Chapter 523: New Combat Mode (2)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Initially, when Han Xiao discovered traces of Harmon, he had been overjoyed, immediately going over to recruit him without hesitation. Harmon followed the tribal traditions and was a pure warrior without any guile, strictly keeping to his promises. Or, one could say that his brain was packed only with muscles. In terms of difficulty for recruiting, he would probably be rated as one star.
Harmon had just left his mother planet and needed to form a War League of his own. Thus, the strength that Han Xiao displayed was enough to win the approval of Harmon, and they agreed to a cooperation. He would join the War League whilst Harmon would join his mercenary group. A mercenary would have sufficient opportunities to exercise his muscles, and this was also what Harmon needed.
As such, Harmon could not strictly be considered as one of Han Xiao’s officers but rather an ally on level ground.
Han Xiao had researched the main character model archetype. Other than the standard luck glow, a main character would more or less have some form of commonality. For example, some characters would have the ability to prolong the plotline and events, caused by their personality and ideas. Some could do so purely out of their own strength and ability, and Harmon was precisely one of those latter characters.
The Luhan Beastmen believed in the way of the warrior. In the collapsed tribes where Harmon used to reside in, he had long been renowned as the ‘Roaring Beast’. This was a form of extreme praise from the Luhan Beastmen toward Harmon. Harmon was one of the favorites competing for the seat of the Chief, a protagonist who was strong from the very beginning.
Han Xiao’s relationship with him was currently neither warm nor cold. Because Harmon was someone who maintained the old tradition of a War League, he was not stingy with fighting for Han Xiao. A true warrior would never go back on his word.
Of all the officers in his mercenary group, Harmon had challenged every single one of them, and they were aware that the longer the battle dragged on, the stronger he got. It was as though he was an unkillable cockroach. None of Han Xiao’s officers had managed to defeat him, save Aroshia, whom Harmon could not damage due to her pure energy body. This was also his weakness.
Han Xiao was not interested in pitting his endurance against Harmon’s—he would rather end the battle as fast as possible.
“Roar!”
Harmon let out a snort, his powerful lung capacity causing the surrounding air to vibrate as he charged forward again, this time holding onto the war hammer. His every step caused the metal flooring to groan in protest as he drew close at the quickest possible speed.
Clank!
Facing his charge, Han Xiao remained unmoved. Two compressed orbs dropped from his sleeves, and the moment that they landed on the ground, a ray of light was seen as they transformed into two mechanical humanoids warriors, solemnly flanking Han Xiao on both sides.
The mechanical warriors were coated in an alloy shell that gleamed bright yellow, white, and black. Their four limbs were designed with the likeness of humans in mind, their height around two meters. The armor was not overly swollen, but it could not be considered elegant and light. The helmet had two wings on the sides of the visor as decoration, whereas their backs had two slots that looked like they could be fitted with wings. Both hands had four fingers, and from the outside, it was unknown as to what weapons they possessed.
At the same time, Harmon had already arrived before Han Xiao. With a ferocious twist of his waist, the war hammer that was as long as a door grew a fast curve as it swept across. The force behind this was much larger than before, generating a howling gale!
Hu!
Even before the hammer landed, the wind caused Han Xiao to be unable to open his eyes!
This hammer strike was obviously done with the intention to blow both Han Xiao and his robots away. If hit by this, Han Xiao estimated that it would trigger a suppressed state for him, where he would experience a short period of dizziness. After all, Strength was not his strongest stat, and even if his HP was especially large, it would not be a good feeling.
However, Han Xiao showed no sign of panic, a gleam instead shimmering within his eyes.
“Phillip, load the data.”
Hum!
The two robots, which had been motionless before, suddenly jolted and began to move. Their actions flowed smooth like running water, without any stiffness expected of mechanized warriors.
The robot on the left speedily extended both its hands. The mechanical arm split open, and many components popped out. In an instant, the entire arm was remodeled into a sturdier version, and as its palm caught the hammer, the inbuilt propulsion device on its back was fully activated, erupting with a disorderly airflow.
Clank!
The war hammer was forcibly blocked and was scarily not suppressed by Harmon in the slightest!
The other robot locked its arms together as a seam appeared in the middle of its arms, with blue light flickering within. A huge amount of air was drawn in, as a sharp whistling sound was heard. The next moment, both fists punched out, and from the tips of the fists, a compressed air cannon shot was released, akin to a compressed hurricane.
