222: It's back.

Vroom—!!!

The motorcycle roared, tearing through the air, and didn't pause for a single moment upon landing.

The rider—Lu Jianchuan—had eyes as sharp as knives as he gave the handlebars a sudden twist!

That silver-and-black motorcycle let out a low growl like a wild beast. Its tires screeched against the ground, kicking up blue smoke. Instead of retreating, it charged head-on toward the semi-biological mechanical war chariot that was several times its size!

The war chariot seemed to "stumble" for a moment. Perhaps in its programming or simple consciousness, it had never seen such an "overconfident" collision.

The next second, the front of the motorcycle—specifically the silver ram that didn't look particularly prominent—slammed hard into the armor at the very front of the war chariot!

Boom!!!

The loud crash made eardrums ache.

Incredibly, the massive war chariot was actually knocked back by over a meter, its treads and mechanical legs plowing deep furrows into the ground. Its head sensors flickered wildly, emitting a chaotic hum.

The motorcycle itself was repelled by the counterforce, its body rearing high. However, under Lu Jianchuan's expert control, it performed a beautiful mid-air rear-wheel turn and landed steadily back on the ground. It stood in front of Wei Ziqing and Shen Mingyuan, its front still aimed at the enemy as hot air puffed from the exhaust pipe.

This scene caused Zhu Zicong, who was preparing to flank them, to temporarily pause his movements. The dark holes on his gelatinous torso seemed to "stare" at the new uninvited guest.

Lu Jianchuan nimbly flipped off the bike and strode over to Wei Ziqing, who was gripping his bone sword and was fully on guard.

He raised his hands to show he had no ill intent and spoke rapidly:

"Don't be nervous! I'm also a... former 'Transformed One'. Code name 'silver skeleton'. I'm here to help you now."

"silver skeleton?"

"No time for a detailed explanation."

Lu Jianchuan said quickly, his gaze sweeping over the unconscious Shen Mingyuan on the ground, lingering for a moment on the silent armband on his left wrist. "I need your help now. At least, buy me a little time."

As he spoke, he quickly took a palm-sized, precision-structured silver box device flashing with a cold metallic luster from his tactical bag—it was a "prototype" created by GUPA through reverse engineering based on early recovery data. It looked more like a high-tech instrument than a Transformation Device.

Lu Jianchuan unhesitatingly placed this "prototype" next to Shen Mingyuan's left wrist, almost touching that seemingly dormant silver-gray armband.

Miraculously, or rather, terrifyingly, something happened.

The central crimson orb of the armband on Shen Mingyuan's left wrist suddenly lit up with a faint glow! Several black-red, seemingly living, fine electric arcs erupted from the orb, instantly lashing out and entangling the "prototype" next to it!

Zzzzz—!

Amidst the piercing sound of electricity, the metallic casing of the "prototype" writhed, deformed, and expanded violently like a living creature!

In just two or three seconds, it was completely dismantled and reorganized by those black-red electric arcs. From a square box, it was stretched and molded into two rings about the thickness of bracelets, entirely matte silver-white with fine technological patterns on the surface.

Lu Jianchuan was quick-handed, grabbing these two silver-white bracelets that still held residual heat. He looked at Zhu Zicong, who was temporarily uncertain because of this scene, and the mechanical war chariot that had readjusted its direction and was letting out a threatening low growl. His gaze sharpened.

Next, he made an even more unexpected move—he took out a micro-syringe from the inner side of his tactical bag, inside of which flowed an ominous, dark red liquid that throbbed slightly as if it were alive. Without hesitation, he aimed the syringe at the side of his neck and pressed down hard!

"That's...!" For the first time, Zhu Zicong's slimy voice carried obvious shock and disbelief.

"The new iterative formula for 'catalyst-type 7'?! We haven't even finished the living stability tests! If you directly inject this unfinished strong inducer, you'll be like those experimental animals, from the inside..."

"Explode?" Lu Jianchuan finished the sentence. His voice was somewhat raspy from the instant impact of the injected fluid, but his eyes burned with a flame of determination. "Then I'll just have to... finish this fight first!"

Before his voice had even faded, a strong transformation erupted from within his body! Under his bare skin, his blood vessels lit up with an abnormal dark red glow like activated circuits. His muscles expanded and contracted uncontrollably. Intense pain caused the veins on his forehead to bulge, but he gritted his teeth hard.

Holding a silver-white bracelet in each hand, he suddenly crossed his arms in front of his chest!

