The sweeper leader began chuckling. “The commander of Blackflag Outpost, the Bloodsoaked Queen… your reputation precedes you.”
The Bloodsoaked Queen? The commander of the outpost? Cloudhawk finally remembered that the outpost had a leader! He was told about her the first day he arrived, but this leader was so mysterious and low-key that in the past month and a half, Cloudhawk hadn’t even heard any stories about her, to say nothing of meeting her.
Her actions made no sense though. What took her so long? Why did she wait for the outpost to be beaten into such a bad condition before finally making her appearance?
The mysterious, powerful leader of the sweeper battalion licked his lips, his tongue long and slender. He couldn’t hide the look of frenzied lust in his eyes and was unable to maintain his earlier calm demeanor. He was like a hunter who, after experiencing countless tribulations, had finally found his prey… or perhaps he was a treasure seeker who had finally found a great treasury after sailing through oceans and climbing through mountains. Excitement, exhilaration, nervousness, and other emotions filled his breast, causing his body to start to tremble. “Once I kill you, I’ll take control over this outpost.”
The Bloodsoaked Queen’s face was covered by that terrifying mask, preventing anyone from seeing the emotions on her face. Her two eyes, however, gleamed behind the mask with a look that was as sharp as a sword and even more piercing to the gaze than the rays of the rising sun.
“No need to put on pretenses in front of me.” The Bloodsoaked Queen’s hoarse voice sounded like the shattering of glass, but a hint of rage could be heard within that sinister coldness. The rage didn’t seem like a blazing inferno; rather, it was like smoldering coals that had long ago merged into her soul and become a part of her. “I know who you are, and I know why you have come here. I also know who it is that stands behind you. So… let’s cut the crap. I’ll give you a chance. Come at me.”
The mysterious man’s face stiffened momentarily, but then that look of wild excitement once more appeared in his eyes. “Good. Good! Then I’ll see for myself how powerful people who have come from that place are!”
The mysterious man, however, was not in a rush to attack. Instead, he gestured with his hand. The largest, most muscular maneater acknowledged his order and burst forth like a beast that had just been released from its shackles! The maneater ran forward, his heavy footsteps pounding into the earth. The maneater’s great war hammer was covered with the crimson gore of the countless outpost guards he had slain and he delivered a huge smashing blow straight at the Queen.
THRUM!
The earth itself shook and a storm of dust arose! From afar, Cloudhawk could see the war hammer miss and strike into the earth instead. Somehow, that brutal and savage attack completely missed its target. Why? How? Had the maneater gone blind? Obviously not!
The Queen leisurely strode forward, moving past the heavy war hammer. Her movements seemed slow, but in reality she was incredibly fast. The maneater didn’t even have a chance to raise the war hammer a second time before she was standing right in front of him. She gently placed her right hand against the heavy cuirass covering the maneater’s thick chest and gave him a loving stroke as though she were petting a cat.
A vibration suddenly manifested! Cloudhawk was completely shocked by what he saw. He could clearly sense a strange thrumming sensation, almost like a guitar string being plucked, appear before him once more. He instantly turned to stare at the source of the sensation… only to find that it was actually coming from the Queen’s black gloves!
Cloudhawk could sense the vibrations growing stronger and stronger. Some sort of energy was building up rapidly! Before he even had a chance to figure out what was going on, the maneater suddenly let out a miserable scream!
His eyes, his nose, his mouth, his ears… even the crevices of his helmet suddenly emitted fiery plumes of heat. A heartbeat later, the maneater’s massive body was suddenly swallowed up by an absolutely beautiful flame that appeared out of nowhere. The terrifyingly high temperatures caused even his armor to glow red! The maneater’s body was charred into a black crisp in just a few short moments, causing a nauseating stench of burnt meat to waft outwards.
Thud! The flame disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared. By the time the maneater collapsed, its entire body had been charred. Its armor was still glowing red and had begun melting into the ground, emitting a series of hissing, crackling sounds.
