Dark Moon Era - Chapter 235
Chapter 235: Breakthrough
The southern border was as bright as day. The moonbeam from the Purple Moon seemed to magically penetrate the air as it added a layer of faint lilac on the white gleam from the searchlights.
“Who goes there?!” Krovsky widened his eyes and bellowed.
A figure appeared at a kilometer away, and judging from the outfit, the figure seemed to be one of his own, but he had received news that Tang Ling had disguised himself as one of the soldiers. Therefore, even if the person appeared as one of his own, Krovsky had to check cautiously.
As he bellowed, Krovsky moved and he used Transient Steps right away. The furthest distance one could travel in a single jump with Transient Steps was around 150 meters. To his surprise, the figure also moved. Although he was quick, he did not shift as fast as with Transient Steps. The distance between the two of them shortened by 200 meters instantly.
Then, a shot was fired from the gun.
Shooting when he’s still 800 meters away? A cold smile appeared on Krovsky face. He knew what firearms were issued to the soldiers of the base: a standard Glock 17 and an automated AK-47 assault rifle.
The effective range of a handgun such as the Glock 17 was a pitiful 50 meters, thus being able to hit a large target within a hundred meters was considered sharpshooting.
As for the AK-47, its effective range was less than 300 meters. Even though its bullet remained lethal within a thousand-meter range, the accuracy of an automated assault rifle beyond its effective shooting range was a joke, especially in rapid-fire mode.
Therefore, against a Purple Moon Warrior, especially a fully armed Purple Moon Warrior, the firepower of those guns was not that scary. After all, without accuracy and beyond the effective range, they were no better than toys.
However, in the next second, Krovsky’s cold smile froze on his face when he heard several clinks on his armor. A bullet even grazed his ear.
That’s insanely accurate shooting! Was it just a coincidence?!
However, it was not the time for Krovsky to be surprised because the one who fired the gun at him was Tang Ling!
“Seize him!” Krovsky bellowed. As a matter of fact, even before he shouted, everyone knew that it was Tang Ling.
How dare Tang Ling try to cross the border alone and even take the initiative to attack?!
Without further commands, the two other Purple Moon Warriors, who were also guarding two of the three interception points, headed towards Tang Ling with Transient Steps. All they needed was around six Transient Steps to cross 800 meters and they could catch him.
Armed with firearms as well, the other soldiers at the border fired at Tang Ling when Krovsky gave the order. Even if they could not hit him, they ought to pressure him with the rain of bullets and stop him from moving forward.
Tang Ling took the bait! How much credit would they get if any one of them captured him? The thought alone aroused the soldiers and made their blood boil.
However, something unbelievable happened.
No one was able to get close to Tang Ling as he blasted the AK-47 skillfully as if he was the God of guns. Be it a single shot, a rapid shot, or any other mode, his shooting was inconceivably accurate despite the distance at which landing any hit would be considered a miracle.
Clink! Clink! Clink!
The three Purple Moon Warriors who Transient Stepped to Tang Ling were held back when the bullets rained on their armor. Consequently, they could not move forward anymore and were forced to dodge. Even for a Purple Moon Warrior, the closer the bullet was, the more of a threat it would be. If the bullets hit their unguarded parts, they would still be injured.
What about the bullet storm from the soldiers? They were almost harmless toward Tang Ling.
His steps were as light as a feather, so for the bullets to hit him at such a distance depended solely on luck. No matter how potent the bullet storm was, he dodged them with ease. He also fired at the soldiers, each shot equipped with excellent accuracy. Every shot killed one or two soldiers.
Both sides were wielding the same AK-47, so how could the bullets possess such accuracy in Tang Ling’s hand?
No one understood how he pulled off the miraculous feat. Of course, Tang Ling would never explain to his enemy how scary a firearm could be in his grip when Precise Instinct came into play.
The distance between them was 600 meters now, and almost every shot that Tang Ling fired played a vital part in stopping the three Purple Moon Warriors. He was able to pin down the Purple Moon Warriors, dodge the bullet storm from the soldiers, and move forward at the same time!
Half a minute later, the soldiers who were tasked to shoot were terrified and lost the courage to fire at Tang Ling.
Tang Ling crawled, slid, dashed, paused, and never stopped shooting. He was a nightmare to the soldiers! Besides that, he was also fearless. There was not the slightest bit of hesitation on his face and his hands were quick with the reloading.
