Just as the three guards reacted and raised their energy guns, a chilling breath suddenly came from the shadows beside them—it was Amo who had made his move.
The paralyzing venom instantly subdued the two guards in front, and the next second, a flash of light appeared, and they were shattered into pieces!
The fourth guard opened fire wildly, and energy beams grazed past Xiao Jin's side, melting craters in the ground.
Xiao Jin moved with lightning speed, advancing in a Z-shaped pattern. With a flash of light, he severed the arm holding the gun and then stabbed into the core processor with a backhand strike!
The battle ended very quickly, but it caused a huge commotion!
"Dew-woo-dew-woo-dew-woo—!"
Louder and more frequent alarms came from the direction of the research institute, and Xiao Jin could even hear dense mechanical footsteps rapidly approaching from afar!
More android guards are closing in!
Xiao Jin's face was icy cold. He quickly scanned the area and kicked away the mechanical head that had rolled to his feet.
"Walk!"
She let out a low shout, and her figure instantly disappeared into the shadows again. Her icy wings swept low through the air, disappearing into the more rugged and complex rocky depths, opposite to the research institute.
Fortunately, the planet is large enough, with ruins and rocks everywhere, making it not difficult to hide a person.
But the hunt had already begun. Xiao Jin was both the hunter and the hunted.
…………
The cold metallic touch came through the protective suit. Xiao Jin leaned against a huge, rusty pipe wreck, holding his breath.
In the distance, the dense and orderly sound of mechanical footsteps, like a death knell, approached from afar and then gradually faded away.
The crimson optical scanning beam swept over her hiding place several times, carrying an emotionless coldness.
Only when the suffocating patrol sounds completely disappeared around the corner of the ruins ahead did Xiao Jin slowly exhale a breath of stale air, and his tense muscles relaxed slightly.
"The reaction speed is very fast, and the coordination is extremely high." Xiao Jin assessed the patrol team that had just been formed, which consisted of at least twelve androids.
Their tactical movements were clean and efficient, and their search covered every corner. If it weren't for the complex terrain of this ruin and her superb stealth skills, she would probably have been discovered long ago.
Xiao Jin initially hid behind rocks, but was quickly found by patrolling guards. She was forced to kill some androids before searching for a new hiding place.
Xiao Jin discovered this abandoned building by chance. She looked down at the streamlined energy weapon she had just seized in her hand.
It was entirely matte black, slightly heavy in the hand, and its structure was unlike any firearm she knew. There was no obvious trigger, only a groove resembling a sensor area and an energy indicator bar.
Xiao Jin tried to touch it slightly with his mental energy; the gun glowed faintly with a blue light, but it didn't activate. Clearly, it required specific biometric authentication or some other activation method.
"What a pity, it's unusable." Xiao Jin curled her lips and threw the unusable trophy into the corner of the trash heap without hesitation.
She brought up the system panel again, and the task description was still hanging there coldly.
Side Quest: Find the Ark Key (0/?)
It's a newly triggered quest. There's no map, no hints, just a general direction—that area with towering towers.
There was no sound for a long time. Xiao Jin cautiously peeked out and checked again to make sure that it was safe around her.
The sky remained perpetually dark, and a faint, strange odor of metallic dust mixed with engine oil permeated the wasteland. In the distance, the research institute's towering structure loomed like a silent behemoth, exuding an ominous aura.
We cannot proceed rashly. The strength and density of the defenses here far exceed our expectations; forcing our way through would only lead to our demise.
Xiao Jin changed her strategy. Like the most patient hunter, she began to take advantage of the complex environment of the ruins to slowly and indirectly approach the research institute.
Her speed slowed down, but her safety was greatly improved.
The ice crystal wings were too conspicuous. Although flying from the sky was the fastest way to reach the research institute, Xiao Jin did not plan to use them again unless necessary.
She moved through the ruins using only her enhanced body and her own agility.
During the process, she also witnessed many "hunts," all of which involved players being sent into dungeons.
Human corpses, their chests burned through by energy weapons, lay beside half-burnt wreckage, their faces still frozen in terror and resentment.
Judging from his clothes and equipment, he should be a player with some skill, yet he couldn't even put up a decent fight back.
Further away, even small-scale firefights broke out.
Energy beams flashed, explosions roared, and players roared and androids spoke in cold, electronic voices.
But the battle quickly subsided, and the outcome was self-evident—the resistance of the scattered players was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot in the face of a well-organized and well-equipped android army.
Xiao Jin coldly bypassed these areas, showing no intention of intervening.
The rules of the survival game were ingrained in her very being; reckless kindness would only lead to destruction.
She could even vaguely sense that the fear and resentment emanating from those dead players seemed to transform into an invisible energy flow, drawn by some force, converging towards the distant research institute tower.
That might be the so-called "emotional fuel" collection process?
It's absolutely disgusting.
Time slipped away in the intense stealth.
With her amazing intuition and keen perception of energy fluctuations, Xiao Jin evaded patrol teams and hidden surveillance cameras several times in advance.
Finally, after rounding a small, abandoned reactor, the view suddenly opened up before us.
Beyond a relatively flat, open area lies a towering wall that stretches as far as the eye can see, gleaming with a metallic sheen.
The energy flow patterns on the wall were faintly visible, indicating its powerful defensive capabilities. Automatic turrets were positioned at intervals along the wall, their muzzles deep and menacing.
The only entrance was a huge gate in the center of the wall, which was tightly closed at the moment, guarded by two full squads of androids.
This is the true outer defense line of the frontline research institute!
Looking into the distance, the towers behind the wall became even clearer, their bases enormous, with various unidentified structures extending from their bodies.
Some aircraft, like worker bees, rose and fell around the tower in an orderly fashion, a stark contrast to the wasteland outside the walls.
Only when you actually stand before it can you realize how tall and imposing it is.
Xiao Jin couldn't hide his astonishment. Was this the interstellar world? Even in his previous world, the technology was only about the same as that of Earth.
Trying to forcefully break through the gate now would be tantamount to courting death.
Xiao Jin lowered his body, his eyes sharp as lightning, carefully scanning every detail of the wall.
There must be other entrances. Such a large research institute, with its ventilation ducts, energy channels, underground pipe networks, etc., cannot be completely sealed off.
So Xiao Jin turned around and began to investigate the research institute from the outside, bit by bit.
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