What was this? Some sort of supernatural power?
Everyone watched with tongue-tied expressions on their faces. It was as though they’d seen a tiger attack a mouse, only for the mouse to suddenly turn and swallow the tiger whole.
Despite the high temperature in the area around her, the Bloodsoaked Queen remained in immaculate condition; not even a single hair on her head had been singed. From start to finish, she hadn’t so much as glanced at the maneater. Her eyes behind her mask were even colder than ice as she swept her gaze across the other sweepers, seeming to stab at them with her eyes. Looks of terror appeared on their faces and they all took several steps back.
The mysterious man visibly trembled as a look of slight fear appeared on his face. The eager look in his eyes, however, had not diminished in the slightest. He tossed away one of the long knives he was holding, only to assume a two-handed grip on the other. “So you really did come from that place. Is this the power you brought from there to the wastelands?”
The Bloodsoaked Queen’s voice was as hoarse and cold as ever. “You aren’t worthy of knowing the answer to that question. My patience has its limits. Make your move.”
The mysterious man knew that the difference in power between the two of them was enormous. He would only have one chance. Just one! And he only had it because the Bloodsoaked Queen had chosen to give it to him, most likely because she held him in utter contempt. Even though he clearly knew how terrifying she was, he still wanted to give her a try… because he wanted to test out that inconceivable power in person!
He suddenly moved, his accumulated power sending him forward like an arrow out of a bow. He was moving much faster than he had previously and even his long knife seemed to quiver with anticipation, as though it could sense its master’s determination and killing intent. He wasn’t tall nor was he very muscular, but when he charged forward, he was like an enormous behemoth carrying an irresistible, inexhaustible amount of power. This aura alone would be enough to terrify any of the powerful experts present, making it hard for them to even think about trying to take this strike head-on.
Ten more meters!
The mysterious man’s face grew increasingly berserk. It was as though the entire world had vanished, with only the masked woman remaining. He seemed to have focused all of his thoughts, all of his energy onto this unmoving, statue-like woman. His every single blood cell bellowed with rage, as though countless beasts were rampaging through his veins, screaming out for release!
Five meters. Four meters. Three meters. Two meters!
When his speed reached its utmost limit, he suddenly flexed his legs. Every single cell in his body quivered and every single muscle contracted. He gathered all of the strength and power he had in his body, from his legs, his calves, his thighs, his chest, his arms, and his wrist… and focused it all onto the tip of his knife as he sent it chopping down.
This was no longer a human being delivering a blow. This was a flying knife with a human attached to it! The man was an extremely high-class control metahuman. In order to make his knife faster, sharper, and more powerful, he had caused every single cell in his body to surpass its normal limitation, forcing every single muscle to release every single scrap of power it had while holding nothing back.
It was no ordinary strike. Absolutely everything was poured into it; his strength, his momentum, his mental focus, his willpower… it had all been infused into this chop! The man had no other thoughts in his mind. He was like a dancer enraptured by his own dance, losing himself within it as he drew out his mi
nd and his very soul, and merged them into this strike.
Nobody could stop his knife. Even steel would be sheared through like mud! The man could almost smell the intoxicating scent of the woman’s blood spurting out from her body and splashing over him, bathing him in its warmth like the rays of the sun.
The Queen finally made her move… and the man’s flashing, dazzling knife suddenly stopped in midair.
The knife would’ve been able to shear through steel like butter, but was actually blocked by a single, graceful hand. Or, to be precise, the five long fingers on that hand had latched onto the knife. The parts of the knife that were in contact with those gloves instantly began to glow red with heat, and even a few wafts of white smoke could be seen rising from it.
28 Breathtaking Power
The Bloodsoaked Queen had a cavalier attitude about her, as though she’d done nothing more than catch a butterfly that flew within her flower garden. It seemed like such a casual action, but it instantly froze the long knife despite the shocking amount of power that had been poured into it.
