Chapter 652: Playing It Safe

Chapter 652: Playing It Safe

Xia Lingling had blocked Akutsu Shinichiro’s metal baseball bat with just her bare body.

Even Akutsu couldn’t help but be surprised.

Even among Enhancement-type Superhumans, few would rely solely on physical combat without a weapon.

“What an arrogant little brat!”

Akutsu chuckled darkly. He ramped up his strength, swinging the metal bat wildly and ferociously in a chaotic flurry.

As a yakuza thug, he relied on just two things when fighting: experience and presence.

Though he looked like a street brawler, he could pull off a wide array of techniques, making him an expert in real combat.

Xia Lingling snorted and hopped lightly on the ground, moving with a butterfly-like step that was incredibly refined.

Her punches were also lightning-fast!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Her fists collided over and over with the metal bat.

Xia Lingling showed no signs of pain on her face—

On the contrary, the more they fought, the more excited she looked.

Akutsu, on the other hand, was dumbfounded.

He could feel massive recoil through his metal bat—

Power like this… was she even human?

The force erupting from Xia Lingling’s body was terrifying—

Even for someone with a strengthened physique, it seemed unnatural.

Daiku Kai Enzu’s overwhelming strength made sense—

He’d been a Yokozuna in the sumo world long before becoming a Superhuman.

But this girl in front of him didn’t even look that physically built.

Where on earth was her strength coming from?

Soon enough, Akutsu spotted the clue.

Standing behind Xia Lingling the entire time was her boyfriend, Yuan Hao, cheering her on non-stop.

He cupped his hands like a megaphone and shouted, “You got this, Lingling! You’re the best!”

Akutsu immediately understood.

Yuan Hao was clearly a Support-type Superhuman.

His cheering was giving Xia Lingling a power boost.

“Take out the support first!”

Akutsu tried to bypass Xia Lingling and go straight for Yuan Hao.

But Xia Lingling had been keeping a sharp eye on him—there was no way she was letting that happen.

“Don’t even think about it! Anyone who lays a hand on my husband—dies!”

Her pupils flared with a demonic red light as she shot forward and cut him off like a bolt of lightning.

Her speed was so fast that Akutsu couldn’t break past her guard at all.

“Tch! Annoying woman!”

Akutsu scowled. “Fine, I’ll just take you out first!”

The western and northern battlefields were already blazing with combat.

But in the southeast, where Zhang Yi was stationed, everything was eerily calm.

So calm, in fact, that no one could figure out what was going on.

Listening to the battle reports over the comms, Zhang Yi felt a growing sense of suspicion.

“Why haven’t the Moon of Corrosion people come yet? Could they be planning something big?”

Back at the Operations Command Center, Commander Zhu Zheng was frowning.

“Why hasn’t anyone shown up in Zhang Yi’s direction? Is it something on Zhang Yi’s end—or something off about the enemy?”

Tu Yunlie, Chief of Operations, turned to Zhu Zheng and said,

“Commander Zhu, the way Zhang Yi’s group is operating doesn’t support our overall plan. Let’s order them to advance toward the Jiangning Plaza center.”

Zhu Zheng thought for a moment, then nodded.

He switched to Zhang Yi’s comms channel and issued the command:

“Zhang Yi, keep moving! The enemy’s behavior in your area is too strange. Head toward the center of Jiangning Plaza. Gather intel.”

Zhang Yi replied calmly, “Roger that.”

After ending the transmission, he looked toward the depths of Jiangning Plaza.

That area was shrouded in thick fog, making it impossible to see clearly.

Moving in could mean running straight into the main Moon of Corrosion force.

After all, eight of their members were still unaccounted for.

Even with Zhang Yi’s strength, he wasn’t fond of taking unnecessary risks.

Noticing his expression shift, Liang Yue asked,

“What’s wrong? What did HQ say?”

“They said the enemy’s acting weird and told us to go deeper in to investigate,” Zhang Yi replied.

Liang Yue frowned too.

“Going deeper means greater risk.”

She looked at Zhang Yi.

“What do you plan to do?”

Zhang Yi grinned.

“What else? Since HQ gave the order, we’ll follow it.”

Liang Yue looked surprised.

Zhang Yi didn’t usually strike her as someone that obedient.

But when she caught that subtle, meaningful smile on his lips—

She realized things weren’t so simple.

Sure enough, Zhang Yi led them out of the building and down to the base where Chen Xiaoxiao and Peng Li had been standing guard.

He told them,

“No sign of enemies here. HQ wants us to move forward.”

Chen Xiaoxiao and Peng Li exchanged glances.

They both thought—finally.

Sitting here waiting for the enemy to show up didn’t feel like a search and destroy mission at all.

“Yeah, it’s about time we got moving.”

The two women nodded, and Zhang Yi took the lead, walking deeper into Jiangning Plaza.

But after advancing a bit over a hundred meters, he came to a sudden stop.

Pointing to a building ahead, he said,

“This spot gives us a better view. Let’s hold position here.”

Chen Xiaoxiao and Peng Li were stunned.

“What? We’re stopping here?”

“Didn’t HQ tell us to go investigate the center of Jiangning Plaza?”

Only Liang Yue quietly covered her mouth and giggled.

She knew Zhang Yi’s style way too well.

Expecting him to follow orders to the letter?

That’s just wishful thinking.

Zhang Yi, in all seriousness, declared:

“This mission is critical—we must proceed with caution. Therefore, I’ve decided to observe from here first before making any decisions.”

All he had agreed to was “advance.”

No one said how far.

What, was he supposed to lead the whole team straight into the enemy core at the heart of Jiangning Plaza?

He wasn’t stupid.

There were likely Epsilon-level Superhumans among the enemy.

Even Zhang Yi wasn’t arrogant enough to think he could keep everyone alive under those conditions.

After all, Outer City Superhumans weren’t the main force.

They were just given some gear.

Why the hell should they risk their lives?

Chen Xiaoxiao and Peng Li were speechless.

They both knew the other two battlefronts were already in full combat.

If they didn’t do anything, wouldn’t that just mean handing over all the mission points to someone else?

“Zhang Yi, if we do this, didn’t we just come here for nothing?”

Chen Xiaoxiao couldn’t hold back her frustration.

She glared at Zhang Yi, clearly unhappy.

But Zhang Yi responded calmly,

“Missions are endless. But we only have one life. I believe protecting that comes first.”

Chen Xiaoxiao’s tone turned cold.

“But we came here with a purpose. Sorry, I’m not like you—clinging to life and scared of death.

I won’t just sit by and let these punks rampage on our land.”

Zhang Yi glanced at her and slowly clapped.

“Well said. You’re really something.”

“So? If you’re not happy, you’re free to go.

I never forced you to follow my lead.”

Author's Note