Harmon took the cannon blast directly to his chest, and he appeared to be a tree that had been uprooted amid a storm. He flew back over a hundred meters, finally slamming hard against the opposite wall of the training room.
Bang!
The wall was dented, and the entire figure of Harmon was trapped inside.
“The actual battle statistics are not half bad!” Han Xiao looked at the two robots flanking him.
Other than the mechanical beasts used in his mechanic army, the Great Mechanic Han was not lacking in elites. If used for comparison, the mechanical beasts would be akin to the foot soldiers, while the elite machinery would be the mini bosses. The two mechanical warriors could be considered elites.
[Oathkeeper], the elite mechanical warrior in his mechanical army. With the autonomous control from Phillip, the huge amount of data it possessed allowed for the execution of highly complex combat patterns. Its weapons and armor were top-notch with high costs. Even with Han Xiao’s current manufacturing speed, he could only construct a Protector once a day.
Their individual combat capabilities were outstanding, and even if faced with Grade B Supers, they could still hold their own. These were the hired guns that Han Xiao was using when fighting against someone of the same level.
Every Oathkeeper was an independent unit with its unique code name. The current two Oathkeepers that had been released concurrently were labelled ‘Warrior’ and ‘Gunner’.
Harmon’s muscles swelled as he forcefully pulled himself out from the hole. However, Han Xiao did not bother giving him the time to move and instead clapped his hands, deploying the Halo Array to congregate together, releasing an integrated laser cannon blast.
Boom!
The laser hit directly at Harmon once again, driving him deeper into the wall. A violent explosion occurred, with waves of heat and black smoke filling the room.
Taking this chance, the two Oathkeepers moved out, restricting Harmon as they tangled with him.
Because the Oathkeepers were not designed to be mechanical suits, there was no need to leave a space within to contain a person. Thus, they possessed many different kinds of weapons, such as compressed air cannons, gravitational and repulsion devices, laser rifles, lightsabers, photon cannons, electromagnetic shields, and more. Be it close or long range, everything possible was included.
Harmon was completely suppressed by the two Oathkeepers. He kept trying to rush toward Han Xiao, bellowing angrily, his fighting spirit growing ever stronger.
“This fellow is indeed powerful, but his single target attacks are his fatal flaw. A warrior not in possession of any spells in this version can already be considered obsolete.”
With a thought from Han Xiao, another compressed orb flew out, unfolding a fan-shaped structure behind him. There was a coil of sorts on the structure, and if looking from the front, it resembled a disk. It bore a similarity to a radar disk, with the patterns on top forming concentric circles like a labyrinth.
Han Xiao put his hands behind him, and the energy from within him constantly flowed. The mechanical force travelled along the designated patterns, constantly spiraling as it let out a hum of high voltage electricity.
Ohm!
The blue glow grew more intense, and the high-speed rotation gradually blurred the coil into a single continuous piece, fuzzy and yet piercing to the eye.
This was a large-scale electromagnetic acceleration amplifier, which was specialized for a Mechanic’s usage. The raw materials consisted of an electroactive polymer, which utilized the [Mechanical Force Combat Technique] to release an electromagnetic force. This electromagnetic energy would continuously increase within the amplifier, equivalent to allowing it to be primed much like a bomb. The longer the primer, the stronger the effect.
Because Han Xiao had sufficient funds in his hands, he bought the High-End Knowledge [Advanced Electromagnetic Forcefield] in the last year, using it to unlock the [Mechanical Force Combat Technique]. Even with the usage of machinery, the Mechanic could still unleash the strength of a certain weapon.
Compared to the original Trap Style, this move not only had higher crowd control but also had the advantage of being an active skill.
Buzz!
The speed of the electro-optical rotation rose non-stop, filling the entire field with a piercing white glow. Han Xiao’s figure had long been covered by the light—even the free ions in the air were affected by the electrical charge. The prisoners that were huddled in a corner were all terrified as they felt their hair stand on end, and a numb feeling coursed around their skin.
On the other side, the hairy Harmon saw all his hair sticking out like a hedgehog. He felt something amiss and immediately threw out his war hammer toward the piercing white glow. However, one of the Oathkeepers’ heads split open to reveal a ring-shaped purple attachment. It shot out a beam akin to gravitational pull, and the war hammer that was flying in midair suddenly halted before being brought back toward the robot.
