Infinity, The Arcade Age

The sudden burst of gunfire instantly killed several adventurers.

The others, realizing what was happening, quickly hid behind cover and tried to fight back.

But the ordinary tables and chairs in the control room were no match for the silver-tier machine gun's sweeping fire, let alone the relentless bombardment from the Metal Slug tank.

In just a few moments, the cover was shredded to pieces, and the adventurers behind it screamed as they were struck down, adding more casualties to their number.

As Qin Ming continued pulling the trigger madly, a sharp gust of wind suddenly whistled past him.

Accompanied by the wind was the adventurer squad leader, who had earlier realized the danger, used an iron staff to vault himself out of the line of fire, and now launched his counterattack.

And this counterattack was a killing move!

As the commander of the Sky Fortress, a super artifact, the squad leader's strength and status were extraordinary, far above the likes of Wind and Wrath.

After all, Wind and Wrath were just promising rookies being groomed for leadership, with potential but no real authority.

But this squad leader was a bona fide member of the King of Fighters Squad's leadership!

Even if he was only assigned to a low-level adventurer area, he still wielded genuine power.

With a furious roar, he vaulted several meters forward and swung his iron staff the moment he landed.

As he let out a strange cry, the iron staff in his hand extended several meters, leaving behind countless afterimages as it swept toward Qin Ming like a steel whip.

From the King of Fighters universe: Billy Kane's skill! B-Tier Ultimate Skill: Whirlwind Cane Dance!

With a deafening explosion, the sturdy Metal Slug tank was swept off the ground and sent flying!

The tank rolled several times before stabilizing and leaping back into action.

Caught off guard, Qin Ming was flung out of the tank. Before he could land, the iron staff extended again, hitting him in mid-air.

The squad leader, now swinging the iron staff as if it were a telephone pole, followed up with two more brutal strikes. Qin Ming was sent flying through the air like a baseball.

As the skill ended, the squad leader retracted his staff and stood tall, holding his long weapon with both hands, exuding a menacing aura.

Meanwhile, Qin Ming, who had been knocked away, managed to stop his momentum by digging his fingers into the floor, leaving five deep scratches in the ground.

He raised his head and glared at the squad leader with narrowed eyes. Then, with a quick motion, he threw four supersonic hand blades.

The squad leader twirled his iron staff and shattered the four incoming blades with precise strikes.

After flicking his staff with a flourish, the squad leader's eyes gleamed coldly.

With a flash of white light on his weapon, he unleashed the Whirlwind Cane Dance again, swinging his extended staff in a wide arc at Qin Ming.

Seeing the massive staff shadow rushing toward him, Qin Ming crossed his arms to block the attack.

The squad leader grinned savagely, releasing the last bit of strength he had been holding back and striking with full force.

Three loud booms echoed as the squad leader swung his staff three times in succession, shattering the floor and sending cracks spidering across the room. The control room's glass walls shattered under the shockwave.

But even after the violent onslaught, the squad leader didn't look relieved. Instead, his eyes widened in shock as he cried out in disbelief.

Because standing before him, Qin Ming had blocked the attacks using the golden bracers on his arms and remained almost completely unharmed.

The wide-range attack had been completely absorbed by the bracers' additional defense and Qin Ming's own physical resistance.

Before the squad leader could recover from his shock, Qin Ming retracted his arms, his eyes blazing with fire.

Spreading his hands, he summoned a whirlwind of energy, which condensed rapidly around him.

Charged Technique: Supersonic Hand Blades—Sixfold Burst!

A series of white energy blades shot through the air, forming curved arcs as they sliced toward the squad leader.

The squad leader's pupils contracted as he frantically spun his iron staff. Flames erupted from the staff, transforming it into a fiery wheel.

B-Tier Ultimate Skill: Super Flaming Hurricane Staff!

The two ultimate skills collided violently in the control room.

The flames on the staff burned brightly at first but were quickly consumed by the white flames of the supersonic blades.

The iron staff, corroded by the Dreamlike White Fire, became fragile on the spot. In the adventurer squad leader's horrified expression, the remaining five Supersonic Hand Blades came slashing through, cutting the staff cleanly in half!

The piercing sound of the blades echoed as they sliced past the adventurer squad leader's body, slamming into the wall behind him and leaving five clean, two-meter-long gashes in it.

The squad leader froze in place, his eyes bulging wide open.

Two seconds later, his body trembled, and both the shattered iron staff and his body split into multiple pieces. He fell lifelessly to the ground.

The Super Flaming Hurricane Staff was a skill that combined offense and defense, capable of protecting its user by deflecting both melee and ranged attacks while spinning.

At the last moment, it could even release flames from the staff, launching a medium-range fireball to catch opponents off guard. It was considered a near-perfect ultimate skill.

Using this skill, the adventurer squad leader had countered countless killing moves in the past, achieving overwhelming success.

But unfortunately, this time, he was up against the upgraded A-Tier Supersonic Hand Blade!

Not only could this attack be fired in six rapid succession, but it was also empowered by the mutated bloodline of the Dreamlike White Fire!

First, the staff was corroded and weakened by the Dreamlike White Fire. The flaming wheel created by the first attack was entirely neutralized by the initial Supersonic Hand Blade.

When the next five Supersonic Hand Blades came flying in, the squad leader, whose ultimate skill had already been broken, was left completely defenseless.

The sudden and violent death of their leader sent the remaining adventurers into a panic.

They screamed in terror, never expecting their boss to be killed so quickly. Frightened, they turned and tried to flee.

But against the combined firepower of Qin Ming and Jamie Fox in their Metal Slug tank, there was no way for these ordinary adventurers to escape.

Amidst the chorus of screams, all the adventurers inside the control room were swiftly wiped out.

Jamie Fox stepped up to the control panel and immediately began operating it. Within moments, he successfully deactivated the Sky Fortress, halting the massive warship's functions.

With a loud rumble, the Sky Fortress descended and landed on the ground.

Around the camp, the countless samurai mechas that had been engaged in a fierce battle with the Hunting Dog forces all stopped moving and entered standby mode.

Seeing that the colossal warship was finally under their control, Jamie Fox let out a long sigh of relief and leaned back against the control panel, completely relaxing.

Beside him, Qin Ming, who had been keeping watch with his gun ready, lowered his weapon upon seeing the situation resolved.

"Is it done?"

"Yeah, it's done. This thing is officially our loot now. Kid, good teamwork."

"Yeah, good teamwork, Old Jamie."

As Qin Ming finished speaking, Jamie Fox, who had been smiling moments before and was even reaching out to shake Qin Ming's hand, suddenly froze.

Staring at Qin Ming's outstretched hand, Jamie Fox reflexively swatted it away with a loud slap.

"Kid! Calling me 'Old Jamie' and 'Old Leek' all the time! Don't you know how to respect your elders?"

Qin Ming, his hand stinging from the slap, widened his eyes in disbelief.

"You're lecturing me? You were the one who called me a thug soldier first! You want respect for elders? How about learning to care for the young first?"

"I'm a federal general! A five-star general! When I joined the army, you weren't even out of your mother's womb yet! What's wrong with me giving you a couple of scoldings? There are people out there begging me to scold them!"

"Then go find those people who are begging for it! You old geezer! General, huh? You're so useless even your chili sauce wouldn't work! Don't pull rank on me! You're a general and still needed me to save your ass!"

"You little brat!"

Jamie Fox's face turned black at Qin Ming's jab at his pride. In a fit of rage, he ripped the submachine gun off his back and threw it violently to the ground, before charging straight at Qin Ming.

(End of Chapter)