Soul Chariot

As the car slowed, the vehicles behind immediately surged forward. Two off-road vehicles accelerated at once, flanking them from both sides. The agents on either side drew their guns and opened fire on Li Aoz and the others.

Clang clang clang clang clang—

"Tch!" The female agent in the vehicle to the left was visibly displeased. If Nomi had not been too busy driving to deal with her, she would have at least made a face to mock her.

"Their car is bulletproof—give me the Grenade Launcher!" Seeing that Nomi was ignoring her, the agent immediately flew into a rage and reached behind her.

"Hurry up! Hey—the driver needs to keep the speed up. Grenades can't hit that far."

"Agent Luo Fan, the captain wants them alive." Agent Ya Wen's reminder came through the channel again.

"How am I supposed to capture them alive if I don't stop the car?" Agent Luo Fan snapped back without courtesy. "Do you think now that Di is dead, your academic-school approach can finally hold up?"

"That is not the case, Agent Luo Fan. I simply believe that intercepting them directly with our vehicles is our advantage. Our vehicle weighs 3.4 tons, has wide tires, high horsepower, and thick armor. According to our training manual—" Before Agent Ya Wen could finish, Luo Fan impatiently shouted:

"Oh, really? If the textbook stuff is so useful, then go ahead and follow it!"

As she spoke, she grabbed the Grenade Launcher passed from behind, opened the window, and aimed at Li Aoz's vehicle. Just as she was about to pull the trigger, the other vehicle's sunroof suddenly opened.

"—Wait!"

She stopped in time, her gaze fixed on the figure slowly emerging through the sunroof. Against the red-and-black sky mixed with wind and snow, she could only vaguely make out a tall, thin male figure. He held both hands high in surrender. Amid the roar of engines and the howling blizzard, she faintly heard shouting from the vehicle on the right:

"Please don't attack me! I surrender! I don't dare run anymore! This Rose Army woman kidnapped me—she wants to negotiate with you!"

His words sounded sincere, his tone earnest. She hesitated, just about to assess the plausibility of what he had said, when a sharp whistling sound suddenly cut through the air. The Grenade Launcher in her hands was violently smashed away by an iron chain.

"Since when?!"

Before she could react, the driver cried out. Something struck the windshield before them—fortunately, their tempered glass was just as sturdy and did not shatter. She focused her eyes and saw a metal canister pressed against the windshield, colorless liquid gushing from it and seeping down the hood. Then her nose caught a pungent smell of fuel.

"Gasoline!"

Li Aoz lowered the gasoline-soaked chain into the car, and Qiu Ran raised her hand and lightly tapped it.

Boom! A savage Fire Dragon broke free from Li Aoz's hand. He swung his arm and viciously hurled it at the vehicle that had been hit by the gasoline canister!

Golden rings of light lit up in his gray eyes. Gravity was applied to the chain, originally to help him swing it with ease. But as it fell, Li Aoz abruptly redirected the force of gravity, making the chain bear five times its weight.

Li Aoz's series of actions was unbelievably fast, far faster than Agent Luo Fan could raise her hand, aim at Li Aoz, and fire. She had only just lifted her gun when the flame-red iron chain crashed down in front of the car!

Bang!

The chain originally weighed less than five kilograms, yet the force of its descent was comparable to a cannon shell. The hood was instantly bent and crushed inward, igniting the gasoline that had seeped into it. The car's air-conditioning system blasted flames at the passengers inside, startling the driver and agents.

"Ugh—ah—"

The people in the back hurriedly tried to put out the fire with extinguishers, but Agent Luo Fan had no time. Her protective glove caught fire, forcing her to tear it off immediately. Yet that brief moment sealed her death.

Whoosh—crack!

The glowing-hot chain trailing flames was swung in an instant, smashing into her neck. The gasoline on it, under the effects of Gravity Deflection, spread from Agent Luo Fan's neck to the back of her neck, soaking into her collar and hair.

The next instant, the back of her head was engulfed in flames. The scorching blaze made her howl endlessly, and she instantly abandoned all resistance. She flailed and struggled wildly, severely interfering with the driver's control of the steering wheel. His vision was already obstructed by fire and the Outland blizzard, and the heat wave from the nearby flames terrified him. His grip slipped, and the entire vehicle veered off course, straying farther and farther away until it disappeared.

Limited by the Outland's dreadful visibility, the vehicle on the right only saw Li Aoz stand up and swing his chain. It had no idea what had happened on the left. Agent Ya Wen in the right-side vehicle shouted over the channel for a long time, but received no response at all.

Seeing the vehicle ahead veer away, the vehicle behind immediately floored the accelerator, intending to fill the gap.

Seeing this, Agent Ya Wen hurriedly warned, "Don't go over there. He's an Aoneng user with a gravity field—"

Before she could finish, Li Aoz casually threw out another gasoline canister. The gravity field shifted, and the canister arrived in an instant, smashing into the rear vehicle's windshield like a meteor. "What—ugh, aaaaaah!!!"

The glass shattered. The instant friction and impact directly detonated the canister. Li Aoz did not even need to finish them off—the driver of that vehicle had his abdomen pierced by the gasoline canister. Amid the high-temperature explosion, he panicked and directly rolled the entire car onto its side, leaving it sprawled across the road.

Not long after, a burst of fire exploded amid the wind and snow behind them.