"Ugh, aaaaaah—!!"

Accompanied by a roar of suppressed pain, his crossed arms burst forth with a brilliant silver-white radiance! That radiance didn't shoot out from within him but originated from the two bracelets, instantly spreading to cover his entire body.

Streamlined silver-white biological armor was instantly molded as if by an invisible hand, "growing" out from under his skin and enveloping every inch of his limbs. The armor had the natural muscle texture and fibrous feel of Advanced biological bone, with sharp lines full of the pure beauty of biomechanics.

His head was covered by smooth silver armor, and his eyes turned into two long, narrow, and sharp glowing azure bodies.

The former hero, "silver skeleton," had forcibly returned here in this manner.

Lu Jianchuan quickly turned to his motorcycle and patted its handlebars.

"Take him away from here. Find a safe place and protect him."

The motorcycle's headlight flickered twice, and it let out a low, seemingly understanding "humming" sound.

Wei Ziqing immediately understood and quickly helped the still-unconscious Shen Mingyuan up from the ground, placing him on the back seat of the motorcycle.

The motorcycle's body automatically adjusted its angle slightly to ensure Shen Mingyuan could lean steadily. Then, the tires gripped the ground firmly, and the engine let out a low growl of anticipation.

"I'm counting on you," Wei Ziqing whispered.

The motorcycle hummed in response once more, then shot off like an arrow from a bow, carrying Shen Mingyuan as it nimbly bypassed the edge of the battlefield and sped away through a relatively intact passage entrance, quickly disappearing into the shadows. The biggest concern was now resolved.

Lu Jianchuan stood side-by-side with Wei Ziqing, who was clad in plain white armor, facing the gelatinous monster and the steel war chariot.

"Let's go," Lu Jianchuan said in a deep voice, the light of his azure eyepieces glowing slightly brighter.

"Okay!" Wei Ziqing's tone actually carried a hint of uncontrollable excitement, a mix of nervousness and something strange.

"I didn't expect that my first battle would be... fighting alongside a Senior. This feeling is like a scene from those tokusatsu dramas coming to life in reality."

"Hmph, keep up!" Lu Jianchuan barked, his figure being the first to burst forth! He exploded with startling speed, his silver-white figure pulling a series of afterimages as he went straight for the nearest mechanical war chariot!

His fighting style was direct and fierce. His punches and kicks were enveloped in crackling silver-white biological electricity. Every strike was heavy and powerful, clashing head-on with the war chariot's thick armor with dull, loud thuds. He actually forced that steel behemoth to retreat repeatedly, its acid-spraying port suppressed by his close proximity, making it difficult to aim for a moment.

At the same time, Wei Ziqing also moved. His target was still Zhu Zicong.

With Lu Jianchuan pinning down the most threatening war chariot, he could focus more on dealing with this eerie gelatinous enemy.

He pushed his speed and the agility of the "Thousand Void Bone-Eroding" sword technique to their limits. He no longer sought a one-hit kill but moved like a most annoying hornet, circling rapidly around the range of Zhu Zicong's eight dancing limbs.

The bone sword in his hand, glowing with dark purple light, specifically targeted the joints where the limbs met the torso and the relatively "solid" nodes on the gelatinous body. Every contact left behind a lethal purple spot.

Zhu Zicong was exceptionally annoyed, his eight limbs dancing wildly and shooting venomous silk everywhere. But Wei Ziqing was simply too slippery and intentionally led him to a position slightly further away from Lu Jianchuan and the war chariot's battle to avoid being flanked.

The battle seemed to fall into a brief stalemate, but both Lu Jianchuan and Wei Ziqing were looking for an opportunity.

The chance soon appeared.

Wei Ziqing made a subtle feint, baiting two of Zhu Zicong's main attacking limbs to thrust forward. His body leaned forward slightly, exposing a fleeting opening on his side and rear.

"Now!" Wei Ziqing shouted in his mind, but instead of attacking himself, he suddenly dodged to the side.

Almost at the same moment, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, Lu Jianchuan used the force of a fierce collision with the war chariot to propel himself backward. His silver-white figure streaked through the air like a cannonball, his right fist clenched tight with dazzling, jumping electricity concentrated on his knuckles.

Seizing the opening Zhu Zicong had exposed, a straightforward but lightning-fast punch slammed hard into the side-rear of Zhu Zicong's gelatinous torso!

Bang—! Crackle!

