Chapter 12: Reactive Anti-Armor

Deep within the Ashen Forest, Lin En shot forward at high speed, propelled by a Vector Jet formed from Wind Element magic beneath his feet.

The exhaust was tightly encased and restrained by invisible wind, the raging air currents forcibly tamed into silent thrust.

At the same time, a thin, nearly transparent Disturbance Membrane covered his entire body, suppressing both air disturbances and sound from flight to the absolute minimum.

He became a gray shadow blending into the night, gliding just above the treetops at astonishing speed toward the west.

There was no piercing screech, only the faint rustling of leaves brushed by the airflow—perfectly merged with the deepest darkness before dawn and the natural sounds of the forest.

Centered on Lin En, the immense Spirit Power of the Dual Crystal Core within his mind formed a Battlefield Scanning Array.

Invisible Spirit Power Radar waves instantly spread out, covering the vast Ashen Forest.

A weak but familiar life signal was being dragged by a small group of energy signatures, chaotic and filled with malice, swiftly moving deeper into the forest.

“Found them.”

A cold light flashed in Lin En’s eyes.

Without hesitation, the Wind Element Vector Jet beneath his feet exploded in power.

His entire form blurred into a gray streak, racing westward just above the treetops, trailing a brief wake of turbulence behind.

***

In the depths of the forest, moonlight filtered through thick leaves.

A five-man squad was stumbling through rugged terrain, roughly carrying an unconscious girl.

It was Wei’er.

Her face was pale, breath weak, dirt and grass clinging to her clothes.

The Strongman Leader in front glanced back from time to time, an almost imperceptible tension in his eyes.

The atmosphere in the group was suffocating.

Everyone’s face was ashen with fear.

Not long ago, as they struggled through the woods, a terrifying tornado of blue fire had risen in the distant night sky, dyeing half the heavens a ghostly blue.

It was as clear as divine punishment.

Even separated by dozens of li, the magic pressure was so violent that their souls trembled as if struck by a giant hammer.

That was the direction of Skull Ridge, the place they had just left.

“H-head… head…”

A younger team member’s voice trembled, on the verge of tears.

“Just now… just now… what was that?! The direction of the Bandit Camp… That commotion… it’s terrifying! The Boss and the others couldn’t have—”

“Shut up! All of you, shut up!”

The Strongman Leader snapped back, voice low and strained, but the fear in his eyes betrayed him.

Even he felt his heart pounding—the destructive scene and power far surpassed anything he understood as possible by any strong person.

“Mind your own business! The Boss and the others are there—once we reach the Night Raven Outpost, we’ll be safe!”

He sounded like he was convincing his teammates, but in truth, he was trying to convince himself.

He had no idea that the Boss and the Bandit Camp he spoke of had already been wiped from this world.

***

At that moment, an indescribable sense of fatal cold—like being locked onto by a natural enemy—descended upon them without warning.

“Above!”

Another quick-reacting team member jerked his head upward, pupils shrinking.

A hundred meters up, between the treetops, a gray-robed figure hovered silently.

Lin En’s gaze was like ancient ice, piercing through the branches to lock onto them.

More precisely, onto the unconscious Wei’er.

“Someone’s chasing us!”

A terrified scream shattered the silence of the forest.

“We have a hostage! Use her as a shield—”

The Strongman Leader’s roar was cut off.

Lin En’s right hand opened, fingers splayed downward.

The Crystal Core in his mind blazed with light, Spirit Power locking onto five vital points—and the arms reaching for Wei’er’s limp form.

Ice Spike Sniping!

Activate!

No incantation.

No blinding light.

Only dozens of ice spikes, each the thickness of a chopstick and sharpened to a lethal edge, shot silently from Lin En’s fingertips at supersonic speed.

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

Pfft!

A chorus of quiet, deadly impacts echoed, like rain beating on plantain leaves—deadly, rhythmic, relentless.

A tall, thin figure reaching for Wei’er was pierced in the wrist, elbow, and shoulder by three spikes just half a foot from her tattered sleeve.

The ultra-low temperature instantly froze flesh and bone, immobilizing the thief mid-motion.

The Strongman Leader’s snarl froze on his face.

His brow, heart, and the wrist reaching for his sword were simultaneously skewered.

The ferocity drained from his face, replaced by a hollow expression.

He swayed and collapsed with a crash, shards of ice scattering across the ground.

The remaining three fared no better.

One had his throat punctured, another his knee destroyed, a third a hole blown in his chest.

No screams—only the dull thuds of falling bodies and the crackle of frozen flesh.

The whole exchange happened in a flash.

From Lin En’s arrival to all five corpses hitting the ground, not two seconds passed.

The forest returned to utter silence.

Lin En landed as lightly as a feather.

He spared not a glance for the corpses.

His gaze went straight to Wei’er.

He strode forward, Spirit Power sweeping her body like the most precise scanner.

His sister was unconscious.

But there were no external wounds, no traces of mental branding.

Lin En’s taut nerves eased a fraction.

He reached out, ready to lift Wei’er.

Just then, the Spirit Power Radar in his mind caught a faint, fleeting ripple—a physical interference wave, not of Spirit Power, but of light distortion or some advanced optical camouflage.

Trouble!

Three chilling, venomous waves of killing intent erupted from three directions.

Worse, one—coming from the right front—was not aimed at Lin En, but at Wei’er, lying helpless at his feet.

Targeting Wei’er!!

The thought exploded in Lin En’s mind like thunder.

