Embers Ad Infinitum

Boom!

The grenade landed beside the jeep, stirring up waves and sending shards flying into the bulletproof armor and glass. It made Long Yuehong and Bai Chen in the car feel like they had encountered the unstoppable might of nature.

Jiang Baimian was very glad that closing the car door didn’t require much precision. Even in her ‘drunken’ state, she could finish it relatively easily. Otherwise, she really wasn’t sure if she could’ve done it before the grenade landed.

Without the jeep’s protection, even if she was wearing a military exoskeleton and could ensure that her vital spots weren’t damaged, she probably wouldn’t be spared.

The explosion quelled slightly, and Bai Chen started the car. She then controlled the steering wheel and floored the accelerator.

The jeep zoomed off, and for the first time, Bai Chen understood what drunk driving was.

Her limbs didn’t listen to her brain’s commands, and her brain’s reaction was always one or two beats slower.

When she read the entertainment data of the old world, she actually didn’t understand why getting drunk affected driving. After all, as a wilderness wanderer and ruin hunter who had suffered since she was a child, she rarely drank alcohol. Even when she went to Weed City’s bars to get information and had to follow the local customs, she didn’t indulge herself. At most, she would get a little tipsy.

At this moment, she finally understood how accurate the saying “if you drink, don’t drive; if you drive, don’t drink” was.

She couldn’t control herself. Although the military exoskeleton equipment provided sufficient aid, it was ultimately external equipment that operated according to her various reactions. It was impossible to forcefully modify her movements.

This was just like how the precision aiming system only provided the wearer a reference. It could help adjust the aim and provide the correct posture and direction, but it couldn’t force the wearer to shoot anywhere.

Of course, it was also possible if she wanted the exoskeleton equipment to be the primary driver and have the wearer be secondary. It was just like how some cars had the ability to drive automatically.

Unfortunately, this required some tweaking to change the system mode. Bai Chen couldn’t complete it in a short period of time in her drunken state, and reality didn’t give her enough space.

In addition, the automatic mode of the military exoskeleton device was completely inferior to that of an intelligent robot. The older the model, the more so. If one were to have it be the primary mode, it was inevitable that their movements would be rigid and filled with all kinds of problems.

As Bai Chen floored the accelerator, the jeep sped up.

This was much faster than she had expected because she failed to control the strength needed to step on the accelerator in her drunken state.

And clearly, the forest wasn’t a suitable place for racing

In the next second, a huge tree appeared in front of Bai Chen’s eyes.

She suddenly changed directions, but it took her a full second for her brain to give the order for her body to react. Therefore, it was an irredeemable situation.

Bang!

The jeep crashed into a tree, causing pin-like leaves to rain down. This caused it to stop.

Bai Chen was about to reverse the car when she suddenly saw the figure wearing a chameleon-like bionic smart armor appear in the distance.

This time, she carried a slightly complicated structure on her shoulder. It looked very heavy and resembled a rocket launcher.

Several members of the Old Task Force recognized this thing: First City’s AS-9 single-man anti-tank missile.

“Ditch the car!” Jiang Baimian shouted as she opened the car door and lunged out.

Bai Chen did the same, and Long Yuehong opened the door on the other side because it was closest to him.

Boom!

The AS-9 anti-tank missile failed to hit the jeep and instead hit the tree, snapping it in half and sending it crashing to the ground.

This stunned Jiang Baimian.

With an approximate distance of only 100 meters between the two parties, the enemy actually failed to blow up their team’s vehicle -a target as large as the jeep!

Perhaps it was because the recoil from the earlier strike had affected the other party, but Jiang Baimian instantly felt her ‘drunkenness’ ease. Coupled with the cold brought about by Chaotic Right Hand, her thinking speed increased as she trembled.

