Evil Spirit Castle

Azure Planet, West Fourth District, 4 PM.

P-205 Shelter.

The Nethermark Humanity.

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

The incessant sirens were abruptly silenced by a thrown object, accompanied by flashing red warning lights, which heightened the tension.

Li Aoz and Du Zexin walked through the gate and were greeted by dozens of special Biochemical Soldier.

Compared to the mass-produced products of the previous factory, these guards blocking the ' Treatment Room ' for the Esha Infected were clearly more elite and well-equipped.

Aside from some heavily armored units, those wielding 20mm Heavy Machine Cannon fired at them with overwhelming force, unleashing a storm of alloy fire. There were even cloaked snipers who loaded Depleted Uranium Armor-Piercing Shell into their anti-materiel rifles, shattering Du Zexin's mobile bunker in one fell swoop.

In addition, there were some with white armbands and impressive commanders. With these guys around, the other Biochemical Soldier reacted very quickly.

With ammunition rapidly depleted, Du Zexin put away the Magnum Plasma Gun and switched to firing a live-fire rifle.

"The professor is deliberately wearing us down."

Du Zexin took cover and threw out two Kamikaze Drone, which accelerated into the crowd and exploded. The violent shockwave instantly knocked five or six Biochemical Soldier to the ground.

Seizing the opportunity, Li Aoz activated [Iterative Movement] and teleported from the hail of bullets. Iai Slash, slicing open a commander's neck at an angle. As the commander turned his gun, Li Aoz teleported to the sniper's position again, grabbed the commander's head, and used [Directional Demolition] to instantly shatter the brain inside the cylinder.

Du Zexin is not a mechanic who follows the turret-style approach. Influenced by the traditional thinking of Azure Planet, his mechanical creations are mainly drones and electronic bee swarms.

These Biochemical Soldier don't use chip processors, so he couldn't upload viruses to hack them; he had to use the most rudimentary method to eliminate them one by one.

Li Aoz rolled and landed, almost losing his footing. He sat behind a wall cover at the other end of the corridor, threw a throwing knife to kill the Biochemical Soldier who was sneaking up, and said with great annoyance:

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

He had barely finished speaking when a grenade exploded beside him.

Boom! The Gravity Field opened in time, deflecting a large amount of the impact. A shrapnel bullet that came too close grazed Li Aoz's face mask. If it weren't for the fact that the costume wouldn't be damaged, he would definitely have been injured and disfigured.

"Damn it!"

Li Aoz cursed.

"These guys have tactical awareness that surpasses that of Frostplate professional soldiers, and their reactions are extremely fast. Unless there are armored units, we can't push through."

In the heat of the fight, Du Zexin didn't even notice Li Aoz's clothing problem. He picked up his VK Rifle and fired a burst. With AI correction, 31 bullets accurately hit the same spot on the heavy machine gunner's helmet. The accumulated penetration force shattered the super-strong aramid fiber and Titanium Alloy plate. The hard steel core bullets pierced the brain inside the cylinder, and the heavy machine gunner was instantly disabled. His heavy body was fixed in place by the armor, and he stood there blankly.

Du Zexin's statement was conservative.

Li Aoz had just poked his head out to throw a knife when he was forced back by suppressive fire.

These guys' marksmanship is no worse than that of professional players. In his memory, only recoil-free deep learning aimbots could achieve this effect.

Even Du Zexin couldn't guarantee that his armor could withstand depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds—depleted uranium has self-sharpening properties, making it extremely effective at penetrating armor, and once it penetrates the armor, it generates temperatures of thousands of degrees, causing damage to the fragile body of the [Mechanic].

It's blocked.

Li Aoz glanced at the equipment he had picked up from Du Zexin's body. It was clear that Du Zexin hadn't expected to encounter such a large number of enemies before he came out.

With nearly 800 Fully Armed Biochemical Soldier in total, plus these dozens of elites, Du Zexin estimated that it shouldn't be a problem for Mingji to take down a Border City.

"So that's where the difficulty of the Scary level comes from."

Taking advantage of a lull in the fire, Li Aoz teleported out and killed several riflemen. His physique couldn't withstand the tearing of 6.8mm bullets. After his successful strike, he fled far away.

"Damn it, this is so troublesome!"

Li Aoz landed on the ceiling and quickly sprinted away, dodging bullets while relying on his unique mid-air maneuvers.

This hummingbird-like azimuth is almost impossible to predict or figure out. The anti-aircraft defenses of those riflemen are not exactly useless to them, but they miss nine times out of ten. Even if a stray bullet manages to glide past, its momentum is Gravity Deflection.

In order to shoot down Li Aoz, the bio-commander immediately ordered the soldiers to gather together and concentrate their firepower in the hope of hitting the elusive creature that was jumping around in the air like a hummingbird.

This gave Du Zexin an opportunity. He quickly put away his rifle and charged forward.

[Military [Peak Moment]]

These Biochemical Soldier were not equipped with plug-in chips, but the commander locked onto their fast-moving figures at a glance. As he lunged into the formation, the Biochemical Soldier under his command, who were mentally linked to them, had already raised their guns.

