Chapter 29: At This Point, It Has to Explode

“Boom!”

The Hell Mammoth slammed onto the road, its massive, heavy rear tire gouging a terrifying web-like pattern into the asphalt.

The engine screamed, and the brake pads reflected a fiery red glow under the streetlights and flames.

After riding along the rooftop for a distance, Evelyn had already fallen perfectly in line beside Cage by the time they descended onto the street.

Cage maintained his professional driving posture, not even turning his head. The streetlights streaked across his jet-black helmet like bullets fired at high speed.

“Swish!”

Evelyn drew out Shut Up with lightning speed, extending her arms and aiming the muzzle directly at Cage, who remained motionless relative to her.

To endure the searing heat from flames at such close range without any thermal insulation meant Cage was absolutely no ordinary man.

He might even be a demon!

The problem was, Evelyn couldn’t determine if he was truly human, a demon, or a demon-possessed individual.

Her ability to discern demons relied on meticulous observation and deduction—and Pugi’s demon-scent sensitivity.

Within the church, Evelyn was a very special Penitential Sister. Her uniqueness had earned her various degrees of hostility from other church members: some simply disliked her, others wished her dead.

Thus, unlike other Penitential Sisters who worked in groups to exorcise demons, Evelyn always operated alone.

Her uniqueness didn’t stem from being the eldest daughter of the Nianhoge family and giving up her family’s wealth and status to join the church.

It came from her prayers, which were radically different from those of other members.

Prayer was a skill—or blessing—that all church members received.

Upon joining, one underwent a baptism ceremony. Only after completing it could a member formally pray to the Holy Father, receiving the power to combat demons.

The prayer granted various abilities, differing by individual.

Some could erase their presence entirely, achieving perfect invisibility. Others unleashed massive high-energy strikes like missiles. Others could control fire, freeze water, and so on.

But nearly all prayers carried two universal blessings:

1. The ability to repel all filth—mud, blood, or grime would never stain the member. They could remain clean without washing. Evelyn envied this.

2. The ability to sense demons, albeit vaguely and within a limited range—unlike Pugi, who could detect demons over a wide area.

These blessings were almost universal—except for Evelyn.

Her prayers lacked both effects. She believed it was because, after her baptism, she feigned devotion while secretly thinking anything but reverent, even slightly insulting thoughts.

She had thought: If you can help me escape the Nianhoge family, then I’ll worship you, Holy Father.

Once Evelyn’s lack of these blessings was noticed, most church members assumed she wasn’t devout.

Though church leaders didn’t oppose her, frontline priests, sisters, and the Seventh Hall (responsible for aftermath) treated her with hostility.

This was why Evelyn endured so much enmity within the church.

Fortunately, the church forbade internal conflicts. Otherwise, with Evelyn’s temper, those people would likely have been eliminated one by one with her gun.

Of course, she still held grudges—she was a Scorpio, after all.

Evelyn already planned to, after gaining enough merit to join the choir, mock and humiliate those who opposed her.

“Bang!”

A thunderous explosion erupted. Two bullets spun out from the muzzle, racing toward Cage.

“Bang!”

Almost simultaneously, another gunshot rang out. Cage had somehow raised a short-barreled shotgun, both barrels spitting countless pellets.

Though Evelyn’s bullets shredded the pellets mid-air with overwhelming destructive power, the pellets’ kinetic energy slightly deflected her bullets, narrowly grazing Cage’s bike before hitting a building wall.

“Bang!”

Two bullets blew apart the wall, while the shredded pellets from the shotgun brushed past Evelyn, sparking on a streetlight.

“This guy… is exploiting the rules like me?”

Evelyn murmured excitedly.

Indeed, under rules permitting only handguns, few would choose a pistol. Few could handle a pistol like Shut Up with such recoil and power.

But a shotgun was different. At close range, it didn’t need precise aiming and delivered far more power than a pistol.

Cage’s short-barreled shotgun, though a shotgun, had a cut-down barrel, technically making it a pistol under the rules—a clever loophole.

Few would choose this weapon, though. Its magazine held only two shells—one shot at a time!

Reloading while riding at high speed was nearly impossible.

Cage likely used it only for self-defense, never expecting anyone to keep pace and neutralize it.

Sure enough, after his first shot failed, Cage tossed the shotgun aside, twisted his bike, flames blazing, and his serrated steel wheels—like chainsaws—rushed toward the Hell Mammoth!

The fiery steel wheels gouged terrifying furrows in the ground. Even the massive Hell Mammoth couldn’t be shredded easily, but the impact alone could destabilize it temporarily.

However, the expected collision with the front wheel never occurred.

The target spot—Hell Mammoth’s front wheel—was empty.

How? She was riding side by side with him!

Cage was startled but immediately realized what had happened.

He slowly looked up. A massive, wide, heavy wheel reflected in his helmet visor was looming closer.

Evelyn had already predicted his next move when he discarded the shotgun!

He would aim his twin flame-chainsaw wheels at the Mammoth’s weakest point—its front wheel.

Even if the Hell Mammoth couldn’t be destroyed instantly, the side impact would destabilize it, forcing a slowdown.

Slowing down would return Cage to his comfort zone, his rear firewalls continuously burning Evelyn.

But Evelyn wouldn’t let him succeed.

At the moment of impact, she sharply lifted the Mammoth’s front, a 418-kg assault platform, avoiding Cage’s first collision.

Then, the industrial beast’s front slammed down toward Cage!

No matter how indestructible Cage’s wheels were, his bike had minimal protection elsewhere to save weight for speed.

If the Mammoth’s front hit, his bike would instantly be crushed!

Time seemed to slow. The Hell Mammoth’s wide wheel nearly touched Cage’s dashboard!

Yet, in the tiniest unnoticed detail, a change was occurring.

The fuel line within Cage’s steel wheel suddenly ruptured. Fuel poured out, immediately ignited by the flames clinging to the wheel.

“Boom!”

The explosion engulfed everything. The entire street was bathed in blinding light.

The blast wasn’t caused by an attack from either side—it erupted from within Cage’s bike, a destructive energy woven from fuel and fire.