Chapter 8: Angels and Demons, Section 7

The night scenery rushed past in the surroundings as fierce winds scraped against the mech’s hull. In the darkness, nearly a dozen massive figures moved like raging trains through the gradually quieting outskirts of Silver Star—strangely, without making any sound.

This was the only green space outside Silver Star’s central city, and the only place in the entire planet untouched by steel and technology. For those accustomed to a life in a magic-based civilization, it was their only haven to experience nature. But now, it had been turned into a battlefield by Black Hair.

“Beep beep beep…” A low alarm sound echoed in the cockpit. On the screen in front of Black Hair, a green square that had been moving continuously suddenly stopped at a fixed position, its color turning blood red. As Black Hair’s fingers moved swiftly, the scene shown by the square was magnified dozens of times, revealing itself clearly before his eyes.

“Not bad. As I thought.” Black Hair nodded in satisfaction. He reached out to activate the team channel.

“Stop advancing. Turn off the engine resistance system and switch to foot mobility. From now on, operate in silent stealth mode. Activate the mech’s camouflage coating. Maintain assault formation. Blood Pupil, come to my side. Baroka, keep an eye on your men. Don’t let them detect us. It seems we’ve found our target.”

“Heh, boss, you’re always so unexpected. If that dog Cheri found out what you’re doing now, he’d probably faint from shock.” With Blood Pupil’s teasing voice, the dark red demon mech quickly approached Black Hair.

Through the dense jungle, an open area five kilometers away came into view.

To be precise, it was a temporarily created clearing. This place never existed on Silver Star’s maps. Under the cold moonlight, a small space shuttle was parked there quietly. As Cheri’s escape route, he likely didn’t realize he had already become prey for a gang of thugs.

Yet even the worst shuttle, as long as it belonged to the Warriors Association, would have some self-defense capabilities. To be honest, in Silver Star at this moment, only mechs modified by Black Hair could approach so closely undetected. Ordinary combat units would likely be discovered long before they could even see the shuttle.

Stealth—a technique favored by thieves—Black Hair had mastered long ago, as naturally as he knew his own hands.

“Head, are we just going to wait like this? How can you be so sure that Cheri’s mongrel dog will lose? If they come out unscathed, our ambush seems to lose much of its meaning. Perhaps destroying this shuttle now is the better course of action,” said Blood Eyes calmly over the channel.

“No. They won’t come out unscathed. Silver Star is after all an official organization. With Cheri and the others trying to escape, their armed forces are strong enough to make them pay a price. If we destroy this shuttle now, they’ll definitely get wind of it. A dog with no escape route has no choice but to try to break through.” Black Hair paused briefly, narrowing his eyes slightly. “But I don’t want to see a mad dog. It doesn’t suit this beautiful scenery here.”

“Hehe. I like it. Leader, you’re truly cunning. A genius among bandits. Leave ambushes to me and my kids. We’ll surely satisfy you. Cemxi ore—just thinking about it excites me,” Baroka shouted from the side.

At that, Black Hair seemed to remember something. He frowned slightly and fiddled with his device, and the pattern of Cemxi ore stored in the mecha database appeared on the screen.

“Baroka, why are you so excited? What’s so special about this ore?” Lighting a cigarette for himself, Black Hair finally raised his question.

“Hehe, it’s not exactly special. But Cemxi ore is an extremely rare, no, truly uncommon ore in the universe. Besides containing abundant energy, it has many special uses. Among them, refining permanent mental stabilizers is the most notable.”

“As long as one uses this stabilizer, even a non-combatant pilot can break free from the control of fairies and resist those terrifying mental pressures on their own. They become more agile and reliable in battle, as if upgraded by one level. And they won’t experience any emotional fluctuations anymore.”

“No emotional fluctuations? Doesn’t that mean they become like wooden statues?” Black Hair was surprised.

“That’s right. That’s the price of using this stabilizer. But compared to the benefits it brings, those drawbacks are almost negligible. Any large organization would be happy to turn their subordinates into such combat machines. Even if they become wooden statues, it doesn’t matter.” Blood Eyes suddenly interjected, his tone carrying an unprecedented sadness. “But I’ve heard that the greatest use of Cemxi ore isn’t just that.”

