Chapter 69: The Mad Dog Squad
The next day, the blazing sun hung high in the sky. Within a garden filled with the fragrance of flowers, several maids were washing clothes.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, and a gentle breeze slowly stirred the curtains. Su Xiao sat up from the bed and checked the time. He had slept for nearly eleven hours. Having collaborated too much with that old sly fox before, he had been cautious in every step. Now, with ample rest, he felt completely refreshed and his thoughts were lively.
After checking the time, Su Xiao felt it was about time to return to the Mechanism Headquarters. He needed to show a major flaw; otherwise, the plan for this evening would incur unnecessary losses.
Leaving the "Deer Flower Manor," Su Xiao, along with Bubu Wang and Baha, headed straight for the Mechanism Headquarters. Amu and Tide Hunter remained at the "Deer Flower Manor" in case any unexpected incidents occurred there.
Half an hour later, just as Su Xiao stepped through the main entrance of the Mechanism Headquarters, Dean Victor and Lady Xulin approached him.
"White Night, have you had lunch?"
Although Dean Victor was smiling, his eyes were bloodshot. Lady Xulin's gaze at Su Xiao was so resentful that it inexplicably sent a chill down one's spine.
"Not yet."
"Perfect timing, it's already prepared. Siri, Siri, get out here!"
Dean Victor was blunt with Siri because Siri had grown up in his containment institution. Despite Siri's ruthlessness toward outsiders, he treated Dean Victor like his own father. When Siri was mischievous as a child, Dean Victor's bamboo paddle had frequently landed on his backside.
"Here, here."
Siri ran over with a sly grin. He had been one of the direct participants in abducting Lady Kingsley last night, and now, seeing Dean Victor, he felt quite guilty.
"Siri, has the Mad Dog Squad already set out?"
Su Xiao suddenly spoke. Hearing his words, Siri nodded seriously.
"As the captain of the Mad Dog Squad, you should also go to the 'Deer Flower Manor.' With you all there, that makes exactly five hundred people. Kill any member of the Eclipse Organization who shows up."
"Yes, sir!"
Siri turned and left. Seeing this, Dean Victor said nothing. He wouldn't make things difficult for Siri; their relationship was personal, and Siri was now carrying out orders.
"White Night, isn't the 'Deer Flower Manor' Kingsley's property? Don't tell me you've imprisoned his wife there? That location choice... good, no, damn it, what's going on between you and Kingsley?"
"We're at war. Kingsley's people have already discovered that Lady Nan is imprisoned at the 'Deer Flower Manor.' I've pulled forces from headquarters to station there."
"And the reason? There must be a reason for you to go to war."
As Dean Victor spoke, he gestured for Su Xiao to go upstairs. Soon, Su Xiao, Dean Victor, and Lady Xulin took their seats in a second-floor dining room. Everyone else voluntarily left.
"Kingsley is hiding the Three Knights."
Su Xiao picked up a plate of seafood pasta, took a bite, and frowned. It was too soft, a far cry from Xia's cooking.
"The Three Knights? The ones mentioned in the battle reports? The Three Knights of the Western Continent?"
Dean Victor exchanged a glance with Lady Xulin, who nodded.
"White Night, you're in charge of the Mechanism. Do you mean to exchange the Three Knights for Kingsley's wife?"
"Yes."
Hearing this, Dean Victor said nothing more, stood up, and left. At the top of the containment institution's pyramid stood three people. As one of them, Dean Victor wouldn't interfere with the other two, at most offering suggestions.
Dean Victor left, but Lady Xulin stayed. She sat there, staring at Su Xiao with an extremely resentful gaze.
"Is there something?"
Su Xiao put down his fork. Hearing his words, Lady Xulin's anger flared.
"In the Western Continent, how many shells did you order to be fired?"
As she spoke, she seemed ready to abandon her status as a ruler and the gap in their strength to pounce on Su Xiao and "fight to the death."
"I've forgotten. Maybe two days of artillery bombardment? It's hard to count the exact number."
"12,595,230 shells. You ordered 12,595,230 shells to be fired at the Western Continent, including 345,442 naval shells. We bear a quarter of the cost. Do you know how many pounds that is?"
Lady Xulin's gaze was incredibly resentful as she spoke.
"I represent the Mechanism, not the entire containment organization."
Su Xiao downed a glass of iced drink, ending his lunch.
"What do you mean?"
"We both turn a blind eye to the shady dealings of the Southern Alliance and the Eastern Alliance. As for the cost of the shells, let them come to the Mechanism to collect."
"Your Mechanism doesn't have that many pounds. I'll still have to pay."
"The Mechanism can pay in installments. A total of three hundred... no, five hundred years, with a settlement at the end of each year."
Su Xiao's words made Lady Xulin laugh. She said:
"White Night, that's called defaulting on a debt."
"No, it's called installment payment. Modern economics."
"What... what?"
After Lady Xulin asked, she fell silent for a long time before finally getting up and leaving.
Su Xiao knew the plan could begin. Neither he nor Kingsley intended for the Mechanism and the Eclipse Organization to fight to the death. Ultimately, the final goal was the Dangerous Object S-001. After Kingsley used it, he would definitely return it because he also knew how dangerous S-001 was. Once someone used it, the desires in that person's heart would become limitless.
In fact, Su Xiao suspected that Emperor Taiatu might have used Dangerous Object S-001. His desire for control and power was so twisted that it had even become... foolish.
The user of S-001 had to be a dead soldier. Once the goal was achieved, that dead soldier had to be killed.
Su Xiao returned to his office on the seventh floor. As he waited, time quietly passed. The setting sun outside was as red as blood. There was still one hour until the Eclipse Organization members' surprise attack on the Mechanism Headquarters.
