Fantasy Game: Infinite City

Chapter 713, Floor 94 (15)

The liquid metal humanoid figure moved slowly through the dim, dilapidated city ruins. Each step was as light as if weightless, its feet making no sound as they touched the alloy fragments and bloody remains on the ground. Only the silvery-gray liquid metal on its surface continued to flow slowly and orderly, shimmering with a cold, sharp metallic luster, as if constantly alert to its surroundings, or as if constantly adjusting its state to deal with any possible emergencies. The large-scale battle with hundreds of mechanical sentinels and bio-mechanical hybrids just now seemed to be a trivial matter. Its body was unscathed, and its energy fluctuations remained stable and powerful, showing no signs of depletion. Its simulated head continued to turn left and right, and its scarlet optical sensors, like two dancing flames, pierced through the smoke and mist in the air, carefully scanning every inch of land and every building in front of it, not missing any abnormal signals, persistently searching for the unknown target it had been looking for since entering the core area of ​​this ruin.

This urban core, utterly ravaged by war, was more desolate and eerie than anywhere else it had passed through. The once towering, densely packed skyscrapers were now mostly collapsed and broken, leaving only incomplete skeletons, like giant tombstones, silently standing beneath the gray sky, telling tales of past prosperity and present desolation. Broken steel bars, like exposed bones, twisted and crisscrossed, protruding from the crumbling walls, bearing the marks of dark red rust and black burns—the remnants of energy explosions and raging fires. The ground was riddled with craters of varying depths, some formed by the explosion of energy bombs, others by the impact of collapsing buildings. At the bottom of the craters lay thick layers of rubble, concrete blocks, broken mechanical parts, and dried, blackened bloodstains. Some of these bloodstains belonged to out-of-control mechanical creatures, while others came from unknown life forms. They emitted a strong, pungent stench of blood, mixed with the smell of rust, the burnt smell of the energy explosion, and an indescribable, faint odor of decay. These stenches slowly permeated the air, intertwining to form a suffocating odor that lingered for a long time.

The sky remained shrouded in thick smoke and dust, preventing sunlight from penetrating the dense barrier. Only a few weak, dim rays pierced through the gaps in the smoke and dust, barely illuminating the desolate land and casting a gloomy and eerie atmosphere over the ruins. Occasionally, gusts of cold wind would whistle through the broken buildings, like the cries of wronged spirits, whipping up rubble and dust that scattered in all directions. The dust would then strike the crumbling walls, producing a faint crackling sound that was particularly jarring in the deathly silence of the ruins, adding even more chill to the already frigid environment. In the distance, faint mechanical sounds could still be heard, intermittent and intermittent, sometimes present, sometimes absent. It was unclear which surviving machine was still struggling to survive, or if a new enemy was lurking in the shadows, waiting to launch a fatal attack. But the liquid metal humanoid paid no attention to this. Its attention remained focused on the search mission ahead, its steps unwavering as it steadily moved forward, heading straight towards the deepest part of this core area. There, a relatively intact skyscraper stood, the only building in the ruins whose complete outline could still be discerned. Its optical sensors detected a faint, unusual energy fluctuation around the building. Although extremely weak, almost masked by the surrounding noise, it was still keenly detected. That might be the direction of the target it had been searching for.

As they advanced toward the intact skyscraper, the liquid metal humanoids encountered three more waves of surviving, out-of-control mechanical creatures. These were clearly survivors who had narrowly escaped the previous large-scale attack. Without their leader, they had become even more ferocious, insane, and cunning. The first wave consisted of a dozen or so basic mechanical sentinels. Most of their bodies were mangled; some had lost an arm, others had broken legs, and they could only move with difficulty using their remaining mechanical joints. Their alloy armor was covered in scratches and damage, and their red optical sensors flickered erratically, clearly indicating severe damage. However, they hadn't abandoned their instinct to attack. When the liquid metal humanoids came into view, they immediately emitted sharp mechanical alarms, brandishing their remaining alloy longswords and charging toward the liquid metal humanoids. Their speed wasn't fast, but it was still driven by a desperate, mad frenzy.

Facing the dozen or so incomplete mechanical sentinels, the liquid metal humanoid didn't pause for a moment, nor did it make any unnecessary movements. The silver-gray liquid metal on its surface rippled slightly, and the previously maintained humanoid outline instantly split into a dozen thin, silver-gray liquid streams, like a dozen agile silver snakes, flowing rapidly across the ground, easily dodging the alloy longswords swung by the mechanical sentinels. The mechanical sentinels, already hampered in their movements, missed again, lost their balance, and fell to the ground, broken mechanical parts falling from their bodies with a crackling sound. Just as they struggled to get up, the diverted silver-gray liquid streams instantly converged, condensing into tiny metal blades that stabbed fiercely at the fallen mechanical sentinels. One crisp "crack" after another rang out, each accompanied by the sound of mechanical parts shattering. In just a few seconds, more than a dozen basic mechanical sentinels were completely destroyed. Their bodies were riddled with holes, their alloy shells were shattered, and their internal circuits and parts were completely damaged. Their red optical sensors went out instantly, and they became completely silent, reduced to piles of scrap metal scattered on the ground, blending into the surrounding wreckage.

