Apocalypse Forecast

Chapter 474: Chapter 412 I Sing ”Young Man” Super Smoothly!_1

With the sudden Clean Sweep Operation initiated by the Astronomical Society, the Casting Iron Army plowed through, thoroughly purging the Group Star.

The vast majority of Rotten Dream Believers were killed in the first round of the attack. Over three hundred high-level believers and sixteen Sacrifices were swiftly and decisively beheaded. While some stubbornly resisted, they didn’t last long under the cannon fire and the Sublimators’ ”Offensive” before being wiped out.

Now, only a few dozen people remained, huddled together and stubbornly resisting under the leadership of seven or eight priests.

”If you encounter something you can’t solve, can’t you just fire a damn cannon?” Huai Shi still wanted to enjoy more of the artillery module’s Firepower support.

”Fire at the Power Cabin?” Tony was shocked by Huai Shi’s deadly creativity. ”You’re quite the genius, huh?”

”Oh, not at all.” Huai Shi seemed to have heard a name that particularly caught his attention; his eyes lit up. ”The Power Cabin?”

”Yeah.”

”’That’s really too... good!’ Ahem, ’Too much effort, I mean.’” Huai Shi almost let it slip. He couldn’t help but rub his hands together excitedly.

Wasn’t this the whole reason I called for the Astronomical Society’s support? It’s finally starting!

He passed through overturned deck plates and successive open gates, arriving outside the heavily guarded blockade.

Within layers of the Casting Iron Army’s formations, the Power Cabin was tightly surrounded, both inside and out.

In the innermost layer, the thick gates were completely twisted, a large crack forced open, its edges stained crimson with blood. Mangled bodies could be faintly seen in the corridors within.

The door to the Power Cabin was covered with fresh blood and writhing flesh, mutated to resemble monstrous organs, with several fierce eyes constantly darting about.

A silent confrontation.

From behind the formation, Blackbeard Amadin, who had clearly been waiting for them, waved.

”Why did you come down?” Tony was surprised. ”Weren’t you supposed to be guarding the commander’s room?”

As the saying goes, sometimes the best tactic is to change your target. Especially when facing an uphill battle, people love to try such a gambit. A single success can instantly turn the tables, creating maximum drama—it’s practically an art form.

With the Casting Iron Army on the Group Star now mobilized in full force, the command center on the train—Ai Qing’s post in the commander’s room—had ironically become the most vulnerable point. As a Guard, Amadin was the last line of defense. If he dared to abandon his post, even if nothing happened, he would still be disciplined afterward. Moreover, if he offended Ai Qing, a woman known for holding grudges, he’d likely face her petty retaliations for the rest of his life.

”I’m here on orders—to make a delivery.” Amadin shrugged, raised his hand, and revealed a small box. ”She instructed me to bring this to you... said your time to shine was approaching.”

The box was handed to Huai Shi.

What’s this?

Upon opening it, he found only a keychain. Attached to it was what looked like a tooth, sharp-edged, as if from a wolf or some other creature. It was only thumb-sized.

Huai Shi picked it up and sniffed it, detecting traces of Alchemy, but he couldn’t discern how to use the item.

”She said to just carry it with you; it will come in handy.”

”Fine then.” Huai Shi casually hung it on his saddlebag, then turned to look at the Power Cabin door beyond the crack in the gate. The distorted eyeballs were still slowly rotating, splitting or merging with each blink, their pupils constantly shifting. Staring at them for too long made one’s vision blur and induced drowsiness.

The Spirituality Lens transmitted the latest results.

Through the walls, glimpses of layered, stringent defenses could be seen. The entire interior had undergone a deep transformation, becoming a Hell-scape of the Rotten Dream’s descent, continuously eroding the Group Star.

Clearly, those cultists planned to leverage their advantageous position and fight the Astronomical Society to the bitter end.

However, due to concerns about the equipment in the Power Cabin, the Astronomical Society couldn’t deploy heavy Firepower, wary of destroying the vase to catch the mouse. Otherwise, if something went wrong, being stranded would be one thing, but sinking in the Endless Sea would spell utter disaster. Even though those holding the agreement could freely use the Abyssal Currents to traverse, anything else swept away would flow directly into Abyss Hell, becoming the property of its Ruler. Leviathan would undoubtedly welcome such a gift and certainly wouldn’t return it just to appease the Astronomical Society.

”This is getting tricky,” Tony mused, scratching his horse-like face.

”A bunch of self-important Jokers, what’s so troublesome about them?”

Accompanied by an aged voice, the dome slowly cracked open, and Yan Shi, wreathed in steel and countless cables, gently descended. Shen Ji Gong Shu’s youthful face was covered by a large eyepiece, but his lips slowly parted, once again emitting his own voice.

”Hmph, old man, you can talk now?”

