Su Ming's Battle

At the entrance to the mine.

Gunshots from 150 meters underground couldn't reach here; everything remained quiet. But when Su Ming activated the robot dog's protection mode, an alarm message was simultaneously pushed out.

In order to maintain communication with the main communication network, Su Ming dropped off three relay devices along the way, and the signal was quickly relayed to Mo Yuan's earpiece.

The Black Dragon Elder suddenly raised his enormous dragon head, his body surging with Magic Power. His massive body shrank rapidly, eventually transforming into a giant elephant the size of an adult.

Immediately afterward, Mo Yuan folded his wings and leaped down from the top of the shaft! Using his still strong limbs and claws after shrinking, he drew streaks of dazzling sparks on the cold, damp shaft wall as he slid down at high speed.

There was no one in the cage at the bottom. Mo Yuan simply stomped on it, and with a twisting groan of metal and a heavy thud, it landed on the ground.

At this moment, Su Ming's robot dogs had already opened fire, and Mo Yuan rushed into the underground work platform area following the direction of the gunfire. What came into view was Shiquan of blood.

Mo Yuan's cold dragon eyes merely swept over them; the dwarf's life or death did not affect him. The only thing he cared about was Su Ming's safety!

He rushed straight to the entrance of the sloping shaft from which the gunshots had come, and saw another dwarf's corpse lying inside. But the countless bullet holes all over his body clearly told him he was not innocent.

Without pausing, Mo Yuan swiftly slid down the slippery, sloping shaft. The situation at the bottom was even more chaotic: several robotic dogs lay on the ground, their metal bodies twisted and deformed, parts scattered everywhere. Beside them lay another corpse, riddled with bullet holes, clearly killed in the fight with Su Ming.

In that fleeting glance, Mo Yuan's heart sank. This was actually a human assassin!

Human assassins have infiltrated the mines controlled by the dwarves. Judging from the lingering aura on them, they are most likely assassins trained by the Temple of Light.

This is absolutely the worst-case scenario!

Mo Yuan was frantic. He ran wildly along the mine tunnel. He hadn't gone far when an assassin suddenly appeared in front of him! The man dug a hole in the hard cave wall and stuffed a bulging backpack into it.

Having done all this, the assassin didn't linger at all, turning around and running desperately into the deeper darkness of the mine tunnel.

Mo Yuan knew something was wrong. He dug his four claws into the rubble on the ground, pressing his entire body firmly against the ground like a rock, and using his wings to protect his head and neck.

"Boom-!!!"

Almost at the same instant he completed the crouching motion, a deafening blast erupted, loud enough to shatter eardrums!

A violent shockwave, carrying debris and scorching air, swept in with overwhelming force! Mo Yuan's body was forcibly pushed back several steps before he could finally regain his footing, and he couldn't help but let out a suppressed groan.

As the smoke and dust cleared, Mo Yuan moved his wings and raised his dragon head, his heart immediately turning cold: the entire section of the mine tunnel ahead had been completely destroyed by the explosion. Huge boulders blocked the passage completely!

****

On Su Ming's side.

As he was running wildly, he was also struck hard by the shockwave that swept in from behind and repeatedly refracted in the tunnel!

The violent shock caused Su Ming's vision to go black for a moment, and a metallic taste rushed to his throat. Fortunately, his magical shield had already been deployed, offsetting most of the damage.

Su Ming suppressed his surging blood and qi, and used his "Silent Vision" to scan behind him. There were still three of those hazy, persistent figures!

Like phantoms blending into the darkness, they clung tightly to their backs. Of the pack of robotic dogs that had originally followed, only the largest one remained.

These assassins were clearly rigorously trained, and their speed far surpassed Su Ming's!

He complained inwardly. Dealing with a force like the Divine Covenant Faction, supported by massive funds and a huge population, was such a hassle!

Realizing that continuing to run away would only lead to being caught, Su Ming steeled his heart, made a sharp turn, and rushed into the narrow mining tunnel next to him, which was only a little over a meter wide.

He rushed forward for over a hundred meters, then suddenly stopped, turned around, and looked behind him.

Even in the darkness, the assassins' figures were still shrouded in powerful stealth abilities. The robot dog's electronic eyes flashed frantically, switching between various detection modes, yet it still couldn't lock onto its target!

Su Ming had no choice but to resort to another method.

Upon receiving the command, the robot dog lowered its metal body, its mechanical claws embedding themselves deeply into the rubble to secure itself. Accompanied by a metallic scraping and hydraulic whirring, its broad back armor plates slid open to the sides, revealing a massive, ruggedly designed gun that rapidly rose and unfolded!

