Chapter 364: Flying Up (Literally)

Even though the equipment and level were wildly mismatched, and Grandma timely cast magic, the torrential bullets were mostly blocked by a dark shield.

But one bullet still caught her off guard, broke through the defense, hit her cheek, and utterly tore apart the false warm smile that seemed permanently stuck on her face.

In an instant, blood spattered everywhere, mixed with saliva she could no longer contain, splashing a large stain across the pristine marble floor.

"Hiss~ you bastard..."

Grandma covered her split mouth, her turbid eyes instantly filling with malice, her expression more twisted than the demon reflected in the mirror.

One reason she chose to betray was her greed for life and fear of death, wishing to stay forever young like the long-lived Buluowa.

Therefore, even though she could be healed, the disfigured her broke down on the spot, pulling out a staff shrouded in black cloth, made of some unknown sinister material.

However, the broken-defense old woman here was clearly not alone; experts also rushed in.

"You old thing, you're practically asking for death!"

Face is such a mystical thing; if the Holy Light God had already achieved being unflappable even when spat upon, then even Ji Ming teasing Him to His face would cause no inner turmoil.

Then Tenisi is the type who clings to face more as he ages, wishing to keep a grudge notebook like an elf, calculating the days to dance on his enemies' graves.

So she couldn't be bothered to pull the scepter from its socket, gripping the handle and charging straight ahead, using it like a pry bar to rip the floor cleanly in half.

——You think I'm easy to mess with, huh? Let me see if your head is as easy to mess with!

And Grandma had originally wanted to whack Ji Ming with a stick to vent her anger, but before she could even lift her hand, she saw the Archbishop's lance come screaming amid the earth-shattering roar.

She was instantly scared out of her wits, but fortunately, as another close-combat mage her hand speed wasn't slow either; she timely adjusted her staff's direction and blocked it in front of herself.

But even so, since they could have one more "great" character than her bishop, that "great" couldn't possibly reflect only a difference in ecclesiastical rank.

Then the next second, her body together with the staff in her hand flew backward uncontrollably, breaking free of gravity's grip and slamming hard into the ceiling, sinking deep where she couldn't dig herself out.

And seeing her boss openly switch sides, the other local believers in the hall dropped their pretenses as well.

The faint holy light on her body instantly vanished, replaced by a heavy shadow that almost covered her face.

"Brothers, kill all these heretics!"

They drew various weapons from beneath their robes and, shouting, began the war.

But!

If the count who had known beforehand that today would bring a conflict brought what a southern great noble ought to have—fine troops and capable generals—

then, as a church emphasizing joint cultivation of spirit and flesh, those qualified to guard these three important figures must be the finest of knights, the holiest of holy light.

Thus every church guardian knight present is of utmost purity—able to stand on fists, run on shoulders; they might not remember divine incantations, but they definitely know two ultimate martial arts techniques.

Upon seeing someone dare to run wild in my church, they all the more brought out heavy weapons whose size, whatever it was, had to exceed the enemy's.

"You brat, fight your mother!"

With the passionate clash of the two sides, the church hall sounded like a blacksmith's forge.

It wasn't their weapons clinking in combat; rather, these apostates were completely being pressed down and beaten by the church guardian knights, their bones shattering with a crackling sound.

"Cough cough..."

Seeing her own side's people being hammered about like torn cloth bags, Grandma spat a mouthful of blood and, amid the pain of her body being ripped apart, began rapid thinking.

"Ying..."

No way—our side, from soldiers to generals, in numbers and quality, is far inferior to the enemy, with no room for maneuver.

Escape...

Also impossible, since the count is now a firm ally of the enemy; staying in his main city makes us a turtle in a jar.

So the only thing we can strive for is to obtain as decent a defeat as possible.

For example...

Trade my life for one!

How about swapping for the Archbishop?

Impossible—I just barely avoided being turned into shredded chicken by one of his blows; though everyone dies eventually, there's no need to rush to die.

How about swapping for the count?

Not worth it—he's merely a regional great noble of the kingdom, not a mountain-top boss in the royal capital circle; even if he died it would mean nothing.

