Tuanzi was stunned for a moment. The way Zhang Mengqian had looked up at her just now was as fierce and ruthless as a wolf cub, yet calm.
This kind of person is a born killer.
Without this potential, it would have been impossible for Zhang Mengqian, a child, to survive alone in the Lower Three Districts of City No. 22.
Sun Chuci quickly checked the weapons and said to Qing Chen, "Leave the 11 o'clock position to me."
As he was speaking, a soldier who had just peeked out from the 11 o'clock direction was shot dead by him.
Seeing this, Qing Chen suddenly said, "Zard, move the sand wall south, let's break out! Keep an eye on the south side, no matter how many people come, bury them all!"
The troops started moving, and everyone broke through to the south while firing under the cover of the sand wall.
But at that moment, Qingchen suddenly saw another army appear in the west.
This unit was completely different, wearing black combat uniforms unlike any other soldiers, without exoskeletons, and each of them had hideous scars etched on their faces.
These people are incredibly fast.
Even though two of them were carrying black boxes that were half a person tall, they moved around in the mountains without any hindrance.
Qing Chen's heart sank: "Enemies have appeared in the west, 41 people, each of them is at least B-rank, not the Shadow Force!"
Zard yelled, "Holy crap, the Faceless Men army! What are those boxes they're carrying? Could they be something specifically designed to counter my earth elemental abilities?!"
Qing Chen had heard of the Faceless Men Squad, a notorious mercenary group within the Federation. However, he remembered that the Faceless Men Squad's overall strength should be C-level. How come they've all become B-level now?
Who provided this gene serum?
Qing Chen took a deep breath. He glanced at the still unconscious Shadow and fired at the approaching soldiers while saying to Yang Yang, "You go first... and take Xiao Mengqian with you, so you can maintain high-speed flight. Shadow can't die now, please. Those people want to kill me more now. Just keep climbing and flying south... We'll stay here to draw their fire, we'll find a way."
But at that moment, when Qing Chen aimed his sniper rifle at the Faceless Men, he saw the 41 Faceless Men suddenly launch a merciless attack on the Chen family soldiers.
Qingchen thought they were enemies, and even the Chen family soldiers thought they were reinforcements for their own troops. But when the faceless man charged in cleanly and decisively, it was as if he were in an empty field.
In just a moment, the 41 faceless men, working in perfect unison, pierced the heart of Chen's army like a dagger.
They rushed towards Qingchen, and any soldiers who stood in the way of the Faceless Men were blasted into puffs of blood mist.
These faceless people, with their extremely strong physical abilities, roamed freely in the mountains and fields as if walking on flat ground, like superheroes.
Qing Chen only glanced at them briefly before discovering that at least 11 of the 41 people possessed an absolute feel for guns within 200 meters.
In these remote mountains, where heavy mobile forces cannot get in, this kind of super-mobile force becomes an insurmountable force.
Soon, the faceless men stopped 200 meters away from Qing Chen. The captain said coldly, "Tell Mr. Shadow that we are Qing Kun's men. He sent us. Head south, but be careful as there are still several blockades there. Leave the north to us. As long as we are alive, Qing's reconnaissance battalion and airships will not be able to get through."
Qingkun, Qingyi's father!
This infamous Faceless Men army was actually secretly trained by Qingkun?
As they spoke, the Faceless Men began to build a defensive line on the spot and went to find places to hide, as if Qing Chen and the others did not exist.
Two faceless men opened two huge black boxes, inside which appeared to be two strange signal transmitting devices.
It looks like a laser emitter?
Qingchen said to Zard, "Let's go. From now on, we don't need to worry about threats from behind. Let's fight our way out from the south!"
Strangely, even if Qing Chen and Qing Yi have a good relationship, it shouldn't be enough to make a powerful figure like Qing Kun take sides at this moment, right? Why did the other side suddenly send the Faceless Men army to make a move?
Chapter 639, The Shadow Needs a Pledge of Allegiance
Two days ago.
An encrypted video conference, kept secret, was held quietly.
There were four people in total attending the meeting. All of them, men and women, sat quietly in the dark on the video.
The shadow smiled and looked at everyone on the screen: "What would you all like to say?"
A figure sitting in the darkness suddenly leaned forward: "Qingchen, he is indeed the patriarch's son, your younger brother, isn't he?"
The shadow laughed and said, "That's right."
Someone in the darkness said, "Qing Chen is a time traveler."
The shadow smiled and said, "I know."
“Hey,” someone asked, “Then the patriarch’s son has been replaced by the Timewalker, and this isn’t the original person. Why is Mr. Shadow still so calm?”
“He is still him,” the shadow said. “You don’t need to worry about that.”
"You want him to be the next Shadow?" someone asked in a low voice.
“If that were all, I wouldn’t need to hold this meeting with you all,” Shadow said with interest.
