Chapter 668: Mechanical Protection Protocol, [Alpha Particle Annihilation Wave] Annihilation Request Received!

"Mie Mie, stop."

Yu Yuan stared at the twisted, ever-shifting mass of black mist appearing a few kilometers away.

His heart skipped a beat.

The worst-case scenario had come to pass.

What Ladiz had encountered was precisely an oil creature.

"This is a huge problem!"

Oil creatures shouldn't be appearing here.

The previous issue of [Global News Weekly] had reported that the Mechanical Vanguard Society had discovered oil creatures.

He had originally assumed the oil creature had been successfully lured by him to the Mechanical Vanguard Society's location.

Yet he never expected these things to appear on this side as well.

"At least Mie Mie has accumulated enough [Dawnbreak] spiritual light over the past few days..."

Thinking this over, Yu Yuan pondered briefly and felt that perhaps this was also an opportunity to clear out the oil creatures.

However, everything would still depend on how the situation developed.

Having sorted out his thoughts, Mie Mie flew closer once more, except this time they raised their flight altitude.

Boom!

Just as Ladiz's forces were preparing to retreat.

The black mist that had been gathering and circling at high altitude suddenly condensed into a black waterfall that crashed down from the sky.

It landed in the midst of the soldiers who were entangled and bound.

The mist spread low along the ground, engulfing vehicles and soldiers alike.

Brief screams of agony rang out from the soldiers, then abruptly ceased.

From within the mist came the sound of crunching, chewing.

Seconds later, the mist coalesced and condensed.

It transformed into a humanoid creature ten meters tall.

Its size wasn't particularly massive, not even comparable to those few black monsters from before.

But the pressure it exuded was something those black monsters couldn't hold a candle to.

Its indifferent gaze swept over the fleeing convoy of Ladiz's vehicles.

Then it once again dissolved into black mist, chasing after the convoy like an ice storm.

The black mist formed a face with blurred features, blotting out heaven and earth alike.

Ha!

The face opened its mouth wide, emitting a low-frequency sound wave.

"Ah!"

Ladiz clutched his head, enduring the maddening thoughts that suddenly erupted in his mind.

The black energy in his pupils surged wildly, trying to take control of Ladiz's thoughts.

Only then did Ladiz notice the abnormality in his body, and fear gripped his heart.

"Pollution... this is actually pollution! How can pollution appear at Bronze Rank..."

Ladiz knew this wasn't the time to think about such things.

He hurriedly raised his left arm, watching as the armor on it automatically snapped open, revealing a golden-glowing vial rising up.

Pain and reluctance flickered in Ladiz's eyes.

But he knew all too well that if he wanted to survive, this was his only option.

"This godforsaken world!" He hesitated no longer, grabbed the vial, and stabbed it into his neck.

The golden liquid was injected into his body.

A warm current flooded through him.

The chaotic voices in his mind were quickly suppressed as well.

"50 million survival points for one bottle of [Radiance Vial], gone just like that!"

Ladiz's heart ached even more.

But he soon couldn't afford to worry about that, because he could use the vial to cleanse his negative status.

The other soldiers had no such means.

And so...

Boom!

Several combat vehicles at the rear suddenly lost control and slammed into the vehicles beside them.

An inevitable chaos ensued.

The entire convoy went straight into "bumper car" mode.

The vehicles at the back slowed drastically, and the pursuing black face opened its mouth wide, swallowing them whole in one gulp.

The black face wore a satisfied expression, perhaps digesting those vehicles and personnel.

Its pursuit speed slowed down.

Seizing this opportunity, Ladiz's personal guard unit, along with the remaining mechanical combat vehicles, quickly widened the distance and continued their escape.

All these survivors were personnel who hadn't participated in the battle against the black monsters earlier.

They had been farther from the battlefield at the time, which was why they'd been spared.

But he knew this was only temporary.

If he himself had been affected, then these soldiers absolutely couldn't escape it either.

And that was exactly what happened.

"Leader... there's a constant stream of chaotic voices speaking in our heads. Many of the brothers are experiencing the same thing, and these voices are growing louder and louder..."

A panicked voice came through the communication channel.

It was his convoy commander.

"I understand. Have all vehicles move closer to me." Ladiz let out a sigh and said in a deep voice.

