Chapter 458

"Well then, since you've agreed, let's start the second round of the otherworlder game." Jiang Xia smiled and clapped his hands.

Originally, the lock seeds scattered all over the ground were strung together by some mysterious force, like invisible threads being woven into a rope in midair, and all the lock seeds flew toward him.

Jiang Xia raised his hand to catch them, then handed them all to Gao Siwu standing nearby, and said softly, "Go down first, it'll be quick."

"Oh." Gao Siwu still hadn't come to her senses, her face showing a dazed expression, letting Jiang Xia stuff this series of lock seeds into her hand, and he simply sent her off the stage.

"Ahwu, are you okay?" The short-haired girl grabbed Gao Siwu's hand, and the two sat together on the steps beside.

"Mm-hmm, I'm fine." Gao Siwu gently shook her head, lowered her head to look at the lock seeds in her hand, and squeezed them a few times to confirm she really felt something solid before slowly lifting her head.

She now gazed at Jiang Xia at the center of the stage, like a hazy glimmer, feeling as if a light breeze could make him vanish into thin air; she didn't even dare blink, afraid he would drift away with the wind.

"Ahwu, are you really okay?" The short-haired girl stared fixedly at Jiang Xia's back, watching Gao Siwu motionlessly, a little worried.

Normally, when a girl receives such a surprise, she would usually jump up happily or burst into tears of joy, releasing her pent-up emotions all at once, like a proposal or a confession.

Anyway, that's how TV dramas play it out—either in the last one or two episodes before the ending, or in the final episode's grand reunion, when everyone is highly excited, they achieve a perfect ending, and the male and female leads live happily ever after.

But why, with Gao Siwu, did the opposite happen—a severe backlash, with no excited reaction at all?

"Qiji, I think I've found something more important than dancing." Gao Siwu said softly.

The soft sunlight seemed to illuminate Gao Siwu's entire body, and her originally slightly silly gaze instantly became unprecedentedly bright.

Gradually, the smile she showed was only for that one person on the stage.

"Oh, I see. Congratulations, Ahwu." The short-haired girl understood and smiled.

"Have I already lost?"

Having already left the field, Wu Dao Guangshi watched Gao Siwu's happy smile, but his heart felt as if filled with mud, as if he had lost all motivation, so his Longxuan armor slowly disengaged, and he slowly squatted down against the wall.

He tightly closed his eyes, forcing himself not to look at Gao Siwu, trying to put an end to this fruitless secret love, but when the thought arose in his mind of never returning to the Armored Warrior Corps and cutting ties with the dance sister outright, he suddenly opened his eyes again, unable to bear it.

Even if the dance sister was a girl he could never obtain no matter how hard he tried, he still wanted to stay by her side, even if only for a moment.

His heart could no longer hold anyone else; deep inside, the image of Gao Siwu would forever exist, never fading.

Wu Dao Guangshi suddenly laughed, just treating him as a younger brother? That's not bad either—at least it wouldn't ruin even a friendship; wasn't his initial hiding of his identity meant to get closer to Gao Siwu?

Because he didn't want any distance between them, he wished to interact with her as an ordinary person. But now, it's no longer necessary.

He couldn't sever his lingering attachment, nor could he force the dance sister to like him; all he could do was silently guard her by her side.

Perhaps he shouldn't guard her silently, but openly and honorably.

Although she might no longer need it, this is Wu Dao Guangshi's own decision, unrelated to others.

He won't leave the Armored Warrior Corps; he has already made his choice—to protect the dance sister he wants to safeguard, regardless of whether she likes him or not.

He no longer hopes Gao Siwu will choose him; as long as the dance sister is happy, that's what matters most to him now.

After all, liking someone is the most unreasonable thing in the world.

The boy's intangible thoughts can only be buried deep in his heart, while reality continues on.

"White Little Brother, I'm going up." Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso leapt onto the stage with a big jump, "Let you see what a professional special forces combat style really is."

He wasn't mocking; he was utterly serious, like before a match, first introducing his school and style.

When Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso first encountered the otherworld beast game on TV, he thought these power-only guys couldn't fight at all, relying solely on the strength granted by their belts to use brute force.

