137. Li—Ao—Zi—!
The Tianhuan people have a saying: "By the time you see your attacker, the attack is already over."
This saying was meant to describe the ever-changing battlefield, where life and death are decided in an instant.
But now, the Tianhuan soldiers had a new understanding of this saying.
[Pegasus Force]
Like a rainbow stream, the stardust wings swept across the earth, and the searing waves instantly vaporized countless warriors who stood in the way.
"Don't let him through!"
The frontline commander had just shouted when, in the next moment, half of his body, along with his fully armored exoskeleton, was ripped apart by the jetting stardust wings.
The body of the Pioneer Bioweapon was sturdy, yet during flight, it seemed to encounter no resistance. Coupled with Li Aozi's gravitational acceleration, he easily reached his current speed limit—Mach 10.
That's 3400 meters per second, 3.4 kilometers.
The fighter jets patrolling the sky couldn't even react as the iridescent vortex stirred an aurora storm on the ground. Without any technique needed, Li Aozi, like an armored knight, charged straight into the awaiting warriors.
The previously arrogant warriors were instantly disintegrated under the searing wings. All defenses and tactical coordination became a joke in the face of such violent power.
"What's happening!" Kanou Asahi stared at the war platform as soldier after soldier dropped offline in ranked units, his face struck with disbelief.
—This definitely wasn't just a 'disconnect.' The electronic equipment was functioning fine, with no signs of an electronic attack.
Which left only one possibility.
"My forces are taking heavy losses, two full battalions have been wiped out."
"Damn it—there's no way to fight back like this."
"It's Li Aozi! Those stardust wings, it has to be him!"
By the time the fighter jets in the sky realized what was happening, the ground forces had already suffered massive destruction under Li Aozi's twin-wing assault. Furious, they unleashed volleys of firepower, but none of the bullets could catch up to the speed of Mach 10.
Two jets spiraled through the air, flying in intertwined patterns, dragging vicious trails of exhaust, rushing at Li Aozi. They launched hypersonic missiles and drones, forming a massive aerial formation to engulf him.
"That guy is the target. This ambush is Li Aozi's carefully orchestrated plan—don't let him escape!"
The lead pilot tightened his oxygen-ammonia mixture mask, not only to ensure oxygen supply but also to maintain stamina in this intense high-altitude dogfight. Especially with their constant power supply to the aircraft to maintain stability, strength, and speed.
Just trying to keep up with Li Aozi's bizarre sharp-angled maneuvers had forced both pilots into sustained 40G overloads, causing their internal organs to convulse violently, with blood rushing to their feet like a waterfall. Only their anti-G suits, which applied pressure to force blood back to their brains, kept them from passing out.
Li Aozi had no such endurance concerns. With Iron Stomach altering his trajectory and the passive energy absorption of [Mountains' Armor], he flew into the sky with reckless abandon. Suddenly, he came to an abrupt stop, spun, and spread his wings, revealing his true form to those watching.
His towering figure was like a mythical giant. Lava-coated heavy armor encased him like a medieval knight. The enormous stardust wings dissipated into a shimmering rainbow cloak, gently fluttering in the wind.
He carried no weapon, his arms crossed as red-black crystals proliferated from the seams of his armor, and countless tiny tendrils slithered over its surface, weaving into a crown of thorns atop his head.
The bioweapon's body grew even larger in the Dominator Form, rivaling a small mech in size. His fully enclosed visor concealed the savage jaws beneath, shedding the previous ruthless, primal appearance. As stardust shimmered around him, Li Aozi floated in the air, his presence even gaining a hint of divinity.
As the radar locked onto the giant, Li Aozi's six compound eyes simultaneously locked onto all the surrounding machines.
[Eye of Truth]—Stacked.
Red-black pupils lit up with runes. Instantly, all the fast-flying jets and floating missiles seemed to slow down dramatically. The entire world moved like it was submerged in mercury—heavy and slow.
He could clearly see every scratch on the aircraft, the frost forming on their wings from the high altitude. The alloy wings trembled uneasily, as if they had already foreseen their imminent fate.
Target locked.
[Gravity]—Stacked.
One by one, he locked onto the position of each machine. Then, he extended his claws, the palms splitting open to reveal glowing red-hot voids.
[Natural Ignition]—Stacked.
"Two as one—Heaven's Blaze!"
Boom boom boom boom boom!
Countless explosions of flame erupted, quickly taking shape in the sky, transforming into blazing fireballs that autonomously targeted the aircraft. They inherited Li Aozi's bizarre sharp-angled maneuvers, darting freely through the sky tainted by Eerie, detonating violently. Before the two jets could accelerate, the intense flames consumed their fuselages.
