Sky-cracking Rider

Under the coercion of Takano Yoshiko, the first floor was evacuated in no time, with people tumbling and crying as they ran farther and farther away.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The civilian employees of the military contractor were mostly non-combatant; the sound of a gunshot could very well make them wet themselves on the spot.

Chen Fei turned around, pulled a machine gun out of the armored infantry vehicle with a long ammunition belt attached, draped four belts around himself, and then slung a bag of tear gas over his shoulder before heading directly toward the elevator.

This fifteen-story building, cleared from top to bottom with gunfire, was an unfailingly effective way to ensure not a single person was missed.

Of course, killing was not counted.

Gods don't save those who court death; when there was a chance to escape from the brink, they still insisted on staying. If they ended up buried in the ruins, they could only blame their own bad luck.

But it didn't matter, ┑(￣Д￣)┍ they could always correct it in the next life.

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Everyone in the conference room saw Hanna Gagar speaking with someone, but the word "agree" gave them a very bad feeling, as the hairs on the back of their necks stood on end once again.

What was she planning to do next?

Had the most worrisome thing finally happened?

An overwhelming pressure, heavy as mountains and seas, bore down on them, causing many to nearly collapse in their seats.

"Don't worry; let's continue with the compensation terms we were discussing…"

Hanna Gagar just smiled mysteriously, unwilling to explain more, tapping the table with her finger, highlighting the key points they would need to review later.

"…Okay… No problem… I agree… Yes… All yours…"

His neatly folded handkerchief quickly soaked with sweat, the Chairman of Apocalypse Defense Group, Erik Anthony, was forced to agree to one humiliating treaty after another, ceding huge benefits of the conglomerate to the newly established Jiu Defense.

This small military contractor, like a vampire, had plundered vast interests from Apocalypse Defense Group.

Someone had to pay the price for this!

Damn Evans Martinez, damn Mitchell Hammer, damn Kim Youri, and those who voted in favor of Jiu Defense, none of them were going to get away.

At the headquarters of Apocalypse Defense Group, gunfire from a general-purpose machine gun rang out from the top floor of the highest administrative building, sporadically firing short bursts.

The sound of gunfire was the best remedy for evacuation; more and more people screamed as they ran from their hiding places towards the stairs or the elevators, fleeing downstairs as if their lives depended on it, using every ounce of their strength.

Then came the fourteenth floor, the twelfth floor, the eleventh floor…

In the middle of the descent, Chen dismantled a loudspeaker, combining several functional modules like the "File Management Plugin," "Audio Management Module," "Speaker Module," and "Power Management Module." He connected the simulated audio active drive signal from the "Universal Data Transceiver" on his wrist to the loudspeaker, repeatedly playing the newly recorded audio file from the "File Management Plugin."

"…Ten-minute countdown to building demolition! Please leave immediately! Ten-minute countdown to building demolition! Please leave immediately…"

Because he hadn't bought the microphone module, Chen Fei came up with another solution, recording with his phone first and then transmitting to the storage area of the "File Management Plugin" through the "Universal Data Transceiver."

The effect was terrifically effective; as soon as the gunfire stopped, people would rush out of hiding without any hesitation.

If they were going to blow up the building, why stay and wait for death?

These skill modules were like building blocks, able to be combined as needed to create different functions.

Chen Fei swept through each floor; as for the employees' personal belongings, there was nothing that could be done about that—they would have to wait and see if they could recover anything by digging through the rubble later.

By the time he made his way down to the floor of the conference room, the armed security guards in the corridor and the loyal employees had long since fled, leaving behind nothing but a mess and charred holes that punctured through most of the building, a horrifying sight.

Knock, knock, knock!

The heavy wooden door echoed with a knocking sound.

"BOSS, the entire building has been evacuated."

"Help! Help!"

Finally, someone inside the conference room could no longer contain themselves and cried out.

"WTF?"

Chen Fei stood outside, baffled.

"Jiu?"

Little Bird cheerfully pounced on the door handle, pecking around in a frenzy, eager to reunite with Chen Fei outside.

Unless Xiao Jiu could grow as large as a Dual-Headed White Wind Crane, it had no chance of nudging the door open with its small frame. After trying fruitlessly,

Little Bird helplessly turned back to look at Hanna Gagar.

"Has everyone in the building been evacuated?"

Hanna Gagar approached the door, unlocking the Heaven and Earth Lock and pulling open the heavy wood.

As soon as a crack appeared, Xiao Jiu darted out, landing on Chen Fei, pecking here and there.

"Stop it; stay away from the gun, it's hot!"

Chen Fei waved his hand to shoo away the little bird trying to perch on the general-purpose machine gun and removed three ammunition belts—the barrel was hot enough to sear flesh.