Su Ming gripped the folding grip at the bottom of the gun and snapped it open with a "click". He crouched down and aimed the iron sights at the blurry, distorted outlines rapidly approaching in the alley ahead.

The hydraulic system simultaneously pulled the bolt, pushing a 20x122mm bullet into the chamber, and with a clang, the barrel was locked!

A 20mm caliber of firepower is typically only assigned to light ground vehicles or aircraft units. The heavy mechanical dog beside Su Ming weighs only about 150 kilograms, which is far from meeting the standard of a "light vehicle".

But what's even more outrageous is that this machine gun weighs only 50 kilograms!

It was even designed as a human-operated "infantry" weapon. If needed, a five-man combat team could disassemble it, carry it by hand, traverse complex terrain to reach a pre-set position, and then reassemble it to provide powerful heavy firepower support for the troops.

To be honest, Su Ming often didn't understand the cognitive boundaries of the engineers in his hometown. This was a machine gun! A machine gun! Under normal circumstances, a human couldn't even pull the bolt!

Then look at the famous M2 "Lao Gan Ma" machine gun in the Lighthouse Country, a 12.7mm heavy machine gun that weighs nearly 60 kilograms. How can the US possibly compete with that?

****

Even though it was pitch black all around, and even though the assassins used extremely skillful stealth techniques, they still had nowhere to hide under Su Ming's "Silent Vision".

Su Ming took a deep breath, gripped the gun handle firmly, and pulled the trigger!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The 20mm bullet, as thick as a small carrot, leaves the muzzle at three and a half times the speed of sound, covering a distance of 100 meters in an instant!

The first shell slammed into the assassin charging at the front. His rapid movement was as if he had hit an invisible iron wall, and he stopped abruptly, his protective aura fluctuating violently!

The second shot followed immediately, and the assassin's dark energy shield shattered into fragments like a fragile glass dome! The third shot caused a precious magical amulet on his body to crack open with a "crack"!

The fourth shot, carrying the piercing scream of death, pierced the assassin's chest without resistance, reflected in his horrified, widened pupils! The impact threw him into the air, and like a sack of rotten wheat, he fell backward onto the cold, gravelly ground, lifeless.

This... this is an absolutely terrifying weapon!

The two assassins following closely behind were as if their throats had been gripped by an invisible giant hand, abruptly halting their charge.

They are death squads, raised from childhood by the Divine Covenant Faction at great expense. Their souls are imprinted with the fanatical belief that they will dedicate everything to God and will enter the Kingdom of God for eternal life after death. They are the most steadfast and fearless fanatics.

The two assassins' hesitation did not stem from fear—an emotion reserved for such lowly beings, which had long been eradicated by training and faith. Rather, they were simply faced with a weapon completely beyond their comprehension, utterly clueless about how to complete their assassination mission.

Su Ming completely ignored the other party's hesitation.

He deliberately chose this narrow alleyway to create a killing corridor. The enemy had nowhere to advance or retreat. If they wanted to hide, they were surrounded by solid rocks on all four sides.

Su Ming continued to pull the trigger steadily, the large bullet casings clattering and rolling on the damp ground with a hissing sound, and the scorching gunpowder smoke mixed with the fishy smell of water seeping from the rock walls spread out.

The remaining two assassins rolled and dodged in vain in the confined space, but faced with a barrage of firepower capable of tearing through light armor, all their struggles seemed futile.

In the end, they could only become two more mangled corpses in the alleyway, filled with resentment and regret for failing to complete their mission.

The misfired shells, with a sharp whistle, pierced the rock wall at the end of the alley with a straight trajectory, leaving holes the size of bowls, from which gravel fell in a flurry.

Su Ming let out a long breath, loosened his grip on the gun, and rubbed his numb hands with his thumbs.

Even though the mechanical dog absorbed most of the recoil from the 20x122mm high-powered ammunition, the continuous and violent impact transmitted through the steel to his hands still caused a tingling and numb sensation in his tiger's mouth.

He looked at the corpses on the ground; the assassins had somehow managed to retain their human form, escaping being blasted apart by the machine gun.

This only proves that the extraordinary beings from other worlds are indeed extremely robust!

****

The pungent smell of gunpowder had not yet dissipated when an even stronger smell of alchemical explosives wafted into the air.

Su Ming had already guessed that the assassins covering the rear had blown up a section of the passage to buy time to kill him.

He turned his head and looked behind him. What came into view was an uneven rock quarrying face, with bright red residual cinnabar all over the ground—this was the end of this tunnel.

Numerous fissures on the excavation face were gushing out murky muddy water, like pus seeping from the depths of the earth.

