From the Abyss of Stars

103. Punch First, Solve Problems While Hitting

 

【Iteration Movement】

 

Li Aozi's figure rapidly elongated, his body turning into molecules, as the crimson explosive laser mercilessly engulfed his shadow, dodging behind the door.

 

"This guy hasn't been on the battlefield yet, but his tactical awareness is quite sharp! And he actually has an anti-gravity system; tsk, never underestimate such a person."

 

At this point, there was no room for negotiation.

 

"I have to annihilate all the Law III agents and keep Du Zexin."

 

Just as Li Aozi drew his long knife, the system promptly issued a notification:

 

【You have triggered an emergency event—《Armored Assault》】

 

【Type】: Event

 

【Duration】: 20 minutes (countdown starts upon engaging in combat)

 

【Mission Difficulty】: B

 

【Description】:

 

Those who shouldn't fight are forced into a battle that shouldn't happen—this sounds ridiculous, but in reality, there are always clashes between snipe and clam, with the fisherman reaping the benefits.

 

Sometimes, the world is like this; you can't choose your enemies, and even if the other party is unwilling to fight, they must participate.

 

However, the good news is that even if you can't persuade each other, you at least have the ability to make the other party listen.

 

Be careful not to let the oriole fill its belly.

 

【Completion Conditions】:

 

a—Subdue Du Zexin without killing him, reward 10,000 experience points;

 

b—Eliminate all Law III agents, each Law III agent rewards an additional 4,000 experience points, current progress: 0/25;

 

c—Capture Professor Anna alive, interrogate her for access permissions, reward one random 【Exquisite】 system basic knowledge item.

 

——————————

 

The rewards were not very generous. It seemed Du Zexin had only recently advanced to Beta tier, making him less of a threat than the Cannibal.

 

Indeed, it must be his unlucky constitution; usually, newly advanced superhumans need a few months to adapt and stabilize their realm, but Du Zexin was probably dragged here as a conscript.

 

"Quick, hide!"

 

Li Aozi glanced at the interface and immediately shouted to Qiu Ran and Jane.

 

Boom!

 

Before he finished speaking, Du Zexin, clad in the full-coverage 【Beautiful Wishes】 armor, rocketed into the hall. The pale armor, like an ancient noble knight, with a blade-shaped antenna on his head, instinctively reminded people of a unicorn.

 

"That's..."

 

Qiu Ran was shocked by the stunning mechanical marvel.

 

Without any unnecessary decorations, the sharply angular armor, devoid of any paint, instead highlighted its pure industrial aesthetic. Coupled with the contours of electronic muscles, Du Zexin appeared like an angel of steel, majestic and holy.

 

Beep beep beep—

 

The Magnum energy gun aimed at Li Aozi again, and Du Zexin unhesitatingly pulled the trigger. The red laser energy dissolved the metal projectile into a metal jet, propelled to four times the speed of sound, arriving in an instant!

 

Bang!

 

The alloy wall was instantly dented, the residual heat of the metal making one's skin crawl. Qiu Ran quickly ducked her head and hid.

 

Jane Neria's eyes flickered, silently hiding in a nearby passage, observing the situation.

 

Shoom shoom—

 

Du Zexin's marksmanship was excellent. He didn't care that there was a reactor nearby, calmly firing at Li Aozi.

 

Li Aozi deflected the gravity, skillfully wall-jumping, changing direction in mid-air to evade the Magnum energy gun's aim. The long knife whirled with murderous intent, pouncing towards the opponent in an instant.

 

Du Zexin reacted quickly, the thrusters on his waist suddenly shutting down, rapidly descending while launching an impact grenade at the ground. The violent shockwave exploded instantly, forcing Li Aozi to retreat to avoid being harmed by the blast.

 

Using the explosion's shockwave, Du Zexin immediately distanced himself from Li Aozi. His left shoulder lowered, releasing a triple flashbang, forcing Li Aozi to duck and pull down his visor upon landing.

 

Bang bang bang bang bang—

 

The crisp continuous explosions mixed with the sonic booms of shock grenades, creating a terrifying audiovisual effect, making Qiu Ran, who was hiding, scream in fear.

 

"Ah—"

 

As an ordinary person with no combat experience, Qiu Ran couldn't adapt to such shocking impacts.

 

"A woman's voice—Is she his companion? Or a survivor?"

 

Du Zexin was slightly surprised but didn't let it hinder his actions. He slid back on his feet, and the rockets on his shoulders fired in full force.

 

"Fox-3, all missiles fired!"

 

The active radar warheads locked onto Li Aozi's figure, accelerating towards him.

 

Li Aozi didn't hesitate to deal with such weapons. He ducked, sheathed his knife, and activated iteration movement, leaving a trail of images in the air, sliding into a biochemical chamber that had previously housed a Calamity Armament.

 

Bang bang bang bang!

 

The rockets exploded into fragments, filling the air with smoke.

 

"This guy has guts. I wouldn't dare bomb randomly."

 

Li Aozi couldn't help but admire the 【Exquisite】 system's overachiever's confidence.

 

Players feared blowing up the reactor, but this guy was going all out!

 

Hiss—

 

The Magnum energy gun ejected its empty magazine, and Du Zexin swiftly reloaded, slapping the receiver to change the operating system.

 

[Suppression Mode]

 

Buzz—rat-tat-tat-tat!

