But was that truly the case? Zheng Zha finally understood the vast gulf separating him from his clone, not just in terms of sheer power, but also in ideology and psychological fortitude. By all accounts, he was infinitely inferior to his counterpart.

Upon unlocking the first stage of the fourth level of the Gene Lock, the human body begins to awaken ancient dormant genes, striving to bring the self to its current physical optimum. In this state, one's consciousness is inevitably influenced, perhaps even commandeered, by these reawakening genes. Zheng Zha’s own overwhelming murderous intent was a direct result of the influence he suffered upon unlocking the fourth level.

This was not the end. As the fourth level of the Gene Lock continued to open, this influence would intensify. At a certain critical point—the threshold of entering the intermediate stage of the fourth level—the current state Zheng Zha experienced would manifest. This could be considered a crucial juncture, for overcoming it would forge one’s will and psyche to an extreme degree, allowing one to easily conquer the mental disturbances caused by the Gene Lock’s fourth level.

However, if one failed to overcome it, oblivion loomed: either fighting until death, descending into homicidal madness, or suffering a profound mental shift that could trigger internal energy chaos, resulting in self-destruction through explosion... This experience bore a striking resemblance to the 'inner demons' described in ancient esoteric texts—much like the trials encountered in the path of cultivation.

Whenever a cultivator reached a significant bottleneck, illusions would arise: beautiful women, scenes of slaughter, supreme pleasure, or absolute freedom... At this very moment, Zheng Zha was immersed in that ultimate freedom—unfettered, omnipotent—this was Great Freedom.

Perhaps, when a mortal being progressed from the apex of the fourth level of the Gene Lock to the fifth level, where energy can be controlled, the resulting energy backlash might manifest as the so-called Heavenly Tribulation... This was merely speculation. For now, Zheng Zha was focused only on the former half of the ordeal.

Immersed within the state of Great Freedom, he had completely surrendered autonomous control over his physical body, seemingly content with only this boundless liberty. Fortunately, the consciousness controlling his body was born purely for combat and slaughter.

Judging purely by combat instinct, it was even more formidable than Zheng Zha himself. Every movement, every technique, and every subtle adjustment to his genes resulted in astonishing increases in combat power. So far, his body had annihilated over a thousand advanced robots, yet it had not even entered the 'Explosion' state. This level of strength decidedly surpassed the former Zheng Zha.

But if this continued, Zheng Zha doubted his own consciousness and spirit could endure. He risked merging entirely into the state of Great Freedom, vanishing forever... just like his clone.

As Zheng Zha was bombarded by a torrent of projectiles in mid-air, the pair of bat wings on his back suddenly unfurled. From these wings erupted countless blood-red flames, similar to the skill Blood Flame that Zheng Zha had learned, yet these flames were a far deeper shade of red and infinitely more condensed. Any deeper shade might shift towards dark crimson, dull red, or even black... These flames even burned outside the protective barrier of the Dragon Crystal Necklace, meaning the seemingly violent explosions inflicted no actual harm upon Zheng Zha, though this reality was invisible from the outside.

Meanwhile, Chu Xuan pressed a button on his glasses, then pushed off with his feet and vanished before Luo Gandao’s eyes. His speed was astonishing, even faster than the electronic monitoring system displayed in Luo Gandao’s cockpit. This velocity was already comparable to Zheng Zha’s ‘Shave,’ a level of combat prowess utterly impossible for Chu Xuan given his known strength. For a moment, Luo Gandao was utterly stunned.

In the next second, Chu Xuan materialized at the edge of the plaza, tens of meters from Luo Gandao. Even some of the surrounding robots failed to track his movement. Chu Xuan twitched his hands, and two Gauss pistols instantly appeared in his grasp. He flashed the two weapons across each other, and subtly, both the pistols and his body began to emit a strange oscillation.

The first to detect Chu Xuan’s arrival were several heavily armored robots. Their weapons consisted of multiple massive cannon barrels. As Chu Xuan flashed beside them, these evolved machines swiftly pivoted, their thick cannon muzzles aiming from several directions toward him.

Chu Xuan had just finished crossing his hands; without pausing, he continued to sprint forward, firing ceaselessly around him without looking away. The speed of his hands was so rapid they seemed to leave afterimages. The heavy robots that had targeted him heard only a rapid staccato of pa-pa-pa sounds. The one directly in front instantly felt a shudder beneath its feet; its two massive steel legs fractured at the joints, followed by explosions in its torso, arms, head, and chest—every area riddled with pinprick-sized bullet holes—before it detonated violently into scrap metal.

