Starforce Warriors

Chapter 434: I Thought He’d Be Tougher (1)

Not only had he failed to capture him alive, but, even more strangely, the tide of the battle had begun to shift.

Li Xiaofei, who at first could only hold his own against the Earth Guardian, was at first overpowered and brutally suppressed by the Four Mechanical Guardians who attacked him together. Yet, within a minute, he had miraculously begun to hold his own.

He was holding his ground even one against four. Michael’s eyes narrowed slightly, a faint glimmer reflecting off his glasses as he started to observe the battle intently.

On the battlefield, Li Xiaofei’s figure flickered, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. It looked like the Graceful Step of the Waves technique. But it wasn’t. Michael’s glasses were no ordinary lenses; they were collecting data continuously, and soon, he drew a conclusion.

When Michael had first encountered the true legacy of the Graceful Step of the Waves in the Grandmaster of Heaven martial arts livestream, he had been utterly astonished. He had even been of the opinion that no other footwork technique in the world could surpass it. The ancient martial lineage of Great Xia indeed held wonders of unparalleled craftsmanship.

However, the footwork Li Xiaofei exhibited today could project multiple incarnations, shifting between illusion and reality seamlessly. Its brilliance and subtlety were, remarkably, even above that of the Graceful Step of the Waves.

“Interesting.” A faint smile appeared in Michael’s eyes. “This young man’s body truly is the perfect material. Is this a new ancient martial technique, perhaps? But how long can he maintain it? Three, begin the analysis.”

The lenses, which he referred to as Three, glowed faintly once again. Hazy projections flickered rapidly in the glass as it collected images of Li Xiaofei’s movement technique. The first step was to collect, synthesize and analyze the data. The light core sought to identify the patterns and commonalities as it decoded the surface level shifts in movement.

Once they reached this stage, the cyborgs would be undefeated. Feedback from the advanced light core brain would allow the Four Mechanical Guardians to detect flaws within their opponent’s techniques and strike swiftly to defeat him.

This step was the only step necessary in any battle against ancient martial artists. Further analysis and simulations, however, would require obtaining the true legacy of this martial art, like the flow route of inner qi, its speed, and other specifics, to achieve perfection.

The light core technology possessed by Mechanical Eternity was capable of calculating any...

Crack.

Suddenly, a thin fracture appeared on the lens. Michael’s smile froze.

Crack, crack.

The lens shattered and fell away in pieces. A faint hiss sounded as a thin shard of glass went flying. A faint line of blood appeared at the corner of Michael’s brow, slowly trickling down his face. Michael wiped the blood away in stunned disbelief.

“The computational power of Three failed to decipher the patterns and data of this movement technique? It overloaded and shattered under forced calculations?” exclaimed Michael.

Despite his shock, an intense, fervent joy lit up Michael’s face.

Could such a high-level true legacy of ancient martial arts really exist? Perfect. I have to obtain it. I must.

Michael issued a series of commands. The Four Mechanical Guardians suddenly unleashed their full strength.

They combined techniques such as the Graceful Step of the Waves with the Great Strength Vajra Fist, the Falling Blossom Divine Sword Palm, and the Dog Beating Staff Technique as they launched a relentless, coordinated assault on Li Xiaofei.

Meanwhile, deadly rays occasionally shot out of different parts of their bodies. Spider-like mechanical arms extended from their shoulders, waists, and knee joints, each fitted with small rotating cannons that fired powerful energy bullets with relentless precision.

This level of suppressive assault was overwhelming.

Thud, thud.

Two bursts of blood bloomed from Li Xiaofei’s left shoulder and right chest. The power of the energy bullets from the mechanized guns was beyond imagination. Despite Li Xiaofei’s resilient body, it was as if he were mere softwood as the bullets directly pierced through his body.

Michael exhaled slightly, feeling a hint of relief. But then he paused, perplexed.

Did I... just feel...concerned? How long has it been since I experienced such an emotion?

He pondered for a moment. Ultimately, he confirmed that his concern wasn’t due to doubts about the strength of the Four Mechanical Guardians. Rather, it stemmed from the unexpected abilities displayed by the young man from the Dragon Group. His abilities had been so surprising that Michael instinctively worried something unusual might occur.

