Chapter 453: Crimson (6K)

This doesn't seem like filming a movie at all.

The young men and women outside the nightclub, seeing the monstrous shadow flickering within the storm clouds, finally sobered up a little from their alcohol-induced haze.

Someone screamed—everyone scrambled away in panic, but before they could reach the end of the street, they slammed into an invisible spatial barrier with a thud.

Mobius ignored the chaotic screams behind him and said calmly to Li Cheng: "First, as host, I must thank you for not choosing to destroy London at once."

Li Cheng raised an eyebrow. "Why say that?"

"Calculation. Inference."

Mobius spread his hands. "Based on anomalous fluctuation indices detected by signal stations across Eurasia and atmospheric anomaly images from meteorological satellites, your demonstrated ability involves linear long-distance movement at light speed."

Each displacement ranges from a minimum of 400 kilometers to a maximum of 1400 kilometers, with intervals of approximately fifteen seconds between them.

Notably, this light-speed movement is not direct light-speed flight—according to special relativity, an object reaching light speed would approach infinite energy; even passing through Earth's atmosphere would be enough to ignite atmospheric gas molecules, forming a plasma fireball, or even tear apart the planet itself.

Therefore, your light-speed movement most likely does not involve transforming yourself into light, but rather warping spacetime to create a curvature 'bubble' around you, achieving an effect similar to a warp drive in science fiction."

"You're right."

Li Cheng nodded. The man was no doubt a high-ranking member of the Zhong Lou—merely from scraps of data, he had deduced several key details of the 【Floating Engine】.

"Of course, even a warp drive can cause astonishing physical destruction."

Mobius continued, having received confirmation: "A warp drive distorts space ahead and behind. The larger the carrier's volume, the greater the cross-sectional area of the distortion effect."

If you flew thirty meters above ground, the warp drive's residual effects would spread outward in a cylindrical shape, igniting the air and generating a detonation wave."

The detonation wave would demolish buildings along its path, while part of it struck the ground and reflected back as an arc-shaped rebound wave.

The rebound wave overlapped with the detonation wave, multiplying its power—like two invisible, indestructible walls sweeping sideways.

First scenario: assuming you made four U-turns over London, the resulting damage would be the complete destruction of all buildings taller than fifty meters, with a minimum of six hundred to eight hundred thousand direct fatalities.

Considering subsequent building collapses, fires, and the collapse of medical systems, casualties would reach into the millions.

Equivalent to eight dispersed airburst Hiroshima atomic bombs.

And since London is one of the world's financial centers, its prolonged paralysis would trigger a global financial crisis, indirectly causing worldwide economic recession and intensifying global instability."

Mobius raised his palm, projecting a 3D map of London, simulating the effects of Li Cheng flying over the city and making four U-turns.

Within the warp drive's direct kill radius, skyscrapers collapsed like dominoes; low-rise buildings were erased outright from the map.

Within the indirect kill radius, the high-temperature, high-pressure combustion shockwave surged through windows, ricocheted through corridors, instantly incinerating and carbonizing Londoners still asleep in their beds.

Blue dots representing living people went out in vast swathes,

The entire city was permanently plowed with a massive, indelible 'W' mark.

The Zhong Lou mages behind Mobius wore grim expressions.

True, as Zhong Lou members, their closest relatives were all sheltered in underground bunkers beneath the Royal Observatory—likely unharmed.

But before becoming players, they were ordinary people.

Childhood friends, schoolmates, lovers from youth, online acquaintances.

The old woman downstairs who ran the flower shop, the uncle selling hot dogs on the street corner, strangers who nodded to them during morning jogs.

All familiar, habitual routines were mercilessly obliterated by the 'W' mark cutting through the city.

Crimson Alert,

This is what Crimson means.

Misty vapor moistened the streetlamp glow; water gushed down stone steps, flowing into the sewers.

"Hah,"

Under the hood of his transparent raincoat, Li Cheng chuckled softly. "If you're trying to guide me, you needn't bother.

The Royal Observatory has a protective barrier."

Before arriving, he had already asked Changsun Yao—the Zhong Lou's headquarters at the Royal Observatory was fortified with a large-scale defensive barrier.