"Agent Ya Wen, what do we do now..."

The driver sounded panicked. What had happened to the car behind them had left him deeply afraid.

Li Aoz was clearly targeting the drivers. The driver of that car had been half-killed by the gasoline canister, then burned by the flames, dying in unbearable agony along with everyone in the vehicle.

Death itself was not frightening, but dying so painfully was enough to unsettle anyone.

"We—"

Before Agent Ya Wen could speak, Li Aoz gave them no chance to think. An agent in the back seat screamed as the glowing-hot chain severed the arm she had been using to fire her gun. Her clothes caught fire as well, and the orange blaze made it impossible for her to control her body.

"Save me, I, I—ah! I—I—aaaaah—"

Her skin shriveled and twisted at a visible rate. The fat beneath it seeped out and ignited. Her skin first split apart, stretched taut enough for her veins to show, then turned charred black.

"Agent Xia Er, get the fire extinguisher!"

"I'm on it—Chu Lin! What are you doing? Don't come over, I'm trying to save you—ah!"

She kept slapping and ramming herself, trying to extinguish the flames, but only spread the fire to others. Agent Xia Er had lowered her head to look for the extinguisher when her delirious colleague toppled onto her, setting her ablaze. She was swallowed by fire and pinned beneath someone, crying out in agony.

"No—ahhhh—"

She reached a hand toward Ya Wen and said desperately, "Give me... kill me..."

Ya Wen's pupils contracted, and she immediately shouted:

"Driver, unlock the doors!"

"What are you—unlocked!"

Seeing this, Agent Ya Wen gritted her teeth and immediately opened the door. The fierce wind instantly tore away her breathing mask, but she could not spare any attention for that.

Saving people came first!

Ya Wen hooked one hand onto the car door and flipped onto the roof. She opened the door from above, reached in, and dragged the two of them directly out of the vehicle.

Ya Wen moved extremely quickly. The flames never touched her.

The two bodies were immediately swallowed by wind, snow, and darkness, vanishing from sight... Whether the flames on them had gone out or they had simply gone too far away to see was impossible to tell.

"At least it's better than doing nothing—mm!"

Whoosh! A sharp sound tore through the air. Ya Wen lowered her head slightly, dodging Li Aoz's sweeping chain.

The iron chain brushed past her peaked cap. Sparks burst forth, illuminating her delicate face. Her golden-green eyes lifted and instinctively met those gray eyes lit by golden rings.

Those eyes were filled with an intensely repulsive contempt—he seemed not to take anyone seriously at all, looking down on everything with an easy, relaxed expression. It felt strangely familiar to her.

Ya Wen remembered the tourists in the capital's arcades, players who merely moved a joystick and slaughtered countless virtual-data "enemies."

Ya Wen's expression darkened, displeasure surfacing on her delicate face.

She hated people who had absolutely no respect for life.

Click!

Gripping a pistol in each hand, Ya Wen stared fixedly at her opponent, poised to strike.

"Huh...?"

Li Aoz was slightly stunned.

"At this level, someone can still dodge my attack while facing away."

Not bad.

The chain circled around. The gasoline had burned out, and the flames were already extinguished. Li Aoz stood atop the car, the chain hanging from his hand, still glowing red-hot as wisps of vapor rose from the snow on the roof.

Half-crouched atop the off-road vehicle, Agent Ya Wen raised both guns. She calmly observed Li Aoz's movements without attacking rashly. Who knew whether his gravity effect would apply to bullets as well?

Li Aoz was in no hurry either. He quietly studied this Law Enforcement Division Four Agent. Her composed, steady posture was completely unlike the usual crazy women of Law Enforcement Division Four, which surprised him.

Was she lucky? Or had he gotten rusty? The latter seemed unlikely—flexible weapons, staffs, and blades were all standard equipment for a Starcaller.

Li Aoz was extremely confident in his technique.

Whether it was luck or whether she truly was extraordinary would depend on her performance next.

"Just a little fish, or a hidden shark... I hope you can entertain me."

As a Master Player, there were not many people of the same level, with similar attributes, who could compete with him in mobility.

The sudden appearance of someone like this caught Li Aoz off guard and piqued his interest.

Anyone could crush others with superior attributes. Competing on equal footing was what made things interesting!

Beneath the red-and-black canopy, two beastlike off-road vehicles raced with their heads held high, vying for speed. Gray eyes and golden-green pupils reflected one another from afar.

They remained locked in confrontation for a long time. One side was cautious and vigilant toward the other's mysterious ability; the other watched with keen interest, looking at her with the expectant gaze of someone examining a new toy.

Time moved slowly and heavily, like mercury. Due to the Highly Tense strain, cold sweat beaded on Ya Wen's fair forehead, while Li Aoz maintained the relaxed demeanor of someone merely playing through life from start to finish.

Though the lull lasted only a few seconds, Ya Wen felt as if every second stretched into a year. Li Aoz's composure and indifference put her under immense mental pressure. Just as her hands around the guns began to grow unsteady, Qiu Ran's voice suddenly came from inside the car. "Li Aoz, are you done—"

Crack! The chain and the twin guns moved at once, and the triggers were pulled. The chain, still carrying residual heat, swept up a vicious red gleam.

For a moment, wind and clouds churned. The collision of cold and hot weapons, the clash between technology and supernatural power—at this moment, the prologue to a bloody storm officially began.