He only carried a set of guns with him but took all the bullets and loaded them in his backpack. He had already attached all the magazines to the tactical belt around his waist when he was still undercover behind the tall grass.
The bullets rained non-stop and the magazines were running low quickly.
Since the start of the encounter, from the border, the Purple Moon Warriors only advanced by less than 50 meters while 34 out of the 70 soldiers stationed at the border were killed in 30 seconds.
Based on Tang Ling’s sight, he was able to travel 500 meters closer to the border in half a minute.
Everyone could not believe what happened. How could a single AK-47 be this spine-chilling? Were their assault rifles really just toys?
“Too bad.” Tang Ling had emptied his last magazine. The barrel of the sturdy AK-47 was blistering hot, and he was not sure whether the assault rifle would explode or not if he continued firing.
He did not waste the empty assault rifle though. He launched the AK-47 out and smashed one of the soldiers’ heads.
Krovsky was infuriated. Are you trying to defeat three Purple Moon Warriors with a single assault rifle? What kind of joke is this?! Now that you’re out of bullets, what are you going to do next?
Rage burned in him, and at that instant, Krovsky sped towards Tang Ling.
Tang Ling stood where he was. With a curt shake of his hand, the Glock 17 slid into his palms. He did not even raise his hand as he twisted his wrist a little and fired the gun. The bullet struck a large rock nearby and was deflected at another angle, hence losing its momentum though it was fine. When Tang Ling pulled the trigger again in a split second, the second bullet that exploded out of the barrel hit the end of the first bullet accurately.
Having received a refill of momentum, the first bullet flew towards Krovsky at an unbelievable angle.
When Krovsky sensed the danger, it was already too late, but as a Purple Moon Warrior, every single aspect within him was far more powerful than a normal man, including his instinct. He intuitively tilted his head and shut his eyes. In a flash, the bullet landed precisely on his eyelid.
On impact, the bullet shattered and the blistering heat damaged his eyelid. However, it did not graze his eyeball. As a rank 2 Purple Moon Warrior, his muscles were strengthened to an inconceivable level. Nevertheless, he still could not stop the shrapnels from slicing his skin while the force from the bullet almost pierced his eyelid.
Blood gushed out and Krovsky cried out in pain as he paused and covered his left eye.
Tang Ling continued forward leisurely, armed only with a handgun. Despite losing the firepower, his accuracy remained terrifying.
Those soldiers lying on the ground dared not fire either because they realized that whosoever who shot at him would welcome a lethal bullet to his head. The cowardice of the soldiers made Tang Ling sigh deeply. At such a close distance, if the soldiers were fearless and shot him, as long as they could maintain a certain level of firepower, they could easily injure him since he could not be speedier than a bullet.
As for the Purple Moon Warriors? Krovsky’s little injury scared them, so they dared not damage themselves in exchange for the chance to apprehend Tang Ling. They were still waiting for Tang Ling to empty his bullets and did not believe he could cross the border in such an arrogant fashion. Therefore, they missed the golden opportunity to capture him.
Their cowardice allowed Tang Ling to move within 200 meters of the border whilst they did not do anything but watch. As they observed him in terror, no one dared to even fire anymore and the Purple Moon Warriors stood there, allowing Tang Ling to move past them.
They watched him stop with the gun in his hand, fish out a cigarette with the other to put between his lips, and light it up with that snarky smile on his face.
Even so, these soldiers and Purple Moon Warriors did not think they had lost their pride because they had shrunk the encirclement and called for backup. Despite their inaction, Tang Ling had walked into the center of the encasement of the soldiers from the Stardust Council, and it would be difficult for him to escape even if he had wings. Ultimately, he might welcome apprehension or death.
Was that really so? Tang Ling took a puff and pointed his gun at one of the soldiers.
The soldier shivered before he heard a bang. He closed his eyes and shrunk his neck as he thought it was the end of him, but nothing happened. When he opened his eyes, he realized that the bang came from Tang Ling’s mouth and not the gun.
“Oh my, what should I do? I’m out of bullets.” Tang Ling smirked as he teased the soldier, but he did not throw the gun away.
