A small-scale war was erupting on the Airport Road in the Flyflow District of Giant Gorge City. You might wonder why the authorities would allow fighting to spill into a major city. No country on this planet could let that happen, unless aliens were involved.
Two mechs, with streamlined, blue and white exteriors, were suspended in the air. They were constantly firing energy blasts from weapons far exceeding Blue Star's technology, confirming the presence of extraterrestrial invaders.
On the ground, multiple tanks and armored vehicles had been reduced to burning scrap metal, amidst the sounds of explosions, screaming, commands, and gunfire.
The explosions and flashes of fire were highly conspicuous. Qilin was patrolling a nearby block when she suddenly heard the blasts.
'Gas leak? Saving people is the priority!' Qilin immediately spun her motorcycle around, twisting the throttle all the way, and sped toward the explosion site.
Then, gunfire erupted, startling Qilin. 'Is it a terrorist attack? How dare someone launch a terrorist attack here?'
She became even more anxious. When she arrived, the scene before her made her gasp: this was no mere attack; it was a battlefield! Tank wreckage smoked blackly, and the ground was cracked and riddled with craters. The crowd was chaotic. Several soldiers were trying to evacuate people, but they appeared severely understaffed.
Qilin hurried forward, pulling out her sidearm and shouting loudly, "I'm a police officer! Everyone, don't panic! Run that way! It's safe over there!"
She then took a few steps closer and fired her pistol at the mechs in the sky, but ordinary human weapons were useless against these alien invaders.
Qilin was an excellent shot, and several bullets struck the mech's head, drawing the attention of the Taotie Warrior to this overestimating "small thing." The mech then pivoted its cannon, and a blue energy blast fired straight toward Qilin.
'I'm finished!' This was Qilin's only thought before the fatal shot.
Just at that critical moment, a golden light pierced the air, passed straight through one Taotie Warrior, and then pinned it to the ground.
Qilin, unaware of this, had her eyes closed, waiting for death. During the wait, she couldn't help but think, 'I hope the citizens have been evacuated. I hope the military can deal with the aliens. I hope Dad... wait, why doesn't it hurt at all? Why am I not dead?'
"How long do you plan to keep your eyes closed?" a voice sounded in Qilin's ear.
Qilin's eyes snapped open, and she found that she truly was alive. Looking to her right, she saw a hand extended from beside her ear, clutching the energy blast that should have killed her.
She instinctively turned her head and saw a face that would serve as material for her dreams for a long time to come—the person was Ian.
On the other side, Zeke had also arrived. Behind him, a golden circular ring spun and fragmented into countless tiny blades, flying toward the remaining Taotie Warrior and instantly shredding it into pieces.
Then, a majestic giant dog leaped into the air, biting the Taotie flying machine into fragments.
Ian casually crushed the energy blast in his hand, then gently waved. The Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd returned to his hand, along with the Taotie Warrior it had pierced. The warrior had already been killed by the high attack power inherent in the halberd.
"You small insects, daring to disturb my interest. You are truly seeking your own destruction," Ian's voice was cold.
He then flipped the halberd's tip up, tossing the Taotie Warrior's corpse into the air. The giant dog flashed, instantly swallowing it whole, before shrinking and standing obediently by Ian's side, rubbing against his trouser leg.
As the Taotie Warriors perished, the emotions of the surrounding crowd gradually calmed. Some people looked toward the center and immediately recognized Ian and Zeke. "It's the God of Erlang! And Nezha!"
Qilin was jolted by the shouts. Only now did she realize that the man before her, with his silver-black battle armor, his Three-Mountains Flying Phoenix Cap, his Three-Pointed, Double-Edged Halberd, the closed Celestial Eye on his forehead, and the divine dog standing beside him, was indeed the image of Yang Jian, the God of Erlang!
Knowing that the man beside her was a Celestial, Qilin let out a sigh of relief. She was definitely safe now. The tense string inside her finally snapped. She felt her legs give way, and she was about to collapse, but Ian quickly put an arm around her, supporting her.
While supporting Qilin, Ian quietly injected a stream of energy into her body, attempting to activate the Super Genes within her.
Qilin felt a warm current flow from Ian's hand into her body, quickly spreading throughout. At that moment, she felt like she was soaking in a hot spring.
Qilin's vision went black, and her consciousness entered a peculiar digital space. A phantom image identical to her appeared in front of her, and then a mechanical voice sounded in her mind.
"[Welcome to the seminary Gene System, large energy supplement detected, seminary Sniper Gene activating...]"
Qilin heard the voice fade and slowly drifted off to sleep.
As Qilin's body was slowly being modified in slumber, Ian gently placed her on an ambulance, instructing the medical staff, "She only fainted from overexertion. Please take good care of her."
Next, Ian waved his hand toward the surrounding casualties, and a gentle light flashed. The injuries of the wounded recovered at a visible rate.
(Ian was actually throwing out numerous splash-type Healing Potions, with the effects added afterward.)
After treating the wounded, he pulled the Watch of Flowing Time, which had been transmuted into a small bell, from his pocket and gently tapped it. Time began to reverse, and the damaged buildings, vehicles, and collapsed structures slowly returned to their original state.
Having done all this, Ian ignored the surrounding citizens kneeling and kowtowing, gave a look to Zeke, and the two figures flashed, vanishing from the spot.
"Celestials really exist! I just took a picture! When I get home, I'm going to set up an altar for the Great God of the Three Altars and Sea Society."
"Send me a copy of the photo; I want to set up an altar too!"
"Huh? My photo only has a silhouette!"
"Mine too. Nothing is clear."
[Interdimensional Energy Collection Progress: 90.38%]
Not long after, Ducao learned about the events here through satellite monitoring. He was both shocked by the immense power Ian displayed and relieved by his actions to save the civilians.
Time moved to the afternoon.
At the top floor of the Angel International building, Ducao arrived with Leina, Ge, Liu, Sun Wukong, and several official leaders.
As soon as Angel Yan saw Leina, she couldn't resist teasing her. "Oh, little girl, you arrived quite early!"
Leina's mouth twitched at Angel Yan's term for her, and she immediately retorted, "Tch, old hag! I heard you got beaten up? Too bad I wasn't there to see it."
"Tch!" Although Angel Yan wanted to argue, she remembered that Ian had indeed dealt with her earlier, and she could only muster a 'Tch.'
"Tch? Is that all you've got? You wouldn't be brok—" Leina was about to press her advantage.
"Everyone's here. Let's begin." Ian and Zeke slowly rose. They were still sitting on the same sofa, as if they had never left.
Angel Yan was even more shocked. She had witnessed Ian's methods before and had been constantly monitoring the surroundings, especially the sofa, but she had noticed absolutely nothing unusual.
Ian waved his hand, and the previously missing parts of the Angel International top floor slowly grew back from the deficiencies.
As the last ray of sunlight was blocked outside, Ian took the head seat.
"Then, we can begin now," Ian said calmly, signaling for the others to sit as well.
The crowd, which had been immersed in observation, was startled back to attention, then individually found places to sit down.