But the moment he saw Jiang Xia appear, he completely overturned his previous contempt for armored knights.

That white knight's fighting style is worlds apart from those street-dance youths; it was honed through countless battles, each move free of any wasted motion.

He may not have undergone special professional combat training, but the icy aura emanating from his bones is something ordinary combat encounters can't reach.

This guy might have killed more people than I have.

Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso put on the Sengoku Driver, took out the A Rank lock seed that came with it from his pocket, lightly aimed at the button above, and pressed it gently.

Durian! (durian)

LOCKON (target lock)

A full-body green durian armor covered in spikes fell from the cracks, cladding Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso's body, and the final armored knight appeared before everyone.

Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso's durian-armored knight differs greatly from other armored knights; his knotted muscles and the armor covering his upper body tell the surrounding audience just how much power this physique holds, while the dagger-like shell covering his whole body adds a ferocious touch.

In his hand he also held a pair of double blades wrapped in spikes, like a chainsaw; needing no combat plan, just standing there he exudes a formidable presence—after all, he's a special forces soldier who persists in training, combined with the unique durian fruit transformation; without a special lock seed, aside from Jiang Xia, he should be the strongest here.

Meanwhile, as he transformed, Jiang Xia also transformed; compared to Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso's armored knight, he resembles more a commander overseeing battle than a mere brawler.

Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso spread his hands, then surged toward Jiang Xia with tremendous impact; this speed would be quite impressive for others, but unfortunately the gap cannot be bridged.

The durian double blades in his hand swung simultaneously in midair; the ferocious spikes on them emitted a sharp sound the instant he swung, like a moving chainsaw, the blades tracing arcs of different angles on either side, slashing horizontally at Jiang Xia standing before him.

Why mention different angles? Because Jiang Xia wields a shield that can cover half his body; to hit him directly, one must first deal with his shield, whereas Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso chose to go around it.

He attacks in two different directions; if he blocks any one angle, the blocked blade is a feint, while the other blade will slip through the opening.

Both blades are real and carry the same power, but because of the different angles, you can block only one side.

Seeing the green-light chainsaw, Jiang Xia drew the black long sword at his waist, stepped forward, and instantly became a blurry shadow, like an incorporeal ghost; before Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso could react, brilliant sparks erupted behind him.

Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso staggered, his body involuntarily stepping forward a few paces, but as a special forces soldier, his reflexes and close-combat skills are top-notch.

He spun around violently; the vivid green glow of the durian double blades followed his movements, trying to catch Jiang Xia's silhouette, but to no avail.

Acting on instinct, he swung his blades backward and lunged at empty air; his double blades merely cut through an afterimage.

He was like a hunting bear, each motion a heavy, powerful attack, with the surrounding air constantly transmitting vibrations.

But his opponent seemed not to exist in this world at all; amidst the chainsaw-like blade light, he always vanished a step ahead.

No matter how powerful the attack, if it doesn't hit anyone, it's utterly useless.

And during Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso's continuous assault, due to excessive stamina consumption, his movements gradually began to deform.

"White Little Brother, your speed is really fast." Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso looked at the white knight before him holding a melon shield, somewhat out of breath, "Can't you fight me head-on? You're just trying to wear me out."

"You wanted me to witness your special forces skills, so I just observed first." Jiang Xia said leisurely, "But since you want a frontal fight, I won't dodge your next attack."

As the year's appointed cake master, I still ought to give some face.

"All right! White Little Brother, take my full-force strike." Huang Lian·Pierre·Alfonso tossed his durian double blades aside, used the fruit knife attached to his belt, and quickly sliced at the lock seeds a few times.

His body suddenly burst forth with an energy phantom resembling a durian, he slowly squatted, and then leapt high amidst the sound of exploding juice.

His body spun rapidly in midair, the green spikes on his body all flung outward, swirling in the air to form a huge meteor hammer, brimming with dazzling green light as it plummeted down.

And Jiang Xia truly did not dodge; even though Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse's full-force durian attack had already descended upon his head, his steps did not move at all.

The Durian Armor Knight kept spinning in midair, and its power grew ever greater.

