The roar of powerful vehicle engines grew louder as a convoy sped forward. It was pursued doggedly by the four from Silver Eagle, leaving the thugs wide-eyed. Could these people actually catch up to a maglev car on foot?

The convoy quickly charged into the street, heading straight for the building. When they reached its base, Marcus shouted, "Open fire!"

Joseph pulled the trigger.

BANG!

A gunshot rang out as ammunition sprayed forward. As the muzzle flash died, the electromagnetic buckshot slammed into a pile of high-energy infused shells.

SIZZLE... CRACKLE...

A blinding wave of electromagnetic light erupted over a vast area, piercing the shell casings and igniting the rounds within.

BOOM!

The immense force of the explosion obliterated dozens of nearby thugs and sent a heavy armored combat vehicle flipping several times before it crashed hard against a wall.

The newly arrived convoy, rocked by the blast, was forced to a halt.

Cursing, Sidro grabbed a bulky energy grenade launcher from a nearby case, clipped ten energy cells to himself, then kicked the vehicle door off its hinges and charged out.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

Sidro fired repeatedly in Joseph and Marcus's direction while retreating into the building.

Firepower from the upper floors also concentrated on the two.

Dora raised her hands, and nine firearms materialized, hovering around her. Big Rabbit was determined to show that little vixen her abilities were indeed useful!

The nine guns quickly targeted nine firing points within the building and fired simultaneously.

The gunmen at each firing point were struck center-forehead, their heads exploding, instantly silencing those positions.

Thugs immediately surged forward. Just as new ones grabbed weapons, Big Rabbit's pinpoint eliminations immediately followed; nine more heads exploded. For a moment, the entire building fell deathly silent. No one dared to show their face.

With a wave of her hands, Big Rabbit swiveled the nine guns, switched them to rapid-fire mode, and targeted the thugs outside the building.

RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT...

Amidst the dense gunfire, thugs fell in droves.

The thugs, moments before so fierce and arrogant—as if they were kings of the world—now fell in droves amidst terrified screams. The survivors scattered, desperately trying to flee into the building.

But Big Rabbit's shots pursued them relentlessly. The last thug fell just ten meters from the building's entrance.

Big Rabbit whistled. The world is so quiet now. Nice.

Marcus said with satisfaction, "This ability is excellent for clearing out small fry."

He commanded, "Charles, it's your turn. Destroy the building."

Charles grumbled, "This is no easy task..." He then stepped forward, his silver cape billowing in the wind behind him. He spread his arms towards the building, as if grasping something in the void.

His 'Star Battle Instructor' ability activated. Streams of invisible particles surged out, rapidly heating the building's foundational support structures until they glowed scorching hot and began to melt!

The building teetered on the brink of collapse. The hundreds of thugs inside, oblivious to the cause, panicked. Someone screamed, "The building's collapsing! Run!"

As the building began to tilt, some panicked thugs leaped from the upper floors, only to meet a predictable, bone-shattering end on the ground below.

RUMBLE... RUMBLE...

The building finally gave way, crashing down with a ground-shaking impact. A colossal cloud of dust enveloped the area, plunging it into chaos.

Charles, drenched in sweat, was completely spent. Melincha rushed forward to support him. Chen Gu, arriving with Boluo, saw Charles slumped weakly against a plush toy and was instantly enraged. Shameless!

Marcus stepped out. His professionals had already surrounded the building. He gestured with a wave of his hand. "Witch, make the call."

Selena stepped forward. Her voice, carrying a strong 'persuasive' effect, echoed across the ruins. "Surrender. Your lives shouldn't end like this.

"Sidro, you know what we want. Hand over the item, and you can start a new life."

One by one, thugs emerged from the ruins, hands raised. Marcus spoke into the comms channel, "Action Team, take them into custody."

Dozens of maglev buses sped in. Team members disembarked and took the thugs into custody.

But even after all the dust settled, Sidro had not emerged.

"Dead?" Dora speculated. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn NoveI-Fire.ɴet

Marcus shook his head. He extended his hands, drawing various materials from their surroundings. Two alchemical bombs quickly formed in his palms.

"Prepare for battle!"

Chen Gu patted Boluo. "We're both 'Alchemical Fighters', but look how suave and cool the Team Leader is with his moves! Then look at you, hillbilly!"

Boluo felt indignant but couldn't find a rebuttal, so he just emphasized fiercely, "You owe me fifty bucks!"

Chen Gu smirked. *I won't crush his spirit by telling him Dad's got a billion,* he thought.

CRASH!

Suddenly, a loud noise erupted from the ruins. A metal giant smashed its way out and stood tall amidst the wreckage.

The professionals quickly moved to engage, but Chen Gu remained still.

He was still drawing upon Griffin Wester's memories. The keen battlefield intuition of a high Energy Level 'Star Battle Instructor' made him sense something amiss.

He switched to Milna Katerina's memories, activating his high Energy Level 'Mind Belief' to scan the surroundings.

Suddenly, Chen Gu started walking in a specific direction.

Two special operations teams were already engaging the metal giant. Sidro sat perched on the mech's chest, laughing maniacally as he unleashed a torrent of firepower.

Chen Gu glanced back at Sidro with contempt. "Clever idea, using parts from mechs to build this hulk. Utterly pointless, though."

The Action Team leader noticed Chen Gu's unusual movement and immediately asked via the comms channel, "Chen Gu, where are you going?"

"Going to catch a little rat."

"Do you need support?"

Chen Gu considered for a moment. "Have two squads follow me."

"Okay."

The team leader gave a few tactical hand signals, and two squads fell in behind Chen Gu, maintaining their distance.

Guided by his 'Mind Belief,' Chen Gu slowly headed off to one side, moving further and further away from the main scene until he reached a deserted back alley.

At the end of the alley stood a convenience store that looked like it saw little business.

Chen Gu stopped in front of the door and asked, "What is this place?"

The Action Team leader quickly checked and replied over the comms, "That's a 'Mother of War' contraband sales point."

Chen Gu nodded and walked into the store.

The shop was empty and in slight disarray. Clearly, the local thugs had all gone to reinforce the main building.

Chen Gu pushed open a small door beside the shelves and entered the store's warehouse.

It was stacked high with contraband: various drugs banned by the Confederation, illegally modified high-powered weapons, and more.

Chen Gu walked through the warehouse and pushed open another small door. Beyond it lay a small courtyard.