By the time Yu Lian had smoked a third of the Green Garden Bay cigarette, the battle situation was completely determined.
The more than thirty gunmen of the Norman Gang guarding the door were bombarded by the Sentry Gun and scattered like birds and beasts after leaving behind seven or eight corpses. They had tried to counterattack for a while under the suppression of the Sentry Gun's firepower. For a gang, this was already quite a display of loyalty and courage.
On the other hand, the Double Flower Red Poles, wearing priceless optical camouflage and attempting to break through the electric fence, retreated even faster than the gunmen. In such a competitive gang environment, becoming a Double Flower Red Pole often relied not on courage or fighting prowess, but on the shrewdness of judging the situation.
In short, when five sets of optical camouflage armor, some complete and some significantly damaged, were sent to Autumn Mountain Yawata as spoils of war, the white-suited Hereili was finally dug out of the car.
Of course, at this point, he was disheveled, covered in blood, as if he had just been ravaged a hundred times in an alley by a dozen dogs starved for three days. Even when he was being dragged over by people, he still had a lost, soulless look.
"Slap!" Someone directly gave him a slap. He blinked his eyes and finally regained a little focus. Then, the first thing he saw was Autumn Mountain Yawata fiddling with a set of camouflage armor.
"I'm just a runner! Please spare me," Hereili pleaded.
Autumn Mountain Yawata did not speak, continuing to fiddle with the armor in his hand. It was something very much like a close-fitting soft armor, very elastic, and felt quite textured in the hand.
"This thing is just an experimental product, its weaknesses are obvious, but that's because it met me, someone who knows his stuff. In most cases, it's quite effective," Yu Lian said from the side.
Autumn Mountain Yawata nodded.
"Yes, yes, it's precisely because it encountered a master like you that these ingenious tricks have nowhere to hide! But these things are really good, after repairing them, they will definitely become a great help to the Kuki-gumi!" Hereili said.
"Oh, the activation password for the one in your hand is XFH894GK! I know the passwords for the rest of the armor! As long as you activate it and slightly modify the settings, you can use it yourself! Oh, right, the Norman Gang and the cult were too stingy and wouldn't let us bind fingerprints and retinas, but you guys won't have that problem."
Autumn Mountain Yawata tossed the armor to a subordinate: "Open it up and study it."
Sixth Uncle, however, showed a disgusted expression and whispered, "This guy is too disgusting. He can betray his old master so quickly, he'll betray us later!"
"No, no... I told you I just ran errands for them, I'm really not a member of their gang. Look, they're called the Norman Gang, you can tell just by listening that they're all descendants of those Anglo-Saxon fishermen and Viking barbarians, my name sounds like a poor Spaniard! How can this be considered betrayal?" Hereili pleaded loudly.
He paused, gritted his teeth, as if having made a huge decision, and whispered, "Spare my life, I'm willing to give you information about the Norman Gang in the Big Apple City..."
"Sorry, I'm not too concerned about any kind of intelligence," Autumn Mountain Yawata pointed to his information terminal: "The Viking Club on Red Baron Street in the lower district was just completely burned down due to the riots, with an estimated death toll of over thirty. Also, Warehouse G12 in the warehouse district was just razed to the ground, suspected to be terrorists taking advantage of this opportunity to fish in troubled waters!"
Hereili's face turned pale as he listened. The Viking Club was the Norman Gang's main stronghold in Big Apple City, where at least forty or fifty thugs regularly gathered. As for Warehouse G12 at the mouth of Friendship River, it had been leased by the Norman Gang for a long time; they had just shipped a batch of weapons from their European headquarters, and they were now stored in that warehouse.
Now, if these two places were truly razed to the ground, it would almost mean that the Norman Gang's power in the entire Big Apple City had been completely wiped out.
"But... this, this isn't scientific!" Hereili stammered, even forgetting to beg for mercy, completely in a state of confusion as if his worldview had been thoroughly overturned.
Sixth Uncle suddenly realized: "I was wondering why the reinforcements sent by the Big Boss were so late! So you sent them all into the city!"
Yu Lian looked at Autumn Mountain Yawata, feeling that this didn't quite resemble his "future" steady, old-turtle-like strategist style, and couldn't help but ask, "Are you daring to play the base-swapping tactic because you met me?"
"Yes! It is precisely because I have a soulmate like you that I dare to take such a risk. And it is precisely because of this that we can determine the pattern for the next ten years in one battle! In short, thanks to you, we have achieved a great victory! After this battle, the Norman Gang can only retreat and protect themselves, and even in their European headquarters, they will face counterattacks from other gangs. By the time they recover, the Big Apple will already be the Kuki-gumi's domain!"
"Yes, yes... Congratulations on your organization's soaring success, but don't get too arrogant, okay?"
"Don't worry, I'm very confident in the management level of active social organizations, and I know when to rein it in. My elders are not people who get carried away either. The Kuki-gumi, in my era, will definitely become good friends with the citizens of Big Apple!" Yahata pushed up his glasses with a serious expression.
