novelraw Chapter 696 [114] Mechanical Ninja, Blood Sea Black Tide
Chapter 696 [114] Mechanical Ninja, Blood Sea Black Tide
Chapter 696 [114] Mechanical Ninja, Blood Sea Black Tide
On the first floor of the Eco Tower, opposite the "Shengzhi Grand Hotel" is the "Luoying Grand Hotel".
Xia, wearing a childish bib, sat impatiently at a dining table.
"Isn't the 'Warring States period daimyo-level' cuisine I asked you to make ready yet? I went to great lengths to persuade the young master to have dinner with me, so I have to serve him my best dishes!"
Shiro and Goro, two of the Nine Ninja, exchanged glances and slowly, together with the waiter, placed the dishes on the table one by one.
"Team leader, we checked historical records as instructed by Staff Officer Kazama. This is the historical recipe book of the Sengoku daimyo."
Xia looked at the dishes in the order they were arranged.
Rice, pickled radish, miso soup.
Plum rice balls, pickled radishes, and dough dumplings.
Small fish, pickled radish, tofu soup, taro rice, sea bream tempura.
"Hey! Why is this so simple?! Why are pickled radishes served so many times?!"
Shiro wiped his sweat: "Chief of Staff Kazama said that the daimyo of the Sengoku period really only get to eat this kind of food. We have to serve it to the team leader strictly according to the recipe."
"There's no need to be so respectful of history! When I said 'Warring States period daimyo level,' it was just a descriptive term! Preparing this kind of garbage will only make the young master laugh at us!"
Goro's gaze suddenly fell on the circular market outside the Eco Tower.
"Look, what's happening over there?"
Nighttime is the liveliest time at the circular market, coinciding with the weakening of acid snow, the cool light of the eco-tower and the neon signs on the stalls complement each other.
Under the waterproof canopy, crowds surged.
There were Night Dragon Society guards buying late-night snacks after their shift, wealthy merchants from the inner city wearing gas masks out of curiosity, Furui vendors using prosthetic arms to flip skewers, and homeless people huddled under the scaffolding at the "San Niangniang Temple" construction site, waiting for the leftovers after the market closed.
The members of the Cherry Blossom Troupe, "Hime no Oni" and "Skinny Monkey," are strolling around the food section.
Hizen no Oni is a pig-headed Furyan, fat and chubby, with a military-grade cybernetic body (and a mechanical bird) on his lower body.
He carried an enormous power hammer on his shoulder and stuffed freshly bought fried chicken into his mouth with his other hand.
"Hahaha—it's so delicious! After I marry your mom, we're going to eat fried chicken every day!"
The skinny monkey has a small head and torso, but its limbs are fitted with large prosthetics, which are weapons in themselves.
"Can't you talk unless you mention my mom? Let me tell you..."
The aroma of the compressed vegetable pancakes interrupted Skinny Monkey's train of thought, his ears filled with the shouts of vendors and the sounds of customers haggling.
A girl with a mohawk in a street band is rapping, and an open-air cinema is showing a martial arts film set in the Earth Age.
Two Furui patrol guards from the Night Dragon Society, carrying electric batons, walked past the "Imperial Seal of the State" souvenir stall and nodded to the stall owner.
Everything seemed to be the same as usual.
As the ground shook and a large crack appeared, countless mechanical ninjas with glowing green eyes swarmed out, dragging their long braids as they charged towards the crowd.
Before those on the edge of the market could react, the mechanical ninja revealed the claws at the ends of its hands and went on a killing spree. Blood gushed from its vital points again and again, instantly staining the ground covered with recycled steel plates and gravel red.
Everyone turned to look in the direction of the attack, their laughter abruptly cut short, replaced by screams. The tarpaulin tore, the LED light string short-circuited, the unstable frame collapsed, and plastic stools, skewers, robotic arms, prosthetic eyes, and spinal supports were all sent flying.
Numerous mechanical ninjas, like an endless stream of black seawater, appeared. They had only one purpose—to kill.
The two Furei guards drew their guns and fired, but the mechanical ninjas skillfully deflected the bullets with their arm armor. A massive number of them approached from all directions, cruelly and swiftly sacrificing the two men.
A glass jar at a homemade yogurt stand shattered, spilling liquid all over the floor. A girl slipped and fell while running away, her hand landing on shards of glass. Nearby, an old woman smashed a metal spoon into the ninja's head; the spoon bent, and both she and the girl were pierced through the chest by claw blades.
"I'm so angry!" Hizen no Oni shouted, "That girl looks just like your mother!"
With a roar, he unleashed his "Wild Frenzy" ability, causing the pig-headed Fury to stand on end and transform from a white domestic pig into a black wild boar, simultaneously enhancing his strength and stamina.
The power hammer drew a rapid arc with his shoulder as a fulcrum, smashing into the two mechanical ninjas closest to him.
However, both ninjas vanished simultaneously. Suddenly, some parts from a nearby stall appeared where they had been standing, falling to the ground with a clattering sound.
Skinny Monkey was shocked: "That's Team Leader Xia's 'Phantom Substitution Technique'! Do they all know this?"
Xia's Phantom Substitution Technique comes from the Energy Jar, and it's not surprising that the Mechanical Ninjas also learned it through the Energy Jar.
"Ahhh... Ahhhhhh!"
Hizen's demon swept through in fury, but the mechanical ninjas continued to use the Phantom Substitution Technique to maintain their distance. The power hammer simply smashed stall after stall.
A customer missing his left leg picked up a secondhand prosthetic leg and tried to attach it to escape, but the connector didn't fit. He fell to the ground and was trampled by the chaotic crowd. "Stop hitting him, you can't hit him anyway!"
