At the edge of the Hive City’s commercial district, rows of shanties carved out narrow strips of shadow.

“Xiao Chen, they’re coming.”

Bai Wei’s voice was gentle, but her eyes were cold to the point of being unsettling.

For today’s date, she had dressed up carefully—not only using top-grade beauty products she normally couldn’t bear to waste, but even deliberately wearing her Public Security Bureau formal uniform, all so that when she got off work early to see her fiancé, she could give him the best possible surprise.

And yet…

Sensing the ill-intentioned presences behind them, a trace of killing intent flashed across Bai Wei’s icy expression.

‘The Schufestan family, was it?’

Bai Wei recalled what Li Chen had told her not long ago.

As a senior employee of the Public Security Bureau, Bai Wei naturally lacked no intelligence channels—especially in the upper hive, the area under the strictest control of the Hive City’s security apparatus.

‘Honestly… it’s all my husband’s fault for being too attractive. A true calamity for women.’

She cast a helpless glance at the flawless face beside her—one that could not be faulted from any angle.

‘When it comes to a man like this, even a young lady from a top-hive consortium falling for him is only natural.’

Well-informed and experienced, Bai Wei knew exactly how rare a man like Li Chen was.

Not only because of that peerless appearance, but also because of so many qualities he possessed that set him apart from other men.

His humility despite never relying on his looks, his absolute devotion in matters of love, his discipline—and…

‘Mm, but Xiao Wei, don’t be fooled by how I look.’

Li Chen planted his feet firmly, his gaze blazing as he stared at the elite assassins who were acting with reckless arrogance, barely bothering to conceal their movements.

‘I can help too, you know.’

Clang—

Li Chen drew the alloy blade at his waist.

Watching her fiancé stand tall, subtly shielding her—this dignified sixth-tier martial artist—behind his broad frame, Bai Wei’s heart overflowed with warmth.

This was exactly what she loved most about Li Chen and also a trait utterly absent in other men within this woman-dominated Hive City.

‘Xiao Chen always wants to protect me.’

If it were any other man—especially one with such charm—he would probably have tossed out a casual ‘I’ll leave the rest to you’ and step aside, acting as if entrusting his safety to her was already a tremendous favor.

Although Bai Wei had never dated anyone besides Li Chen, through her work and social circle in the Public Security Bureau, she had seen far too many such cases.

Compared to those men who were nothing but handsome shells, Li Chen was like an unblemished jade.

And frankly speaking, Bai Wei had never seen a man whose temperament and appearance could even come close to Xiao Chen’s.

“So…”

Bai Wei’s already frigid gaze grew even colder, enough to make one shiver. She stepped forward slightly, her custom-made uniform outlining a graceful curve as she drifted lightly to stand in front of Li Chen.

“I won’t let anyone hurt Xiao Chen. Anyone.”

Even if the opponent was a top-hive consortium.

Bai Wei’s eyes were resolute.

Whoosh—

As the last trace of sunlight vanished beyond the horizon, several dark silhouettes arrived. These elites, trained under a consortium, rapidly formed an encirclement, as flawless as catching a turtle in a jar—no matter how capable the target was, escape would be impossible.

Even though there was only a mere sixth-tier martial artist beside the target, the Schufestan family’s personal guard showed not the slightest carelessness, perfectly demonstrating the results of years of training.

On top of that, they were equipped with next-generation gear secretly developed by the consortium’s classified laboratories—combat-grade cybernetics unavailable on the open market, battle drugs whose effects completely violated common martial logic and most importantly—singularity technology.

‘Sixth tier?’

Several guards who had completed the encirclement snorted softly.

“This might be the easiest mission we’ve had since the personal guard was formed.”

The woman at the lead leisurely adjusted her braided hair. Her venomous eyes, sharp as a serpent’s, locked firmly onto their target even from afar.

“Honestly, Miss Kate is something else,” another female guard complained, setting down her plasma greatsword that glimmered faintly with eerie light.

“Sending us—eight-tier martial artists—just for a second-tier quasi-martial artist and his sixth-tier fiancée? She says it’s the old madam’s will, but everyone knows the board only sent us to the auction as a show. That woman is really treating a feather like an imperial edict and ordering the personal guard around.”

Still unsatisfied, she glanced at the two figures moving through the shanties and added suspiciously,

“Say, do you think Miss Kate has taken a liking to that man? Tch. If she’s really going this far just because she wants a man… with her like that, she thinks she’s qualified to compete for the old madam’s successor?”

“That’s enough, Tiger Fang.”

The Schufestan personal guard captain frowned.

“The matter of family succession isn’t for us to discuss. And Kate’s authorization code checks out. Since that’s the case, we must carry out the old madam’s will without hesitation and fulfill our duty as the blade of the Schufestan family.”

Faced with the captain’s unyielding declaration, the surrounding guards all nodded solemnly.

As elite assets specially cultivated by the consortium, they enjoyed resources that most Hive City martial artists could only dream of.

And because of that, these talents—whether selected and trained from childhood or rising stars recruited later—had long since developed absolute loyalty to the old madam and the Schufestan family.

Of course, that loyalty wasn’t only emotional.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

As they prepared to execute the operation, their hearts began beating in perfect synchrony—their cybernetic cores all derived from the same technology.

The Schufestan family’s hidden trump card: Singularity Technology No. 0–48, the perpetual engine Everlasting Continuum.

“Haha, Captain, you’re as serious as ever.”

Tiger Fang waved her hand with a grin, pretending obedience while still muttering, “But this mission’s target—that man…”

She stuck out her tongue and licked her lips.

“If I were Miss Kate, I might also take advantage of my position. How about this—after we catch him, Captain, let me have some fun first?”

