Ark Chess Player

Amiya gave precise instructions, weaving black threads to block the attacking herds.

Lin Lu did not immediately use the Ark Driver to transform. Instead, he used tactical CQC to defeat the attacking enemies time and time again. He did not extract the Originium from these herds, as there were too many impurities, which would easily cause mental strain.

Froststar and the Yeti squad continued to cast spells, and the temperature in the desolate square had dropped by thirty degrees, with snow falling everywhere.

"Haha, so you're actually approaching me on your own initiative? Instead of running away, you're walking right towards me, Mephisto!"

Lin Lu snapped the enemy's neck with a backhand swift motion, threw the corpse to the ground, and said indifferently, "If I don't get close to you, how am I supposed to beat you up?"

“Then come a little closer!” Mephistopheles spread his arms wide, teasingly adding, “Perfect timing, I have a gift for you. Last night, I caught some annoying mosquitoes. These mosquitoes are quite clever… they know how to conceal their identities. But the better they conceal themselves, the more it proves their identity, doesn’t it?”

Amiya's expression changed, and she gritted her teeth, saying, "Get out of my way!!"

The herd was swept away by the black torrent of magic, and Amiya continuously increased the power of the spell, her cyan ring glowing with a dangerous red light.

Frost Leaf used the chilling energy gathered by the Yeti Squad to increase the damage of Originium Arts and break through all obstacles in its path.

"Mephisto! I want you to weep and kneel for a long time, I want—your life!" Frostleaf said coldly.

"Can you do it, little fox?" Mephistopheles' eyes were smiling, maintaining his superior attitude throughout, a fake smile on his face. "These guys are just appetizers, the real main course hasn't even started yet. Don't rush, don't rush. How about we enjoy dessert first? Guards, release the cage!"

"Screw your Ursus curse."

Vulgar language came from behind Mephistopheles.

Mephistopheles' fake smile finally froze. He slowly suppressed his smile, and his monocle gleamed coldly.

"W, you lowly woman, what are you doing?"

"Oh dear, I don't belong to your inferior race."

The Sarkaz mercenary girl's smile blossomed, and the brighter her smile, the worse it meant—she kept smiling.

Behind W, the Rhodes Island operators, Slinka, Putr, Longscorpion, and Rafa, who had regained their freedom, regrouped. Their weapons had been confiscated by Mephisto, but as a reconnaissance team, being unarmed did not mean they were incapable of fighting.

While Mephisto's attention was focused on Rhodes Island and the Yeti squad, W used her stealth experience learned in the Tower of Babel to conceal her presence to the point of being invisible, and circled around to the weakly guarded cage to rescue her four old friends.

“W, I’ll personally sew that filthy mouth of yours shut,” Mephistopheles said viciously.

"I feel so bad that a little kid who lost all his limbs in the bombing used his mouth to hold a makeup brush and do my makeup."

W picked up the remote control, pressed the explosion button with a dashing air, and struck a pose reminiscent of Yoshikage Kira giving a thumbs-up.

Before rescuing his former comrades, W secretly attached Originium bombs to the bodies of many irrational Infected in the herd. Anyone with a brain would have noticed something was wrong, but where would Mephisto find normal people? And normal people wouldn't follow Mephisto.

"--boom!!"

The Originium exploded, and dazzling fireworks shot into the sky!

When W goes berserk, she doesn't care how close the bomb is; even being within the blast radius is no problem for her. She gets hurt again and again, tearing open the scabs of her wounds time and time again, remembering the feeling of pain.

Like Kal'tsit, she was someone who witnessed the collapse of faith.

Like Kal'tsit, she was insane; only a madwoman could turn a deep, unforgettable pain into motivation to move forward.

The infected, struck by the bomb, were instantly blasted to pieces, their flesh, ore fragments, and bone fragments of Originium scattering in all directions, churning amidst the brilliant flames and shockwaves. Like a sickle reaping wheat, countless herds fell in an instant.

"Jessica! Watch out!"

Seeing the gray mist rising around her, Meteorite quickly took out a filter mask from her pocket and put it on Jessica's face. Jessica was the only non-infected member of the mobile squad, and if she ingested too many Originium particles, there was a high probability that she would contract the disease as a result of this battle.

