Chapter 16: Abyssal Rule

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Ye Chong exited the battlefield on his knees in exhaustion. Man that was one annoying guy! Are there even cubs in the jungle? Why was everyone on the list prepared by Mu felt like they were on steroids or something? They were so tough that one couldn’t win without losing a tooth or two. While Ye Chong was consumed in his thoughts of his battle, something was brewing.

“Ye! Look out!” Mu Shang’s voice rang in Ye Chong’s head, like a bell. “What is it?!” He looked around, tensed. “There are four Mavericks identified nearby! One located at the corner, ident.i.ty unknown.” A hologram of an overview of the area appeared before Ye Chong with locations of the unknown individuals marked by Mu Shang

“Mavericks? What is that?” Ye Chong questioned in curiosity.

“Currently it is not possible to make a clear and concise explanation here. We will talk about this when we get back. We are not aware of their intentions too!” Stealthily, the Mavericks surrounded Ye Chong. He could not tell if they did it intentionally or not and as he lifted his leg slowly stepping to the right, they moved in sync as well; maintaining a circular orbit around him. Ye Chong’s brows furrowed and sighed in frustration as he put his fingers down on the control panel, ready to launch an attack anytime, “Ye! We are under attack! Do we strike back?” beeped Mu Shang.

Even though Ye Chong could not see Mu Shang from the cabin, he still rolled his eyes and snorted, “Duh! Of course we are striking back! What else are we going to do? Even rats would counterattack with their fangs, so are we waiting here to rot away with time?”

“Oh.” Mu Shang flatly responded, “I see.”

…

Angel’s eyes glistened in antic.i.p.ation, scrutinizing every detail surrounding her. Waves crashing in a unique rhythm; Angel’s acute sense of sight picks up surrounding features such as the needle on clock at the lobby that struck at a quarter past nine and 32 seconds.

Oblivious of what was happening, YC made no moves since he was not able to sense any apparent danger. On the other hand, an expert with keen eyes like Angel was aware of the situation YC was in; it was evident that the Mavericks had placed a surge seeker on YC. It only needed a few seconds for the device to link with the system of the target and by then it would be too late for them to discover and eliminate it. Everyone in the galaxy would have access to YC’s database! The only effective way to tackle the surge seeker is to avoid it but as soon as it is attached on you, the fun begins!

The debate here would be; could YC be just another commoner?

Angel scoffed in disgust at a ridiculous pay by the Luo family to effortlessly wipe out a commoner like YC. Tension rumbled at the pit of Angel’s stomach with regret. While he could have finish YC off with a few strikes and receive that handsome pay, he decided to monitor the victim from afar. He was certain that even his bone eater would outperform the outdated surge seeker easily. Just when Angel started to drown in remorse, the situation changed dramatically on the battlefield!

A screeching cry can be heard that brings chill down your spine. Angel’s lips were moving inarticulately but no words could be heard. A formless pressure crushed Angel; his body was locked and stuck as if imprisoned in a grip by an invisible hand. No limbs can be moved except for his befuddled thoughts! Angel could not budge as all eyes were fixed on YC.

Time seemed to have frozen in place like a three-dimensional projected hologram, a one-of-a-kind disturbing stillness. Angel struggled as he choked out words but failed as the s.p.a.ce had turned into a vacuum with no medium but dead silence. Angel’s pupils filled with the deepest fear; his mind thrashing like dark vines creeping up all over one’s body.

YC made no further moves, other than a cold stare plastered on his face.

Angel’s heart felt colder than an iceberg and a snowfield! He panicked as realization sunk into him that YC was looking right into his soul; he moaned internally at his awaited doom. YC’s stare impaled the heart like a glacial spike, breaking through the fragile sense of security, obliterating all hopes in sheer coldness. Angel closed his eyes as he begged for mercy. Please!

In a blink of an eye, the field changed again!

A black hole was formed as it swallowed YC into an abyss that could bring forth the darkest fear of any individuals. Slowly, it engulfed everything nearby. Soon, Angel too was mercilessly sucked in by this dark force. The eyes detected nothing but darkness as Angel lost consciousness.

…

Angel gently peeled open his eyes.

He sat up thunderstruck by the encounter just awhile ago. It felt like it was a dream that only lasted a brief second and he’s back to reality. Was the abyss part of the dream or was it something else? Angel questioned but dared not figure it out.

He glanced at the clock; a quarter past nine 35 seconds! It has only been 3 seconds?!

Recollecting the sequence of events, YC had already vanished into thin air but it was only 3 seconds and he had already escaped. Angel was absolutely sure that YC was there. There was no way a man could run that fast!

Angel walked away and instantaneously he saw the four mavericks from before who had been there in the same posture and position much like a sculpture.

Something was not right, Angel held his steps as the waves wavered in his hands spread between them, but no anomaly was found. After a few hours, the mavericks still remained as sculpture-like; no words were uttered while a pa.s.serby was amazed by such lively looking sculptures in the area. Angel wanted to have a closer look so he blended in with the pedestrians and walked towards the sculptures.

Pale and lifeless. Those were the words Angel thought upon seeing their faces. A frantic sharp ringing in his head made Angel anxious.

A face of such kind was not new to him. This is the second time he had experienced this particular symptom. The first time was during the aftermath of two defeated ultimate mavericks in a battle; their souls were completely drained due to brain neural damage. It was the exact kind of face he saw!

He shuddered and trembled in fear, feeling the chills up his spine as he choked on his saliva; the drought in his throat froze his movements.

It… It …. It was not a dream….

Ever-expanding black hole, constant coldness, deafening silence; everything came crashing down and circulating through his mind as he picked up the pieces. The feeling was disturbing and frightening. Angel could not endure it any longer as he let out a shriek and disconnected right after.

…

“So…”

“Mu, what is this maverick you had been mumbling about? How is it that I had never heard of it?”

“Mavericks are the experts in utilizing processors at the virtual world with special abilities. They are known as the ones in the gray area for they stand between life and death, the black and white, could be both benign and malignant. Hence, the name. Mavericks denote the field they hold expertise in so much it felt like a walk in the park.”

Ye Chong had lost his interests at the mention of processors. “Eh, is it? I don’t really care about some processor professor in the field, so what happened to them anyway?”

“Permanent neurological brain damage.”

“Permanent neurological… what? What do you mean?”

“It’s the state that would eventually lead to either death or dementia.”

Ye Chong raised his brows, “Oh, very well. Then they will be obedient as ever!” At Trash Planet-12, if a man showed mercy to his enemies, he would be as good as the skeletons on the floor. He would be nothing more than bones on the ground. Ye Chong had already gotten used to a life of fight or perish so death was nothing new to him!

“Oh wait!” He turned to Mu Shang.

“Isn’t there another guy in the corner?”