Chương 189: Firefighting

Li Qinwu stepped out of the Chief's residence and looked toward the outer residential sectors of Iron City. Plumes of smoke and dust were rising from the area; fires had evidently broken out.

"An elite enemy squad? Or transcendent combatants?" Li Qinwu drew his sword and strode straight toward the urban area. Previously, through Fear, he had witnessed the cat-girl infiltrate the city. Relying on extreme agility and urban complexity, she had moved like a phantom, rendering regular forces helpless. For that reason, Li Qinwu had conducted drills in advance.

The moment an elite team or transcendent strike occurred, the early-warning system would trigger, civilians would evacuate, and military units would rapidly occupy the streets to lock down key intersections. To counter high-mobility infiltrators who traversed residential rooftops, Li Qinwu had erected watchtowers in every street. These towers stood five meters higher than the rooftops, housing a squad each.

If guards spotted enemies moving swiftly across roofs, they could open fire to suppress reckless maneuverability. Tracing the sound of gunshots, Li Qinwu reached a watchtower and shouted up to the defenders: "Where are the enemies?!" His voice boomed above the gunfire. Recognizing Li Qinwu, a soldier pointed down the block.

"Over there! On the rooftops—two enemies!!" Li Qinwu accelerated, leapt from the ground directly onto a roof, and spotted two figures in green robes about 200 meters away, tossing explosive devices indiscriminately. Their situation was hardly comfortable. Guards from at least three towers were firing on them, forcing them to move continuously to avoid getting hit by lead balls. Li Qinwu retrieved his greatsword from storage and closed in rapidly.

In his defense doctrine, regular soldiers served to issue warnings and delay high-tier intruders until internal transcendent forces could react and eliminate them. While Li Qinwu lacked the capacity to cultivate full-fledged transcendent squads for now, he could mass-produce mid-to-high tier forces, such as Level 5 units or Incinerators. He planned to form quick-reaction forces from Level 5 units once the high-intelligence officer and administrative frameworks were established.

For now, Old Li had to take the field himself. Leaping across rooftops, Li Qinwu pressed directly toward the two bombers. The pair could no longer find high-value targets, and the tower snipers kept them scrambling. Pausing for even a second meant taking a bullet. Mid-evasion, both men suddenly felt an oppressive aura rushing toward them. Turning, they saw an armored man wielding a greatsword barreling through the air. Terror struck them, but before they could react, the armored man was already upon them!

Drawing their mithril longswords, the two Apostles unleashed dual sword arcs toward Li Qinwu—the same technique used by Leon the Hero, though noticeably weaker. Li Qinwu ignored the slash waves entirely. Tanking the strikes with his plate armor, he closed the distance and swung his greatsword down. DUANG! With a metallic clash, one Apostle screamed as he flew backward like a meteor, smashing onto the street below with broken bones. Waiting soldiers below rushed forward, binding him tightly with iron chains.

Li Qinwu was slightly surprised. That was it? So weak? Yet, surprisingly, a direct strike hadn't killed the man instantly. He turned toward the second enemy, his gaze lingering on the man's armor and longsword. Ah, mithril. No wonder. Li Qinwu's eyes gleamed with interest. These guys were delivering free mithril! He charged the remaining infiltrator. Terrified by the monster before him, the second Apostle turned to flee. But Li Qinwu's raw stats were superior; within a few rooftop leaps, he closed the gap.

Li Qinwu brought the flat of his heavy blade down against the back of the man's skull. The mithril helmet deformed slightly, but the kinetic force transferred like a shield bash, fracturing the skull beneath. The Apostle went limp and collapsed on the roof. Li Qinwu grabbed the body, tossed it to the street below for soldiers to guard, and set off to locate the rest. Thanks to the watchtower network, Li Qinwu needed only to run toward the sound of gunfire.

He pondered that if the Alliance possessed flying races, tracking enemies and forming an air force would be far easier. Minutes later, he arrived at a watchtower billowing thick smoke. The squad inside had been wiped out, and the culprit—an Apostle—was casually stepping out while wiping blood from his sword. Sensing danger, the Apostle looked up, locked eyes with the rapidly approaching Li Qinwu, and felt his skin crawl.

