Chapter 151: Unexpected Call

The smoke in the narrow alley completely dissipated. Smoker lay unrecognizable on the cold floor, having lost all signs of life.

Taking a fierce punch from Overlord directly to the face was truly beyond the help of even the gods.

"You guys arrived right on time!" Refraction quickly ran down from the adjacent building, her face beaming with a smile. Being quite young, she did not have much experience fighting powerful anomaly walkers like Smoker.

Throughout the entire battle just now, her nerves had been stretched to the limit, constantly worrying that Sovereign, who was engaged in frontal combat, might meet with some accident. Fortunately, with the arrival of Qi Chen and Warm Man, this extremely high-risk battle had finally come to an end.

"Right! Weren't you two dealing with the rule-based anomaly at the Livelihood Mall?" Refraction tilted her head, a great look of bewilderment appearing on her dust-stained face. Hearing this question, Sovereign, whose aura was somewhat withered, also cast an inquiring gaze toward the two of them, though he still kept his head held high, pretending not to care very much.

"We took care of that side already." Warm Man laughed heartily, turning his head to gesture at Qi Chen with his chin. "It's all thanks to Mask, otherwise even I would have planted face down in there."

Hearing this, both Refraction and the arrogant Sovereign couldn't help but look at Qi Chen in a new light. Of course they had all heard of this newcomer to the Anomaly Handling Department who had set recent records during his entry test.

They had even worked together during their time in the Special Operations Group, and Refraction had once teamed up with Qi Chen and Warm Man to take down an anomaly walker.

Yet compared to these, the impact of solving a rule-based anomaly was the greatest.

"Impressive!" Refraction raised a thumb. "I haven't even experienced a rule-based anomaly yet, but I've heard that kind of anomaly is extremely dangerous. It seems Mask really is the rising star of City Number Three! To be able to resolve even a rule-based anomaly, with you here, the turmoil in City Number Three will surely be quelled very soon!"

Qi Chen felt somewhat embarrassed. In the past, he had rarely received such unsparing praise, and suddenly receiving so much high acclaim from Refraction, he was a little unaccustomed to it for a moment.

"Don't rush to celebrate yet; the turmoil is not over." Sovereign gently coughed to interrupt the group, turning the conversation to a more practical issue. "Your current state—can you still fight?"

"Completely fine." Qi Chen wore a serious expression. Meanwhile, Warm Man, who usually did not see eye to eye with Sovereign in terms of temperament, did not spout any useless nonsense at this moment either. After answering, he asked whether there was any new intelligence.

The two groups of anomaly walkers immediately shared the information they each held with complete candor, and Qi Chen and Warm Man finally learned the name of the organization behind this turmoil.

"You said he claimed to be from the Legion?" Warm Man frowned as he looked at the corpse of Smoker on the ground, pondering in his mind where on earth this Legion had popped up from.

"It is the Legion." Sovereign's expression was pale and calm. "I have already asked headquarters; the database has no faction of anomaly walkers called the Legion. In all likelihood, it's an organization that has lain dormant for a long time... Judging from their combat power and scale, this Legion has no small ambition."

Qi Chen and the others all nodded affirmatively.

Based on all the circumstances revealed so far, this Legion colluding with the internal rebels inevitably had a much larger goal, and the anomaly walker strength they displayed could completely reach a top-tier standard even within the fog.

Although their numbers were not large, their quality was absolute top-notch.

As the few of them continued to converse, the voices of the intelligence analysis personnel came through the earpieces, conveying the latest operation orders.

"Officer Mask and Officer Warm Man, please set off immediately for the Administrative Office Headquarters! Support Officer Yanyan and protect Elder Li! Officer Sovereign and Officer Refraction, please hurry to the Tower. Team Leader Fu's side has also encountered a formidable foe!"

The group raised their heads and looked at each other, realizing that the situation remained tense and their missions were far from over.

The two groups, having just reunited not long ago, were about to part ways once more, but no one said much else, except for Warm Man adding one last remark:

"Refraction, keep a close eye on Sovereign, lest he loses sight of the big picture and his anomaly goes out of control... and we end up having to clean up the mess in the end."

Sovereign let out a cold snort, grabbed Refraction by the hand, and left without a word.

Seeing this, Qi Chen let out a helpless sigh, patted Warm Man on the shoulder, and the two of them boarded the armored vehicle once again to head toward their next destination—the Administrative Office Headquarters.

......

......

Inside the command hall, Li Taixing sat upright in the highest command seat, methodically issuing orders one after another.

All the intelligence of City Number Three was gathered here, and after being processed by the analysis personnel, it was delivered straight before him. Li Taixing demonstrated the formidable governing abilities of an outstanding administrator, having already issued a large number of effective directives based on the compiled intelligence.

Especially as the City Defense Forces and Special Police near the Livelihood Mall were able to join the battle, the situation in various districts of City Number Three was rapidly developing in a better direction.

After processing yet another piece of emergency intelligence, Li Taixing closed his slightly weary eyes and gently massaged his temples.

No longer young, he faced immense physical and mental pressure while carrying out such high-intensity work. Fortunately, the continuous stream of good news acted like an adrenaline shot, allowing the old man to continue fighting at his post!

"Mask, Qi Chen?" Whispering softly the name that had played a crucial role in the entire battle situation, a faint smile involuntarily appeared on Li Taixing's face.

Suddenly, an intelligence officer below rushed eagerly to his side and said out of breath:

"Elder Li! Someone has accessed our communication channel and left a message! It's Qin Quan... The rebels want to talk to you!" The intelligence officer spoke cautiously. Hearing this, Li Taixing's expression grew somewhat solemn, and then he let out a light chuckle, gesturing to connect the call from the rebel side.

Jingle bell!

"Elder Li, please don't blame us."

As soon as the communication was connected, Qin Quan's majestic voice rang out. However, both parties were individuals who had long held high positions, and at a time when the battle was so deadlocked, it was even less likely for them to make small talk. Qin Quan went straight to the point:

"Surrender. This is the only way to avoid more casualties."

Li Taixing chuckled lightly. "You know that surrender is simply impossible. There might be fewer casualties temporarily, but if City Number Three truly falls into your hands, what is lost will be the entire future. Tell me directly what bargaining chip you have for contacting me, and let me see just how much you have prepared."

Qin Quan on the other side of the communicator was not surprised by Li Taixing's reaction. He chuckled a few times, stretched comfortably, and then said leisurely:

"My bargaining chips aren't many, but I think they should be quite useful to you.

"Among the anomaly walkers in the Tower, one of them is my person. Elder Li... surely you wouldn't want the Tower to truly be shut down."

The communication instantly fell into silence.