How about swapping for the princess?

Unrealistic—she's the orphan of Lord Changge, with a pair of heroic parents who would trade lives for her; she must be loaded with life-saving gear.

……It's impossible that anyone could just stab her once and make her sweat buckets, nearly dying ignominiously in a toilet, right? No way? No way?

So in the flash of lightning, she decided the plan stays the same—go all out to swap for the God's Chosen!

——Among this bunch he's the weakest; he just scratched Mom's face, he should have died ages ago!!!

The situation is urgent, there's no time to hesitate—she made up her mind and began to act……

"Still dare to move?!"

But the Archbishop originally just wanted to leave her a tongue, not kill her outright; he intended to break her spirit, letting this traitor despairingly cling to the ceiling while watching her subordinates be defeated.

Who would have thought she'd still dare to resist now?

Then it's no wonder she's to blame!

So the Archbishop kicked the lance-scepter beside him, sending it flying like a throwing weapon toward the apostate stuck to the ceiling.

But since she had defected to the Shadow Church, how could she possibly not have learned a few shadowy tricks?

Just now she hadn't had time to use it, but now she was prepared; thus although the lance struck her hard-won comforting Grandma, her silhouette afterward was ripped apart like a rag.

Having entered the Shadow Infiltration state, she used that moment to shift position, instantly appearing behind Ji Ming, raising her staff—now covered in cracks from the blows—and striking at his forehead.

……

Thinking to sneak-attack Ji Ming, that old six, isn't that simple—he's been on guard all along.

Moreover, just last night he was, under the leadership of that very Grandma before your eyes, honored as the Shadow Church's God's Chosen—how could he fail to notice her secretly preparing a profound shadow spell?

So her sneak attack was pure comedy—her arm had just begun to exert force when, between where her staff would land and Ji Ming's skull, an iron shovel suddenly thrust out.

And it was this dirt‑caked shovel, as if just dug from a childless grave, that became the final straw breaking the staff forged from undead bone and corpse oil.

Bang!

Amid the sky‑filled shards of the broken staff, Grandma not only failed to achieve her aim but also watched helplessly as a fist shot out and slammed hard into the uninjured half of her face.

Besides the punch, who hides a spike in their palm? It gave that half of her old face a puncture wound.

Her lips were pierced with two holes; if she miraculously survived this fight, she might never be able to drink soup again.

You! Wah~ Bullying people too much……

She could hardly threaten anyone—after all, who would fear an old lady whose speech leaks air and who lost several big teeth when that steel spike was pulled out?

「Isn't it over yet? How come someone still thinks I'm a soft persimmon? 」

Ji Ming began to wonder if he was just incompatible with the Hui Guang Kingdom; he had already made it big in Sunshine City, being a big shot wherever he went, so why did coming here turn him into the unlucky one wherever he went?

This is no longer an ordinary situation; we must bring out heavy firepower!

So he chose a linked attack, pulling out the shoulder gun that had been gathering dust in the warehouse for ages; after the aura of 【I Step on Horse Social Security】 flared on his body, he decisively pulled the trigger.

Although it is an ancient firearm, in the current version it can no longer exert its previous devastating effect.

But quantitative change brings qualitative change; now with a skill that cancels reloading, as long as Ji Ming can pull the trigger fast enough, it can fire with the firepower of a heavy machine gun!

So even though she was once a Holy Light believer, Grandma still kept the good habit of putting on a shield before going berserk.

But to maintain this thickened shadow shield, she was still suppressed by the dense gunfire, unable to move.

Thus the hall, which had been like a blacksmith's shop, turned into a New Year's celebration; the crackling, deafening gunfire drowned out all other sounds, drawing everyone's gaze and making the combatants forget their fight.

Ji Ming had been heading north since entering the Hui Guang Kingdom, so southern news had not yet spread widely here; few present could recognize such a weapon.

The Holy Guard Knights surely knew this was a firearm made by the Pioneers, but like those martial arts manga, they would train their flesh and temper their bones, even inventing heretical paths like the "Bite Dao" with their teeth, sparing no effort to look more badass.

