The Blades of the City of Iniquity

"What do we do?!" Inside the military tent, Wen Jifei stood, his gaze still unsteady, staring blankly at Han Qingyu. He had just finished explaining the situation in South America to everyone. It was supposed to be a tense, deeply anxious atmosphere, yet amid the silence, everyone present could not help but react with wry, helpless amusement. Of course, that bitter smile was also laced with urgency, frustration, and self-reproach. The reason Azure had assumed without question that Boss Dao of the Azure Dragon Gang was a super combat power was that Han Qingyu had deliberately crafted that persona back then to conceal his own identity, and Azure had virtually never come into contact with the man. Even the intelligence operatives Azure had planted in the City of Iniquity over all those years had never paid serious attention to such a ragged band leader scraping by among eighth-rate strays. Later, by the time they finally took notice and sought to investigate, it was already too late. After the miraculous rise of the Azure Dragon Gang, very few people across the entire City of Iniquity were able to get close to Dao Dali. At the same time, when the other three super factions—Shu You, Nguyen Thi Minh Nguyet, and Eric—all unanimously acknowledged Dao Dali's status, naturally no one in the City of Iniquity dared to probe him directly. Thus, all that was left to collect and recount were rumors. And rumors always grew more intricate and exaggerated with each telling. In some of the stories that later swept through the source energy world, the Azure Dragon Gang's top active combatant might not even be Major The Qing, but rather the "mysterious Boss Dao." Because it was Dao Dali who had protected and nurtured Major Qing back then. According to the legends of that year, when Major Qing and his companions broke out of prison and fled, hunted relentlessly by Alphonse until they were at their wits' end and forced to flee into the City of Iniquity... they spent all their money on a bottle of liquor, hoping to seek refuge under Boss Dao. It happened to be dinner time. Boss Dao downed the entire bottle in one gulp, slightly tipsy. Faced with the immense danger that sheltering them might bring, he merely chuckled. Then, he clapped Major Qing on the shoulder and said a single sentence: "Stay. From now on, your prospects are boundless." And after that came the tale countless people relished recounting: thirty years lying low, astonishing the world with a single roar, Dao Dali leading the Thirteen Stray Bands in a miraculous rise... In short, even those harboring the deepest doubts, including the "old-timers" who had lived on that block for decades, dared not assert later on that Dao Dali was not a master. "Even if he isn't stronger than Major The Qing like the rumors say, he should at least be a super." "Yeah. Major The Qing has always respected Boss Dao immensely. I heard that even now, having established their own banner, Stream Vanguard's battle cry is still 'Boss Dao has manifested!'" That was what people there said. As for Civilian Major General Pang Jinghe... He had killed a super. The Huaxia Council had always considered him a super combat power and had continually tried to keep him hidden, lest he make contact with the Sole Witness Legion and get "seduced" away by Chen Bu'e. "What do we do?" Before Han Qingyu could speak, He Tangtang asked back on his behalf. "..." Wen Jifei composed himself. "The intel says the number of Great Spikes coming from Antarctica is likely between four and five thousand. According to Azure's estimates, there could be three or four red-shoulders among them. Of course, because they split into two waves, the actual number of red-shoulders cannot be judged so simply. "Currently, Azure's intelligence department leans toward at most three, because the number of red-shoulders that appeared here in Oceania clearly exceeded the normal ratio. So they originally thought... with Shu You present, seven supers should be enough." Having said that, Wen Jifei counted on his fingers: two, two, one. In the current situation, even disregarding individual super combat prowess and specific traits, just looking at the raw numbers, it was clearly not enough. Moreover, what if there were more than three? "Then what is Azure planning to do now? They should send more people—no, send more supers over, right?" He Tangtang asked anxiously again. Now, how many troops Azure dispatched no longer really mattered. If they went by ship, leaving aside whether they could make it in time, whether that many people could even arrive was questionable. What South America needed right now was high-end combat power: top-tiers and sub-top-tiers for the large-scale battlefield, and people who could stand before a red-shoulder on that other battlefield of life and death. "Yeah, they will," Wen Jifei nodded. "They're already making arrangements." As for how exactly they were arranging it, how many or who, Wen Jifei did not know at the moment. In any case, General Bochen was wounded, and Christine could never leave. "However, how Azure responds right now isn't actually something we need to consider. Over the past few days of fighting, because of the mobile drops of Great Spikes including red-shoulders, Azure's casualties are actually far more severe than we imagined. From what I've gathered, the sacrifices among super combatants alone have already exceeded six... Right now, the swarm of Great Spikes hasn't left, Daie is almost certainly out there too... and along the coast, there are still nearly six million Oceania residents who haven't boarded ships." Zhe Qiuhong suddenly interjected. Waiting until all eyes turned to her, she continued, "Right now, all we need to decide is whether we go or not... In my opinion, we must go." This was the first time Zhe Qiuhong seemed to speak on Azure's behalf, and she had said quite a mouthful. Having finished, she turned to look at Han Qingyu. Concealed by the iron armor, she could not see Han Qingyu's expression or condition. "Yes, we must go," Han Qingyu said. Zhe Qiuhong tilted her head, a flash of joy in her eyes. "To put it narrowly, never mind the world—we all came out of that place. Though the City of Iniquity might have everyone's enemies, it also has the friends and family of Stream Vanguard." The Han Iron Armor clattered as its head turned, looking at everyone. "Fly both the Swordfish and the Qing Spear over. Aside from the Needlefish-class and Yang Qingbai staying behind with me, everyone else goes." "...What about you? You're not going?!" Zhe Qiuhong asked on everyone's behalf. "You shouldn't need me, right? This should be enough." Han Qingyu looked at Wu Xu—who was more than just a top combat power—then at Theodore, and the bunch of top-tiers present... Spreading his hands, he said, "Besides, with me like this right now, even if I went, I might not be able to fight." A brief silence fell over the tent. "Then I... I'm not going either," Wu Xu said. "You definitely have to go," Wen Jifei said. "Yeah, without you, I'm afraid it won't be enough." Han Qingyu looked at Wu Xu and said, "It's fine. Come right back once you're done hacking them down. I'll stay put quietly here; nothing will happen to me." "Mm." Rusty Sister clattered as she stepped up beside Han Qingyu and said, "It's fine. I'm here." She was not going. Then, "It seems there's no real need for me to go either," Wen Jifei said. In the end, the Qing Spear-class and Swordfish-class airships rushing urgently to South America carried away everyone from Stream Vanguard on the Oceania battlefield, with the exception of Han Qingyu, Yang Qingbai, Rusty Sister, and Wen Jifei. Of the two sniper rifles, one went. Milla was not very willing, but considering the bigger picture, she agreed. No, there was one more. Only after the airships departed did Han Qingyu and Wen Jifei realize that Zhe Qiuhong had not boarded either. ... The South American battlefield. The evening sky was covered in crimson clouds. Dense swarms of black specks moved rapidly between the cloud layers. The force of Great Spikes coming from Antarctica did not even climb to circle and scout. Like stones hurled from trebuchets, they traced arcs across the sky and slammed continuously into the plains with resounding roars. The plain was dead silent; on the surface, not a single figure could be seen. Until the Great Spike crafts that hit the ground began ejecting one after another... *Clatter, shing...* Beneath the concealed fortifications built in advance by the Azure defenders, blade after blade, row after row of combat sabers were bared. These blades were not standard issue; their designs were a wild, chaotic mess. These were the blades of the City of Iniquity.