Su Ming shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the discomfort caused by the shockwave from the explosion.

He pulled out his tablet and checked the information records on it, quickly discovering that there was still one enemy.

Although the four smaller robotic dogs were destroyed by the enemy shortly after encountering the assassins, their core processors still managed to synchronize the combat data before completely shutting down.

During the rearguard action, they worked together to kill an assassin.

Including the three Su Ming had just killed, that makes a total of four. And at the moment the encounter occurred, when Su Ming looked up from below the sloping well, he saw the figures of five assassins!

It's not hard to guess that the remaining assassin was at the back of the group, detonating alchemical explosives to create a collapse and block Elder Mo Yuan or other possible reinforcements!

At this moment, from the direction of the collapsed alleyway, a series of muffled and continuous sounds could be faintly heard. Some were the muffled "plop" sounds of softened rocks, like earth-based magic such as "turning Transmute Rock to Mud" taking effect; others were the "crashing" sounds of stones rolling and rubbing as heavy objects were moved and dragged, clearly the rescuers working hard to clear the obstruction.

In short, Su Ming only needs to firmly guard this passage, ensure his own safety, and patiently wait for his teammates to clear the obstacles and arrive.

He took a deep breath, his fingers returning to the cold grip of the machine gun, and looked warily into the darkness.

****

At the intersection of the T-shaped passageways, the last assassin from the Temple of Light stood frozen like a stone statue.

Turning left into this mining tunnel, the assassination target was located within. However, the deathly silence of her companions, who showed no signs of life, and the dozen or so shocking, massive holes with cracked edges on the right rock wall, silently testified to the presence of some terrifying force. She knew in her heart that rushing over now would only result in her death.

The assassin raised his hand, his fingers touching the edge of his mask, and forcefully ripped it off. Faced with absolute darkness and the certainty of death, this veil of concealment seemed superfluous and laughable.

She released her grip, and the metal mask crashed to the mine floor with a crisp "clang." The sound was amplified and refracted by the cave walls in the confined space, making it seem particularly jarring.

But on this side of the T-shaped passage, Su Ming paid no attention to the clear sound of the falling object. He lay on the back of the robotic dog, propping his chin up and staring ahead, seemingly contemplating life.

What's so surprising about a rock falling from a mine and making a crisp sound when it hits the ground?

"Mr. Su Ming, there's no need to pretend anymore." The assassin at the other end of the passage spoke up, his voice piercing the darkness, "You know very well I'm here."

It was the voice of a mature woman, tinged with a hoarseness honed by years of experience, and an indescribable weariness.

A sudden pang of compassion welled up in Su Ming's heart: Now that the enemy was in dire straits, was it possible to persuade or even turn this assassin to surrender?

In today's encounter, the robot dogs performed poorly. The direct reason was that, despite their powerful firepower, they were unable to lock onto the ghosts who possessed High Rank stealth abilities.

The approach to problem-solving in the technology sector has always been simple and direct: if the current method doesn't work, then try a new one!

Thermal imaging and LiDAR are ineffective? Then try active sonar detection. Even using a multispectral, high-frame-rate visual sensor array to capture subtle light distortions or airflow disturbances caused by stealth spells is not out of the question!

We can also study the principles behind these assassins' stealth tactics and develop countermeasures directly based on those principles.

But this raises a problem: whether conducting actual testing or in-depth research, live assassin "samples" are needed—which is why Su Ming suddenly felt "pity" for so many assassins!

However, given that today's assassination plan was clearly intended to result in mutual destruction, it must have been carried out by a group of assassins trained by the Divine Covenant Faction. Su Ming's plan was obviously not so easy to achieve.

He took out a water bottle from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and took a big gulp of lukewarm liquid to moisten his throat.

"What's your name?" Su Ming put down the kettle and asked calmly.

"Nastaya." A brief reply came from the darkness.

"Ms. Nastaya," Su Ming said bluntly, "How about surrendering? I can guarantee your survival."

It's always good to test the waters.

"The Cardinal promised us that if we were to perish in this sacred mission, he would personally guide our souls and grant us Nirvana," Nastaya replied calmly.

"Oh?" A playful smile curved Su Ming's lips. "Then do you know—"

His words were abruptly interrupted by Nastaya, her voice carrying a knowing edge, "I know, the Fate Manipulator Aideluzi is now in your hands, and you have already mastered the method to intercept the ' Nirvana ' holy spell."

"So?" Su Ming was genuinely confused now. Since she knew she couldn't achieve "Nirvana" after death, what was the purpose of her fearless insistence?

