The situation had taken a turn for the worse. Even an experienced first-line commander like Yuan Mu couldn't make an accurate and comprehensive judgment of the current situation in a short second. Therefore, he could only choose to apply the established "paradigm":
"Barker's Defense!"
The so-called "Barker's Defense" was the basic paradigm of defending and counterattacking in response to the simultaneous arrival of mental attacks and electromagnetic interference.
After giving the order, Yuan Mu fully ignited his own Format of Fire. He replaced the reckless oak who had been attacked head-on and became the perceptual core of the entire Formatted Space.
Formatted Space Version 7.0. The Format of Fire of the fifteen Deep Blue Walkers and their corresponding energies formed a special space similar to a flying ship.
Everyone had a specific "position" that could be adjusted at any time to form a joint force and construct a powerful offensive and defensive module.
This kind of combination was actually beyond one's intuition. Even if everyone was well-trained, they would only be able to truly master it in the last two or three weeks.
As the captain, Yuan Mu's degree of mastery over this form was a cut above everyone else's. Right now he was like a captain piloting a flying ship through a fierce and surging storm, doing his best to maintain the ship's balance. This was hard work, but Yuan Mu's mind was roused.
His judgment wasn't wrong!
Yuan Mu guided and operated the Format of Fire to capture a substantial attack in the boundless darkness. This also caused the structure of the Formatted Space to automatically adjust and contract, forming an even more stable defense. It maintained a state of harmony under the attack and waited for an opportunity to act.
At the same time, Yuan Mu also felt that the black tide that was pouncing towards him actually didn't have a clear distinction between the mental and the material plane. It was very difficult to categorize it. It was indeed like a storm in the night. No one could tell whether the droplets that struck their bodies were ordinary water droplets or highly corrosive acid before they received further damage.
The space constructed by the Format of Fire was currently resisting the pure force of the attack. As for the deeper ones …
Brilliant electric fire suddenly exploded in the darkness. The twisted and forked rays of light were like stiff demonic claws, rolling up the surrounding shadows on the walls and slashing over.
The scene was sinister and terrifying, but Yuan Mu's mind suddenly relaxed. His judgment was correct again! The "Barker's Defense" already utilized the exoskeleton armor in conjunction with the Format of Fire structure that was preset within the Dynamo Core to form an equipotential shield on the surface of every person's body. In principle, it could shield most high-voltage electric fields and electromagnetic wave damage for a short period of time …
Before he could finish his thought, a cool electronic wind brushed past his face, and his pores relaxed. But what followed was a chill that seeped into his flesh and bones, as well as a restless impact that was buried deep within.
Not good!
The double barrier of the Format of Fire and the exoskeleton armor was like a layer of useless thin paper. Like a high-voltage electric current piercing into his body, Yuan Mu's body and consciousness instantly went stiff. His muscles twitched violently instinctively, even cracking some of his joints and bones. Pain and numbness intertwined. He lost control of his body and fell to the ground.
The dull sound of metal colliding with the ground came from all around. It was continuous, and there seemed to be a few curses from the spots of light in the middle. Those were his subordinates.
There was no doubt that the fourteen Deep Blue Walkers had suffered the same attack and met the same fate. The Deep Blue Walker squad, which represented the two peak configurations of the "Forest" and "Mars", had been annihilated.
There was a moment when Yuan Mu's breathing stopped. His heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest. He thought he was going to die. But in the end, there was no fatal impact. The Grim Reaper's fingertip brushed past his heart and then nimbly avoided it. Only the electric shock and burn marks were left on his body.
Did everyone suffer the same result? Or was he the only survivor?
Yuan Mu had already lost most of his perceptual abilities. The only thing lingering in his mind was the noise after the electric current had struck. At long last, the firm willpower he had tempered over the years allowed his thoughts to coalesce once more. It also allowed that ever-expanding question to fill his brain:
Why didn't the "Barker Style Defense" work?
Perhaps Yuan Mu had carried out too many useless thoughts, which didn't help him solve the problem. Instead, it allowed his central nervous system to recover some of its sensitivity.
The ground was shaking … It was the rhythmic tapping of metal against the ground. It seemed to be the sound of someone's footsteps.
That person!
Yuan Mu's fingertip twitched. This was already the most difficult move he could perform in a short amount of time. Only his thoughts were still working:
It was very close to what the intelligence had indicated. A spiritual-type expert wearing an exoskeleton armor!
The rhythmic footsteps brushed past him. They gradually approached, stuck close, and gradually moved further away … It was a natural step, but it brought about an irrepressible trembling feeling.
The footsteps suddenly stopped.
That person should be standing in the middle of the dozen or so Deep Blue Walkers that had fallen and stiffened. Perhaps he was admiring his own masterpiece. Perhaps he was considering how to deal with the next step.
Yuan Mu vaguely felt a sinister and ice-cold power. It was like the previously harmless electronic wind that had cut into him. Only this time, there was no follow-up attack. The silence grew increasingly sharp.
