novelsite Chapter 177 Level 45 Archmage? Take this Gravity Cannon!
Chapter 177 Level 45 Archmage? Take this Gravity Cannon!
Jiang Ming raised an eyebrow as he looked at the purplish-red leader-level dot on the radar screen.
"Boss, that old man is floating in the sky, and he even produced an electric loach." Marlowe said, chewing on his cigar, gripping the joystick, and staring at the holographic projection.
"A level 45 boss monster." Jiang Ming pulled half of his body back into the command cabin and casually pulled down the hatch. "Chen Qi, teach him a lesson. Forget the machine guns, go straight for the gravity cannons."
"Alright!" Chen Qi rubbed his hands together excitedly.
Outside, the Archmage Ode, suspended in mid-air, looked down at the black steel behemoth below, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes.
"You alchemical monsters of the abyss, how dare you slaughter the mages of Winter's Edge!" Aud raised his withered wooden staff, his voice like rolling thunder, echoing across the entire Storm Plains. "Turn to ashes in the fury of thunder! Go!"
The thunderous two-headed serpent, coiled in the clouds, let out a deafening hiss and its massive body lunged down.
Two thick lightning bolts, composed of highly concentrated lightning elements, slammed into the roof of the heavily armored fortress from the left and right.
A blinding flash of lightning instantly engulfed the tank.
A gasp erupted from the distant Lion Knights.
"That's Archmage Aud's signature move! That iron lump is finished!"
"A two-headed serpent of lightning capable of shattering city walls..."
However, the lightning dissipated.
The heavily armored fortress remained safely in place.
A few faint sparks danced on the gray optical camouflage armor covering the tank's surface, leaving not a single mark.
Kinetic Shield Durability: 99%
"That's it?" Jiang Ming tapped the control panel. "Chen Qi, fire."
"receive!"
On the top left side of the chariot, the [Abyss Annihilation Gravity Cannon], covered with dark red magic patterns, emitted a tooth-grinding mechanical whirring sound.
Two black, light-absorbing gravity-collapsed projectiles were silently fired from the cannon barrel.
It was incredibly fast, arriving in front of the Thunder Twin-Headed Serpent almost instantly.
Before Od could react, the two black spheres slammed into the two-headed snake.
Om-!
An absolute torsion force field with a radius of thirty meters suddenly formed in mid-air.
Collapse under ten times the force of gravity!
The two-headed thunder serpent, which had been baring its fangs and claws just moments before, collapsed instantly without even letting out a scream, its massive elemental body crumbling.
The violent lightning element was forcibly compressed by the gravitational field into a high-density lightning ball only the size of a fist, and then with a "bang," it exploded into a scattered ball of electric sparks.
"This is impossible!" Ode's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
That's a fourth-tier summoning magic!
They were gone without even touching each other?
Before he could recover from the shock, the aftershocks of the gravity collapse bomb had already hit him.
The three layers of advanced magic shields surrounding Ode cracked under the strain of ten times the force of gravity.
Click!
The first layer, the wind barrier, shattered.
The second layer, the Earth Shield, collapses.
The third layer, the arcane barrier, is riddled with cracks.
Odd was terrified and frantically waved his staff, trying to gain altitude and escape the gravitational field.
"Trying to run away?" Jiang Ming sneered.
He pushed open the hatch and exerted force with both legs.
With a terrifying power of 67 points, Jiang Ming was launched into the sky like a cannonball.
In mid-air, he flipped his hand, and an epic greatsword, [Hellfire Thunder Prison], appeared in his hand, its entire body dark red and burning with black flames.
"Shadow Leap!"
Jiang Ming's gaze was fixed on the dark cloud shadow behind Aud.
Swish!
His figure vanished from his spot in an instant, and the next second, he covered a distance of fifty meters and appeared directly above Od's head.
"What?!" Ode looked up abruptly, only to see a sword blade wreathed in black flames magnified infinitely in his pupils.
For a fragile mage who relies on pulling and casting range, being approached by a humanoid tyrannosaurus like Jiang Ming means there's only one outcome.
puff!
The Fiery Prison of Calamity sliced through the last layer of arcane barrier without any resistance, cleaving straight down from above Od's head.
The person and the staff were cleaved in two.
Hot blood splattered in mid-air.
[Defeated a level higher than the level of Archmage Aud (Lv.45, Boss) of the Winter Empire, gaining 25000 experience points!]
[Obtained: Thunderfury Magic Core (Purple Epic Material)]
[Obtained: Spatial storage ring (containing military supplies for the Winter Empire).]
Jiang Ming caught the falling magic core and ring, then flipped in mid-air and landed steadily on the roof of the heavy fortress.
The entire Storm Plains was deathly silent.
The remnants of the Winter Empire were so frightened that they threw down their weapons and ran away.
