Prologue

Huaxia, New Silk Town—deep within the wild mountains outside the town, a small squad dressed in camouflage quietly lay in wait inside a cave.

"Wu Zhe, head of Pandora Organization's Asia Division, was already a Level 5 Esper two years ago. The latest intelligence indicates he broke through to Level 6 just last month. That’s how he was able to penetrate the heavily guarded lines and steal the nuclear weapon..." The squad’s only woman studied the information on her communication device as she analyzed the situation.

"What is his ability?" asked a tall man sitting at the cave entrance.

"That’s the most troublesome part—we don’t know what his ability is. None of the previous operations Wu Zhe took part in revealed any concrete information. Judging from the way he broke through the defensive lines, we can only surmise it relates to some form of enchantment..."

After finalizing their plan and checking all their equipment, everyone looked toward the man at the entrance, awaiting his command.

He glanced at his teammates, took a deep breath, and said resolutely, "Move out."

"Understood!"

Elsewhere in the wild forest, a hundred or so well-trained mercenaries were stationed. Every man watched his post with grave seriousness, transforming a small patch of land into a makeshift military base.

A sudden explosion shattered the mountain silence.

"Boom!"

War erupted.

"Left flank penetrated, enemies cleared..."

"Right flank penetrated, enemies cleared..."

"Center penetrated, enemies retreating into the cave..."

"Watch for traps. Keep pressing, don’t let up. The nuke’s inside the cave."

"The boss is already in the cave..."

At the deepest point in the cave, Chen Jing frowned as he looked at the man sitting atop the nuclear bomb—he was exactly as described in Wu Zhe’s file.

Wu Zhe cocked his head, sizing up Chen Jing as he entered. "Chen Jing of the Dynasty?"

Chen Jing said nothing, fixing Wu Zhe with a steely glare.

"Your Dynasty’s response time really is impressive," Wu Zhe said with a careless laugh. He leapt off the bomb, shrugged, and continued, "But you can’t catch me. Let me go..."

The operations squad rushed to the innermost part of the cave, but found only Chen Jing standing beside the nuclear device.

"Boss, where’s..."

"Leave, all of you. Evacuate immediately!" Sweat beaded Chen Jing’s brow as he pressed both hands tightly to the bomb, not daring to ease the force even for a moment.

"This nuke is about to blow..."