Frost leaves froze the floating Originium particles, accelerating wildly along the wide road of the W-blast clearing herd, their spears and axes condensing into ice blades.

"You can't escape! Mephistopheles! A person who doesn't respect life doesn't deserve to live!"

“The guests haven’t all arrived yet. How can I, as the host of the banquet, leave without permission? You’re too close to me, little fox,” Mephistopheles said calmly. He was quite annoyed by W’s disruption.

"Frostleaf, don't go over there, wait for us—cough cough!"

Amiya raised her arms to shield her eyes from the aftershocks of the Originium bomb.

"Doctor, are you alright?"

Lin Lu licked his lips and commented, "It's alright, a little sweet."

阿米娅：“？”

Even W's Originium Bomb smelled better than the infected infected by Mephisto through the Filthy Blood. Lin Lu felt that his rationality had finally risen a little, and the oppressive feeling he had been experiencing since stepping onto the ruins had eased a bit.

Lin Lu reveled in the fresh Originium particles in the air, an act that would undoubtedly be suicidal to others. But for Lin, it was as if he had emerged from a stale basement into the light of day, his brain, which had been impaired by anger, starting to function again.

something wrong.

There's something wrong with this abandoned urban area.

Lin Lu's thinking logic became clear, and his thoughts flowed like a spring.

This is a trap, but not just any simple one. The fact that they went to such lengths to lure them and the Guard Bureau here clearly indicates their intention to annihilate this vital force on the spot. Besides, what Lin Lu found unsettling was… where were the ordinary soldiers of the Reunion Movement? Even with Mephisto, W, and Frostnova present, Lin Lu hadn't seen a single normal Reunion Movement soldier.

Deceiving the heavens to cross the sea, waiting in comfort for the enemy to tire themselves out, feinting to the east while attacking in the west, secretly crossing the Chencang pass, luring the tiger away from the mountain, a series of interconnected schemes.

Lin Lu suddenly realized.

Mephistopheles' real goal is the Dragon Gate.

So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, Mephistopheles, who appeared here...

"How could this be!?"

Frostleaf's spear pierced Mephistopheles, but the sensation returning to her palm didn't feel like a complex human structure; it was liquid, pure liquid. It was as if Mephistopheles before her was merely a vessel draped in human skin, filled with water.

"Frostleaf! Back down!!" Lin Lu roared, channeling his spiritual power into the hooded coat modified by the Borderless Army. The silver-white photon frame seeped out of his body and transformed into burning wings.

Lin Lu didn't have time to explain to Amiya. He sped up and ran, stirring up a gust of wind.

The air was stirred up by the heat, and Frostnova, who was casting a spell, frowned and subconsciously turned her head to look over.

Upon hearing Lin Lu's reminder, Shuangye decisively abandoned her spear and axe and retreated. Weapons can be remade, but once a person is gone, everything is gone; as a mercenary, she understood this better than anyone else.

Mephistopheles did not stop Frostleaf, because she was never his target.

"I knew it……"

Mephistopheles' figure gradually blurred. He adjusted his monocle, and the ominous star of Silverwing was reflected in the lens.

"Lin Lu, I knew you would risk your life to save people; that's your inherent weakness! That's the difference between us! Five years ago, you had the chance to kill me, but for the sake of the Kingslayer, you hesitated, you gave up. What a pity, that day was your only chance. Since you gave it up, you'll never be able to beat me!"

Mephistopheles laughed wildly, his hoarse voice low and deep, as if a stone were stuck in his throat.

He spread his arms, and crimson blood seeped from the inside out of his white robe.

"Enjoy your dinner, Rhodes Island!"

Chapter 374 Daughter of the Stars (Bonus Chapter)

Mephisto has self-destructed.

To be precise, Mephisto's clone self-destructed.

This clone, like the phantom Mephisto that appeared outside Lungmen to attack the Kingslayer, was a puppet he created by separating flesh and blood. It could sense things in sync and also cast spells.

At this moment, crimson cracks bloomed on the white robe, and the gold-rimmed monocle, which served as a mobile altar, shattered with a soft sound.

A deep red light emanated, as if the gates of hell had opened in Mephistopheles' chest, and a gaze from the abyss stared at Lin Lü through layers of media.