No one dared to step up because his presence and godlike skills in wielding the gun deterred them from doing so. Everyone knew that they could catch Tang Ling if all of them swarmed him, but who wanted to be the first to die? Krovsky had been shot in the eye! If the bullet landed in his head, at such a short distance, not even a Purple Moon Warrior could dodge the lethal shot!
“I’m really out of bullets this time.” After he said he was empty for a second time, two seconds had passed.
He let go and threw the gun out!
It was at that moment that the three Purple Moon Warriors who had had enough of Tang Ling dashed over. They were so close to him that they could reach him without using Transient Steps.
Three seconds! After the gun was thrown out, three seconds had passed!
Swash!
A ripping noise burst out. Albeit not loud, it shocked everyone once more and Tang Ling transformed into a hunky monster in front of them. The rip came from his torn uniform that he had borrowed.
He instantly grew to 3.5 meters tall and his arms became thicker than a man’s waist while his legs were as sturdy as pillars. His monstrous appearance alone shocked the soldiers. However, the Purple Moon Warriors did not have the chance to be shocked because they were already in front of him.
Then, Tang Ling moved.
He turned aside and knocked Krovsky away. At the same time, he met the Purple Moon Warrior’s punch to his right with his huge fist. Both of them took a step back after their fists separated and the last Purple Moon Warrior came up to him.
However, Tang Ling had sped away like a rocket.
After his transformation, all his features were boosted by four times! Tang Ling’s strength had surpassed a rank 1 Purple Moon Warrior’s, reaching the standards of a rank 2! Even so, he was a lot stronger than a rank 2 Purple Moon Warrior in terms of speed and reflexes!
It would be difficult to increase these two aspects at a later stage. That was the reason why breaking through the first genetic lock only demanded a certain level of strength such as the strength of nine bulls; it did not specify how high one’s speed and reflexes should be.
Being stronger than the average person was already considered something remarkable.
Speed and reflexes, as everyone knew, relied on breaking through genetic locks to progress further after one ascended to the ranks of a Purple Moon Warrior. Therefore, with every increase in rank, a Purple Moon Warrior’s speed and reflexes could grow dramatically, hence the huge difference in ranks.
However, the little seed treated all of these indifferently. Therefore, it was so disgustingly powerful. It empowered Tang Ling’s aspects by percentage. Be it strength, speed, or reflexes, everything was increased!
Tang Ling ran towards the iron wire, and despite the close distance, all three Purple Moon Warriors could not keep up with him in terms of speed and reflexes. They dully watched Tang Ling’s huge figure run to the side of the iron wire and leap over it without even touching the bells!
What the hell happened?!
Krovsky wanted to curse out loud, but the pain in his chest from Tang Ling’s little knock stopped him.
…
Kachank!
Tang Long disassembled a handgun into a bunch of parts and scattered them on the table. He single-handedly picked up the parts one by one in the correct sequence and rebuilt it as fast as lightning. The clunks were relentless and his hand was so fleeting that the others could not see his hand movements.
Two seconds later, with the last clunk echoing in the air, a perfect handgun appeared in his hand again.
Kachak!
He loaded the gun and spun it in his hand before pointing it towards a certain angle.
Bang!
A shot was fired. The bullet flew out through the seams between the windowsill, and with a clear clink, a little flag pole in front of the off-road vehicle almost 140 meters away fell down.
Beside Tang Ling, Li Wu was drenched in his own sweat. He was certain that Tang Long had never touched the handgun before this.
The handgun was modified by the Stardust Council based on the old civilization’s model. How did Young Master Long master it so quickly in such a short time?
“Armed with a handgun and an assault rifle from us, he was able to stop a bunch of soldiers, plus three Purple Moon Warriors at the interception point?” Tang Long put the gun down.
The footage from the border was playing on the monitor. He was not asking or blaming anyone in particular. He was just reciting what had happened and imagined the outcome if he was in Tang Ling’s shoes. What would happen if he was on the same level as Tang Ling?
His Precise Instinct provided the answer quickly enough and the answer was exactly the same as Tang Ling’s.
There was only one unstable variable in the whole process, which would be the soldiers or the Purple Moon Warriors with perfect battle spirit, but this particular variable did not appear in the equation.
It’s fine. Those soldiers and those Purple Moon Warriors will be punished together. The focus of the game isn’t at the border at all.
