Chapter 81: I've learned something new again.
Lu Yao immediately pulled the trigger and sprayed bullets, aiming to eliminate this troublesome enemy.
Li Shoucheng refused to show weakness. While firing his gun, he raised his arm, using the 1CM thick steel bracer on his wrist to block Lu Yao's AK bullets.
The two men—one nimbly dodging, the other standing firm and outputting fire—engaged in an intense shootout across the distance.
Li Shoucheng was showered in sparks but remained unharmed.
The bullets he fired were also dodged in advance by Lu Yao, with neither able to gain the upper hand over the other.
Eventually, it was Li Shoucheng who ran out of bullets first. He immediately threw away his machine gun and charged forward!
He stomped on the ground to propel himself, moving so fast that he even created afterimages, and against Lu Yao's fire, he desperately leaped more than 10 meters high onto the city wall!
By that time, the areas not covered by steel armor on his body had taken 4 or 5 bullets, and there was even a bloody hole on his forehead!
But the powerful 7.62 bullets were surprisingly caught by Li Shoucheng's sturdy bones.
Amidst a "crunch" sound, he reached out and plucked the deformed bullet stuck in his skull, sneering, "Shun dogs, you shoot quite accurately! Now it's my turn!"
Before his words had finished, he turned into a blur, shielding his head with his hands as he charged forward like an out-of-control truck!
Li Shoucheng's plan was beautiful—to kill the Bone Tempering Realm martial artist before him with a single slap, and then proceed to completely destroy the cannons on the city wall, securing his victory!
Lu Yao revealed a warm smile, discarded the AK in his hands, and drew the Barrett from behind.
The enemy was composed, and with an exceptionally strong physique, a single shot from the Barrett could likely be dodged in advance.
But at this distance, even if the brain could react, the body couldn't keep up!
When Li Shoucheng saw the long, thick, black weapon in Lu Yao's hands, he instantly felt his hair stand on end, with a strong sense of crisis engulfing him.
And to make matters worse, Liao Ya and Liao Qe suddenly poked their heads out, holding AKs and firing at him to disrupt his movements!
In the next second, a .50 caliber bullet was fired! Li Shoucheng entered a composed state and used his steel bracer to block it!
The bullet, carrying 18,000 joules of kinetic energy, easily penetrated the steel bracer, pushing Li Shoucheng's arm back against his chest and blowing him off the city wall!
With a "thud," Li Shoucheng created a huge crater in the solid ground and then shook his head as he got up.
Glancing at his now-useless arm, twisted and deformed with an additional bloody hole, he cursed, "Damn it! Yunzhou has the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, could this be the Shun dogs' new weapon!?"
His arm was mangled and perforated but not torn off, thanks to the Blood-Exchange Warrior's exceedingly resilient body.
~~~~~~~
At this time, a large number of reserve troops had surrounded the area. Signal soldiers also took the opportunity to set up two machine guns and opened fire.
Realizing he had to flee or be trapped here, Li Shoucheng shouted, "Retreat!" and was the first to dash back the way he came, running swiftly.
Lu Yao had no intention of letting him get away. He had a particular distaste for the "drive civilians to attack the city" tactic, and would naturally want to eliminate such a foe given the chance.
Positioning the Barrett on the city wall, Lu Yao took a deep breath, and everything before his eyes slowed to half speed.
His senses processed external information rapidly, calculating wind direction, distance, bullet trajectory and speed, and the target's moving path. He aimed at a blank spot in front of Li Shoucheng and pulled the trigger.
A muffled sound echoed, and the bullet burst forth, hitting the target's back, tearing through the steel armor, then bursting open a bowl-sized hole filled with unusually thick, oozing blood.
The blood of a Blood-Exchange Realm martial artist was like mercury, glistening with a beautiful luster.
For normal people, this would have been a fatal wound, but Li Shoucheng only let out a scream of agony. He rolled on the ground, then got up and continued to move erratically.
His speed was close to 80 kilometers per hour, like a small truck, using cover for erratic movements, clearly a veteran of many battles, and in the blink of an eye disappeared into the city's buildings.
