Chapter 1019: Chapter 1019

Strictly speaking, the mist does have a bit of effect on He Ao.

He inhaled the mist, but not when he was just speaking; it was when Lin Na took out the gummy bears.

After mastering the ability to project Divine Sense externally, He Ao could perform many more operations, such as covering his breathing passages with Divine Sense, filtering out some of the harmful substances in the air, which although minute, are still physical objects.

Just as the air itself isn’t empty, but filled with various gases, isolating these substances is essentially the same as controlling objects through the air.

Of course, most of the time, he wouldn’t do this.

Because analyzing and filtering out these tiny things would require a lot of mental effort, and Divine Sense would consume more as well.

However, the mist around him was very thin, so He Ao took the opportunity to practice this new method of isolating harmful substances.

After all, the inventor of this mist was right by his side, and it was clear that there was a method to become immune to the mist, so there was no loss even if he failed.

By applying this method, he would have a possible effective ’immunity’ method against inhaled poisons with physical presence in the future.

And by the time Lin Na took out the gummy bears, he had just finished this ’practice’ and tentatively allowed a little of the ’mist’ to enter his body with his Divine Sense.

Then he could clearly feel that as soon as the mist entered his respiratory tract, it quickly merged into his lungs and then spread throughout his body.

Under the effect of the mist, he could clearly sense a very subtle ’obstruction’ in the ’energy flow’ within his body.

If it were an ordinary Transcendent, they might only feel their strength had been slightly weakened without knowing the reason.

But obviously, He Ao is not just an ordinary Transcendent, he is also a ’Martial Artist’.

He quickly calmed his mind, examined, and felt the energy flow within his body, and then he noticed that the power of the mist seemed to stimulate some kind of physical reaction in the muscles.

Under the stimulation of the mist, all the energy flow pathways in his body had a slight ’contraction’.

This contraction was not a big deal for a powerful Transcendent like him, but for lower-level Transcendents, it would likely directly obstruct their energy flow circuit, causing them to temporarily lose control over their bodies.

This mist was also effective on ordinary people, as they too have energy circuits, albeit so fine they are almost invisible, but once these circuits are blocked, it will still affect their ability to move, causing them to temporarily experience a state of ’weakness’.

However, the effect of the mist seems to be temporary; if inhalation does not continue, it will gradually become ineffective after a brief stimulation, and it seems to have no side effects on the body.

Of course, these are He Ao’s judgments about the mist before eating the gummy bear.

After eating the gummy bear, his thoughts completely ’changed’.

He originally thought that the gummy bear was just some kind of ’antagonist’ that could neutralize the effect of the mist, but the actual effect of the gummy bear turned out to be a bit different from what he had imagined.

The moment the gummy bear entered his mouth, it began to dissolve quickly, and the dissolved substance rapidly infiltrated his body.

The previously inhaled mist even acted as a kind of ’catalyst’ during this process, speeding up the integration of the substance from the gummy bear into He Ao’s body.

He Ao then felt an ’unexpected’ situation.

The substance in the gummy bear indeed relieved the contraction of the pathways caused by the mist somewhat, but only slightly; the relief wasn’t complete.

Subsequently, in the sensations of Divine Sense and mental power that had infiltrated his body, the substances from the gummy bear seemed to have completed some kind of ’combination’ with the substances in the mist, and this new substance, like a catalyst, began to stimulate the energy flow in the entire circuit.

As a result, the originally compressed pathways were met with an even greater flow of energy.

And the final result was akin to a high-pressure water gun.

The energy flow throughout He Ao’s body was slightly accelerated, and concurrently, his efficiency in absorbing energy also underwent a certain enhancement.

What was originally used to obstruct energy flow had become a kind of ’stimulant’, even one that high-ranking Transcendents would use.

It wasn’t like the Strengthening Potions He Ao had encountered before, which themselves contained some Extraordinary Power, nor was it like the Evil God rituals that ’borrowed’ power from Higher Beings.

It simply catalyzed the efficiency of the body’s energy flow, granting the user a certain ’amplification’ for a short time.

At this moment, He Ao seemed to realize something. He lowered his head, looked at the red-haired girl in front of him with widened eyes and a nervous expression, and gently laughed, "Did you break this ’medicine’ into two parts?"

Hearing this, the girl first froze slightly, then her eyes widened instantly, "You can feel it?!"

He Ao smiled and nodded, "These two things combined in my body and accelerated the speed of energy flow within me."

Then He Ao, leaving out the more specialized term of energy circuits, gave Lin Na a more detailed quick overview of his recent experience.

