Apocalyptic Mechanist Section 9

[New round of Battle Royale, who will claim the top spot? Place your bets now!]

That's a lot of information.

Jiang Xiao was surprised. "Data technology is restricted? No wonder that alien's prosthetic control system was so fragile. But what does this have to do with the insectoid swarm's attack?"

The prisoners on Frontier Prison Star seemed accustomed to the insectoid swarms.

"Battle Royale betting? Can local prisoners also see the live broadcast of the Battle Royale?"

Jiang Xiao pondered.

These industrial crates were quite significant. Even if he didn't know the Alliance's policy for the prison star, he understood that items representing core productivity like these wouldn't be allowed to flow in.

They could do so many things.

Jiang Xiao's eyes flickered. "What do they want to do?"

The defense fleet outside the prison star consisted of one 2,000-meter-class Star Alliance Type IV Alert Defense Ship, three 1,000-meter-class Orbital Defense Ships, and eleven 400-meter-class Intra-System Defense Ships. This was more than enough to suppress all ground anomalies on the prison star!

Unless this prison star had a Tier 4 Martial artist or a Tier 3 Esper, which was even more impossible. High-talent and high-level individual criminals definitely had other destinations.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Xiao forcibly shifted his attention.

It was too early to consider these matters; he would adapt as needed when the time came.

Just as he was about to browse other pages, the betting information, which was originally in the third column, suddenly jumped to the second column due to popularity, pushing aside the Black Mech Gang's advertisement.

"Huh?"

Did something major happen in the Battle Royale?

Jiang Xiao curiously clicked on it. Hundreds of links appeared. The topmost link now displayed "[1 vs 7, the most suspenseful gamble!]."

Wait, one against seven?

His expression stiffened, and he suddenly realized something, immediately clicking the link.

The next moment, a video feed appeared, occupying half the screen. It showed a top-down view of a building. A figure could be faintly seen clinging to the side of the building, holding a glowing object.

He subconsciously looked up at the sky. About three seconds later, the figure in the video also looked up.

"Damn it!"

"Seriously? It's just seven Tier 1 Martial artists, not even a single Tier 1 Peak, and it's attracting so much attention?"

Fortunately, he hadn't taken off his goggles since the beginning, so his appearance was mostly hidden. These goggles were fully enclosed, with one-way material at the eye position, making it look like a solid metal plate from the outside, obscuring his eyes. The alien criminals on the prison star wouldn't have technology to detect through such materials.

Below the live feed were many discussion threads and comment sections. He casually scanned them, and the corners of his mouth curved upwards involuntarily.

#No way, seven against one and they couldn't win? Are they even playing?! My Sin Coins!#

#The Black Mech Gang's elite action team is gone too. They've been thoroughly humiliated, hehe.#

#Bro, the Pan-Human God of Slaughter is in the Old Capital. My Black Mech Gang can't do anything for now, but you, my friend, are in Sin City.#

#...#

#Holy crap, is this real? I remember the captain of that action team was a Mech Warrior, rumored to have fought evenly with a Tier 2 Martial artist, and there was a Tier 1 Elite in the team. They were all wiped out?#

#Damn it, could this guy be a Tier 2 Martial artist? That shouldn't be right, aren't the Tier 2 prisoners marked?#

#How dare he provoke the Black Mech Gang? He'd better never enter the gathering areas or Sin City for the rest of his life.#

The feeling of showing off was quite satisfying. If there was an opportunity, he would definitely try playing the pig to eat the tiger. Or perhaps crushing them on the spot would be even more satisfying?

Catching sight of another post out of the corner of his eye, Jiang Xiao suddenly had an idea.

#Among the Hunters, the four Tier 2 Martial artists, I wonder if they can hunt this human Martial artist.#

The Hunters have four Tier 2 Martial artists? Based on the ratio from the Starport, there should be around twelve new prisoners... Even a robust alien with Tier 2 stats enhanced by mechanical prosthetics could provide 1,500 experience points. True Tier 2 individuals would surely provide more! Tier 1 Martial artists could also provide a good amount of experience. With so many live feeds on the Sin City network terminals, it was highly likely they would continuously track Tier 1 and Tier 2 Martial artist prisoners. Perhaps he could use this to pinpoint their locations. The experience points from ordinary prisoners were too low; hunting Martial artists would be more efficient. He could probably leave the Old Capital once he reached Tier 2. The experience required for Tier 2 wouldn't be satisfied by just a dozen or so Tier 2 Martial artists.

As expected, Jiang Xiao soon found live feeds of over a dozen Tier 1 Elite or Peak Martial artists. The comment sections, as anticipated, provided their approximate locations and names. Comparing this with the free Old Capital map he found online, Jiang Xiao slowly smiled.

He withdrew the Origin Data, and the network terminal immediately displayed an "offline" prompt. Recalling the Old Capital map and the locations of the dozen or so targets in his mind, Jiang Xiao decided to set off immediately and begin his hunt! Night was when enemies let down their guard.