If he truly unleashed the warp drive in violent bursts over London, the mage association stationed at the Zhong Lou could seize the brief cooldown window of the Floating Engine and quietly expand the barrier's radius.

Then, either Li Cheng would light-speed elbow through the barrier,

Or crash headfirst into it and die.

Fifty percent chance versus fifty percent.

"There is a barrier."

Mobius's expression remained unchanged. "Therefore, the second scenario: you attack other British cities without the Observatory's protective barrier.

Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool, Nottingham."

Avoid London entirely, and slice diagonally across the British Isles."

A nation's number of players depends on multiple factors: population, economic development, infrastructure, public security, and the social status of the extraordinary.

Similar to industrial agglomeration effects—the more players in a region, the more players it attracts later.

Britain's appeal to extraordinary individuals isn't low, but it certainly can't compare to the United States.

The major cities after London have even fewer extraordinary individuals. They could never seize the Floating Engine's brief cooldown to stop Li Cheng.

"In summary, I must thank you first—for not immediately choosing destruction, but giving us a chance to negotiate."

Mobius said: "So, what is your purpose in coming here?"

Li Cheng did not answer. He looked past Mobius to Nicolas.

The latter took a deep breath and whispered: "Sarah Tang Pusen and Jacob Tang Pusen."

"Bingo."

Li Cheng tilted his head. "I want you to hand over the adoptive parents of Cai Anjie, the judge who gave them a light sentence, and every single British bureaucrat along the decision chain."

"."

Mobius fell into prolonged silence.

————

At this moment, in the underground bunker beneath Whitehall, the Cabinet's Foreign Secretary stared at the live feed from a body camera worn by the Zhong Lou mage and muttered, "Wait—this Master Pi Fu is just a player? A Level 21 player?"

"What's there to wait for?"

The Justice Secretary dropped the half-written will and shouted hoarsely, "Kill him now!"

"Calm down, Mr."

The Cabinet Secretary glanced at him and said calmly, "Under the Killing Field system, level is an important indicator of a player's strength—but not the only one."

For example, an adult dragon that kills a human player and seizes their aptitude will become a Level 1 Killing Field Chosen."

But its starting power is already equivalent to a Level 15 or even Level 20 human transcendent."

For human transcendants, level is also not everything."

Each mission's final evaluation score, resources plundered from the script world, the integrity of one's own power system, synergistic boosts between skills and items, even the elusive luck of loot drops—"

all can drastically affect actual combat strength."

Two Level 21 players can differ vastly in combat power."

The Cabinet Secretary paused, then added, "But the good news is, whether attacking or defending, a player's spiritual energy always has an upper limit. Has our military been mobilized?"

"Already cold-started."

The Defense Secretary put down his phone.

At this very moment, in the British Army's General Headquarters, the Field Command, the Allied Rapid Reaction Force's Special Operations Bureau, and all other high-level command units were jolted awake by a barrage of urgent calls.

Every operational Challenger 3 main battle tank rolled out of its barracks, AS90 self-propelled artillery and M270 MLRS multiple rocket launchers rumbled onto the highways,

the Sky Sabre medium-range mobile missile air defense system turned its barrels toward London's skies.

The Royal Navy's Type 45 destroyers and Type 26 frigates sailed out of port, Sea Snake air defense missiles and 127mm naval guns locked onto the city center.

Astute-class submarines submerged beneath the waves, Tomahawk cruise missiles primed and ready.

As for the Royal Air Force, Typhoon fighters were rolling out of hangars, MQ-9 drones had already ascended, providing high-altitude surveillance at 6,000 meters, while the E-737 AWACS coordinated aerial forces.

————

【Anomalous Weather Across Eurasia Caused by a Player?!】

【Boom boom boom boom, massive explosion! "Fall of London" now in theaters】

In the World Nuclear Shelter, Changsun Yao chewed on Hyrule rice and glanced at the forum.

Such massive fluctuations in anomaly indices could not be hidden from so many players—the forum was flooded with new posts.

Everyone was asking and discussing the latest developments.

Soon, someone pieced together footage from five days ago, showing Master Pi Fu toppling building after building during a secret realm exploration mission, and identified the ID "Master Pi Fu."

