Necromancer, summoning 055? What the heck?

Chapter 312 Close-In Weapon Thermobaric Shells: The Roar of the Steel God

There is a widely circulated folk saying on Earth: "Barrett is the savior of suffering, Gatling is the most compassionate."

On the carbon-based battlefield, these two have become symbols of death's scythe.

But even with those two together, they weren't enough for Lu Dun to even glance at.

The lord's shout of "Lie down!" created an incredibly bizarre scene on the battlefield.

Just moments before they were locked in a life-or-death struggle with their opponents, arrows and magic flying everywhere, swords and spears clashing in unison. But after Chen Mo's command, all members of the Vast Ocean Guard immediately lay down on the spot.

Even though they were about to become live targets for the enemy, they did not hesitate for a moment.

This stems from an absolute, ingrained discipline.

The concept of discipline is actually somewhat incompatible with the traditional cultivation philosophy of professionals in the Starry Continent.

On this vast continent, every professional has their own path of growth and their own unique way of utilizing psionic energy. Even those who cultivate the exact same techniques often end up with vastly different combat styles.

Just like studying humanities, even if everyone reads the same classics, studies the same model essays, and does the same exercises, when it comes to the final writing, there will never be two essays that are exactly the same.

According to Fanxing, being too rigid in following the rules can stifle a professional's creativity and limit their potential for growth.

To some extent, this is similar to the argument made by some education experts on Earth that "cramming education stifles children's natural instincts."

However, the training path for professionals in the Han Hai Territory follows a very "Dongxia" approach. To some extent, it can be understood that in the initial stage of professional training, they are trained as science students.

For example, the core training focus of the warrior class is strength, endurance, mental fortitude, and combat discipline.

As for the shortcomings, such as attack capabilities, it is clear that modern weapons are intended to be used as a supplement, which will result in a significant imbalance in the strengths of the soldiers.

Under this training system, those selected for the Han Hai regular army, regardless of their other skills, are undoubtedly highly disciplined.

In the words of Brigade Commander Xia Er, "The first step to becoming a qualified warrior of the Vast Sea is obedience, unwavering obedience! Even if there is a sea of ​​lava or a chasm in the abyss ahead, as long as the bugle call to charge sounds and the order from above is given, you must jump down without hesitation!"

Because of this level of obedience, the lord's opponents were momentarily taken aback.

The two newcomers were huge, with massive bodies made of steel and iron. Their cold, metallic shells gleamed in the dim light of the canyon, giving everyone present a strong visual impact.

Then there's something else called feeling.

This is quite subjective, but whether it was Lysander Zach, the top assassin Darkwalker, or the other high-level professionals present, they all felt an overwhelming pressure the moment [Storm] appeared.

It possesses a kind of super violent aesthetic, enough to dazzle or terrify every viewer.

Then there are the actions of the opposing warriors.

Although their strength was far inferior to this meticulously organized team, Chen Mo's guards had been well-trained and put up a tenacious resistance, leaving a very deep impression on Lysander.

The sight of them all collapsing to the ground in an instant caused Lysander, a high-ranking but relatively inexperienced archmage, to instinctively take two steps back, and he almost blurted out a single word: "Evil God Sacrifice!"

Indeed, the appearance of a colossal creature and the fall of a large number of enemies is a scene reminiscent of the sacrifice of the lives of believers or followers in order to obtain powerful support from an evil god.

There's no need for the Grand Master to speculate further.

The Storm Integrated Land Combat Weapon Platform may be an exaggeration to say that every single component is based on leading technologies at the level of the East China Sea Laboratory, but it is no less than 70% true to meet the criteria for cutting-edge technology.

This highly intelligent central control system begins full-spectrum, multi-mode battlefield scanning the moment it enters the battlefield.

As Chen Mo issued the order, the crowd split into standing and lying down, and within the system, enemies and friends were also distinguished.

The power of intelligent systems lies in this: in that instant, they record the body shape, appearance, and equipment characteristics of all personnel present.

Each Land Shield can track fifty targets simultaneously, and two together can lock onto hundreds of targets. The interception team standing here now has far fewer people.

Next, the moment of the metal storm arrived.

Buzz—Buzz—

The sound of the motor drive was slight and steady, and then the multi-barrel rotating turret of the [Land Shield] began to rotate faster.

"Clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter—!!!"

Unlike the shriek of an arrow leaving the bowstring, or the roar of a magical explosion, the sound emanating from the land shield was a continuous, dense sound with almost no gaps. Each sound that reached the ears was actually the superposition of dozens or even hundreds of specially made tungsten-core armor-piercing bullets exploding in the barrel.

The voice was neither loud nor terrifying, but carried a heavy, crushing force, as if Death itself were pulling its millstone, slowly rotating in the arena.

At the same time, a chain of fire extended from the muzzle of both land shields. As the turrets rotated, the chain of fire twisted slightly in the air, like a giant beast wielding two flaming pincers, ruthlessly reaping the battlefield.

