Chapter 445: The two forces

Mia swung her blade in a wide arc, aiming straight for Selene’s neck. The razor-sharp edge sliced through the air with a deadly whistle—it looked like the next second would end in blood and silence.

Selene barely managed to raise her sword in time, blocking the strike. The clash of steel rang out with a piercing screech.

Genesis Biotech’s weapons weren’t half bad, but Selene, as a speed-type Awakener, lacked raw strength. The impact sent a jolt through her arms, her palms going numb. Her tachi nearly flew from her grip.

Meanwhile, Slade was already wounded—blood soaked half his body, painting him crimson. He’d just clawed his way back from death’s door and was completely rattled, nerves shot to hell.

Right now, he was terrified of Mia. Absolutely terrified.

The woman in front of him was a goddamn lunatic—her attacks were vicious, merciless.

Slade was shaken, both physically and mentally. His will to fight evaporated in an instant. He didn’t want to stick around for even one more second.

Without a word, he turned and bolted toward the aircraft.

“Huh? Wait, what the hell…” Selene blinked, stunned. She’d come to back him up—hell, she’d just saved his life—and now that he was free, he was ditching her?

Leaving her alone to face Mia?

“Seriously? That’s low.”

But she quickly snapped out of it. She wasn’t just some random merc anymore—she was part of the Black Hand Legion now. Survival came first.

Screw this—I’m out too.

With that thought, Selene launched into a full retreat. As an S-rank speed Awakener, running away was practically her specialty. In a flash, she overtook Slade.

Mia tilted her head, watching the two of them scramble to escape.

“Pathetic,” she muttered.

She took off after them, blade in hand, moving so fast she left afterimages in her wake.

Slade, already injured, was slowing down. His body wasn’t keeping up, and Mia was closing in fast.

When she was just twenty feet behind him, Mia thrust her tachi forward, aiming straight for his back.

Slade’s skin prickled—he could feel the blade coming, like needles stabbing into his spine. He didn’t need to look back to know what was about to happen.

“Am I really gonna die here?”

A wave of bitter regret surged through him. He’d only come because Sophia had reached out—he was curious about Genesis Biotech’s higher-ups defecting. That was it.

Now he was about to die for it.

Figures… women and trouble, right?

The pain in his back grew sharper, like the air itself had frozen solid.

“No! I don’t wanna die!” Slade screamed, pushing his body to the limit in a desperate sprint.

And maybe—just maybe—someone up there heard him. Because right as Mia’s blade was about to pierce his heart—

A sudden chill swept through the air. The temperature plummeted, dropping toward absolute zero.

Mia’s movements faltered, slowed, then stopped completely. Around her, ice began to form—thick, solid, and fast. In seconds, she was frozen in place.

Encased in crystal-clear ice, Mia looked like a lifelike statue, still locked in her attack stance, blade outstretched. A perfect ice sculpture of death.

“What the hell…” Slade turned to look, wide-eyed.

Behind the frozen Mia, a bald young man was sprinting toward them—Cyborg T-09.

“My energy’s almost gone. We need to get out of here. Now.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah! Let’s go!” Slade nodded like a bobblehead, not needing to be told twice.

Together, they made a break for the aircraft.

Sophia, who’d been monitoring the battlefield, had clearly decided things were going south fast. Seeing everyone else retreating, she didn’t hesitate—she spun on her heel and was the first to climb aboard.

“She’s got one talent in combat—knowing when to run,” Slade muttered under his breath.

He, T-09, and Selene piled into the aircraft right after her.

No time for formalities—they slammed the launch button. The ship shuddered, engines roaring to life, flames bursting from the rear thrusters. The takeoff was rough, but it worked.

Like a shooting star, the aircraft blasted into the sky and vanished into the clouds.

Down below, two Black Hand Legion members were still locked in combat with Robert. Though calling it a “fight” was generous—they were just trying to slow down his slaughter.

Just then, a deafening roar thundered overhead—the aircraft shot up into the sky.

“Wait, what the hell? The ship’s taking off?!”

“Shit!” one of the remaining Black Hand Legion members shouted, eyes wide with panic.

“Hold up—I’m not on board yet!”

But before he could take another step, Robert’s katana flashed through the air. In the blink of an eye, two heads went flying.

At that exact moment, as the aircraft engines ignited and the ship launched, a massive crack echoed across the battlefield. The ice encasing Mia shattered with an explosive blast, shards spraying in every direction.

She stood tall, tachi in hand, her eyes locked on the distant sky. “They got away?”

“Mia, are you okay?” Robert approached, his eyes gleaming with concern.

“I’m fine,” she replied calmly.

Following her gaze, Robert looked toward the horizon. “Damn… letting Slade, the Black Hand Legion’s leader, slip away like that—it’s a shame.”

“It’s fine,” Mia said, her tone icy. “You can run now, but fate has a way of circling back. We’re not done.”

The writing was already on the wall—there was no going back for Sophia and Selene. Genesis Biotech wouldn’t take them back, not after what just happened. That door was slammed shut.

Now, their only shot was to follow Slade straight into enemy territory.

And where were they headed? Blackhand City—the Black Hand Legion’s heavily fortified stronghold deep in the heart of Texas.

This brutal clash between order and chaos had come to a close, ending with the Black Hand Legion’s leader fleeing the battlefield, badly wounded.

Mia turned her gaze toward the distant battlefield, where energy still surged like a storm. The sheer force radiating from that direction was enough to tear the world apart.

Ethan and Nightbane—two SS-class Zombie Kings—were still locked in combat.

Even Mia, as powerful as she was, had no intention of getting involved in that kind of fight.

“Come on,” she said, turning to Robert. “Let’s head to San Diego. Time to check in on Sean and see how the supply run’s going.”

…

At the heart of the battlefield, the chaos had reached its peak.

Ethan’s Domain of the Dead had expanded to its absolute limit. Under the crushing pressure, the ground for hundreds of feet around had collapsed into a cratered wasteland.

Ethan stood at the center, gripping his stone tablet, a lone figure radiating the aura of an immortal war god.

Nightbane, across from him, had unleashed his full power as well. His Phantom Domain clashed violently with Ethan’s, the two forces grinding against each other with thunderous force.

His psychic energy surged outward, warping reality itself. The illusions he conjured were no longer just tricks of the mind—they were becoming real.

With a single thought, Nightbane’s will took shape: a massive celestial body formed from pure psychic force, a planet-sized meteor hurtling down from the heavens.

The sky churned violently, clouds torn apart by the incoming fireball. Flames lit up the night like a second sun.

A colossal planet broke through the clouds, descending straight toward Ethan with apocalyptic momentum.

“Damn… that’s terrifying,” Ethan muttered, staring up at the falling star. He knew it wasn’t real—just a manifestation of Nightbane’s psychic power—but it didn’t make it any less intense.

Still, he wasn’t backing down.

He bent his knees and launched himself into the air. The force of his leap cracked the earth beneath him, sending shockwaves rippling outward.

His white-clad figure shot upward, tiny compared to the massive meteor, like a moth flying into a flame.

But in his hands, the stone tablet pulsed with overwhelming power.

BOOOOM!

From the outside, it looked like Ethan had shattered the entire fireball with a single strike. The massive red planet exploded into a million fragments, dissolving into stardust that rained down like glittering embers.

…