"Hold on, let me take notes. My volunteers couldn’t detect these before; I could only guess blindly based on their descriptions,"

Lin Na scratched her head, looking at He Ao, "Can you higher Transcendents really feel these?"

"Probably only I can feel them,"

He Ao rubbed Lin Na’s little head, "Unless necessary, don’t target B-level Transcendents."

The red-haired girl pouted, then she looked at the old man in front of her and explained in a gentle voice, "I originally developed this drug to treat certain special paralytic diseases, but later on, I found out it could be separated, and it seems to be effective on Transcendents as well, so I started using it for self-defense."

He Ao nodded slightly.

He revisited the effects and activation process of the drug in his mind.

As a stimulant, this drug shouldn’t be used excessively; the high-speed flow of energy is not without harm to the body, much like the high-quality requirements for the hoses of high-pressure water guns.

Prolonged high-speed energy circulation might damage the circuits and the body.

However, from this perspective, could this drug at an appropriate dosage speed up the energy flow and clear clogged energy channels?

What determines the initial aptitude for Martial Arts is the blockage and throughput of a person’s internal channels.

Wait a minute, does that mean this drug could improve a beginner’s Martial Arts aptitude?

He Ao looked down at the red-haired girl.

"What kind of mischief are you thinking of now?"

Lin Na’s eyes widened instantly as she looked at He Ao.

"What do you mean by mischief?"

He Ao couldn’t help but laugh.

"When you were a child, you used to look at me ... every time you wanted to boss me into doing the dishes..."

The red-haired girl paused, not continuing, but instead looked at He Ao, "Are you interested in this drug?"

He Ao paused for a moment, speaking softly.

"I have a patent for this drug,"

The red-haired girl looked at the old man in front of her, then slowly shifted her gaze away, taking out a chip from the pocket compartment and placing it in He Ao’s hand, "But if you want to use it, go ahead."

He Ao looked at the chip that was clearly prepared in advance, reached out, and gently rubbed the girl’s forehead.

"Alright, alright, when did you become so naggy at your age,"

Lin Na pouted, looking around. In the distance, she faintly heard the roaring of machinery approaching from the south, "How are we going to get out? Someone’s going to be here soon."

Then she looked down, glancing around, "Could there be a map or something nearby?"

"No need for all that hassle, I’ve drawn the main forces to the north,"

He Ao put away the chip and turned his head to glance at the dark sky behind him, "Not many left to the south."

Lin Na hadn’t yet responded when she felt a pair of strong hands grab her shoulders, then her entire body was lifted off the ground in a leap.

The cold wind brushed her face as she lifted her head, watching the buildings pass underneath them.

Not far ahead of them, an armored vehicle convoy slowly came into view.

It seemed the radar of the convoy had already detected the two, as the gun turrets started to turn towards them.

She quickly reached out to grasp the old man’s wrist beside her, and at that moment, they landed behind a building; she hurriedly looked up at the old man in front of her, "We hide···"

"Wait for me a moment."

The elderly man looked at her face and gently shook his head.

Then the next second, his figure disappeared right in front of the girl.

The roaring explosions sounded like consecutive fireworks, instantly blasting behind the girl, with the surging heat wave brushing past the edge of the wall.

It was unclear whether a minute had passed, or two.

The girl faintly heard a light vehicle approaching from behind, making a turn, and stopping beside her.

It was an off-road vehicle outfitted with an automatic machine gun, with the elderly man with grey-white hair sitting at the driver’s seat, opening the passenger door, smiling at her, "Get in!"

Memories buried by time seemed to rewind at this moment.

It seemed that many, many years ago, on many occasions in the wilderness, the same elderly man enjoyed driving an off-road vehicle, stopping in front of her.

Only back then, he didn’t have as many wrinkles on his face, and only a touch of white in his hair.

The red-haired girl walked to the car door, got in, and then with a bang, she pulled the car door shut.

And the ’convoy’ that was just behind her also appeared in front of her.

The burning flames, exploding armored vehicles, and the iron wreckage scattered on the wasteland composed everything in her view.

She slowly turned her head to look at the elderly man starting the vehicle.

The elderly man who was starting the vehicle said softly.

"I know, I’m not a child anymore."

The girl reached out, drew the seat belt next to her, and clicked it into the buckle.

The elderly man beside her withdrew his gaze and floored the accelerator.

The wind swept past their cheeks, carrying the two silhouettes speeding under the dim skies.

It seemed the southern army had indeed been reassigned, as the two continued southward without encountering any systematic convoys.

The few cautious stragglers either ran or were quickly eliminated.

However, in the face of such ’smooth’ circumstances, the red-haired girl couldn’t feel the slightest excitement.

