From the Abyss of Stars

117. Evil Spirit Castle

 

Azure Star, West Fourth District, four in the afternoon.

 

P-205 Shelter.

 

Abyss Humanitarian Headquarters Laboratory.

 

"Alarm! High-energy intrusion! Warning! High-energy intrusion——"

 

The continuous alarm was abruptly silenced as the thrown object shattered it, accompanied by the flickering red warning lights, intensifying the atmosphere.

 

Li Aozi and Du Zexin walked through the door, greeted by dozens of special bio-soldiers.

 

Compared to the previous factory assembly line products, these guards blocking the "treatment room" of the Calamity Armament infected were evidently more elite, heavily armed.

 

Besides some heavily armored units holding 20mm heavy machine guns suppressing them with alloy storms, there were even invisible snipers loading depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds in their anti-material rifles, shattering Du Zexin's moving cover.

 

Additionally, there were some with white armbands on their arms, acting as commanders, making the other bio-soldiers react very quickly.

 

Ammunition depleted rapidly, Du Zexin put away the Magnum explosive gun and switched to a live ammunition rifle.

 

"The professor is deliberately depleting our strength."

 

Du Zexin hid behind cover, throwing out two kamikaze drones, which sped into the crowd and exploded, instantly blasting five or six bio-soldiers to the ground.

 

Li Aozi seized the opportunity, activating 【Iterative Movement】, instantly teleporting through the barrage, swinging his long knife, performing a draw slash, slicing open a commander's neck, and then teleporting to the sniper's position, grabbing the sniper's head, using 【Directional Blast】 to instantly shatter the brain within the skull.

 

Du Zexin, not a turret-style 【Mechanic】, influenced by traditional thinking on Azure Star, created only drones and electronic swarms.

 

These bio-soldiers didn't use chip processors, so he couldn't upload a virus to hack them and had to clear them one by one the old-fashioned way.

 

Li Aozi rolled to the ground, almost losing his footing, sitting behind cover at the other end of the corridor, throwing a throwing knife to kill a sneaking bio-soldier, grumbling:

 

"This should be the professor's last army. Give me more time, I can take them all out."

 

As soon as he finished speaking, a grenade exploded beside him.

 

Boom!

 

The gravity field opened in time, deflecting much of the impact, but a fragment too close grazed Li Aozi's face scarf, which would have injured and disfigured him if not for the indestructible clothing feature.

 

"Damn it, fuck!"

 

Li Aozi cursed.

 

"These guys' tactical awareness has surpassed the professional soldiers of the Frost-Plated Republic, reacting extremely quickly. Without armored units, we can't push through."

 

Busy fighting, Du Zexin didn't pay attention to Li Aozi's clothing issue, turning around to sweep a burst with the VK rifle, AI correction making 31 bullets precisely hit the same spot on the heavy machine gunner's helmet, accumulating penetration power, finally breaking through the ultra-strong aramid fiber and titanium alloy plate, the hardened steel core bullet penetrating the brain within the skull, the heavy-armored soldier crashing down, his heavy body fixed by the armor, standing dumbly in place.

 

Du Zexin's assessment was conservative.

 

Li Aozi just showed his head to throw a throwing knife, only to be suppressed back by gunfire.

 

These guys' shooting was no worse than professional players, in his impression only deep learning no-recoil auto-aim plugins could achieve such results.

 

Even Du Zexin couldn't guarantee his armor could block depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds—depleted uranium was self-sharpening, extremely penetrative, producing thousands of degrees of high temperature after penetrating armor, harming the 【Mechanic】's fragile body.

 

They were blocked.

 

Li Aozi glanced at the equipment Du Zexin picked up, clearly estimating he didn't expect such a large enemy force before coming out.

 

Nearly 800 fully armed bio-soldiers in total, plus these dozens of elites, Du Zexin estimated Abyss could take down a border city.

 

"So this is the scary-level difficulty."

 

Li Aozi seized a firepower gap, immediately teleporting out to kill a few riflemen, his body unable to withstand 6.8mm bullets' tearing, succeeding in one strike, then fleeing far away.

 

"Damn it, so troublesome!"

 

Li Aozi landed on the ceiling, running rapidly, dodging bullets with his unique aerial maneuvering.

 

This hummingbird-like movement was almost impossible to predict, the riflemen's anti-air was barely effective, nine out of ten missed, any lucky hits deflected by gravity.

 

To shoot down Li Aozi, the bio-commander ordered soldiers to gather and concentrate fire density, hoping to hit the unpredictable hummingbird-like figure.

 

This gave Du Zexin a chance, quickly putting away his rifle and charging out.