Then, well-informed insiders connected Master Pi Fu's secret realm incursion with recent tensions between Britain and the Special Affairs Bureau, and roughly deduced the event's hidden truth.

The public's curiosity exploded instantly; new replies and comments surged like a space elevator.

"Holy shit, I heard London's already triggered a crimson alert!"

"Good good good, it's about time we wiped out the Brits—love from India."

"Isn't this Master Pi Fu the boss of that 【Zhu Xing Zhen Tai】 shop in the Slums? Is he with the Special Affairs Bureau?"

"Replying to the person upstairs: No."

"Huh? Then how's he daring to storm London? Isn't he just Level 21?"

————

On the streets of London.

After a long silence, Mobius slightly lifted his head. "By now, the outside world must be in an uproar."

No need to guess—it was already the world's focal point.

The Whale Song Guild might have already hacked into the surveillance cameras in nearby blocks and would soon begin live streaming.

Uh—no need to speculate.

Dozens of surveillance cameras along the streets, right before the Zhong Lou group's eyes, quietly adjusted their angles to point their lenses downward at the street scene.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot agree to your demand."

Mobius tore his gaze from the overhead cameras and shook his head. "It's not that I care whether those British bureaucrats live or die—it's about honor. In your Eastern terms, for a major guild, face and substance are equally important."

Small nations can ignore sovereignty—even surrender it, selling out their country with glee.

But great powers cannot. Neither can the Zhong Lou Guild, so deeply entangled with Britain."

If Master Pi Fu publicly executes British officials on London's streets while the Zhong Lou does nothing, lets him come and go freely, then they might as well quit the Killing Field entirely."

"Joseph Heller's Catch-22? Only a mad pilot can be excused from flying—but he must apply for it himself. And once he applies, he proves he's sane—and thus remains doomed."

Li Cheng couldn't help shaking his head with a faint smile. "Trying to negotiate with you properly—demanding you hand over Sarah and Jacob Tang Pusen—gets us nowhere."

"But if we use force to threaten you directly, you feel your face is damaged and refuse stubbornly."

"Perhaps this is fate."

Mobius sighed softly. "How about this: we each make a concession."

"First, ask you to leave Britain. I swear on behalf of the Zhong Lou Guild that the British government will later impose a harsher sentence on Sarah and Jacob Tang Pusen—and punish every bureaucrat who stoked this incident under other pretexts."

"Punish? What kind of punishment?"

Li Cheng asked in surprise. "Demotion and pay cut? Transfer to another post? Or dismissal from government, then a quick pivot into corporate consulting with a salary of tens of thousands of pounds a year?"

He shook his head. "My demand won't change: hand them over—or I'll take them myself."

Mobius's lips tightened slightly. "... I'm sorry."

"Then if so, all casualties that follow will be the responsibility of the British side—"

Before Li Cheng could finish the word "responsibility,"

the MQ-9 Reaper drone, cruising at 5,000 meters, received its order and fired two "Barbatos" air-to-ground missiles at the target below.

This missile was the flagship product of the Prometheus Laboratory; its warhead contained not only 247 kg of conventional high explosive but also specially formulated inhibiting crystal dust.

Upon hitting its target, it forms a purple smoke column that drastically reduces the spiritual energy recovery efficiency of anyone who inhales the smoke, specifically designed to capture Transcendents and transcendent creatures.

Whoosh—

A brilliant blaze of fire descended from the high sky, like a meteor.

Li Cheng stood motionless on the spot, not even turning his head.

Boom!

Two Barbatos air-to-ground missiles detonated mid-air, their dazzling fireballs illuminating Taiwushihe as bright as broad daylight.

The thunderous roar finally jolted awake those sleeping London citizens; they groggily climbed out of bed, looked out the window, and saw nothing but a purple, fluorescent smoke column mysteriously appearing over London.

The Mechanical Swarm floated within the smoke column.

Two mere 247kg high-explosive warheads couldn't even scratch its chitinous shell, and as for the crystalline dust in the smoke, the Swarm simply closed off its breathing pores and switched to internal air circulation mode, rendering it completely immune.

"Mummy, what's that?"

