Battle Queen—
"Not good!" However, sometimes indulging in beauty comes at a price; Tang Lanyan completed her magnificent spin in an instant, a long leg, as powerful as a thin, resilient steel plate, sweeping towards him.
"Bang!"
A deafening sound rang out. James felt as if a giant hammer had struck his neck, instantly leaving him numb and disoriented. The next second, he was blasted away by the force, his massive, dark body crashing through three large trees before finally collapsing among the fallen branches.
Tang Lanyan, having landed a successful blow, intended to continue her charge without pause. However, as soon as she took a step, she felt a slight, strange sensation, as if struck by static electricity, in her groin.
She frowned, glancing at James, who had already stood up again, his body crackling with inexplicable electricity. In fact, after repeatedly failing to complete the mission, Tang Lanyan had already noticed that her "comrade," Zhao Hao, always chose to fend for herself, refusing to use the airdropped supplies.
This, while increasing her fatigue to some extent, meant that even a dual superhuman of enhancement and martial arts types like Superman wasn't entirely immune to the limitations of carbon-based life forms; she wasn't made of iron. Long-term consumption of wild animals and drinking untreated water would naturally place a burden on her body.
Although her near-ambush by James was partly due to fatigue, it also eliminated some potential threats. Since she hadn't been poisoned, the strange sensation could only have come from the electric current emanating from her opponent.
However, according to the organization's intelligence, James's "battle aura" belonged to the wind element among the four elements of earth, wind, water, and fire. He had just used wind-attribute battle aura to compress air, creating a terrifying plasma attack for a surprise, fatal strike.
However, such a technique wasn't suitable for immediate combat; it could only be used in a premeditated ambush… Therefore, Tang Lanyan immediately realized that her information had been leaked.
The electric current emanating from James's body was inexplicable. Battle Qi, like True Qi, was a form of internal energy that could be materialized and applied. Because of its resemblance to ancient legends, it was named "Battle Qi," just like True Qi. However, Battle Qi shared the same limitations as True Qi.
True Qi generally only had five attributes: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The Yin and Yang attributes were extremely rare and highly dependent on physical constitution.
Battle Qi, on the other hand, was fixed to only four attributes, a rule no one had ever been able to break.
But James was emitting electric currents, and Tang Lanyan's attack on his leg had even slightly numb from the shock. This indicated he wasn't bluffing…
Tang Lanyan was naturally puzzled, but she wouldn't let any emotions affect her battle. Her jade-white nostrils twitched slightly, all distracting thoughts vanished from her eyes, and an internal force coursed through her body, causing the remaining electric current to flow out from her feet, making the nearby fallen leaves stand upright.
However, this also depleted some of Tang Lanyan's internal energy. Compared to true qi or battle qi, which are closer to energy, internal energy is more intangible and formless. It's not fair to say there's a difference in quality between the two, but simply using internal energy to clear battle qi energy is almost inefficient.
James revealed a sinister smile. His strong physique, combined with his enhanced physical abilities, meant that when he was suddenly struck by Tang Lanyan, he only suffered minor injuries. This, however, further fueled James's ferocity, filling him with a violent rage, wanting nothing more than to brutally torture the woman who had injured him to death.
Faced with such a fierce gaze, Tang Lanyan remained unmoved. She bent her legs, one in front of the other, like a fully charged spring, agile and graceful, and then, like a rabbit darting away, chose to launch another attack.
Because passively taking hits was never in Tang Lanyan's nature.
*Thump!*
*Thump!*
A sound like clashing metal, yet even more muffled, echoed through the jungle. The resulting shockwaves were enough to send vines flying, occasionally punctuated by flashes of lightning or swirling wind. Tang Lanyan swung her hands, slashing and spinning, her inner energy surging through her enhanced body, surpassing even the level of "Water-Splitting Energy" and nearly reaching the level of "罡气化劲" (Gāngqì huà jìn). Each strike carried a sharp, cutting edge.
Her movements were unpredictable, formless and intangible, capable of shattering not only air and fallen leaves, but even James's wind-attribute battle aura, forcing the tall, strong black man to retreat steadily…
Frankly speaking, if he hadn't inexplicably possessed an electric, paralyzing battle aura, he would likely have already been defeated by Tang Lanyan.
"Boom!"
A shockwave erupted, lightning crackled, and shards of leaves and decaying earth swirled as the black man crashed into another large tree. In a duel between enhancement-type superhumans, both possessed immense strength and bodies of steel. At least as long as their superhuman powers remained effective, even if one was at a disadvantage, the other wouldn't easily defeat them.
Unless a significant qualitative difference was reached, enhancement-type abilities, starting at the microscopic level, could harden the skin to a level comparable to wood, then gradually progress to "stone," "copper," and "steel." While the hardness and resilience of the body varied depending on the chosen path, they remained largely the same.
Upon reaching Lv5 (strategic level), one would acquire a dense "diamond-steel" body, possessing even greater strength, hardness, and resilience, capable of surviving even a nuclear explosion—far surpassing the steel body of Lv4.
However, just like the perfect strategic-level, the inherent limitations of human physiology mean that enhancement-type superhumans can only reach level 4 at most; no level 5 strategic-level individual has yet emerged.
Therefore, an overwhelming advantage doesn't exist. Although Tang Lanyan possesses exceptional martial arts skills, relying on her steel body and internal energy cultivation, and is hailed as the enhancement-type superhuman closest to level 5, she still cannot easily defeat James, who is also at level 4.
This is destined to be a long and physically demanding battle…
Moreover, Tang Lanyan frowned slightly. During the recent battle, constantly expelling the electric currents invading her body, she found that her stamina was being depleted far more than usual.
Furthermore, she hadn't had a proper rest for several days, having fought continuously…
In battles between enhanced superhumans, exhaustion is a major taboo, because fighting between enhanced superhumans of the same level is like wrestling in mud with ordinary people; whoever runs out of strength first is destined to be suppressed.
But facing the black man who had stood up again, his smile even more ferocious, Tang Lanyan did not back down. She had faced such desperate situations more than once before; she had absolute confidence in herself and knew she could not possibly lose to the black man opposite her!