Yes, that person was observing.
It was as if he could directly observe the activity of their brains. He could see through their trembling and fear. At least in Yuan Mu's case, he felt as if his own skull had been flipped open. Every layer of cortex, every nerve, the bioelectricity transmitted, and even the information they carried were all exposed to the other party's "open and aboveboard" observation.
This was a maddening thought. It was also a challenge to the limits of his willpower. If possible, Yuan Mu would certainly explode with the Format of Fire and incinerate everything around him.
However, he was already powerless to do anything.
The difference between the levels of the two was too great. At this very moment, Yuan Mu's mind had already placed this enemy on the level of an "Extraordinary". Moreover, it was a "natural enemy" that had an extremely strong restraining effect on the Deep Blue Walkers …
Wait!
Yuan Mu suddenly understood. No wonder the Barker Style Defense was useless. For a "natural enemy", the electromagnetic field was just a carrier of extraordinary power. The opposite was also true.
The electromagnetic field.
The mental side.
These two key pieces of information were combined together. They were sufficiently mixed and interfered with each other. This was undoubtedly the nightmare of Earth's current technological side. The core of the Deep Blue Walkers was admittedly the Burner, but the platform they used to display their abilities was a technological side product. Under the control of the electromagnetic field, the Deep Blue Walkers were simply like toys that could be tossed about …
Natural enemy!
The corner of Yuan Mu's mouth twitched. A feeling of exhaustion surged up, transforming into a tide of darkness. It drowned his entire body, halting his nearly despairing train of thought.
Oh my, it's finally over.
Luo Nan let out a long breath as he walked along the pitch-black corridor. Due to these slight vibrations, the layer of skin and tendons that adhered to his body suddenly turned into flying ash. There were even specks of sparks falling in between.
The high voltage electric current that passed through here captured the closest good conductor. It looked as if it was about to backfire. The Soul Binding Hoop hummed and trembled, effectively restraining the operation of the electromagnetic field. It diverted the powerful electric current that could injure Luo Nan into the void. The electric current collided with the storm in the abyss and dissipated into nothingness.
Good stuff.
Luo Nan still didn't know where Jin Tong obtained this piece of equipment. But as far as the virtual brain system was concerned, the Soul Binding Hoop was indeed one of the most suitable equipment for ability users of the mental side. It was especially effective in the aspect of electromagnetic and supernatural powers.
Jin Tong's being able to obtain this piece of equipment was indeed a great fortune. But he had actually become a fleshly body. Luo Nan really didn't understand what sort of twists and turns were going on inside.
Unfortunately, ordinary base materials were simply unable to withstand the pressure of an Extraordinary. The biochemical reactor was a product that consumed a lot of energy. He was able to display it to his heart's content for a few dozen seconds at best before it turned into flying ash and smoke.
Luo Nan finally understood why Chief Li Wei would spend so much time and effort to gather the raw materials required for the advanced formula.
This restriction, as well as the bright prospects that could be touched upon, made Luo Nan a bit excited, let alone Li Wei.
It could be imagined that if the advanced formula was used in the biochemical reactor to burn and forge materials with a bearing capacity of three to five times that of ordinary base materials, the success rate of the hunting operation in the cloud world would increase to over 60% at the very least.
But looking at it from a realistic point of view, this didn't seem to be any easier than hunting Gong Qi himself.
Luo Nan let out a breath and took off the exoskeleton armor, which was already a bit deformed. This toy was basically unusable. But it couldn't be carelessly thrown away. Otherwise, it might reveal some clues.
Fortunately, it was a lightweight piece of equipment. A slightly larger suitcase was enough to hold it. After a bit of packing, Luo Nan called out:
"Rui Wen."
The little girl appeared noiselessly beside him. She pressed down on the suitcase, then she disappeared. She should be at the forward operating base 500 kilometers away when she reappeared.
"There's no need to be anxious." Luo Nan seized the time to remind her. Rui Wen certainly consumed energy to travel through space. Though she had never complained of being tired, it was hard for others to guess where her limits were. Luo Nan wasn't willing to challenge this, so he gave Rui Wen ample time to adjust.
Luo Nan took advantage of the current electromagnetic interference that was still present. All the sensing equipment was limited and he slowly walked out of the energy center building. He seamlessly joined the stream of people cursing and fumbling within the pitch-black night.
It wasn't easy for him to complete the experiment, but all the materials were gray. All he heard was a sound. Fortunately, he wasn't completely without harvests.
At the very least, he understood that it wasn't easy to control the electromagnetic configuration. He was still far from being able to do as he pleased. He could only follow the few simple paradigms presented by the virtual brain system. He imitated them and tried to combine them.
He still needed a lot of practice if he really wanted to use it in actual combat against an Extraordinary like Gong Qi.
The problem was that the base materials had become consumables. This was something that burned money. Oh, it wasn't like there was no way to solve this problem.
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