Chapter 25: Raiding the Boss?

That thing looked like a giant sphere made of silver, rolling straight out of the hall. Perhaps due to the material, it made no sharp sounds as it rolled across the floor; instead, it moved with a smooth, rhythmic grace. The surface of the sphere was incredibly polished, showing no seams or attachment points, save for an emblem consisting of wings and a morning star, identical to the one at the entrance.

Overall, aside from its massive size, it looked every bit like a friendly unit.

In fact, when Yu Lian met it in the "future," it hadn't displayed any excessive hostility. As long as one didn't touch the secret treasures it was specifically guarding, it wouldn't mind if you took a few other items.

But now, Yu Lian wasn't so sure. Back "then," it had remained in the room, disguising itself as a giant chandelier. If he hadn't been preparing to pull the crystal shard from the deepest part of the ruins, it likely wouldn't have even exposed itself. Yet, this time, it had appeared on its own initiative—what could be the reason?

Then, the giant sphere came to a halt. Its outer shell began to unfold like overlapping armor plates, revealing the towering mechanical body within.

*No matter how towering you are, you’re still just a glorified Bakugan!* Yu Lian thought, wishing he could voice the same complaint he’d had last time.

"Prepare for combat!" Ina shouted.

The ragtag garrison, while disorganized, were still professionally trained soldiers. Though stunned, they instinctively raised their weapons at her command. Sergeant Baka, who had been kneeling in prayer, leaped up with a single stride, wielding his power hammer in his right hand and a crystal battle-axe in his left, looking ready to serve as the frontline tank.

*...Idiot, shouldn't your first instinct be to take cover behind the vehicles? Do you really think you're still in the age of cold steel weapons?* Yu Lian thought again.

The Panther vehicle’s Vulcan cannon and the "Frankenstein" tank’s ion cannon were both aimed at the transforming behemoth.

At that moment, Yu Lian made his move. The air around the "Super Bakugan" began to solidify, forming a mist-like cage that enveloped it. The sphere’s unfolding motion slowed instantly, as if it had been pulled into a space where time moved in slow motion.

This was environmental resonance. The principle involved using psionic power to harmonize with the surroundings, either to attack or suppress an opponent. Theoretically, it was a Tier 3 psionic spell. If he hadn't used it countless times in his "memories"—and if he weren't so familiar with its psionic composition—he would never have known the most efficient way to cast it. With his current measly Tier 1 strength, "overleaping" to cast such a spell would have been impossible.

Even so, Yu Lian felt as if hundreds of pounds of pressure had been dropped on him. His muscles, bones, blood vessels, and even his brain were screaming in protest.

Yet, even in slow motion, the "Super Bakugan" continued to unfold. It was, after all, a guardian left behind by the Enlightened Ones; it was not something the "greatly weakened" Yu Lian could destroy on his own. Beneath its silver-white armor, dark, cavernous cannon barrels were slowly rising.

It was confirmed: the "Super Bakugan" was a hostile target.

Before Yu Lian could give the order, the Sergeant had already commanded them to open fire.

The soldiers unleashed a hail of gunfire, and the Panther and the Frankenstein tank poured their artillery fire into the target. As for Baka and Youyou, the two "barbarians" who had volunteered to be the tanks, they hesitated for a few seconds. Deciding not to charge into the rain of lead, they joined the firing line with expressions of profound boredom.

Perhaps the guardian of the Enlightened Ones had left a massive shadow over everyone, as the barrage lasted for a full three minutes. Yu Lian felt like a couch potato in a gym holding a three-hundred-pound weight he didn't dare drop, exhausted to the point of collapse, yet gritting his teeth to hold on. It wasn't until his superhuman vision caught the enemy finally collapsing amidst the explosions, its chest indicator light fading, that he flopped down onto the tank.

"Want a cigar?" Ina asked.

"A chocolate energy bar will do..." Yu Lian replied.

Ina looked Yu Lian up and down. Seeing him gasping for air, drenched in sweat, his face flushed yet his eyes unfocused—looking exactly like a couch potato who had just finished a marathon—she said with a straight face, "Eating that right after exercise will make you fat."

In the end, Yu Lian only received a cup of water from a nurse who was so plain in appearance and build that Yu Lian would likely forget her name. As for Ina, she had already joined a few bold souls, slowly approaching the wreckage.

Clad in power armor, she strode over with a fierce gait. While Youyou and Baka still hesitated, she pushed past the others, gave the scattered metal remains a light poke with her muzzle, and seeing no reaction, simply gave it a hard kick.

