Wasteland Echoer.

Chapter 614 Mirren's Revenge (Part 1)
January 17, 558th year of the new calendar, 1 PM.

Crusde Federation, Far Northeast Region, Outer Nabua (Group) Mountains, directly above "Ground Line 21", outside "Former 01" military outpost.

"New Era 02: Humans are children of wisdom. In the universe, wisdom can destroy everything, and it can also create everything. The 'sorrow' of the universe will continue to accumulate until the entire space that the Creator can perceive becomes a pitch-black, deathly silence, at which point it will die along with the gods."

Humanity's existence may not be a matter of the Creator peeking into itself, nor of nature peeking into its origin. Rather, it is a weakening of the 'sorrow,' allowing the universe to be filled with vitality once more. The wasteland is not the end of this cycle of human existence, but the beginning. Man-made neon lights blaze, machines and flesh merge and ascend, mechanical airships traverse the atmosphere, and ants begin to gaze at the stars. — *The Dark Book*

The elevator, which had not been used for a long time, slowly moved upwards. Due to the aging of the parts, which had not been replaced, the cage-like space was not only unbearably hot, but also filled with the mentally exhausting sound of metal parts grinding together.

Whether it was a hallucination or a message from the gods to Dark through the darkness, this passage about the "Dark Book" truly resonated within the confined and melancholic space.

Fortunately, after more than twenty minutes, the shaky elevator, which seemed on the verge of disintegrating at any moment, finally stopped near the ground with a loud bang and violent shaking.

As the elevator doors creaked open, a vast and empty abandoned factory came into view.

"We're almost at Belogersk." "Flame Offering" said, switching off his flashlight and observing the surroundings and the nearby gate.

“This place… if I remember correctly, should be called the ‘Clean Factory’. When the Federation Council and Nebusk tried to jointly manage Belogersk, this place briefly became a base for manufacturing parts for the Aerospace Forces.”

"'Clean Factory'?" Wright stared at the haphazardly laid-out parts on the ground and muttered to himself.
"Everything here is pitch black—the walls, the roof, even the pillars are black. Why is it called the 'Clean Factory'? Is it some kind of contrast and irony?"

“Of course not,” Xianyan explained.

"White pigment is very expensive in the wasteland world, at least... not cheap in Crusad. If you want to use it on a large scale, then titanium dioxide is the only option. However, the Crusad Federation's production is limited, or rather, most of its capacity, whether by the sulfuric acid process or the chloride process, cannot be supplied to this superficial substance."

"Therefore, within the territory of Crusad, there are actually no large white buildings, apart from the buildings left over from the old empire and the grand platform of Kanosk. Of course, the white buildings in Novayask are an exception, as the white pigment used there is a substance related to magic."

"Xianyan" stepped forward, looked at the sandstorm outside the "clean factory," and after confirming that the yellow sand had subsided, he turned back to Dak and continued his "science lesson":

"As for 'white,' it actually comes from Belogersk. In Krüger, Beloger means 'white,' and Charles VI once established a city called 'Beloger' further north in the Arctic Special Zone, within the limits of human survival."

"The Federal Administrator, Chokav Chekav, thus named the city, nestled in the Venobuya Mountains, 'Belogersk.' Of course, before naming the city, it was called 'Core Fortress,' a simple military outpost. As the city has shrunk in size over the decades, the people of East Cruz have started calling it Core Fortress again."

"I see." Dark nodded, seemingly understanding, then changed the subject and asked, "Offering Flame":
"So, is the 'Former 01' military outpost nearby? Once we cross the outpost, we'll reach Belogersk, right?"

“That’s right.” Xianyan nodded. “The sandstorm is rapidly weakening now. Although this is not a good sign, it can buy us an hour or two, enough for us to walk over. Actually, the sandstorm here comes from the Yongchi Volcano. After the volcano erupted, it stirred up the surrounding air currents, carrying dust from the surrounding desert and blowing it here with the monsoon.”

