Chapter 11: The Terrifying EMP – Section 8

Shining metal fragments flew through the sky, along with blinding balls of fire. In the blink of an eye, the two brothers’ mechs were reduced to ruins. Aside from the intact cockpit sections of their torsos, all components were instantly shattered, turning into debris under the onslaught of countless pellets fired by Nightmare’s palms.

Seeing this scene, all the onlookers were stunned. Even though they had long anticipated brutal slaughter, witnessing it firsthand still filled them with overwhelming fear. There was no other reason—Nightmare was simply too terrifying.

Those two giant palms seemed to bear a demonic curse; anything touched by them would be reduced to fragments. Under the terrifying force of those pellets, apart from the mechs’ strongest front armor, every other part was extremely fragile, lacking even the slightest ability to resist. It was as if they were toys ruined by a mischievous child—two solitary torsos lying on the ground, spewing sparks from their wounds and covered in injuries.

“Huh, quite a good workout. I like it,” the black-haired man in the cockpit suddenly chuckled. He took out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, then activated the mech’s external channel.

“Hey, you two, are you still alive?”

“Yes… yes…” came a muffled, almost groaning response. The mech torsos on the ground slowly opened their cockpit doors, revealing two pale faces before the black-haired man.

From this distance, the black-haired man could see that the brothers were filled with exhaustion and fear of having survived. Yet their bodies showed no injuries. The EMP system not only halted their mechs’ functionality but also severed their connection to them. Thus, despite being completely destroyed by the black-haired man’s fierce attacks, the brothers as pilots suffered no direct harm—a stroke of luck in their misfortune.

Of course, this was exactly what the black-haired man wanted.

“You lost,” he said abruptly after carefully examining the brothers to confirm they weren’t directly injured.

In a Death Challenge, the loser dies—this was common knowledge.

There was no immediate reply. Sensing the chill in the black-haired man’s words, the elder brother, Hong, trembled uncontrollably. He slowly turned to look at his younger brother nearby. At that moment, Lan’s gaze also fell on them. Both brothers could see profound despair in each other’s eyes.

“Go ahead, Blackhair, kill them!!”
“Kill, kill, kill!! We want to see blood—kill them!!”
“Damn you! It’s you two who caused us to lose money. Kill them!!”
The noise in the arena grew louder and louder as the pirate spectators gradually lost their patience. They all stood up, waving their fists frantically and shouting loudly. The cruelty and vile nature of humanity were fully displayed at this moment. Almost everyone’s eyes were blood-red.
Hearing the shouts of the spectators, Hong couldn’t help but let out a bitter smile.
This was the Death Arena. From the moment he and his brother entered this arena, their fate had been sealed. If Lan had followed his plans from the start, he might still be alive. But now…
“Mr. Blackhair, we’ve lost,” Hong said calmly, lifting his head.
“Brother!!” Lan cried out in shock.
“Shut up, Lan. You’re a man. How can you be so weak? Losing is losing. We don’t need to make excuses. Remember what I taught you—be a man and always hold your head high!!” Hong suddenly shouted fiercely, cutting off his brother’s words. Then he turned to look at the huge black mech before him.
“Please go ahead.”
“Go ahead? What do you mean?” Blackhair laughed. With a flick of his finger, the massive Nightmare stepped back with a mechanical sound.
“I just defeated you. I’m not trying to kill you. Is there any rule in this arena that requires me to kill you?”
“What! You won’t kill us?” Hong’s eyes widened in disbelief. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. In an instant, hope for rebirth surged through him like a tide, making his hands and feet tremble.
“Of course not.” The cockpit door of the Nightmare suddenly opened, revealing Blackhair sitting in the seat inside. At that moment, he just exhaled a ring of smoke, lazily looking down at his two brothers with a bored expression.
“In my eyes, you’re no different from ants. I have no reason to waste effort on ants.”
“Phew… That’s… good.” Breathing heavily, Hong finally felt relieved. As long as Blackhair didn’t kill them, they still had a chance of survival.
“How can you do this!! You should kill them!!”
“You stupid idiot!! Do you want to die? If you don’t act now, we’ll kill you!!”

Hearing Black Hair’s words, the pirates in the audience immediately erupted into chaos. With blood-red eyes, they roared, venting their frustration desperately. The growing unrest even made the speaker at the podium frown.
“Tell those guys down there to be careful. It seems things are getting out of control,” he said coldly to his secretary.
“Yes, sir. Should we let them come up?” the secretary asked respectfully, bending down slightly.
“No need. It’s not that serious yet. They’re just guys with too much hormone. We’ll just watch. Unless they try to storm the podium, ignore everything else.”
“Understood,” the secretary replied in a low voice before quickly leaving.
By this time, the situation in the arena had reached a point of imminent explosion. Almost all the pirates had stood up, howling in anger. With Black Hair’s sharp eyes, he could even see a few of them pulling out their weapons and aiming them in his direction. Those blood-red eyes resembled those of demons.
“It seems blood is indeed the best stimulant,” Black Hair sneered, moving his fingers slightly. Nightmare’s massive body turned instantly, and with a mechanical whirring sound, one of its palms faced the stands. A soft click came from the palm’s surface as a built-in shotgun module emerged.
“You…” The sneer suddenly turned vicious as Black Hair shouted loudly, “Shut up!!”
“Boom!!”
With a deafening explosion, countless 20-centimeter-diameter bullets shot out from his palm, hitting the stands like a storm. The immense kinetic energy lifted the ground, turning an area of ten meters into a massive crater. All the pirates in that area were instantly torn to pieces. Amidst screams, blood and internal organs were scattered everywhere—none survived.
“God! What are you doing!?”
“He’s a madman!!”
“Don’t shoot!!”
The audience was shocked by Black Hair’s attack. Extreme fear seized their hearts. The pirates who had seemed fierce and aggressive moments ago now resembled lambs waiting to be slaughtered. The blood-red glow in their eyes vanished instantly, and everyone began to tremble violently.
No one could believe that guy named Black Hair would actually go ahead with it. Was this a nightmare? The pungent smell of blood filled the pirates’ nostrils; some were so terrified they wet themselves.
“Don’t… don’t joke… this isn’t real…”