He looked left and right down the hallway and confirmed, "The floors above level four are clear."

In fact, from the moment he descended to the seventh floor downward, he didn't see another soul; everyone had fled.

No one is a fool!

"Floors below the fourth are now clear," announced Takano Meizi through the earpiece.

"Well done!" Roland Michigan, in charge of communications, couldn't help but clap in approval.

Working with a pig-headed team is a curse; working with a godlike team is a pleasure.

The ease with which they proceeded, orchestrating the situation, was so invigorating that one would wish for more such missions.

For the enemy, however, it was pure torment.

"Jiu!"

The little creature affectionately pecked at Chen Fei's ear until he took out a small box of wriggling mealworms.

Pet shops were ubiquitous in human society, for cats, dogs, snakes, turtles, rabbits, fish, and certainly for birds; live food like mealworms was not hard to find, and quite a lot could be bought for a single Star Yuan.

"Jiu Jiu!"

Little Bird fluttered to the edge of the box, pecking away gleefully.

Such a little glutton, it had just been fed in the morning, and now it was eating again...

"Demolition ready, how much longer do you need? There are cops everywhere outside!"

Bai Nuo, the demolition expert and gunsmith, had finally gathered enough explosives and installed them on the building's key load-bearing nodes.

He didn't need to blow the entire building sky-high, just collapsing and fracturing it would suffice.

Sirens wailed outside the compound, dense police lights flashed, armed officers converged, not just armored infantry vehicles, but even more potent humanoid Combat Mobility Armor, and several unmanned reconnaissance drones skimmed through the air.

With such a commotion, it was almost impossible not to alert the officials. Even if a military contractor's site was smashed by competitors, they couldn't keep turning a blind eye, let alone demolishing a building later on.

Except for Roland Michigan and the seasoned driver Claude Hughes, holed up nearby, the others were all trapped within the headquarters compound of Apocalypse Defense Group.

Yet Chen Fei and his team were not in a panic as this was all within their expectations, and they had already prepared a Plan-B contingency.

"Five minutes!" Hanna Gagel provided an exact time.

She turned around and addressed everyone in the conference room, "Please finalize the signature, Mr. Chairman Anthony, as well as the endorsement and verification from the rest."

The terms just discussed had been compiled into a digital agreement, obtained a unique contract record serial number through a notary system online, and just needed the signature and seal of the other party to automatically become effective at the agreed time.

Together with the authorization from other directors and shareholders, the authority would become even more incontrovertible.

In case of litigation, every signature on that document would represent a protracted legal battle. Even if Apocalypse Defense Group wanted to back out, they would likely have to pay a hefty price.

"I've signed," said the CEO of Apocalypse Defense Group, who signed his name on the tablet with an electronic pen, provided his fingerprint, and finally, stamped it with a digital electronic key seal, then passed it on to the others.

Each director and shareholder looked as grim as if they were mourning the dead as they signed and provided their fingerprints.

Like a game of hot potato, the tablet, having completed a round for signing by the party concerned, came back to Hanna Gagel, who quickly signed, fingerprinted, and stamped it.

The agreement took immediate effect, and even without a printed physical paper document, it still had legal force.

"Done!"

If they wanted to default on the payment, that was fine too; it would be a matter of seeing who couldn't bear the costs first.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this building is three minutes from demolition. Please feel free to leave," said Hanna Gagel, stepping aside from the conference room door with Chen Fei.

She was a woman of her word.

Next time Apocalypse Defense Group's executives wanted to orchestrate action against Jiu Defense Company, they would probably weigh their options unconsciously, wondering whether it was worth it or if they could endure another terrifying assault like the current one.

If the executives had the resolve, their subordinates might not be able to stomach it. Those people were there to earn a living, not to give up their lives.

The last group of people couldn't contain themselves any longer and got up from their seats, scrambling out the doors.

Even if it was a trap, they didn't wish to stay any longer, dancing with the Grim Reaper on the edge of life and death.

"Hanna..."

Chairman Erik Anthony, supported by a few assistants, was the last to leave the conference room. As he passed by Hanna Gagel at the door, he hesitated as if wanting to say something, but ultimately shook his head and was briskly helped toward the elevator.

"Last batch out. We're retreating too, through the secret passage," Hanna Gagel pressed on her earpiece, nodding to Chen Fei.

Having once been part of Apocalypse Defense's Ministry of Internal Affairs, she was naturally aware of the group headquarters' little secrets, including the underground air defense facilities and secret safety passages.

Unfortunately, the board of directors and some shareholders were caught off guard and collectively stuck in the conference room; outside was chaos, and many strategies and plans were completely impractical.

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