Chapter 164: Ambush
Chapter 164: Ambush
The maglev car came to a stop outside the Miyang Building.
"I'm here," Man Ying Zhao murmured, reluctantly pulling herself away from Xinghuo Ji's embrace in the back seat. With a smile, she added, "Time always seems to fly when I'm with you."
"That's a good thing. It means you're happy," Xinghuo replied warmly.
Man Ying nodded. "The new season starts next week. I won't have as much time to spend with you then."
The Super League of the Asia-Pacific Community divided each season into spring and autumn segments. The spring season ran from March to June, while the autumn games took place from August to October. If a team made it to the playoffs and fought their way to the championship, the entire season could stretch all the way to the end of November.
And that wasn't all—there were also two international invitational tournaments each year, in July and December, bringing together teams from all over the globe. On top of that, there were several cup competitions of varying scales and levels.
For a Super League team, participating in all these events meant playing well over a hundred games in a year, traveling across the country and the world. It was a glamorous life, but also an incredibly busy one for competitive espers like Man Ying.
The higher the level of competition, the busier the schedule.
"It's your job," Xinghuo said seriously. "Your goal right now is to win that three-peat. You can't let me distract you from that."
In the history of the Asia-Pacific Community's Super League, only two teams had ever achieved a three-peat.
Should Man Ying accomplish this feat, her popularity and status would soar to unprecedented heights, surpassing all active competitive espers without question.
"I know," she replied, her eyes flashing with determination. "And I will make it happen."
"I know you can," Xinghuo encouraged her.
"Our first game of the new season is at our home field. Do you want to come and watch? I can get you front-row seats for you and your family," Man Ying suddenly suggested.
"Sure, I'll ask them who wants to come along," Xinghuo agreed happily.
"Well, I should head up then." Man Ying leaned in close and shared an intimate moment with Xinghuo, their lips locked for half a minute. She pulled away, her face flushed and her eyes dreamy, leaving Xinghuo struggling to maintain his composure. "If you don't leave now, you won't be going anywhere tonight," he teased in a low voice.
"Farewell," Man Ying said, leaping out of the car like a startled rabbit and waving goodbye.
The car began to move again.
As it sped away, Man Ying's figure quickly disappeared from view. Xinghuo touched his lips, savoring the lingering scent of her, a smile playing on his face.
The maglev car raced along the superconducting highway, light and shadow dancing on either side as he drew closer to home.
Despite the convenient transportation, the commute always took an hour each way.
"I should find a new place to live," Xinghuo mused, gazing out at the rapidly retreating skyscrapers. "At least somewhere closer to Man Ying. It would be more convenient."
He pulled out his phone and began searching for apartments for rent near the center of Chang'an.
"Rental prices in the Xianyang District are just too high..." he muttered.
Even a modestly sized apartment of over a hundred square meters could cost upwards of 50,000 Asia Dollars per month if it was in a desirable location and on a higher floor—say, above the 50th story. And if you wanted additional amenities like a training room, cultivation equipment, or butler service, you could expect to pay another 20,000 to 30,000 on top of that.
Xinghuo even spotted a listing for an apartment in the Miyang Building—a massive space of over a thousand square meters on the top floor, but with a monthly rent of over a million Asia Dollars! While he would be neighbors with Man Ying, he didn't think it was worth the price.
Firstly, the space was just too large for his needs, and he felt it would be wasteful. Secondly, he knew he would be spending a lot of time in the Star Realm and wouldn't be staying there full-time. Lastly, many of the high-end facilities and services offered were things he wouldn't even use.
"Somewhere nearby will do," he decided.
Xinghuo refined his search criteria: within 2 kilometers of the Miyang Building, offering a decent view, an area of around 200 square meters so he could cultivate and train at home, and fully equipped with exercise equipment. Most importantly, the monthly rent had to be below 100,000 Asia Dollars.
There were far more options that fit his criteria than he had expected—several hundred, in fact.
Xinghuo switched to a house-viewing mode on his phone.
Holographic images of the apartments were projected before him, complete with smart commentary that responded to his gaze, offering a detailed tour of each property.
However, after viewing several options, he still wasn't entirely satisfied. Something always felt a little off.
As Xinghuo studied the latest apartment projection, a sudden sense of danger rang in his mind. He snapped his head up, only to have his view blocked by the car's roof. In that split second, he pushed off from the floor of the car, crashing through the door and tumbling out of the speeding vehicle.
Boom!
In the instant Xinghuo leaped from the car, a massive bolt of lightning struck down from the sky.
The maglev car exploded, sending countless shards of debris flying onto the superconducting highway. The mangled frame of the car crashed into the guardrail and immediately burst into flames. Nearby vehicles slowed down, but several were still struck by the shrapnel, sustaining varying degrees of damage.
Xinghuo had jumped from a car traveling at 350 kilometers per hour. Due to inertia, his body tumbled uncontrollably along the road. Thankfully, his acceleration ring and Gale Force Boots activated simultaneously, aiding him in his desperate situation.
Using high-frequency thought processes, he focused on regaining his balance. As he rolled, he planted his hands on the ground and pushed off, quickly stabilizing himself and springing to his feet. He took off running on the superconducting highway.
Maglev cars whizzed by, one after another.
But at that moment, Xinghuo paid no heed to the traffic. Through magnetic field induction, he had already located his attacker.
The assailant was hovering over a hundred meters above the road, their magnetic field indicating a human form.
However, they were invisible to the naked eye.
