Apocalypse Gachapon - Chapter 1822: Don't care

To ensure victory, after Cloud Peak’s forces were divided into ten parts, each one was almost ‘pushed to the limit’—meaning that after comprehensively analyzing various intelligence and precisely assessing their opponents, Cloud Peak selected teams capable of defeating them without wasting excessive resources.

As for casualties…

Xia Lei was not Ye Zhongming; she didn’t care too much about that. As long as losses were within a reasonable range, she saw no issue. At worst, they could replenish their ranks through combat. After all, to achieve global control, military expansion was imminent. The elite-centric mindset of Cloud Peak’s past was no longer viable. As long as the core members remained Cloud Peak’s veterans, it was acceptable.

As Ye Zhongming’s “pet,” Qiuqiu naturally served Cloud Peak. Though lazy and picky with food, it was formidable in battle, boasting incredibly robust defensive capabilities and vitality, which compensated for its limited attack methods.

In this battle, it was assigned to Xia Lei’s team. According to previous classifications, it was rated as level 8.5—meaning its strength fell between level eight and level nine lifeforms.

Such strength wasn’t rare at Cloud Peak, but it was undoubtedly a frontline combat asset. Its sudden disappearance was a significant surprise for Xia Lei, who meticulously calculated the strength of each team.

While it didn’t mean certain defeat, casualties would inevitably increase, and difficulties would multiply.

However, alongside her surprise, Xia Lei considered a possibility.

She knew Qiuqiu’s origins well. If, just if… then…

Xia Lei couldn’t help but look up at the azure sky.

Up there, her man should be fighting.

…………………………

Ye Zhongming’s battle had reached its most critical moment.

After blocking the Lightning Sand Monster’s lightning, the golden battle armor on Hawkins shimmered with a flowing halo. He slightly crouched, adopting a horse stance, his arms raised to his waist before his right fist shot straight out.

They were already close, and this punch struck the sand monster’s chest with a thud. The sand monster’s body, which had hardened to encapsulate the twin blades, shattered violently, its lower half collapsing into the white sand behind it. The twin blades were freed completely.

A flush crossed Hawkins’s face. As he straightened up, he flung one of his blades toward Ye Zhongming.

The blade moved weirdly, as if traveling not through air but through glue—so slow it seemed less like a thrown weapon and more like a goldfish leisurely swimming in a tank.

Yet from the moment it was released, the blade continuously emitted an invisible, intangible, but keenly felt fierce aura. The pressure and sense of threat it exuded grew exponentially with time.

The impression was that this blade was pressuring Ye Zhongming, daring him not to move recklessly, lest he faced a quick strike.

Hofkaf filled the gap left by his brother’s dodge, his hands mutating into two massive golden cleavers. He blocked Ye Zhongming’s escape route and began slashing madly at him.

Wade slid slightly away, thrust five fingers into the ground, and violently swept upward, hurling the dislodged soil directly at Ye Zhongming.

But the pressure didn’t end there. The little girl, though her fall was quite heavy, had no serious injuries—internal vibrations were nothing to a resilient fighter like her. Gritting her teeth, she leaped high again, raising her long blade to chop down at Ye Zhongming. The blade was once again wrapped in wind and thunder attributes, along with that hallucinogenic aura.

Attacks came from both near and far, not to mention the greatest pressure of all: Aimusi, who stood motionless for now.

The Cloud Peak King didn’t even glance at the thrown blade, nor at the little girl in the sky, nor at the soil projectiles with force similar to a bullet.

He simply stomped his foot heavily on the ground, filling the surrounding area with starlight, while his body abruptly accelerated forward, charging directly into Hofukafu’s attack.

Truth be told, the Cloud Peak King wasn’t in excellent condition. The earlier disgusting mucus attack had essentially ruined his armor, leaving him reliant on his own body for defense. Facing clearly specialized ability-based arm blades like this seemed somewhat overconfident.

Even with his Beautiful Heavenly Body.

Yet he charged forward anyway.

Hawkins had retracted his fist and thrown his blade but was still somewhat distant; Wade, after scattering the soil, hadn’t regained his balance; the little girl had just reached her apex and was about to descend; Aimusi stood rooted, staring at the black hole; not far away lay the corpse of a companion killed by Ye Zhongming’s despicable hidden weapons, utterly ignored…

Strictly speaking, Hofkaf was the closest to Ye Zhongming, even if others’ “distance” was only relative.

Hofkaf’s heart sank.

At this level, no one was a fool. For this man to suddenly ignore the thrown blade, the soil, other attacks, and even Hofkaf’s own cleaving arm-blades—there had to be a reason.

And it was very likely a strong killing blow!

If Hofkaf were alone, he wouldn’t hesitate; he’d immediately retreat to assess the situation.

But now, surrounded by allies, with attacks from his companions imminent, even if this man could instantly kill him, he would still be slain by other attacks. Would he gamble everything like this? Would he so easily abandon that sliver of hope for escape?

Or was he merely putting on a show of determination to intimidate Hofkaf into backing down? To clear an escape route?

Hofkaf hesitated. In that instant, he couldn’t clearly discern his opponent’s intention.

This cost him the chance to dodge.

He immediately understood—he couldn’t retreat. He had to press on!

Pouring all his strength into his hands, Hofukafu knew that regardless of the opponent’s intent, his chance of success was virtually zero. From any angle, there was no way for the opponent to find an opportunity amidst the many attacks.

A habitual cruelty flashed in Hofkaf’s eyes. He felt he would need to apologize to the Hawkins couple later because this man was destined to be unable to avoid the attacks and would be killed by him.

Yes, Hofkaf couldn’t evade now—but neither could Ye Zhongming!

Hawkins’s thrown blade suddenly accelerated at that moment, like judgment from the heavens.

The soil projectiles struck Ye Zhongming’s head and body, scraping bloody streaks and punching small holes.

Yet Ye Zhongming remained unmoved, raising his left arm…

Then, he threw his right fist.

Hofkaf let out a startled cry as a force that made him almost immobile surged from beneath his feet. His arm-blades hesitated momentarily, and Ye Zhongming’s raised left arm met them. But that wasn’t the key point. The key was that his right fist shot through the gap between his opponent’s arms, landing heavily on Hofkaf’s face!