During the meeting, everyone fell silent.
The shadow is still the same powerful shadow, one that doesn't even bother with disguise.
At this point, someone asked, "So, what does Mr. Shadow want us to do?"
The shadow laughed, “I need you to stake everything, board the new war chariot, bind your lives together, and head to the ends of the earth. Remember, a new Qing clan is about to be born, and staking everything is your ticket to entry. Everything I’m talking about includes your reputation, your trump cards, your life and fortune—you can’t afford to lose any of them. Of course, fate will also reward the wise.”
After saying that, Shadow turned off the video.
The remaining three sat silently in the darkness, not exchanging a word with each other, until they left after more than ten minutes.
Qingkun from City 5 stood on the balcony and smoked a cigarette. His full beard made him look particularly weathered.
After smoking five cigarettes, he dialed an encrypted satellite phone, and his previously weary expression suddenly broke into a smile: "Son, how have you been lately?"
Qingyi: "It's alright, just a bit tiring. I used to see Mr. handling PCA and CIA matters so easily, but when I did it myself, I found it was not like that at all."
Qingkun smiled indulgently, "It's normal to be tired. You're still young, so you should endure some hardship and fatigue, you know? Your father back then..."
Qingyi said impatiently, "Hey, a hero doesn't dwell on past glories. I'm sick of hearing about your old stories."
Qingkun: "Okay, okay, I won't say anything more."
Qingyi asked curiously, "Why did you suddenly call me? Is something wrong?"
Qingkun thought for a moment and asked, "There's something I'd like to hear your opinion on. If you had to choose now, would you rather protect yourself or help Qingchen? What I mean is, Qingchen might die, and if he dies, you and your father will die with him."
Qingyi was stunned for a moment, then suddenly asked, "Dad, will you listen to me?"
Qingkun stubbed out his cigarette: "Why should I listen to you, you little brat?"
Qingyi's expression turned cold on the other end of the phone: "I've already said I'm not a child anymore."
Qingyi hates being treated like a child, which is why he deliberately cultivates his shrewdness to distinguish himself from his father who is always cursing and swearing.
Qingkun said, "You haven't answered me yet."
Qingyi said, "Dad, please help Mr. [son's name]."
"To risk everything, even death?"
"Yes, I'll risk everything, even death."
Qingkun remained silent for a long time before replying, "Okay."
After saying that, he muttered under his breath, "You've been bribed with just a few dragonfish, you're spineless."
He hung up the phone, recalling what Shadow had said in the video.
This time, it's truly a choice that requires risking everything.
Actually, choosing either side is not a good idea.
Since that's the case, let's choose an answer that will make our son happy.
...
...
In the mountains and fields, Qingchen and the others were getting further and further away from the Faceless Men's army.
In this manhunt, every decision made by everyone has far-reaching consequences, because this choice is essentially a choice of sides with power.
The victor reigns supreme.
The losers die.
The rules are that simple.
Generally, the Qing clan will choose sides for power in the final round of the Shadow Wars, when everyone can see who will win.
Who is outwardly glamorous but inwardly despicable?
Who is the trash and who is the strong? It was made clear during the battle of the four shadows. The truth cannot be hidden, and the falsehood cannot be made true.
In fact, the Shadow Wars were not only about choosing the smartest and most ruthless person to be the Shadow, but also about giving the various factions of the Qing Clan a long time span so that they could see who was most worthy of following and investing in.
This process of power differentiation ensured the stability of the Qing clan.
However, this time the battle of the shadows is clearly different. The shadows don't have much time left, and they want to force everyone to make a choice now.
Immediately, right now, or you'll miss your chance.
Qingchen thought to himself, no wonder Shadow could open the Shadow Gate directly to Forbidden Land No. 002, but he didn't mention it at all and insisted on hitching a ride there, because Shadow wanted to see everyone's pledge of allegiance.
Chen Yu and Li Bingxi need to pledge their loyalty.
Shadows need it too.
If someone fails to pledge their loyalty, then to ensure Qingchen's future is less hindered, he might bring more people with him.
Clear away the last obstacles for Qingchen and see clearly those who are reluctant to take sides.
This is what Shadow wants to do for his younger brother.
Return countdown: 30:00:00.
The red sun was setting behind the distant mountains, and Qingchen and the others quickly made their way south into the wilderness under the setting sun.
Qingchen asked Zard, "What are those two black boxes they brought? What are they for? Are they laser-guided?"
Zard replied, "It seems to be used for guiding weapons. It's not laser-guided, it uses some other radio frequency method. There seems to be something on that machine that can automatically lock onto something..."
"Huh?" Qing Chen smiled wryly: "What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Can't you explain the underlying principles?"
Zard thought for a moment: "Do you know Lagrange's theorem? It has nothing to do with this."