The same question rose in the minds of both the London citizens and the Whitehall elites.

The next second, the Mechanical Swarm raised its head toward the high sky, the hover engines on its chest disengaged gravity limits, the chimney-shaped vector nozzles on its back erupted in flame, propelling it to accelerate rapidly to Ma He 2.8, rocketing straight up into the clouds.

Five seconds later, the Mechanical Swarm burst from the cloud layer like a phantom, precisely intercepting directly in front of the Reaper drone, its massive scythe hanging motionless, tearing the 11-meter-long fuselage apart from end to end as easily as slicing tofu.

"Tracking on Target 02 lost, repeat, tracking on Target 02 lost."

Inside an E-737 Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft that had taken off from RAF Brize Norton, 105 kilometers northwest of London,

the operator stared at the blip vanishing from the radar screen, his voice barely concealing his panic.

The mechanical parts on the Swarm's body would be detected and scanned by the multi-band multi-function electronically scanned array MESA radar.

But as the Swarm moved its body, it extended its own chitinous shell, wrapping around itself like an eggshell.

This organic polymer material, comparable to radar-absorbing coating, perfectly shielded the radar signal, vanishing from the AEW&C aircraft's view.

Clack.

High in the clouds, the Swarm's second pair of limbs nimbly and gently picked up the two remaining air-to-ground missiles captured from the Reaper drone, mounting them onto its shoulders.

Li Cheng used the universal interface pre-installed on the assembled puppet to firmly clamp the missiles.

A傻瓜式 hacker program from Whale Song, driven by the Mechanical Swarm's will, hacked into the missiles, hijacked control permissions, and fired them toward the E-737 Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft.

The two missiles slid into the cloud layer, and the Swarm then turned downward, diving toward the ground.

Its six pairs of limbs acted like balancing wings, carrying the Swarm precisely back to the Levenshulme Park substation on the north bank of Taiwushihe.

Its semi-mechanical long tail plunged into the substation, drawing electrical energy.

From its spine, rod-shaped columns rose up.

Bzzt—

Electromagnetic pulses spread outward in all directions, centered on the Mechanical Swarm.

Wherever they reached, substation relays self-immolated, smart grid controllers exploded, streetlights in nearby blocks all went dark, and residents' phones and computers at home all went black.

Cars still driving on the road lost control as their ECU electronic control units burned out, either crashing headlong into buildings or colliding in chain reactions.

As for the AH-64E Apaches and Merlin reconnaissance helicopters hovering in mid-air, they drifted and fell like kites with cut strings.

At this point, the Royal Air Force's aerial power over London was swept clean. The Mechanical Swarm, still unsatisfied, pulled out its long tail, its massive body taking to the air once more, facing east, arching its back.

The arched back was not for bowing, but to expose the bio-electromagnetic cannon on its back.

The large electromagnetic cannon captured from the biochemical laboratory was now mounted on the Swarm's back, its long narrow barrel aimed at the fleet located 60 kilometers east of London at the mouth of Taiwushihe.

Boom boom boom!

The electromagnetic cannon fired in succession, metal rounds with a muzzle velocity of Ma He 7.3 striking the Royal Navy fleet one by one as if calling roll.

The steel warship named D33 HMS Dauntless was as if struck by an invisible giant hammer, rocking back and forth on the sea surface.

The sailors in the cabin were first knocked down by the violent impact, stumbling to their feet, only then realizing they were still alive—though their foreheads had struck metal pipes, leaving long narrow gashes, blood flowing nonstop.

"I'm alive, thank God, no ammo detonation happened."

The young sailor gasped for breath, his right hand frantically making the sign of the cross over his chest, his left hand pressing against his forehead to stem the bleeding.

Then he noticed a yellow-green gas slowly seeping down from above the deck.

Poison gas!!

Even though he wasn't a soldier, the long熏陶 of movies and video games let him know how dangerous this gas might be. He hurriedly covered his mouth and nose, bent over, and tried to find the gas mask hanging in the ship's main corridor.

Perhaps the goddess of luck was especially favoring him today—in just a few seconds, he found a full-coverage mask in the corridor and frantically strapped it to his face.