"This guy! He's absurdly strong!" Panicking, he pulled a magic artifact from his pack and hurled it directly at Li Qinwu. Li Qinwu swatted the device aside mid-sprint. It detonated in midair with a fire blast comparable to a 125mm high-explosive shell. Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators! Closing the distance, Li Qinwu raised his greatsword and brought it down in a brutal overhead strike.

The Apostle raised his mithril sword to parry, but his strength was negligible against Li Qinwu's power. The heavy blade forced the mithril sword down, smashing into the helmet. The Apostle's spine snapped under the impact, killing him instantly. Li Qinwu surveyed the corpse. Unequipped, these infiltrators were roughly one tier above a Level 5 unit; with mithril gear, one could take on ten Level 5 soldiers. However, Level 5 soldiers could be mass-produced, whereas these discount-transcendents might not be.

A 20-man quick-reaction team composed of Level 5 units should comfortably handle such threats in the future. Just as Li Qinwu prepared to move toward the next gunshot location, a heavy shockwave shook the ground, followed by a violent detonation. Li Qinwu turned in shock toward the blast source—the Industrial Zone! Dense plumes of smoke and towering flames erupted from the sector.

"Fuck! It's on fire!!" Anxiety seized Li Qinwu. The Magic Blast Furnace was in that sector; if it burned down, the loss would be catastrophic! Over at the Magic Blast Furnace, a company of Penal Corps guards had been wiped out by Apostle No. 1. No. 1 was far stronger than his peers. Ambushing the guard post at the industrial entrance, he unleased ten rapid sword arcs in an instant, carving through the defenders and clearing the path.

Without breaking stride, he charged into the industrial complex, hurling explosive artifacts to shatter multiple blast furnaces. Furthermore, his pack contained several incendiary arrays. When triggered, they generated a firestorm spanning ten meters for three minutes—designed specifically for arson. Leaping onto a workshop roof, No. 1 slashed through the timber ceiling, tossed an incendiary array inside without checking the contents, and bounded away. BOOM!

Mana crystals flared, igniting a violent vortex of fire that consumed everything inside the warehouse.

"Fire! Fire!!" Warehouse workers shouted in panic, assembling with water buckets to douse the flames. Tie-Ouk, who was testing weapons nearby, rushed out upon hearing the commotion. Seeing multiple workshops ablaze, he gasped in horror:"Ah! The musket warehouse! Hurry! Put out the fire! There are 500 new muskets inside!!" Grabbing a bucket, Tie-Ouk ran toward a water cistern. Suddenly, he heard tiles crunching above and caught a glimpse of a green shadow.

The next instant, an explosion rocked the neighboring workshop, sending flames roaring out of the windows.

"Ah! No! Damn you! Help! There's an arsonist here! Somebody!!" Tie-Ouk shouted for assistance, but with fires sprouting everywhere and the district in utter chaos, no one could hear him. Desperate, Tie-Ouk saw the figure land on the roof of the weapons testing facility. Black powder was stored inside! If ignited, the entire facility would detonate! Tie-Ouk's heart pounded. Spotting a loaded musket sitting on the range bench, he seized it, aimed upward, and pulled the trigger. Above, No.

1 had just sliced open the roof and raised an incendiary array to throw down. BANG! The lead ball shattered the device, showering magical fragments from No. 1's hand. No. 1 looked down at Tie-Ouk in rage; that had been his last array. Tie-Ouk discarded the empty gun, grabbed another, raised it, and fired. BANG! The bullet struck No. 1's chest plate, flattening harmlessly into a small mark.

"Fallen human, redeem your sins in death!" A sword light flashed down, shattering the musket in Tie-Ouk's hands before carving across his chest. His ribs collapsed, exposing organs to the air. Tie-Ouk crashed to the ground, blood pooling beneath him. Coughing up blood, his vision began to blur.

"Son... my son..." he rasped as his final words.

"May the Goddess of Life forgive your sins," No. 1 stated cold-bloodedly before bounding away into the distance. The inferno spread rapidly from workshop to workshop. Fire Brigade Chief Ke-Qi led his crew to the edge of the Industrial Zone, but froze at the sight of the roaring firestorm, afraid to advance. The deputy chief, a human, leaned in and whispered carefully: "Chief, what do we do?" Asking meant he had no desire to plunge into an inferno where one misstep meant being burned alive.