Even if most of the troops had been reassigned, there should be more soldiers on this southern route.

Accompanying the relentless rush of the off-road vehicle, she looked at the elderly man beside her and asked in a low voice.

"We’re almost there."

The elderly man answered calmly.

Feeling her rapid heartbeat, she turned her head to look towards the side mirror, and among the vagueness, she saw a flash of light twinkling in the mirror.

"There’s someone behind us."

The elderly man seemed to have anticipated this, raising his hand to set the vehicle to autopilot.

The red-haired girl unbuckled her seat belt, she looked up at the elderly man who seemed somewhat puzzled, smiling at him, "I’ve grown up, I can drive now."

He Ao gazed at the girl in front of him, finally nodded gently, unbuckled the seat belt, flipped over, and jumped straight onto the roof of the car, "Just keep driving straight."

The girl crossed the island console between the driver and passenger seats, jumped into the driver’s seat, and grasped the steering wheel.

At this moment, He Ao also turned around, looking behind him.

Countless war machines were emerging from underneath the dense clouds, and on both his left and right, armored vehicles and Dragon Cavalry Fighters were also slowly springing forth.

The new Commander who had taken over control of the Mercenary Corps clearly saw through his previous strategizing and had guessed his likely route of advancement.

Thus, they deliberately cleared the troops near the route, allowing them to gather together to avoid being taken out by He Ao one by one, while also mobilizing the main forces to pursue and kill him.

The nearest Mecha raised its main cannon, lighting up a dazzling brilliance.

The first explosion lit up the sky like fireworks, illuminating the off-road vehicle’s path.

The girl sitting in the car didn’t look back; her gaze was fixed straight ahead, hands gripping the steering wheel, her foot pressed down on the accelerator.

The uneven road caused the off-road vehicle to rise and fall, with roaring explosions continuously going off like a string of firecrackers behind the car.

Soon, the girl felt a loud noise from behind; it seemed that the Elderly on the roof had forcefully pulled down the vehicle’s rear automatic machine gun.

A series of gunfire followed, and then the machine gun was tossed away.

The vehicle, now lighter without the machine gun, sped up a bit.

The fighters and army on both sides quickly closed in on the middle but would then burst into fireworks that lit up the sky.

Sometimes, the girl could feel a lightness on the roof, as if the person standing there had left, but soon, accompanied by a faint sound, there would again be the sound of footsteps trampling on the roof.

In this chain of artillery fire, the speed of the off-road vehicle was pushed to the extreme.

Even in the city, the girl had never driven this fast.

Everything was so fast that the flickering lights around turned into long lines, fast enough that the night and flames stretched into a long narrow tunnel.

The girl gripped the steering wheel tightly, gaze forward, looking at that ’tunnel’ end that seemed to extend through past and future, flooring the accelerator.

The surrounding camps began to thin out, and she could already see what should be the watchtowers standing on the edge of the camps, monitoring the outside.

The Elderly on the roof once again left the off-road vehicle.

The off-road vehicle flew over a hill.

And in that instant, a blinding brilliance flashed across her eyes.

One after another, fighters and Mechas emerged from the darkness ahead, while armored vehicles slowly drove out from the darkness behind the hill.

War machines spread from the ground to the sky, forming a towering silver wall, cutting off the inside from the outside, lying across the path of the off-road vehicle.

They seemed to have been waiting here for a while, waiting for the disordered butterfly to fall into the trap.

The girl stared blankly at the war machines ahead, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

If she kept on at this speed, it would certainly result in a wrecked vehicle and loss of life.

But if she stopped now, she would fall squarely between the hammer and the anvil.

A slight sound came from behind, and the Elderly returned to the roof of the car.

"Floor the accelerator, drive forward."

The calm yet aged voice cut through the howling wind, the roaring explosions, and reached the girl’s ears.

The girl, clutching the steering wheel, looked at the fighters and armored vehicles ahead already aiming their cannons at her, took a deep breath, and without hesitation, floored the accelerator.

This pitch-black off-road vehicle, under a sky covered with dark clouds, unhesitatingly charged toward the wall of war machinery ’smashing’ ahead.

The muzzles in front also gathered energy.

The roaring explosion sounded in the sky, and the white Seraphim Mech’s greatsword pierced through the array of fighters in front from the rear.

Flashing laser cannons streaked across the land, the searing brilliance dragging across the ground atop armored vehicles.

A number of Mechas and fighters followed one by one from the rear, forcibly tearing open a gaping ’door’ in that ’silver wall’ made up of silver fighters and armored vehicles.