"Ah——!" A security guard who had his back against the door was shocked by the huge force and spurted blood from his mouth, and collapsed to the ground.
"It's over..." Desperate whispers spread among the survivors.
At this critical moment!
Boom——!!!
A louder, duller explosion, as if coming from deep underground, suddenly erupted from the other side of the fortress! The violent tremor caused the entire monitoring room to jump! Dust and debris fell from the ceiling!
The continuous and terrifying sound of banging on the door outside suddenly stopped.
Everyone who arrived at the door was stunned by this sudden change. They looked at each other and dared not breathe.
After a few seconds of dead silence, there was an extremely slight "rustling" sound outside the door, like metal rubbing against the ground, followed by the sound of footsteps gradually fading away.
The red light dot representing a high-energy reaction began to move on the screen, left the door of the monitoring room, and quickly moved towards the direction where the explosion came from - the fortress's backup energy core area!
"Gone... gone?" A technician muttered in disbelief, his body shaking violently with extreme tension and fear.
The security captain slumped to the ground, leaning against the cold metal cabinet, breathing heavily. The exhaustion of surviving the ordeal made it almost impossible for him to hold the gun. He watched the receding red dot on the screen, his eyes devoid of any sense of relief, only a deeper fear.
"It... was drawn away by the explosion... to... the energy core..." He panted, his voice hoarse, "It's... more dangerous there... Once the core is destroyed..."
The consequences would be disastrous. The entire fortress would be plunged into complete darkness and chaos.
On the bottom floor of the fortress, inside the huge freight passage leading to the energy core area.
The air was scorching hot, thick with the pungent smell of engine oil and ozone. The passage was unusually wide, wide enough to accommodate large transport machinery. On either side were towering metal walls studded with thick pipes and cable racks. Most of the powerful overhead lights were off, leaving only a few emergency lights emitting a dim red glow, casting the shadows of the massive machinery on the ground like dormant monsters.
Heavy footsteps echoed in the empty corridor with a heart-pounding regularity.
Lu Qingyi walked forward step by step.
Her bloodstained hospital gown was already tattered, and her exposed skin was stained with dried, blackened blood and stains. Her slender figure seemed incredibly small against the vast passage and machinery, yet it exuded a suffocating, terrifying, and oppressive feeling.
Her movements were still impersonal, each step measured and precise, without a single unnecessary step. Deep within those hollow eyes, a dark purple light burned steadily, like a cold, will-o'-the-wisp fire that never extinguished. At the chip interface on the back of her neck, a tiny purple light beneath her skin glowed steadily, like a merciless indicator light.
She had just torn through three heavy alloy security gates with her bare hands. Twisted metal fragments scattered behind her, their cuts smooth and bearing the marks of molten heat. Any automated defense turrets that attempted to stop her were twisted into a pile of burning scrap by an invisible force the moment she approached.
"Clear...obstacles...target...energy core..." The cold mechanical voice sounded without any fluctuation as she walked, as if confirming the program instructions.
Ahead of the tunnel lay the energy core's final and strongest line of defense—a massive gate over half a meter thick, protected by a double layer of high-strength composite armor and an energy barrier. The gate was tightly closed, its surface gleaming with a faint blue light pattern, signifying the energy barrier operating at full power. On the walls on either side of the gate, the muzzles of four large-caliber automated defense cannons glowed with charging light, locking onto the tiny figure approaching through the tunnel.
"Detected...high-threat target...highest defense protocol...activated..." A cold electronic synthesized voice sounded above the gate.
Buzz——!
Four machine guns simultaneously emitted a humming sound, signaling their charge! Blazing tongues of flame instantly erupted from their muzzles! High-explosive armor-piercing rounds, like a metallic storm, shrieked through the air, forming a dense barrage of death that poured down upon Lu Qingyi! The firepower, powerful enough to rip a heavy armored vehicle to shreds, instantly engulfed her tiny figure!
Fire! Smoke! Deafening explosions echoed wildly in the corridor! The metal walls were sparked and pitted by ricochets!
However, right in the center of this devastating metal storm.
Lu Qingyi's figure disappeared mysteriously!
No, not disappear!
At the moment the machine gun opened fire, her body, in a manner completely defying the laws of physics, left behind a fleeting afterimage! Her true form, like a ghost, darted through the dense barrage of bullets at a terrifying speed impossible for the naked eye to grasp! Her movements were so swift they surpassed the limits of residual vision, leaving only distorted, dark purple streaks in the air!
She instantly appeared beneath the leftmost cannon mount! Her slender right hand, with its five fingers pressed together like the sharpest alloy drill, pierced through the gap in the thick armor connecting the cannon mount to the wall with a high-frequency, oscillating dark purple energy.
Swish——!!!
A teeth-grinding sound of metal tearing! The solid alloy armor was torn apart like paper! The internal pipelines and transmission structure were instantly exposed! Dark purple energy rushed into her arm frantically!
boom!!!
The cannon, along with the wall structure it was embedded in, exploded violently! Flames and debris shot up into the sky!
Lu Qingyi's figure vanished again in the flash of the explosion! The next moment, she appeared above the barrel of the second cannon! With a light tap of her toes on the scorching barrel, she soared into the air. Her slender left leg, like a battle axe, slashed fiercely at the cannon's fragile rotating base with a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air!
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com