"The weakening of the dust storm means that the Yongchi volcano released its first wave of energy at least twelve hours ago. The volcano needs a short break to gather a second, more intense wave of energy. Therefore, the dust storm is expected to intensify in four hours. At that time, we must take shelter in cities or outposts, otherwise we will suffocate."

……

About fifteen minutes later, as the sandstorm subsided to the point where the white buildings in the distance could be seen clearly, Dak and Anthony followed "Xianyan" and the group of Losers behind him to the outskirts of the "Former 01" military outpost.

He shifted his gaze from the dim, pale yellow sky to the military outpost before him. Dak understood why "Xianyan" hadn't suggested spending the night at the outpost, but instead wanted to take advantage of a break in the sandstorm to head to the city.

There are almost no intact buildings left on the ground here.

Apart from a layer of dilapidated bricks and stones on the ground, the entire area was a mess of ruins. Some were walls reduced to half their original size by bombing, while others were completely collapsed military camps. Even if one wanted to spend the night underground in the military fortress, it was impossible to know where the entrance or the exit was.

"I remember leaving a few mechs near the 'White Night Archives' from here. They were parked under some ruins, and you could see them by gently pushing open the wall. By the way, do you and the big guy behind you know how to drive mechs?" "Xianyan" asked as he searched for the ruins where the mechs were parked, relying on his memory.

“I’m not very good at it. I can manage if things get urgent. But Anthony behind me can. He’s a seasoned adventurer and has served in the military. A few days ago, he was the one who drove the mecha to get me out of the ‘Former 04’ military outpost. Plus, he can drive a train.” Dark said, glancing at Anthony mischievously.

Anthony cooperated perfectly by slightly raising his head, straightening his chest, and making a smug and proud expression.

However, Xianyan had no time to pay attention to the lively atmosphere, because he could smell a scent in the thin yellow sand that did not belong to this land of ruins and rubble.

“Someone’s here. I guess you all know each other.” Xianyan brushed the dust off his shoulders and looked behind everyone.

Beneath the thin layer of yellow sand at the very bottom of the sky, a wisp of blood-red mist began to gradually condense from its faint state into a bright red, almost dark color.

However, "Flame Offering" could only detect the blood mist, but could not stop it from getting closer. Within seconds, accompanied by one heart-wrenching howl after another, and the mournful cries of the wolf clan emanating from the throats and bodies of the Lost Ones, "Flame Offering" realized that, apart from himself, Dark, and Anthony, the heads of all the other Lost Ones had been severed by invisible blood-red blades and swallowed by the blood mist.

In an instant, it turned into a pool of rapidly congealed blood, which, blown by the dry breeze, transformed into choking particles that disappeared eternally and completely from the spot.

"Is it a vampire?" Dark asked, looking warily at the receding blood mist in front of him, his hands gripping the pistol at his waist tightly.

Anthony seemed a little impatient. The instant the blood mist condensed in front of him, he raised his personal sniper rifle, "Federal Eagle - New," and pulled the trigger.

boom!
The bullet whizzed past the afterimage and landed among the rubble behind them. At the same moment, a vampire lost soul, whom Putoya was facing, appeared in front of the three of them.

"As expected, it's Miren." The first to speak wasn't Wright or Anthony, but rather "Xian Yan." He scoffed dismissively, a mocking smile playing on his lips, and said:
“What, Miren, are you now going to be an enemy of the ‘Dedication Group’? No, you are already an enemy of the ‘Dedication Group’. Just now, you killed the poor werewolf children of the ‘Dedication Group’. Whether you were seeking revenge or not, these children had never killed humans or the Lost Ones. They were just doing some manual labor for me. Yet you wiped them out in an instant, without even giving them a chance to explain.”

“‘The Dedication Group’…hasn’t it already conspired with humans? Anyone who cooperates with humans is my enemy. I…I will never let those sinners who turned ‘Windmine’ into the Axe of Pramini go unpunished!” Milen roared, but Dark noticed that Milen’s right hand was constantly clutching his chest as he spoke.

Even though the black tuxedo concealed his true identity, Darke could still see some barely noticeable blood seeping from his chest.

