Embers Ad Infinitum

Jiang Baimian crawled behind the Blackmarsh Iron Snake’s heavy body. From time to time, she would shift her position to avoid the enemy completely locking onto her. She had no intention of continuing like this. However, she was unable to determine if the other party carried a heavy anti-tank, anti-armor weapon since things that usually weren’t convenient for humans to carry around would become sufficiently ‘light’ with an exoskeleton’s help.

The pungent smell of soil and blood lingered around Jiang Baimian’s nose, but it didn’t make her concentration waver. The team leader of the Investigation Unit for the Cause of the Old World’s Destruction tilted her head slightly as if she was listening to something.

However, with her hearing, she couldn’t rely on the various sounds produced by the exoskeleton to determine the enemy’s location, even with the help of a mechanical cochlear implant.

However, when the enemy wearing an exoskeleton appeared in her field of vision, she—who was facing the target—was the first to sense something abnormal and react. She reacted earlier than Bai Chen, who was using the Orange rifle scope to monitor Jiang Baimian’s area.

The firing continued, drowning out a lot of activity. Jiang Baimian seemed to be unaffected as she silently counted the changes in the distance between them. During this process, she used her left hand to take out a dark-green grenade.

When the muscular man in the exoskeleton raised the grenade launcher and entered a certain range, Jiang Baimian suddenly used her teeth to pull out the grenade’s ring.

She then exerted strength with her waist and somersaulted. Under the premise that she did not escape the Blackmarsh Iron Snake corpse’s protection, she abruptly threw the grenade at the target.

In addition to producing, storing, and releasing electric currents, her electric eel-like prosthetic limb also gave her extraordinary strength that exceeded that of humans. Pangu Biology was one of the best at doing such modifications.

Boom!

A blazing fireball spread out violently with a shockwave, engulfing the area.

However, the muscular man in the military exoskeleton had already received a warning beforehand. He jumped more than 20 meters away in advance and perfectly dodged the explosion.

Even if he didn’t dodge, he had plenty of time. With the precision aiming system’s help, he could use the Storm submachine gun to blast the grenade apart. However, he didn’t know what kind of grenade it was. Out of fear of an accident, he eventually gave up on the option of staying put and attacking by force.

Jiang Baimian seized the opportunity to stand up and high-kneel behind the Blackmarsh Iron Snake’s corpse. She held the United 202 pistol in her right hand and fired at the target repeatedly.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The 11.18 mm bullets whizzed out and headed straight for the muscular man in his military exoskeleton. The targets were key areas without armor or auxiliary bone protection.

Although she did not have help from a precision aiming system, Jiang Baimian’s marksmanship was not inferior to the other party’s. This made the enemy have no choice but to rely on his exoskeleton equipment to dodge continuously, not daring to stop.

This made a cold sweat break out on the man’s forehead. He couldn’t believe that his opponent’s every shot didn’t miss, not giving him a chance to counterattack at all. If not for the fact that he was wearing a military exoskeleton and had the comprehensive warning system’s help, he didn’t think he could have dodged the barrage of attacks.

She was a real sharpshooter!

The employees who had undergone genetic enhancement in Pangu Biology all had good firearms talent. However, some were better, some were average, and some were relatively weak. Among them, Jiang Baimian was the best among the best. Be it Shang Jianyao or Long Yuehong, they were all inferior to her.

At the same time, she did not give up on her training.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

For a moment, Jiang Baimian used the United 202 pistol to suppress the exoskeleton-wearing enemy.

On the other side, as the roar of the heavy motorcycle engines approached, Bai Chen placed the Orange rifle to the side and aimed at the space under the jeep’s high-bottom plate.

She crouched there with her back against the front of the car. In front of her was a small mirror that she had placed at some point in time.

This mirror was like a rearview mirror, informing Bai Chen of the situation around the cramped area while she couldn’t show her face.

Then, Bai Chen quickly said, "Suppress the other two for me and herd them to the side!" With that, she took off her coat and violently threw it into the air.

Ta! Ta! Ta!

The gray shirt with a hint of camouflage was riddled with several bullet holes.

Bai Chen rolled over to the car door and lay prone there, gripping the Orange rifle again. The next second, she aimed at the enemy wearing the exoskeleton through the underground space and fired at his ankles from an angle he didn’t expect.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The man was just about to counterattack Jiang Baimian when he sensed additional danger and could only continue dodging.

Not bad... Jiang Baimian thought to herself. She was very satisfied with Bai Chen’s combat acuity, decisiveness, and risk-taking spirit. She seized the opportunity to throw down the United 202 and swapped to her Ice Moss.

At the front of the jeep, while Bai Chen provided Jiang Baimian with firepower support, Shang Jianyao had already taken off the Berserker assault rifle he carried and placed it beside Long Yuehong.

"Suppress them and herd them to the side!" he repeated.

Herding the two heavy motorcycles to the side was to prevent the enemy from aiming at the car doors. If that happened, the bullets could easily pass through the jeep door and have a high chance of injuring Bai Chen, who was lying prone below the door.

"I..." Long Yuehong was very nervous.

"Fire!" Shang Jianyao’s expression was slightly contorted.

Long Yuehong was also someone who had undergone arduous training. He no longer hesitated and used the front of the car as a shield. He raised his hand and crazily fired the assault rifle at a spot his back faced without aiming.

The two mini submachine guns instantly went silent, and the motorcycle engines’ activity became louder.

Long Yuehong seized this opportunity and flipped around, revealing half of his body to the front of the jeep. He then aimed and continued firing, suppressing the enemies and herding them to the side. This also meant that he could fire at the people on the other side of the vehicle.

After he finished firing, he didn’t reload. He grabbed Shang Jianyao’s Berserker and continued firing.

Amidst the firing, Shang Jianyao drew his United 202 pistol, bent his back, and rushed out towards the two heavy motorcycles like a cheetah.

Long Yuehong did not expect Shang Jianyao to be so bold and take such a risk. However, he did not stop because of this—his eyes had bloodlust in them. Instead, he continued providing Shang Jianyao with suppressive fire.

Ta! Ta! Ta!

The two bandits held mini submachine guns with one hand and counterattacked as their motorcycles sped forward.

Shang Jianyao suddenly pounced forward and rolled to avoid the burst of shots. Several fine plumes of dust rose up behind him.

However, the two heavy motorcycles had already approached him at this moment, thanks to their speed. They were less than ten meters away from him.

The helmeted enemy on the motorcycle, who was closer to Shang Jianyao, aimed at him once again. At this distance, he had absolute confidence that Shang Jianyao could not dodge. A corresponding scene even surfaced in his mind: Amidst gunshots, the motorcycles quickly drove past. The enemy’s body convulsed and fell. It had already turned tattered and mangled.

The enemy on the other motorcycle counterattacked Long Yuehong, not giving him a chance to restrain them or save his companion.

After Shang Jianyao did his roll, he jumped up and saw the mini submachine gun’s black muzzle.

The enemy wearing the helmet didn’t hesitate to squeeze the trigger with his finger. Suddenly, his body stiffened, and his movements stopped. A large amount of sweat dripped from his forehead and back. He realized that he had forgotten how to pull a trigger!

He couldn’t complete such a simple action as if he had lost the corresponding ability, no matter how hard he tried!

How am I to complete the shot? At that moment, this ridiculous thought surfaced in his mind.

Shang Jianyao’s eyes darkened as he seized the opportunity. His expression was cold as he raised his arm and pulled the United 202 pistol’s trigger.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

One bullet struck the target’s body, another struck the target’s neck, and the last one struck the motorcycle.

A hideous wound appeared on the enemy’s neck. A large amount of blood gushed out and splattered into the distance.

The bandit’s body swayed before he fell from the motorcycle with a thud.

The heavy motorcycle—which had lost its driver—continued racing forward for more than ten meters before crashing to the side. It left the ground slightly trembling, stirring up a large amount of dust.

Shang Jianyao did not stop. His wrist moved slightly, and he aimed at the other enemy—the one shooting at Long Yuehong.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

One of his bullets burrowed into the heavy motorcycle’s gas tank, while the two other shots hit the target’s torso at the same time. Shang Jianyao’s talent with firearms was considered above average among genetically enhanced humans, so his accuracy wasn’t bad.

Boom!

The heavy motorcycle fell to the ground and exploded for various reasons.

A gigantic crimson flame rose and wrapped around the enemy on the motorcycle, making him scream, twist, and twitch before falling silent.

The muscular man—who was wearing the military exoskeleton—turned his head when he heard the sound, and his eyes reddened.

Shang Jianyao did not look him in the eye. He ran frantically, did a roll, and returned to the front of the jeep.

The muscular man roared. He no longer cared about the energy depletion and the burden on his body. He went into overdrive and utilized his exoskeleton’s powerful mobility. He ran, jumping in the process, and desperately rushed towards the jeep.

This was completely different from his previous cautious approach.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Jiang Baimian’s and Bai Chen’s shots failed to hit the other party’s vital spots. At most, the bullets only created a few scratches.

The strength of a military exoskeleton was evident.

Bang!

The muscular man rose into the air and landed on the jeep’s hood heavily. He then aimed his Storm submachine gun, grenade launcher, and electromagnetic weapon’s ‘muzzles’ at the three people below.

At the same time, Bai Chen, Long Yuehong, and Shang Jianyao had aimed at him.