The herds in the ruined city responded to Mephisto's call and stopped what they were doing. The already overclocked Originium fusion rate was unleashed and broke through the limit in an instant, reaching a 100% fusion rate!

Every infected person here is a bomb prepared by Mephisto. Even the high-energy stone worm is just a means to confuse people's minds. Mephisto has considered every aspect meticulously, as cautious as a hunter.

From the commander's perspective, besides Talulah, he is the most capable person in Reunion.

If it weren't for Rhodes Island, Mephisto might have already captured Lungmen during the nighttime raid a few days ago. Even if he couldn't completely eliminate Lungmen in one fell swoop, with the power he borrowed from the Abyss Grail, destroying Lungmen's first line of heavy defense wouldn't be a problem. Once he conquered Lungmen's slums, the Reunion Movement could take root in Lungmen, multiplying like mold and gradually consuming everything.

The Reunion Movement's ability to dominate the Lungmen Guard Bureau these past few days is not without reason. Besides the constant infighting and attrition within the Guard Bureau, it's largely due to Mephisto's ruthlessness. He treats his soldiers as pawns, striking Lungmen precisely where they are most vulnerable.

It's not that we didn't try to integrate, but unfortunately, there's Lin Lu at Longmen.

Lin Lu is Mephisto's nemesis. No matter how meticulous Mephisto's plan is, Lin Lu can easily guess his intentions, block his attack, and push back.

Mephistopheles suffered defeat after defeat, and there was no hope of victory in sight.

To escape this endless cycle of despair, Mephistopheles laid this trap, trading the lives of an entire city for Lin Lu's. He fully exploited Lin Lu's extremely protective nature, and his entire plan was based on this.

Just as Mephisto predicted, Lin Lu would do everything in his power to save his operative.

This is Lin Lu's strength, but also his weakness.

"Protect Amiya."

Lin Lu, sprinting at full speed, grabbed Shuangye and threw her toward Amiya.

Frostleaf was like a kitten caught by the scruff of its neck, and in the blink of an eye, she found herself being caught by Amiya.

"Amiya, I..."

"Don't get distracted, let's get through this first."

Amiya stopped Frostleaf from saying discouraging things. She continuously drew threads to kill the herd that was trying to self-destruct, but her killing speed was far from keeping up with the speed of the herd's self-destruction. She had no choice but to cast a magical protective shield to protect the three members of the mobile squad.

"Damn it, he's gone mad!"

W decisively ran away, not forgetting to take the four wounded members of Scout's team with him as he fled.

The Yeti Squad connected spell circuits, with Frostnova as the core, to support Originium Arts and defend against the suicidal attacks from herds all around.

The Lungmen Guard squad arrived at the worst possible moment, but they had nowhere else to go as the frenzied herds exploded one after another.

Hoshiguma raised her Hannya to the front, the triangular shield sweeping away the Originium fragments mixed with flesh and blood like a rain curtain.

Chen gripped Chixiao, his spirit and energy reaching their peak. He drew his sword and unleashed a dazzling sword aura, forcefully pushing back the incoming shockwave.

The entire Ruins City of No. 14 trembled from the explosions; the power of the Oripathy infected's self-destruction was no less than that of W's Originium bombs. But W only had a few Originium bombs; this was a human bomb composed of an entire city's residents! Mephisto had ruthlessly transformed this city into a ghost town, solely to completely erase Lin Lu's existence.

"Ugh—!!!"

Lin Lu reached out his left hand and grabbed the crimson light that emerged from Mephisto's self-destruction. His digitized spiritual domain was instantly eroded, and the pain of his brain being devoured came back to him. The photon frame shattered, and his mental power could no longer maintain the armor's form. Lin Lu fell from mid-air onto the burning pile of corpses. He never let go, controlling the pure, filthy blood, the violent energy corroding his body.

Lin Lu understood Mephisto's intention: Mephisto planned to use all the living and infected corpses in the entire abandoned city as sacrifices to create an artificial, inferior ancient god! Once this filthy blood fell into the pile of corpses, the ritual would automatically begin and be irreversible.

This is hardly a deserted square.

This is clearly a plaza!

Lin Lu's hands gripped the blood clots that kept trying to seep downwards tightly. His fair hands were corroded, turning black and smelly, and the white bones could be vaguely seen.

Lin Lu's lips trembled as he called out with all his might: