Chapter 31: Interrupted Assault

However, the sheer force behind Bai Mengqi’s punch was overwhelming. Even Song Yanhua, a C-rank martial artist, found it incredibly difficult to withstand. With a dull thud, Song Yanhua was sent flying backward, like a kite with a severed string. He stumbled several steps before he could barely regain his footing.

‘His physical strength is considerably greater than that old man’s from before,’ Bai Mengqi mused.

Song Yanhua, meanwhile, was utterly startled. The opponent’s power was terrifyingly immense.

“You?”

Witnessing Bai Mengqi’s sudden strike, the other individuals quickly snapped out of their daze. They swiftly unleashed their various abilities, launching their own attacks.

“Earth Character: Earth Bind,” one young man declared, his expression grave. His hands moved rapidly, forming intricate seals.

As he moved, a golden formation immediately materialized beneath Bai Mengqi’s feet. A powerful binding force emanated from the array, attempting to immobilize her.

‘A Warlock?’

Bai Mengqi noticed the anomaly beneath her feet and paused, a hint of surprise in her mind. The number of Warlocks among ability users was several times smaller than that of martial artists.

However, she didn’t take the binding formation seriously. With a casual struggle, she effortlessly broke free from its grasp.

“What?”

The young man who had cast the spell instantly paled, his mouth agape in disbelief. ‘My formation was broken just like that?’ he thought, utterly stunned.

Before he could even react, Bai Mengqi vanished and reappeared directly in front of him, like a phantom.

“Wind Character: Gale…” The young man began to chant. But before he could unleash his technique, Bai Mengqi cut him off.

Bai Mengqi delivered a merciless punch, striking him hard in the abdomen.

“Gale, my ass,” she sneered.

The young man’s abdomen erupted in excruciating pain, as if a colossal force was churning within him. He instantly lost all will to fight, doubling over and clutching his stomach, groaning in agony.

Warlocks’ primary weakness was the time required for their incantations, a fact Bai Mengqi understood perfectly.

“Stop!” Just then, another female ability user made her move.

With a sharp flick of her hands, a glowing energy rope shot forth. The rope, as if possessing a mind of its own, swiftly coiled around Bai Mengqi.

This wasn’t a Warlock’s power, but a superpower. However, in Bai Mengqi’s estimation, its strength was laughably feeble.

A faint, disdainful smile played on Bai Mengqi’s lips. With a forceful struggle, she effortlessly shredded the energy rope. Then, seizing the remnants of the cord, she yanked hard, pulling her attacker closer.

Another ruthless punch followed, landing squarely on the woman’s face. She truly showed no mercy, even targeting a woman’s face.

“Ah! Not the face!” the female ability user shrieked.

A searing pain erupted across the woman’s face, eliciting a wretched scream. She was sent flying backward, as if struck by a cannonball, before crashing heavily to the ground.

“Not the face, you say? You have a lot of demands, don’t you?” Bai Mengqi retorted, then resumed her assault.

Suddenly, the dark room was filled with the cacophony of fierce combat. The sounds of fists meeting flesh, the flashing lights of various abilities, and the incessant cries of pain from those being pummeled created a chaotic and intense spectacle.

Meanwhile, Xiao Zhou, monitoring the situation from afar, watched the chaotic scene on her display with growing anxiety. Bai Mengqi’s speed was astonishing; Xiao Zhou could only discern a blur of motion darting through the darkness.

“Wait, wait!” After exchanging a few blows with Bai Mengqi, Song Yanhua realized his side was utterly outmatched. Her strength was astounding, and her speed ludicrously fast, putting her on an entirely different level than them.

It was then that he understood: they had severely underestimated Bai Mengqi’s true power.

“Wait for your mother,” Bai Mengqi snapped, unleashing a vulgar retort. Her body surged with energy, erupting like a volcanic explosion.

The terrifying surge of power radiated outwards from her, like a raging tide. It instantly swept everyone in the vicinity off their feet and sent them flying.

The terrifying energy burst instantly illuminated the entire living room. The light was so blinding that it was difficult to keep one’s eyes open.

Amidst this brilliant glow, Bai Mengqi’s clothes and hair billowed around her. Her eyes gleamed with golden light, and her entire presence exuded an extraordinary aura, as if a deity had descended.

On Xiao Zhou’s end, the ability energy detection instrument began to spike. It rapidly ascended from the weakest F-rank, quickly reaching C-rank. The energy continued to climb, surpassing C-rank and entering the B-rank tier, yet it showed no signs of stopping.

“B+ rank? This, this, this… Director Song, this woman is a peak B-rank ability user!” Xiao Zhou exclaimed, utterly shocked.

B+ rank signified an individual infinitely close to the A-rank tier. Across the entire ability user community of Xia Kingdom, fewer than a thousand individuals possessed such power.

Faced with this terrifying energy, Song Yanhua and his team were forced to retreat repeatedly. Those with slightly weaker abilities were instantly blasted away by the powerful surge, crashing hard to the ground and struggling to rise.

After driving back her assailants, Bai Mengqi had no intention of stopping. She launched another assault, her form flashing like lightning as she surged towards those who were still standing.

“Ouch!”

“Ah!”

Again, cries of pain echoed through the room. The others were utterly defenseless against Bai Mengqi’s onslaught, forced to passively endure her blows.

“Stop, stop, stop! Hold on, hold on! We’re not bad guys! We’re police officers from the Jiangcheng City Ability Bureau!”

Song Yanhua and his team could no longer endure the beating. They desperately shouted their identities, hoping Bai Mengqi would show mercy.

****

The next moment, the living room lights flickered on, illuminating the entire space.

With the room now brightly lit, it became clear that only Bai Mengqi remained steadily on her feet. Everyone else lay sprawled on the floor, groaning faintly, their faces bruised and swollen—a picture of utter defeat.

Even Song Yanhua, the strongest among them, was left with a battered and bruised face. His once handsome features were now a gruesome mess.

Bai Mengqi was still gripping Song Yanhua’s collar, her raised fist poised to strike again. Song Yanhua, thoroughly beaten into submission, weakly raised a hand to ward off the blow.

Upon hearing that they were from the Ability Bureau, Bai Mengqi’s fist, suspended in mid-air, froze. She couldn’t bring herself to lower it.

“Huh? The Ability Bureau?”

Bai Mengqi paused, then gazed at the disheveled Song Yanhua, her expression a mix of confusion and wonder. She couldn’t quite grasp what she was thinking.

Seeing Bai Mengqi halt her attack, Song Yanhua quickly fumbled through his clothes. After much effort, he finally retrieved his identification.

“Jiangcheng City Ability Bureau, Action Department, Director Song Yanhua,” he managed to stammer out, wincing in pain as he struggled to speak past his bruised face.

The situation had suddenly become incredibly awkward. Bai Mengqi glanced at the groaning men and women scattered around, unsure of how to proceed.

A wave of annoyance washed over her. ‘Was I too hasty just now? I should have given them time to explain themselves before attacking,’ she thought.

A moment later, Song Yanhua and his group, looking utterly disheveled, slowly shuffled to the sofas and sat down, ready for a much-needed rest. It had been a brutal beating; each of them had sustained injuries to varying degrees.

Fortunately, Bai Mengqi hadn’t truly intended to kill them. Primarily, she had discovered Wang Lei was only unconscious before entering. Had anything truly serious happened to Wang Lei, she likely would have been far more ruthless.