Thankfully, everything was progressing smoothly. Li Xiaofei was injured. Based on his well-proven experience, once an ancient martial artist was injured, their qi and blood would decline, leading to weakness.

Their combat strength would inevitably begin to crumble. Even if they had techniques to stimulate their latent potential, like burning their blood, they could not escape defeat in the end.

In contrast, the mechanical warriors suffered no such weaknesses. Especially the Four Mechanical Guardians, who were perfectly modified warriors, with over 65 percent of their flesh replaced by machinery. Their core source of strength was no longer their heart or blood but rather an energy generator and power lines.

Combined with advanced micro-nano self-healing technology... As long as their energy core wasn’t utterly destroyed and their brain core remained intact, the Four Mechanical Guardians could retain formidable combat capabilities even with up to 60 percent of their bodies damaged.

Thud, thud.

On the battlefield, more blood spattered. Li Xiaofei’s right arm and right leg were pierced through by energy bullets. Clearly, he could handle attacks from traditional martial techniques, but this combined assault with firearms left him at a disadvantage.

“Just two more minutes, and this fight will be...” Michael’s confidence resurfaced.

But the next instant, as he fitted a new lens and his vision caught up with the rapid movements of the five figures on the battlefield, a trace of confusion crossed his face.

“The wounds...disappeared?” To his shock, Michael realized that the wounds piercing Li Xiaofei’s left shoulder and right chest had somehow vanished.

Healing techniques from ancient martial arts?

Michael pondered briefly before arriving at an answer. He had encountered a few powerful ancient martial artists with remarkable self-healing abilities; they were indeed challenging to handle. Yet, in the end, they had always been worn down, their qi and blood drained until death claimed them.

Qi and blood were critically important to ancient martial artists. All self-healing and recovery relied on this energy. Once it was exhausted, death was inevitable. The attacks from the Four Mechanical Guardians grew increasingly ferocious and violent. However, Michael remained unhurried.

He no longer tried to forcefully analyze the data of Li Xiaofei’s movement technique. Instead, he simply focused on collecting it.

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, five minutes had elapsed. Gradually, Michael’s composure began to waver. Despite the continuous injuries inflicted upon Li Xiaofei, his recovery speed had reached an almost unbelievable level. But the more perplexing face was that his injuries had seemingly no impact on his combat performance.

Instead of weakening, Li Xiaofei seemed to be growing stronger over the course of those five minutes.

What‘s going on?

Michael realized that something was amiss.

***

To oppose the Four Mechanical Guardians of Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind with his own strength... he’s nearly at the level of the Saints.

Not far away, a young nobleman with a jade-like face watched intently from within the shadows beneath the tree canopy. Dressed in a black, close-fitting combat suit and a short black cape, his gaze pierced through the magnetic energy barrier as a look of astonishment crossed his face.

***

“What’s going on?”

The surprise in Michael’s eyes grew more evident with each passing second. Twenty full minutes had passed. Li Xiaofei had suffered continuous injuries and his condition was worsening.

At first, there were just two or three wounds on his body. But as the battle wore on, he began taking five or six hits at once. Gunshot wounds; heavy impact injuries; power blade and sword wounds...

The Four Mechanical Guardians' arsenal of weapons had left ghastly injuries across Li Xiaofei’s body. Blood soaked through his clothes. He looked as though he were bathed in blood.

In the distance, Su Wanqing and Lin Wan were visibly shaken by the scene. They had attempted to rush in and provide support several times. But the level of combat taking place was simply beyond their abilities.

Even the battle’s shockwaves were enough to leave them breathless. They couldn’t get close.

What do we do? What do we do?

Su Wanqing’s heart burned with anxiety. Despite her attempts, she hadn’t been able to reach Xuan Huang.

“This isn’t right. It shouldn’t be like this.” Lin Wan’s eyes widened.

She had witnessed Li Xiaofei’s invincibility with the Sword Harnessing Technique. She remembered him commanding the skies with his sword. He had been unmatched and awe-inspiring.

Though Li Xiaofei was demonstrating impressive strength in this battle, it was still a far cry from the boundless, unstoppable aura he had shown that day.

As more wounds appeared on Li Xiaofei’s body, crystal-clear tears slid from the school belle’s eyes like pearls.