Chapter 634: Chapter 43 Armed Gargoyle Chapter 634: Chapter 43 Armed Gargoyle The Stranger had barely opened his eyes when he was greeted with such a shocking scene, and he couldn’t help feeling a little weak at the knees.
His throat made a croaking sound, emitting meaningless noises.
His pupils contracted, and his vision went dark.
The Stranger collapsed to the ground—not just from the “flying leg” strike but also because his brain felt empty and dizzy, causing his legs to buckle beneath him.
The Stranger was not afraid of corpses or of the dead.
As a Level Four Calamity Stitcher, even though he had not yet graduated from school, he had already handled and pieced together many corpses.
Even when he was not yet articulate, he had learned to suture corpses alongside his sister and father.
To him, human corpses were merely materials, no different from clay or building blocks.
One of his friends belonged to a family of watchmakers.
That fellow had been tinkering with pocket watches since he was a child, while the Stranger had been playing with corpses.
To him, it was the same.
—But this was the first time the Stranger had seen a living person turn into a corpse.
The outstanding dynamic vision of a Transcendent allowed him to see it all.
The old man’s face still bore an expression of fear and astonishment as his entire body twisted and shattered under the flames and pressure.
His body, crushed by the force, resembled a tomato stuffed with a firecracker.
The countless spurts of fresh blood were like innumerable needles, landing on him as if they were driving into his marrow.
The Stranger couldn’t even tell if the pain he felt was due to the blood having penetrative and impact force under high pressure, or if the pain was merely an illusion.
He didn’t even know what he was afraid of, but he knew standing in the middle of the street was definitely very dangerous.
So, although his legs were beginning to quiver and he could hardly stand up, his well-educated brain still urged his body to roll and crawl away from the blast-shattered corpses.
He had only crawled a few steps when he realized he had not taken the box.
So, he crawled back, used the box to prop himself up, stood with his back hunched, and stumbled toward a nearby residence for shelter.
He had just knocked on the door when it swung open.
Without asking anything, the other party pulled him inside.
She exclaimed, “Are you alright?!”
The Stranger waved his hands and shook his head, unable to speak.
Heaving heavily, his breath was as labored as if he were suffering an asthma attack, gasping for air.
But what flowed into his throat was not fresh air.
—Only the smells of soil, fresh blood, and gunpowder.
They made the Stranger’s throat dry, and he couldn’t help but cough.
Tears were squeezed out at the corners of his eyes as he coughed as if a non-smoker had inhaled tobacco fiercely.
It took a good while before he finally calmed down a little.
With a hoarse voice, he asked, “What has…
He was surprised at how raspy his own voice had become, speaking as if his voice was about to break.
The Stranger subconsciously touched his throat, only to find it wet and sticky.
His experience immediately told him this was the sensation of warm human blood.
He blankly looked at his fingers in front of his eyes, noticing they were dripping blood.
The Stranger felt his eyes were somewhat blurry and somewhat difficult to open.
So he instinctively reached out to wipe his face randomly, ending up with blood-covered hands.
“The damn Star Antimony people have broken in!”
The old woman screeched in a witch-like raspy voice, “There are dead people everywhere, you mustn’t go out!”
…Star Antimony people?
The Stranger slowly started to make some sense of the situation.
Although he didn’t know why, he seemed to have suddenly appeared here the moment he closed and opened his eyes, as if he had lost a period of memory…
But judging by the rather rustic walls surrounding him, this should be in the countryside of Avalon.
Had he escaped here alone?
Suddenly, another baffling question emerged in the Stranger’s mind.
—Why would the Star Antimony army attack a village without military defenses?
Why would they use Alchemical Bombs to strike civilians directly?
This makes absolutely no sense!
The military manual states that such behavior is not allowed!
Who on earth is in command?!
Anger and confusion rose in his heart, and Stranger instinctively clenched his fists.
He had barely spoken when his words stuck in his throat.
—What was he supposed to say?
Reassure the other party that everything would be all right?
But the bomb had just exploded in front of him, and his body and hands were still covered in blood.
Explain that this was abnormal for the people of Star Antimony?
Yet the villagers he knew so well had just been blown to pieces in front of his eyes.
Claim that they would all be fine?
…But he could only exert the strength of a third energy level now, not even able to unleash the full force of Master Nobel.
Even if he could—what could he possibly do?
Yet Stranger felt that he had to say something.
The words were stuck in his chest; if he didn’t speak them, he’d go crazy.
He looked around in panic and confusion, clenching and unclenching his fists.
He didn’t know what to do or where he was.
But at that moment, an old woman suddenly yanked him to the ground.
Even for an alchemist who hadn’t much enhanced his physique, his build was far stronger than that of the old.
Still, Stranger was so frantic and bewildered that he offered no resistance, and thus was pulled down to the ground.
The next moment, Stranger held his breath, his mind a blank.
Because something all too familiar appeared—
The sinister faces with long horns, the emaciated bodies like those of monkeys, the wings akin to those of bats.
Atop their heads shone eerie green runes, their bodies covered in a metal shell like a cage, inside which was flesh made cold and dry by the high-speed flight.
It looked as though human skin had been peeled away, only to have a metallic exoskeleton bound around it.
Their arms held machine guns bound with strips of iron, and two cape-like belts of ammunition wound around their backs.
Upon sighting them, they uttered sharp, monkey-like cries and dove down.
In the darkness of the night, the muzzles spat flames.
The old woman’s body was torn to shreds in an instant, like a scarecrow.
Damn it… Fuck you, damn monsters!”
A middle-aged man emerged from the house, roaring.
He was holding a shotgun in his right hand, and he violently pulled the trigger at the gargoyles.
—But the bullets were of no use against them.
The bullets capable of hunting bears only caused a gap the size of a baby’s fist on the stone.
The gargoyles’ movements were not delayed.
They didn’t even stop pulling the triggers; as casually as watering flowers in a garden, they simply turned the gun muzzles and the showering barrage tore the man to pieces.
…This was exactly the operational detail set by Stranger.
The gargoyles were not very intelligent, thus incapable of complex weapon operation techniques, and using firearms was definitely not among their skills.
But a command as simple as “pulling the trigger” could be accomplished.
Aiming was too difficult for them, and firing upon detecting an enemy often meant delayed reactions, which might result in bullets not being fired.
So, after six versions of testing, Stranger opted for a new approach: “never releasing the trigger”.
Once the gargoyles were in combat and there were no friendly targets in front, they would not release the trigger.
Even when turning the gun, they would maintain continuous fire.
The bullets poured out like a barrage could easily weave into a large net that tore any escapee to pieces, and for unarmored units, this firepower was deadly.
…Tear any escapee to pieces.
Stranger recalled the scene where he had proudly explained his new approach, his excited voice still echoed in his ears.
A severe sensation of nausea caused his abdomen to cramp.