Chapter 27 – The Bloodsoaked Queen
The elite guards looked as though a heavy burden had been lifted off their shoulders, while Slyfox and Mad Dog revealed looks of extremely wariness. Had she finally come out? If so… then it was time for this battle to come to an end.
The mysterious man’s gaze flickered slightly. He didn’t seem surprised, only cautious. He let out a chuckle, then said, “You really are quite composed, to be able to wait so long before coming out.”
Cloudhawk had no idea why everyone had such strange looks on their faces. Just as he was puzzling over this question… a figure suddenly, slowly emerged from the heart of the outpost.
This figure wore a savage, demonic mask. Perfectly straight black hair cascaded across her back like a waterfall, and her voice sounded sinister and hoarse, almost as though it was several different voices merged together, making it difficult for others to discern her gender from her voice alone. However, judging from her silhouette she was definitely a woman, and one with a stupendous figure at that.
Even though she was dressed in a long, loose cloak, everyone could still vaguely make out the form-fitting leather clothes she wore beneath the cloak. No one knew what type of leather it was, but it surely was no ordinary leather. The leather clothes covered virtually every part of her entire body, including her firm and rounded rear, her long slim legs, and her pert and ample bosom. It could be said that her form-fitting leather clothes put her perfect physique and feminine curves on full display.
This woman was not carrying any weapons, wielding neither sword, knife, axe, nor staff. Nor did she wield long-ranged weaponry such as guns or bows. However… she wore a pair of extremely exquisite gloves on her hands that looked like they were formed from dark-gold silk. The gloves were studded with something that looked like gemstones. In addition, she also wore on her neck a snow-white cross that looked like a decorative necklace.
Although no one could see what she looked like or how old she was, an aura of iciness, arrogance, and skill radiated out from her in waves. When she entered the ranks of the defenders, not a single person dared to stand close to her, not even Slyfox and the other elites.
Cloudhawk couldn’t help but ask, “Who is this?”
“Shut it, kid! Don’t ask questions right now.” Slyfox gave him a hard glare. “Just be a good boy, sit back, and watch the show!”
The sweeper leader began to chuckle. “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 had been told about her the first day he had 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.
This 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 she made 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 he was unable to maintain his earlier demeanor of calm. 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 with 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, then 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 warhammer 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 warhammer miss and strike into the earth instead. Somehow, that brutal and savage attack had completely missed its target. Why? How? Had the maneater gone blind? Obviously not!
The Queen leisurely strode forward, moving past the heavy warhammer. Her movements seemed slow, but in reality she was incredibly fast. The maneater didn’t even have a chance to raise the warhammer 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 she gave him a loving stroke as though she was petting a cat.
A vibration suddenly manifested! Cloudhawk was completely shocked by what he was seeing. He clearly could 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 were suddenly emitting fiery plumes of heat. A heartbeat later, the maneater’s massive body was suddenly swallowed up by an absolutely beautiful flame which appeared out of nowhere. The terrifyingly high temperatures caused even his armor to glow red! The maneater’s body was charred into black crisp in just a few short moments, causing a nauseating stench of burnt meat to waft outwards from it.
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 to melt into the ground, causing a series of hissing, crackling sounds to be heard.
What was this? Some sort of supernatural power?
Everyone watched with tongue-tied expressions on their faces. It was as though they had 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 was in immaculate condition; not even a single hair on her head had been signed. From start to finish, she hadn’t so much as even 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 the faces of the sweepers, 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 had been holding, only to assume a two-handed grip with 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 complete 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 forwards he was like an enormous behemoth that carried 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 became 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 was bellowing 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 was quivering, and every single muscle was contracting. He gathered all of the strength and power he had in his body, including his legs, his calves, his thighs, his chest, his arms, and his wrist… then focused it all on the tip of his knife as he sent it chopping downwards.
This was no longer a human being delivering a blow. This was a flying knife that had 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 their normal limitations, forcing every single muscle to release every single scrap of power they had while holding nothing back.
This was no ordinary strike. Absolutely everything had been 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 who had been enraptured by his own dance, losing himself within it as he drew out his mind and his very soul, then 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 with 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 it 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 arising from it.