Chapter 36: A Sliding Supplication
A loud bang was followed by the blare of red emergency lights.
Then came the gunfire—a dense barrage that echoed across the sky, punctuated by the dull thuds of explosions. Howitzer shells gouged giant pits in the open ground, sending flames soaring into the air.
And there was only one invader.
The Tall Strong Man, wielding a battle axe, charged through a hail of bullets. Countless projectiles struck his skin, deforming on impact and ricocheting off him like raindrops.
With a shift of his feet, his figure blurred into a whirlwind. In what seemed like a single second, his shadow had already streaked through an entire special operations team. The squad of agents was sent flying, and one of them was blasted dozens of meters into the air by monstrous strength, crashing back to the ground as a pulpy mess.
The sharp battle axe cleaved through flesh and tore open an armored car as if it were tofu. With a swing of his fist, he punched a large-caliber shell fired from an auto-turret right back down its barrel. The turret collapsed in an instant, devoured by flames.
A sharp whistling sound tore through the air—it was a missile launched from one of the camp's attack helicopters. The missile shot out like an unsheathed blade, trailing a fiery tail. It was a semi-active laser-guided anti-tank missile, capable of making the armor of an M1A2 main battle tank look like paper.
Direct hit!
The Tall Strong Man was lifting a desperately struggling soldier with one hand. The latter was gritting his teeth, emptying his handgun at the man's head in a futile effort.
The next second, the anti-tank missile detonated. The soldier was instantly blasted into a mess of flesh and blood, and a shockwave of super-heated flames engulfed the Strong Man in an instant.
"Target hit! Repeat, target hit."
But before the words could fade, the battle axe had already sliced through the flames, spinning out like a frisbee. The outer shell of the attack helicopter was torn open as if by a hot knife through butter, and the pilot was decapitated on the spot.
After cutting through the aircraft, the battle axe spun back through the dissipating curtain of fire and landed back in the Strong Man's hand. The bisected helicopter fell with a mournful shriek, crashing headlong into one of the base's watchtowers.
The structure collapsed with a roar, sending down burning metal debris. The flames of the explosion erupted once more, as if the entire world were on fire.
Even the will of the most resolute soldiers shattered as they watched the enemy walk out of the inferno completely unscathed.
This was something most of them had never faced before, an opponent beyond their comprehension.
Some kind of god-like being!
Bullets couldn't hurt him; he even took an anti-tank missile to the face and was completely unharmed. His seemingly human skin was clearly harder than steel. Neither the high temperature and impact nor the shrapnel could leave even the slightest scratch on that body.
Carrying his axe, the Strong Man strode through the flames like a Terminator arriving to deliver judgment, radiating an oppressive aura of despair.
And just at this moment of despair.
A beam of light tore through the darkness.
The Strong Man was extremely vigilant. His pupils contracted as if he had sensed danger. Without a second thought, he spun around, swinging the battle axe to block in front of him.
The next moment, a Light Wheel, spinning like a chainsaw, struck the alloy battle axe head-on!
The Light Wheel was constructed entirely of energy, its serrated edges spinning at an astonishing speed. Sparks flew from the battle axe as if a chainsaw were cutting through steel.
The Strong Man gritted his teeth and held against the Light Wheel's cutting force, shocked by the astonishing energy and impact contained within the small spinning wheel. With a roar, he poured strength into his arms and tilted the battle axe, deflecting the Light Wheel's trajectory.
The spinning Light Wheel glanced off the battle axe and veered away, disappearing into the boundless dark night.
As it flew past, a corner of the spinning wheel grazed the Strong Man's cheek.
Half a second later, a thin cut appeared, and blood seeped from his steel-like cheek.
A cold sweat broke out on the back of the Strong Man's neck.
A moment ago, he had been completely relaxed. It was obvious that the weapons on this planet could hardly harm him; their primitive bullets and artillery fire were no different than a sauna session for his indestructible body.
But in that sudden Light Wheel, he had felt a genuine threat.
The Strong Man whipped his head around and immediately spotted the culprit.
It was some kind of red-and-silver, humanoid armor, with a crystal-like, azure light shining on its chest.
At first, Orin Vale hadn't recognized who this was.
It was the axe in the Strong Man's hand, which cut through everything like vegetables, that suddenly jogged his memory.
This was the first supervillain to appear in the first episode of the first season of the TV show *Supergirl*. In the original comics, he was a superhero similar to Superman, but in the show, he was adapted into a super-powered criminal imprisoned in the Phantom Zone by the Kryptonians, who followed Supergirl's trail to Earth.
Watox, from the Straw Hat Galaxy, was a different kind of superman. His abilities were similar to Superman's: primarily an impervious body, terrifying Super Strength, as well as Super Speed, Super Endurance, and so on.
And the axe in his hand was no ordinary object. Not only could it slice through metal like mud, but in the show, it could even break through Supergirl's defenses. Although it was ultimately destroyed by Kara's heat vision, its power was still evident.
Of course, only his abilities were similar to Superman's; his overall configuration was a whole tier lower. He couldn't be compared to an overpowered individual like Superman.
After Orin Vale scanned the fluctuations here, he had already accessed the surveillance systems near the base while on his way and had witnessed Watox's actions.
He immediately realized this should be another excellent experience pack, but he also worried the experience pack might be too much for him to handle.
It was a slight contradiction: he was afraid the opponent wasn't strong enough, yet also afraid he might be *too* strong.
Fortunately, using Pal's intelligence to analyze the enemy's performance, he had calculated a rough conclusion.
Relying on the mobile armor might be a stretch, but if he transformed and used his true form, his chances would be high.
At the very least, if he couldn't win, he could still make a clean getaway.
Perfect. With his confidence assured, there was something else he needed to test.
With his enemy in the open and himself in the shadows, Orin Vale seized the initiative the moment he landed, immediately unleashing an Eight-Split Light Wheel.
Watox was quite alert, blocking the Light Wheel with a deft swing of his axe.
Although the Eight-Split Light Wheel launched from the mobile armor was a watered-down version compared to one from his true body, blocking it still proved he had some skill.
However, Orin Vale keenly noticed the small bloody scratch that had been grazed onto Watox's cheek.
That meant the Light Wheel could cut his skin.
Excellent. This fight was definitely winnable.
Watox immediately identified the newly appeared Orin Vale as his number one threat and charged forward with a furious roar.
But Orin Vale had already, unhurriedly, raised his right arm.
He clenched his right fist, and a mechanism at his wrist clicked open. The device activated, shooting out an invisible fluctuation in the direction of Watox's charge.
"Argh-ahhh!!!"
Watox suddenly clutched his head, let out a shriek, and immediately dropped to his knees. His momentum carried him forward in a sliding kneel, stopping right in front of Orin Vale. He clutched his head, moaning in pain.
Everyone watching was stunned by the abrupt turn of events.
From their perspective, it looked as if the Strong Man had executed a high-speed sliding kneel right in front of Orin Vale, prostrating himself on the ground to pay his respects.
Was a move like that even possible?
(end of chapter )