Chapter 269: Trampling and Crushing

The National Security personnel and Special Forces, including Xiao Yu, fixed their gazes on the group at the pier. The killing intent in their eyes was so intense it almost felt like it could take physical form.

As they watched the group board the cargo ship, one thought was clear.

‘This land is sacred. Since they came here, they weren’t leaving.’

“Move out!”

With a cold shout from Zhou Lie, the leader of the Ninth Unit, a loud buzzing roar erupted in the sky. Two armed helicopters appeared overhead, their searchlights beaming down onto the cargo ship.

“Warning! Drop your weapons and surrender immediately, or face lethal consequences!”

The announcement blared from the loudspeakers on the helicopters.

The people on the freighter looked panicked. More than a dozen figures scattered instantly. They darted for cover, trying to conceal themselves or take defensive positions. Two of them, however, managed to pull pistols from their belts.

Two deafening sniper shots echoed through the night.

The two who had drawn their weapons dropped instantly. A sniper’s bullet tore one’s waist apart, while another’s head exploded on impact.

A terrifying chain of bullets, glowing like streaks of red lightning, tore through the darkness.

It was like the scythe of death itself, descending upon the freighter.

In just thirty seconds, thousands of rounds rained down in an unrelenting torrent, delivering total firepower suppression.

The two mercenaries were shredded, their bodies ripped apart and left in pieces.

The rest scrambled for cover, hiding behind containers or finding places to conceal themselves. No one dared to stick their heads out, Doing so meant instant death.

The gunfire stopped.

In just thirty seconds, Xiao Yu and the others charged over two hundred meters and arrived just outside the freighter. Armed helicopters circled in the sky. Heavy machine guns provided suppressive fire from elevated positions. Snipers locked down escape routes.

With such a tight dragnet, what could a mercenary do?

How could they possibly resist?

But what Xiao Yu didn’t expect was that these people actually dared to fight back. And the resistance wasn’t coming from the people on the freighter. It came from…

Bang! Bang!

Two gunshots echoed from the pier.

Two special forces soldiers, just about to board the freighter, staggered and fell to the ground.

‘Damn it,’ Xiao Yu’s eyes widened in shock.

It wasn’t just seventeen people, they had accomplices. Two more were hiding nearby.

Thankfully, the special forces soldiers were wearing bulletproof vests. They wouldn’t die from this.

In an instant, Xiao Yu raised his arm, aimed at a spot behind a container on the pier, and fired. He shattered the head of a mercenary hiding in the shadows with only half his face visible.

In a flash, Xiao Yu lunged forward, racing toward the container. In the blink of an eye, he crossed ten meters.

But then, a gun barrel emerged from behind the container, pointed straight at Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu’s eyes flashed with a cold, sharp light. Like an arrow released from a bow, he surged forward and then stopped. The sudden shift from full speed to an immediate halt created a jarring, almost terrifying momentum.

The sight left everyone watching—whether visually or psychologically—with a strange illusion.

This guy wasn’t human. No human could stop so abruptly at such high speed.

Bang!

A gunshot echoed from the distance.

But by then, Xiao Yu had already shifted from a dead stop into a forward leap. Like a leopard, he sprang forward. Before his body even hit the ground, Xiao Yu tucked his arms and legs together, curling into a ball as tightly as possible.

A bullet whizzed past, just missing him.

Then, Xiao Yu’s body unfurled. Both hands and feet hit the ground simultaneously.

But he didn’t stand up.

Instead, he moved on all fours, like a wild beast sprinting across the earth. The speed was so incredible it could rival that of an actual cheetah.

Everyone who witnessed this was utterly stunned. Even the mercenary who had just fired a shot couldn’t help but shift his head slightly in shock, tilting it to get a clearer view of Xiao Yu’s movements.

That brief moment of hesitation was all it took.

Xiao Yu’s body twisted mid-sprint, flipping into the air. As his momentum peaked and energy balanced perfectly, his right hand stretched out, gripping his gun, and he pulled the trigger.

The gunshot rang out.

The mercenary’s eye exploded. The bullet pierced into his brain. His body jerked back and collapsed to the ground.

Xiao Yu, who had been completely off-balance mid-air, suddenly extended his left arm and hit the ground. Using the impact, he stabilized himself and regained momentum. He twisted his unbalanced body mid-air before his legs landed firmly on the ground.

He didn’t even glance at the fallen mercenaries. The dead didn’t need confirmation.

He turned, stepped forward, and sprinted back.

The special forces soldiers, Ninth Unit members, and National Security personnel all stared at Xiao Yu as he returned, stunned.

Five seconds.

From the moment the mercenaries ambushed the two special forces soldiers to the moment Xiao Yu came back, only five seconds had passed.

In that time, two mercenaries had their lives crushed like ants under Xiao Yu’s feet. If Xiao Yu had been up against soldiers or elite special forces instead—

Zhou Lie and Zhao Long couldn’t keep their composure any longer. Both of them were seasoned soldiers, among the best in combat within their respective fields. Out of habit and experience, they constantly assessed potential opponents, running mental simulations of how they would counter or eliminate targets in a confrontation. But based on what Xiao Yu had just shown—

If they were facing Xiao Yu in a one-on-one battlefield duel?

The sobering truth was undeniable: their chances of surviving against him were less than ten percent.

What shocked them the most wasn’t just Xiao Yu’s speed or accuracy.

It was the way his movements—his running, rolling, dodging, and shooting—seamlessly flowed together. His body constantly shifted angles, following bizarre and unpredictable trajectories.

Every movement Xiao Yu made, and even the transitions between them, took no more than half a second. He moved with the agility of a cat, the speed of a cheetah, and the uncanny ability to adjust his center of gravity mid-air.

Could any human really achieve this?

Could even a professional gymnast match this?

If Xiao Yu unleashed his full speed and those mind-bending movements again, even if you brought in two of the world’s best snipers to take him out, they’d probably just shake their heads and laugh bitterly.

Why?

Because they wouldn’t be able to lock onto him as a target.

Forget sniping—what could you even aim at?

As Xiao Yu returned, Wang Dong’s mouth hung open, unable to close.

But Xiao Yu ignored him, his gaze locked onto the cargo ship by the dock. The freighter was slowly moving, about to leave the port.

‘This is bad.’

Xiao Yu’s body shot upright.

He knew that if the freighter left the dock, they’d lose all their advantages.

Boarding the ship would then require aerial or underwater infiltration—high-risk maneuvers that could lead to heavy casualties.

If they wanted to avoid losses, they’d have no choice but to sink the freighter.

‘No way!’ Xiao Yu thought. ‘My system mission isn’t finished yet.’

In an instant, Xiao Yu took off, sprinting toward the freighter.

At the same time, Wang Dong, Zhao Long, Zhou Lie, and the rest of the team had the same thought. Without hesitation, they all charged toward the freighter at full speed.