The interlude had ended. Lin Xiao frowned as he watched the battle beyond the super-synthetic defensive glass.
Though he had spoken lightly, the situation before him was far from optimistic.
The Terminator T-600's skeletal defenses were no weaker than Iron Man's, but its agility was far inferior.
Not only was its opponent controlled by a quick-thinking human, but he could fly, and the Iron Man armor itself was highly maneuverable.
The Terminator T-600's Gatling gun spat flames, but it could not keep up with Iron Man darting around everywhere.
Most of the bullets missed, and even the occasional hit failed to breach his defenses.
Given Iron Man's defenses, only sustained Gatling fire might damage his precision electronic components or injure the operator inside through the vibrations, but that was hardly realistic.
Meanwhile, every missile and beam Iron Man fired struck the Terminator T-600. The silicone simulated skin covering its surface had been almost completely torn apart, exposing the black mechanical skeleton beneath.
The Terminator T-600 was not without intelligence. Its built-in intelligent computer had already calculated the optimal combat strategy.
It threw away the Gatling gun in its hand and tore off the ammunition belt around its body. T-600's speed immediately increased considerably.
The Terminator swung its steel fists gleaming with cold light and smashed them toward Iron Man.
Iron Man was unafraid and met the attack with his own steel fists.
Screech!
The two steel bodies collided, and a teeth-grating sound of metal scraping echoed through the laboratory.
T-600's complete defeat was inevitable. Their energy sources were not on the same level. However, its purely mechanical hydraulic construction gave it a slight edge in endurance, allowing the Terminator to recover a little of its disadvantage.
Unable to finish the fight for a long time, Iron Man began considering another solution.
Human intelligence and experience were things imperfect artificial intelligence could not yet match.
Iron Man quickly discovered the Terminator T-600's weakness. The few thin energy cables on its back were the Terminator's fatal vulnerability.
Iron Man's following actions naturally focused on destroying those energy cables.
Under Iron Man's deliberate attacks, the tough energy cables were soon all severed.
The Terminator T-600's stored energy allowed it to keep fighting for less than five minutes before it completely lost power.
Iron Man kicked the now-silent T-600 aside and swaggered up to the super-synthetic defensive glass.
Click!
His faceplate opened, revealing the mocking face of a Westerner. He gave Lin Xiao an arrogant smile.
"Doctor Lin, surrender. I guarantee your safety."
His Chinese was clumsy, but the thick contempt in his tone was unmistakable.
It was as though he were saying that Lin Xiao's intelligence was laughable and utterly worthless in the face of power.
"You're thinking too much. This is China. You won't be taking me away."
Lin Xiao's voice carried determination and confidence. Through the miraculous Eye of Perception, he saw a terrifyingly powerful energy figure rapidly approaching.
Lin Xiao did not believe it could be another enemy. They had already won here; there was no reason for an even more invincible enemy to show up and do something unnecessary.
"Doctor Lin, are you waiting for reinforcements? Give up that thought. See this armor? At least three more warriors wearing armor like this are holding back those Chinese soldiers made of flesh and blood. I imagine the casualties must be severe."
"Heh, perhaps not. He's here!"
"What?"
Iron Man's expression changed sharply at Lin Xiao's words. The alarm emitted by his armor's system was loud enough for even Lin Xiao to hear.
"Damn invader, die!"
A figure charged in from outside the laboratory, trailing a golden afterimage. At a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow, he slammed into the startled Iron Man as he turned around.
Bang!
With a crisp impact, Iron Man was sent flying like an arrow, crashing into the laboratory's defensive wall and embedding himself deeply within it.
A majestic figure hovered in the air, clad in golden armor and holding a golden staff. He was precisely the Great Sage Equaling Heaven from Lin Xiao's memories, Sun Wukong.
Sun Wukong's face was filled with rage, and killing intent poured from him. The soldiers slaughtered wantonly by extraordinary power had awakened his long-dormant bloodlust.
"Five Finger Mountain!"
Sun Wukong slightly spread his fingers, and a powerful force pulled Iron Man from the defensive wall before imprisoning him in midair.
"Atone for those who have suffered!"
Sun Wukong's slightly spread fingers clenched. The imprisoned Iron Man seemed to be crushed by an immense force, spraying blood wildly as even the armor on his body was compressed and shattered.
"Major General Lin, the enemy has been eliminated. I must clear out the remaining enemies. Until we meet again."
"Great Sage."
Lin Xiao wanted to ask him to stay. Honestly, he was stunned by this formidable genetic technology.
Sun Wukong in Super God was powerful, but he was definitely not among the very strongest. Moreover, he should only have awakened recently, and his strength was still far from its peak.
Yet armor similar to Iron Man's had been so utterly vulnerable in his hands.
Genetic technology was not Lin Xiao's specialty. What he excelled at was mechanical technology. How was he supposed to contend with these super soldiers in the future?
Only by acquiring powerful materials and even stronger energy could he contend against stronger enemies.
After quietly pondering for a while, Lin Xiao had already made his decision.
It seemed he had to make a trip to the Super God Academy.
China's current technology alone had no way of providing him with cosmic-grade materials and energy. He would have to fight for everything he needed himself.
Of course, he also had to accelerate the development of his brain capacity. Technology could strengthen a nation and lead humanity into the universe.
But his own strength was the foundation for fighting those great gods.
He had to reach 50% brain capacity development as soon as possible. Only then would he have the ability to confront those great gods head-on.
Lin Xiao walked up to the battered Iron Man and, ignoring the blood splattered over him, tore off the miniature nuclear reactor.
He did not care about Iron Man's armor. Since he could create Terminator Robots, that kind of armor would not be too difficult. This was his area of expertise to begin with.