The two brothers were also stunned by Black Hair’s sudden brutality. Rainbow Eyes stared blankly at Black Hair’s still-grinning face, speechless.
“What joke? Isn’t this great? Now everyone is silent… Hehe, hehehe…” Hearing Rainbow Dream’s dreamlike words, Black Hair froze for a moment before suddenly laughing, as if he were insane.
“Those who resist deserve to die. You’re all too naive. On this Hell Planet, do you really think it’s like any ordinary planet? Power is supreme. So what is power? Your mechs? Or your so-called passion?”
Black Hair spat disdainfully. “Stupid.”
Unwilling to waste more time with these two brothers, Black Hair moved his fingers slightly, and the hatch immediately closed. With a roar, the Nightmare Mech turned around, ready to leave.
“Wait!” Rainbow’s voice suddenly came from behind.
“What?” Black Hair turned slightly, glancing at his elder brother. “What else do you want to say?”
“Ah… nothing.” Noticing the coldness in Black Hair’s tone, Rainbow’s expression changed. “I just wanted to ask… do you… understand power?”
“Well…” Black Hair hesitated for a moment before his tone softened slightly. “I used to think I did. But now… I still don’t.”
“Used to think…” Rainbow’s voice didn’t sound disappointed. “Then please take us two brothers with you. Even if it’s just the power you once had. We need it, and our people need it too.”
Our people need it? An idea flashed through Black Hair’s mind as if he had grasped something. After thinking for a while, he didn’t answer directly. The massive figure of the Nightmare Mech gradually disappeared through the entrance of the arena.
Behind it, the two brothers’ expressions shifted constantly.
On the other hand, the situation in the arena had become extremely dire. Although those pirates were shocked by Black Hair’s brutal tactics, once he left, a sense of shame swept over everyone. A strange, deathly silence filled the entire arena.
“Enough. That’s enough.” On the podium, the Alliance Chairman suddenly stood up.
“Tell the kids down there to step forward and restore order. And tell these hormone-driven fools that if they came to watch death fights, they should be prepared to die. Don’t shame our Pirate Alliance. If they have any complaints, let them resolve them through death challenges. I don’t want to see chaos on Hell Planet.”
“Yes, Chairman.” The secretary replied respectfully.

“Also, go inform the leader of the Pickpockets tonight. I will meet them at the Full Moon Hotel. I hope among their companions is someone with black hair. Ah, and that Blood-Eyed one as well.”
“Understood.”
With the council leader’s orders, the entire arena quickly stabilized. Countless men in purple combat suits appeared out of nowhere and swiftly took control of every key area in the arena. Their weapons and cold gazes served as the most effective means to calm everyone down, immediately bringing peace to the pirate spectators. The situation was effectively brought under control.
However, due to this incident, the rest of the events became rather boring. After the arena was cleared, the other death fights proceeded as usual. But neither the intensity nor the bloodshed could arouse the pirates’ interest anymore. Until the end of the day.
Night fell…
At the Full Moon Hotel in the southwest of Hell City.
It was the only hotel on Hell Planet and the place where the Pirate Alliance received external guests. Due to the harsh environment of Hell Planet, it was only three stories tall, but it covered an area of nearly five square kilometers. Its decorations were extremely luxurious. Every item there was a masterpiece even outside, sought after by all the rich.
Of course, these were also the pirates’ loot.
At that moment, in a huge living room on the third floor of the hotel, the alliance council leader sat quietly on a sofa, savoring his rich coffee slowly and leisurely, with a calm expression.
Across from him stood a fat figure, wearing a flattering smile and bowing respectfully. Wasn’t that Jin Li, the leader of the Pickpocket pirates?
“Yes, I’m sorry, Council Leader. That bastard with black hair said he’s too tired from today’s fight and can’t attend your summons. Please forgive him. When I get back, I’ll teach him a lesson to make him understand the consequences of disrespecting his superiors.” Sweat beaded on Jin Li’s forehead as he was extremely nervous.
Damn that damned Black-Haired guy. It was such an important matter to be summoned by the Council Leader, but in his mouth, it turned into some trivial excuse. Not only did he refuse to come himself, but Blood-Eyed was also influenced by him and unwilling to leave. How was he supposed to explain this to the Council Leader?

The person before him was the real power behind all pirates in the Thirty Star Regions. Not to mention a mere treasure finder like them—even a king of a nation would seem like an ant in front of him. Moreover, while others might not know, Jin Li knew that the chairman of the Pirate Alliance was actually the leader of the largest pirate gang in the Thirty Star Regions. Either way, it was not something a humble treasure finder could afford to offend.

At this moment, the highly respected chairman showed no reaction upon hearing Jin Li’s explanation. He merely gave a low hum before focusing again on the rich aroma of his coffee.

After a long while, he slowly exhaled.

“I understand, Jin Li. It’s normal for Blackhair to not want to see me. After all, he’s just gone through a life-or-death duel, and his emotions might not be stable. How about this—go back and tell him…”

“I’ll visit him in person tomorrow night.”

“Ah!?” Jin Li was instantly stunned.