Delan and his group rushed towards the Ten Rings' stronghold without stopping. But as they got closer to the Ten Rings' base, they could increasingly feel a sense of oppression coming from ahead, a fear that emanated from all around yet originated from deep within.
The towering flames, the crimson clouds, and the unusual scorching heat in the surrounding air constantly reminded Delan group that danger—it was right ahead, it was hiding all around them.
But Delan group still drove forward without hesitation.
After all, they were a bunch of guys who walked on the edge of death. Danger couldn't intimidate them, it could only bring them more excitement.
Delan group crossed a desolate desert, climbed over a sand dune, and finally arrived within the Ten Rings' territory.
But what surprised Delan and his men was that when they entered the Ten Rings' area, they didn't see a single person. There were no sentries, visible or hidden. The surroundings were a dead and desolate silence.
Faintly, from ahead under those red clouds screams could be heard echoing in the distance.
"Delan, something's not right here" Old Wu said through the intercom.
"It does seem off" Delan nodded thoughtfully, looking around. In the wide-open desert, not a single person came out to block their advance. They progressed unhindered towards the heart of the Ten Rings' base.
Usually, terrorist organizations like the Ten Rings would hide a lot of weapons and supplies in their strongholds, so their bases were often located in small canyons or basins in deep desert rifts, as this made them harder to detect by satellites.
The consequence of this was that their bases were easily susceptible to attacks, easy to assault but hard to defend, so they would typically station many guards around the perimeter.
But now, Delan group hadn't found any guards, which made them feel uneasy.
When Delan group arrived at the edge of the Ten Rings' stronghold and looked down into the heart of their territory from the canyon rim, the scene before them left them stunned.
Fireballs flying everywhere in the air, flames walking on the ground, the inferno devouring everything in the canyon like a demon.
Gunshots and screams blended together. The Ten Rings members writhed in agony under the scorching flames, firing their guns wildly in all directions.
Energy beams passed through the flames and pierced their own teammates, who vanished into thin air the moment they were hit.
"Am I fucking seeing this right?" Delan said with wide eyes, his voice trembling slightly.
The surrounding members from Eden were all shocked by the scene before them.
This wasn't because they were ignorant. On the contrary, these guys who walked on the edge of death had heard of and personally witnessed many things unknown to others.
They had seen people who could breathe fire, people who could move objects with their minds, and even men who had periods every month... They knew that superhumans, or perhaps wizards, existed in this world.
But the scene before them still deeply shook their souls. Was this still a power that humans could possess? Those walking flames, they seemed full of wisdom they looked extremely like the legendary spirits. Shouldn't this be a power that only gods could wield?
In the understanding of Delan and others, mages were all like what the Ancient One lineage had demonstrated - more physical, with more singular methods.
When had they ever seen such a miraculous thing?
Old Wu, holding his sniper rifle, found the calm and composed Raiden amidst the raging flames. He saw Raiden controlling the surrounding fire, toying with the fragile lives around him like a cat playing with mice.
"Delan... Delan! I've found that guy... but by the looks of it, he doesn't seem to need our help at all." Old Wu said with lingering fear. He didn't know who Raiden was, or rather... what he was, but the power Raiden displayed made him feel afraid.
Delan looked through his binoculars and also found Raiden figure in the flames. Watching Raiden cruel yet ordinary expression, he said somewhat dazedly.
"Then... then we should just wait here for now."
Going down to help now? That wouldn't be a rational choice. Seeing Raiden relaxed demeanor and bloodthirsty expression, Delan group thought it would be better to just quietly observe for a while.
After all, Raiden didn't know he had reinforcements. What if he accidentally dealt with them as Ten Rings' external support?
The people of Eden tactfully left the edge of the canyon, leaving only two people to observe the situation below, while the others retreated to a relatively stable place 500 meters away to rest.
Even now, they hadn't recovered from their shock. None of them could comprehend everything they had just witnessed.
Among the two people responsible for observing the situation was Old Wu. He was aiming his sniper rifle at Raiden. He saw with his own eyes that when the Ten Rings members' weapon attacks hit Raiden, they were blocked by a transparent shield.
This was such an incredible thing.
Old Wu had seen the Ten Rings' new weapons before. Those weapons had enormous power, capable of vaporizing a person instantly upon impact.
But now, those weapons were ineffective against Raiden, which made Old Wu feel terrified.
Old Wu had seen and even killed those people with superpowers, or so-called sorcerers. He had always believed that those guys weren't anything special, just ordinary people with some extraordinary abilities.
But those people would still die, they still feared the gun in his hand. But now Raiden, this bizarre existence stood before Old Wu.
Old Wu even thought about shooting Raiden. This wasn't because he wanted to kill Raiden, but because his instinct wanted to protect himself...
He dared not imagine what the consequences would be if he became Raiden enemy.
...
The flames devoured everything in the canyon. Redder than the fire was the blood of the enemies, their painful wails.
But these weapons are quite interesting!
Raiden couldn't help but marvel after blocking the Ten Rings' attacks with his magic shield.
Ordinary bullets posed no threat to the fire elementals he summoned, but these strange weapons possessed powerful energy.
The Ten Rings members had already used these weapons to take out quite a few fire elementals, but fortunately Raiden had abundant energy and could summon them effortlessly.
But was this really all the bald man had up his sleeve?
If this was it, it seemed far too boring, Raiden thought after burning a Ten Rings member to death with fire.
Raiden walked step by step towards the cave, over the wailing Ten Rings members and corpses. He walked slowly, believing the bald man must be observing the situation outside from somewhere using surveillance equipment or something similar.
So Raiden deliberately walked slowly, savoring the process.
Of course, Raiden wasn't afraid the bald man would run away.
Because all life forms were exposed under Raiden glowing red eyes... including those people up in the canyon. This was one of the powers of the dragon shout.
Stepping into the cave, Raiden said loudly.
"I finally understand why villains always die from talking too much. Because this feeling of slowly toying with the opponent to death feels so good... Hahaha."
Raiden laughter echoed in the cave.
His voice, mixed with the power of the dragon shout, could penetrate to the bone and pierce a person soul.
But the bald man hiding deep in the cave showed no sign of fear. His face only revealed ruthlessness.
Beside him, a man with a big beard sat in a chair, eyes closed, caressing the ring on his finger.
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