The three thousand heavily armored knights of the Azure Lion Knights didn't even dare to breathe loudly.
That high and mighty archmage who once single-handedly destroyed an entire legion of the Azure Lion Kingdom.
Just like that... he was cleaved in two by a single sword strike?
Jiang Ming hoisted the greatsword onto his shoulder, shook the blood off the blade, and glanced at the group of horse-riding tin canneries in the distance.
"Feed." Jiang Ming kicked the turret under his feet. "Marlowe, drive over there. Ask for directions."
Rumbling--
The heavily armored fortress rolled across the muddy battlefield, its tracks kicking up large amounts of dirt, and stopped fifty meters in front of the Azure Lion Knights.
The muzzles of the twelve-tube rocket pods and the twin-mounted machine guns were intentionally or unintentionally aimed at the Knights' formation.
At the forefront of the knights, a man clad in magnificent, bright silver plate armor with a golden lion emblem on his chest dismounted.
He took off his helmet, revealing short blond hair, raised his sword high above his head with both hands, and knelt on one knee in the mud.
"Gareth, commander of the Third Heavy Knights of the Azure Lion Kingdom, pays homage to the unknown powerhouse!" Gareth's voice trembled slightly.
The system's built-in language parsing module activated instantly, and Jiang Ming's mind automatically translated the other person's language into something he could understand.
"Get up and speak." Jiang Ming jumped off the chariot and walked up to Gareth.
Gareth stood up, his gaze sweeping over Jiang Ming's tactical vest and the greatsword in his hand, before looking at the steel monster behind him that exuded a terrifying aura.
"Your Excellency... are you a legendary high-level alchemist?" Gareth asked cautiously.
"You can call me Jiang Ming. We're just passing by." Jiang Ming took out a cigarette and lit it. "Where is this place? What kind of fight were you having with those guys in gray robes?"
Gareth paused for a moment, clearly not understanding what "Jiang Ming" meant, but he still answered honestly.
"This is the northern part of the continent of Aurora, the Storm Plains. We are resisting the invasion of the Winter Empire." Gareth gritted his teeth, a hint of humiliation flashing in his eyes. "The Winter Empire has betrayed the alliance with humanity; they... they've colluded with the monsters of the abyss!"
Upon hearing the word "abyss," Jiang Ming stopped exhaling smoke rings.
"Tell me more about it."
Gareth quickly explained, "Half a month ago, a huge black rift appeared in the sky above the capital of the Winter Empire. Since then, monsters with tentacles and eyes have infiltrated their army. These monsters are impervious to weapons and can devour corpses to reproduce. Our Lion Kingdom's frontline defenses collapsed completely after only three days."
Jiang Ming raised an eyebrow.
This plot sounds familiar.
It seems that the spatial rift created by that obelisk underground not only connected to the Abyss, but also allowed the Abyss's power to infiltrate this magical plane.
Just then, the storage ring on Jiang Ming's left hand suddenly vibrated violently.
He frowned and probed into the ring with his consciousness.
The [Unknown High-Dimensional Mechanical Core (Incomplete)] that was snatched from two thousand meters underground was now emitting an extremely dazzling blue light.
The frequency of this light seems to resonate with a certain direction.
Jiang Ming looked in the direction of the resonance.
That was the direction the Winter Empire retreated in, which is the far north of this continent.
"Where is the capital of the Winter Empire?" Jiang Ming pointed to the north.
"It's in that direction, just across the Frost Mountains," Gareth said, then his expression changed drastically. "Your Excellency, you mustn't go! That area is now shrouded in the black mist of the abyss; the entire city has become a gigantic lair of flesh and blood!"
Jiang Ming smiled.
A den of flesh and blood?
Isn't that a natural source of raw materials?
Moreover, the fact that this high-dimensional mechanical core resonated indicates that there must be something there that can activate it.
The legendary mechanical core, once activated, who knows how much of an improvement it will bring to the tank.
"Commander Gareth, is that right?" Jiang Ming threw his cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it. "How about we make a deal?"
"Please speak, sir!"
"I'll help you clear out the abyssal monsters from the Winter Empire," Jiang Ming patted the armor of the chariot. "But the rules can't be broken; my appearance fee is very high."
Gareth was stunned, then overjoyed: "If you can save the Lion Kingdom, you can choose any gold coins and jewels in the royal treasury!"
"What would I do with all that junk?" Jiang Ming rolled his eyes. "I need materials. High-grade magic cores, mithril, adamantite, and all those strange magical metals you have here. I'll take as many as you have."
"No problem! Absolutely no problem!" Gareth was trembling with excitement.
As long as we can drive away the abyss monsters, we'd be willing to give up materials, or even empty the national treasury!
"Alright, lead the way. Let's go to your capital to collect some deposits first." Jiang Ming turned and climbed onto the chariot.