Yu Lian always felt that something was a little off. In his memory, Autumn Mountain Yawata of the 830 Party should have directly joined the General Staff Headquarters after graduation.
But what's with his current attitude of preparing to go home after graduation and diligently inheriting his family's gang business? It couldn't be that my interference has caused another butterfly effect, could it?
It shouldn't be! Yu Lian thought.
...It shouldn't be!" The white-suited Hereili on the other side was still utterly bewildered, unable to comprehend.
"Lock him up first!" Autumn Mountain Yawata ordered his subordinates.
Two thugs dragged the white-suited man, who had become a broken record, and prepared to leave.
"Lock him in the boiler room in the back! Roast him thoroughly before bringing him over for questioning!" Sixth Uncle shouted loudly.
Yahata glanced at Sixth Uncle's retreating back, then said to Yu Lian, "Let's find a place to celebrate. The private shuttle you want, 5 million, and all the equipment you want. I'll have them ready within an hour. I definitely won't waste your time! Oh, right, I also intend to invite you to be our security consultant, but we can discuss it slowly after we return to the academy! Don't worry, it's just a part-time job and won't affect your development in the military, and the remuneration will definitely satisfy you!"
You're really planning on going home to inherit the gang business!
"Having a couple of drinks is fine, anyway, I've already been delayed for a whole night, so a drink won't make a difference, and it won't delay my important business tomorrow... Oh, right, remember to give me the Zero Elements from those two dead people for identification." Yu Lian nodded, then frowned, "But, haven't you noticed that we overlooked something from the beginning?"
Autumn Mountain Yawata was slightly startled, then also showed a bewildered expression, which was the first time Yu Lian had seen such an expression on him.
...Yes, it seems so. But, what could it be?"
How could a future famous general, the strategist of the 830 Party, and a top student of Central Defense University, have a bad memory?
Tsk, Cognitive Interference Domain! He should have arrived already! Even my mental power was confused for several minutes, let alone you ordinary people.
Yu Lian looked at Autumn Mountain, who was still a bit confused, and was thinking whether to give him two slaps to wake him up, when he heard an AI's electronic voice from the warehouse behind him: "Door open!"
Then, the metal door of the warehouse opened smoothly and silently, adding an inexplicable sense of strangeness to the otherwise empty factory area in the night.
It would have been better to use a mechanical rolling door; at least the sound of it rolling would be loud, and it wouldn't be so frightening! Yu Lian couldn't help but think.
There were dozens of armed men Present, who had just fought a battle, yet they were still startled by this surreal scene. If they hadn't finally remembered that they were, after all, Double Flower Red Poles of a famous gang, someone would probably have started screaming by now.
"Bastards! Who opened the door?" Sixth Uncle roared.
"No one opened it..."
"Not me, Sixth Master, not me."
"There's someone in the warehouse!" Autumn Mountain Yawata finally reacted and whispered, "Tsk... Black Moon Earl, he still came! But why did I forget him just now? This shouldn't be!"
Because he should have arrived long ago, using the Cognitive Interference Domain, which is the domain ability he calls the "Stone Hat Divine Skill," deflecting the cognition of all of you!
Of course, such profound psychic techniques are not mystical knowledge that an uninitiated amateur like you can master.
Yu Lian withdrew his hand somewhat dejectedly, indicating that he hadn't succeeded in giving the other party two slaps, and his thoughts weren't very clear.
Sixth Uncle was startled, then roared, "Our crystal capsules!"
He no longer paid attention to the white-suited man who had been dragged aside, and, holding his gun, clattered as he prepared to rush inside. The others also shouted and followed.
Yahata and Yu Lian exchanged glances, then followed into the warehouse at the very end.
They saw that the packing boxes in the center of the warehouse were piled high, like a small mountain. The packing boxes were already labeled with the words "Autumn Mountain Fragrant Tea." Its logo and font, and even the packaging box, were extremely well-designed, clearly a consumer product of great style and taste, certainly not looking like fake—no, imitation smuggled medicine.
Yu Lian couldn't help but glance sideways at Yahata, while the latter stared intently at the person sitting on top of the pile of packing boxes.
It was a person completely enveloped in a black, form-fitting power suit, of medium height and build, wearing a mask. Neither gender nor age could be discerned.
He—let's just call him he for now—was dressed too ordinarily; it simply didn't fit the expected gravitas of "Black Moon Earl."
The form-fitting power suit should have been military-issue from the Alliance; it wasn't as bulky or large as power armor but provided similar defensive effects and enhanced strength and physique. If it were a higher-end model, it should also have bolt-firing, laser cutting, thrusters, and even optical camouflage attachments, which were still in testing.
But that was all there was to it.
Even the most high-end military equipment came from factories. However, in everyone's imagination, shouldn't the dignified Black Moon Earl, a demon who had terrorized the Earth for five hundred years, a hero who had even frustrated the invincible Emperor, be armed with magnificent, mysterious, and awe-inspiring Zero Element treasures?
...Speaking of which, is this guy really Black Moon Earl?