All calculations for defensive formations, all tactical simulations, were thrown aside.

Only one thought remained.

Protect her!

At any cost!

His pupils shrank to pinpoints.

Before conscious command, his body moved, driven by the deepest instinct.

He dove forward, determined to shield Wei’er with his own body.

A black bolt, wreathed in dark energy, tore through the air, shrieking toward Wei’er’s heart.

Bang!

Lin En crashed to the ground, using his entire back and side to cover her.

Dirt and grass scattered.

Simultaneously—[55° Oblique Ice Shield Technique]!

Desperate, Lin En poured Spirit Power into a hasty construct.

He didn’t even have time to look back.

Sensing the source of killing intent, an ice shield materialized behind him.

Its base barely touched the ground, unstable and fragile.

But it was the last barrier he could offer.

Zzzz—

A piercing screech exploded in sync with the ice shield’s formation.

The shadow-wreathed arrow smashed into it.

At the impact point, the crystalline magic structure collapsed, destroyed by the chaotic Demonbreaking Energy on the arrowhead.

Bang!

Crash!

The shield shattered into shards.

Splat!

In the next instant, the Demonbreaker Bolt, its force greatly diminished and deflected, still stabbed deep beneath Lin En’s right shoulder blade.

“Urgh—!”

A muffled groan escaped his clenched teeth.

The horrific force drove him hard into the earth, the bolt tearing flesh and lodging into muscle and bone.

Demonbreaking Energy flooded the wound, devouring flesh, burning and paralyzing.

Blood welled, soaking earth and robes.

It was a hair’s breadth away!

If he hadn’t shielded her, if the ice shield hadn’t deflected the blow, the arrow would have pierced Lynn Viel’s heart.

Why… did the shield fail?

When the bolt struck, the magic structure at the impact point collapsed instantly.

The chaotic energy on the arrowhead—Demonbreaker properties!

It didn’t rely solely on kinetic force, but was designed to destroy magic constructs.

The chaotic wave also severely disrupted Spirit Power flow, causing magic to collapse instantly.

Any defense built on magic would be as fragile as paper before such a weapon.

A true nemesis for mages!

As the Demonbreaker Bolt invaded Lin En’s Spirit Sea, the chaotic wave tried to disrupt his Spirit Power.

But when it touched the two silent, stably spinning Face-centered Cubic Crystal Cores at the center of his Spirit Sea—

It was as if it slammed into an immovable iceberg.

Buzz!

The surface of the Crystal Cores glimmered with precise geometric light, their rigid lattice frames showing overwhelming resistance to interference.

The chaotic Demonbreaking Energy could no more shake those stable Spirit Power nodes than water could erode diamond.

Each node was an anchor, with twenty-four channels remaining unbroken.

Spirit Power: Unhindered!

Magic Flow: Stable!

Core Structure: Unshaken!

The ‘Silencing Effect’ that would cripple any ordinary mage was reduced to a negligible level before the Face-centered Cubic Crystal Core’s incomparably rigid structure.

Lin En’s spellcasting remained almost unaffected.

This was the foundation forged from the scientific wisdom of the modern world.

Now, it revealed its unrivaled strength.

“Demonbreaker Bolts are powerful, but expensive—there’s no way they’d waste one on an ordinary person,”

Lin En immediately understood their tactics.

“The real target was always me—they knew I would protect Lynn Viel at any cost, so they used the bolt to force my hand! The other two killing intents… All for a guaranteed kill!”

Terrifying calculation!

This was a highly professional assassination team—each step precisely targeting a mage’s weaknesses.

How to defend against the Demonbreaker Bolt?

Lin En’s mind raced.

If the bolt was like a modern armor-piercing round, direct defense was unwise.

Then… Reactive Explosive Armor! The blast reaction principle!

Using a directed micro-explosion to counter or deflect incoming kinetic force!

Reactive armor modules didn’t rely on structural strength, but on the energy of the explosion itself!

A path opened instantly in his mind.

The next Demonbreaker Bolt was already nocked, aimed at Lin En’s temple.

Killing intent surged again.

[Reactive Explosive Armor]!

Activate!

Lin En abandoned all conventional defenses.

The air twisted, and a palm-sized, dense shield of Flame Crystal with a highly unstable explosive core appeared.

Its purpose wasn’t to block, but to detonate!

The instant the second Demonbreaker Bolt arrived—

Bang!!!

The Flame Crystal Shield erupted in a targeted explosion.

Arrowhead and blast collided violently.

The bolt slammed into a wall of invisible shockwave, its force diminished and trajectory skewed.

With a ‘thunk’, it buried itself in a tree trunk, quivering.

The Flame Crystal Shield itself shattered from the explosion.

The attack didn’t stop!

Zzzzz—

Without warning, the mossy ground at Lin En’s feet split open.

A jet of acrid, burning acid shot upward.

At the same time, several tough, dark green, fire-resistant toxic vines erupted, snaking toward Lin En’s legs.

Gritting his teeth, Lin En slammed his right palm down.

Centering himself and Wei’er, a ring of blazing fire spun outward, its edge vibrating with high-frequency heat.

Zzz—

The acid struck the Flame Annihilation Field and instantly vaporized into choking smoke.

Shlkk! Shlkk!

The toxic vines were sliced apart and incinerated into ash by the rotating flames.

On Lin En’s Spirit Power Radar, a faint magical energy source flickered at the rear left.

Target acquired.

Counterattack—[Thermobaric Art]!

Fire!