Lu Yao, seeing that the Barrett didn't kill the enemy instantly, was amazed, "Is this the Blood-Exchange Realm? Physical resilience beyond imagination... Truly a realm capable of curing cancer!"
Without time for further thought, Lu Yao quickly called his two sisters to move away, as the Sect Army's artillery had begun to cover the city wall.
~~~~~~~
At this time, the tide of the battlefield had already turned!
Although Li Shoucheng and his men were being beaten badly, they successfully distracted the Yunzhou artillery, allowing the cannons of the Sect Army to unleash their fury.
Continually, cannonballs fell upon the city walls, chaotic rocks flew around, and numerous gunners were sent flying by the shockwaves.
Without the support of artillery, the state soldiers, being fewer in number and far less formidable in combat than the Sect Army, who fought year-round, had actually lost two trenches to the enemy!
If not for the presence of the standard-bearers supervising the battle, the Sect Army could have spent the night within the city walls.
Yet, in such circumstances, Governor Wen's face was only pale, giving the appearance that he still had a move up his sleeve.
He spoke slowly, "There is no need to worry, I have already called for reinforcements."
After half a day of fighting, Xu Canjiang, still in shiny steel armor, asked in confusion, "Reinforcements? There cannot be any reinforcements nearby... Ah! My lord, do you mean..."
Although Governor Wen did not feel much like entertaining this man, he still needed him, so he reluctantly nodded his head.
Before long, the sound of orderly, uniform footsteps could be heard from afar.
What came into view was a mass of young people, all dressed in uniform dark gray uniforms, marching in neat columns.
Leading them was none other than the Director-General of the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau—Du Wenlan.
"I, the official, have brought 3,000 artillery school students to assist in defending the city!" he announced.
Du Wenlan was equivalent to a central enterprise leader stationed locally, ranking on par with Governor Wen.
The two did not report to each other and only maintained superficial interactions on normal days. But with Yunzhou at stake, both knew they would suffer if it was lost, so helping out was unquestionable at this moment.
Without any regard for pleasantries, Governor Wen urged, "Director Du, please support us quickly! The bandits are about to break in!"
Du Wenlan waved his hand, and officers among the students took command of the battle.
These artillery students were all part of the Imperial Court's new army, chosen from good families and far more useful than the state soldiers after undergoing extended training.
Furthermore, not only did the Shun Dynasty possess moral high ground in this world, but also it had the mandate to drive out the Tartars, gaining the hearts of the people far more than the degenerate feudal dynasty of Blue Star.
The loyalty and combat prowess of the artillery students were thus guaranteed.
Under enemy fire, they rushed to the top of the city walls and quickly set up the cannons to return fire; others aided the trenches outside the city, steadying the situation once again.
Experience new tales on m v|l e'm,p| y- r
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After observing the combat style of the Sect Army martial artists, Lu Yao was deeply inspired:
"I've learned! Martial artists can fully utilize their superhuman physiques to wear heavy armor! When I return to Blue Star, I'll also find a factory to make a custom order."
Having personally witnessed the power of the Blood-Exchange Realm, he further contemplated, "I need to get something with greater force for self-defense..."
While he was pondering, Governor Wen approached. Despite being a superior, he took the initiative to clasp his fists in salute:
"On behalf of the people of Yunzhou City, high and low, I thank the Liao Family Fist! If you hadn't appeared in time, those bandits would have succeeded!"
Lu Yao modestly replied, "You are too kind, Governor. It is our duty to do so."
Governor Wen warmly said, "In the face of danger, true loyalty shines! I have taken note of this kindness, and there will surely be recompense in the future."
Afterwards, he spoke bitterly, "The Sect Army must have been tipped off by foreigners to get this far! It must be because I did not agree to their demands!"
Several days ago, Governor Wen had already arranged the city's defenses; it was impossible for the thieves to infiltrate. With the future and families of everyone present tied to this city, they wouldn't act as inside agents.
Only the foreigners had the motive, and one didn't even need to think to know—undoubtedly, it was the vile work of the vampire from the Opium company.