Legend of the Cyber Heroes
Chapter 157 - 157 77 Flowers on the Tree

157: Chapter 77: Flowers on the Tree 157: Chapter 77: Flowers on the Tree In that era, the government did not take on the responsibility for infrastructure development.

Legally speaking, they were not “rulers” but “protectors,” possessing no rights over humanity, and hence no obligations—at least, that was the theory.

Therefore, this city did not have a sewer system for public use.

However, it must be clarified that the city was not entirely devoid of a sewer system.

One such system was built by the mafia.

Another was built by the protectors for their own use.

The sewers built by the protectors were entirely their own private property, unrelated to anyone else.

If residents or the mafia accidentally breached these sewers, they had to properly seal them back up.

Otherwise, it would be a case of “damaging someone else’s private property,” a violation of Dyson’s principles.

Since the mafia used the sewers as secret passages, naturally, the government agencies did too.

This was one of the few tools Deborah used to avoid detection.

After all, there were cameras everywhere—every prosthetic eye could potentially leak information.

Although most of the time, it was the government using these eyes, the deep layers of code still included work left by Heroes who adhered to the spirit of open source in the early days.

The Heroes could use them as well.

Therefore, Deborah did not always exit from the Guardian building.

She occasionally used these secret passages.

This small abandoned warehouse was one of those secret passage exits.

The warehouse above was used as a cover.

The most anyone in the city could discover was that the warehouse was indeed someone’s private property, but that merchant had not shown up for a long time, only remote surveillance cameras were inside.

The mafia occasionally “borrowed” the place for some dealings that needed to avoid the public eye or to store some materials that could not withstand the elements.

Of course, it wasn’t too important of a location.

After all, legally it was still someone else’s private property, and the mafia would respect that outwardly.

It was just being used as a free storage room.

This did not stop Deborah from occasionally entering and exiting through a corner.

Xiang Shan was crouched on a house several tens of meters away, his figure blending into the shadow of the rooftop antenna.

He saw a Double-Flower Red Stick from the Meng Hand Gang setting traps here.

Mainly remote-controlled landmines, but also many pressure-sensitive mines impervious to external manipulation.

They did not care about using these devices.

This “location,” of course, was personally chosen by Xiang Shan.

Xiang Shan instructed Tang Shagu, claiming this place could possibly be a hideout for Heroes, perhaps playing a critical role, and thus it was essential to set up a landmine formation here.

Tang Shagu naturally believed him—in his view, “Big Brother Shell” was a fellow from Green Forest, sharing a common memory, and would definitely not deceive him.

Meanwhile, Xiang Shan also used the deceased John Kansas’s privileges to leave a piece of intelligence on Capacitor Gang’s internal network, saying this warehouse was critically important, and that a Meng Hand Gang boss would guard it with his men.

They must take over this place.

This was also thanks to the envoy from the Six Dragons Sect.

After killing John Kansas, to avoid immediate discovery, he left some information and created a disguise.

In this respect, that envoy from the Demon Sect could be considered quite “generous.”

When Xiang Shan took over, John Kansas’s privileges had not yet expired.

For a considerably long period, the Capacitor Gang had not discovered White Paper Fan John Kansas’s death.

So, Xiang Shan wrapped up this disguise.

He pretended that John Kansas was ambushed by Meng Hand Gang leader Tang Shagu while sending intelligence that the “little warehouse was extremely important to the Meng Hand Gang,” then lost contact.

Now, there was nothing left to do but “wait.”

Meng Hand Gang Double-Flower Red Stick Alan was directing his subordinates to bury mines in various places.

And three hundred meters away, Capacitor Gang Straw Sandals Peter Pena was adjusting his prosthetic eye, taking in every detail.

“It’s really true, this place holds strategic significance for the Meng Hand Gang, and that’s why at this time, they specifically sent a Double-Flower Red Stick to guard it.

And looking at the number of mines…

this place is probably not simple.”

His tone was filled with an “incredulous” emotion.

Because, for many years, he had never heard of this warehouse being useful.

Indeed, in recent years, the warehouse had been occupied by the Meng Hand Gang, but due to government crackdowns, the area had always been a frontline between the Capacitor Gang and the Meng Hand Gang.

The Meng Hand Gang dared not store anything too important inside, to prevent a raid leading to total loss of goods.

And for all these years, he didn’t think this place held any importance.

After all, the nearby blocks were either residential or other warehouses, with no strategic points to defend.

Moreover, there were no significant buildings nearby.

He just couldn’t figure out, what “strategic significance” this warehouse could possibly have.

But the more he couldn’t figure it out, the more ashamed he felt.

Why?

Because of John Kansas!

This White Paper Fan, through some covert channel, had come to know, or had deduced this intelligence, and then reported it to the gang.

He, who was officially in charge of intelligence as “Straw Sandals,” saw his job completely done by a White Paper Fan.

How could he not feel ashamed?

“Kansas brother…” Peter Pena sighed heavily, “then go in peace.