”I’ve merely diverted some of my attention here,” Mr. Fan calmly instructed. ”Prepare to attack in three minutes. Amadin, since you’re here, you can lend a hand. Tony, Huai Shi, get ready to warm up.”

”Me too?” Huai Shi asked.

Mr. Fan nodded, then turned his head slightly to ask, ”I hear you’ve received the true teachings of the King of Ghoul?”

”Who?” Huai Shi was confused for a moment, then finally realized. ”Ah, you mean Orchard Gym? I wouldn’t dare claim to have received the true teachings, but does it count that I can sing ’Young Man’ incredibly well?”

”In a way, that’s even rarer than the true teachings.” Mr. Fan smiled faintly. His multi-lensed eyepiece focused on Huai Shi’s pupils, the focal length adjusting as he stared solemnly at Huai Shi’s face and asked, ”How fast can you be?”

”If I can prepare in advance and get into position—” Huai Shi pondered for a moment before answering, ”Half as fast as Teacher Luo.”

”Good. Then there’s no need for other methods,” Mr. Fan stated. ”In two minutes, I will provide Source Substance suppression. You three go in and eliminate everyone inside. Amadin will coordinate with you and Tony.”

It was as if they were casually discussing a trip to the market. The decision was made with such nonchalance.

Hearing this, Tony couldn’t help but sigh. He spread his arms, and subordinates naturally stepped forward to help him remove his Armor, even taking his sidearm and magazines, leaving him with only two strange military sabers, their blades hollowed out in the center.

Huai Shi said nothing more. He just gazed quietly through the Casting Iron Army’s great shields at the entrance to the Power Cabin. Through layers of heavy iron doors and profound barriers, he could feel the Resonance from the Book of Fate growing clearer.

Something was waiting for him there. And it could hardly wait.

”One more minute,” Mr. Fan suddenly reminded them. The countless lenses on his eyepiece contracted and expanded as he continuously observed everything inside the Power Cabin. With a flick of his fingers, several points of light landed on the corneas of Huai Shi and the others.

Then, Huai Shi’s vision seemed to instantly penetrate the walls, revealing the scene within the colossal Power Cabin. It looked as if it had transformed into the insides of some monster, filled with thermal images of flesh and blood. Among the massive heat signatures of the six engine sets, several specially marked figures could be seen pacing agitatedly, apparently arguing amongst themselves. Many more, armed with weapons, stood guard at the doorway, fully prepared. All the other Believers were prostrate on the ground, as if fervently worshipping something, their heads raised in chant.

A total of forty-one people.

”Fifteen seconds,” Mr. Fan reminded.

Huai Shi took a deep breath, already missing his Iron Slag Exhalation.

After getting so used to being a dog, being human again felt...uncomfortable. No sharp Teeth, no hard scales, no heavy body or long tail. Fortunately, I still have techniques to compensate for all that—

Huai Shi drew the Sword of Virtue. After a moment’s thought, he dismissed the Axe of Anger and switched to the Sacrificial Knife. It was unclear how effective the Source Impact would be against these... things that barely resembled humans. The Sacrificial Knife’s ability to draw blood essence seemed more practical. Besides, if necessary, he could adjust its weight to balance speed and impact force.

The Sword of Virtue had already begun to hum faintly, sensing the presence of evil.

”Five, four...”

The final countdown was about to begin.

Huai Shi crouched slightly, his calf muscles twitching and slowly coiling, like springs being compressed. His Yu Step was primed. Meanwhile, his skin began to glow faintly red as superheated blood coursed violently through his veins, like hydraulic fluid endlessly pumping more Power into his muscles.

Amadin seemed to notice something. He glanced back at Huai Shi, his expression a mixture of astonishment, admiration, and shock.

With the aid of the Mirror of Nothingness, he had entered the Overload State for the first time in a long while.

The flames of the Mountain Ghost ignited in his eyes.

”Three... two...”

In that instant, Mr. Fan’s gaze lowered, and he murmured softly, ”One.”

A humming sound, like that of a hummingbird, arose.

Sudden silence descended as all sound abruptly contracted, coalescing into an invisible, sharp edge in the air.

Outside the Power Cabin, hull plates thundered open, revealing the massive machinery prepared behind them. A terrifying sonic boom swept through, accompanied by the impact of dozens of iron stakes ramming into the enclosed Power Cabin.

This was followed by a crisscrossing web of intense light. The terrifying heat coalesced into blinding laser beams. After passing through multiple lenses, they pierced effortlessly through steel from a great distance. The beams casually traversed the internal space, emerging from the other side after burning through inconsequential objects before slowly dissipating.

Sixteen blazing lasers rampaged, slicing and dicing with a precision imperceptible to the naked eye, accurate down to the millimeter. Even as they slashed a thousand times in an instant, they left key engines and machinery untouched.

Like a sharp scalpel, it deftly pried open the hard, barbed shell, laying bare the soft, rank flesh within.

And Huai Shi had already vanished.