Cao Linxuan was blasted away like a cannon shell, hurtling hundreds of meters in an instant. He smashed through more than a dozen walls before vanishing into a cloud of dust and rubble. Blood sprayed from his wounds; his heavy armor shattered into fragments.
Zhang Longqi and the others stared, stunned, throats tight. What kind of power was that? Cao Linxuan's full-body armor had looked indestructible—was it nothing more than decoration?
The massive impact quickly drew a crowd that had been waiting outside the courtyard. Pei Tianyuan led the first group in—over a dozen figures, their swift arrival alone signaling their status. With a single glance, they took in the scene: Cao Linxuan barely holding on within the ruins, Chen Xiao standing calmly where he had been, the two facing each other from opposite ends.
Notably, Huaxia now had five survivors. Pei Tianyuan felt both relieved and troubled—relieved that so many had awakened their second forms, troubled that Chen Xiao and Cao Linxuan had already clashed. A one-sided fight was the worst outcome. Every second-form awakener was precious, and Cao Linxuan's status made things even more complicated.
"Chen Xiao, calm down. Let's talk—" Pei Tianyuan began.
"Boom—"
No one got the chance to finish a sentence. Chen Xiao vanished. The ground where he had stood cracked into a spiderweb, leaving behind only a fading afterimage.
Cao Linxuan struggled to his knees, wiping blood from his mouth—only to see Chen Xiao disappear completely. His mind reeled. How had Chen Xiao become this strong? Even with his SS-rank defensive talent, he shouldn't have been crushed in a single blow.
Pain churned through his body, but he had no time to assess it. A suffocating sense of death closed in.
"I'm going to die…!"
"Grandpa, save me!" he screamed.
"Buzz—"
Just as Chen Xiao's fist surged forward like a tidal wave, a pitch-black figure cut in, placing itself directly between them.
"Rumble—!"
A deafening collision exploded through the courtyard.
A gigantic mechanical arm—black, metallic, and massive as a small hill—blocked Chen Xiao's strike head-on. Its surface gleamed with cold precision, every joint and plate engineered to perfection. Even in the apocalypse, it represented the peak of human technology.
And yet—
It shattered instantly.
Chen Xiao's punch crushed through the arm, tearing apart metal plating and exposing its internal framework and power core. Shockwaves rippled outward. Cao Linxuan was thrown off his feet again, slamming to the ground and coughing blood, unable to rise.
"Cyborg?" Chen Xiao stopped, his gaze steady.
Before him stood a towering humanoid construct over two meters tall, its body like a mobile fortress. Black metal armor covered its frame, laced with flickering arcs of deep purple electricity. Its limbs were thick, heavy—built purely for combat.
Chen Xiao recognized it immediately. A product of Huaxia's research institute. In the early days of the apocalypse, these machines had been core battlefield forces. The most famous among them—Number 37—had once held off a Fifth-Stage New Human alone, becoming a legend among researchers.
But that was another story.
"Little friend Chen, I've long heard of you."
A calm, resonant voice sounded.
Standing beside Pei Tianyuan was an elderly man with white hair but a youthful complexion. He wore a neatly pressed Zhongshan suit, his posture straight, his eyes bright and perceptive. A single white brow accentuated his composed face, and his smile carried both warmth and authority.
Chen Xiao looked at him calmly. "Cao Baiqing?"
The old man nodded with a faint sigh. "Indeed."
He gestured toward Cao Linxuan. "It seems my grandson has caused quite a disaster…"
Chen Xiao let out a quiet chuckle. "So—you're here to protect him? Do you even know what he did in the game?"
Cao Linxuan scrambled up, panic-stricken, crawling behind Cao Baiqing. "Grandpa, save me! He's insane—!"
The once-proud Third General of Huaxia now looked utterly broken.
Pei Tianyuan frowned, clearly shocked by Cao Linxuan's condition. He turned to Zhang Longqi. "Longqi, what happened in the game?"
Zhang Longqi hesitated, glancing between Cao Baiqing and Chen Xiao. Then he clenched his jaw. "Captain Cao abandoned the fight in the second round… when we were facing the combined forces of multiple camps."
"Zhang Longqi!" Cao Linxuan exploded. "What nonsense are you spouting?!"
He hadn't expected such a blunt account—it crushed his position instantly.
He hurried to explain, voice shaking. "Five camps were targeting Huaxia! And Duan Nanyang betrayed us—he ambushed me! I was already heavily injured! I had no choice! If not for the Lotus Opportunity, I'd be dead!"
Pei Tianyuan's expression turned cold. "So you did run."
Cao Linxuan's face went pale. "I… I had no other option. In that situation, I could only save myself."
"Slap!"
A sharp sound cut through the air.
Cao Baiqing struck him across the face.
Cao Linxuan froze, clutching his cheek, staring in disbelief. This was the first time his grandfather had ever hit him.
Cao Baiqing's anger flared—then settled just as quickly. He straightened his clothes, then bowed deeply toward Chen Xiao and the others.
Everyone was stunned.
"Old Cao, what are you doing?!""Please, you don't need to do this!""Cao Linxuan, you've really gone too far this time!"
Those beside him rushed to help him up.
Cao Baiqing sighed, his gaze heavy. "Little friend Chen, I apologize on behalf of my grandson… to you, and to Huaxia. For what he has done, he is no longer worthy of the title of General."
Cao Linxuan looked up, stunned.
Was his grandfather really stripping him of everything?
Even Pei Tianyuan and the others were shaken. This was decisive—too decisive.
Cao Baiqing continued, voice steady:
"In contrast, little friend Chen has rendered extraordinary service to the nation. Compared to my unworthy grandson…"
He paused, then spoke the words that stunned everyone—
"You are far more suitable to take the position of Huaxia's Third General."