Titan vs. Zhu Yan

"What's with this kid?"

A burly man holding a submachine gun stared with wide, bloodshot eyes. In that instant, everyone around the Zhu Yan Mech was sent flying, crashing to the ground, their fates unknown.

If he hadn't been hiding far away, he probably would have ended up like his companions.

Originally, everyone planned to use the Zhu Yan Mech's shield to reduce damage as they were beneath it, intending to rush into the airport all at once. But now, they were wiped out in one fell swoop, losing over a dozen active fighters.

With only about two hundred people, losing more than ten at once—how were they supposed to fight?

In a fit of rage, and to boost morale, Li Ming became the target of their concentrated fire.

"No matter what you are, die!"

"Take them all down!"

"Brothers, get him!"

Li Ming then found himself enjoying a barrage of attacks from a group of people, a truly incredible sight on the entire battlefield.

The HK Organization's primary objective was to eliminate Raiden Ryoma, while the Chiyou Organization, cooperating with them, aimed to launch an attack, abduct more civilians, and seize resources. By acting alongside the HK Organization, they would also have someone to blame.

"Oh, I'm just too outstanding," Li Ming shook his head, using the mech beneath him as a shield. He had to admit, even with its shield activated, the Titan's protection was only one-sided.

But even so, the submachine gun fire from those villains couldn't break through the Titan's shield.

After a short burst of firing, they were quickly yelled at to stop. "Bastards, are you trying to blow up the Zhu Yan Mech along with us?"

"Huh, Zhu Yan? Isn't that a Titan?"

Titan X, Zhu Yan √?

But no one paid any attention to Li Ming at this moment.

Clearly, not everyone among them was an idiot. Two individuals who appeared to be minor leaders shouted for the shooters to stop, which made Li Ming breathe a slight sigh of relief. After all, he wasn't yet at the point of being able to withstand bullets with his bare body. Besides, even if he could withstand bullets, even a Herrscher couldn't withstand a carpet bombing (note: withstand, not considering their abilities).

Li Ming had continuously released energy and relied on the armor to block the bullets in front of him, while the energy shield of the mech blocked the bullets behind him.

Knowing that Li Ming had the mech to handle the situation, the people from those organizations proceeded further into the airport with the remaining five Spider King-like mechs and one Shaman Mech.

The current battlefield consisted of the HK and Chiyou Organizations possessing five mechs similar to the Spider King Mech, but they didn't self-destruct rapidly. Their heads were pointed, equipped with heavy weapons and energy shields. Perhaps they should have been renamed Squid Mechs, but Li Ming remained secretly vigilant, as he had already seen modified Titans.

Then there were three Shaman Mechs. These Shaman Mechs were quite standard, except they seemed to lack the ability to trigger spatial rifts. Everything else was generally enhanced, with the addition of a fifteen-meter diameter fiery field and an energy shield. Hearing the Chiyou Organization members call them Vermillion Birds made Li Ming want to facepalm; thankfully, they hadn't dared to call them Crimson Kites, or his old master would have descended from the heavens to punish them.

The remaining twelve Titan Mechs were modified models. Despite having two extra gun barrels and being painted red, they were renamed Zhu Yan. Li Ming couldn't discern any significant changes. However, they retained the characteristics of the Titans, and their skills should be the same, though he wondered how much better they were than the original.

The Valkyries could only hold off seven of the twelve mechs. The seven Titans, combined with the barrage from the grunts, were indeed quite oppressive. Among the remaining five, four were engaged in one-on-one battles with the four Titans deployed from the warship. Only one of the Valkyries was an A-rank; the rest were around B-rank, not particularly strong. It could only be said that being able to undertake missions within the city was already quite good, as those truly powerful individuals were likely at headquarters. Having one or two outstanding individuals in a branch was already quite a feat.

You could see two Titans, or rather, one Titan and one Zhu Yan. The Titan swung a heavy punch, and the Zhu Yan raised its cannon to fire at the Titan. Although the original Titan's abilities were stronger than the Zhu Yan's, the Titan also had to deal with the surrounding grunts from time to time.

Both mechs had ample energy and thick armor, resulting in a prolonged engagement.

As for those summoned by the warship's commander, they were currently wearing standard-issue armor. Two wielded large sabers, while another held a long sword. These three were being ganged up on by two two-meter-tall Shaman Mechs.

The one with the saber was not bad; his strength was relatively outstanding, likely around D-rank. Combined with the armor, he had C-rank combat power. However, the one holding the long sword was quite eye-catching, being among the more prominent individuals at C-rank.

Yet, both were surrounded by the Vermillion Bird Mechs, which could spew fire. When they tried to escape the fiery field, the Shaman Mechs would block them.

The one with the long sword was quite intelligent, similar to Li Ming, wearing a Heart-to-Heart system armor. He could occasionally break through the Vermillion Bird Mechs' energy shields, but with the coordinated barrage from the enemy, it was difficult to expand their gains, and instead, he sustained numerous injuries.

The two burly men with sabers were somewhat infuriating. They held sabers but wore fire control system armor, swinging twice and then firing twice. Their shields barely moved, yet the young man with the long sword was affected. What was the point? Were they brainwashed by American Iaijutsu, believing that guns were faster from seven steps away and faster and more accurate within seven steps?

