Clown Game
Chapter 272 - 259: The Return of the Dark Realm (XIV)

Chapter 272: Chapter 259: The Return of the Dark Realm (XIV)

The old city was extensive, with dozens of kilometers all invaded by the Dark Realm. On a certain street at the city’s edge, a team clad in protective suits silently marched forward. No one spoke, nor did anyone issue commands even at the corners; everyone just followed the lead of the first person to step out, moving incredibly slowly and aimlessly.

Because no one knew what to say or where to go, a dismal atmosphere pervaded among the team. The recent aberration that lured people with a female corpse profoundly shocked everyone’s perception, shattered it into smithereens. It felt as if one day you suddenly discovered that your pet cat started using chopsticks to eat, the backyard teddy bear scribbled some simple arithmetic on the ground with its paws, and even the ants carried things in division and teamwork—the moment when all creatures seemed to have gained intelligence, and all we could feel was intense absurdity and unease.

...

Among these people was a gaunt figure, stooped and head bowed, resembling a dried-up shrimp. Compared to others, this person seemed even quieter, just walking among the crowd without observing the roads or caring about potential dangers, giving off an impression as if even if a massive beast devoured him right then, he wouldn’t care.

Was he thinking? Or just daydreaming? No one knew, and no one cared about this expendable C-rank person, Spare Chen Xiao. And Bai Xiong and Song Xuan didn’t say much after giving Chen Xiao a baffling glance; they were used to any action he took under any circumstances... Since he had finally calmed down, they naturally wanted him to remain quiet.

At the same time, they were oblivious that on the other end of the city, a person was rushing towards them at high speed. The gun in his hands kept switching directions while his body maneuvered through high-speed movements, assuming various postures. Bullets of various functions, glowing, flaming, and twisting space, were fired, flying towards every corner of the city, destroying any danger detected by spherical sensors.

After several rises and falls, the gun in his hand switched directions four times in half a second, moving so fast it left only a streak of afterimage, meanwhile, his running didn’t slow down a bit. After countless bullets were fired, his scope finally displayed a new scene, a group quietly and cautiously moving next to an old building.

Dos’s eyes brightened, and with another cannon-like leap, he stepped on the vertical walls rising tens of meters, crossing diagonally, kicking the building’s body to create several large holes. He then traced several incredible arcs in the air before smashing down towards the ground.

Because the last landing point was quite far away, the fierce wind in mid-air did not catch the ground team’s attention. When a few field personnel with detection equipment realized something had entered their detection range, Dos had already smashed down in front of everyone thunderously.

"Defend!"

Someone yelled instantly, quickly retreating a distance. Several team members, including Bear, who were either vanguards or defenders, appeared in front of the team as stones from the shattered building pelted their protective equipment. Within a second, an array of weapons started firing madly into the dust ahead; in an instant, gunshots and dust erupted as if a live fish had been thrown into boiling water, the intense heat and energy furiously ravaging everything on the street. Although till then no one had seen what exactly had fallen from the sky, in the Dark Realm, any sight was met with gunfire, especially something that stirred up such a vast cloud of dust; even if it was the wrong target, no one would complain.

In the midst of deafening explosions...

"I am the temporary commander of this operation, Branislav Dosnovich from the Order Foundation’s Omega Independent Squad; please cease all fire to avoid unnecessary damage. Repeat..."

A voice came through clearly but with no discernible direction. However, that hardly mattered as the intense shooting abruptly ceased upon hearing this speech.

In front of the team, the space slightly distorted for a moment, and a person holding a long rifle, his body’s surroundings flowing like liquid camouflage, slowly became visible.

"You can call me..."

He began to say habitually, suddenly pulling the gun to his side with one hand and inexplicably firing a shot.

"...Dos," he completed his sentence after the gunshot.

...

...

There was some slight commotion among the crowd; some people were obviously saying something, but because of the helmets, the sound couldn’t escape. A few even noticed that Dos wasn’t wearing a protective suit; still not lowering their guns, they cautiously watched the tall man who had suddenly appeared.

Dos obviously anticipated this reaction, so right after introducing himself, he extended his wrist to show his protective force field was also in isolation mode.

"Report any casualties!" Dos continued.

"No casualties!" the small fellow responded...

Dos nodded, whether it was good luck or some other reason, the situation appeared far better than expected, so Dos didn’t want to waste time. He immediately took out a row of black spherical detection devices from behind, ready to distribute them to everyone left to expand the exploration range to its maximum.

But just then, Dos seemed to notice something; he saw someone in the crowd stooping and bowing his head, furrowing his brow.

"You..." His hand lifted, pointing across the crowd at Chen Xiao: "Have I seen you somewhere?"

Dos asked.

Suddenly, the crowd parted to the sides, curiously looking at the silent C-rank person who remained bowed and silent, seemingly indifferent to the recent gunfire, explosions, and the man standing before him.

Dos looked at Chen Xiao intrigued; although he could not see his face clearly because of the protection helmet, the build and demeanor reminded him of someone he had seen somewhere...

Where?

When was it?

He pondered.

But just then, a streak of unusual data passed through his scope, immediately interrupting Dos’s recollection. He quickly raised his gun, aiming at a void whose source he couldn’t determine.

"Bang"

Another shot...