 

He held the energy gun in one hand, firing at Li Aozi, while his other hand pulled up a virtual screen.

 

"Abyss Humanitarian's network defense is virtually non-existent. With slight adjustments, I can access all the cameras..."

 

Li Aozi's instant movement severely hindered him, leaving the air maneuvering to his assistant AI for analysis.

 

After all, he was a 【Mechanic】, with 【Intelligence】 as his main attribute rather than 【Strength】 and 【Dexterity】.

 

No matter how accurate his marksmanship, a human without strength-enhancing attributes couldn't compete with computer calculations and predictive aiming.

 

This allowed him to multitask, starting to hack into Abyss Humanitarian's network.

 

Li Aozi's actions were entirely within his expectations. By maintaining suppression, he could steadily exhaust the opponent's stamina and secure victory.

 

Like Li Aozi, he didn't want to kill the other party directly.

 

As an ordinary Law III agent leader, not many knew him, and Li Aozi's attacks several times with the back of his knife indicated he was holding back.

 

Such obvious restraint gave Du Zexin a guess:

 

'Could he be a Davelin faction member like me?'

 

If he really was a Davelin faction ally—this would be even more troublesome.

 

Given the special nature of Abyss Humanitarian, Frost-Plated's bigwigs paid close attention, making Du Zexin cautious.

 

With the professor of Abyss Humanitarian just deceased, Twin Star City already knew she was 'accidentally killed' by Anna. The surveillance system here had likely been infiltrated by insiders of the bigwigs.

 

Even he couldn't guarantee how much the Frost-Plated bigwigs knew about the situation here, given that their top hackers far surpassed social hackers.

 

The other party probably had the same idea; one of them had to lose, at least for appearance's sake.

 

Despite his suspicions, he couldn't afford to show mercy.

 

"You really are quasi-Beta."

 

Du Zexin's synthetic electronic voice calmly praised.

 

Bang!

 

Li Aozi dodged a grenade. The opponent's anti-gravity system made gravity useless against him, forcing Li Aozi to zigzag, consuming the opponent's ammunition.

 

He raised his knife to block, deflecting the metal jet. The massive impact pushed him back three steps, just in time to avoid Du Zexin's rocket striking the ground.

 

[Camera access obtained]

 

Du Zexin expertly controlled the distance, using shrapnel and explosive impacts to force Li Aozi to dodge.

 

"In that case..."

 

Li Aozi advanced by retreating, instantly activating 【Iteration Movement】, circling around the opponent and appearing behind Du Zexin.

 

All of this was observed by Abyss Humanitarian's cameras.

 

Gotcha!

 

Du Zexin was pleased. He had deliberately left an opening to lure Li Aozi in.

 

As Li Aozi raised his knife to strike, Du Zexin tapped his belt, activating bioelectric muscles in his legs. The armor split open, forming spikes and quickly dissipating heat, sparking a dazzling electric arc.

 

[Blessing Kick]

 

Du Zexin twisted his waist, raising his leg like a counterclockwise kick, striking the back of Li Aozi's knife!

 

Bang!

 

The electric current was absorbed by Li Aozi's insulated gloves, but the immense kinetic energy sent him flying. He spun three times in the air, adjusted the gravity, and landed safely on the ceiling.

 

"Whoa..."

 

Li Aozi glanced at the trembling blade, the guard slightly loose.

 

The power from that kick was at least five tons, causing such significant damage.

 

This was despite him using gravity adjustment to weaken most of the impact.

 

"—You're not bad either."

 

Unlucky as he was, Du Zexin was still quite strong, almost injuring him.

 

Du Zexin's suppression was terrifying. His precise fire coverage severely restricted Li Aozi's movement space.

 

Moreover, his 【Beautiful Wishes】 armor, all parts of [Flawless] quality, and the Magnum energy gun of [Transcendent] strength, made him formidable.

 

Li Aozi estimated the armor's defense to be at least 3000 points, tougher than the Cannibal.

 

"That's why I hate these smarter overachievers..."

 

Li Aozi muttered.

 

Fighting Du Zexin was quite thrilling. Although his operations lacked the polish of late-stage veteran players, his equipment and combat awareness made them evenly matched.

 

This was interesting... Li Aozi estimated Du Zexin's level to be around 40, with 【Intelligence】 similar to the professor's and 【Dexterity】 as his secondary attribute, allowing him to compete in reaction speed.

 

Though his knowledge and skills were a bit lacking, the armor boosted his strength to rival the Cannibal.

 

However, compared to the Cannibal's disgusting self-healing ability, Du Zexin was easier to handle.

 

The Law III agents were alert, never showing their heads, occasionally taking potshots, like mosquitoes, irritating Li Aozi.

 

"Noisy pests— I initially wanted to leave room for negotiation, but now I'll just complete condition B first!"

 

Li Aozi feigned a charge, braving the suppressive fire, and suddenly released a blinding white light from his palm.

 

【Bright Dazzle】

 

The brilliant high-intensity light instantly burned out Du Zexin's helmet cameras. As he activated the backup monitors, Li Aozi had already shifted directions multiple times in the air, rushing towards the agents hiding in the passage.

 

Gegu gagaga...

 

Su Zhan hummed a low tune, eagerly craving bloodshed. The war ghost's fierce spirit enveloped the long knife, and Li Aozi's eyes glowed purple, slashing mercilessly at the Law III agents!