Regarding the selection of attack targets, Land Shield actually has two sets of output logic.

If Chen Mo is in a safe rear command position, the system will prioritize eliminating targets that are close to cover, at medium to long distances, and that may be able to escape quickly, to prevent them from taking advantage of the chaos to hide or escape. Then, it will eliminate them one by one along the clockwise or counterclockwise rotation direction.

When Chen Mo was being sheltered under the tank, Lu Dun had only one logic: roll call from closest to furthest, and whoever was closer to Chen Mo would die first.

Who is currently the closest?

It was that seventh-tier assassin, the Lightless Walker, the Hidden Blade.

In the power system of the Starry Continent, advancing from the first rank (sixth level) to the second rank (seventh level) is not a simple breakthrough in strength or magic power, but a qualitative change in the system of applying spiritual energy. The core difference can be roughly understood as the transition from "skillful use of spiritual energy techniques" to "initial mastery of the power of laws".

Assassins are not known for their strength or defense, otherwise they wouldn't have been sent flying by the violent little prince's elbow. However, the Lightless Walker has his own unique domain—Presence Concealment.

Regarding this point, among the materials collected by Hanhai, there is only this vague description.

"High-level assassins do more than simply conceal their presence. When they activate [Presence Concealment], they can blur their own presence through visual perception, energy perception, and consciousness perception, greatly reducing the vigilance of enemies in their territory."

This was indeed a bit strange. To some extent, until the moment they were about to be attacked, these well-trained scouts of the Vast Ocean Territory did not notice anything unusual. This was certainly because the enemy had taken control of the lair, but it was also probably related to this "lowering of vigilance".

The appearance attack broke the [Presence Concealment], and the great assassin began to move through the crowd, carrying out the commander's order to "cut off the branches first." However, the moment the steel behemoth appeared, out of instinct, the hidden blade once again entered a shadowy, gradually blurring stealth state.

The warrior, who had just been severely wounded by the Hidden Blade and fallen to the ground, turned his head with difficulty and watched as the Hidden Blade gradually disappeared as it sped away.

Then, the hidden blade was blasted out by artillery fire.

[Storm] doesn't care about this or that, it's scanning with thermal imaging, far-infrared, and millimeter-wave imaging!
As for feelings, sorry, Radar doesn't know what feelings are!
Although the ability [Existence Concealment] has touched upon the realm of laws, it is completely countered by [Storm]. It's like a beautiful woman walking into a tavern on Yulin Road in Chengdu; her proud strength is no different from that of a roadside tavern.

What does it feel like to be locked on and focused on by a Land Shield 35mm rapid-fire cannon at a distance of less than 300 meters?
The person involved said they felt nothing, absolutely nothing! With 200 tungsten-core armor-piercing rounds per second, even the most skilled rangers and forest rangers with excellent dynamic vision couldn't see which part of the Hidden Blade broke first, what kind of defensive item was flashing on their body, whether they lasted even a fraction of a second, or what their mouth uttered before they died—was it a cry of pain or a curse?
In that brief instant, the Lightless Walker was physically riddled with holes and torn to pieces, and blood mist filled the nearby small area of ​​the battlefield, like a red rain.

It happened so fast that neither side had time to react.

The metal storm shows no signs of stopping, continuing to sweep away the next batch of targets.

The next wave consisted of enemy warriors charging in. These burly men, clad in heavy armor and with bulging muscles, instinctively held their shields or greatswords in front of them. As a result, their shields twisted, deformed, and shattered amidst the barrage of bullets, being hammered into their bodies inch by inch, greatly increasing the metal content in their bodies.

The second land shield unleashed its firepower on the archers further away. The two vehicles coordinated seamlessly, their shells weaving a deadly net across the battlefield.

Most of the archers had cover, but that didn't matter. Land Shield attacked both the archers and their cover. Rocks were slightly better than tofu in the face of armor-piercing shells, but only by a small margin. When the artillery fire hit their heads, the archers instinctively fired their last arrows, and then they were transformed into something indescribable.

The entire square in the middle of the battlefield looked as if it had been cut back and forth several times by an invisible giant plow, with deep trenches and scattered bullet craters, resembling the earth's surface that had just been hit by a series of comet impacts.

The original white and green feather carpet, along with the soil beneath it, was blown away and replaced by a new, more glaring dark red and charred black, creating a death zone of iron and fire.

All that remained were shattered weapons, torn armor, and unrecognizable limbs.

A corpse? What corpse?
However, there were still opponents who managed to hold their ground on the field.

Archmage Lysander Zak, along with several high-ranking mages, were positioned furthest away in the Land Shield's attack sequence due to their distance.

Intelligent control systems can do many things, such as accurately judging distances, identifying opponents, assigning tasks, and aiming instantly.

Intelligent control systems also have many limitations, such as the inability to quickly assess an enemy's tactical value and threat level without database comparison.