Could it be that this is the first time this fellow is using a single-person anti-tank missile? The grenade she used previously deviated from the target by a meter or two… She’s afraid of detonating the bomb in the car? No, since she has decided to attack us, she definitely has to choose what she’s best at and also the safest method. It’s impossible for her to treat this as a chance for actual combat practice…

One of her abilities is to let us enter a ‘drunken’ state, affecting our reaction speed and mobility. It doesn’t lead to direct fatality… In addition, there’s another ability that allows our shots to ‘take the initiative’ to avoid her body. Yes, this might be another manifestation of being ‘drunk’…

In short, up until now, the characteristics of her ability are closer to control, and this kind of ability is perfect for firearms… For her to enter the Mind Corridor, it’s unlikely that she hasn’t fought anyone in the past. Logically speaking, her marksmanship can only be good and not weak…

When I first used the gun, she accurately hit the hand I extended. It didn’t seem like a lucky shot…

I had a question from the beginning: Why did she take the initiative to do something and let herself be detected by the military exoskeleton’s comprehensive warning system? Back then, her best choice was to hide somewhere further and concealed and use our ‘drunken’ state to kill one person after another…

Combining all of this, although it’s ridiculous, I still think that she might be playing a cat-and-mouse game… She is engrossed in such a battle and isn’t in a hurry to finish us off, so she deliberately missed. It’s only a threat and coercion…

When she’s done playing, she will truly use her full strength and strike ruthlessly… This kind of behavior is difficult to understand, but it’s not too unacceptable for an Awakened… Is this a manifestation of her price?

With this in mind, Jiang Baimian’s mind became heavy and numb once again. If it weren’t for the ‘cold,’ she would’ve exhausted all her strength to think through a simple question.

The serious state of ‘drunkenness’ returned.

Although Jiang Baimian had some guesses and felt that their lives wouldn’t be in danger for the time being as long as they maintained a normal level of response, this was ultimately only a guess. It still needed further verification.

And even if the enemy’s price was about the same as her inference, she couldn’t think of a way to exploit it.

Firstly, her brain wasn’t being cooperative. Secondly, the enemy had been very cautious so far, maintaining a sufficient distance from them to prevent herself from being counterattacked.

The range of Chaotic Right Hand isn’t enough, and the jeep can’t be driven anytime soon. There’s no way to help me close the distance… Think of a way to lure her to a distance of 100 meters? Jiang Baimian took advantage of the fact that the ‘cold’ still had some effect. As she rolled to a nearby tree, she thought about what to do next.

When she arrived at her destination, she stopped. Then, she saw an item in the jeepit was a small speaker with a blue background and black surface.

This item that had fused with Shang Jianyao’s aura was originally placed on the armrest, but it had now landed beside the brake due to the collision.

It could complete Thought Implantation through the music. This came from Shang Jianyao himself, and it overlapped with his ability. Therefore, Shang Jianyao left it with his teammates to enrich the measures they could take when encountering an enemy.

Jiang Baimian’s eyes lit up as she instantly came up with a solution. At the same time, she felt vexed and wanted to slap herselfwith her right hand.

She didn’t immediately think of the small speaker to exploit it because of her drunken state!

With this in mind, Jiang Baimian shouted at Long Yuehong and Bai Chen—who had already found cover—with her engorged tongue, “Everyone, think of a way to break through. She’s… alone!”

On the surface, she made Long Yuehong and Bai Chen run separately, making full use of the fact that there was only one enemy and that she could only pursue in one direction. In fact, she was using this to deceive the target, allowing the latter to divert her subsequent focus to prevent the three Old Task Force members from escaping. This made it conducive for her to return to the jeep and retrieve the small speaker.

The range of this item’s coverage depended on how far its voice could reach. It wasn’t impossible to hit 100 meters or even 200 meters at maximum volume!

Ceningmis, main city area, in the small square.

Shang Jianyao looked around and said, “Let’s continue deeper. If we encounter the same situation that needs to be flushed with high-voltage electric current twice again, we can consider evacuating.”

“Even if we haven’t discovered the root of the problem here?” Genava asked.

Shang Jianyao nodded seriously and calmly replied, “It’s what I said it’s not like I won’t enter again after leaving. We can even temporarily leave Ceningmis and head south to enter the White Knights’ sphere of influence. We can then think of a way to charge up the electricity before returning.”

Clang! Clang! Clang! Genava clapped. Then, the smart robot said in a slightly synthetic voice, “Big White will definitely appreciate your current thoughts.”

Shang Jianyao didn’t respond and pointed forward. “Continue.”

After running for a distance and leaving the square, he suddenly stopped. “What’s wrong?” Genava asked.

Shang Jianyao looked up and said, “Although I haven’t sensed a New World node, I suddenly feel like there’s a huge vortex in the distance. The vortex is slowly becoming stronger!”