Brother, you're fighting mechs, not Valkyries who can use Honkai Energy to counter mechs, nor are you facing someone with exceptional martial arts skills. If Li Ming were with them, he'd probably be angered to the point of a stroke by them. However, they later reacted and aimed their cannons at the grunts, but they had to withstand both the barrage and the fiery field. It was a joke; just surviving would be an accomplishment.

Li Ming had initially intended to conceal his strength and go after the Shaman Mechs first. But then he considered that unless the support called by the commander arrived, that Titan could lead the group through the defenses and into the safe zone of the airport.

There was no other choice. Li Ming had to confront this last Zhu Yan. However, being focused-fired after just appearing and clearing a wave of grunts was quite frustrating for Li Ming.

With an "Azure Swallow Flip," Li Ming confronted the mech before him.

"You think you're the Immortal Crimson Kite, capable of fighting my Zhu Yan alone? Too naive, kid." A rather sharp male voice came from inside the mech. It was clear he looked down on Li Ming, despite having just been kicked to his knees by Li Ming.

He still blamed the warship's issue. Indeed, Li Ming had borrowed the warship's momentum. When launching, he executed the Cunxin Fist Technique: Azure Dragon Emerging from Water, Soaring Dragon. Otherwise, his normal Soaring Dragon, which involved jumping into the sky and then falling with inertia, wouldn't have had such power.

"Witness my Zhu Yan's Fire, hahaha, burn to death, kid!"

A rampant laugh echoed. Li Ming was bewildered, what was this thing that sounded so grand?

Then, he saw flames erupting from an opening on the mech's left arm, the intense flames rushing directly towards Li Ming.

"This is called Zhu Yan's Fire?" Li Ming's mouth twitched, but he dodged it obediently. Although it wouldn't do him any harm, it was better to avoid it.

The scorching flames turned the concrete ground black, even causing it to crack. The tongues of fire engulfed the surrounding vegetation, turning it to ash.

Li Ming took a step back but didn't completely evade the flame's range. Then, with Vermillion Bird Treading Clouds beneath his feet, he shot out several meters in an instant. "Close call, close call. This flame is actually 1500 degrees. Abstract."

"Stinky brat, be consumed by my Zhu Yan's Fire!"

The mech was unusually arrogant, spraying flames wildly. Wherever Li Ming dodged, the flames would drift. It seemed to want to burn Li Ming to death, but in reality, it couldn't catch up to Li Ming at all.

However, Li Ming did feel a sense of urgency, as if his behind was on fire, though it was merely an illusion.

Despite constantly dodging, Li Ming was primarily observing the differences between this Zhu Yan Mech and a regular Titan during their evasive maneuvers.

He then discovered that although this Zhu Yan Mech was equipped with gun barrels and a flamethrower, giving it mid-to-long-range offensive capabilities, it had lost the effects of "Sky-Piercing Strike" and "Mech Heavy Punch" compared to a regular Titan. Even if it gathered enemies, it couldn't deal massive damage with its fists, as it would damage the gun barrels.

It could only be said that all its offensive power was directed towards clearing out minions. If Tesla found out, the person who modified this mech would likely have been verbally annihilated by Tesla.

It wasn't wise to just drag things out on flat ground with this mech, Li Ming realized. He needed to take the initiative. The cannon on the Zhu Yan mech's left arm was glowing red, clearly overheated.

The mech's sudden halt gave Li Ming an opening. He darted towards its left leg, knowing that the overheated arm would be clumsy. Even if it exploded, he felt his armor could handle it, leaving him with only minor injuries.

He unleashed a flurry of the Cunxin Fist Technique: Six Forms of White Tiger Listening to the Wind. The combo only managed to crack the armor on the mech's left leg, and that was with the help of his wrist guards' 8% critical hit chance and the armor's own 10%.

"Still, this is a good chance to see if I can access my combat panel."

Sure enough, when he focused his mind on the system, he saw his HP at 980 and his shield at 290. That 290 must be his armor; it had barely taken a dent after absorbing so many bullets.

Below his health bar, his SP was only at 10, not enough to even use an Inch Punch: Thunderbolt. It must have accumulated from his White Tiger Listens to the Wind combo and the Inch Punch: Soaring Dragon he used when landing.

"My head hurts. Kiana just casually fought Titans back then, didn't she?"

Li Ming forgot that Kiana could only casually fight Titans after Himeko's death, when she could transform into White Knight: Moonlight. But could White Comet really transform into Moonlight at SSS rank? Of course not!

Back then, Kiana might have been using White Comet, but that didn't mean she couldn't switch. Her strength was already comparable to an average S-rank Valkyrie, and with a cheat, she could even surpass them. As for Li Ming, he wasn't even as strong as the starter trio yet.

However, the Zhu Yan mech seemed unfazed. It leaned back slightly, raising both arms. Rifts appeared on the Titan's body, generating a constant gale that pulled everything within five meters towards the mech. Even those outside the immediate radius were affected.

Li Ming, who had just finished his close-quarters combo, couldn't escape in time. The Zhu Yan mech had been charging its attack for nearly thirty seconds.

"Kid, let me show you the true power of the Zhu Yan mech! Zhu Yan Heavy Punch!"