Waiting around for prey is convenient, but targeted hunting is far more cost-effective!

As Jiang Xiao made his move, the prisoners of Sin City, still reeling from the shock of a human martial artist defeating seven opponents, all turned their gaze towards him.

Many high-ranking gang members who had previously paid Jiang Xiao no mind also quieted down, wanting to see what he would do next, using it to analyze his personality, behavioral patterns, and other intelligence.

A Tier 1 martial artist and a Tier 2 martial artist were completely different concepts.

The former could barely handle several fully armed soldiers from a primitive civilization, while a Tier 2 was a transcendent being capable of legitimately taking on a small-scale interstellar armed force single-handedly!

Within Sin City, Tier 2 martial artists were the cream of the crop!

Sin City, an underground space somewhere.

The black-robed figure known as A Ling, who had only recently snapped out of her shock, watched the screen and hesitated, "The direction he's going seems to be Park Number Two?"

"Park Number Two? Isn't that where the Iron Fist Brothers are currently stationed?" the middle-aged man asked, puzzled.

"I remember that pair of martial artist brothers both broke through to Tier 1 Peak a month ago?"

"Holy crap, is this guy lost, or..."

Chapter 10: Tier 1 Peak, Research Complete

A rapid sliding sound echoed through the pitch-black night, and then a solid wall was directly smashed through, revealing the intruder's distinctive tadpole-fish-shaped head.

Its fierce and ferocious form exuded an oppressive aura!

Without a doubt, it was a Viper Race martial artist.

Yet, this powerful Viper Race martial artist now had a contorted expression, with bloodstains splattered across more than half of its face. And it wasn't its blood.

"You son of a bitch, get out here!!"

Just moments ago, its brother, with whom it had been discussing the future, was suddenly obliterated by a beam of light. The projectile was so fast and powerful that even though they had sensed danger, they had no chance to react.

A sniper weapon, and very likely one powered by Source Energy!

The moment its brother died, it darted into a nearby building. The sniper fired at it again, the bullet grazing its arm and injuring it.

It hadn't died.

The Viper Race martial artist was enraged. Looking towards the staircase not far away, it immediately slid rapidly towards the rooftop.

When it was sniped earlier, it had seen it – the source of the light beam was in this very building!

It wanted to crush the cowardly, sneak-attacking, lowly scum hiding in the shadows and exact bloody revenge!

It charged all the way to the rooftop, only to see a lone sniper rifle set up on the edge, but the sniper was nowhere in sight.

Suddenly, three gunshots rang out.

The Viper Race martial artist was startled, then, relying on its powerful reflexes and physical strength, it dodged quickly. One of the bullets was even blocked by the muscles of its forearm!

Without penetrating its skin, the bullet lodged itself in its flesh, and blood began to flow.

A faint white aura could be seen faintly enveloping its body.

The person firing the shots showed no surprise and decisively darted out from a corner, charging towards the Viper Race martial artist. Two blades crossed each other, one above and one below, slashing at the Viper Race martial artist.

'Just entered Tier 1 Elite?'

The Viper Race martial artist sensed the attacker's strength. Seeing that it would be difficult to dodge all the slashes, it decided not to, opting for an exchange of blows.

A Tier 1 Elite martial artist couldn't possibly break through its Source Energy defense!

The blade met the Viper Race martial artist's forearm, and then, the Viper Race martial artist, its face contorted in a snarl, had a drastic change in expression.

Screech!

The blade cut through its arm without obstruction and plunged into its chest!

'How is this possible... Tier 2 Source Energy weapons were already bought up by the major gangs in advance?'

Facing the disbelieving Viper Race martial artist, the other blade didn't hesitate, slicing across its waist, opening a large gash from which blood gushed out.

Without the strength in its waist, it was difficult for the Viper Race, whose lower body was a snake tail, to move!

Jiang Xiao immediately flashed away.

Staring at the Viper Race martial artist with its arms mangled and its disbelief evident, he decisively picked up the sniper rifle beside him and pulled the trigger!

[Killed Viper Gang Elite Sub-Leader (Tier 1 Peak) · Gained 805 EXP (Alien Bonus · Identity Bonus)]

Dragging the opponent's corpse into the building, Jiang Xiao opened his status panel.

[EXP: 1607]

He poured all the experience points into his Source Energy. Immediately, a familiar warm current surged forth. The Source Energy, which should have been gentle and soothing, now caused Jiang Xiao a slight pain.

[Source Energy Strength: 46 (75/500)]

[Spirit Energy Strength: 10 (0/300)]

Tier 1 Peak!

Without any obstruction, a mechanical-bodied alien, six Tier 1 martial artists, and two Tier 1 Peak martial artists had propelled his strength to Tier 1 Peak overnight!