223: It's over again.

Zhu Zicong's gelatinous body rapidly disintegrated and withered under the corrosive poison, finally turning into a pile of foul-smelling, ash-black residue, motionless.

Those eight once-terrifying pale spider legs, as if drained of all support, scattered across the ground, quickly losing their luster.

Almost simultaneously, Lu Jianchuan faced the death throes of the mechanical battle tank.

It emitted an unwilling, grating shriek like an old machine seizing up. The damaged sensors on its head flashed red chaotically as it still attempted one final charge.

Lu Jianchuan took a deep breath—though unseen behind his armor. He slightly lowered his stance, drew his right arm back. On his silvery-white arm armor, the streamlined biological patterns seemed to come alive, glowing faintly, channeling energy towards his fist.

The dense, silvery-white electrical currents no longer merely enveloped it but writhed and compressed around his knuckles like living electric serpents, emitting an increasingly sharp crackling sound. The surrounding air seemed to tremble faintly.

"It's over," he murmured, taking a step forward that cracked the ground!

A fist brimming with raw power and destructive energy, like an electromagnetic cannon shell, struck without any flourish the mechanical battle tank's core chest and abdomen area where biological tissue and mechanical structures were entangled!

BOOM——!!! CRACKLE-RUMBLE——!

An explosive roar, far more violent than any previous collision, erupted!

The tank's thick frontal armor was completely pierced and torn apart by this punch. The jumble of internal mechanical parts, cables, and those dark red necrotic biological tissues scattered in all directions as if a bomb had detonated from within!

The massive chassis was lifted half a meter off the ground by the tremendous impact before crashing heavily onto its back with a final, resounding thud. Its treads spun futilely a few times before grinding to a complete halt. Only the wrecked body occasionally spat out a few short-circuiting sparks.

The laboratory fell silent again, save for the faint sounds of short-circuiting equipment, dripping liquids, and distant, indistinct collapses.

"Go!" Without any delay, Lu Jianchuan called out to Wei Ziqing and took the lead, sprinting towards the general direction the motorcycle had taken earlier.

Wei Ziqing glanced at Zhu Zicong's remains and the scrapped tank, then immediately followed.

The path was a mess. Many lab compartments had their doors wide open, empty inside. Clearly, most personnel had already received evacuation orders and fled earlier.

They occasionally encountered one or two panicked individuals in lab coats or armed personnel who hadn't managed to escape or were carrying out final cleanup tasks.

Seeing the two figures clad in one silver and one white set of armor, radiating palpable Evil Qi, charging towards them, these people were all scared Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering. They either collapsed on the spot or screamed and hid in corners, unable to muster even a shred of resistance.

Just as they approached a larger exit that seemed to be a material distribution area, they ran headlong into several people in gray uniforms, unarmed, who were loading the last few boxes onto an off-road vehicle.

Upon seeing them, those people froze for a moment. Then, one of them pointed at Lu Jianchuan in terror and cried out in a shrill voice:

"S-silver skeleton?! Impossible! The intel said he was killed fighting Lu Jianchuan!"

"Shut up! Move!"

Another person who seemed like a small leader, his face deathly pale, didn't even bother with the supplies. He yanked the car door open, urged his companions inside. The off-road vehicle's tires screeched as it crashed through some obstacles in a panic, plunging into the deeper, darker passage outside and fleeing.

They burst through the final doorway. The blinding natural light outside made both of them, accustomed to the dim laboratory, squint.

This place seemed to be a concealed rear exit of the mountain, connected to a rugged gravel road.

Not far away, a GUPA-standard heavy transport helicopter had its rotors spinning, churning up massive air currents and dust.

Several medical personnel were carefully lifting the still-unconscious Shen Mingyuan from the motorcycle's rear seat, placing him on a stretcher, preparing to load him onto the helicopter.

The motorcycle sat quietly to the side, its lights blinking faintly.

And standing by the helicopter's boarding ladder, hands clasped behind his back, was a tall figure—Golden Bone.

Lu Jianchuan and Wei Ziqing almost simultaneously de-transformed. The moment their armor dissipated, an intense wave of weakness and hollow, ravenous hunger gripped them.

Lu Jianchuan's face paled, and he staggered slightly. Wei Ziqing felt his legs go weak, holding himself up only by sheer willpower.

Seeing this, Golden Bone quickly gestured to a team member standing by.

That member immediately retrieved two sealed High-Concentration Energy Supplements from a nearby equipment case, strode over, and handed one each to Lu Jianchuan and Wei Ziqing.

"Replenish yourselves first," Golden Bone's voice was steady and firm.

Thanking him, the two took the supplements, immediately bit off the seals, and drank them down.

The warm, liquid substance, rich in concentrated sugars and special nutrients, flooded into their stomachs and was rapidly absorbed by their severely depleted bodies. The heart-palpitating sense of weakness was finally barely suppressed.

Some color returned to Lu Jianchuan's face. Wei Ziqing also felt steady on his feet again.

Golden Bone's gaze first lingered for a moment on Shen Mingyuan being loaded onto the helicopter, then turned to the two approaching men. Especially when looking at Wei Ziqing, a trace of imperceptible scrutiny and understanding flashed in his eyes.

"Golden Bone," Lu Jianchuan walked up close and gave a simple greeting, his voice still somewhat hoarse.

"Officer Lu, well done," Golden Bone gave a slight nod, then his gaze fell on Wei Ziqing. "And this is... the new 'Hero'?"

"Wei Ziqing," Lu Jianchuan introduced, stepping aside. "Lawyer Shen's authorized representative, and also... the white armor just now."

Facing this high-ranking officer with such a powerful presence, Wei Ziqing suppressed his confusion and nervousness and nodded. "Hello."

"Wei Ziqing..." Golden Bone repeated the name, his gaze profound.

"Your performance, we all saw it. Thank you for everything you did to rescue our comrade. I am one of the heads of GUPA, codename 'Golden Bone'.

This is not the place for discussion. Board the aircraft first. Lawyer Shen needs immediate comprehensive examination and treatment. You both also need rest and a briefing."

He didn't ask why Wei Ziqing could transform, nor did he press for details. This direct, take-charge style of cutting to the chase and managing the overall situation actually made Wei Ziqing breathe a small sigh of relief.

Lu Jianchuan patted Wei Ziqing's shoulder, signaling him to follow.

The three spoke no more, quickly boarding the helicopter. The medical personnel had already secured Shen Mingyuan to a fixed medical bed inside the cabin, connecting him to basic life-monitoring equipment.

Lu Jianchuan's motorcycle seemed to receive some command, driving off on its own to find a concealed spot.

The roar of the rotors intensified as the helicopter slowly lifted off the ground, heading towards the city.

Inside the cabin, Lu Jianchuan and Wei Ziqing leaned back in their seats, seizing the time to rest and recover their severely depleted stamina.

Golden Bone sat opposite them, his gaze calm as he looked out the window at the Mountain Forest scenery flashing by, lost in thought.

Shen Mingyuan still lay quietly on the medical bed, yet to awaken. But the most dangerous moment seemed to have temporarily passed.

[Consciousness Space]

The battle ended, Shen Mingyuan was rescued, the formidable enemy was vanquished, and the new Aptitude Holder demonstrated excellent qualities and successfully teamed up with the previous generation... This should have been a moment of relief.

However, Han Chengyu within the Consciousness Space showed no trace of ease or joy on his face at this moment.

His expression was unusually grim, brows tightly furrowed, his gaze fixed intently on the interface before him, lips pressed into a thin line.

"System," his voice was low, carrying a rare note of tension, "this... is troublesome."