Jiang Yan stood still, sinking his consciousness inward.
pearl of the abyss: 1,983 / 3,276,800
From this point on, the pearl of the abyss's progress slowed dramatically.
'Though sixty percent of Anna Country's population lives in cities, spreading two thousand Monsters across so many towns—this is already the limit of what we could harvest.'
Jiang Yan's expression was calm; he had foreseen all of this long ago.
'Next, we wait to see whether the Xuanjian Division dares to come.' Jiang Yan lifted his gaze toward Malgoth, who had already returned.
After wiping out a carrier strike group, it simply flew straight back… Dawn arrived. At six a.m., seven black military aircraft, each a hundred meters long, sliced across the sky above Mbutang Country.
Inside one of them, Long Zhengqing, Wan Tianhong, and Zhao Zhenyi sat together, holding a video conference.
On the screen were Jiang Ao, Fang Wenyu, Qin Wan, and Deng Mengcheng aboard the other planes.
"We've entered Mbutang airspace; their capital is only a few dozen kilometers away," Long Zhengqing informed the group.
Jiang Ao lounged in his seat, gray trench coat draped over him, face gloomy: "The Teya Alliance lost a whole carrier group. These brutes are as brainless as ever—Monsters at this level aren't something conventional weapons can handle."
"Deputy Director, why isn't the Director with us? Are we really walking into the meat grinder alone?" Qin Wan wore a black dress, hair coiled up, eyes doubtful.
The rest turned to Long Zhengqing; if he admitted the Director wasn't coming, they'd swing the planes around on the spot.
Long Zhengqing sighed: "The Director was in the middle of a game. He told us to head over first and call him once we cross into Anna Country."
No one said another word; their Director had always been like this.
At Mbutang's capital airport, Huo Tian stood waiting.
But uncontrollable anger twisted his face.
He'd slipped away for one night—only to come back and find his home smashed to bits, with no clue which bastard had done it.
Behind him, One-Eyed Dragon and Ya Tong waited silently; nearby, a row of helicopters stood ready.
The entire airport had been cleared; soldiers in gray uniforms kept watch everywhere.
"They're here!" Huo Tian looked up. One-Eyed Dragon and Ya Tong followed his gaze.
Seven black dots appeared in the distance, rapidly growing larger.
"Didn't expect the Xuanjian Division to send so many," Ya Tong murmured, eyes flickering.
Anyone sent against the Monster Association had to be at least an Awakened One—ordinary troops would only be throwing lives away.
Whoosh! The aircraft touched down and taxied to a stop.
Clack! The hatches opened; men and women in black suits, radiating power, stepped out.
Every Xuanjian group contained ten squads; each squad leader was a Level Three Awakened, some already Level Four. In addition, three reserve squads carried the same configuration.
This operation had pulled every Level Three squad leader—reserves excepted—from every group.
A column of seventy to eighty strode toward Huo Tian.
Huo Tian forced a smile and stepped forward. "Director Long, long time no see."
Long Zhengqing gave a curt nod. "Everyone's here—let's move. No time to waste."
Yet Huo Tian didn't budge; he scanned the crowd, then frowned. "Director Bai isn't coming?"
"Our Director's itinerary isn't something a small fry like you needs to worry about. Do your job." Jiang Ao shot Huo Tian a venomous glance before Long Zhengqing could answer.
The open disdain made a vein throb on Huo Tian's forehead.
He swallowed the anger; every one of the visitors was his equal or better—starting something would only leave him bruised.
Long Zhengqing ignored Huo Tian's darkening face; the Xuanjian Division had always traveled proud.
"Let's go." He looked at Huo Tian and repeated.
Huo Tian nodded and led them toward the waiting helicopters.
On the way, Long Zhengqing pulled out his phone and dialed.
Beep—beep—beep!
After a few tones the call connected. "Director, we've reached Mbutang's capital; we're boarding the choppers now."
"Yeah, yeah, got it—hang up, will you? You just stole my kill—!!" A roar burst through before the line clicked off.
The outburst was loud enough for every nearby Awakened to hear.
None turned around; they kept walking as if nothing had happened.
Even by helicopter, the crossing to Anna's capital would take hours.
If the airports in every major city hadn't been destroyed at once—and if Dragon God Margoth weren't disrupting aircraft—they'd have flown straight in and crash-landed on any flat strip they could find… Town City, a missile launch base.
"Calling this early, making me lose my pentakill—damn it!"
On the road to the launch site, a 1.7-meter-tall old man in a gray top, white afro, orange shorts, and flip-flops grumbled in annoyance.
Beside him walked a middle-aged Major General, too nervous to reply.
After a few minutes they reached the open underground silo.
The general saluted respectfully. "Director Bai, everything's ready. Launch at your command."
Bai Wenliang waved impatiently. "Hurry it up—I still need to party with my grade-school teammates."
"Yes, sir—right away!" The general signaled the distant control center.
Then he turned back quickly. "Director Bai, I'll evacuate now."
"Go." Bai Wenliang didn't even look around.
At the confirmation the general sprinted away; at this range the rocket's back-blast would cook an ordinary man alive.
Rumble—!!
Seconds later, a deafening roar erupted as a seventeen-meter-long, 1.9-meter-wide missile shot from the silo.
In that instant Bai Wenliang's feet flashed—he leapt straight onto the missile's nose.
Whoosh! The rocket blasted forward at terrifying speed, carrying Bai Wenliang skyward.
Below, the Major General stared at the shrinking dot of light.
Shock filled his eyes: "Our top powerhouse indeed. The N-2 hyper-missile can hit Mach nine."
At that velocity it would reach Anna's capital in roughly forty minutes—arriving just ahead of Long Zhengqing's group.