Chapter 224: Impact

When Bao Yuan saw the train suddenly stopping, he was filled with excitement, and he ordered his men. “Teams Three and Four, stay here. Team Five, engage the guards at the sentry post. Teams Six to Ten, come with me!”

The resistance group members cheered. Aside from those tasked to keep watch from high positions, the rest rushed down the slope enthusiastically.

They had clearly trained and didn’t just charge blindly forward. Instead, they spread out and surrounded the train. They also occasionally stopped along the way to cover each other’s backs and keep watch in all directions.

***

Ren Xiaotian had finished scouting and returned to the other side of the mountain.

“Most of the resistance group members are behind the northern mountain’s slope. There’s around a hundred of them. There’s another group on the mountain across from them, but I didn’t go there. Based on their team composition, there shouldn’t be more than twenty of them. There are also people moving about the high positions on both sides of the mountain.”

While he spoke, he used a branch to draw some simple diagrams on the ground before pointing at the locations.

“There’s a group at the foot of the mountain in the south, but I can’t tell how many people. They have a number of cars parked there, so they should be in charge of helping the resistance group retreat. In the north, some people are lying in ambush. They’re probably keeping an eye on any reinforcements that might come from the north.

“Also, I heard gunshots in the east. They must’ve attacked the sentry post there, but with just a few people. I believe they’re just there to hold the guards back.”

With just a few words, he gave them a general review of what he had seen.

While waiting for him, Chen Chuan had contacted the Constabulary with a telegraph set. Most of what they told him was in line with what Ren Xiaotian said, and he got a clear idea of what was going on.

“They’re moving!” a lookout from Wei Changan’s team cried out.

Chen Chuan looked down and saw quite a number of armed resistance group members coming out of the forest. They ran swiftly to the train as the sky started turning bright.

“I’ll get rid of the people down there. Changan, please take down the ones across the mountain and those in the high positions,” he ordered.

“Leave it to me,” Wei Changan said.

“Senior Brother Ren, could you take the rest to get rid of the armed resistance group members on our side of the mountain?” Chen Chuan asked.

He snapped his fingers, and the combat spider slowly crawled out of a bush. “I’ll send it with you.”

Last night, everyone had fed it their blood, so the spider recognized them as friendly forces. They had also learned some of the gestures to control it, so they could cooperate.

Chen Chuan had wanted to have the spider fight with him, but then remembered that it was a living creature and might be affected by the ritual. So, it would be better to keep it away.

Ren Xiaotian and the others had witnessed how strong the spider was the night before. It was the best ambusher and was worth three squads by itself, especially in a forest. It could bring out its full potential in such an environment. If the enemies didn’t have great martial artists, the spider alone might be able to kill all of them.

“If you have no objections, we’re moving out,” Chen Chuan said.

The group nodded, and they immediately split up.

Chen Chuan took out the mask with arrays on both sides and fixed it on his face. The arrays were complex and elaborate, but if someone looked at him from afar, they would just see a blurry mess, like he was a squirming ball of fog.

He plunged the saber sheath into the ground and walked forward while drawing the Frost King Saber out. When he was at the edge of the slope, he jumped and charged down.

***

Lei Guangcheng was observing the hot-air balloon from the secluded sentry post to determine its movements. Then, he checked the spot where the train had stopped before taking out a map and using a ritual tool to make comparisons. Once he was done, he started giving out orders.

“Squad One, head to Zone 093.”

“Roger!”

“Squad Two, head to Zone 034.”

“Roger!”

“Squad Three...”

The Cult Investigation Bureau members split up to carry out their tasks. Destroying arrays was much easier than building them. All they needed to do was go to certain locations and spread the special powder they brought with them around the area to construct an interference array. Then, the ritual would fall apart.

***

The resistance group reached the train.

However, when they were about to get on it, their vision blurred. When it cleared, they saw no train in front of them. Many of them stopped. Then, their visions blurred again. When it cleared once more, they found the train right where it originally was. They shook their heads.

Bao Yuan had boarded the train, so they quickly followed him.

Bao Yuan led the charge. He motioned for two members to kill the train driver and subjugate the train crew. As for him, he went to the carriages at the back.

One of the resistance group members following him took note of two passengers talking to each other. He drew his gun and shot one of them, and the passenger’s head immediately exploded.

Strangely, the other passenger kept talking calmly to the bloodied man with half his head missing.

“Heh. Interesting.”

The resistance group member found the situation hilarious. He raised his gun again and shot at the other passenger.

“Enough. Stop fooling around. These people are all valuable. Stop causing trouble for me,” Bao Yuan snapped in a dark tone.

The resistance group member grinned. “A few going missing isn’t going to cause much of an issue, will it?”