He knew that if this problem wasn't resolved, forget the convoy, even he himself might not survive to escape this place.

"U-Understood!" The commander's voice carried a hint of relief.

Soon, the other vehicles skillfully converged on the 'Fortress-class' mechanical combat vehicle Ladiz was in.

Ladiz removed the mechanical nine-sided die pendant he wore on his chest.

[Mechanist Supremacy, Civilization Endures]

[User Identity Confirmed — Player ID: Ladiz's Shelter, identity verification complete]

The mechanical nine-sided die unfolded in front of Ladiz, becoming an arc-shaped screen.

Ladiz operated the screen with practiced ease.

[Ladiz's Shelter applies to execute 'Mechanical Protection Protocol', remaining uses (2). Confirm execution?]

— [Yes]

[Mechanical Protection Protocol is now in effect]

The mechanical nine-sided die connected with Ladiz's Virtual Light Screen.

The nine energy crystals embedded in the die emitted purple light, interconnecting with one another.

Pale purple ripples radiated outward from these nine crystals.

The soldiers swept by the ripples found the voices constantly ringing in their minds abruptly cut off.

Black energy crawled out from the soldiers' eyes, nostrils, ear canals, and mouths, dissipating into the air.

Everyone wore smiles of relief at having survived the ordeal.

But Ladiz's gaze turned to the rear, toward the face formed from black mist that was once again giving chase.

A fierce, ruthless glint flashed in his eyes.

"You made me waste a use count, so now you have to die."

He tapped the air on the Virtual Light Screen.

The mechanical nine-sided die flashed with purple light once more, except this time it transformed into a multi-faceted barrier that enveloped the entire convoy.

Like an inverted pot lid covering them all.

"Everyone, prepare to counterattack!" Ladiz gave the order simultaneously.

The convoy immediately decelerated, laser tanks swiveling their cannons to begin charging and aiming.

Railguns also moved into position.

And right at that moment, the face formed from black mist arrived as expected.

Like the apocalypse itself, it engulfed the entire convoy in rolling black mist.

Hum!

In an instant, the purple barrier blazed with brilliant light, blocking the face's attack.

The purple light pierced through the black mist, visible even to Yu Yuan, who had just reached high altitude.

Yu Yuan was shocked inwardly.

Another Silver-tier creature, and the pressure it brought was comparable to that oil creature from the last battle.

Against an attack launched by a Silver-tier creature of this caliber, let alone a Bronze Rank player like Ladiz, even an average Silver-tier player wouldn't necessarily be able to withstand it one-on-one.

Yet Ladiz had not only withstood it but had also shielded the entire convoy.

That left only one possibility: an item.

Yu Yuan's eyes lit up.

"Ladiz really does have some good stuff on him! An item of this caliber has to be at least Silver-tier, and it might even be Gold-tier quality."

Yu Yuan had absolute authority when it came to Gold-tier and Silver-tier.

"Mie Mie, let's fall back."

Ladiz had clearly been fleeing, yet now he suddenly stopped. Yu Yuan didn't believe he was doing this just to defend.

Most likely, Ladiz's real killing move was coming next.

To be safe, Yu Yuan decided to retreat a bit further.

Ladiz was currently staring intently at his Virtual Light Screen, which displayed the current status of the Mechanical Protection Barrier.

Seeing that the black mist face was unable to break through the Mechanical Protection Barrier, Ladiz couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

After all, the pressure from this black mist face was simply too intense.

"Show your true form already! Hurry up, hurry up!" Ladiz muttered under his breath.

After realizing it couldn't devour the convoy, the black mist face condensed once more.

All the black mist swirled and contracted together, reverting to that humanoid creature form.

And the moment the humanoid creature appeared.

A faint smile curved at the corner of Ladiz's mouth.

"Little bastard, I've been waiting for this!" His fingers began to tap.

The next moment, a dazzling deep purple pillar of light shot from the mechanical nine-sided die straight into the sky, blasting a hole through the clouds that shrouded the heavens.

A mechanical voice sounded in Ladiz's ear.

— [Mechanical Protection Protocol — 'α Particle Annihilation Wave' annihilation target locked, annihilation request received, countdown.......]