All momentum had been lost. All of the murderous intent within it was dispelled. The mental energy, willpower, strength, and soul that had been poured into that knife were of no avail; it seemed like it was trapped in a steel vise, with no way to withdraw at all. The snow-bright blade quickly began turning red from heat, like a piece of iron in a furnace.
The Bloodsoaked Queen’s grip tightened and the red-hot knife began to break apart. A spider web of cracks appeared on its surface, as though the knife were a fragile piece of glass on the verge of shattering.
“You-” The mysterious man’s deep, hooded gaze was now filled with shock and awe. He was only able to get this single word out because in the next instant, a seal suddenly lit up on the Queen’s gloves as she unleashed an even greater amount of force through her palms.
The knife exploded! A terrifying, beautiful ball of fire erupted between the two as the energy-filled knife blew up like a bomb that had been ignited. Countless metal shards sprayed in every direction. The mysterious man was blasted away by the force of the explosion, with his face, chest, and arms all punctured by the flying metal shards while the blazing flames caused his entire body to be covered with horrendous burns. By the time he crashed to the ground, he looked like a hole-riddled rag doll that had been set on fire.
Cloudhawk furiously rubbed his eyes. What the hell had just happened? All he saw was the mysterious man charge towards the Queen. Moments later, there was a sudden explosion! All this happened far too quickly so he hadn’t been able to make out all the details… but when the Bloodsoaked Queen had made her move, Cloudhawk had sensed a ripple of power emerge.
Such incredible power! The mysterious leader of the sweeper battalion was already a top-notch expert of the wastelands, but when faced with the Bloodsoaked Queen, he was absolutely nothing at all. He suffered a disastrous defeat!
The mysterious man himself hadn’t expected that the difference in power between them would be so great. There was simply no way to bridge the chasm between the two of them. Moments later, a tendril of fear suddenly snaked its way out from the depths of his soul and spread like wildfire throughout his mind. He only had one thought left – flee!
He had been a fool. A complete fool! This woman was someone from that legendary place; even his master was slightly wary of her. How could a mere wastelander like himself possibly contend against her?
When Cloudhawk noticed that the man was about to flee, he immediately called out, “Hey, commander! He’s gonna run for it!”
“Shut your fucking mouth! Are you trying to get yourself killed?” Slyfox immediately clamped his hands around Cloudhawk’s mouth as beads of sweat appeared on his pudgy face. The power the Bloodsoaked Queen had just displayed caused him to feel a sense of terror as well. “Don’t ya know how the Bloodsoaked Queen got her nickname? D’ya really think yer in a position to be givin’ her orders?”
The Bloodsoaked Queen had only been in the outpost for roughly a year and for the vast majority of that time, she was absent or hidden. And yet, her fame and prestige resoundingly eclipsed that of any captain. The Tartarus mercenaries were forced to humble themselves, while the members of the elite squad had all chosen to serve her and die for her! Why? Because of the overwhelming, crushing amount of power she possessed… as well as her absolutely cruel and dominating nature!
Anyone who lived in Blackflag Outpost for more than a year would never be able to forget that horrifying battle from roughly a year ago.
The Queen was in no mood to pay any attention to trash like Cloudhawk, but she also completely ignored the terrified, fleeing sweeper leader. She silently unclipped the cross from her necklace and gently lifted it up with her two hands. Moments later, she did something that completely astonished everyone.
She went down on one knee.
She clasped the cross tightly in her hands and began praying softly in an extremely sincere, devout voice. “O almighty gods of radiant light, I pray to thee with all my soul, with all my life, with all my heart. Please bestow your power upon thy child…” This prayer was filled with such sincerity and piety, but when it came out in that hoarse, sinister voice, it truly sounded strange to the extreme.
The cross suddenly began to glow and with each passing second, it grew brighter and brighter! Cloudhawk’s eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. “What the hell is this?”
