Lao Tzu came here to kill people

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Huo Xianfeng glared at her coldly. Cecilia’s appearance had changed so much from how Huo Chao remembered her that he couldn’t discern whether she was an ally or an enemy. But it was obvious that even if she had gone easy on Jiang Ci in Bright City, it didn’t necessarily mean she wasn’t an enemy now.

Huo Xianfeng threw away the depleted low-frequency cannon on his shoulder and pulled out a dagger.

At that moment, the mechanical warrior lunged forward with its massive axe, swinging down with an astonishing speed for something so large.

Huo Xianfeng frowned and quickly ducked down to evade the blow. He reversed his grip on the dagger and stabbed it into the warrior’s wrist joint,

But it struck machinery, getting stuck and failing to penetrate.

The next second, a massive hand grabbed his shoulder and the crushing force made his bones creak audibly.

BANG!

Huo Xianfeng was slammed into the wall with such force that the smooth surface caved in, cracks spreading like a spiderweb. His bloodied lab coat, already soaked through, was further stained by the impact. Flying debris scraped against his exposed skin, stinging sharply.

He coughed lightly, stood up, and wiped the blood from his lips with one hand. The red Holy Stigmata rapidly spread across his skin and Huo Xianfeng squeezed his left shoulder. He could feel the writhing Holy Stigmata inside him repair his fractured bones.

No.

This wouldn’t do.

Huo Xianfeng looked at the approaching mechanical warrior. This situation was troublesome— this body was too weak, not only compared to himself, but also compared to the adult Huo Chao.

He wasn’t confident he could hold off both of them while escaping the ever-tightening encirclement of believers.

— He needed another plan.

A sharp whirr rang out as the giant axe came crashing down. The speed and sheer force of it let out a piercing screech through the air.

Huo Xianfeng did not have enough power to block, so he quickly dodged it. The axe embedded itself into the ground with a thunderous impact. Seizing the moment, the young man darted forward barefoot, using the axe handle as a foothold to close the distance in an instant.

The mechanical warrior immediately reached out to grab him, but Huo Xianfeng, recalling that his dagger couldn’t penetrate the metallic armor, executed a mid-air flip to evade.

In the next instant, his deadly blade aimed at the most vulnerable part of the mechanical warrior’s helmet and neck connection. The blood-red Holy Stigmata on his arm swelled, causing his muscles to expand to their limit, to the point of bursting through his sleeves. The grotesque transformation made him appear almost monstrous.

At that moment, Huo Xianfeng felt his strength surge tenfold in his right arm.

Squelch—!

This time, the dagger pierced through, unleashing a spray of blood. Using the momentum of his mid-air spin, Huo Xianfeng slashed the blade horizontally, nearly severing the man’s neck.

Boom!

The mechanical warrior dropped to his knees and his helmet rolled down to the ground. The man clutched his neck with both hands and let out a guttural, choking gasp.

The young man gasped and landed behind the warrior. His eyes were bloodshot as he stretched his wrist. Overusing the Holy Stigmata took a heavy toll on his body and he felt as if his head could explode from the pain.

Huo Xianfeng turned back and finally saw the face beneath the helmet—a pale, lifeless, yet grotesquely contorted face.

—Chris.

He recognized it instantly. Chris was an archbishop from Leinster’s era.

“Ah, what a pity,”

Cecilia’s voice came from behind him. Her tone remained as sweet and seductive as ever.

“Kuru was just repaired yesterday, and now he’s broken again.”

Huo Xianfeng turned back and looked serious. He realized he might need to reassess Cecilia’s threat level. She had once been an inconspicuous apostle at Bai Min’s side, yet now she had the ability to turn an archbishop into a mechanical warrior.

At the same time, Cecilia was far less at ease than her tone suggested. Of course, she knew the extent of Chris’s power. The only reason she had managed to kill him and make him into a mechanical warrior was because she had struck during his Alpha rut, exploiting his most vulnerable moment.

But this Huo Chao clone, which was seemingly only thirteen or fourteen years old, had taken him down with such ease.

Is this really a clone?

Couldn’t it actually be the real Huo Chao?

Cecilia raised her massive scythe in front of him and a flicker of unease appeared in her eyes.

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But Huo Xianfeng wasn’t aiming to attack her.

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“…!!!”

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Then at this moment, seeing the real thing, with this face, was nothing short of overwhelming.