The durian attack descending from the sky came with that huge shadow, as if the surrounding air had been torn open.

In the hands of a combat expert, the Battle Extreme Driver can truly unleash enough terrifying power; even a giant-sized exotic being after Evolution cannot block such an attack.

Before the Genesis Driver appeared, this move could defeat nearly all Armor Knights.

When the durian shadow covered Jiang Xia's entire body, Jiang Xia merely gripped the long blade in his right hand, and for the first time, his left hand tapped the Battle Extreme Driver at his waist a few times.

The next moment, Jiang Xia fiercely swung his blade at the durian shadow; the black long blade instantly struck the green durian's shell, directly blocking the durian's continued descent, but its rotation continued, and the remaining spikes frenziedly cut, trying to keep pressing downward.

However, a faint cracking sound came from the edge of the relentless rotation, and the face beneath Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse's visor in midair suddenly changed.

He knew what that sound meant; he had originally thought Jiang Xia's specialty was speed, after all, in one second he had slashed out so many blades, and in the recent battle he hadn't even grazed a single hair of his opponent, showing his speed was extremely fast.

But he now felt he had made a huge mistake.

Reality is not a game; speed is not a single attribute, it is intertwined with strength, and the faster the speed, the greater the strength.

If an ordinary long blade is accelerated to the point where even the blade itself shatters, the metal fragments it explodes with can rival bullets; this is the power of speed.

So when Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse heard the shattering sound, he knew trouble was big; if he followed the speed Jiang Xia had just displayed, his strength would surely far exceed the limits of his imagination.

So choosing to confront head-on was absolutely a wrong decision.

That black long blade directly extended several meters, bringing with it an azure blade light, slicing straight through the center of the huge durian; the blade's edge instantly swept to Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse's chest, his body was instantly blasted away, flying backward at greater speed and sliding across the ground.

Jiang Xia also turned his body with that blade, putting the black long blade back at his waist, silently awaiting the explosion's end.

A melon phantom flashed across Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse's body, and the energy on him was completely detonated at that moment; splendid juice burst forth like a rainbow, spraying outward in all directions.

Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse, this special forces soldier, directly collapsed in the exploding juice.

"A year's worth of cake share, don't forget it." Jiang Xia raised a finger.

"Of course, little white brother, I lost." Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse climbed up from the ground, looking at Jiang Xia's back; he felt that he had held back, merely chopping apart the durian armor on his body.

"I actually kind of like you, white prince." He whispered while looking at Jiang Xia's back.

Western-style dessert shop.

"It's really delicious!" Gao Siwu's eyes lit up as she held a spoon, tasting the cake dessert before her; with each bite, her eyes showed a happy and surprised expression.

She used to need a long time to be able to eat it once, and could only afford a bit by scraping together money, but now here there is a whole big table full of it, happiness almost killing her.

Originally not large, the white table was already filled with all kinds of cakes; these are all Huang Lian·Pierre Alphonse's signature cakes.

"Don't rush, these are all yours; you can come here anytime to eat them." Jiang Xia said softly.

"Mm." Gao Siwu nodded excitedly; today was the happiest day.

"Hahaha, I'm really a genius, my invention is complete." Zhanji Lingma looked at the various data displayed on the computer and laughed, disregarding his image.

After this great melee, the data of all Battle Extreme Driver users were finally collected completely.

Even including the stranger named Jiang Xia, did they think that if the Battle Extreme Driver had no record of him they couldn't collect data? That was seriously underestimating him; in Marsh Sprout City, high-speed cameras everywhere recorded every battle in this city, and every move Jiang Xia made left traces that would be completely recorded by the sensing system on an Armor Knight's body.

Jiang Xia had fought multiple times against nearly everyone who possessed a Battle Extreme Driver; as long as they analyzed the hit data, they could perform reverse deduction.

Combining this data, one could develop a device for the new era that uses lock-seeds, named the Genesis Driver.

The name comes from the creation in myth and legend; he believes this newly developed device has trans‑era significance, and possessing it should qualify one to obtain the immortal golden apple from that myth and legend. (End of chapter)