Chapter 219 - 220
Chapter 219: Special Training (Part Five)
“We’re almost there. Prepare for combat.”
Zed, who had been leaning against the wall to rest, suddenly straightened up and walked over to the hatch as he spoke.
Hearing Zed’s words, Roland and Lucy nodded and tightened their grip on their weapons.
“Oh, right—one more thing. Death here will feel very real. Don’t take it too seriously, but don’t treat it too lightly either. The sensation of dying is extremely unpleasant.”
Roland suddenly remembered something and spoke up to warn them.
The reason for that reminder was simple. During the early stages of this technology’s testing, there had been several real deaths.
Thanks to the contributions of certain “reformed” Scavengers, the technology had only recently been extracted from the system store. It was something obtained after the Apocalypse.
Because of that, Apocalypse training had never used this system.
When testing first began, Roland hadn’t told those Scavengers that the environment was virtual. Once the scenario started, the overwhelming realism led directly to fatal incidents.
Of course, the system had since been adjusted. Deaths should no longer occur, but a bit of caution was still necessary.
Lucy gave a slight nod at Roland’s reminder and stepped toward the hatch as well.
Whoosh—
Once the three of them were in position, the hatch burst open. Violent winds surged into the cabin, yet none of their expressions changed. They simply lowered their heads and surveyed the battlefield below.
The situation beneath them was grim.
Countless orange streams of energy streaked through the air. Many came from PROJECT’s security robots, yet very few managed to inflict any meaningful damage on the enemy.
Several hostile figures moved freely among the security robots. Every pass through the formation resulted in heavy casualties.
The only one capable of dealing effective damage, Heavenly Eye, was barely holding on under the combined assault of three opponents. He had no room to counterattack at all.
Seeing this, Zed wasted no time. He leapt straight down toward the battlefield.
Roland and Lucy followed immediately, though unlike Zed, they did not plunge directly into the center. Zed could slip into the Shadow Realm—neither of them could.
The moment Zed appeared, he instantly drew the attention of Thunder, Fire, and Mountain.
Thunder abandoned Heavenly Eye without hesitation. With a sliding step that left an afterimage behind, several bullets infused with terrifying energy tore through the air toward Zed, who was still mid-descent.
Just as Zed was about to intercept the attack, Roland brought two fingers together in front of him. A sharp burst of compressed air rang out.
Roland, who had been sliding down the wall with his sword embedded in it, vanished in an instant, leaving behind only a deep indentation.
Several orange sword afterimages flashed past, intercepting every bullet. In the next breath, a streak of orange light crossed dozens of meters and appeared directly in front of Thunder.
The Alpha Double-Blade, radiating razor-sharp intent, swept toward Thunder’s face.
Clang!
At the critical moment, a clear, piercing collision rang out.
Roland’s pupils contracted sharply. Sensing danger, he didn’t hesitate for a second, forcefully pushing off the ground and retreating backward.
Swish—
Almost the instant he pulled back, a blade wrapped in storm-like energy tore past, carving a horrifying gash into the ground.
“You’ve chosen the wrong path, Light.”
Yasuo flicked his katana and held it horizontally in front of himself, lowering his stance as he spoke in a low voice.
Roland rotated his wrist slightly. The earlier clash had caught him off guard, leaving his hand numb for a moment, but he had already recovered.
As for Yasuo’s words, Roland had no intention of responding. He wasn’t the real Light to begin with—and facing someone like this, speaking would only be a distraction.
The opponent before him was nothing like the one he had created. In terms of willpower, skill, and combat instinct, Yasuo far surpassed that imitation.
This was a fight that allowed no room for carelessness.
At that moment, Zed emerged from a nearby wall, clinging to it as he observed the situation.
Lucy slowly moved to Roland’s side.
Thunder gave Yasuo a slight nod, as if thanking him for the earlier intervention. After a brief exchange of looks, he bypassed them and headed straight for Zed.
Fire and Mountain followed close behind, clearly identifying Zed as the strongest threat present.