Just as he grabbed the second and third masks, trying to rescue his crewmates who had been knocked unconscious by the violent rocking of the ship, a bizarre scene unfolded.

One by one, the sailors who had inhaled the yellow-green gas climbed up from the ground.

Their eyes were vacant, veins bulging around their eye sockets, mouths unconsciously gaping open, drooling teeth exposed, limbs moving mechanically.

The terrified young sailor instinctively stepped back half a pace, his elbow accidentally striking a metal pipe, producing a "thud" of noise.

All the vacant-eyed sailors turned their heads in unison, sprinting toward him. Before he could duck into the cabin door and shut the hatch, they grabbed his arms and legs, ripped off his gas mask, and forced him to inhale the yellow-green gas still seeping downward.

Layer by layer, the infection effect of the yellow-green gas seeped down through the ship's compartments, silently spreading.

Every Royal Navy ship struck by the electromagnetic cannon rounds fell into deathly silence.

The comms channels were left with nothing but the scalp-crawling dense footsteps and shrill screams.

This was not a zombie virus, but a hallucinogenic substance the Swarm had collected from a type of psilocybin mushroom while exploring the Killing Ground—one that allowed humans to retain clear consciousness while becoming extremely aggressive.

For mid-to-high level Transcendents, this hallucinogenic substance naturally amounted to nothing; certain contraband sold on the black markets of Skid Row was even more potent.

But for sailors made up of ordinary people.

D33 HMS Dauntless, D34 HMS Diamond, D37 HMS Duncan, all swiveled their 55-caliber naval guns, aiming at friendly ships on the sea surface.

Then, they opened fire.

Boom boom boom!!!

At the mouth of Taiwushihe, the warships that once symbolized the glory of the empire on which the sun never sets turned on each other, slowly sinking into the sea.

"Mortal. Sweep complete."

Above the Levenscote Park substation, a deep mechanical voice came through the broadcast of a swarm of loudspeakers.

It turned around, carried by its hovering engine, and once again drifted back into the dark clouds.

The downpour continued.

At the intersection where the Fabric nightclub stood, Li Cheng and Mobius and the others faced off in silence across the street.

For some unknown reason, while large swathes of the north bank of the Taiwushihe had plunged into blackout, the Fabric nightclub remained brightly lit, and even the surveillance cameras on the streets and alleys were still operating.

"."

"."

"WTF? What did I just see?!"

After a brief collective silence on the player forums, a tidal wave of posts exploded forth.

"Holy shit, sweeping the naval and air forces that came to reinforce in just a few minutes — is this fucking Lv21?"

"If in years to come he can avenge his grudge, blood will stain the mouth of the Taiwushihe."

"It wasn't Master Pi Fu who did it, but the monster on his head. The Evil Science Alliance and Zhu Xing Zhen Tai are round-the-clock strategic partners, so that monster should be a new type of demon engine from the Evil Science Alliance. It's no surprise it has this kind of destructive power. After all, only the extraordinary can deal with the extraordinary."

"What the poster above said is right — only the extraordinary can deal with the extraordinary. Conventional military force is still too clumsy against players whose methods are bizarre beyond imagination. Without preparation, a single mid-level Charm Spell or a GEASS like in Code Geass could mind-control government officials or the captain of a strategic nuclear submarine. In the end, it still comes down to contests between players."

Boom!

Lightning illuminated the pooled water on the ground. Mobius let out a long sigh, gripped both ends of his cane, and with a slight pull, drew out the thin sword hidden within.

If before this, there had still been room for both sides to negotiate a peaceful resolution,

then now, with the mechanical swarm having severely struck British naval and air power, there was only one path: war.

The thin sword's blade stabbed violently into the ground, and a red magic circle, foul and unholy, rose from the surface.

A six-ring curse-school spell: Fiend Summoning.

A six-armed serpent demon, swaying its sinuous body, drilled out of the magic circle, each hand gripping a dark-green blade forged in the Abyss.

And as the six-armed serpent demon appeared, the clocktower mages behind Mobius also passed through portals and vanished from where they stood, reappearing in nearby or distant blocks, refusing to give Li Cheng the chance to wipe them out with a light-speed elbow strike.