Translator: AnubisTL
"Next second—"
The turret mounted on the off-road vehicle flashed with a telepathic burst of flame.
Boom!!!
But after firing just one shot, a massive, dull thud rang in their ears!
The off-road vehicle had been flipped over by the turret's recoil, and the turret immediately ceased firing. The errant shell, ejected from the barrel, landed over a hundred meters away without causing any casualties.
Instead, the explosion drew unwanted attention.
The pair could vaguely see several figures carrying firearms emerging from warehouses and abandoned buildings a few hundred meters away.
Ahem!
Chen Jiang coughed lightly, his face slightly flushed with embarrassment. He hastily used his space bracelet to detach the turret from the vehicle, set it on the ground, and re-aimed the barrel at City 18.
He had forgotten that the off-road vehicle's weight class couldn't withstand the turret's recoil.
Scar Dog, standing beside him, averted his gaze as if oblivious to the entire incident, skillfully defusing Chen Jiang's awkwardness.
After re-aiming the turret, Chen Jiang watched the mechanical race members emerge from the abandoned warehouses and buildings, their firearms glinting in the sunlight. He pulled out another cigarette, didn't light it, and stuck it between his lips.
Leaning heavily on his hand cannon, he gazed skyward at a forty-five-degree angle, his deep-set eyes brimming with untold stories.
His blood- and dust-stained white shirt, disheveled collar, and unkempt hair, bathed in the midday sun, made him resemble an explorer newly returned to the light, still adjusting to the brightness.
"May God protect you," a voice murmured between them, its slightly hoarse timbre both captivating and as comforting as a spring breeze.
Scar Dog, arms crossed, leaned against the overturned off-road vehicle, his face somber as he stared at the sky above Chen Jiang's head. A blade of dogtail grass dangled from his lips.
The streaks of blood on his face made him resemble a withered tree in the wilderness—resilient and unyielding.
Just then—
The turret, unwilling to be left out of this once-in-a-millennium moment of swagger, flared to life again.
Boom!
The crimson patterns on the cannon's barrel blazed as if charged with energy. As an unknown fluid substance surged within the magazine, streaks of red fire streaked toward City 18 at impossible speeds.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Shells rained down on the factory roofs and the midsections of abandoned buildings.
When resources are scarce, precision strikes are the way to go; when resources are abundant, unleash overwhelming firepower.
Under Chen Jiang's settings, the turret fired at its maximum rate, showing no restraint whatsoever.
Within its 2,500-meter range, the Steel Sword Autonomous Turret relentlessly bombarded City 18 with 2,900 rounds per minute, each shell raining down in an unceasing torrent.
Boom! Boom!
Massive explosions and blinding flames erupted across City 18, illuminating the night sky.
The flames, brighter than the sun, gave the city's residents a true taste of the raw power of firepower.
After five minutes of relentless bombardment, an energy shield suddenly materialized above City 18, enveloping the entire city.
When the turret's shells struck the shield, they detonated, but the energy shield absorbed the shockwaves.
Only when three or four shells struck the same spot in quick succession could they blast a small hole in the shield, but the massive energy shield quickly repaired the breach.
"Heh."
Seeing City 18's swift defensive response, Chen Jiang grinned and clapped his hands. "Since you're ready, our little greeting ends here for today."
"We'll continue tomorrow."
"Let you feel a fraction of the pain we felt when your mechanical race slaughtered us upon our arrival in this world."
Meanwhile, notifications continued to chime in his ear.
[Ding! Congratulations, Player Chen Jiang, for successfully eliminating 78 mechanical race members.]
[Due to the declared state of war between the human race and the mechanical race, you have been awarded 78 merit points.]
[...]
[Ding! Congratulations, Player Chen Jiang, for successfully eliminating 120 mechanical race members.]
[Due to the declared state of war between the human race and the mechanical race, you have been awarded 120 merit points.]
[...]
[Ding! Congratulations, Player Chen Jiang, for successfully eliminating 32 mechanical race members.]
