Rapid-Curing Foam Gun.
It sounded like a toy, but in reality, it was a riot-control weapon widely used by security bureaus all over the Empire.
The rapid-curing foam it fired could instantly solidify into a material with a tensile strength of 500 megapascals.
Not only would it not cause any harm to the human body, it would also automatically degrade after two hours, avoiding potential environmental pollution.
When it came to dealing with ordinary criminals, it was extremely effective.
It was also one of the strongest weapons Lin Zhen had at hand for now.
After he emptied the magazine at the criminals in a single sweep, he patted his right greave, then shot out of the bushes like an arrow loosed from a bowstring, charging at the criminals still scrambling to dodge the rapid-curing foam.
A rhythmic acceleration sounded alongside his pounding footsteps.
Each time Lin Zhen’s right leg hit the ground, blue light flared on his greave, driving him forward in a continuous surge.
In just a few steps, he surpassed his own limits, becoming a blur of blue and black light.
“What the hell is that?”
The criminal who had just dodged the foam only felt a fierce wind blast against his face, then a figure appeared before his eyes, blocking out all vision—everything before him suddenly darkened as if night had fallen.
Reflected in his pupils, a youth stopped abruptly, raising his right hand covered in a mechanical gauntlet.
Kacha…zzzzzzz.
The orderly sound of mechanical parts moving suddenly rang out!
In the blink of an eye, the scales on the surface of the Ranger Type-V2 Power Gauntlet opened and closed layer by layer like a living thing, spraying thick jets of steam, which ruffled the youth’s bangs and revealed those eyes, so calm they could almost be called ruthless.
His lips parted slightly, and he uttered a breezy sound effect, like a child adding sound to his toy:
“Boom!”
Immediately after, his right fist shot forward in a steam-powered punch, trailing afterimages!
Puchi!
There was no flying backward, no scream of agony—only the muffled sound of flesh and blood being pierced through.
A hole went clear through the man’s chest.
The light faded from his eyes, and his entire body sagged limply from Lin Zhen’s right hand.
Blood dripped steadily down from the man’s toes.
Lin Zhen lowered his right hand.
Pa!
The scene followed the man’s collapsing body as it fell, gazing at the blood-red sky with the same empty look as his unfocused eyes.
A pair of bare feet flashed swiftly across the screen.
Off-camera, screams and angry shouts erupted.
“Holy crap, punched straight through his chest! Who are you? You’re not Prison Lin, you’re Boss Scum, right?”
“Prison Lin suddenly got so cool, I can’t get used to it.”
“The protagonist sure acts fast once he makes up his mind. When he decides to kill, he kills—every move is fatal.”
“Now this is what I call ruthless and silent!”
Although the viewers had long been following Lin Zhen’s perspective and knew he had resolved to kill in order to complete the mission, they truly hadn’t expected him to act so decisively.
After all, plenty of minors watched this anime!
In any other mainstream show, either nobody would die at all, or the protagonist would struggle internally for half an episode.
Who ever saw a main character just punch through someone’s chest without hesitation?
He didn’t act like a righteous hero at all—more like a notorious villain.
Even though the anime had filtered this scene with exaggeration to tone down the bloodiness of punching through a chest, some viewers still felt vaguely uncomfortable—the depiction of death in this show was simply too realistic!
The camera held on the shot for several seconds.
All the while, the sounds of fighting continued off-screen, and now and then came the shrill screams of dying men.
The viewers all knew: each scream meant another life lost.
“Savage! Damn, this is the most ruthless protagonist of the year.”
“Did the production team run out of budget? Only voices, no animation—what’s up with that?”
“Well, it’s not like they have unlimited budget (lol). Guess they splurged on the earlier scenes, so now they’re out of funds.”
“Got it, this is the ‘swatting flies’ episode.”
As the bullet comments flew by, the picture suddenly shook, and finally the camera shifted.
A pair of familiar bare feet hurriedly retreated, sweeping past the lens as if bumping the camera, the whole view suddenly dropping low to the ground, now looking upward.
In this new angle, Lin Zhen filled most of the frame.
His eyes were cold, his breath heavy.
His combat suit was soaked in blood, clinging to his body, the mist from his Ranger Gauntlet now tinged red with blood, and a clear fist mark visible on his chest.
At the edge of the shot was a man who appeared thin and frail.
A breeze lifted the tatters of his clothing, revealing the torn artificial skin beneath.
And under that skin—a cold, mechanical body.
This unremarkable guy was actually a highly augmented Cyborg!
A so-called “Cyborg” referred to humans with more than 80% of their bodies replaced by cybernetics.
A thousand years ago, before the Empire mastered star energy technology, during the war with the Negative Universe Sky-Eye Clan, aside from fleets and cutting-edge weaponry, individual combat power mainly depended on Cyborgs and Psychics.
The former’s strength depended on the grade of their military prosthetics.
Top-tier Cyborgs cost as much as an entire Main Fleet, and were said to be “invincible below Five-Star Energy Users.”
The latter, meanwhile, relied on the Spirit Hammering Method, using implanted Spiritual Connection Pods to amplify their psychic power.
One Psychic could control an entire arsenal—one person equaled an army.
Now that star energy technology had advanced, Psychics had gradually faded into the river of history.
Cyborgs, however, remained active—a mainstream path for ordinary people who hadn’t awakened star energy bloodlines to gain strength.
Even the lowest-grade Cyborgs were extremely expensive.
Lin Zhen never imagined there would be a Cyborg hidden among these criminals.
He’d blended in with the crowd, showing nothing unusual.
That was why Lin Zhen had suffered such a heavy blow in their first exchange.
The man had suddenly activated his pump-action prosthetic and landed a solid punch.
A breeze brushed by; blood trickled from the corner of Lin Zhen’s mouth as a stabbing pain radiated through his chest.
His ribs were definitely broken, maybe even his internal organs injured.
But this was already the best possible outcome.
If not for his A+ Grade Physique, that punch just now would have sent him straight to the afterlife.
“I really was too careless!”
Lin Zhen wiped the blood from his mouth, spat out a mouthful, and stared coldly at the slowly advancing Cyborg.
The tide had turned completely.
Even at his best, he wasn’t fully confident he could defeat even the lowest-end Cyborg in single combat.
No matter how strong he was, he only had his flesh-and-blood body, honed by martial arts.
The Cyborg, on the other hand, had taken the path of transcending flesh through pain and cybernetic ascension.
If the opponent had installed a Laser Cannon or any other ranged prosthetic, Lin Zhen figured raising his hands in surrender would be the smart choice.
But…
He narrowed his eyes.
Since this Cyborg was advancing slowly,
And hadn’t opted for ranged suppression, maybe he really didn’t have any long-range prosthetics.
It was like an eagle without its talons……
Maybe he still had a chance.
Kacha!
A shattering sound from afar abruptly snapped his train of thought.
Lin Zhen’s gaze darted past the Cyborg’s shoulder, pupils contracting.
The only frail-looking woman among the criminals had just torn through the solidified foam—strong as carbon steel—with her bare hands!
She wasn’t a Cyborg, but it seemed she had some kind of combat prosthetics too!
Now he was really in deep trouble.
A bitter, helpless smile tugged at the corner of Lin Zhen’s lips.
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