"Within the firmament, there are five immortals: Heaven, Earth, gods, humans, and ghosts; and five creatures: furred, feathered, shelled, scaled, and naked."
Among them, Earth Immortals included all manner of beings: sacred spirits of the land, mountain gods and earth deities, spiritual roots of Heaven and Earth, terrestrial Tai Sui, and other rare species.
Flesh of Vision belonged to the Earth Immortal lineage, one of the ten categories.
The Five Creatures excelled through their exceptional physical prowess, while the Five Immortals leaned more toward mastery of Yanfu's authority. Compared with the Five Creatures, they offered less improvement to one's combat ability.
Chen Jin's Flesh of Vision inheritance gave him exceptional advantages in self-healing, recovery, and disguise, but it offered little help when brute force was needed.
Still, breaking out of this predicament wasn't difficult. He just had to toss away Mo Mei and make a tactical retreat.
He had acquired a Yanfu token from one of the Hundred Schools of Thought to officially activate the Yanfu Event. Once the event had begun, the token's value was no longer as important.
It still had the special effect of commanding the Qi Mohists, but Chen Jin hadn't even met a single Qi Mohist yet. At this point, it was rather useless.
But Chen Jin had a "but."
He would never hand the world over to people who hated him.
Just as he would never use a Wish Stone to leave Yanfu safely.
His thoughts churned for only an instant.
Chen Jin's gaze turned utterly cold, and every trace of expression vanished from his face.
Now he faced the empire's most elite mechanized killing formation.
"Tsk, what a pain..."
These things were incredibly strong and heavily armored, but in this narrow alley, their numbers and size might actually work against them. Their movements would be restricted, making it difficult for them to attack all at once.
"Nuonuo," Chen Jin said in a low, rapid voice. "Can you still move? Like before—zip! Go behind them, as far as you can!"
The charred, dead flesh on Nuonuo's body was falling away faster now, and new, pale skin was spreading across her.
She seemed to understand. Her little head gave the faintest nod, and her cloudy eyes turned toward the space behind the nearest Mechanism Warrior.
Just then, the three Mechanism Warriors directly ahead moved!
They raised their arms, aiming their bronze barrels, each as thick as a bowl, at Chen Jin.
"Vrrrm—!"
The dull clatter of mechanisms drowned out even the rain! Three specially made crossbow bolts, each like a short spear, tore through the downpour with a shrill whistle, shooting straight at Chen Jin's head, torso, and legs in a triangular formation!
They were faster than any human could manage!
There was no way to dodge!
A fierce glint flashed in Chen Jin's eyes. Instead of retreating, he lunged forward! At the same time, a hard-edged pistol appeared in each of his hands!
Symphony of Myriad Phenomena!
Firearms proficiency: 86%!
He didn't bother to aim. Relying entirely on something close to instinctive muscle memory and perception, he raised his arms and fired!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The three crisp shots nearly merged into one, each hitting the head of a crossbow bolt.
But the Qi Mohists' specially crafted bolts were no ordinary weapons. The bullets struck them and sparked, barely deflecting their trajectories.
One skimmed past Chen Jin's ribs, tearing away a patch of flesh. Blood welled up, then the wound instantly healed.
Another whizzed past his scalp, cutting off a few strands of hair before embedding itself deep in the earthen wall behind him, its tail shuddering violently.
He narrowly dodged the last one by twisting aside. The gust from the bolt stung his cheek.
As the bolts flew, the four Mechanism Warriors on either side moved as well! They bared their arm blades and closed in like massive bronze pincers, aiming to hack him to pieces on the spot.
At that moment, Chen Jin was caught in the delicate interval after his momentum had carried him through the dodge, before he could gather new strength.
A perfect pincer attack! These cold constructs possessed sophisticated combat logic.
At the critical moment!
"Whoosh—!"
A faint sound of something cutting through the air rang out.
The charred "little corpse" that had been lying motionless behind Chen Jin vanished into thin air.
The next instant, Nuonuo's tiny figure appeared behind the head of the rightmost Mechanism Warrior, which was swinging its blade at Chen Jin.
She seemed unpracticed. Her body tilted awkwardly as she appeared, but her pale little hands instinctively clutched the warrior's cold bronze head.
Her sharp fingernails scraped against the metal with a piercing squeal.
The sudden interference caused the Mechanism Warrior's processing core to falter for the briefest moment.
Its attack abruptly halted, and the red light in its head flickered erratically as it tried to assess the threat posed by the thing clinging to it.
That pause, which lasted less than half a second, was enough for Chen Jin.
His body bent as if boneless, slipping through the gap that had opened on the right at an impossible angle.
The left-side warrior's arm blade skimmed past his back, slicing a long gash in the coarse cloth of his shirt.
He broke free of the encirclement.
Chen Jin didn't stop. His pistols spat fire again.
Symphony of Myriad Phenomena: Armor-Piercing Rounds!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
This time, he fired at the joints that were turning and locking into place—the elbows, knees, and necks.
Sparks flew everywhere!
"Ka-chunk!"
A metallic grinding sound that set one's teeth on edge rang out! The warrior's left arm instantly grew stiff and jerky. Its swinging blade lost its aim and nearly struck one of its companions.
It worked!
Chen Jin's thoughts raced. He shifted his steps, using the narrow alley and piles of debris to keep dodging.
More arm blades came slashing at him, each swing carrying a dull whoosh as it tore through the air.
Heavy metal feet stomped on the ground, splashing water everywhere.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!"
There was no need for a warning. The attack was already upon him.
One Vermilion Bird struck first. Its belly mechanism opened, unleashing more than a dozen "eggs" that blanketed a wide area around Chen Jin.
The instant the sound of them cutting through the air rang out, Chen Jin's body had already reacted.
He executed a swift tactical sidestep, his body swaying sharply as he dodged the densest part of the attack.
"Nuonuo, down! Stay hidden!" he shouted. His low voice was nearly swallowed by the explosions, but the little girl behind the broken wall immediately curled up even tighter.
As soon as the first wave hit, a second Vermilion Bird swept down and gave a mighty flap of its wings.
Its wings, composed of countless razor-sharp plates, fired dozens of glinting feather-blades like bolts from a mighty bow!
The blade-like feathers spun with a grating whistle, sweeping in from another tricky angle. Their range was wider, and they were even harder to dodge.
Chen Jin's eyes narrowed. He performed a series of back handsprings.
His body flipped backward across the muddy, slippery ground at high speed, each movement clean and precise. The feather-blades thudded into the spots where he had stood a moment earlier.
But a third Vermilion Bird had silently flown directly overhead, its enormous shadow engulfing him.
It didn't fire crossbow bolts or blades. Instead, it opened its mechanical beak. Gears turned within, and a point of blazing white light began to gather—
At the critical moment!
Chen Jin finished his backflip and landed on one knee, steadying himself. The pistols of Symphony of Myriad Phenomena were already in his hands!
He raised his arms and took aim!
"Bang! Bang!"
Two sharp shots rang out, abruptly cutting through the metallic roar of the battlefield.
Two armor-piercing rounds spun out of the muzzles at a speed far greater than any bow or crossbow bolt, streaking toward the Vermilion Bird in the air as it charged up its attack.