Through the team channel, Su Xiao instructed Bubu Wang to deploy the potion. This potion was to be added to tonight's dinner. It would suppress the activity of bodily energy for a period of time. In reality, this was an auxiliary cultivation drug. If one didn't actively use their bodily energy after drinking it, it wouldn't take effect.
Soon, the combat power of most superhumans within the Mechanism Headquarters would be greatly reduced. Kingsley had also given orders that his men would not deliver fatal blows.
It seemed the Mechanism Headquarters was vulnerable, but that wasn't the case. If a third-party force took the opportunity to attack, the Eclipse Organization members under Kingsley would immediately stand alongside their own superhumans, helping them defend the headquarters.
Thump, thump, thump!
A knock came at the door. Siri slammed it open and strode in.
"Commander, while I was stationed at the 'Deer Flower Manor,' Silver Dog, one of the Mad Dog Squad members, intercepted a small amount of enemy intelligence. They might be planning a surprise attack on our headquarters. I suspect this might be false intelligence, so I only brought back the other three members of the Mad Dog Squad. To prevent our communication channels from being eavesdropped, the four of us ran back to deliver the message. Foolproof!"
Skinny Monkey Siri clenched his fist at the end, smiling confidently.
"..."
Su Xiao had a problem: his subordinates were too competent. In terms of intelligence alone, the Mechanism was stronger than the Eclipse Organization. Even if he wanted to make their defenses appear weak, he couldn't overdo it. Moreover, the Mad Dog Squad's return wouldn't affect the plan.
Thump.
The floor beneath Su Xiao's feet suddenly shook, signaling the start of the Eclipse Organization's attack.
"Not good!"
Siri turned and rushed out of the room, leading the other three Mad Dog Squad members toward the lowest level, heading straight for the containment vault.
Boom!
The wall on the first floor of the headquarters shattered, sending rubble flying. Two figures in black robes and hoods charged in—Alec and Guangmu.
Guangmu looked around, white light blooming in her hand. She was here because the client had offered too much; she simply couldn't refuse.
"The boss's orders: our target is to take that thing, not to kill. Got it?!"
Hao Huo shouted, reiterating Kingsley's instructions from before.
Eclipse Organization members rushed into the first floor of the headquarters. Their numbers were small. According to the plan, they would smoothly break into the containment vault and take S-001. Those outside would block reinforcements from the "Deer Flower Manor."
Alec and Guangmu were not involved in the fight for S-001. They were contractors, and Su Xiao wouldn't inform them about this matter.
For a moment, chaos erupted on the first floor of the headquarters. Their superhumans were caught off guard. They all found their bodily energy malfunctioning, responding slowly. Before they could form a defense, the enemy had already punched them in the face.
The cold and gloomy Ring 2 walked into the headquarters. He looked like a walking skeleton wrapped in skin, but his face was amusing. Ring 2 had dark circles under his eyes, and his face was bruised. Last night, he had been ambushed and severely beaten. He even felt someone jump up and stomp on his head.
As Ring 2 walked forward, he ground his teeth audibly. He didn't head for the containment vault but went upstairs. His task was to hold off the Mechanism's Legion Commander, Kukulin Bai Ye. Presumably, after this was over, Kingsley would quietly compensate Ring 2 without him noticing.
A few minutes later, a roar came from the seventh floor of the headquarters.
In the office, Su Xiao appeared weakened. He needed to pretend his bodily energy was restricted, but not too excessively.
Su Xiao glanced at Ring 2, who was lying not far away, and walked out of the room. After descending a few flights of stairs, he reached the entrance to the containment vault. Passing through this corridor and taking the elevator would lead him into the vault.
Su Xiao looked down the corridor. The floor was stained with mottled blood, spreading outward, indicating that the injured had already fled.
In the dim corridor, four pairs of blood-red eyes gleamed, like four ferocious dogs lurking in the darkness, ready to devour. It was the Mad Dog Squad. These four had withstood the Eclipse Organization's initial assault, driving back the dozen or so members who had tried to break into the vault.
"Damn it~"
Baha was speechless. The Mad Dog Squad had returned unexpectedly and hadn't eaten the drugged dinner. They were the Mechanism's trump card squad. The dozen Eclipse members sent couldn't break through unless Hao Huo, Ring 1, Ring 2, or Ring 3 were present to face the Mad Dog Squad head-on, and even then, the outcome was uncertain.
Seeing Su Xiao arrive, the bloodlust in Siri's eyes faded. He shook the blood off his hands and grinned broadly.
"Commander, perfect timing for my return, huh?"
Siri laughed heartily, feeling he had made a great contribution.
Just then, footsteps approached. Siri looked up, and his pupils contracted.
"Kingsley."
Siri's teeth sharpened, giving him an imposing air. But deep down, he was well aware of the gap in strength between himself and Kingsley. Moreover, the Mad Dog Squad facing Kingsley was a complete loss. S-003 (the Black Emperor) countered their abilities. Kingsley could deal with them as easily as disciplining children.
"Commander, Kingsley is here. You've got to protect us. Last time the four of us fought Kingsley together, you know how it ended."
Siri spoke quietly, his back to Su Xiao, recalling the painful experience. The Mad Dog Squad had a fearsome reputation, but once, they had nearly been beaten like stray dogs by Kingsley.
"Siri, Kingsley has outmaneuvered me. My current strength is less than a tenth of what it was. I need time to recover."
"So..."
Siri began to sense trouble.
"I'm counting on you, Siri. I believe in you."
Su Xiao patted Siri on the shoulder. Siri stood there dumbfounded, watching Kingsley approach, his expression priceless.
Baha turned its head away. It felt that the Mad Dog Squad had returned just to get beaten up.