Chapter 10: Night Parade of a Hundred Demons (4)

The headless corpse clad in white armor and the old man’s corpse lay silently upon the muddy ground.

Crimson pupils stared into empty metal eye sockets.

Claire stood before the Black Knight.

She could even smell that pungent odor mixed with metal and burning.

The azure power core shone dazzlingly in the darkness.

Its operation was accompanied by a low rumble.

Claire knew this strike would decide victory or defeat.

The Black Knight seemed to sense her intent as well.

Its steel body spun violently.

Its arms guarded its chest like iron gates.

It tried to block any possible attack.

Yet before Claire’s ability, which was like pausing time, this effort was futile.

Time seemed to be seized by an invisible hand at this moment.

The entire world fell into a deathly silence.

Only that mechanical heart continued beating stubbornly.

Each pulse felt like a silent provocation.

Claire knew she had only six seconds left.

She had to grasp this fleeting opportunity.

Six seconds.

She picked up the Can Opener that had fallen to the ground.

She discovered that the only bullet inside had already been spent.

Without hesitation, she threw it aside.

Five seconds.

She drew the revolver from its holster.

Her movements flowed like running water, smooth and complete in one go.

Four seconds.

She took a deep breath.

Her fingers pulled the trigger repeatedly like lightning.

She emptied the magazine.

All eight bullets flew toward a single direction.

At such close range, they would all hit without fail.

Each steel-core bullet would strike the bottom of the previous one.

This was a dagger composed of bullets.

It advanced toward the azure heart.

It was over.

This was Azog’s end.

The ability deactivated.

The sound of burning flames returned to her ears.

It was followed by the sharp, piercing metallic clangs produced by the bullets continuously colliding with the high-frequency rotating power core.

The Black Knight was also shaken by this sudden offensive.

A trace of imperceptible shock hid beneath its pitch-black faceplate.

Huh?

Claire stood frozen in shock.

She could hardly believe what had just occurred.

That high-speed rotating power core had actually deflected every single bullet one by one!

The people of the Southern Continent were truly deranged.

They had even fitted the heart of the steam armor with impenetrable armor.

That power core itself was forged from the hardest alloy.

It seemed utterly indestructible.

After a brief shock, the Black Knight immediately realized its core remained unharmed.

The vampire before it could not harm it at all.

The steam armor spread its arms toward Claire.

That was an embrace of steel.

She would be crushed into fragments by this several-hundred-pound mass of iron!

Without time for further thought, Claire activated her ability.

Time froze once again.

She knew this was her final chance.

If she could not destroy the core in these three seconds, she would be killed the moment the ability deactivated.

Three seconds.

Claire drew the sharp short knife from her waist.

She thrust it toward the core using Rock Stance.

Her movements were swift and precise.

The short knife drew a silver arc in the air.

However, the hardness of the alloy armor surpassed her imagination.

Her all-out strike only sank in a few centimeters before it could penetrate no further.

Two seconds.

Claire had no time to hesitate.

She quickly pulled out the short knife.

Using the momentum, she launched another thrust.

This time she concentrated all her strength.

The short knife finally pierced through the alloy outer shell.

The blade tip seemed to touch some scalding liquid.

Yet it was still not enough to halt the core’s operation.

One second.

The countdown had lost its meaning.

Claire could only forcibly sustain her ability.

Indescribable pain surged from every inch of her blood vessels.

They felt as though they were burning.

They felt as though they were being torn apart.

She experienced torment unlike anything before.

At the same time, an overwhelming hunger suddenly struck her.

Her blood had already been exhausted.

The vampire’s instinct brought an endless craving for blood.

A massive darkness formed within her mind.

The world before her eyes gradually shattered into fragments.

Claire forced herself to recover her reason.

She endured the pain and assumed her stance once more.

Her hands gripped the knife handle tightly.

Her fingers turned white from the strain.

Her gaze grew exceptionally fierce.

It revealed a mix of resolve and madness.

At this moment, Claire suddenly swung her knife.

The blade flashed like lightning as it cleaved through the air.

This strike was full of openings.

Yet it was also the one into which she had poured her very last strength.

The time that had been forcibly stopped resumed its flow.

The Black Knight roared ferociously and stretched out both arms.

Yet it suddenly felt its strength draining away.

The sensation was like a person’s heart being pierced through.

All its blood had flowed out.

It lowered its head.

That azure core had been pierced by a short knife.

As Claire pulled back with force, the power core was dragged out along with its fine copper tubes.

It still emitted steam.

It resembled a heart exhaling hot vapor.

Claire collapsed weakly to the ground.

She slowly closed her eyes.

Her consciousness gradually blurred.

Darkness quietly engulfed her.

However, before she completely lost consciousness, the heart-pounding sound of steel clashing echoed in her ears once more.

The already shattered black iron monster extended its hand toward Claire.

A bullet that split the wind pierced into the opened left chest armor at incredible speed.

It tore through the air’s resistance with an ear-piercing whistle.

Blood bloomed like a flower and dyed the surrounding air red.

That was Liz’s precise and flawless sniper shot.

Yet it still failed to affect the Black Knight in the slightest.

Just as the steel claws were about to crush Claire’s head…

The Black Knight’s movements stopped abruptly.

Liz suddenly rushed out from the building.

She shielded Claire with her body.

She tightly closed her eyes.

She waited to bear the fatal touch in Claire’s stead.

However, one minute passed.

Liz opened her eyes.

Behind the Black Knight’s towering silhouette, the sky gradually welcomed the dawn.

The rising sun cast a layer of golden light upon it.

Its steam armor still held the posture of reaching its hand forward.

It was like a statue forever frozen in this moment.

Liz realized it.

The monster before her was already dead.

Facing the rising morning sun, Liz looked past the Black Knight.

She saw that the large ship carrying the containment zone residents had already departed from the harbor.

Azog’s mission had been completed.

Perhaps his body should have collapsed long ago.

It was only that he had been unwilling to die.