18: Whose bigwig has come down to experience life?

The abandoned industrial zone in the east of the city.

The air was thick with the suffocating stench of rust, engine oil, and rotting flesh.

The harsh screeching of metal, the futile sounds of gunfire, and the roars of non-human creatures intertwined into a symphony of despair.

A hideous Ghoul lunged forward suddenly.

Puchi—!

Li Weijie, the leader of a Second-Class Squad, cut it down with a single stroke, foul-smelling blood splashing across his face.

However, more dark shadows emerged continuously from behind abandoned production lines and the shadows of collapsed factory buildings.

Hungry red lights flickered in their eye sockets, their shriveled skin clung tightly to their bones, and their sharp claws let out piercing screeches as they scraped against the concrete floor.

"Captain! We're surrounded!"

"It's no use, there's no end to them!"

"Where's the backup? When on earth is the Spiritual Energy Bureau's support arriving?!"

The team members' voices were already tinged with tears.

They had shifted from their initial active encirclement and suppression to a passive defense.

Over a dozen Second-Level Special Agents stood back-to-back in a circle, doing their utmost to resist the tide of monsters, but their formation was teetering under wave after wave of impact.

The number of these Ghouls far exceeded estimates, and their strength and speed were much greater than what was recorded in the files.

Ah—!

A scream rang out.

Another team member's protective suit was torn open by a Ghoul's claws, leaving three deep gashes on his thigh that exposed the bone, and blood instantly gushed out.

A gap appeared in the formation.

Panic spread through the team like a virus.

Everyone's faces were filled with terror and collapse.

It was over.

Today, it seemed all of them would lose their lives here.

Three even taller Ghouls broke through the line, lunging toward the injured member and Li Weijie.

Li Weijie's stamina was already depleted; he could only watch helplessly as the cold, glinting claws rapidly enlarged in his pupils.

He could even smell the nauseating, fishy wind exhaled from the monster's mouth.

I'm going to die!

At that critical moment—

Boom—!

A dark shadow suddenly appeared in front of Li Weijie at a speed completely invisible to the naked eye.

There were no extra movements.

Just a plain, unremarkable straight punch.

The Ghoul, which had seemed irresistibly powerful in Li Weijie's eyes, didn't even have time to scream before its entire body exploded in mid-air.

A mixture of bone fragments and meat chunks, along with foul-smelling fluids, turned into a rain of blood that drenched Li Weijie from head to toe.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

The clamor of battle seemed to fade away.

Chen Nian slowly withdrew his fist. The faint golden Qi and blood energy around him surged, forming an invisible, powerful aura that repelled all the surrounding filth and stench.

Dead silence fell over the scene.

Everyone was stunned.

Whether it was the struggling Special Agents or the bloodthirsty, crazed Ghouls, they all stopped their movements and looked at the man who had suddenly intruded onto the battlefield.

What's the situation?

What just happened?

Li Weijie sat paralyzed on the ground, covered in filth, staring blankly at the tall back in front of him, his mind a complete blank.

"Is... is the Spiritual Energy Bureau's support here?"

One Special Agent asked with a trembling voice.

"So... such powerful strength. One punch... and the Ghoul was blown apart?"

"This... which big shot is this? Why does he seem so unfamiliar? Does our Bureau have such a big shot?"

"No, I've seen all the captains in our Bureau, there's no person like this!"

Among the shocked discussions of the Special Agents, there was an unmaskable wild joy.

However, Chen Nian had no intention of paying them any mind.

His gaze swept over the dense crowd of Ghouls around him. That look was like a starving wolf seeing a whole flock of plump sheep.

The next second.

His figure disappeared from the spot once again.

With the terrifying enhancement of the Prison Suppressing Divine Body, his speed reached the extreme, turning into a bolt of black lightning that constantly darted back and forth across the battlefield.

He wove through the pack of Ghouls.

A punch was thrown.

Bang!

A Ghoul's head shattered instantly.

A leg swept out.

Boom!

Three Ghouls were kicked in half at the waist. While their upper bodies were still in the air, their lower halves had already been turned into meat paste.

One punch.

One kick.

Every attack was simple to the extreme, yet contained the purest, most savage destructive power.

The sounds of collisions, explosions, and bones cracking were incessant.

In an instant, blood splattered and flesh flew.

The entire abandoned factory building turned into a bloody slaughterhouse.

In Chen Nian's mind, the System's notification sounds were ringing frantically at an unprecedented frequency.

[Ding! Killed a Tier 1 Ghoul, gained 39 points.]

[Ding! Killed a Tier 1 Ghoul, gained 50 points.]

[Ding! Killed a Tier 2 Ghoul, gained 82 points.]

[Ding! Killed a Tier 2 Ghoul, gained 171 points.]

...Listening to this series of pleasant broadcasts and feeling the rapidly rising points on the panel.

The blood inside Chen Nian's body began to boil slightly.

His speed became even faster.

His attacks became even sharper.

He was like a god of slaughter walking out of Hell, his entire body radiating a terrifyingly powerful aura that left those Ghouls with no power to fight back.

The surrounding Special Agents were completely dumbfounded.

They watched this magical scene before them with blank faces.

The Ghoul pack, which just a second ago had been incredibly frenzied, suppressing them so hard they couldn't see a glimmer of hope, now actually showed looks of fear.