 

[Rush Hour Military]

 

These bio-soldiers lacked chip implants, but the commander locked onto the fast-moving figure, bio-soldiers linked mentally raising their guns as he lunged into the formation.

 

Da da da da da da da——

 

The rifles just opened fire as Du Zexin charged into the crowd, throwing two liquid fuel tanks assembled on his waist to the ground.

 

Crash!

 

Liquid fuel splashed everywhere, spreading in the crowd.

 

Then activated the anti-gravity system dismantled from the Robust, jumping high instantly.

 

"Now, Li Aozi!"

 

At that moment, Li Aozi crossed paths with him in the air.

 

Du Zexin raised his hand, throwing an incendiary, the container opened, red iron(III) oxide and aluminum powder scattering in the air.

 

Li Aozi opened his palm, a brilliant white light shining.

 

【Brilliant Daylight】

 

Boom——————!

 

Dazzling fireworks bloomed in the air, the white light igniting the liquid fuel and incendiary fully, bio-soldiers were instantly engulfed in pouring fire rain, carbon fiber armor burning through, internal fat and flesh corroded by aluminum-iron powder, igniting the entire body from head to toe.

 

The air immediately filled with a foul burnt smell, most bio-soldiers instantly cut off nerve signals, standing dumbly in the fire, leaving only bent metal skeletons and fire-resistant clothing.

 

"Unimaginable, this bio-soldier force's combat power has far surpassed the professional soldiers of the Frost-Plated Republic, if such a force replaced real soldiers, it would greatly reduce casualties——"

 

Under the mask, Du Zexin's expression was extremely conflicted.

 

Such bio-soldiers, if Abyss could raise them, wouldn't the Frost-Plated Republic's military, as a national violent institution, also raise them?

 

The Frost-Plated Republic's military budget proportion reached 11.7% of total expenditure, 3% more than education investment. If such forces replaced real soldiers——what severe unemployment would it cause among soldiers!

 

Joining the military was the most common way for farm boys to rise. If this path was blocked, the already distorted society of the Frost-Plated Republic would collapse.

 

According to Du Zexin's memory——nowadays the Frost-Plated Republic has over 400,000 contract soldiers.

 

They mastered violent skills, implanted one or two dangerous military prosthetics, flooding into society due to unemployment, would cause the Frost-Plated Republic's crime and murder rates to explode instantly.

 

Those bounty hunters from the slums would be overwhelmed by these organized and disciplined soldiers, becoming the top gangs in cities, proficient in destruction and occupation, they could become warlord lords on the spot.

 

But, its benefits were so obvious.

 

Compared to machines, humanoid bio-soldiers were more concealed, less noticeable, and more acceptable to citizens when wearing helmets than robots.

 

Their bodies had no computer programs to hack, ensuring loyalty.

 

For a moment, he even doubted if the 【Biomancer】 path was correct.

 

Azure Star's technology wasn't that advanced, people's imagination of extraordinary power wasn't that rich.

 

Some pursued virtual technology, human-computer interaction, mechanical ascension, desiring immortal machines to carry their lonely souls, abandoning weak bodies.

 

Others firmly believed in genetic editing and grafting, evolving carbon-based life forms as humanity's future.

 

They couldn't imagine the future, as the path to the stars was long obscured by the red-black clouds of Calamity Armament.

 

Du Zexin was momentarily confused, a scientist's confusion and doubt about the future of their research field.

 

The struggle between machinery and bio has never ceased, representing human wisdom's mechanical creations and flesh bodies dominating the top of the food chain, whichever prevailed would greatly impact human thought and society.

 

"Not that terrifying."

 

Li Aozi gulped a bag of concentrated glucose, his powerful digestive system quickly restoring his Omega Energy and stamina.

 

He glanced at the bio-soldier corpses and said:

 

"Not to mention the enormous maintenance costs, the humanitarian issues in production, making widespread equipment impossible. Just one point: 【Biomancer】 studies flesh bodies——all carbon-based life forms have a fundamental weakness."

 

Azure Star people might be smarter than him, but no one has more foresight.

 

From a cosmic perspective, if bio-soldiers were really that useful, wouldn't all cosmic civilizations develop bio-technology to replace humans and machines?

 

Clearly not.

 

Because flesh bodies, after all, are just flesh. Their advantages are precision, flexibility, and greater adaptability, but their weaknesses are too obvious.

 

Du Zexin was stunned, then understood.

 

He lowered his head, standing in mid-air with Li Aozi, looking down at the ground covered by a red ocean. About twenty bio-soldiers stood among them, their flesh burned clean, brain matter evaporated, leaving only composite metal skeletons shining a bright dark gold.

 

"Fire."