Heavenly Eye glanced at Roland and Lucy, then shifted his footing and began climbing the surrounding buildings. He was moving to support Zed.
“Looks like the situation isn’t in your favor right now.”
Roland spoke calmly as he watched the others leave.
Yasuo didn’t respond. Instead, he stepped forward sharply, closing the ten-meter distance between them in an instant, leaving barely a meter of space.
Boom!
Roland reacted in time, but the defense was rushed. The overwhelming force sent him staggering backward.
Lucy’s expression changed. She immediately hurled her daggers. The two blades transformed into purple-red streaks of light, shooting toward Yasuo’s back.
Crack!
Yasuo glanced over his shoulder, then kicked hard at Roland’s blocking arm. At the same time, he flipped backward and snapped his wrist. A wall of energy rose instantly out of thin air, stopping Lucy’s daggers.
Swish—whoosh—
Thud!
The moment the daggers fell, Lucy seemed to cross space itself, appearing directly in front of Yasuo and driving a kick toward his temple.
Yasuo raised his arm and blocked it. White shockwaves burst outward from the point of impact.
Just as Lucy was about to press the attack, Yasuo flicked his wrist again. The scabbard in his other hand shot forward, slamming into Lucy’s abdomen and sending her flying.
“Damn it!”
Pain exploded through her stomach as Lucy found herself suspended helplessly in mid-air. Yasuo, of course, didn’t miss the opening.
Cold light flashed along the blade in his hand.
Steel Slash!
The katana cleaved through the air, energy rippling outward in concentric waves. A terrifying orange arc of blade light surged straight toward Lucy’s chest.
Swish—
...
Chapter 220: Special Training (VI)
Roland frowned as sparks splashed across his face and a fresh, glaring wound opened on his shoulder.
In that split second, he entered an overclocked state and flashed in front of Lucy, trying to knock Yasuo’s attack off course with his weapon.
But things didn’t go as planned. Yasuo kept up with his speed perfectly, adjusting his angle in an instant. Unable to strike Lucy, he redirected the blow straight at Roland instead.
At that critical moment, Roland had no choice but to pay a price to block the attack.
His wrist snapped sharply as he forced the blade aside, then he sprang backward, opening some distance between them.
“Be careful. I won’t save you again next time.”
Roland tightened his grip on his weapon and shot a glance at Lucy as he spoke.
“Looks like you’re not in great form today.”
Yasuo flicked his blade and slid it back into its sheath.
“Still more than enough to deal with you.”
Roland didn’t hesitate to fire back. He stepped forward and launched his attack, leaving Lucy with a single instruction.
“Support me.”
Lucy nodded slightly. She lightly tossed the dagger in her hand behind her, then dashed to the side.
Iaijutsu!
Driven by the sudden burst of wind, the blade shot from its sheath, turning into a streak of orange light.
Swish—
Even in his overclocked state, Roland had to bend backward at the last possible moment to avoid it. The searing energy blade skimmed past him, close enough to scorch the air in front of his face.
But almost immediately, he adjusted his footing and rushed Yasuo again.
As expected, Yasuo knocked him aside once more. When the orange blade reentered Roland’s field of view, a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Yasuo sensed something was wrong and pulled back at once, but Roland still managed to leave a cut across his abdomen.
In that brief instant, Roland had activated the second blade mounted beneath his weapon.
“I didn’t expect you to use a trick like that.”
Yasuo brushed a hand over the wound on his stomach and narrowed his eyes at Roland.
Roland tightened his grip on the two-handed sword, shifted his posture, and switched to a different combat style.
Bang!
Without exchanging another word, he exploded forward. The metal floor beneath his feet caved in slightly from the force.
Yasuo didn’t hesitate either. A violent gale surged around him, orange energy wrapping his body as he charged straight in.
Boom!
At the moment they collided, a pinpoint of white light flared between them, followed by a pale orange energy wave spreading outward.
The wave suddenly contracted, then burst forth as a semicircular orange storm that surged away like a tide.
At that exact moment, Ambition’s combat system issued a warning. Lucy reacted instantly, activating her ability and cutting through the energy surge to appear right in front of them.
