Whoosh—
With a sharp tearing sound through the air, a silver-gray figure vanished from the arena in an instant, only to appear right in front of Vilet the next moment. An iron-gray metallic arm swung forward and smashed toward her.
Vilet didn't dare take it lightly. Energy immediately gathered around the gauntlets on her hands as she stepped forward to meet the attack head-on.
Boom—
A terrifying burst of compressed air exploded the moment their blows collided, white shockwaves spreading outward like ripples.
In the next second, Jackie—who had been pushed slightly backward—steadied himself immediately. After taking a deep breath, he sank his stance, then unleashed a storm of punches that blurred into countless afterimages as they rained down toward Vilet.
Vilet showed no panic at all. After undergoing Zed's harsh training, she was no longer the half-baked fighter she used to be.
After adjusting her posture, she began trading blows with Jackie. However, as time passed, it gradually became clear that Jackie was starting to gain the upper hand.
At that moment, a figure suddenly shot out from the side. Energy gathered in both hands and turned into two chain-like strands that lashed toward Jackie.
Without hesitation, Jackie clenched his fist and seized the instant Vilet pulled her punch back, driving a powerful strike forward and sending her flying. Immediately afterward, he stepped back.
Thud—
A thunderous sound like a war drum echoed across the arena as Jackie punched the ground beneath his feet, forcing his body backward while simultaneously grabbing the energy chains Pyke had thrown.
The recoil instantly dragged Pyke toward him.
Seeing this, Pyke abruptly pulled back his left hand. The chain immediately retracted and transformed into a dagger, stabbing straight toward Jackie's chest as he closed the distance.
"Hah!"
Jackie let out a roar. Planting his feet firmly, he twisted his waist, and a terrifying surge of power rushed through the chain toward Pyke.
The entire chain tightened to its limit under Jackie's immense strength, then like an orange-red giant serpent, it was violently smashed toward the ground.
Whoosh—
Suddenly, a sharp sound cut through the air. Pyke released the chain mid-motion, then stepped on it in midair. Using his acceleration ability, he instantly shot forward and closed the distance to Jackie.
Bang!
A loud explosion rang out. Facing Pyke's sudden charge, Jackie drove his knee upward. A white shockwave burst from Pyke's back, sending him flying away.
Pyke flipped once in midair before landing steadily with one hand braced on the ground. Energy squirmed across the spot on his abdomen where he had been struck, rapidly repairing the damage.
"Your improvement is truly impressive."
Zed slowly walked out from the side and praised him.
Hearing Zed speak, Jackie gradually relaxed his combat stance. After clenching his fist, he couldn't help but say,
"It's mainly because of this body…"
"That's still your talent. For someone without ability, forcing themselves to use the equipment on your body would be no different from suicide. Today's special training is over. You should be heading out on missions soon."
"Finally getting out… I thought it would take a bit longer."
"You're the last one to go out on a mission."
Zed nodded and replied.
"Huh?!"
"Because your mech's performance is the best. The boss specifically told me to train you more."
Jackie immediately showed a helpless expression. He thought he would be the first to go out, but it turned out he was actually the last.
...
Swish—
A flash of yellow blade light cut through the air, instantly slicing a Scavenger in half at the waist. The moment he fell, countless attacks from other Scavengers followed immediately.
Facing the storm of gunfire, the black figure merely shifted his footing slightly and leapt away from the spot with ease. Grabbing onto a railing, he flipped over and plunged straight into the middle of the crowd.
Clang—
With the sound of blades unfolding, heavenly eye's longbow transformed into a double-ended blade. A flash of yellow light followed, and several nearby Scavengers were instantly decapitated.
heavenly eye rolled forward, the double blade unfolding again into a longbow as yellow energy condensed instantly.
A brilliant yellow flash streaked through the rainy night. The Scavenger boss who had just raised a heavy machine gun to attack suddenly widened his eyes.
After coughing up a mouthful of blood, he slowly fell backward, his eyes filled with unwillingness. His massive body slammed into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
At the center of his chest was a wound—not large, but not small either—that had pierced straight through him, the equipment behind him, and even the wall beyond. And this was with heavenly eye deliberately restraining his power.
After killing the Scavenger leader, heavenly eye began methodically calling the roll for the King of Hell. Each arrow he fired meant another Scavenger fell dead.
Before long, heavenly eye slowly lowered his bow and walked out onto the balcony.
"Phew… finally done. There were really a lot of people here… This is probably the biggest Scavenger gang in this area, right? Hey, how did I do this time?"
Pilar slung the longbow onto his back and crossed his arms as he spoke. The one he was addressing was naturally heavenly eye.
A large part of the reason Pilar finished his special training so quickly was because of heavenly eye. As heavenly eye's old comrade, Zed trusted his abilities greatly, so he had no major objections to letting Pilar go out.
As long as Pilar's performance was acceptable, that was enough. After all… if something went wrong, heavenly eye could always cover for him. What was there to worry about? It wasn't easy to have an old friend around—how could he let him sit idle?
As for Pilar seeking praise, heavenly eye said nothing and simply remained silent. But those familiar with him knew he was waiting for the right moment.
Bang!
Whoosh—
Sure enough, a gunshot rang out the next second. heavenly eye merely tilted his body slightly to avoid the bullet, then drew his bow and fired in one smooth motion, instantly killing the shooter with a single arrow.
"Arrogance is the greatest taboo for an archer. You need additional training."
Pilar's face instantly darkened. The "additional training" he mentioned wasn't just talk—since the two of them shared the same consciousness space, there was no way for him to escape it.
Thinking of that, Pilar couldn't help but curse the suicidal Scavenger.
I already accidentally missed you, and you still had the nerve to pop out and start shooting?!
As the PROJECT squad began their operations throughout Night City, the city—once calm again—suddenly became lively like it hadn't been in a long time.
There was no helping it. The scope of PROJECT's operation this time was simply too large: the 6th Street Gang, the Tyger Claws, remnants of Militech forces, Arasaka forces, the Scavengers, and more.
It immediately stirred Night City back into activity after it had grown sluggish following the New United States Campaign. Though this kind of activity wasn't exactly a good thing.
Roland also held discussions with some high-ranking members within the Tyger Claws. In fact, it was those leaders who came looking for him, because a portion of their internal faction had long been dissatisfied with Arasaka.
They had also roughly figured out PROJECT's main objective, so they proactively approached Roland, hoping PROJECT would show mercy and not target them.
Roland didn't say much about it. After all, keeping part of the Tyger Claws around would help manage certain groups within that area.
...
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