“Oh?” Black Hair was stunned.

“It is said that recent research in Black Mercury’s laboratory has led to new discoveries. Certain minerals can be used to trigger a special reaction to construct devices similar to subspace. Cemxi ore is the most important of these minerals.”
“Subspace…” The black-haired man took a deep drag on his cigarette, a hint of realization appearing in his eyes.
As a human from Earth, he certainly understood what subspace meant. For any civilization, the discovery of subspace could be described as a watershed moment. Once they mastered the technology to create subspace, humanity would once again widen the gap between itself and the other races in the universe, becoming the supreme rulers.
Specifically, from a civilian perspective, subspace was akin to the space pockets in fantasy novels, offering endless convenience. From a military strategy standpoint, powerful subspace weapons could instantly consume half a planet, eliminating all enemies before they could act.
This was truly a terrifying discovery, far surpassing nuclear technology.
No wonder the Warriors Association placed such high value on Cemxi ore. The black-haired man sighed.
However, it seemed they were doomed to suffer heavy losses. He had no intention of letting such an important asset slip away. According to the code of the Outlaws, those who missed out on an opportunity were scumbags.
Looking up and listening to the increasingly loud engine noises in the distance, the black-haired man smirked mockingly.
“Distance: 17,761. Number eight. Models: Worm, Crust, Catamount. High speed. Expected contact in ten minutes,” reported a Sand Bandit’s voice rhythmically over the channel. All the mechs raised their heads. Their massive guns emitted a faint blue glow, making them resemble a group of ancient titans under the cold moonlight, exuding immense pressure. In their blood-red vision crystals, concentric rings of focus rotated continuously, bringing their distant enemies into view.
Just as the black-haired man had predicted, after paying a heavy price, Cheri’s group had finally broken through the Silver Star Government’s encirclement. Those eight mechs rushing toward them were all they had left. But as they got closer to their retreat point, this Bronze-level warrior felt a surge of excitement and pride.

It seems the decision to seize Paradise Nightclub was indeed correct. That hypocritical Silver Star government simply couldn’t ignore these noble lords. They handed over the four pieces of Cemsi ore stolen by the association. Although over 300 of their subordinates lost their lives in this operation, Viscount Cheri felt no sign of despair. As long as they returned to the association’s headquarters, their contributions would surely be recognized—perhaps they’d even be promoted to a higher warrior rank or become a branch head. Compared to that, what did the sacrifices of those useless subordinates matter?

But just as his proud smile appeared on his face, a shrill alarm sounded in the cockpit. Dozens of red dots suddenly appeared in the vision crystal, as if out of nowhere, charging wildly toward them. The extreme speed made his face turn pale.

“God!! It’s missiles!! Evade, evade!!!” Shouting hoarsely, Viscount Cheri no longer cared about maintaining formation. He executed an extreme maneuver, causing his massive mech to roll aside. The terrifying mental pressure and physical overload overwhelmed him, leaving him dizzy and unable to distinguish left from right.

But his subordinates didn’t possess his skill or luck. These were not warriors at all—before they could even understand their leader’s screams, the destructive strikes already hit them.

“Boom!!”

A massive explosion!! The ground within hundreds of meters seemed to be filled with countless explosives, rising into the sky all at once. Countless shiny mech fragments flew everywhere. Their huge bodies were like toys, lifted into the air by terrifying shockwaves. The remains of the mechs and their still-running engines fell in parabolic paths. Terrifying screams instantly filled the channel.

In just one encounter, four out of the seven mechs following Viscount Cheri were sent soaring into the sky by missiles. The rest also had many of their parts torn off. Not to mention formation—they couldn’t even determine their direction for a moment.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t all they faced. Half of those missiles targeting the sky weren’t aimed at them but at the shuttle that had been parked innocently in the open area. As Viscount Cheri crashed helplessly, their only escape route turned into a smoldering ball of fire.

Trees were consumed by flames, and mech wreckage was scattered everywhere. In an instant, this peaceful natural area turned into hell. Under the flickering flames, Viscount Cheri was terrified.

In his vision crystal, a row of demonic-like giant figures in the distance had just appeared…