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Chapter 576 - 251: The Rebel Li Ba

Chapter 576: Chapter 251: The Rebel Li Ba

Blood mingled with melting snow, creating a gruesome scene on the muddy ground.

Those two blue-painted steam-powered mechas were no longer able to withstand the enemy’s ferocity.

After one mecha had its weak point exposed due to injury, it was quickly decapitated—helmet and all—by a high-speed rotating chainsaw axe.

The massive steel body crumpled to the ground, blood gushing from the severed neck. In its final moment, it managed to take down its enemy with it.

"Ah!!! Bastard!!!" The remaining blue mecha pilot let out a piercing roar: "I’ll kill all of you!"

His name was Li Yang, and he was the captain of the third unit of Yuezhou’s Reserve Mecha Battalion.

Ordered to garrison in Yuezhou City—one of the Great Tang Empire’s three major recruitment gathering cities—it was also known as the Yuezhou Defense Force.

As part of the reserve troops, Li Yang’s greatest hope was to go to the frontlines, kill enemies, and make a name for himself.

Unfortunately, as a part of the Yuezhou Defense Force, he was unable to leave his post.

Days before, smoke signals blazed from the frontiers, signaling a premeditated siege against the Great Tang.

The people of the Great Tang were first dumbfounded, and then enraged.

"Those motherfuckers! Who dares to besiege the Great Tang?" No longer could any nation—big or small—match this era’s Great Tang Empire. Somehow, they still dared to attack?

Furious and excited at the same time, Li Yang believed he would finally have the opportunity to prove himself.

The Empire’s entire military force was mobilized. Countless mecha troops assembled, even martial artists from the civilian population. All rushed to the frontlines.

After all, the Great Tang had not suffered any significant damage in the fifty years since the outbreak of the Chang’an Plague.

The surrounding countries had been beaten into submission during the first ten years or so. The mecha troops could annihilate tens to hundreds of thousands of soldiers by deploying just a few groups at a time.

Moreover, Li Yang had heard rumors that the Great Tang had counterattacked the rat-people’s territories multiple times during that period.

Now someone dared to put the Great Tang under siege? Who the hell gave them the courage?

Li Yang had received orders to draft auxiliary troops and move to the frontiers.

Regrettably, this plan had gone awry.

When the heavy snow fell, their auxiliary troops’ reserve squads vanished into the snowstorm.

At first, Li Yang thought the snow had only hindered their movements and communications.

He grumbled to himself, intending to wait until their return and have them face military punishment.

But to his surprise, they discovered the bodies of auxiliary troops on a small road a few miles from Yuezhou.

Somebody was attacking the auxiliary troops! The enemy’s identity and motive were unknown.

Enraged, Li Yang immediately dispatched his soldiers to search for and guide the scattered squads.

Sending them out to fight separately was impulsive, but he did not believe there was anyone inside the Great Tang who could threaten a mecha soldier.

In this era and this world, mecha soldiers were virtually the most powerful beings.

Those who could fight against a mecha soldier were either elite auxiliary forces that had undergone professional training or mecha soldiers themselves.

Yet, he never expected the enemy he would face would turn out to be mecha soldiers of unknown affiliation.

"Bastards! Are you going to kill your own comrades, your own brothers?" Li Yang couldn’t help but shout angrily as he witnessed the final demise of his last teammate. He brandished his chainsaw battle axe and faced four opponents alone, his battle spirit soaring to the heavens.

Mecha soldiers’ affiliation and battalion were typically identified by their unique markings and differently colored paint jobs.

The enemy’s red armor lacked any identifiable markings, so Li Yang couldn’t deduce their origin, let alone leave a message about their deaths.

"Rebel Li Ba? No, they haven’t appeared for decades. Who are you? What’s your goal?" Li Yang roared.

The red-armored mecha warriors offered no response, swinging their chainsaw axes even more swiftly.

Li Yang knew his defeat was inevitable.

Under a four-to-one odds, even trying to buy time was a luxury.

Seeing the remaining auxiliary reserve troops desperately attempting to attack the enemy, he cried out, "Run! Ten more miles to the west and you’ll be safe."

Even he found his own words pitiful. Were a mere ten miles enough for mere mortals to outrun mecha soldiers?

Nevertheless, it was their only option. The auxiliary troops had achieved a remarkable feat by eliminating a single mecha soldier, at the cost of more than a dozen skilled fighters.

Now, Li Yang could only hope they could escape and report this information to Yuezhou.

Elsewhere, hidden in the forest several dozen meters away.

Li Changhe deactivated his Breath of Thunder, his expression uneasy.

"Rebel Li Ba? Shit, what did the original Li Ba do?"

Back on Mysterious Island, Xia Wu told Li Changhe that in the Great Tang, the name Hero Li Ba inspired admiration from everyone.

Li Changhe had no doubt that even though General Hu Shao knew Li Changhe wasn’t the original Li Ba, the general would still revere him.

Taking the actions of the steam soldiers on the island into account, one could deduce that his persona was part of a major scheme by the Great Tang.

What terrible deeds had the original Li Ba committed that had caused him to switch from being a key chess piece to a rebel?

"Hero Li Ba... has become Rebel Li Ba." Yun Ting sighed in his mind. "If your identity is exposed, I’m afraid you won’t be met with respect and adoration but endless hostility."

"This is really..." Li Changhe sighed internally.

Though he hadn’t expected to return to the Great Tang and instantly gain the support of the Tang government’s power, this reputation as a rebel was too much. Wasn’t it clear that instead of helping, it would only lead to unnecessary trouble?

"Well then, I won’t reveal Li Ba’s identity for now. I’ll follow the original plan and make contact with them as Yang Dong!" Li Changhe had already discerned the trend of the current situation.

He had initially planned to activate the Hundred-Headed Shooter, eliminating all the red-armored mecha soldiers in one fell swoop.

Now, however, Li Changhe had figured out the auxiliary troops’ plan.

Mecha soldiers were strong and fast runners, their armor endowed with Defense Power. They were virtually perfect in terms of strength, speed, and defense.

It seemed that the steam soldiers on Mysterious Island were their predecessors. After several generations of improvements, they had become incredibly powerful and dangerous.

However, in the face of these metallic giants, the auxiliary troops had conceived of weapons resembling crossbows to stick directly onto the mecha soldiers.

The red-armored soldier killed earlier had met his end at the hands of one such weapon.

"A weapon specifically designed against steam-powered mechas? Seems like the Great Tang anticipated that their enemies could be mecha soldiers," Yun Ting mused in Li Changhe’s mind. "Did they plan for this situation?"

"No, if there are rebels within the Great Tang, then these troops may have been trained to take them down," Li Changhe responded, checking his attire, makeup, and wig.

"That’s enough. Killing this steam soldier is a reasonable next step!" With a sigh, Li Changhe rushed out of his hiding spot in an instant.

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