The powerful physical impact combined with the violent biological electricity caused Zhu Zicong's entire torso to tremble violently. He let out a pained hiss, his movements becoming visibly stiff, and the coordination of his eight limbs instantly fell into chaos.

"Good!" Wei Ziqing wouldn't miss this perfect opportunity. He followed up like a shadow, his bone sword turning into several tricky purple streaks of light. Taking advantage of Zhu Zicong's stiffened and paralyzed state, he left deep and vicious cuts on several joints and the torso, pouring in a large amount of dark purple toxin!

"Ugh, aah—!" Zhu Zicong's hiss was filled with alarm and fury.

Just then, the mechanical war chariot shook off the residual power of Lu Jianchuan's previous strike. Its head turned, aiming at Wei Ziqing as he was attacking Zhu Zicong, its acid glands swelling once more!

Lu Jianchuan's gaze went cold. At the instant the war chariot spat its acid, he suddenly ducked to the side, letting the viscous stream of acid miss him by a hair's breadth.

At the same time, his left hand clamped like a steel vice onto a protruding mechanical structure on the war chariot's head. His right fist, once again filled with electricity, smashed with a force that could split mountains and crack stones onto the junction between the war chariot's head and torso!

Boom! Crack!

The sound of metal twisting and snapping was agonizing to hear. The war chariot's head was smashed backward, and the acid spray went wild, causing the nearby rock wall to sizzle and corrode.

Wei Ziqing was also in sync. While Lu Jianchuan attacked the war chariot to draw its attention, he exploded with speed again.

He moved rapidly around Zhu Zicong, whose movements were sluggish due to the toxin and electric shocks. He slashed repeatedly with his bone sword, adding several more deep purple wounds to his opponent's body as the toxin continued to accumulate.

The battle became an efficient display of alternating attacks and cover. Lu Jianchuan used fierce electricity and great strength to suppress and break the war chariot's offensive head-on while creating opportunities for Wei Ziqing to attack Zhu Zicong.

Wei Ziqing, with his ghost-like speed and lethal poisonous sword edge, constantly weakened Zhu Zicong's vitality and mobility, providing timely distraction to share Lu Jianchuan's pressure.

Although it was their first time working together, the two showed an amazing level of tacit understanding.

The silver-white and plain white figures flickered and crossed paths on the battlefield. The explosions of electricity and the whistling of the sword edge intertwined, firmly suppressing Zhu Zicong and the mechanical war chariot.

However, just as one of Lu Jianchuan's heavy punches sent the war chariot reeling back and another of Wei Ziqing's sword strikes pierced Zhu Zicong's torso, a sudden change occurred!

Pfft—!

Zhu Zicong's grayish-white gelatinous body suddenly convulsed violently. From what was presumably his "mouth," he spat out a large puddle of dark red, almost black, viscous liquid that emitted a pungent, foul stench! This was clearly not ordinary blood.

"Im... impossible..." The slimy voice became intermittent, filled with pain and disbelief.

"Neuroparalytic toxin... should be ineffective against me... how can this be... my body... is collapsing?!"

Wei Ziqing took a step back and flicked the filth off his bone sword. His deep red goggles stared coldly at the opponent, his voice carrying a hint of mockery:

"Who told you I was still using a paralytic toxin?"

The dark purple spots that were constantly spreading on Zhu Zicong's torso now seemed to come alive, frantically eroding the surrounding grayish-white gelatin, making a faint "hissing" sound as if flesh were being corroded.

He tried to mobilize his eight limbs, only to find that the joints had long since been eroded and made fragile by the lethal poison. His movements were crooked and weak.

"You... you already..." Zhu Zicong's voice was filled with resentment and horror.

"That's right, I switched long ago," Wei Ziqing said coldly. "Now it's a lethal poison that kills on contact. How does it taste?"

"Cough... D... damn it..." Zhu Zicong's body began to wither and discolor at a visible rate. Those eight pale limbs also hung down limply. It was clear the toxin had already penetrated his core and begun its total destruction.

On the other side, that mechanical war chariot wasn't doing much better. Its head junction had suffered multiple heavy blows from Lu Jianchuan and was severely deformed, making its movements faltering.

More troublesome was that during the previous struggle, Wei Ziqing had also seized the opportunity to leave several poisonous sword marks on the junctions between its exposed biological tissue and mechanical structures.

At this moment, those dark purple toxins were similarly eroding its biological parts, causing its movements to become increasingly uncoordinated. The hydraulic System emitted strange hisses, and the acid glands hung limply, emitting wisps of residual smoke.