It was this negligible "lag" that gave the strongest mage in the field, Lysander, and others a glimmer of hope.

Lysander is an academic mage who has been a member of the Stream Moon Offering System since the fourth rank. He rarely goes on those messy missions outside, so his combat experience is not rich. He is able to stand on his own by relying purely on his abundant mana reserves, his almost instantaneous wind magic specialization, and his shrewd mind.

Witnessing the horrific sight of his comrades ahead, including the powerful Hidden Blade, being torn to shreds like paper, Lysander felt a chill run down his spine.

Assassins are indeed not good at defense, but even if they are not good at it, they are still second-tier professionals and they would definitely not lack life-saving items. How could they be gone in an instant?

You must protect yourself first!
His survival instincts enabled him to cast spells at several times his usual efficiency, unleashing a series of defensive spells and activating the amulets on his body.

With a swift tap of the staff, a highly condensed, swirling wall of whirlwinds rose up in front of him.

The next second, physics and energy, psychic energy and fire, began a passionate collision from afar.

The 35mm armor-piercing ammunition belt of the Land Shield slammed into the layers of defense hastily set up by the mage Lysander.

Faced with the enormous impact, the first point of contact, the [Whirlwind Wall], visibly trembled violently. The ultra-high-speed rotating airflow within the wind wall attempted to shatter the incoming solid projectiles. Although it failed to completely shatter them, it still provided an excellent defensive effect. The armor-piercing projectiles became unstable and tumbled in the whirlwind, detonating prematurely and exploding into fireballs, once again creating a wall of flames outside the wind wall.

Indeed, psionic energy is the core power of the Starry Continent.

But the density of Lu Dun's firepower was simply too high! The first [Whirlwind Wall] only lasted for less than two seconds before it let out a tearing shriek under the continuous impact of the metal storm, and suddenly dissipated like a punctured bubble.

The second [Whirlwind Wall] had already been erected, and the third was already condensing in the air. The archmage exhaled sharply and placed another [Elemental Barrier] in front of him.

Although these magical defenses shattered one after another amidst the "clattering" death chants, the time gained was enough for the archmage to erect the next layer of defense.

"Hold on! This attack can't last!"

"Help me strengthen my defenses!"

During this time, Lysander's amulet emitted a bright blue light, gathering more psionic energy around the archmage. The special potion he drank while tilting his head back further replenished the archmage's mental strength for continued combat.

The high-level mages who were barely shielded behind him also recovered from their initial shock and desperately poured protective magic forward.

Although they couldn't cast spells instantly like the mage Lysander, their numbers made up for the lack of speed, and they managed to hold on for a while.

The defense line could be described as precarious, or it could be described as impregnable; it all depends on who runs out of steam first!
Of course, this new extreme offense and defense only lasted a few seconds.

However, [Storm] quit.

When the command program determined that a stalemate had occurred, it was unclear how long the other side could hold out. However, LuDun knew very well that it could not hold out for long, so the system naturally chose to escalate the situation.

The rockets were launched, firing a triple burst in one go.

The thick rocket, trailing a long orange-red tail flame, headed straight for the focal battlefield.

The distance was so close that the archmage, who was desperately layering armor on himself, only saw the flame when it crashed into his own magical defenses.

This rocket is called "Dragon's Breath - C2" and uses a three-phase composite explosive charge.

The first detonation caused the high-energy explosive to diffuse the thermobaric agent, forming a highly dispersed and fully atomized milky-white metallic hydrogen-high-energy aluminum-magnesium alloy aerosol cloud on the battlefield.

The second explosion occurred at the center of the cloud, triggering the effect of a thermobaric bomb.

As the name suggests, "温" refers to temperature and "压" refers to air pressure.

The instantaneous fireball at the epicenter has a temperature exceeding 4,000 degrees Celsius and burns for four seconds; the diffuse fireball has a temperature exceeding 2,000 degrees Celsius, a maximum coverage radius of 100 meters, and burns for nine seconds.

Lysander, who was desperately maintaining the [Whirlwind Wall], suddenly had his pupils filled with a pure white incandescent light.

Not far in front of him, in the suddenly rising inferno, the wind wall wailed and was being devoured! It seemed that even the "psychic energy" that formed the foundation of this world was ignited by the terrifying heat and burned fiercely.

What followed was an instantaneous impact of over 180 atmospheres of Blue Star pressure. This surging force, powerful enough to crush a main battle tank into a pancake in an instant, crashed heavily onto the [Whirlwind Wall].

This high-temperature, high-pressure baptism happened three times in a row.

The wall is broken!

He was broken!

Huddled behind a huge rock at the edge of the battlefield, the elven ranger Loma Wind Chaser, deafened and dizzy from the continuous explosions, struggled to turn his head to look at the area completely shrouded in flames and thick smoke. His lips moved slightly, letting out a sigh that even he could barely hear:

"The Steel God!"

"Times have changed!"

(End of this chapter)