The robots blocking Chu Xuan’s path met a similar fate. They didn't even manage to fire their weapons. By the time Chu Xuan swept past them, they were already perforated by countless needle-like projectiles, immediately followed by roaring explosions. Chu Xuan ran through, covering a hundred meters in mere seconds, leaving a wake of debris from exploding robots as he charged toward the AllSpark.

“Stop him! Heaven-Shaking Thunder!” Megatron roared from beside the AllSpark platform. Although Chu Xuan was still far from the platform, at that speed, it would take mere minutes to reach it. What terrified Megatron even more was the destructive power of Chu Xuan’s weapons. While the robots he had destroyed lacked the Possessing Armor, destroying so many with mere pistols suggested that if aimed at the AllSpark, the result would be annihilation... Hearing Megatron’s bellow, a colossal multi-barreled main battle tank instantly swiveled its cannon toward him. The paint on this tank was strikingly vibrant, clearly identifying it as possessing the so-called Possessing Armor mentioned by the robots. Furthermore, what the tank fired was not solid shells, but several beams of pure energy directed at Chu Xuan.

Chu Xuan was surrounded by robots attempting to box him in, while countless rounds of ammunition rained down. The ground he traversed was pocked with dense craters, and explosions never ceased. As the energy beams shot toward him, Chu Xuan had nowhere left to retreat. Light projectiles, solid rounds, and anti-tank missiles bombarded him from every direction, and the energy beams completely sealed off his forward path. If this barrage of ordnance struck him, the subtle internal energy channeled by the Dragon Crystal Necklace would offer no defense. Chu Xuan stood at the precipice of disaster... To the astonishment of all the robots, Chu Xuan leaped up. As the energy beams converged, he actually jumped onto the beams. He stamped down on the ethereal energy streams, causing them to ripple violently, yet the expected explosion never occurred. Chu Xuan acted as if stepping on solid ground, using the energy beam as a springboard to launch himself, easily breaching the throng of over a dozen robots. He swept his Gauss pistols in a close-quarters gunfight pattern; these robots were instantly peppered with impacts across their entire frames before they too detonated simultaneously.

“No, impossible!” Megatron and the dozen or so high-grade robots equipped with Possessing Armor roared in unison. Given their level of knowledge and technology, they could not comprehend a phenomenon that utterly defied physics: a solid object treading upon energy without causing an explosion or melting? Such a scenario was utterly impossible! (I must jump over them!) Chu Xuan’s earlier gesture of touching his glasses was, in fact, activating the brainwave induction device he had constructed over several days. Although its effect wasn't as perfect as he had originally predicted, it could induce a hypnotic state for five minutes—a state of absolute confidence! Unshakeable belief in his ability to conquer any obstacle before him.

The underlying theory of the Belief Force λdrive, its exact equations, and practical application remained elusive even to Chu Xuan; he could only form theoretical hypotheses. But this was enough. When this conviction truly believed it could break causality, then belief alone was sufficient to achieve it! (I can definitely jump that high!) Chu Xuan sprang from the ground once more. This time, he soared over twenty meters high—a height utterly unobtainable by his natural physique, yet he genuinely leapt, and so high. He leveled both Gauss pistols at the main battle tank that had fired the energy beams. In an unfortunate coincidence, the tank’s cannon also tracked toward him.

(I can definitely pierce it!) Both parties fired their respective weapons almost simultaneously: Chu Xuan’s Gauss pistols and the tank’s energy beam. Where the two collided, a strange, multicolored light erupted. The hundreds of needle-like projectiles became shrouded in an unusual oscillation. As this wave collided with the energy beam, time seemed to slow down momentarily. Every robot’s gaze fixed upon the center where the bullets and the beam met. They watched as the needle projectiles slowly but surely pushed the energy beam aside, completely dissipating it, before finally, amidst a cacophony of noise, striking the main battle tank squarely.

The tank’s vibrant outer shell immediately engaged its defenses. The needle-like projectiles scraped against the shell, sparking metallic flares, but this was only the beginning. The projectiles stubbornly drilled through the vibrant casing. Then, hundreds of high-velocity Gauss pistol rounds hammered into the interior of the main battle tank. By the time Chu Xuan landed from his aerial maneuver, the tank was already engulfed in a massive explosion.

(...I can definitely pierce it!) Jumping toward...