Chapter 24: Art Is an Explosion! BOOM!

Under the pitch-black night sky, an assault team lay in wait, concealed within the tall grass. Using advanced technological devices, they kept a vigilant watch over the mansion.

Captain Clough whispered, "Stay sharp! Keep your eyes peeled!"

"Although, based on my understanding of James, he is highly likely to choose the southern urban area as his breakout route, we cannot rule out the possibility that he might try to push through our sector instead!"

"Everyone, pay attention! I don't care what the supervisor says, but I absolutely will not allow that guy James to break through our line! Do you understand?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a member of his team responded.

"Don't worry, Captain! Like you, we've long found that guy James insufferable! And that guy Rain! She’s just a total bitch! What’s she so cocky about? This time, there’s no way they’re making it out of here alive!"

"Exactly! If their team dares to break through from our direction, they're dead meat!"

James's team was not well-regarded by Umbrella's top brass, and their treatment among the lower ranks was equally poor. Given the nature of the various human experiments conducted by the Umbrella Corporation, it was easy to see the true colors of the company.

To put it plainly, if they had been the ones breaking into the mansion, someone like Matt—whose identity was unverified—would have been executed on the spot. Never mind his suspicious "police" status; even if he were a real cop, they would have killed him regardless. The fact that James didn't kill him, but instead brought him into the Hive, made his actions within the Umbrella Corporation far more than just being an outlier.

"Good!" Captain Clough nodded with satisfaction. "Now, we shall—what is that?"

Before he could finish his sentence, a pitch-black object fell from the sky, landing less than ten meters away from them. The team squinted, seeing that it resembled a square box, though the material appeared to be metal.

A black metal square box?

"Strange, why does this thing look so familiar? Have I seen it somewhere before?"

As someone felt a sense of unease and began to ponder, their eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of a countdown timer ticking backward.

The next second, their eyes turned bloodshot.

"Oh no! It’s a timed bomb!!!"

"Run!!!"

BOOM!

A massive fireball erupted into the sky, instantly engulfing the area.

***

Nearby, members of the assault teams in the other two directions noticed the commotion and began to stir.

"What's going on? Why was there such a violent explosion at Point One? Didn't the supervisor explicitly forbid us from using heavy weapons?"

"Did James and his team break through? That's impossible! I've been watching that side the whole time; I never saw them leave the mansion!"

"What the hell is happening? Contact Point One immediately!"

The two teams scrambled to reach the first team, but there was no response. Just as they hesitated over whether to rush over to provide backup, inside the mansion, Yu Fei, who had been monitoring both directions, wore a smile.

He threw something with a forceful flick. A nearly ten-pound explosive flew over a hundred meters, landing right beside the two remaining assault teams.

"Art is an explosion!"

BOOM!

BOOM!

Two consecutive, violent explosions wiped out both remaining assault teams.

*Ding!*

"Host is performing acts of benevolence; the merit is immeasurable!"

"Merit points +11!"

*Ding!*

"Host is performing acts of benevolence; the merit is immeasurable!"

"Merit points +10!"

*Ding!*

"Host is performing acts of benevolence; the merit is immeasurable!"

"Merit points +12!"

Three consecutive notifications. The three assault teams had brought Yu Fei another thirty-three merit points. Having just spent eleven, he was seeing a net gain.

Merit points: 72!

"Not bad. Just over twenty more points, and I can upgrade another level-three skill." Yu Fei nodded in satisfaction.

He had spent eleven points to upgrade his "Throwing" skill, and by turning around and using that very skill to gain thirty-three points—a threefold return—the investment was well worth it. Of course, the reason Yu Fei could pull this off, beyond the effectiveness of his level-two Throwing skill, was that his own physical fitness was exceptionally powerful.

A ten-pound bomb wasn't something just anyone could toss over a hundred meters. Only Yu Fei, with a physique of 1.5—surpassing that of a normal human—could achieve such a feat.

"Alright, it's settled. Come on over!" Yu Fei beckoned to James, Alice, and the others.

The group emerged from the corner. Peering through the windows at the raging fire and thick smoke over a hundred meters away, they were left agape.

"Is... is this your plan?" James swallowed hard.

Tossing a ten-pound explosive over a hundred meters? How was that any different from being a human rocket launcher?

"Something like that. Mostly, it was your accurate information that made it easy for me to finish them off," Yu Fei replied with feigned humility.

James looked at Yu Fei with a complex expression. His information had indeed played a role, but to say it was the deciding factor would be a stretch. The most critical point was that the assault teams were hidden within dense forest; even if you knew their rough location, the tree cover would likely block any rocket-propelled grenade. In that sense, Yu Fei was far more terrifying than a rocket launcher! His precision, especially in complex terrain, was incomparable.

And the distance...

*How on earth did he throw such a heavy bomb over a hundred meters?* The thought echoed in James's mind.

The others felt the same. They had all weighed those timed bombs earlier, and even without throwing them, they knew that tossing them a dozen meters would be an achievement. Over a hundred meters?

"Is this really something a human can do?"

***

In the southern urban sector, the other assault teams saw the explosions and fire in the forest.

"Looks like that guy James chose the forest as his breakout point. I never expected that; he always looked so brave, didn't he? Why become such a coward at the critical moment?"

"Enough! Forget about whether he's a coward! The supervisor's order is to hold this position and not give them a chance to break through! We'll just wait here!"

Not long after, an order came through:

"Something happened in the forest! You are to provide support immediately!"