Inside The Black Mist

Chapter 23 - Picking Faults

The young man picked up the pistol magazine from the armory and had a meal with the quartermaster. After that, the young man bid farewell to him and walked through the corridors of the base's interior.

Suddenly, Tianyang stopped.

He saw Xun standing by the window, gazing outside at the dimly lit base.

A car passed by, illuminating the girl's face. In that instant, her beauty shone like a flower in the dark.

Tianyang remembered the day before when they accidentally embraced each other, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

I should go and apologize to her... Tianyang thought.

Unexpectedly, another figure suddenly appeared next to the girl. It was a tall young man who Tianyang estimated to be a full head taller than himself.

His shoulders were broad, his body was sturdy like a bull, and his figure exuded strength.

His chiseled nose gave him a somewhat cold and aloof appearance. Despite smiling, there was a hint of arrogance in his eyes.

He also wore the black uniform of a Night Walker, and the Lieutenant's epaulets indicated that he was likely an Ascender as well.

The young man placed one hand on the polymer window next to Xun and said something to her. They seemed to know each other.

Tianyang could only dispel the idea of apologizing to her.

Just as he turned around to leave, he heard Xun gasped. When Tianyang turned around, she saw that the girl was about to leave when the young man grabbed her.

Not knowing what that man said, Xun suddenly slapped him across the face. The man probably didn't expect Xun to dare hit him and he was momentarily stunned. The smile on his face disappeared, and he raised his hand.

Without much thought, Tianyang's silver-gray hair fluttered slightly, emitting a faint glow between the strands.

Within the depths of his eyes, a flickering light appeared. Tianyang's view of the world suddenly became blurry and then cleared again; that man's arrogant and angry face was now just inches away!

Even though the man's eyes briefly lit up with surprise, Tianyang managed to catch his hand as it was in midair, halting roughly five centimeters from Xun.

The base personnel who passed by all stopped and gathered here.

The man shifted his gaze to Tianyang and coldly asked, "What are you doing?"

"Stopping you from hitting a girl," Tianyang calmly replied.

"Are you blind? Didn't you see that she struck first? She is just a lower-class citizen; when I show interest in her, she ought to be flattered and delighted, but she dared to reject me and even hit me!"

Tianyang still had no intention of letting go. "If that's the case, then I think she was right to hit you. Arrogant ones like you sometimes need to be taught a lesson."

The man and Xun both looked at Tianyang in astonishment. The difference was that anger began to rise in the man's eyes.

As for Xun, her expression seemed somewhat complex.

"Have you gone mad? Are you actually speaking up for a lower-class citizen? Have you forgotten that we have the right to companionship, which the fortress allows? Are you defying the fortress' laws?"

Tianyang smiled and released the man.

The man sneered coldly, "I don't think you would even dare."

He reached out to grab Xun.

Snap!

Tianyang slapped his hand away.

The man was startled again, and a faint glow began to emanate from his body. A symbol flickered at the center of his forehead, resembling a magic formation. Symbols within it flashed.

It was the emblem of the Heart of Elements, and the number 2 in the center of the magic formation represented that he was a Level 2 Ascender.

"You did it on purpose, didn't you?!"

Tianyang raised his hand, blocking the young man in front of Xun. "You just said it yourself; we have the right to companionship. Unfortunately, I've taken a liking to her too. What do you suggest we do?"

Xun was initially startled, but then she seemed to realize something and calmed down.

The man, on the other hand, was taken aback, then raised his hand and said, "You're asking for death!"

A pale radiance rose on his hand and condensed into the shape of a gun.

Clang!

Before the pale light gun could be fired, a pitch-black combat knife was already placed against the man's neck.

The man's pupils contracted, recognizing it instantly as a high-frequency particle combat knife! Not only his neck, but even the armor of a tank couldn't withstand the cutting power of this combat knife.

Tianyang held the combat knife firmly as if it were a rock. "The power of the Heart of Elements is immense. Putting it simply, you're fragile."

A cold sweat appeared on the man's forehead. "What do you want?"

Tianyang's gaze fell on the long gun in his hand. "Put away your abilities. I don't want to escalate the situation. As for this girl, she's mine now. I don't think you have any objections, right?"

The particle blade's icy edge was still pressed against a major artery, and the man didn't dare to object.

Gradually retracting the star energy, the light gun disappeared into his palm. The man snorted and said, "You satisfied?"

Returning the combat knife to its sheath, Tianyang pulled Xun and immediately left.

In front of the base cafeteria, Tianyang finally let go of Xun and felt a bit awkward. "Um, I intentionally said that earlier just as an excuse to intervene. I hope you don't mind."

To his surprise, Xun replied, "I know, thank you for helping me out."

"It's nothing. I'm sorry about what happened in the car yesterday."

Xun smiled and said, "It's okay."

"Well..."

"Xun, where are you? Come back and help."

The voice of Ms. Luo Shan sounded from the communication device on the girl's waist. She pouted and replied, "I'll be there soon."

Then she bowed to Tianyang again and said, "Thank you once again."

Leaving these words behind, she moved with light and agile steps like a deer and quickly disappeared.

Three hours passed quickly, and according to the command, Tianyang arrived at the assembly point in front of the base gate.

From afar, he could see the members of the Raven Squad, with other squads beside them.

Han Shu had mentioned that it was a joint operation, so Tianyang didn't find it strange to see other squads participating.

However, as he approached, he felt a jolt in his heart. The man who had tried to make a move on Xun earlier was among them.

The other party also noticed Tianyang and immediately flashed a smirky smile.

Later, Tianyang inquired with Old Xu and learned that the guy's name was Zhou Wang, the fire support of the Grey Pigeon Squad!

They counted the personnel and checked the equipment. After everything was confirmed, Han Shu shouted, "Let's go!"

Sitting in the Falcon high-speed reconnaissance vehicle, Tianyang looked at the gradually opening base gate, feeling excited.

He was finally about to embark on his first mission as an Ascender.

The Falcon vehicle used by the Night Walker performed noticeably better than the standard vehicles used by the Collection Team, despite being lightweight.

This type of combat vehicle, with its composite armor shell, boasted astonishing precision. It utilized "exhaust nozzle propulsion" to expel gas for speed changes, and its solid-fuel block storage compartment solved the problem of endurance. Equipped with a Star Element Energy cannon, it had the ability to intercept a large number of dark creatures.

Therefore, sitting in this type of vehicle, Tianyang felt at ease. He even looked forward to something happening along the way so he could witness the power of the energy cannon.

Unfortunately, the journey was uneventful.

Three days later, Tianyang, who had previously explored as a member of the Collection Team with the codename "Metropolis," saw the city known as "Inverse Universe" ahead of the retrieval squad!