Infinity, The Arcade Age

As the soldiers dispersed, they resumed sweeping the battlefield. Meanwhile, Commander Qin Ming sat in his room, inspecting his spoils.

A fully armed ten-man squad guarded the door.

Dressed in the finest uniforms and equipped with the best weapons, this squad was Qin Ming's personal guard, selected from the elite soldiers by his adjutant, Shuke.

After all, Qin Ming, now technically an officer—even if self-appointed—deserved to display some authority. Despite his rank as a third-class private, a position he hadn't officially abandoned, he decided to establish the Hyena Guard.

To further solidify his standing, he even named his unit the Hound Legion.

At the desk, Qin Ming concentrated on opening a chest. This wasn't ordinary loot from fallen enemies but a special reward he had discovered among the enemy corpses—adventurers' Bloody Keys!

Frankly, when Qin Ming first saw these Bloody Keys, he was confused.

Driving a tank through the battlefield, he hadn't noticed adventurers mixed among the regular enemies.

The fact that he now had six Bloody Keys left him even more baffled.

The Metal Slug World had notoriously low key drop rates.

Despite the sheer number of combatants in this war-torn world, most enemies had poor stats, making keys exceptionally rare.

In comparison, other worlds had better odds: basic enemies might drop keys at a rate of 10%, and higher-difficulty worlds at 20%.

But in the Metal Slug World, the odds were absurdly low.

Sometimes, even after finishing a small battle and searching the field thoroughly, there might not be a single key in sight.

But what the world lacked in drop rate, it made up for in key value.

Most rewards tied to these keys were modern military gear—grenades, firearms, and other long-range weapons.

Such items were always in high demand among low-level adventurers in the Nightmare Space, commanding premium prices.

Occasionally, defeating vehicle-based enemies could even yield a vehicle as loot.

A vehicle drop meant a guaranteed windfall, offering an adventurer both power and prestige.

In contrast, adventurers' Bloody Keys seemed far less enticing.

Qin Ming decided not to merge the keys but opened each one individually, opting exclusively for equipment rewards.

"Low-level adventurers are just a bunch of broke fools. Hoping to pull money from them? Wishful thinking."

As six bursts of crimson light flared, a pile of equipment appeared.

Among the items were a fat man's vest, a thug's jacket, a karate master's belt, a standard-issue military pistol, and even a steel helmet from the Metal Slug World.

Looking at the pile of white- and green-grade items, Qin Ming shook his head and sighed, his expression full of resignation.

But as he sorted through the pile, he froze.

His eyes gradually widened as he picked out a single glove from the heap.

Not a pair—just one glove.

Let me know if you need further assistance!

The glove bore a striking sun emblem engraved on its surface, vividly conspicuous. When touched, it even emitted a faint warmth.

Amidst a pile of junk Qin Ming had little hope for, he had truly unearthed a treasure—or rather, half of one?

Name: Kusanagi Glove (King of Fighters World)

Category: Arm/Left (Green Set Piece 1/2)

Effect: Wearing this glove allows the user to consume mental energy to unleash a weakened version of the Crimson Blaze.

Description: This is one of Kyo Kusanagi's gloves, a symbol of the Kusanagi Clan's lineage. It grants the power to manipulate flames.

"A set? It's a set item?!"

Holding the left-hand glove in disbelief, Qin Ming removed his armguard and tried it on.

Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers.

Boom!

A crimson flame ignited, roaring to life in his palm and radiating terrifying heat waves in all directions.

Staring at the fiery blaze in his hand, Qin Ming's face lit up with curiosity. With a flick of his other arm, another flame—this one a milky-white, eerie glow—burst into existence.

This second flame was the Dreamlike Fire of Shiranui, a power he had cultivated by absorbing the dream energy of Dream Island.

Intrigued, Qin Ming attempted to fuse the two distinct flames in his hands.

BOOM!

A massive explosion rocked the room. Alarmed, the Hyena Guard burst through the door.

"Commander! Commander, are you alright?!"

Shouting in panic, the soldiers scoured the room until they found Qin Ming in the corner.

To be precise, they found him sprawled in the corner, his hair sticking up like a bird's nest and his face blackened with soot.

Wiping his face with his hand, Qin Ming hurriedly propped himself up against the wall as the soldiers rushed to his side.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. It's nothing. Just a small issue. Go back outside."

"But, Commander, the explosion—"

"I got hungry and decided to munch on a grenade! Now get out!"

"Yes, sir!"

Seeing Qin Ming lose his patience, the ten guards hastily saluted and retreated from the room.

Qin Ming, meanwhile, cheerfully examined the Kusanagi Glove in his hand, nodding in satisfaction.

"Not bad! Not bad at all! Though it clashes with my flame, this is the most unique equipment I've ever found. Definitely worth keeping!"

Grabbing the pile of junk on the table, he merged them to forcibly upgrade the green-grade glove to blue-grade quality. Then, he tucked it into his inventory, hoping to someday find its matching counterpart.

After finishing his preparations, Qin Ming stepped out of the room.

Most of the warehouse had been cleared by now. Since this location was too exposed, it was unwise to linger any longer.

Qin Ming planned to retreat with his troops and find another place to continue scavenging.

As for their next target? No one ever said a battlefield could only have one arsenal.

And even if they ran out of arsenals, there were still supply depots.

On this battlefield, Qin Ming lacked everything except targets.

(End of Chapter)