"MAYDAY! MAYDAY!"
The two pilots screamed as they hurriedly ejected from their jets, disconnecting from their machines. Their minds hadn't even recovered when Li Aozi watched their bodies soar into the Eerie-filled clouds, slowly decaying, aging rapidly, then withering and disintegrating into invisible molecules, vanishing completely.
"Although international law prohibits attacking pilots—what can I do if they commit suicide?"
Li Aozi shrugged.
Whoosh—
A laser grazed Li Aozi's shoulder, bending and deflecting as it passed through the gravitational field around him. He quickly turned his head.
On the ground, the mech units had switched to aerial components and were charging toward him. Three mechs formed a triangular formation, continuously firing laser rifles, using smart computers to predict Li Aozi's movements, forcing him to lower his altitude.
At this rate, there was no way to win. These were the most advanced mechs, with elite crews, working together under guidance from the command center—a force capable of toppling small nations.
"The goal for this mission has been achieved. There's no need to keep fighting."
Li Aozi glanced at the kill data. The most significant threats had been eliminated. The Tianhuan warriors hadn't even managed to form tactical units, and two-thirds of them were wiped out. He had also destroyed two mechs—a successful operation that had bought enough time for Du Zexin to complete the assembly and prepare for launch.
If he didn't leave today, once Tianhuan regrouped, they would mobilize the nation's power to blockade, embargo, and sanction him endlessly. Li Aozi knew he couldn't handle a full-on confrontation with an enraged superpower, especially not one as battle-hardened as Tianhuan.
The Pioneer's body was also getting familiar, moving smoothly with no resistance from his consciousness. He could still feel his No.1 bioweapon stored in a bio-pool, soaked in chemicals and surrounded by electrodes, monitoring his physiological state.
The three mechs pursued relentlessly. Although they were slower, the laser weapons, guided by the command center, predicted Li Aozi's path, forcing him closer to the ground. If he descended, the ground forces would focus all their firepower on him.
—This couldn't go on.
So, Li Aozi decisively turned and dove toward the ground forces again—but this time, the Tianhuan soldiers had already regrouped, and what awaited him was a barrage of three waves of synchronized qi-enhanced strikes.
"Vacuum!"
The sudden vacuum created suction, but since Li Aozi's flight relied on gravity, it didn't affect him.
"Vermilion Bird!"
The following flame wave covered a vast area, engulfing Li Aozi, but with the protection of [Mountains' Armor] and the Pioneer's depleted uranium armor, he weathered the blow almost unscathed.
"Purple Lightning!"
The third strike brought a high-voltage arc, and in the intense heat, the lightning extended for thousands of kilometers, directly hitting Li Aozi.
—However, the damage was minimal.
[Life Severance] and [Death Link] activated simultaneously. The intelligence bonus from the bioweapon granted Li Aozi incredible logic processing power, while the dexterity enhancement was more direct. His fingers wove through the air, casting [Life Severance] on multiple targets, forbidding their recovery, then hooking his pinky to link their life forces together.
With [Eye of Truth]'s lock-on, Li Aozi hooked his hand again, linking 204 targets to himself before the three-wave attack struck.
Snap!
The lightning strike took a chunk of Li Aozi's vast health, draining three-quarters of it. But as soon as he activated [Blood of Immortality], his health quickly replenished.
At the same time, Li Aozi glanced at the damage and chuckled.
"Purple Lightning deals 40% of maximum health as spell damage—Oh, I wonder how much health this bioweapon has?"
Li Aozi checked his health:
The bioweapon's base health was 640+1,500, plus Li Aozi's 2,000 mimic health and 88 points of real health.
Total: 4,428 HP, equivalent to a Gamma-tier [Martial Artist].
Forty percent of that would be 1,772.1 spell damage.
And that was the amount of damage the Tianhuan soldiers on the ground would suffer through the damage link!
They had only endured the lightning's damage, but their health was nowhere near as high as Li Aozi's, and he had forbidden their recovery.
When a frail individual is killed by transferred damage, it spells disaster for the entire linked squad.
One person's death—triggers the 'death effect' to transfer to others in the link, forcing them to check for survival.
And because [Death Link] is an Omega Energy ability, its check attribute is...[Charisma].
Given the Tianhuan army's disdain for Omega Energy and their scorn for spellcasters, most of their soldiers would fail the charisma check.
Hummm!
One by one, soldiers dropped dead from heart attacks caused by the transferred lightning damage. As each soldier died, their death transferred to the next, spreading through the ranks like a plague. Li Aozi kept linking them together until the three mechs closed in, forcing him to stop.