"Target confirmed silent," Ina announced loudly.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Some began to cheer quietly. In that moment, legends and stories of searching for the relics of the Enlightened Ones flooded their minds; they felt as though they had become part of those legends, enough to brag about for the next century.

*It’s only temporarily falling apart,* Yu Lian thought. *Since it’s made of active metal, it will repair itself after a while.* But there was no need to dampen everyone’s spirits.

"I thought all the guardians of the Enlightened Ones were invincible," Miss Belinda said softly.

Yu Lian smiled without answering, rolling his eyes inwardly. *You think all guardians are the Star Dragon King I once encountered, the kind that could slaughter its way in and out of the Alliance and Imperial main fleets?*

Enlightened relics had tiers, and naturally, the capabilities of their guardians did too. According to the Alliance Adventurer Association's classification, this "Super Bakugan" was a company-level "field monster," capable of taking on a well-equipped army company. But that was only if it "fully unfolded," deploying its antimatter shield, hive missiles, twin blaster cannons, and cutting lasers.

We had thirty armed soldiers, five Panther vehicles, and one "Frankenstein" tank, and after three minutes of saturation fire, we only managed to scatter it.

*But wasn't my dying effort meant to create that exact opportunity for a saturation bombardment?*

*What else was I supposed to do? Let it fully deploy all its weapons and shields, fight it for hundreds of rounds, lose half our people to death or injury, and then have me manifest my protagonist halo to deliver the final blow?*

Yu Lian hopped off the tank and walked over, carefully picking through the metal skeleton.

"Huh? It’s truly incredible. Our firepower was so intense, yet it seems all the damage sustained was structural. Ouch..." Uncle Carl started to speak but felt as if he had been kicked hard in the rear. He turned around in a rage, only to see Yu Lian standing a few meters away, signaling for him to shut up. The man paused, then, as if realizing something, nodded with a look of profound respect.

*So, what did you figure out this time, old man?*

"See what’s usable," Yu Lian said.

Since it was just overall structural damage, the parts should be intact, and there ought to be plenty of good things to salvage. Yu Lian trusted the old engineer to understand his meaning. Sure enough, the man’s eyes lit up, and he dived back into the pile of mechanical parts, looking as happy and excited as if he had found a mountain of gold.

Yu Lian walked over and began sorting through the debris himself.

"What are you looking for?" Ina asked, her tone somewhat pointed.

"Can't it just be a simple scavenging run?"

"Heh, you think I believe that?"

"...Fine. As far as I know, the autonomous activation of all Enlightened guardians has a reason. Like sensing something, resonance, or a response. If it wasn't responding to me, then it must have been responding to you."

"Why couldn't it be responding to you?"

*Because nothing happened when I came here last time—no, wait, "in the future"—but can I say that?*

"...Because you were possessed just now, and I wasn't."

Ina found that to be quite reasonable.

"So, look carefully. You might find an awakening item that’s perfectly suited to you, or even a treasure-grade relic..."

"Commander, this thing is still usable!" Uncle Carl ran over, his expression as ecstatic as if he had dug a gallstone dropped by a cosmic spirit out of a trash heap.

"This... is usable?" Yu Lian was skeptical. The man was holding a heavy hunk of iron, clearly a heavy blaster rifle that had fallen off the guardian.

Yu Lian didn't doubt the weapon was broken—after all, weapons made of active metal by the Enlightened Ones were quite durable. But just because it wasn't broken didn't mean it was usable. If you tossed an intact tank to a Stone Age primitive, could they drive it?

"I've checked. Its internal structure is actually very similar to the products of my old factory." Seeing Yu Lian's growing skepticism, the old mechanic chuckled sheepishly. "...Er, well, truth be told, I only understand it half-heartedly, but at least the energy transmission structure is very similar. As long as we provide a reliable power source, we can use it. Yes, let me think... right, we can use the power packs from the Panther or this tank. I just need to connect a wire!"

"...Which factory did you work at, exactly?"

At this question, an unspeakable sense of weariness and sorrow appeared on the old mechanic's face. In his silence, it was as if he had recounted a million-word epic of realism.

"It was Lianzhu Fire..."

"The one that specialized in designing broadside cannons and close-in defense systems for the Navy? Er, sorry... alright, leave it to you then."

The old mechanic nodded. Though he was still saddened by the memories, he had regained some spirit. After all, tinkering with "bang-bang" weapons of mass destruction was his lifelong passion.