The intelligence you exchanged with your life, we have received it, we are using it.”

“I absolutely won’t let you down,” he vowed.

At that time, a Hall Master approached and said, “Pena, we came over in such a hurry that we only brought a few brothers from our hall.

I’m afraid we won’t be able to get through that landmine formation!”

“Why rush through?” Peter Pena said coldly.

“Haven’t we saved up two submunition bombs and one high-explosive bomb?

Set them up.”

The Hall Master hesitated, “Submunition bombs and high-explosive bombs…

Brother Pena, isn’t that going overboard?

The government will be onto us…”

“We’re already scraping by under the government’s surveillance,” Peter Pena retorted, annoyed.

“The Meng Hand Gang has already moved so much explosives, the government can’t possibly turn a blind eye.

I’m afraid the day the Lord returns will be the day we all die.”

“If the Meng Hand Gang has taken the first step, don’t blame us for taking it all the way!

They forced us!”

“Let me tell you the truth, little brother, what we need to do now is not ‘take territory,’ but ‘break away.’ The most important thing now is to strike the idiots of the Meng Hand Gang hard, then scatter and escape with our savings before the government catches on!”

The Hall Master nodded.

“I understand.”

Minutes later, Xiang Shan heard a sharp whistling sound.

He looked up, adjusted the range of his prosthetic eye, and then exclaimed in awe, “My, my, is everyone in the underworld so extravagant these days?”

Two small missiles, each about three meters long, rose from a location two thousand meters away, continuously accelerating toward them.

The Meng Hand Gang’s nearby defensive cannon instantly kicked into action.

However, the Capacitor Gang’s missiles came equipped with a cluster of infrared jamming flares.

Those flares, like a swarm of bees, rose in synchronization.

The defensive cannon switched modes several times, firing for a few seconds, but it failed to counter the two missiles.

Those missiles, while still twenty meters away from the target, disassembled mid-air, not by exploding, but by splitting into tinier, more numerous warheads that secondarily accelerated in mid-air.

“Boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom boom!”

In an instant, flames enveloped the entire warehouse and a large surrounding area.

Many of the sensor mines were also directly triggered and detonated!

With just one round of attack, the Meng Hand Gang’s landmine formation instantly collapsed.

But then the Benchmark Men’s vitality was exceptional.

Most members of the Meng Hand Gang did not die, and a small portion even retained their combat strength.

Alan, the Double-Flower Red Stick, reacted extraordinarily.

He avoided the densest part of the warhead swarm and at the last moment picked up an industrial steel plate to shield himself.

He looked in the direction from which the missiles were launched and screamed, “Those bastards from the Capacitor Gang!

They really came!

Anyone who can still breathe, spread out!

Charge them!”

If this had been a fight between natural person gangs, such a command would indeed sound foolish.

But in this era, it was the most correct command.

Crowding together would expose them to the firepower attacks, simply and brutally crushing them to dust.

Only by dispersing in a manner akin to a “scattered troops line” could the effectiveness of the firearms be minimized.

For those at a disadvantage in terms of long-range firepower, this was crucial.

Xiang Shan looked at the cracks on the ground, then pulled up the underground part of the map from Deborah’s memory, assessing the damage to the underground structures in this round of attacks.

“Just as I thought, it’s short of a final breath,” Xiang Shan thought.

The recent attack had only caused damage to the tunnels Deborah usually traversed.

To cause the tunnels to collapse, another breath was needed.

Thinking thus, Xiang Shan connected to the Meng Hand Gang’s authority using his Inner Strength.

Then, silently, he took over the landmines that had just been laid by members of the Meng Hand Gang.

These landmines were very stable; normally, the explosive components inside could even burn quietly and stably, and it required an electric system to ignite properly.

Therefore, many landmines remained unexploded despite the missile attack.

In the next instant…

The members of the Meng Hand Gang dispersed and ran in several different directions toward the Capacitor Gang’s position.

In the Capacitor Gang’s location, the last remaining missile had just risen and begun to accelerate.

At the same time, the Capacitor Gang’s Straw Sandals began adjusting the outer defenses, preparing to build a firepower position, in anticipation of the expected charge by the Meng Hand Gang.

In mere seconds…

The members of the Meng Hand Gang had left the wounded behind and had already left the warehouse area.

The missile entered its acceleration phase.

It was at this moment that the landmines exploded.

—What’s going on?

In that instant, a hint of confusion appeared in the Double-Flower Red Stick’s mind of the Meng Hand Gang.

He couldn’t have possibly issued the command to detonate those mines.

His brothers were still within the minefield.

Although the next high-explosive missile would certainly kill them, they at least couldn’t die by their own hands.

—Why would the mines explode?

However, his confusion didn’t last long.

For a new confusion replaced it.

In the moment the mines exploded, a large area of the ground above collapsed as if there was a void beneath.

Soon after, a tongue of flame burst out of the ground, striking the incoming missile faster than the Meng Hand Gang’s close-defense cannons!