"If I remember correctly, the skill you just used was one of the forbidden techniques of the vampires, 'Blood Annihilation.' A skill that sacrifices a portion of one's life force to instantly engulf and completely devour the enemy in blood. Oh, that seems no different from the 'Heartless One' devouring people's bodies." "Flame Offering," contrary to his cautious demeanor, stepped forward, stopping less than five meters from Milen, and continued:

“With each use, your mental strength will be irreversibly weakened. As you use it more often, you will become increasingly addicted to the thirst for blood, eventually turning into a huge, uncontrollable monster. What I find strange is that you could have used this forbidden technique to severely injure the three of us directly, but you chose to eliminate the other relatively weaker Lost Ones first.”

“This is a warning, a warning of revenge.” Miren seemed to have recovered from the brief discomfort caused by using the forbidden technique. He raised his crimson eyes to look at “Offering Flame” and continued in a threatening tone:
"The 'Dedicated Group' promised me that if I helped you block the adventurers from entering the vicinity of Lake Castard, they would help me attack Joigrad and retrieve the Axe of Pramini. However, you have not only forgotten your promise, but have also cooperated with Nebrius and announced that you will no longer operate westward."

"But in reality, the intelligence network left here by the 'Order' tells me that the Federal Council had already obtained the Axe of Pramini from the 'Chaos Group,' or rather, from Ato. In exchange, the Federal Council recognized the Lost Ones and the Independent Armed Forces' control over the area west of Choigler."

"What are you trying to say?" asked Xianyan, who disliked beating around the bush with his enemies.

After all, the more you communicate with the enemy on the battlefield, the more dangerous your situation becomes. Even though communication with the enemy can yield a lot of valuable information.

“You’ve been lying to me all along!” Mirren roared.

Suddenly, he pulled out a large pistol that he had been hiding for a long time from behind his back. In a flash, he quickly pulled the trigger and fired a silver bullet at "Xianyan".

Whoosh!
Fortunately, "Flame Offering" remained wary of Milen. He knew that although Milen was temporarily unable to use more magic power skills due to "Blood Obliteration," he might still have other means of attack.

But due to his overconfidence, Milen's bullet still grazed "Xianyan's" face and disappeared among the ruins and rubble behind him.

Soon, after a brief period of numbness, a burning pain quickly spread across Xianyan's entire face.

He wiped away some of the blood with his hand and stared angrily at Mirren.

"You mean to say that Shaneva or Nebrius has captured the Axe of Pramini and imprisoned him somewhere our 'Dedication Group' knows, but didn't tell you, right?" "Dedication Flame" sneered.

"Hmph. For the Federal Council, the Axe of Pramini is indeed of great research value, but for Nebrius and us, a monster that cannot be completely controlled is better eliminated. Miren, you should wake up. The moment those two bastards from the 'Chaos Group' turned 'Wind Mine' into a monster, 'Wind Mine' was already dead."

"The monster left behind is merely the result of his body's mutation; even if a god were to descend, this change would be irreversible. If you must hate, you should hate the Federation. After all, none of the Lost Organizations that cooperated with them escaped being deceived or betrayed."

"Neither Vasily Voliganov nor that woman Shaneva ever considered coexisting with us when peace comes in the future. Humanity has been the master of the continent since the Second Era, and even now that their civilization is fading, their leaders have never forgotten to restore that dominance."

“I will punish the Federal Council, but I will also punish you. The Federal Council betrayed you, and haven’t you betrayed me too?” Mirren roared.

The next second, taking advantage of Xianyan's unpreparedness, a red curved blade made of blood pierced straight into Xianyan's chest.

Two seconds later, Anthony reacted, raised the "Federal Eagle-New", pulled the trigger, and fired two bullets in retaliation.

However, Milren seemed unwilling to continue fighting personally. After drawing his Blood Scimitar, he quickly disappeared into the blood mist.

Immediately afterwards, one after another "bursting fishmen" emerged from the rippling ground, surrounding Dark and his two companions.