Chapter 80: Checkmate
"Explosion?!"
In another dormitory building, several new soldiers suddenly stood up, looking in the direction of the explosion. Their faces changed.
"Should we go help them?" One of them frowned and asked.
"Just take care of yourselves," a voice came from afar, followed by a purple vortex rapidly forming beneath them.
Boom—!! The explosions that had been sucked into the vortex from the warehouse earlier burst out, bringing with them terrifying shrapnel and flames. In an instant, half of the dormitory building was blown into rubble!
From the shattered ruins, a concrete sphere slowly opened, and several new soldiers shot out from within!
"We've been surrounded! Charge!!"
The leading soldier shouted loudly. The long blade in his hand emitted a red glow, trailing a long, fiery streak as he charged toward the vortex, with colorful attacks following behind him!
"Reverse the force field."
A crisp clapping sound rang out from the distance, and the balance plate floated in mid-air, pointing at them.
The gravity on the soldiers was instantly reversed. They suddenly felt lighter, as if pulled by an unseen force toward the sky. The entire attack formation collapsed in an instant.
At that moment, a giant hammer shadow came roaring down from the air!
Roses also floated in the sky, gripping a large hammer, shouting fiercely!
"Here we go!"
Boom—!!
The hammer directly smashed the soldiers floating in the air. Even those who barely managed to dodge the blow were caught in the force field of the balance plate and were smashed again.
From the appearance of the vortex to the present, it had only been half a minute, and this squad of ten or so soldiers had been wiped out.
Boom—!!
A blinding flash of light erupted from another dormitory building, and the balance plate, along with Roses, slowly descended, turning to look.
"Wasn't Yue Gui just supposed to stall the other group? Why did it cause such a huge commotion?" The vortex murmured.
Wang Mian, standing beside them, squinted his eyes. "It looks like Yue Gui ran into some tough opponents. We should go there as well."
The four figures shimmered and sped off toward the direction of the explosion.
As they left, Lin Qiye slowly lowered the binoculars in his hands, his expression serious.
"As expected, they were defeated, and there was no chance to counterattack." Mo Li spoke calmly.
"The Masked Team is dead set on a lightning-fast attack. With this fierce momentum, their temporary squad can't hold up." Lin Qiye shook his head.
"What do we do now? Are we still standing by?" Bai Li Fatty looked at Lin Qiye.
"No, now we must act." Lin Qiye's gaze fell on the exploding dormitory building in the distance. "If I'm not mistaken, the one fighting Yue Gui now is another ultra-high-risk target. As one of the few forces on the field that can stand against the Masked Team, we can't let him be eliminated so easily."
"We'll go around behind the Masked Team and, if we get the chance, help that ultra-high-risk target with a strike. If not… we'll rescue whoever we can and retreat. Save as many as we can."
"Of course, the premise is that we don't get eliminated ourselves."
…
Boom—!!!
A blinding fireball erupted from the dormitory building, shattering all the windows on that floor. A figure, blurry as moonlight, flashed out of the ruins, with a young man hot on their heels!
Yue Gui's feet lightly pressed against the wall, and he leaped backward, throwing a short sword that streaked through the air, leaving behind a faint afterimage as it aimed for Shen Qingzhu's throat!
Shen Qingzhu's pupils contracted, and he quickly extended two fingers to pinch the sword!
The surrounding air solidified like iron before him, trapping the short sword, which was just an inch from his neck. With a flick of his fingers, he sent the sword flying several dozen meters away.
Yue Gui reached beneath his cloak, pulling out two more short swords. He was about to act when Shen Qingzhu snapped his fingers!
The air between them rapidly compressed, and at the same time, an electric spark erupted from Shen Qingzhu's ring!
Boom—!!
Scorching flames erupted, and Yue Gui's body was once again enveloped in moonlight. His figure wavered before he retreated over ten meters.
"When the oxygen and nitrogen levels in the air are compressed to a certain ratio, it creates a condition for spontaneous combustion. A slight spark can trigger an explosion."
Shen Qingzhu casually placed his hands in his pockets, speaking calmly. "My wide-range indiscriminate kill capability is your natural enemy."
"But you can only manipulate the air within a ten-meter radius, can't you?" Yue Gui gripped his short sword, staring into Shen Qingzhu's eyes. "With your current level, you're far from being able to achieve wide-range indiscriminate killing."
Shen Qingzhu's eyes narrowed, and a trace of anger appeared on his face. "Against you, it's more than enough!"
The two charged at each other simultaneously!
At that moment, a large hammer came hurtling down from the sky!
Shen Qingzhu's pupils contracted, and he suddenly stopped, holding his hands out as if to stop the hammer coming straight at him!
The air within a ten-meter radius was rapidly compressed, forming an air wall above his head to block the hammer.
Clang—!!
The hammer crashed down, and the ground beneath Shen Qingzhu cracked as if an earthquake had hit. Cracks spread rapidly from his feet!
Shen Qingzhu groaned, a trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. His figure wavered, stumbling to the ground.
The air wall shattered inch by inch, and the hammer above his head rapidly shrank before landing back in Roses' hands, where she casually twirled it as if it were a toy.
"The Forbidden Ruin Series 068, [Qi Min]. Another ultra-high-risk Forbidden Ruin..." Tian Ping slowly walked beside the vortex, speaking softly. "No wonder Instructor Yuan wanted us to intervene. This is indeed tricky."
"They say there are three ultra-high-risk targets among the new recruits this time, aside from the agents. The woman with the katana, this man manipulating the air… and where's the other one?" The vortex looked around.
"He should be lying in wait nearby. Stay alert," Wang Mian said indifferently.
As soon as he finished speaking, windows in the nearby dormitories exploded, and a series of dark gun barrels poked out—rifles, submachine guns, sniper cannons, and even grenade launchers!
In the hallways, over twenty new soldiers stood, their fingers glowing with various colors, their expressions grim as they eyed the Masked Team.
At the same time, four new soldiers suddenly appeared at the rear of the two buildings and pressed their hands to the ground!
Earth walls, barriers, vines, steel spikes… various walls of different kinds rose from the ground, completely blocking the retreat paths of the Masked Team!
Amidst the ruins, Shen Qingzhu shakily rose to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, and coldly smiled at the five approaching figures.
"Checkmate, [Masked]."