"I'm actually the training instructor for the temple's shadow assassins, so I know these secrets." Nastaya's voice paused, and one could almost picture the bitter, self-mocking expression on her lips in the darkness. "And even if you don't interrupt Nirvana," those adults wouldn't be willing to pay such a huge price to cast the Nirvana spell on a few of us mere tools—those resources would be enough to train hundreds more new assassins!"

"----Then what are you after?!" Su Ming's confusion deepened, his voice filled with genuine bewilderment.

What is the meaning of such a sacrifice if it is neither for a promise of faith nor for practical benefits?

"Without expending a single ounce of Magic Power, nor relying on the unpredictable sea breeze, it can propel colossal ships as large as mountains across the vast ocean." Nastaya didn't directly answer Su Ming's question, but instead described the scene she witnessed with the Pansy, followed by the White Bone Train, "A steel behemoth capable of pulling thousands of tons of ore, traversing steep mountain terrain as if it were flat ground."

"What's wrong?" Su Ming asked.

"And then there are those alchemical wings that soar through the skies, their speed surpassing even the highest -High Rank wind mages," Nastaya recounted, her voice filled with deep worry. "This world, from the moment you appeared, has faced drastic change! The ancient order that all living beings have followed for millennia is threatened by these monsters you brought! If left unchecked, there will be no more pure land in this world!"

Su Ming blinked, somewhat amused and exasperated. "So, this is your reason for willingly abandoning your role as a mentor and risking your life to assassinate me?"

"Yes!" Nastaya answered affirmatively, "I am not serving the God of Light, nor am I for the corrupt and decadent Divine Covenant Faction. I am here to stop you, to protect this world from destruction!"

"Wait a minute." Su Ming leaned forward slightly. "Let me think about how to debate this topic." He pondered for a moment and quickly found a breakthrough. " In the Taya Plane, it wasn't from the very beginning that all living things knew how to use magic, was it?"

"Yes," Nastaya replied. "According to historical records, the earliest intelligent race to master and systematically use magic appeared approximately ten thousand years ago."

"To be precise, it's twelve thousand years," Su Ming corrected. This was a correction he learned from Ashy Drongo Chloe, based on the latest archaeological discoveries. "You see, the emergence of magic has completely changed this world!" Su Ming said. "Many beings who didn't master magic were buried in the dust of history by the new generation."

"So what?" Nastaya's voice carried a hint of offended anger. "The power of magic has always existed in this world! All of us living beings have simply discovered it and submitted to it!"

"The steel and fire I use are also substances and energies that have existed in this world since time immemorial," Su Ming said calmly. "I didn't bring them; I merely showed them to you, allowing you to see these long-overlooked characteristics of nature."

"No!" Nastaya's voice rose, categorically denying it, "It was your appearance that made all of this possible! It was your touch from the realm of the evil god that brought these powers that Desecration order!"

"The course of Heaven is constant; it does not exist for Yao, nor does it perish for Jie." Su Ming sighed softly. "Whether I arrive or not, the water boiling will still make the kettle lid hiss, you will still generate heat by rubbing your palms, and you will still see tiny sparks flying when you rub fur in the dry winter." He grinned, revealing a slightly helpless smile. "I'm merely utilizing these physical phenomena that you take for granted but have never truly explored."

"How could they be the same!" Nastaya's voice trembled slightly with excitement. "Those are just common natural phenomena! How can they be compared to your twisted power derived from an evil god!"

"But their essence is the same." Su Ming sighed again, a hint of pity in his voice. "I simply used technical means to amplify their magnitude."

"They're not the same at all!" Nastaya insisted.

Su Ming realized that this was a pointless argument. Nastaya was simply afraid of change and using that as an excuse to immerse herself in and be moved by her own great sacrifice and dedication.

It's pointless to argue with someone like that.

Su Ming's clothes were suddenly wet, and water was seeping over. He turned his head and found that the water seeping from the rock wall behind him had already accumulated to a considerable depth on the ground.

Those fissures that were once flowing are now like venomous snakes spitting out jets of water, mixed with coarse sand particles.

Clearly, the explosion just now has severely damaged the rock structure of this working face!

He had to find a way to leave this place, Su Ming decided. He glanced at the T-junction on the other side, where the dutiful assassin was still guarding one side of the intersection.

"Ms. Nastaya," Su Ming said with a light and playful tone, "I'm waiting for my teammates to clear the path and come to my aid. And you—" he added with a hint of sarcasm, "Are here wasting your breath trying to stall for time. What are you waiting for?"

"You found out." Nastaya's voice suddenly lost its deliberately maintained intensity, leaving only a cold sense of relief.

She let out a short, shrill laugh that echoed through the dark alleyway. "Guess?"