Vol-2: 112. Iron Armor Steel Fist
112. Iron Armor Steel Fist
Swoosh!
Li Aozi's arm was bitten off by a huge demon ghost, his katana leaving his hand. He unceremoniously kicked the monster away. The enormous Pegasus wings swept across instantly; the blazing Stardust Wings gushed rapidly, shredding and slicing the monsters that rushed up like an ion cutter.
"Where are you looking!"
A cross-shaped spear instantly pierced through Li Aozi's back from behind, skewering his still-beating heart. Lu Yuping-san, covered in blood, viciously swung the spear toward the ground. Li Aozi rolled on the spot, the golden halo in his eyes expanding. Using gravitational pullback, he flung the katana that had left his hand directly toward Lu Yuping-san.
Lu Yuping-san stood upright like a martial god, pulled out the spear and planted it on the ground. Instantly, a strong aura burst out from his position, blasting Li Aozi and his katana away. Li Aozi rolled continuously to dissipate the force. [Cut Off Vitality] promptly absorbed life blood with a fierce draw, and his arm rapidly regenerated visibly. However, before he could rise from one knee, a burst of blood exploded from his chest.
Bang—
A huge shell casing was ejected. Yin Shuyan coldly pulled the bolt. Blue Qi gathered and compressed in the gun barrel like a storm. The propellant gas fully mixed with the Qi. With a thought, as the trigger was pulled, it ignited instantly with almost no delay. Yet another depleted uranium fin-stabilized discarding sabot armor-piercing round struck Li Aozi's armor.
Due to the self-sharpening and deflagration properties of uranium, Li Aozi's armor along with flesh was instantly shredded and vaporized. His body splattered everywhere like minced meat. Raging flames burst from his back, dragging fragments of internal organs for over a dozen meters, splashing onto the surrounding walls.
Li Aozi staggered a couple of steps. Seeing his health bottoming out again, he immediately scanned all the monsters in his field of vision, using [Death Link] to connect all of them to his own life.
Crash—
In an instant, the previously imposing monsters fell dead one after another. The "death" that Li Aozi should have suffered was transferred to them. Since most of the monsters didn't have his high healing ability and simulated life, death was their only fate.
One by one, the monsters rushed forward, but before they could reach Li Aozi, they bizarrely collapsed, lying prone on the ground. The ghostly flames in their eye sockets extinguished, and their forms turned into black ash and spiritual dust, dispersing with the wind.
"You monster..."
By now, the proud Lu Yuping-san, upon seeing this scene, had a numb expression.
It wasn't his first time seeing rivers of blood, but it was the first time seeing one person causing rivers of blood.
Blood, blood—damn, all blood. The blood was greedily drunk by the earth, flowing wantonly in the cracks between bricks, splattering on the walls, crashing underfoot like surging waves. If a film reviewer saw this scene, they might instantly die of a heart attack. Even for a battle-hardened warrior like Lu Yuping-san, it caused physical discomfort.
"Simply a demon... a blood demon."
Miko Gozen Suzuka had been ambushed several times by Li Aozi, having a chunk of flesh hacked off her thigh. Even she, as a [Medium] with strong immunity to physical damage, could not avoid being injured amid Li Aozi's frenzied slashing. The burns on her hands and face all attested to his formidable threat.
They were all wounded, but Li Aozi, fighting drenched in blood, seemed always on the brink of death yet occasionally had the strength to counterattack.
"Hey, Suzuka-chan."
Yin Shuyan looked a bit uncomfortable. After firing that shot, she, being linked by [Death Link], immediately received damage feedback. For someone as physically frail as her, even bearing just a portion of the death transfer made her face pale, nearly causing her to collapse. She panted heavily, coughed a few times, and shouted to the miko:
"This guy's counter-damage ability is too strong. If this continues, we can't eliminate him."
She glanced at the Grand Onmyoji floating high in the air and clicked her tongue:
"He really is leisurely. Why on earth did he bring such a calamity into the country?"
"It's pointless to argue now. Although Li Aozi's offensive power is limited, his regenerative ability is too strong. We need a way to restrain him."
"For example?"
"Not giving him a chance to absorb our life force."