Boom—!
The heavily armored fortress roared deafeningly and swaggered onto the official road of the Storm Plains amidst the awe-inspiring gazes of three thousand heavily armored knights.
……
Lionheart City, the capital of the Azure Lion Kingdom on the continent of Aurora.
This magnificent city, with its thousand-year history, is now shrouded in gloom and despair.
The city walls were covered with charred marks left by the battle, and the cries of wounded soldiers echoed through the streets.
Although the Winter Empire's army was repelled by Jiang Ming in the Storm Plains, the pressure on the front lines remains immense.
However, when a 15-meter-long, all-black steel behemoth roared into the city gate, the entire Lionheart City was in an uproar.
Commander Gareth rode ahead on his warhorse, shouting to everyone he met, "Make way! Make way! This is an unparalleled expert capable of slaying a Grand Magister!"
The heavy armored fortress's rough tracks rolled over the bluestone road, leaving deep white marks.
The heavy armored fortress's rough tracks rolled over the bluestone road, leaving deep white marks.
Marlowe grinned as he looked out from the cockpit at the commoners dressed in medieval attire. "Boss, this place feels like a movie set. Look at those women, they're dressed so scantily."
"Focus on driving, don't crash into someone's house." Jiang Ming leaned back in the passenger seat, toying with the [Thunder Fury Magic Core] that had exploded from Aud's body.
The lightning energy contained in this thing is extremely pure; if used to synthesize weapons, it would definitely be a deadly weapon.
The convoy traveled smoothly all the way into the inner city of the royal palace.
The current king of the Azure Lion Kingdom, an old man with gray hair and a tired face, was waiting in the square early with a group of ministers and court mages.
Gareth stepped forward and quickly reported on the battle situation on the Storm Plains.
When they heard that Jiang Ming had instantly killed a fourth-tier summoned creature with a single shot and cleaved a Grand Magus of the Winter Empire in two with a single sword strike, the court mages looked at Jiang Ming as if he were a dragon in human skin.
"Respected powerful being from another world." The old king stepped forward tremblingly, placing his right hand on his chest and performing the highest level of royal courtesy. "Thank you for your assistance to the Azure Lion Kingdom. I have already ordered the Royal Treasury and the Royal Alchemy Workshop to be opened. Take whatever you like from inside."
"Your Majesty is very generous." Jiang Ming jumped off the chariot. "Let's go, let's hurry. I have business to attend to in the north."
Led by several royal guards, Jiang Ming led Chen Qi and Marlow directly into the royal treasury located beneath the palace.
The heavy mithril door slowly opened.
A surge of magical energy, so dense it was almost solidified, rushed towards us.
Jiang Ming glanced at it, and his eyes immediately lit up.
Although these natives are lacking in fighting ability, they are truly first-rate at accumulating wealth.
Inside the treasure vault, boxes upon boxes of magic cores radiating various colors of light were piled up like mountains.
A large amount of unrefined, crude metal ore was piled up in the corner, and the system panel notification sounds began to flood the screen.
[Found: High-purity mithril ore (blue, rare) * 5000 lbs]
[Discovery: Deep Sea Gold (Purple Epic) * 200 lbs]
[Discovery: Storm Griffin's Core (Purple Epic) *3]
[Discovery: Millennia-old Star Sapphire...]
"Ming-ge, you've struck it rich!" Chen Qi was practically drooling.
On Earth, the military has to kill hundreds of people just to find a piece of high-grade material.
This is even better; they're selling it by the ton!
Jiang Ming didn't stand on ceremony and waved his hand dismissively.
The storage ring's folding space was fully open, like a greedy beast, frantically devouring the resources in the treasure vault.
Boxes of magic cores and tons of rare metals disappeared in the blink of an eye.
The royal guards leading the way twitched at the sight, but could only watch helplessly. The king had spoken; take whatever you wanted.
"That's about it." Jiang Ming clapped his hands, leaving some room for maneuver.
He walked to the deepest part of the treasure vault, where there was a separate, isolated platform with a strange metal the size of a palm, its surface a dark gold color.
There were no magical fluctuations around the metal, but the moment Jiang Ming approached, the storage ring on his wrist vibrated violently again.
That [unknown high-dimensional mechanical core] is yearning for this metal!
Jiang Ming grabbed the dark gold metal, and a system notification immediately popped up.
[Obtained: Astral Meteorite (Gold Legendary Material)]
[Characteristics: An extremely dense metal not belonging to this dimension, possessing perfect energy conductivity and spatial flexibility. It is a top-tier material for crafting the outer shells of high-level mechanical artifacts.]
nice one!
Jiang Ming threw it into his storage ring without hesitation.
With this piece of astral meteorite iron, once the Winter Empire finds a way to activate the mechanical core, the armor of the war chariots will definitely experience a qualitative leap.