“Have a taste of this. Yang Clan’s Electrotherapy!”
Dong! Dong!
The next second, six metal pillars shot out, embedding themselves around Harmon. With a point of a finger from Han Xiao, the electromagnetic energy accumulated by the amplifier was like a flash flood as it morphed into a piercing lightning beam. It struck one of the pillars, and the next instant, electromagnetic lights swirled around the six pillars akin to a lightning tornado, forming an electric cage.
The six metallic pillars were actually release devices, and all the power was directed toward the content within them. Following the pathway of the electro-optic rotation between the columns, thousands of lightning bolts smashed within the sealed area, and Harmon resembled a lightning conductor at this point, with all the bolts aiming for him. On average, he was struck with a few hundred bolts per second.
“Ow! Ow! Ow!” Harmon was electrocuted to the point that his eyes rolled backward into his head. His whole body turned motionless, only letting out uncontrollable moans from time to time.
The electrical lights continued to flash for a good few seconds until the accumulated charges were consumed. The training hall then quieted down, with a few charged sparks lingering within the air, resounding with a buzzing sound.
Within the metal pillars, Harmon swayed and tottered before falling to the ground with a loud thud. He was completely charred and releasing black smoke, as though he was a steak that had been overcooked.
Since he had been electrocuted unconscious, his Esper ability was automatically lifted, and his inflated body slowly shrunk.
“Phew... while this guy has an insane about of HP and defense, with an additional specialization bonus, his resistance attributes fortunately aren’t too perverted.”
Han Xiao spat out an electric charge, recalling all his machinery. Having electrocuted Harmon till he fainted, the match was considered his victory.
“For my current combat modes, other than the Artillery Style, the Beast Style, Trap Style, and Mechanical suit, I have the foundations of the Army Style, which I’ve built in the past year. However, this will only show its effectiveness in a large-scale battle.
“As for the elite fighting style used for battles within the same Grade, my mechanical hands, the Floating Cannon Array, and the Oathkeepers are all representative of this elite style. Compared to when I was in Noriosse, the number of styles I have to use on my enemies has increased.”
Han Xiao then moved forward to rouse Harmon. After that blockhead regained consciousness, he looked around sluggishly for a while before fulfilling his promise to teach Han Xiao the Energy Training Technique. While he had lost, Harmon was not angry at all. He would not dwell on his failures but instead take it as valuable experience to prepare for his next battle.
When the battle ended, the prisoners finally heaved a sigh of relief. Everyone was sweating profusely even though they were the spectators. They felt even more tired than having gone through a battle, their hearts palpitating in fear.
These interstellar people are truly monsters!
_____________________
You have acquired [Luhan Hammer Technique]!
_____________________
After obtaining the skill, Han Xiao hid his joy and nodded toward Harmon.
“Good fight.”
“If there’s a chance, we’ll exchange blows again.” Harmon snorted before walking away.
Due to the restraint brought about by specializations, Han Xiao did not feel much pressure throughout the whole thing. Instead, he took it as experience to test out his new styles. Compared to Herlous, Harmon was more like a live target.
After sorting out his equipment, he walked out of the training room to find Herlous standing outside.
“What are you doing here?”
“I caught wind of news that you and Harmon were sparring and came over to take a look. I wanted to see your bedraggled look.” Herlous laughed.
“I’ve let you down, I guess.” Han Xiao rolled his eyes. “Anything else?”
Herlous kept his smile and cleared his throat before slowly asking, “This.... I want to ask. About the thing you promised me, when can I cash that in?”
“I’ve promised you many things. Which one in particular?”
Lifting up his prosthetic limb, Herlous spoke with an expression of expectation. “You told me in the past that there was someone in your hometown that could allow me to regenerate my arm. While your prosthetic is really comfortable... I still miss the original goods.”
“Oh, so it’s this.” Han Xiao came to a realization. Herlous’ arm had been disintegrated by Ember, and Han Xiao had told him that Aurora’s ability could actually help to treat his disability.
Rubbing his brow, Han Xiao felt a headache coming on. While Aurora had that kind of strength, this matter was a little sensitive. With Aurora being so enthusiastic in aiding others, she definitely would not reject being of assistance. The main problem was the Hila who went around with a black face as though she was angry at the world. Han Xiao did not dare guarantee that she would not be as protective of Aurora like the past.
“Let me bring you to consult them.”