They screamed and roared, instinctively wanting to retreat, wanting to flee from this terrifying human.

But before that black afterimage, everything was in vain.

Watching this extreme aesthetic of violence and pure power suppression, the worldviews of all the Special Agents present were shattered to pieces.

So... so brutal!

So scary!

But... so reliable!

So reassuring!

Is this absolute power?

Crushing!

This was a crushing victory with no suspense!

In front of him, these Ghouls that had driven them to desperation were truly no different from ants.

"This aura... it's too terrifying. Just which big shot is this?" Li Weijie murmured to himself, his eyes full of awe.

Suddenly, a young Special Agent in the team had a faint light shine in his eyes.

This was the auxiliary Cultivation Technique he practiced—"Spirit Eye Pupil."

It allowed his vision to be greatly enhanced.

When his gaze fell upon the badge on Chen Nian's chest, the expression on his face instantly froze.

Then, as if he had seen the most unbelievable thing in the world, he let out a distorted cry of surprise.

"Fi... First-Level Agent?! This big shot is a First-Level Agent!!"

The people around him were first stunned, then they all cast dissatisfied glances.

"What nonsense are you talking?"

"Are you kidding me! A First-Level Agent? How is that possible!"

"We Second-Level Special Agents were beaten like this, what could a First-Level Agent do? Be delivered as a snack?"

"Have you been beaten into a daze?"

A First-Level Agent could perform this level of slaughter?

This was simply a fantasy!

However, when they followed his gaze and also saw clearly the badge on Chen Nian's chest, all the voices of doubt came to an abrupt halt.

The whole world seemed to go quiet.

It really was a First-Level Agent!!

That one-star badge, which represented an intern, a newcomer, or was even jokingly called "cannon fodder reserve," now seemed like a sun, making their eyes sting.

"Holy crap! It really is First-Level!"

"How is this possible? I'm not dreaming, am I?"

"A First-Level Agent single-handedly cleared a pack of Ghouls that so many of us Second-Level Special Agents couldn't handle?"

"And in such a brutal, crushing way!"

“Hiss—this couldn't be a Young Master from some top-tier family who came down to experience life and pretend to be a pig to eat the tiger, right!”

Amidst the sharp intakes of breath and the flurry of discussion, everyone began to accept this viewpoint.

Other than a big shot coming down to experience life, they simply couldn't think of any other explanation.

Bang—!

With a dull thud, the last Ghoul was blown into a mist of blood by Chen Nian's punch.

The entire factory building finally returned to complete silence.

Only the dense smell of blood and stench in the air, along with the remains and severed limbs all over the ground, proved that everything that just happened was not a hallucination.

Captain Li Weijie was the first to react. He hurriedly straightened his tattered uniform and, leading all his team members, walked quickly to Chen Nian.

He bowed deeply, his tone filled with heartfelt respect and gratitude.

"Senior! Thank you, Senior, for saving our lives!"

The team members behind him also bowed in unison and shouted in one voice.

"Thank you, Senior!"

No matter what level the other party's badge was.

And no matter what the other party's identity truly was.

In their eyes, anyone who could save them from desperation with such thunderous means was a Senior, a big shot!

They had to give their highest respect!

Chen Nian looked at these respectful young people and was quite satisfied.

Mhm, they know how to behave.

He didn't dislike these guys.

However, before he could respond.

Roar—!

From deeper within the industrial zone came a roar that was even more frenzied and evil than the Ghouls from before.

At the same time, the sounds of even more intense fighting could be heard faintly.

Li Weijie's expression changed, and he immediately explained to Chen Nian, "Senior, it's the Third-Class Squad led by Senior Wang Hu! They are responsible for pushing into the core area. There... there seems to be an even stronger Demonic Evil reaction!"

Almost at the moment Li Weijie's voice fell.

In Chen Nian's mind, a brand-new System notification suddenly rang out.

[Ding! Triggered hidden mission: Slay the Heart-Devouring Old Demon!]

[Mission Requirement: Kill the 'Heart-Devouring Old Demon' entrenched in the core of the industrial zone.]

[Mission Reward: 10,000 points, skill 'Heart-Devouring Demon Silk'!]

Chen Nian's breathing hitched for a moment.

Then, his eyes suddenly lit up.

Ten thousand points!

And a brand-new skill!

Whether you're a Heart-Devouring Old Demon or a Brain-Devouring Old Ghost.

You're nothing more than walking points!

In the next instant, he didn't say a single word to Li Weijie and the others, nor did he stay for a second.

His entire being turned into an afterimage again, speeding directly toward the direction the roars were coming from.

Leaving behind only a group of Special Agents staring at each other.

They stared blankly at Chen Nian's disappearing back for several seconds before someone finally reacted.

"Senior heard there was a stronger demon and charged straight in!"

"Too... too powerful! Too righteous!"

"This is the role model for us Spiritual Energy Bureau Agents! Slaying demons and devils, charging forward without hesitation, never letting any demon harm civilians!"

For a moment, the flames of admiration ignited in everyone's eyes.

In their spontaneous imagination, Chen Nian's image had already been infinitely elevated into a great hero who fought alone for justice and protection, regardless of his own safety.