The Tianhuan soldiers on the ground were thrown into chaos. Entire ranks of men died inexplicably, without any visible attack, even though they had fought back fiercely, only to kill themselves.
The Tianhuan warriors didn't fear death, but this 'I kill myself' situation was too eerie and abstract to comprehend. And with Li Aozi casting his spells at supersonic speeds, no one could analyze or detect what was happening.
For the first time, the usually resolute Tianhuan soldiers, known for their unwavering will, began to panic.
They hesitated, cowering behind cover, or fleeing in disarray, ignoring orders. Kanou Asahi's face twisted in frustration.
"The troops are falling apart. This is worse than facing a formidable enemy!"
His face darkened, and he turned to ask the analyst:
"What's going on now? Why are the mechs deployed but still unable to catch up to Li Aozi? Didn't the capital's forces shoot him down during the battle at Joan Capital?"
"No, the situation is different. Joan Capital had five Gamma-tier fighters, equivalent to at least 15 mechs, along with the Hokujou Group's AI system. There were 300,000 soldiers and police involved in the operation, using big data from citywide cameras and electronic devices to slowly trace Li Aozi's movements. But here, we only have our military's electronic warfare equipment and AI systems."
The analyst smiled bitterly and added:
"Commander, you misunderstand. It seems now that Li Aozi wasn't shot down back then. After landing, he ambushed the Gamma-tier fighter's mech, taking advantage of incomplete crew formation to kill both the pilot and the machine."
"Are you saying the capital's forces didn't actually catch up to Li Aozi? They didn't even put any real pressure on him?" Kanou asked coldly.
"...That's not entirely accurate." The analyst's forehead dripped with cold sweat. He didn't dare offend this iron-blooded commander. "The capital forces drove Li Aozi out. They weren't prepared for capture at the time, so you could say they successfully completed their assigned mission."
"You fool! I don't want flattery and sycophancy—those are the goals of politicians! A soldier needs real, actionable information!"
Kanou fumed, his mustache bristling as he shouted:
"We've executed the best tactical plan, secured the Green Base ahead of time, and even driven off the Undead forces. Now we're facing the real threat, Li Aozi, and you're telling me we have no way to deal with him? Fighter jets are shot down, countless warriors are dead, soldiers' lives are discarded like trash—and our enemy, the disgrace of Tianhuan, is flying in the sky unscathed?"
"The mechs just can't keep up with him. No fighter on Earth can catch him—perhaps, on this entire planet, there's no one who can stop him."
The analyst's conclusion was bleak.
In truth, Tianhuan's main forces hadn't been wiped out yet, but the shock from the Undead army and Li Aozi's overwhelming power had dealt a severe blow to their morale.
"Get it together! Look at yourselves! What are you doing? Why aren't you fighting back?"
The Yin-Yang master rushed around the battlefield in desperation, even stepping into the spirit world, risking an attack from Li Aozi, loudly pleading with the confused and disoriented warriors.
"You'll only die in vain if you continue like this. There's no point in fighting back!"
A warrior wailed in sorrow, pointing to the sky:
"That guy...he can't be killed. Our courage and bonds as soldiers are meaningless in the face of his absolute power."
"What kind of talk is that! You are the hope of Tianhuan, the brave warriors of His Majesty the King of the Ring."
"Perhaps warriors are no longer enough to solve this. Only the legendary hero, the god's child with dragon blood, can stand against him."
The Yin-Yang master's face turned grim upon hearing this.
Idealism could inspire people, but it also deepened their reliance on mythology.
Some of the warriors huddled together, kneeling, praying for a divine intervention to descend and slay Li Aozi. They dubbed him the 'Immortal Blood Demon King.' His terrifying dominance and oppressive force had made Tianhuan warriors utterly afraid to face him.
This was the true terror of the Blood Demon style. One-on-one, you might have a chance. But in a group, he could slaughter them all.
Seeing that the soldiers' morale was completely shattered, Li Aozi didn't hesitate any longer. He frequently used Omega Energy, and his bioweapon's genes were nearing overload. He needed to return quickly for adjustment.
After all, this bioweapon was fresh off the line, and his genes still weren't fully adapted to it.
Just as he was about to turn and fly away, a narrow streak of white light suddenly tore through the sky.
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Li Aozi looked up to see a shark-like figure swiftly changing direction mid-air, speeding toward him.
Juhelai drew his blade from his back, his cross-shaped pupils contracting fiercely as he gritted his teeth and roared:
"Li—Ao—Zi!"