The Bloodsoaked Queen rose to her feet once more and lifted the glowing cross high into the air. She looked almost like a holy paladin lifting a blade that exorcised demons… and when she brought the “sword” down, the light completely disappeared into her palms, transforming into a blade-like arc of light that shot out dozens of meters, carving out a deep gouge in the earth as it shot off after the fleeing man.
The light washed over him and cut through him as though he were just a piece of paper. His body was cut in half from his right shoulder to his left flank. Momentum carried the two halves of his body forward three meters, with the flesh around his terrifying wounds having turned completely black, as though charred by fire. The nature of his wounds was perhaps the reason he didn’t immediately die, as he struggled to claw forward with his one remaining arm.
A pair of boots appeared in front of him. He lifted his head, only to see that woman once more… but the fear actually began to slowly vanish from his eyes. Now that he knew he was going to die, that look of wild fervor began to fill his gaze once more. “I’m impressed, demon hunter!”
The Bloodsoaked Queen asked coldly, “Where is he?”
The dying, bisected man began roaring with laughter, but his laughter sounded like the bleating of a dying mountain goat. The Bloodsoaked Queen narrowed her eyes. She remained as cold and distant as ever, but her words were filled with menace. “Where. Is. He.”
“Are you afraid?” The dying man didn’t seem to understand the situation he was in. He roared in a hoarse and brash voice, “I’ll never tell you. Keep living in fear and pain. You will never be able to get your revenge. You-” But his voice suddenly cut off as a booted foot crushed his head into pulp.
The Queen turned towards the outpost warriors, her cloak fluttering in the air behind her. She seemed to move in a leisurely manner, but she actually moved with incredible speed. Moments later, she vanished from everyone’s field of vision, leaving behind only three words.
“Kill them all.”
The outpost warriors immediately let out excited roars and howls. This was the might of their commander, the commander of Blackflag Outpost – she was invincible, unfathomable, and unbelievable! This was the second time the Queen had fought ever since she had taken over command of the outpost and her power was absolutely stunning!
Even creatures as foolish as the sweepers realized that with this powerful female guarding Blackflag Outpost, there was no chance at all for them to take over this place!
“FOR BLACKFLAG OUTPOST!”
“KILL THEM ALL!”
Grizz
ly led the warriors of Blackflag Outpost in an inexorable, unstoppable charge. Yet another frenzied and bloody battle erupted, but this time it was the sweepers who were driven to despair and cornered like animals. The two sides fought bitterly, as though possessed by bloodlust and driven mad by rage, but there was no doubt as to what the end result would be.
Cloudhawk, however, was focused on the Queen’s disappearing silhouette. There was no way she had won as easily as it had seemed! Cloudhawk had noticed that after she used that final dazzling attack, it seemed as though something inside her body was completely wrung dry, almost like a reservoir that had lost all of its water. Although she looked as cold and powerful as before, she had already reached her limits. He could sense that the ripples emanating from within her body had dropped down to an incredibly weak level.
Cloudhawk felt certain that if another powerful foe appeared, the Queen would have no chance to fight back at all. She was clearly very powerful; clearly, she could’ve slain the sweeper leader with ease using a much less taxing attack. Why then, had she taken on such a huge risk in expending all of her energy to kill him in such a manner?
There was only one possible answer. She was putting on a false front, a show.
Cloudhawk suspected that this attack against the outpost wasn’t as simple as it seemed. The sweepers had probably been employed or driven to launch this attack, and it was likely that the person hiding behind them was the one who created that sandstorm at the very beginning. This battle most likely had nothing to do with the sweepers or Blackflag Outpost at all. Instead, it was a test, a little skirmish between two freaks who both possessed supernatural powers.
Still, what mattered was that this brutal battle was about to come to an end, thanks to the defeat of the sweeper leader. The surviving sweepers finally began to flee, abandoning their vehicles, their mounts, their weapons, and their equipment. All of those things were claimed by Blackflag Outpost as spoils of war and the outpost guards and mercenaries were all excitedly circling and claiming various piles of items as their own.
The Wastelander Page 22