But regarding equipment, they hold absolute contempt, especially for weapons tinged with technology; even early‑game mini‑bosses would sneer at them, and only the most useless grunts would brandish them to show off.

So although they are combat experts, they cannot see any merit in the weapon Ji Ming holds.

They just think it's too noisy; probably only a chosen child like that would like it.

... sigh, he doesn't even have two hundred pounds of muscle all over; I really don't know how he manages to sleep at night.

And Elinor, although she is highly receptive to new things, as a growth‑type character who only got on track after eighteen, she obviously can't think of much more.

She just thinks the gun in the God Athlete is huge; why does it seem she never saw him use it before?

Tennis, however, saw that although Ji Ming's movements were big—like mages spamming area shots to increase their orb count—actually the weakness of each bullet lay under his control.

Even if they could pierce defenses, they wouldn't directly kill Grandma; they'd only hit non‑vital spots on the target, miserable but not fatal.

Indeed, using firearms is quite "simple": just master reloading, aim, and shoot.

But simple does not mean easy, especially such precise, rapid shooting, which requires the gunner to have extremely strong control over his weapon.

Thus it seems Buluowa really did teach him seriously.

And among the crowd, the one reacting most intensely was definitely the Wind Shadow Count himself.

Although he is a professional, if his level were truly high, he wouldn't be toyed with by a bunch of shadow cultists, made to be a clueless idiot's protective umbrella.

Last night he actually didn't sleep at all, constantly worrying about what to do if such a thing happened again, and what he could use to protect his family.

And now, a broad road seems to have appeared before him; the weapon in the God Athlete appears to have truly no usage threshold.

It sounds like the merchants from the south said it was a weapon made by a group in the uncharted lands who worship another god and call themselves Pioneers.

So from now on I must definitely get in touch with them properly, to see if I can also possess one!

Perhaps only a weapon that ordinary people can master should be the future of the Yangyue World.

And after expending over a thousand rounds of ammunition, the heretic's turtle shell finally blew apart.

Ji Ming acted as if performing surgery, treating the flying bullets as precise scalpels, aiming straight at Grandma's joints.

One shot not enough? Two shots. Still not enough? Three shots. The ammunition became a scorching saw, severing every joint on her body.

Having lost her last bit of resistance, Grandma let out a desperate scream, blown backward by the ammunition's force—this time she really flew.

Apart from the mud she lay in still holding a breath, it could already be called a brutal execution.

But gaining victory did not make Ji Ming feel happy; instead he silently shook his head.

According to the information he had, players' cutting‑edge technology had actually made no progress during this period.

Because as the active drivers of technological development, the officials of all countries coincidentally chose the same approach during this period: lay foundations first, then build, creating a smooth path all the way.

It's possible that some private players did set up studios and develop more advanced weapons, but time, materials, and technology are limited, so the era of these weapons probably can't even reach World War II.

So this gun, at least in terms of power, is still relatively advanced and retains a certain representativeness.

And Grandma, the heretic living in the Wind Shadow Territory, is roughly equivalent to a representative hidden boss of the kingdom's southern region.

She should be an Easter egg that appears only after the "protagonist" completes a series of tasks, obtains the truth via side quests, and achieves the 【True Ending】.

Therefore, although with the buff of 【I Step on Horse Social Security】 and over a thousand bullets, victory was ultimately achieved by raising the gun.

But if it were a head‑on battle, the players would probably have their heads knocked flat by her alone with her staff before the bullets could even establish suppression.

Imagine the players advancing all the way with high morale, arriving here, and after a series of hidden quests finally uncovering the truth hidden behind the local church.

But instead they were beaten by a kind old grandma, guild after guild wiped out in succession, until the core's resolve shattered and the survivors fled in disarray.

... ha, it's really too painful to watch.

It seems my idea of rushing to map all the way to the Royal Capital in one go is perhaps too radical; the danger there is only greater than here, not something players can currently handle.

So let's pause the expansion of the kingdom's map for now; after a month or two, when players' technological development gets back on track and they gain the ability to face stronger foes, we can talk about it again.

It's also time for them to digest what they've gained so far.