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In that instant, Huo Xianfeng’s hand shot forward like lightning. He seized Cecilia’s earring and grasped it tightly.

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“Bright Moon!”
“Bright Moon!”

Brilliant white light erupted from Huo Xianfeng’s palm.

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A cold, mechanical female voice emanated from the cockpit.

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“What’s wrong? You aren’t calling me Huo Chao anymore?”

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Moreover, while Huo Chao could control other people’s mechas, it was generally limited to those rated below Class A. For a mecha like Bright Moon, with an SS rating, it was considered impossible for anyone other than its designated master to operate it—let alone without using the neural chain.

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The core AI systems of SS level mechas and above were highly advanced. Ownership permissions could only be transferred by the pilot themselves. And if you tried to forcibly seize control of it, you needed to wipe out and entirely reconstruct the AI program.

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After a brief pause, as if detecting something, it added,
“But you won’t be able to escape. Elder Mandela is already en route with an interception team.”

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Huo Xianfeng sneered.
“Lao Tzu came here to kill people, not to run.”

Bright Moon: “…”

Confirmed.

This was definitely not His Highness Huo Chao.

The cheerful and warm Huo Chao-gege that Minmin spoke of would never utter something like, “Lao Tzu came here to kill.”

Bright Moon couldn’t understand what strange concoction Bernard had injected into this clone to produce such a personality. But its resistance was futile—this young man’s mental strength was overwhelming.

Even beyond Bright Moon’s detection limits.

A clone of Huo Chao surpassing Huo Chao himself?

It was an impossible thing.

Bright Moon couldn’t comprehend it. For now, though, it had no choice but to obey the commands of this clone.

Huo Xianfeng casually asked, “How much energy is left?”

Bright Moon answered, “100%.”

Huo Xianfeng: “!”
It’s fully charged?! So wealthy?!

Refueling an SS mecha was notoriously expensive, not to mention that it required more than just money. Not only were mecha energy sources were graded according to their level, but the best reactors were also exorbitantly costly.

Military mecha energy was strictly rationed based on rank and mecha class. While the Jiang family was exceedingly wealthy, Jiang Ci had always avoided relying on his family’s influence and obeyed strictly to military regulations.

As a result, Bai Ze’s energy levels were rarely above 60–70%, as it was also picky and would only use the finest energy sources.

So, after learning that Bright Moon’s reserves were at full capacity, Huo Xianfeng was genuinely surprised.
“It seems that woman treats you well.”

Well was an understatement. Cecilia always charged Bright Moon with the highest-grade energy, ensuring it was perpetually at full capacity. She typically used her other mecha, the S-class Mo Yu which was also her scythe, for combat, sparing Bright Moon from battle.

Huo Xianfeng sighed and, without hesitation, cranked the energy output valve to maximum before charging headlong into the intercepting mecha fleet.

Boom—!!!

Crawling out of the wreckage, Cecilia heard a thunderous explosion. She turned around and looked out through a large hole in the wall. She saw the familiar silver white mecha fighting directly with a group of chasing and intercepting mecha troops.

And it was the kind of fighting style that’s completely reckless, with no regard for damage. It didn’t even bother to activate its shields, tanking incoming fire directly with its exterior armor and retaliating with overwhelming violence.

Cecilia had always cherished Bright Moon, treating it better than her own mecha. She diligently maintained the mecha once a week, and although her skills were slightly inferior to Jiang Jinsheng’s, she overcame him through gentleness. She’d rarely let Bright Moon see combat and always kept its energy at full capacity.

Bright Moon looked brand new, and every inch of its metallic surface was polished to a mirror finish. It even shimmered with iridescence under the sunlight.

But now, its outer hull was scuffed and battered, and several other areas had been scorched black from cannon fire.

It was like sending a delicate, elegant princess to work in a coal mine—and making her fight with coal thieves!!!!

Cecilia watched the scene in silence.

Bright Moon—!!!

She fell to her knees and shouted so loudly with such anguish that it was as if her own heart was breaking.

Her beloved Bright Moon had been ruined.

Utterly ruined!!!

Author’s Note:

Others: “Whoa! An SS mecha! Whoa!!! An SSS mecha!!!!”

Huo ‘Mecha Terminator’ Xianfeng: “Oh, it works fine. Also tastes good.”