"Invisibility!"
Xinghuo's eyes narrowed. This was true invisibility, a super-limit ability.
Bang, bang, bang...
He fired six shots, emptying the magazine of high-explosive rounds.
An invisible spherical force field appeared around the humanoid magnetic field, spanning over ten meters. The high-explosive bullets slowed as they entered the force field but still managed to hit the enemy.
Boom!
The enemy revealed himself—a tall man with a pair of black wings spanning over four meters wide stretched out behind him. Each feather was not solid but composed of flowing starlight, tendrils of mist-like luminescence extending from the tips of the wings, swirling around his body like a protective cloak.
The bullets from the Iron Hammer struck the wing-shield, creating violent ripples but failing to penetrate and inflict any damage.
"A Legendary Alien!"
A shiver ran down Xinghuo's spine, and he turned to flee.
As the Legendary Alien emerged from invisibility, his true magnetic field strength was revealed, and the etheric fluctuations could no longer be masked. He was more than ten times stronger than a Super Alien.
The Legendary Dugon Alien they had defeated together before was far weaker than this Alien.
He must be a Legend Stage 2!
Lightning Storm, Psychic Field, and Winged Man's Feather—these few abilities were enough to identify the profession of the Legendary Alien.
He was an Omnipotent Warfighter from the American Federation!
And he had brown hair and blue eyes, typical of a Westerner.
Xinghuo couldn't understand why a legendary Omnipotent Warfighter would go to the trouble of infiltrating the country to kill him, but now was not the time to ponder the reasons.
He climbed over the guardrail of the superconducting highway and jumped down.
The low-speed superpower highway was about thirty meters above the ground. Before Xinghuo landed, he sensed the legendary Alien pursuing him from above.
In mid-air, he turned to face his pursuer.
The Omnipotent Warfighter spread his black wings, which shimmered with light. With a powerful flap, he reached subsonic speed, carving a straight trajectory through the night sky as he dove towards Xinghuo, stirring up violent winds in his wake, with streaks of blinding lightning dancing within the gusts.
Two crimson rays shot from the Warfighter's eyes, aimed directly at Xinghuo.
Laser Eyes!
Yet another trademark ability of the Omnipotent Warfighter.
Xinghuo's thoughts raced as he hung in mid-air, unable to leverage his Flash Step without a surface to push off from. His only option was to raise his hands and unleash four bolts of lightning upward.
Thunderclap Hands!
The four lightning bolts struck the Warfighter, and at the same time, the laser eyes hit Xinghuo's body.
Boom...
The Warfighter's body trembled, his diving posture halting momentarily.
Xinghuo, on the other hand, was swept by the laser at his waist, his clothes instantly sliced open to reveal his silver-gray skin, adorned with metallic scales.
The laser left a charred mark at his waist, cutting into flesh but failing to inflict a fatal wound.
"Hmm?"
The Warfighter grunted in surprise.
He had been struck by four lightning bolts, but the wing shield had protected him, leaving him unharmed.
By then, Xinghuo had already landed safely and activated his spinning magnetic field at full power. With several Flash Steps, he leaped like lightning across the ground, covering a distance of a hundred meters in the blink of an eye before turning a corner and sprinting away.
"So, it's a titanium-cobalt dragon man..."
The Omnipotent Warfighter muttered under his breath, his eyes flashing with hatred.
He flapped his wings, the broad black feathers shimmering with light, and with a thunderous roar of air, he caught up with Xinghuo in an instant. His eyes narrowed, locking onto his target, and he unleashed a silent psychic scream.
However, the psychic scream seemed to have no effect, as if it had sunk into a bottomless abyss.
Xinghuo, on the other hand, retaliated with gunfire.
While running, he had reloaded his gun. Now, he aimed the Iron Hammer at his pursuer and pulled the trigger repeatedly.
The Omnipotent Warfighter, moving at high speed, swayed left and right so rapidly that his body created a plethora of illusory afterimages, making it nearly impossible to track his true position.
Bang, bang, bang...
All six high-explosive rounds found their mark.
Despite the protection of his wing shield, each bullet that hit slowed his speed, forcing him to expend starlight to counter the damaging impact.
The Omnipotent Warfighter was forced to come to a halt in mid-air, his face reflecting his disbelief.
With his speed and reflexes, it would be difficult to hit him even if he stood still and allowed someone to shoot at him. Yet, he had just tried to dodge the bullets to no avail, and each high-explosive round had struck his face, consuming a significant amount of his starlight and leaving him in a rather embarrassing situation.
Taking advantage of the Warfighter's temporary setback, Xinghuo had already put several hundred meters between them and disappeared around a street corner.
"You can't escape."
The Omnipotent Warfighter muttered to himself, his voice heavy with determination. As he spoke, his body turned invisible, vanishing from sight, but the air around him was suddenly displaced, as if an invisible fighter jet had roared by at low altitude.
Boom!
Xinghuo sensed an immense danger approaching from behind as the air exploded.
The Legendary Omnipotent Warfighter was too fast; there was no way he could shake him off. If he wanted to survive, he had no choice but to engage in a head-on battle and hold out until the legendary aliens from the country arrived.
He gritted his teeth and calmed himself.
Turning to face his pursuer, Xinghuo raised his left hand and fired the Iron Hammer once more, while in his right hand, he brandished the Lightning Chase Battle Blade, and with a forceful flick of his wrist, he sent Qinghong, which had been coiled around his arm, flying towards the Warfighter.
(End of Chapter)
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