As Miko Gozen Suzuka spoke, she immediately cast a smoke talisman, separating Li Aozi and Lu Yuping-san. Then, crossing the spiritual realm, she pressed her hand on Lu Yuping-san's shoulder:
"Let's go, baldy. Don't be a free blood bag for him."
Lu Yuping-san cursed under his breath but, seeing the rapidly approaching presence Suzuka pointed out behind them, didn't hesitate to retreat.
Whoosh—
Li Aozi's greatsword tore through the smoke. In the pupils of the Dominator, a vast mechanized army was instantly reflected.
"—Can't believe they're playing hardball, actually deploying regular troops."
Gamma Rank individuals are powerful entities, but once thrown into the battlefield, they're just advanced cannon fodder. The formal deployment of mobile units means Tianhuan can no longer tolerate him and has officially begun operations against Li Aozi.
Looking into the distance, countless scarlet lights bloomed in the sky. Hypersonic missiles arrived in an instant, exploding one after another around Li Aozi. Without hesitation, he used gravity to propel himself upward, continuously evading those terrifying missiles. The sky over Kyōan-kyō was instantly covered with flames.
The Tianhuan people proved with actions that they are completely different from the Frost-Plated Republic in terms of martial ethics.
Three minutes into the battle, hundreds of drones took off to intercept, launching an aerial siege against Li Aozi with maneuverability beyond human limits. At the same time, the Tianhuan people maximized the power of Kyōan-kyō's barrier. The blazing artificial sun completely transformed the barrier into a beam prison; any flying object daring to exceed 19,000 meters in altitude would be instantly vaporized by high-temperature particles.
Under such control, Li Aozi's aerial movements were severely restricted. Drones flew directly toward him. They didn't need to catch up; as long as they got close, they activated their warheads. The high-explosive drones were essentially airborne bomb trucks. Shrapnel and shockwaves bounced Li Aozi back and forth like a volleyball.
"So troublesome!"
Li Aozi hated continuing to tangle with Tianhuan's air force. These kamikaze drones, relying on low-altitude advantage, chased him relentlessly. His high-speed flight had no advantage in this environment.
The Tianhuan forces attacked him like mad. He quickly felt their firepower—various types of anti-aircraft missiles rapidly approached. Tactical lasers calculated and predicted his trajectory, weaving a vast laser net in the air.
Even though beam weapons didn't pose much threat to him, if he tried to block the lasers, the drones would immediately pounce. Under Tianhuan's powerful near-ground satellite surveillance, his movements had nowhere to hide.
"You won't escape anywhere!"
After several Gamma Rank individuals withdrew from the battle, professional medical teams rushed in to provide them with the best care and treatment.
Among them, Yin Shuyan, as a [Ranger], had the lightest injuries. After a brief rest, she immediately jumped into an aerial combat mobile armor, linking the Qi transmission channels to her brain and spine.
"Wait, Miss Yin Shuyan, the crew members for this unit haven't arrived yet—"
"No need. I alone am the crew."
[Link Complete]
The screen lit up, and the grim face of the Grand Onmyoji Abe Tadayuki appeared on the retinal projection. He said in a deep voice:
"Shuyan, the crew members aren't all here, right?"
"There's no time to wait for them. I'll go first."
"Then it's up to you, Shuyan. Be sure to bring him down."
"Understood."
Yin Shuyan put on the high-pressure oxygen mask. As a Gamma Rank, she needed more oxygen and energy than ordinary people to maintain her physical condition. After taking a deep breath of an ammonia, oxygen, chlorine, and carbon mixture, this unpleasant gas allowed her physiological system—surpassing human limits—to return to peak state.
Electrolyte ions rapidly spread in her blood, enhancing Qi transmission efficiency, and her mind became clearer.
All systems normal. Deep blue Qi flames lit up in Yin Shuyan's eyes. Her entire Qi was transmitted to the mobile armor. Similar azure light patterns quickly lit up in the armor's seams. The electronic eyes flashed continuously. The reactor engine emitted a humming sound, activating.
"pde-'Mind's Eye'—Yin Shuyan, launching!"
---------------------------------
A big thank you to [Tatus] for joining my Patreon! Your support means a lot to me.