fire Slaves, we're going to blow them to smithereens first!"
"Old Yang, this is Team Six. We're nearby and on our way. Hang in there... Fuck, the bodies are already mutating!"
The comm link on the other end was abruptly cut. It didn't take a genius to know they were already in a tough fight.
Zhou Chen and Old Yang continued smashing open crates, but all they found were boxes upon boxes of gold, silver, jewels, and various antiques and ornaments. They didn't find anything useful at all.
"Reinforcements will arrive in five minutes." Just then, a cold voice sounded over the comms channel. It was Jiang Che.
As the leader of the Special Operations Team, it was impossible for her not to be involved in the mission. In fact, she was constantly monitoring everyone's movements from the shadows.
"Five minutes..." Zhou Chen's expression was grim. 'God knows when that Fire Slave will jump down. We might not even last until reinforcements arrive.'
Now he truly understood the dangers of being a member of the Special Operations Team. In any mission involving Extraordinary Power, unexpected situations were impossible to guard against completely. The slightest carelessness could be fatal.
Suddenly, his hands froze. He delightedly pulled two brand-new shotguns from a wooden crate.
"Old Yang, jackpot! They're the Destructive model, too. The ammo is compatible." He tossed one of the guns over as he spoke.
The moment Old Yang caught the gun, a speck of Star Dust appeared in the Wish Bottle.
Zhou Chen didn't pay it much mind and quickly reloaded.
Only with a gun in his hands could he keep from panicking.
'All fear comes from a lack of firepower.
If we had a machine gun, a grenade launcher, or an RPG right now, why would we be afraid of a single measly Fire Slave?
No such luck, though…'
"By the way, we've taken out three of the four Ascenders. Where'd the one with the hair ability go?" Zhou Chen asked, puzzled.
The words had barely left his mouth when a gunshot rang out in the distance. A spray of blood erupted from Old Yang's body, and he collapsed to the ground.
Zhou Chen's expression changed drastically. He dove to the ground the instant he heard the shot. A moment later, the sharp whistle of a bullet cut through the air just above his head.
"He's in here!" Old Yang yelled as he scrambled for cover. He cursed inwardly, 'That sneaky bastard was hiding this whole time!'
Gritting his teeth, he aimed his shotgun one-handed. With his powerful arm strength, he fired shot after shot into the distance, forcing the figure to scramble away, unable to return fire.
Zhou Chen quickly got up and provided suppressing fire. The roar of his shotgun was deafening, but the enemy had already hidden behind the mountain of crates.
"Your comrades have all been infected and turned into Abyssal Creatures! If you don't want to die, throw down your weapon and surrender. Smuggling will get you twenty years at most. It's death or prison—take your pick," Zhou Chen taunted, his focus entirely on the left and right sides of the pile of crates.
Nearby, after confirming the bullet had gone clean through his shoulder, Old Yang took out a vial filled with red liquid. He uncorked it, poured half of the potion onto his gunshot wound, and drank the rest in one gulp.
Known among Ascenders as the popular "Blood Bottle," this Alchemy Potion had an astonishingly fast recovery effect. When poured on a wound, it could heal it in just over ten seconds. Ingesting it also sped up wound healing and restored depleted Physical Strength.
"Hahahahaha..." A strange laugh suddenly came from behind the crates.
"Who do you think is responsible for all this?"
"It is their greatest honor to become servants of God!"
"The radiance of the King of Chaos will one day illuminate the World!"
"I choose neither death nor prison. Because you're the ones who are going to die!"
THUD! A heavy landing sound came from outside.
A humanoid monster slowly walked in. Its body was pitch-black, its arms were shaped like scythes, and where its head should have been, a mass of dark flames burned in mid-air.
Zhou Chen and Old Yang's hearts sank to the pit of their stomachs.