Skinny Monkey yelled at Fat-chan, using his massive prosthetic body to uproot the stall that had been reduced to garbage and hurled it at the mechanical ninjas.
"Follow my example, force them to retreat, and buy people time to escape!"
Hizen no Oni calmed down a bit. He stopped swinging his hammer with all his might and instead adopted a defensive strategy, blocking the ninjas' pursuit route and using his stall to create obstacles.
With Hizen no Oni and the skinny monkey bringing up the rear, the civilians had a chance to catch their breath. Under the command of the Night Dragon Society guards, people quickly evacuated towards the Eco Tower.
The mohawk girl from the street band picked up the microphone and turned the speakers up to the maximum.
"Everyone, don't panic! Follow the guards and retreat towards the Eco Tower! Don't trample each other!"
The ninjas quickly approached her. Under a tin shed nearby was a temporary branch of Lao Wang's fried chicken shop. One of Lao Wang's apprentices, a young man in his twenties, had seen everything.
The young man acted decisively, pouring the hot oil from the pot onto the nearest ninja. One of the ninjas' optical sensors was coated with oil, causing his eyes to flash green and emit a crackling sound.
Taking advantage of the moment, Hizen no Oni swung his power hammer, smashing the mechanical ninja's head off. A mixture of blood and engine oil spurted from the severed neck.
But more ninjas jumped over the oil slick, used the Phantom Substitution Technique to avoid Hizen no Oni, and cut down the young man and the mohawk girl.
Hizen no Oni was enraged to the point of madness. Skinny Monkey, fearing he would lose his mind and become indiscriminate in his dealings with friend and foe, could only say, "For my mother's sake, continue to maintain the same deterrent as before, cover the civilians' evacuation, and await the young master's support!"
The young man's heroic act inspired many. Among the workers on the construction site, some drove forklifts and bulldozers to ram the ninja; some threw Molotov cocktails from high places; and others picked up phlogiston grenades from stalls.
Qin Jiandan, inside the Eco Tower, had already witnessed the enemy's attack and the chaos of the circular market.
Security captain Su Yue has been ordered to rescue civilians, and Valei has been assigned to command the police officers of the East City Police Department.
Valei, along with Zhang Wei, Wang Qiang, Xiao Zuoba, and others who had come from the inner city, found "Cannon Sun," the administrator of the Eco Tower's active defense system.
Why didn't you fire to protect the civilians?
Artillery Sun looked up from his defensive machine gun seat with a worried expression.
"The defense system is mainly designed to deal with medium to large-sized units. The mechanical ninjas are too small targets and are mixed in with civilians, so it's impossible to hit them!"
The white-haired, black-skinned beast girl's blue pupils contracted rapidly.
"Artillery Sun, you stay here and wait for the medium to large units to appear. The rest of you come with me to protect the civilians!"
"How can we protect them?" asked the goat-like Furei, Little Zorba. "The mechanical ninjas are agile, they use civilians as human shields, and they all have the Phantom Substitution Technique... Only the young master can defeat them, right?"
Vale glared at him. "The young master is only one person, while there are probably 500 mechanical ninjas. Moreover, the young master has to oversee the entire operation!"
Wang Qiang said, "If we use three airborne police vehicles to drop incendiary bombs from a high place... no, civilians are still a big problem."
Valei's alarm bracelet suddenly vibrated; it was a message from Mu Yue, who was guarding the headquarters.
"Varei, I've learned about the situation from Jiandan. You all need to go to the resettlement area on the edge of the desert immediately and bring the mobile base vehicle over!"
Vale immediately realized: "Using the mobile base vehicle as an enhanced armored bus? That's actually a good idea! As long as most civilians retreat, we can unleash our full power, activate the active defense machine guns of the Eco Tower, or throw grenades at the mechanical ninjas from the sky!"
The ground fissure from which the mechanical ninjas emerged is located in a desolate area between the Night Dragon Society headquarters and the circular market. The immigrant settlement behind the Eco Tower is relatively safe at this point.
Qin Jiandan was nervously communicating with Hu Chi via the alarm bracelet.
"Young Master, does the Eco Tower need support? I can lead a team to flank the enemy from the rear!"
Qin Jiandan immediately refused.
"No, these unfamiliar mechanical ninjas are probably part of the company's mass-produced force. They seem to have limited strength. They're just an appetizer; the real challenge is yet to come."
"You stay at headquarters and do your utmost to protect Muyue, Linlin, and Master's hibernation pod. We must not fall for the enemy's diversionary tactic!"
Tiger Fool agreed. Qin Jiandan then started calling for Linlin and Kazama.
"You two, I'll be going into battle soon and may not be able to oversee the overall situation. You two will take command in my place and keep a close eye on all intelligence sources. If you discover that the Nean Society is also involved in the attack, immediately detonate the bombs that were previously placed near their armory!"
"Also, order the Anomaly Group to guard District 12 and be ready to launch a major attack on the Nean Society at any time! We must never completely trust Rosenberg!"
"Mu Yue, protect yourself and stay put. The company might use the same tactic again, employing the 'Young Spirit Disaster Core' to lure the Primordial-level Yin Beasts into attacking us. Your 'Moonlight Justice' is the most effective weapon against them. You must conserve your strength!"
With the tasks roughly assigned, Qin Jiandan began to stretch his muscles and bones, his powerful internal energy swirling and flowing around his body, faintly resembling a dragon.
"Dr. Chen, are you leading the team again this time? The company wants to destroy the large light-emitting canopy generator of the Eco Tower, as well as the vertical farm. Even if you don't take any further action, the people of Dongcheng will die from acid snow and starvation..."
“I won’t easily go outside the tower. Granny Thousand Stars has already gone in my place. Whatever feast you have left, bring it on; I’ll be waiting for you inside the tower!”