Chapter 26: Radiant Path’s Plot
Inside the Demon Gang’s headquarters—a towering thirty-story building—a spacious, comfortable living room held two men seated on the floor.
Simpson drew the Radiant Path symbol across his chest. “Holy Radiance above. Has the High Priest come in secret to offer us aid?”
The red-robed man before him had a weathered face and cold, piercing eyes. His name was John Schmid. He served as the High Priest of the Radiant Path’s southern diocese, a rare Tier 4 Vanguard who lived by the creed “Holy Radiance grants me strength to scourge the wicked.” His methods were brutal.
John Schmid, the High Priest, said, “Your city lord is a godless, stubborn sinner. He defies the will of Holy Radiance and cannot be forgiven. In Black Mountain, many others have fallen under his spell and are trying to oppose Holy Radiance.”
“I feel nothing but shame that Black Mountain is ruled by such a man,” Simpson said, lowering his head slightly as if in repentance.
“The Holy Pontiff has ordered me here to deliver Holy Radiance’s will,” John Schmid continued, his eyes fixed on Simpson, each word slow and deliberate. “Black Mountain will be given a new order, and you will be the one to uphold it.”
At the words “Holy Pontiff,” Simpson’s face lit with naked elation. He quickly forced it down and answered in a low voice, “I am endlessly grateful to receive Holy Radiance’s favor. But… what about the city lord and his followers? How should they be dealt with?”
“Those who defy the will of Holy Radiance will suffer eternal radiation torment in hell,” John Schmid said coldly. “And what you and I must do is send them straight to hell!”
“I understand!” Simpson nodded slightly.
He only had a vague grasp of Radiant Path’s teachings, but he knew that after death, sinners would go to hell. Hell was filled with high-dose nuclear radiation, reddish-brown polluted water, and packs of vicious, terrifying mutant hyenas.
In hell, the guilty endured massive radiation every single day. When they got thirsty, they could only drink nuclear wastewater, and swarms of mutant hyenas would leap on them, ripping into their flesh and gnawing through their bones. The worst blasphemers, those with the deepest sins, would even be thrown into nuclear reactors and roasted alive by temperatures of tens of thousands of degrees.
The sinners suffered endless torment in hell, yet they would never die. They could only endure the radiation day after day, repenting bitterly in agony while begging for Holy Radiance’s forgiveness.
The thought of hell alone made Simpson shiver. He silently swore to himself—he would never, ever go to hell!
After thinking for a moment, Simpson said, “As everyone knows, the city lord is a Tier 5 Vanguard, and the Refuge Security Force that follows him has plenty of powerful mutants too. If we want to punish them, our strength might not be enough.”
He glanced up cautiously, studying the High Priest in front of him, and added, “Even with you here, we only have four Tier 4 Vanguards total, and we don’t have enough Tier 3 Vanguards either.”
John Schmid sneered coldly. “You didn’t really think I came alone, did you?”
As soon as he finished speaking, the outlines of four red-robed figures shimmered into view behind him. They wore short crimson robes, fully armed and armored, every one of them looking tough, fierce, and powerfully built.
Simpson’s head snapped up in shock. He was stunned—he hadn’t sensed these four men at all the entire time!
If they wanted him dead, all they had to do was lift a hand and pull the trigger right in front of his face, and he wouldn’t have a single chance to fight back. Cold sweat trickled down Simpson’s forehead.
“Let me make the introductions,” John Schmid said, clearly enjoying the look of terror on Simpson’s face. He pointed at one of them. “Kevin Dave, Tier 3 Vanguard, special ability: area-wide invisibility…”
Ring ring~ Ring ring~
A sharp burst of ringing cut in, interrupting John Schmid mid-sentence. The communicator on the table blared nonstop, the copper bell clanging like it was possessed.
“Sorry about that,” Simpson said, frowning hard as he snatched up the device. “I told my men that unless it was a true emergency, they were not to disturb this meeting. It seems something unexpected has happened.”
The voice on the other end trembled with terror. “B-Boss! That outsider mutant we blasted earlier with the Judgment Light bombardment… for some reason, he didn’t die!
“He’s coming straight for us—moving even faster than the Security Force! The guy’s a goddamn monster! We can’t even scratch him! Dozens of our brothers are already dead… HE’S HERE! HE’S HERE!”
Simpson spoke in a commanding tone, trying to steady his subordinate. “Stay calm and give me the full details.”
“He…”
The voice on the communicator broke off. All that came through were wet, choking gurgles, followed by the dull, heavy sound of a blade slicing through flesh. The sound alone was enough to set the heart racing.
Right after, a young man’s voice came through the receiver: “Hello? Is this Simpson Browne, leader of the Demon Gang?”
“That’s right. It’s me,” Simpson answered, his tone perfectly calm.
Finn kept one hand wrapped around the Skybearer Sword and yanked the blade out of the Demon Gang member’s throat. With the other hand he held the communicator, tilting his head toward the mic as he said, “Good. I’ve come for you.”
……
On the roof of an abandoned high-rise, Olivia hurled her grappling hook. It caught on a five-story building across the gap. She gave the rope a hard tug to make sure it was solid, then took the lead. Clipping her harness onto the line, she zipped down and landed lightly on the rooftop of the five-story building.
Behind her, a radioman lugging a wireless pack and a sniper slid down right after. They dropped into low crouches at once, weapons ready.
Olivia activated her vision ability, scanning the battlefield ahead with perfect clarity. She picked out every hidden enemy position and sized up their numbers. The radioman quickly set up his antenna and relayed everything she saw straight back to base.
With Olivia’s support, the Security Force was rooting out the Demon Gang’s stronghold piece by piece. The assault grew smoother with every passing minute. Only a handful of powerful mutants still managed to cause any real trouble for the Security Force.
Suddenly, Olivia looked down from above. Her gaze pierced through more than a dozen concrete slabs and locked onto a squad of black-uniformed soldiers creeping forward in a low crouch. Their movements weren’t textbook, but the uniforms were definitely standard Refuge Security Force issue.
The squad advanced in tight formation, heading straight for the building she was on.
Olivia read the unit patch on their chests and ordered the radioman to open a channel. “East District Falcon Squad, what are you doing in this sector?”
“Orders from command. We’re to secure the target point and set up guided missiles.”
Olivia could see the cylindrical launch tubes strapped to their backs, but something still felt off. She kept her voice low. “Challenge phrase?”
“IPX-565.”
The squad answered correctly and kept moving toward her position without slowing down. Moments later they reached the rooftop. A row of dark gun barrels rose into view, all aimed directly at Olivia and her two teammates.
“You…” Olivia realized something was wrong and began to speak, but before she could finish, the barrels erupted in blazing fire. The radioman and sniper were punched full of bloody holes in an instant.
Olivia felt a sledgehammer blow slam into the bulletproof plate on her chest. The world spun violently. She toppled backward and crashed to the floor.
“Finally got this fucking nuisance of a bitch!”
The black-uniformed thugs swarmed forward. A big hand clamped a white cloth soaked in anesthetic over her mouth and nose, pressing down hard.
Olivia fought wildly, but her strength gave out. Her legs kicked twice in a frantic spasm, and then she blacked out completely.