But all of it required energy to support it. He currently had no inspiration in that regard, so he would use what was already available first.
Research, replicate, modify, and turn it into even more powerful technology—Lin Xiao enjoyed doing that. It could save him a great deal of time.
With the battle over, Captain Lu began leading people to clean up the aftermath. The surviving mercenaries had to be restrained, while the dead had to be moved away. Before long, the laboratory was much cleaner.
Lin Xiao, meanwhile, was repairing his data and making backups. These were his lifeblood.
Unless absolutely necessary, he could not bear to delete them, especially the experimental data. He did not want to spend precious time repeating the experiments.
Sun Wukong did not appear again, while several special forces brigades surrounded the place tightly.
This incident was extremely serious. China's military would not let it go.
Lin Xiao was also taken directly to a large military base. A base of this scale could withstand even hundreds of Iron Men.
Inside a meeting room at the military base, Lin Xiao sat across from a kind-looking middle-aged man. Lin Xiao appeared somewhat impatient.
"Uncle Huang, are you planning to keep me here forever? How is this any different from being taken captive?"
After leaving the laboratory, Lin Xiao seemed like a completely different person. Like an extreme shut-in who had not left home for years, he became unusually restless whenever he did go out and only wanted to hurry back.
"Xiao Lin, don't get so worked up. I understand people like you who do research—you can't live without the lab bench. But you're not one of those old researchers. Getting in touch with normal life once in a while will do you good."
"I'm much older than those old researchers. Forget it, but staying here all the time isn't a long-term solution either."
Uncle Huang was right. Lin Xiao was not a child; he could tell good intentions from bad ones.
Lin Xiao sighed helplessly and could only sit back down, staring at Uncle Huang without blinking.
"Ahem, you've been targeted by certain forces. They possess unconventional power, and ordinary troops cannot guarantee your safety. If they fail to take you away and decide to assassinate you instead, it will be difficult for us to defend against that."
"Not even a base like this? Have you found out exactly what force it is?"
Lin Xiao was somewhat surprised. It seemed his personal safety was under threat at any moment.
"A large base like this is certainly safe. The intruders were all mercenaries, and we couldn't find anything. The only clue is the four people in armor, but unfortunately, they were all killed by the Victorious Fighting Buddha."
"Hmph, armor? Once I solve the energy issue, they'll have a hard time."
"Xiao Lin, there is a place that can protect you and let you make use of your talents. Would you go?"
"Oh? Where is it? Uncle Huang, you've learned to keep people guessing too?"
"I won't tell you yet. You'll find out soon enough."
Uncle Huang lifted his teacup and began drinking tea without another word. He was determined to keep the suspense going.
Finding it boring, Lin Xiao picked up a mineral water bottle filled with blue liquid and gulped down several mouthfuls.
Lin Xiao was now like an infant still nursing. He had to carry nutrient solution with him at all times, or he constantly felt hungry and uncomfortable.
He had also discovered something: with sufficient energy and the mysterious blueprints within the Blue Stone, the rate of brain capacity development became much faster.
The early stages of brain capacity development were still quite rapid. In just a few days at the base, it had already increased by several percentage points.
The base's equipment was inadequate, so he could only synthesize simple nutrient solution. Otherwise, the results would have been even better.
This sort of thing would be good for replenishing soldiers' energy in the future. For his own use, he needed to develop a specialized high-energy drink.
Knock! Knock!
After Lin Xiao drank half a bottle of nutrient solution, someone knocked on the meeting room door.
Uncle Huang put down his teacup with a smile and gave Lin Xiao a look, signaling him to be more serious.
"Come in!"
At Uncle Huang's words, the meeting room door opened, and a man and a woman entered.
Both wore military uniforms. The woman looked very young, and her specially made dark red female uniform made her particularly striking.
The other was a middle-aged man. The epaulets on his uniform bore golden branches and three golden stars.
"Du, you're here. Sit down. Let me introduce you—this is Major General Lin!"
Uncle Huang stood up, greeted Du Kao warmly, then pointed at Lin Xiao as he introduced him.
"Haha, I've long heard of Major General Lin's great reputation. I'm Du Kao, the person in charge of the national Super God Project, and this is my assistant, Lian Feng."
Du Kao did not sit down. Instead, he extended his hand to Lin Xiao.
"I'm Lin Xiao. You could say I'm a scientist."
Lin Xiao was not surprised. He rose from his seat and shook hands with Du Kao and Lian Feng.
"Du, you know about Major General Lin's situation, right? I hope he can participate in the Super God Project. That way, his safety can also be protected."
Once they had finished introducing themselves, Uncle Huang brought up the main matter, a trace of concern appearing on his face.
"I've fully understood the situation. I came this time to formally invite Major General Lin as well. I believe his abilities can be put to better use there."
"Xiao Lin, what do you think? Your safety will be guaranteed this way, and you'll be satisfied with the research opportunities too."
"Mm, let me look over the documents."
Lin Xiao nodded and picked up the documents on the table, putting on a show of reading them.
They detailed the origins and development of the Super God Project, as well as the crisis Earth might face.
"A god-creation project... But what I specialize in is mechanical technology. I've dabbled in genetics, but you definitely wouldn't think much of those minor achievements."
"Major General Lin, you're too modest. Genetic technology only reached its current level after countless tens of thousands of years. Your mechanical technology can perfectly complement it."
Lin Xiao had actually already made his decision. Although Du Kao and the others were in dire straits, their technological capabilities were far beyond Earth's.
If he went with them, it would indeed benefit him. But he could not agree immediately. He had to drive up the price first.
Before you continue