[Due to the declared state of war between the human race and the mechanical race, you have been awarded 32 merit points.]
[Ding! Congratulations, Player Chen Jiang, for successfully eliminating 1,234 alien race players today.]
[You have risen to the top of the Kill Rankings!]
"Heh."
Chen Jiang hoisted the Steel Sword Autonomous Turret, climbed into his vehicle, and drove off to temporarily evade City 18's retaliation. As he glanced at the notification, he murmured in surprise, "I'm actually number one? Yesterday's top player killed nearly two thousand aliens."
[Kill Rankings]
[Rank 1: Human Race, Chen Jiang]
[Alien Race Kills: 1,234]
[Rank 2: Mechanical Race, Feng Jiutian]
[Alien Race Kills: 428]
[Rank 3: Mechanical Race, Yan Pomen]
[Alien Race Kills: 334]
"Quite a drop from yesterday," Chen Jiang mused.
"Maybe it's still midday, and those two are just getting started? Or perhaps yesterday they stumbled upon a densely populated alien settlement, and today they haven't found one?"
After a moment's thought, Chen Jiang decided to put the matter aside for now.
It was only the second day since the Kill Rankings had been released. After another round of enhancements in a few days, Chen Jiang's name would be the only one at the top of the Kill Rankings.
Seeing a human player rise to the top spot should be a significant boost to morale for the human race.
Strangely, there should have been many human players who had voluntarily become slaves in the area he had just bombarded. Yet he hadn't received any kill notifications for human players.
He quickly realized what must have happened.
The slaves had likely been forcibly conscripted into the mechanical race.
Speaking of which, what was the racial innate ability of the mechanical race?
And it seemed that unlike humans, not every member of the mechanical race had a random innate ability?
Chen Jiang didn't dwell on it for long. Resting his left hand on the car window, he steered with his right hand and turned to Scar Dog, a smirk playing on his lips. "Did you get the shot?"
"Naturally," Scar Dog replied with a grin, pulling a camera from his chest pocket. A photograph, showing only half of its tail, was partially inserted into the camera.
This was an item they had kept as a memento.
The item wasn't particularly useful; it could only take photos and develop them instantly.
Still, they kept it instead of using it for enhancement. In this world where death could strike at any moment, being able to record milestones in their lives through photographs added a touch of levity to the tense atmosphere.
Scar Dog handed the photo to Chen Jiang.
The image showed the very scene they had just staged for the camera.
Chen Jiang stood with both hands resting on the barrel of his slender hand cannon, wearing a white shirt stained with dust and blood and straight-legged suit pants. His deep-set eyes gazed diagonally upward at the sky.
Scar Dog leaned casually against the overturned SUV, one foot propped on the vehicle, standing to Chen Jiang's side and looking up at the sky above Chen Jiang's head.
Between them, the red-patterned turret glowed brightly, roaring as it launched shells into the distance.
In the background, City 18 was shrouded in smoke and flames.
The composition was perfectly balanced, with dynamic action contrasting against static poses, giving the photo a striking aesthetic.
"Not bad," Chen Jiang said, holding the photo with one hand and admiring it for a moment before tucking it into a small slot on the dashboard. He grinned. "If we live long enough to get married and have kids, they'll definitely think their dad was a badass when they see this photo."
"Damn right!" Scar Dog slapped his bamboo-thin chest, gave a thumbs-up, and roared with laughter. "Heh!"
Chen Jiang shook his head and chuckled, tearing his gaze from the photo. He slammed his foot down on the accelerator. "Hang on tight!"
The engine roared to life.
The off-road vehicle surged forward with near-feral speed, tearing across the unobstructed wilderness.
As the camera pulled back, all that could be seen was a dust-trailing off-roader hurtling across the wasteland.
Faintly, carried on the wind, came bursts of unrestrained laughter—wild and reckless, yet tinged with weariness.
(End of the Chapter)
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