After defeating the first wave of enemies, the liquid metal humanoid re-formed into a humanoid silhouette, its steps steady and unwavering as it continued forward. Soon after, it encountered a second wave of enemies, far more powerful than the first: five heavy mechanical sentinels and three bio-mechanical hybrids. The heavy mechanical sentinels remained massive and cumbersome; their alloy armor, though damaged, was still incredibly sturdy. They swung their enormous alloy hammers, slamming them down on the liquid metal humanoid. The powerful impact caused the ground to tremble slightly, each hammer blow creating a small crater and sending debris flying. The bio-mechanical hybrids, on the other hand, were agile and incredibly fast. They roared furiously, brandishing their sharp fangs and claws as they pounced on the liquid metal humanoid. Simultaneously, their tails lashed out with astonishing force, attempting to tear it apart and devour it.

Faced with this even more powerful wave of enemies, the liquid metal humanoid remained completely calm. Its crimson optical sensors rapidly scanned the movements of each enemy, analyzing their attack patterns and weaknesses. The flow of the silver-gray liquid metal on its surface instantly accelerated, preparing for battle. Just as the heavy mechanical sentinel's alloy hammer was about to strike it, and the bio-mechanical hybrid's claws were about to grasp its body, its body suddenly transformed back into a massive ball of silver-gray liquid metal, rolling rapidly across the ground like a giant mercury ball, easily dodging all the enemy attacks. The alloy hammers slammed heavily into the ground, creating huge craters and sending rubble and concrete flying everywhere. The bio-mechanical hybrids, meanwhile, missed their target, crashing into the broken walls with heavy thuds. Debris from the walls fell, striking them and leaving shallow scratches.

Before the enemies could react, the silvery-gray liquid metal had already flowed rapidly to the feet of a heavy mechanical sentinel, instantly coalescing and hardening into a massive metal spike. With a sharp crack, the spike easily pierced the heavy mechanical sentinel's alloy armor, penetrating its body and completely destroying its internal core components. The heavy mechanical sentinel's body stiffened abruptly, its swung alloy hammer slowly drooping, its red optical sensors instantly extinguishing. Then, its massive body slowly collapsed, landing on the ground with a heavy thud, completely lifeless. At the same time, another portion of the liquid metal split again, turning into several silver-gray liquid streams that wrapped around the bodies of several biomechanical hybrids. They rapidly contracted and hardened, and with a series of crisp "crack" sounds, the bodies of the biomechanical hybrids were tightly squeezed and crushed by the liquid metal wrapped around them. They let out shrill roars, their massive bodies suddenly stiffened, and the red mechanical eyes in their eyes instantly went out. Dark red blood gushed from their bodies and flowed onto the ground. Then, their bodies were completely torn apart, turning into a pile of remains scattered on the ground.

The remaining four heavy mechanical sentinels, witnessing the rapid destruction of their comrades, gleamed even more fiercely through their red optical sensors. Undeterred, they continued to wield their massive alloy hammers, smashing them down upon the silvery-gray liquid metal. Simultaneously, their energy cannons unleashed a barrage of powerful energy projectiles, covering the entire area surrounding the liquid metal in an attempt to utterly destroy it. But the liquid metal humanoid remained composed. Its body moved rapidly, sometimes splitting to evade the energy projectiles, sometimes converging to launch a deadly counterattack. A portion of its liquid metal condensed into a massive metal shield, blocking and reflecting the incoming energy projectiles. The reflected projectiles struck several heavy mechanical sentinels, causing a series of deafening booms. The heavy mechanical sentinels, struck by their own energy projectiles, had their alloy armor instantly blasted open, their internal wiring and components completely destroyed. Their bodies stiffened abruptly, then slowly collapsed to the ground, utterly lifeless.

In just over ten seconds, the second wave of enemies was completely destroyed by the liquid metal humanoid. Piles of broken mechanical wreckage and dark red blood littered the ground, and the stench of blood and rust in the air grew even stronger. The liquid metal humanoid reformed into a humanoid shape. The liquid metal on its surface flowed slowly, returning to calm, undamaged. Its crimson optical sensors began scanning the surrounding environment rapidly again. After confirming there were no remaining enemies, it lifted its foot again and continued towards the skyscraper ahead. Its steps remained steady, determined, and resolute, as if the previous battle had only delayed it slightly, without affecting its determination to search.

The road ahead remained fraught with danger and obstacles. Piles of dilapidated building debris blocked its path, while broken rebar and exposed steel plates crisscrossed, forming natural barriers. But these obstacles were insignificant to the liquid metal humanoid. It could easily transform into a liquid form, passing through the gaps in the building ruins, or it could solidify into a hard metallic form, using its sharp metal blades to cut through the blocking rebar and steel plates, clearing a clear path. While traversing a mountain of architectural wreckage, it encountered its third wave of enemies: a surviving medium-sized bio-mechanical hybrid and over twenty basic mechanical sentinels. This medium-sized bio-mechanical hybrid was larger than ordinary bio-mechanical hybrids, reaching five meters in length and two and a half meters in height. Its entire body was covered in thick black scales and silver-white alloy armor. The scales were incredibly hard, and the alloy armor gleamed with a cold, icy light, offering formidable defense. Its head resembled a giant wolf, with a pair of red mechanical eyes that flashed with a ferocious red light. Its mouth was filled with sharp fangs capable of easily tearing apart hard objects. Its limbs were thick and powerful, covered in alloy armor, and its claws were sharp metal claws capable of easily cleaving through hard alloys and concrete. Its tail had transformed into a long mechanical chain with a sharp metal hook at the end, capable of easily hooking onto objects with considerable power.