“It’s here.”
He wasn’t nervous, but the crisp voice of a girl that unconsciously slipped from his lips made 007 feel somewhat uncomfortable.
He frowned and did not attempt to use his earpiece to contact the others.
The opponent had clearly intruded upon their communications; since it had exposed its intent to attack so blatantly, it certainly wouldn’t allow him to call for reinforcements.
However, it didn’t make much difference, as he intended to handle the problem alone to maximize his reward.
In the next moment, a piercing north wind howled as it swept through the airspace outside the window, pressing against the soundproof vacuum-sealed windows like an overwhelming tide.
Accompanied by a cacophony like claws tearing through bone, the sturdy glass was instantly sliced with countless striking scratches.
Cracks spread, and a moment later, the windows exploded into a shower of transparent fragments.
His ability was wind—more precisely, “flow.”
The flow of gases, the flow of liquids… as long as his Magic Power was attached to it, it would obey his will, turning into blades he could wield as easily as his own arms.
To release this ability to its maximum potential, he had to connect the area to the vast atmosphere as much as possible.
By utilizing “flow,” he could determine the opponent’s position.
Breath, movement, and even its very existence would disturb the atmosphere.
Under the shroud of these air currents, it was 007’s domain.
At this moment, he could clearly feel the woman behind him breathing rapidly in panic, the hot exhaust from the cars on the road, and the rhythm generated by the limbs of every person moving in the crowd.
A chaotic influx of information flooded his brain, but having long since grown accustomed to it, he easily constructed the scenery of another world in his mind.
This was a purer and more powerful sense than Magic Power perception.
Although it required an immense amount of cognitive capacity, extensive training allowed him to adapt to the process as naturally as breathing.
‘So, where is that guy? Let me find you…’
The moment the thought flashed through his mind, 007 had already captured that fluffy goat head and those demon-like curling horns.
It was currently standing quietly at the doorway, but no one had noticed when it had gotten there.
But that kind of problem didn’t matter at all.
Before Justice could even speak, its body was bound by a surging blast of air.
It was as if it were at the bottom of the deep sea, facing the crushing pressure of ten thousand tons of water.
The ill-fitting suit was completely smoothed of its wrinkles, then began to split under the pressure bit by bit.
Flow.
Most Strange Persons would be immediately restrained when facing this move.
When chasing Ning Xi before, the reason 007 let her go was because of special instructions passed down from superiors via Tang Mo.
As an executor, he didn’t need to consider cause and effect; completing the mission was enough.
Otherwise, with a single thought, that Mutant with charm abilities would have been immediately restrained, staying obediently in place without being able to lift so much as a finger.
However, a Strange Person like Justice shouldn’t be without a way to break free.
Based on the predicted results, it should have at least touched the threshold of B-rank.
Thinking this, 007 did not approach.
He simply waited for Justice to move.
As his Magic Power compressed, the restraints on the opponent were reinforced every passing second, and they would not stop until the target was crushed into fine powder.
‘But how would I know without trying?’
Unfortunately, as if to confirm 007’s thoughts, Justice moved.
It slowly raised a withered, slender hand and lightly tapped a spot on its chest enveloped by the invisible wind barrier.
The circulating airflow suddenly ceased to be hostile, allowing another unfamiliar Magic Power to invade and manipulate it.
A thin film of air was produced, covering Justice’s body.
Though it looked quite fragile, it was enough to neutralize 007’s airflow.
Justice looked relaxed and at ease, showing little sign of strain.
This was also within 007’s expectations.
This was the optimal solution under normal circumstances.
Without a specific counter-ability, the best method was to use Magic Power to expel and disrupt 007’s Magic Power within the airflow.
While the range of influence could only reach the body’s surface at most, it was enough to provide mobility.
However, large movements would still be restricted, making it extremely effective at suppressing opponents who relied on physical arts—like the former Lando.
Of course, the current Lando could probably subdue 007 before he even realized he needed to release his Magic Power.
Seeing his move broken, 007 was not panicked, but he still let out a sigh.
‘Was hoping for a significant gap in strength between us too idealistic after all? Since Flow can’t end the battle, there’s no other way…’
The chaotic airflow began to grow restless.
However, rather than Justice, it was the woman who had been watching from behind 007 who was the first to feel a strong sense of unease.
This unease didn’t come from Justice, but from 007, who was currently manipulating the wind field to protect her.
She couldn’t understand the situation until she heard his cold, youthful voice.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. Please tell me your last words. I will pass them on to your family for you.”
007 spoke indifferently, as if pronouncing a death sentence was just a simple conversation.
He was already used to such things.
In not all cases did the Combat Division have the capacity to protect the public from attacks.
They could only control casualties to the greatest extent possible.
Most battles below B-rank would not be moved into a Dream World, but the destructive power was still not to be underestimated.
Those caught in the crossfire could only lament their misfortune; there was no other way.