Bao Yuan glared at him, and the resistance group member stopped talking. The other resistance group members who had rushed into the other carriages seized control of the entire train.

Bao Yuan then gave an order to a technician. “Send a telegram to the ones at the rear. Tell them that we’ve seized control of the Eternal Shun Train. We have three representatives from foreign mega corporations. They should spread the word.”

The resistance group had its own radio station, and it had a lot of listeners, both local and foreign. Some regulatory divisions also listened to the channel. Hence, if they spread word of it on the radio, it would have a huge impact.

Bao Yuan believed that after this incident, his reputation in the resistance group would rise to unprecedented heights.

He gave another order. “Also, use the telegraph set on the train to send a telegram to Yangzhi City’s Department of Administrative Affairs. Tell them our terms and that we’ll give them half an hour to think. After that, we’ll execute a group of people every ten minutes.

“To make them believe us, we must let them know that we’re willing to carry out our threat. Kill all the security guards. Then, use their telegraph sets to send word to their companies. We want to make those companies put pressure on Yangzhi City’s government!”

“Alright!”

The resistance group members ran to the security guards and started shooting them.

But no matter what kind of a commotion they caused, the security guards didn’t react to their actions. Even if people beside them died, they continued standing there, as if nothing happened. It was like they were still targets.

They got so comfortable with the slaughter that when they arrived at Bolun Corporation’s carriage, one of the resistance group members shot the assistant in the head. A bloody hole appeared, and his body tilted to the side.

Meanwhile, Lindenberg just said, “Is this the Yangzhi City government’s welcoming ceremony? They sure are friendly.”

***

Chen Chuan was not far from the train when he heard gunshots in the mountains. It seemed like they were shooting at him, but he ignored them. They were too far away, and Chen Chuan moved fast. They could not possibly hit him.

Moments later, he saw his second self blurring out, which meant that he had entered the ritual’s area of effect.

Using the method Lei Guangcheng had taught him, he analyzed the situation and figured out that it was a ritual that attacked the mind. The inside of his trench coat had an array that countered such rituals.

He wiped off the unnecessary markings on his collar, and the ritual was activated. The blurring of his second self grew much fainter, to the point that it was almost non-existent, but the bright colors on the array also became much fainter.

When one ritual clashed with another, the confrontation became a drawn-out battle of attrition. The array on his trench coat was made with very few materials, so it wouldn’t last for long. That was why Chen Chuan sped up.

The two resistance group members guarding the outside of the train saw him and fired at him without hesitation, but they only saw a blur; he had dodged their bullets in an instant.

“A Third Limit martial artist!”

The two resistance group members were shocked and quickly tried to take out their medicine, but they were too slow. A saber shot past them, and Chen Chuan made it into the train.

Bam!

One of the resistance group members who was shooting at the passengers crashed into the wall across from him. His chest caved in, and his organs as well as his spine became a mangled mess.

The top halves of the two resistance group members slid down, revealing neat cuts. The door and wall of the train behind them had a long, diagonal slash on it.

Chen Chuan had one knee curled up in midair, while the other was planted on the floor. He slowly stood up. Someone charged over from the next carriage, but before they could start shooting at him, a bloody hole appeared on their forehead. The man stumbled two steps back and fell on his back.

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Chen Chuan pulled back the hand he had used to throw the stone and turned to the side. Slowly, he brought the Frost King Saber up and pointed the tip at the depths of the train. As he stared at the spot where he was pointing, he sucked in a deep breath, and his body temperature increased until he felt as if he was boiling.

He bent his back a little before stomping on the floor.

Bam!

He shot forward. Every person and object he saw seemed to have slowed down. Whenever his feet landed on the floor, it cracked. The wooden floorboards flipped up and shattered, as if there was a roaring wave following closely behind him.

Anyone who looked into the long windowpane of the train would have seen a saber flash heading straight from the start of the train until the end. Wherever it went, it left behind severed limbs and bodies. They looked like falling dominoes.

The resistance group members were all sliced apart. Their heads, limbs, and blood flew. The passengers beside them were stained with blood. Even so, they continued smiling and talking to each other while drinking blood-stained tea.

When the resistance group members further away heard the sound of shattering wooden floorboards and blades cutting through flesh, they took their medicine and stacked two shields together in the saber flash’s path.

Clang!

They managed to stop the saber’s murderous charge.

However, the shields shattered, and the shield-wielders were sent spinning. When they landed on the floor, they were dead.

Chen Chuan stopped. He straightened his body and stared at the handguns and rifles pointed at him. Slowly, he brought his saber up until it was positioned horizontally before him.

The next moment, gunshots filled the carriage.