Da da da da da—

The rifle had barely been fired when Du Zexin charged into the crowd, throwing the two liquid fuel canisters he had assembled on his back onto the ground.

Smash!

Liquid fuel splattered and splashed across the crowd.

He then activated the Anti-Gravity System he had removed from the survivor and instantly leaped high into the air.

"Now, Li Aoz!"

At that very moment, Li Aoz and his figure passed each other in mid-air.

Du Zexin raised his hand and flung out a canister of thermite. The canister opened, and red iron oxide and aluminum powder were scattered in the air.

Li Aoz opened his palm, and a dazzling white light shone forth.

[The Polar Day Radiance]

Boom! Blinding fireworks burst in the air, and the white light continued to shine, fully igniting the liquid fuel on the ground and the thermite in the air. These Biochemical Soldier were instantly scorched by the torrential rain of fire. Their Carbon Fiber armor was burned through and curled up, and the fat and flesh inside were burned and penetrated by the aluminum and iron powder. Their entire bodies were ignited from head to toe in an instant.

The air was immediately filled with a foul, acrid smell. Most of the Biochemical Soldier were instantly ignited, their nerve signals blocked, leaving them standing motionless in the sea of fire, their metal skeletons bent by the high temperature and their refractory outer shells exposed.

"It's hard to imagine that the Combat Power of this bio-engineered unit has far surpassed that of Frostplate professional soldiers. If this kind of unit were used to replace human soldiers, it might greatly reduce casualties—"

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

If even the Nethermark Humanity can afford to support such Biochemical Soldier, how could the Frostplate Military, as the state's instrument of violence, not be able to? Frostplate's military expenditure accounts for 11.7% of its total spending, 3% more than its education budget. If such troops were to replace human soldiers—what a severe wave of military unemployment that would cause! It's important to understand that joining the military is one of the most common ways for rural children to improve their lives. If even this path is blocked, then Frostplate- Dwelling's already distorted society will be utterly destroyed.

According to Du Zexin's recollection, Frostplate now has more than 400,000 contract soldiers.

They possess violent skills, have one or two dangerous military prosthetics implanted in their bodies, and have entered society due to unemployment. It is conceivable that the crime and murder rates in Frostplate will explode in an instant.

Bounty Hunter from the slums would be Dimensional Strike by these organized and disciplined soldiers. They would become the leading gangs in various cities, and their expertise in destruction and occupation would allow them to become warlords and local tyrants.

However, its benefits are so obvious.

Compared to machines, humanoid Biochemical Soldier are more concealed and less likely to attract attention. Once they put on helmets, they are more easily accepted by citizens than robots.

They are not controlled by computer programs, so they don't have to worry about being hacked, and their loyalty is guaranteed.

For a fleeting moment, he even began to doubt whether the path of the [Biochemist] was the right one.

The technology on Azure Planet is not yet advanced enough, and people do not have a rich imagination about the prospects of extraordinary power.

Some people are obsessed with virtual technology, human-computer interaction, and mechanical ascension, hoping to use immortal machines to carry their lonely souls and completely abandon their frail bodies.

Others firmly believe that gene editing and grafting, following the evolutionary path of Carbon-Based Life forms, is the future of humanity.

They could not imagine the future, for the path to the stars had long been obscured by the red and black clouds of the Malefic Calamity.

Du Zexin was somewhat confused for a moment. This confusion stemmed from the struggle and bewilderment that scientists have regarding the future of the research industry.

The debate between mechanics and biochemistry has never ceased. Mechanical creations, symbolizing human intelligence, and flesh-and-blood bodies, representing humanity's dominance at the top of the food chain on this planet, will both have a tremendous impact on human thought and society, regardless of which one prevails.

"It's not that scary."

Li Aoz poured a packet of concentrated glucose into his mouth, and his powerful digestive system quickly restored his Aura Value and stamina.

He glanced at the corpse of the Biochemical Soldier and said, "Leaving aside the fact that the maintenance costs of such Biochemical Soldier are extremely high, and the Daoism issues involved in their production make widespread deployment impossible, let's just say this: [Bio-engineers] are ultimately studying flesh and blood—as long as it is Carbon-Based Life, there is a fundamental weakness."

There may be many people on the Azure Planet who are smarter than him, but no one has a better vision than him.

From a cosmic perspective, if Biochemical Soldier were truly that effective, should all Cosmic Civilization vigorously develop biotechnology to replace human and mechanical systems? Obviously not.

Because a body of flesh and blood is ultimately just flesh and blood. Its advantages are its dexterity, flexibility, and greater adaptability, but its weaknesses are also too obvious.

Du Zexin was taken aback, but then he understood.

He lowered his head and stood in mid-air with Li Aoz, looking down at the ground covered by a red ocean. About twenty Biochemical Soldier stood in the middle, their flesh and blood burned away and their brains evaporated, leaving only composite metal skeletons that were illuminated with a bright dark gold.

"Fire."