One had to realize this before becoming combat personnel.
Hesitation would only lead to more innocent people being involved.
Therefore, one had to be single-minded during combat, choosing the most efficient way to kill the Strange Person.
Of course, behavior like Lando’s—shattering half a street with a single punch when dealing with the Octopus Strange Person—was unacceptable.
Limiting the range of power to the minimum needed to ensure the enemy’s destruction was the limit of what they could do.
007 knew that even so, the people in this building wouldn’t be able to escape.
But since his hope of restricting Justice with just “Flow” was impossible, he had to use his remaining thunderous methods.
If he acted, everyone in the building would die.
If he didn’t, and things dragged on, the situation might spread to the entire street.
This kind of trolley problem was difficult for ordinary people to choose, but to 007, it was nothing more than a simple math problem.
The airflow began to collapse inward sharply until its density approached that of a liquid.
Invisible forces applied millions of units of atmospheric pressure within this narrow space, almost causing the gas to solidify into substance.
Even those in the Combat Division who didn’t know 007 personally had mostly heard of the “Three Absolutes.”
As for those who actually knew 007… well, such people didn’t exist.
However, 007’s abilities were not a secret within the organization.
His combat techniques were simply divided into three parts, just like his reputation.
The first part, Flow, was used to bind the opponent.
Its primary function was to prevent the target from escaping the attack range or getting close in a short time.
It didn’t have many other effects, but this style was often enough when dealing with Strange Persons.
The second part, Vibration, was what he was currently accumulating power to demonstrate.
He would compress the airflow almost without limit.
Under near-manic layering, a high-pressure environment that could normally only be created in a laboratory could be easily achieved.
The gas would be highly concentrated.
Of course, it was far from reaching the level of a qualitative change like a nuclear reaction, but the moment he released this environment, the compressed gas would discharge all its accumulated power at once, causing an extremely strong vibration.
At the very least, the eardrums of living beings within a hundred-meter radius would be shattered.
Non-ability users would likely die instantly from the shock.
Against a Strange Person, it could at least create a moment of paralysis.
007 would prepare his defenses in advance.
With his ability, he could easily neutralize the impact of this vibration on himself.
However, Justice probably wouldn’t be able to do that.
The third part, Instant.
At the very moment the enemy fell into complete paralysis, he would use the airflow to push his own speed to the limit.
Then, using the northern wind turned into a fist-blade, he would ruthlessly tear open the enemy’s chest.
The last two parts happened in a flash.
As the vibration erupted, every window in the entire building shattered.
The gloomy sky was swept clear, and the mist was completely driven out of sight, revealing the cold moonlight once again.
The noisy airflow finally subsided.
Along with it, the nearby streets also went quiet.
Traffic stopped, streetlights went out.
There was no chaos in the darkness; instead, people lay slumped on the ground, lifeless.
Blood gurgled from their ears, the vivid color looking quite eerie.
A slender, black-haired figure flashed by, slashing the fist-blade from the left shoulder blade down to the last rib on the right.
The heart and the Magic Power core were shattered together.
The flowing blood was completely dried by the wind.
Only a half-corpse remained standing in place.
It was over.
007 sighed again.
He hadn’t wanted to cause such an exaggerated impact, but since the opponent was a Strange Person of this level, being able to kill it was already the best outcome.
But it would have been better if he could have avoided fighting in a busy downtown area.
It wasn’t that he felt much guilt about involving civilians—having climbed to become No. 1 in the B City Combat Division, his heart no longer experienced the sentimental fluctuations of a normal person.
It was just…
It would affect his performance review.
However, before he could stand up straight, the surrounding scene suddenly shifted.
It changed from the original city center to a deserted wasteland.
It was the kind of terrain used for testing explosive abilities.
When 007 tested the strength of his abilities, he had done so in a similar place, so he wasn’t unfamiliar with it.
But for it to appear at a time like this was too abrupt.
007 turned back in shock, wanting to check Justice’s condition.
He still saw the corpse as he had expected.
The half-body that had been standing dazed for a long time finally fell in the howling wind, landing on top of the upper body that still hadn’t closed its eyes.
The strange yellow square pupils dilated lifelessly; it was as dead as could be.
‘What exactly is going on?’
“People always want to see what they want to see.”
The dead goat head’s jaws suddenly began to move, making a sound.
However, it didn’t stand up or make any other move.
It just continued talking to itself.
“Black-haired young lady, do you see gold, treasure, or fame on me? I cannot tell. If I could, I would really like to see the sight in your eyes. But now is not the time to dwell on those things.”
After grabbing 007’s head and making eye contact for dozens of seconds, Justice clapped his hands.
He walked past the dazed 007 and stood before the woman behind him.
The collapsed scenes caused by the battle seemed like a dream; they had not manifested in the real surroundings.
Whether this was fortunate or unfortunate was unclear, but for the woman, it was definitely the latter.
“The judgment must continue.”
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