By then, both combatants were already covered in fresh cuts. Orange streaks of light flashed constantly around them, making it impossible to tell whose blade was striking where.
Just as Yasuo and Roland’s weapons clashed again, several purplish-red streaks shot in from all directions, targeting Yasuo’s vital points.
Yasuo’s pupils shrank. He poured strength into his arms, trying to force Roland back.
Roland saw through his intent at a glance. Electricity crackled along his weapon as he surged forward, locking Yasuo in place.
Yasuo’s gaze turned cold. He clenched his teeth, then suddenly relaxed his body, shedding all resistance.
Boom!
Roland’s strike slammed into empty space, carving a terrifying gash into the ground. Yasuo retreated instead, the cost being a fresh wound across his torso and a dagger embedded in his arm.
As he reached up to pull the weapon free, a figure suddenly appeared right in front of him.
Swish—
An arcing energy blade swept toward him.
Whoosh—
Pure instinct made Yasuo duck. The cut white hairs drifting down told just how close it had been.
He immediately counterattacked, his orange blade flashing straight toward Lucy’s chest.
Swish—
But the instant it reached her, Lucy vanished.
“Damn it!”
Realizing he had struck nothing, Yasuo knew something was wrong.
Whoosh—
As he turned back to defend, a dagger had already pierced through his nanocoating and driven toward his body.
Just as Lucy thought she had succeeded, an orange energy shield detonated outward. The violent shockwave sent her flying.
The impact caught Lucy off guard, but she quickly adjusted herself midair. Like a sleek panther, she landed gracefully behind Roland, one hand braced against the ground.
“Hah…”
Yasuo let out a breath as the orange winds continued to swirl around his energy shield.
It was his defensive mechanism, capable of both manual and automatic activation. In that instant, he had triggered it himself, preventing Lucy from dealing even greater damage and blasting away the two daggers she had left near him.
By then, Roland had already reset his stance, ready to attack again.
“That was careless…”
Yasuo narrowed his eyes as the thought crossed his mind. Just as he prepared to fight to the bitter end, a thunderous roar erupted from the side.
A massive mechanical beast, wrapped in a blue energy shield, smashed through the nearby wall and charged forward like a tank, barreling straight toward Roland and Lucy.
A figure leapt down from its back and landed beside Yasuo.
“Commander?”
“It’s time to go, Wind.”
Sejuani nodded slightly as she spoke. Several figures immediately closed in, covering Wind’s retreat.
Yasuo glanced around, said nothing, and followed them without protest.
Roland pulled Lucy close and sprinted up to the rooftop, watching Sejuani below.
She only spared them a brief look before whistling to recall the beast, then left the area.
Zed slowly appeared beside them, and the Heavenly Eye dropped down from above.
“Looks like things weren’t going well on your side,” Roland said, eyeing Zed’s damaged frame and the wounds on the Heavenly Eye.
“Yeah. Liberty, the Commander, and Judgment all showed up. The situation turned against us. Our forces are almost wiped out. If we kept fighting, we’d just be trading lives for nothing.”
Zed nodded as he spoke, then pulled out a spray and applied it to the damaged parts of his body. The wounds began healing at a visible pace. What looked like spray was actually a swarm of nanomachines.
“But they didn’t come out unscathed either. Thunder’s in terrible shape. If he doesn’t get treatment soon… heh. Even if he makes it, he’ll be out of action for a long time.”
With that, Zed waved his hand, signaling that it was time to leave.
The Heavenly Eye had remained silent the entire time, only departing after Zed’s gesture.
But Roland knew better—this guy was probably having a lively conversation inside his own head.
…
Over at Gene Power, the atmosphere was grim. Thunder’s head unit and body modules were severely damaged, his eye pierced straight through by a fist blade, and a massive gash torn across his abdomen.
Fire wasn’t doing much better, bearing a penetrating wound along with another deep mark left by a fist blade.
Only Mountain was in slightly better condition—though “better” was still far from good.
Author's Note
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