“You—”

The captain rolled her eyes and refocused on the target.

Indeed, even she—hardened by countless brutal battlefields—couldn’t help but marvel at the creator’s craftsmanship upon seeing that man.

But unlike her excitable teammates, the captain’s gaze held no emotional fluctuation.

Attraction aside, she never invested unnecessary feelings into mission targets. Or perhaps, with more than half her organs replaced by cybernetics, it was uncertain whether she still possessed natural human emotions at all.

Cybernetic core, artificial intelligence brain, enhanced neurons, synthetic blood, optimized cells…

She had paid a steep price in her pursuit of the martial pinnacle.

But she had gained even more.

For example—absolute rationality, free from human emotion.

“Don’t hold back.”

She warned Tiger Fang, who delighted in tormenting enemies and savoring their despair.

“That woman is not simple.”

Despite being only sixth-tier, she had detected their presence from a great distance.

Granted, they hadn’t deliberately concealed themselves, but for top-tier martial artists, refined martial mastery naturally suppressed one’s aura even without conscious effort.

More importantly…

‘Why do I feel uneasy?’

Unease—from someone who had discarded most of her natural human structure?

“Huff.”

The captain quickly adjusted her mindset.

‘It must be the recent tension in the Hive City.’

How ridiculous.

Even standing at the pinnacle of martial power, in the eyes of the top-hive consortium elites she was still nothing more than a useful enforcer—a disposable chess piece.

In the struggles of those oligarchs, she could only drift along with the tide.

‘So I must climb even higher.’

This mission could not fail.

“Yes, yes, got it.”

A guard hoisted her plasma greatsword.

“So Captain, which tactical set?”

“Based on current intel… the objective is to capture both targets alive and minimize injuries.”

Countless simulations flashed through the captain’s mind—calculations that would take military AI immense time with uncertain accuracy, but within her AI-enhanced brain unfolded with perfect clarity, iteratively refined without error.

“D114.”

The command was issued.

As if executing a preloaded program, the guards moved instantly, their actions nearly instinctive from countless rehearsals.

Whoosh—

Overwhelming pressure surged in from all directions, freezing the entire shantytown as if time itself had stopped.

The enemy had arrived.

Clang—

A figure flashed.

The plasma greatsword descended, incinerating the surroundings like inescapable divine punishment, crashing straight toward Li Chen’s position.

‘The personal guard?’

Recognizing their identity, Li Chen was momentarily impressed by Miss Kate’s ‘generosity,’ and a rare hint of surprise appeared on his face.

Not because of their terrifying strength, but because—

‘Is that woman insane? All this—she actually mobilized the personal guard?’

Li Chen scratched his head in confusion.

‘I just wonder how you’ll feel when you find out your home base has been purged, while your trump cards were sent off on a meaningless mission.’

* * *

Meanwhile, in the central commercial district.

Inside the shanty’s wooden hut.

Whoosh—

A violent gust swept through, kicking up clouds of dust.

Inside the cramped hut, a black-haired beauty seemed to sense something and slowly raised her head.

“Someone’s here.”

She picked up a handkerchief, sitting sideways on a straw mat as she gently wiped the long blade in her hand.

Jingle—

The door was shoved open.

Several Judicators members tasked with guarding the hut stood aside, allowing an intruder to barge into the mercenary group’s forbidden ground without resistance.

A flamboyant, voluptuous woman dressed scantily strode in casually, her pale, alluring body shamelessly exposed as she clicked her tongue in amazement at the straw mat beneath Lin Caining.

“Wow. So this is where your mercenary group was founded? Never thought the mercenary queen feared even by major consortia was once this down-and-out.”

Thud.

Lin Caining rose calmly, ignoring the provocation.

“You are… the Apocalypse Knight, Pestilence.”

Narrowing her eyes, she glanced at the dazed members outside—frozen as if time itself had been stolen—and her gaze ignited with fighting intent.

“Why aren’t you staying in Paradise as the Foundation’s dog? You even descended into the mortal world—and not even the upper hive. What do you want?”

Her tone was gentle, but murderous intent lurked beneath it.

“Purge.”

The flamboyant woman smiled faintly, savoring Lin Caining’s tension before answering.

“The Schufestan family has violated an unknowable taboo. The Foundation’s Senate has unanimously agreed to cleanse them from existence.”

‘Cleanse.’

Such a beautiful word—

Yet it stirred a tempest in Lin Caining’s heart.

“Oh, right,” the woman added lightly.

“The Overseer reported that some Schufestan personal guard members are out here on a mission, so I came to take a look.”

She chuckled.

“And apparently they were sent by Miss Kate to capture a man. Hmm… I think his name was… Li Chen?”

Whoosh—

The wind roared violently.

Clang—

The flamboyant woman raised a hand, blocking a strike that no ninth-tier martial artist could have withstood.

“Easy now, little Caining.”

She smiled lazily.

“Others might not know your brother’s strength, but how could you, his dearest little sister, be unaware? Those guards won’t hurt him in the slightest. But…”

Her expression turned icy.

“As the Senate said—once the calamity force within him crosses the critical threshold…”

She left the sentence unfinished, stretching languidly as her black robe accentuated her imposing figure.

“Anyway, I’ve got work to do. You’re one of the Foundation’s key mortal agents, so I came to give you a heads-up.”

She smiled ambiguously.

“And honestly, I don’t really want to kill your brother either. After all, that ‘Residual Shadow’… is an existence even our Foundation can’t fully dissect.”

Bang.

The door shut. Time resumed its flow.

‘Elder Brother… is in danger.’

Lin Caining sprang to her feet, staring anxiously out the window.

She had to go save him.