Thirteen Dashing Pegasus Mark IV Armors came to a halt before them, their pilots shouting slogans of allegiance. The scene felt so surreal that the Plague Doctor and Catherine wondered if they were dreaming.

’Has North Carolina’s most elite military unit really just switched to our side?’

"At ease."

With his mind in turmoil, the Plague Doctor tried giving a command. The thirteen Dashing Pegasus Mark IV Armors immediately and uniformly stepped out with their left feet.

"Attention! Left face! Right face..."

The members of the Hand of the Empire executed the Plague Doctor’s commands perfectly.

’They’re really following orders...’ The Plague Doctor’s head spun, utterly shaken by the unbelievable sight.

He knew full well how much the members of the Hand of the Empire discriminated against the lower class. The indoctrination they’d received since childhood led them to see the underclass as nothing more than cockroaches and vermin. They wanted nothing more than to slaughter every last one of them. Their ideology was so extreme it defied all reason, making them impossible to change.

And yet, this extremist military unit, once loyal to the North Carolina Government, had been brainwashed by Siegfried. Their personalities were overwritten, transforming them from fanatics who clamored for the death of the underclass into loyal soldiers of the Poisonous Sore Gang. And all this while they were still equipped with Dashing Pegasus Mark IV Armor...

...It was utterly terrifying.

If Siegfried didn’t lack even the slightest aura of Darkness, the Plague Doctor would have mistaken him for an Evil Demon from the Abyss disguised as a human. Such horrifying Extraordinary Abilities were usually linked to keywords like "Abyss," "Corrupter," and "mental pollution." A few years ago, the Plague Doctor had encountered a large-scale mental pollution event in southeastern North Carolina. The source had been a Corrupter that had Assimilated over two hundred people, turning them into identical, mutated beings that attacked the slums. The Plague Doctor would never forget that terrifying night.

But compared to that overt form of terror, Siegfried’s unknown and uncanny methods were even more fearsome.

’You would never know when you might be brainwashed, and you could never be certain if your ’current self’ was just a product of it.’

’Thank God Siegfried is on our side... for now.’

"Cough... cough, cough, cough..."

Zhou Chen’s acting was phenomenal. He perfectly feigned the weakness that comes from overexerting one’s Essence and overusing Extraordinary Abilities. After chugging a few Alchemy Potions, his breathing eased slightly, and he asked wearily, "Have your armor’s monitoring systems issued any anomaly alerts?"

"Reporting. All monitoring systems are normal, no issues have been detected. The vital signs and mental states of all team members are good and stable," the captain of Unit One replied in a firm, powerful voice.

"Good," Zhou Chen commanded, his authority overriding all others. "Now, go wipe out half the Government Army. Capture the rest alive."

"Yes, sir!"

The thirteen armored units moved out on command. Only this time, their enemy was the Government Army.

"Shit! What the hell is going on?!"

On a battlefield thick with a hail of gunfire, the Government Army was locked in a fierce fight with the Poisonous Sore Gang. Suddenly, a government soldier wearing a Night Vision Device saw a group of Mecha charging from their flank, flames blasting from the engines on their backs. He was so scared he pissed himself on the spot.

How could they fail to recognize the Dashing Pegasus Mark IV Armor? As soldiers of the North Carolina Government Army, they had been forced to watch informational films about the [Hand of the Empire] every day since their enlistment. These films primarily showcased the Hand of the Empire’s heroic combat feats: tearing terrorists apart with their bare hands, killing enemies at supersonic speeds, single-handedly downing enemy fighter jets in aerial combat, and brutally slaughtering Illegal Ascenders...

From the very beginning, the [Hand of the Empire] had been built up in the minds of all Government Army soldiers as a powerful, mighty, and invincible force. That was why seeing the Dashing Pegasus Armor charging toward them threw the soldiers into a panic. In their eyes, the Hand of the Empire was nothing less than a squadron of killing machines.

"Friendlies!"

"We’re on the same side!"

"Sirs, we’re the Rusted Iron City Government Army!"

A group of government soldiers shouted frantically, their faces etched with anxiety. They assumed the Hand of the Empire had mistaken them for the enemy. After all, the battlefield was shrouded by the Night Curtain, so misidentifying a unit was entirely possible.

The Hand of the Empire, however, turned a deaf ear. Four rocket launchers popped out from the shoulders of each of the thirteen suits of armor. An instant later, scorching flames erupted from them. A total of fifty-two micro-rockets, blazing with a blinding light, soared toward the Government Army’s position.

The Government Army soldiers, shocked and terrified, only had time to curse, "FUCK!" before they were engulfed in terrifying light and heat.

BOOM!!!

Heatwaves and scorching winds surged outward. Pillars of searing fire erupted from the cratered earth, briefly illuminating the Night Curtain itself. When the smoke and dust cleared, the Government Army’s position had been transformed into blackened, scorched earth, with not a single soldier in sight.

The members of the Poisonous Sore Gang, watching everything through their Night Vision Devices, couldn’t help but cease firing. They exchanged glances in utter disbelief.

’The Hand of the Empire... had actually defected?’

"Don’t just stand there gawking, move up!" Catherine shouted, rushing over to command the Poisonous Sore Gang’s combat squad. "The Hand of the Empire is on our side now! Hold your fire on them! Capture any government soldiers you can alive!" She was one of the core leaders of the Poisonous Sore Gang, her authority second only to the Plague Doctor and Uncle Ze.

"Let’s go, brothers!" Overjoyed, the members of the Poisonous Sore Gang roared and charged from their positions to hunt down the scattered government soldiers.

Meanwhile, Zhou Chen, supported by the Plague Doctor, stepped out from the Night Curtain. They were preparing to head to another battlefield, where another detachment of the Hand of the Empire was waiting to be "recruited."

The moment they emerged, they saw Ted and the others who had remained behind, pacing about like ants on a hot pan. The Plague Doctor’s voice grew tense as he asked, "What is it?"