Ke-Qi hesitated, caught between fear of the fire and dread of being held accountable afterward. Understanding Ke-Qi's nature, the deputy hinted: "Chief, fires have broken out in multiple urban sectors. We need to suppress them quickly." Ke-Qi's eyes lit up. Of course! If the fire brigade was busy extinguishing fires in the city, missing the industrial blaze was completely understandable! Pointing toward smoke plumes in the city, Ke-Qi shouted dramatically: "Ah! Fires in the urban sector!

Follow me to put them out at once!!" The brigade turned away from the burning industrial complex and hurried toward the town. A goblin worker spotted their departure and shouted frantically, trying to call them back, but they kept marching away.

"Come back! Help put out the fire!!" The goblin worker watched in despair as the fire began consuming adjacent structures. Suddenly, a massive column of Penal Corps troops emerged from the town road, led by Li Qinwu himself. Seeing the inferno out of control, Li Qinwu had gathered 500 guards and over 2, 000 civilian volunteers to battle the blaze.

"Someone give me a status report!!" Li Qinwu roared. A soot-covered human worker ran up, shouting: "The fire started in the warehouse district and is spreading toward the workshops and the Magic Blast Furnace!!" Li Qinwu's heart sank.

"Is there a containment plan?!"

"Yes! For the workshop sector, clear combustibles from two warehouses and pour water to hold the line!

"For the Magic Blast Furnace, we must clear a firebreak! But the fire there is spreading fast, and the testing range holds dangerous black powder!" Li Qinwu cursed under his breath. The Magic Blast Furnace was the foundation of the Alliance's industrial future; losing it was unacceptable. He turned to the crowd: "Citizens of the Alliance! Head toward the workshops immediately and set up a firebreak!!" The civilian volunteers followed the worker toward the workshop line.

Li Qinwu turned to the remaining Penal Corps soldiers, his eyes bloodshot: "Warriors! The moment of truth is upon us!

"You enjoy richer food, fine liquor, the sturdiest armor, and sharpest weapons. You bask in glory and the admiration of our people!

"Now is the time to repay that honor! Prove to the citizens that you deserve everything you have received!

"Officers, step forward!" The officers took a step forward in unison. Li Qinwu shouted: "I lead! The officers follow! Warriors, charge!" Li Qinwu plunged into the smoke, followed resolutely by his officers and soldiers. The flames near the Magic Blast Furnace raged violently, threatening to encircle the structure. Li Qinwu ordered demolition charges placed along the line to blast a firebreak, while he personally dashed toward the weapons testing range. Thick, suffocating smoke enveloped the testing building.

With flames licking the outer walls, entering meant risking a catastrophic black powder explosion. Just as he hesitated, a massive torrent of water descended from the sky, dousing the flames surrounding the facility. Li Qinwu looked up to see the airship hovering above the complex, releasing large water spheres generated by its magic arrays.

"Haha!!" Laughing aloud, Li Qinwu rushed into the facility's magazine and stored thirty crates of black powder directly into his inventory. With the explosion hazard neutralized, Li Qinwu turned to leave, but caught a faint metallic smell of blood amid the smoke. Following the scent, he saw Tie-Ouk lying motionless in a pool of blood. Li Qinwu froze, standing completely still.

Prior to the initial explosion that triggered the citywide alarm: At Citizen Square, numerous residents were strolling across the paved ground—an impressive sight for creatures accustomed to the wild forest. Kanda was taking a walk with the leopard-woman dancer. She followed him passively, holding his hand while occasionally repeating his name. Leading her to the base of the Statue of the Penal Corps, Kanda looked up at the towering structure.

"Look, big isn't it? Heh, I helped build that. I used to be in the Penal Corps before the Boss gave me other duties. A bit sad to leave the ranks, though."

"Hehe, Kanda... hehe..." she chimed softly. Glancing at the stone monument embedded with the Badge of the Hero, Kanda prepared to move on. Suddenly, a surge of intense malice made his instincts flare. Turning, he spotted a green-robed figure in full plate armor in the distance. Apostle No. 8 glared at the Statue of the Penal Corps, gnashing his teeth: "You filthy monsters! How dare you erect such a grand monument! Damn you! Damn you all!!"

Drawing his mithril longsword and clutching several explosive artifacts, he charged directly toward the statue.