Dense smoke billowed, and the clamor of voices reached a deafening roar.
Along the littered, trashed streets, the crowd surged in erratic waves. Indignation was etched onto every face, and people among the mob barked through megaphones:
"Down with Chopra tyranny!"
"Xiangzhou belongs to all its people!"
"For Xiangzhou's future, for everyone's future!"
"Down with the violent dictatorship of the Chopra family!"
Spurred by wave after wave of shouting, the crowd grew ever more frenzied. Shouts and brawls mingled with the sound of shattering glass and piercing screams. A dark-skinned immigrant woman was dragged out of a storefront, her clothes torn to rags as rioters yanked her by the hair, flung her onto an open patch of ground, and proceeded to shove, stomp, and curse at her.
Faces flushed with fury in the crowd as someone roared, "Burn her! Burn the damn darkies!"
On the other side of the street, masked immigrants had already barged into the opulent commercial avenue, smashing storefronts, looting, and setting fires.
Amidst the chaotic demonstration, a gunshot suddenly rang out.
Wails and screams erupted.
Two enraged mobs collided, hurling Molotov cocktails, grabbing makeshift weapons, and hunting for enemies in packs—until a piercing alarm wailed from high above.
"Warning. Warning. Lay down your weapons."
Drones hovered at low altitude, their harsh loudspeakers repeating the command again and again: "Lay down your weapons and disperse immediately. Xiangzhou is entering martial law.
"Repeat, Xiangzhou is entering martial law. Lay down your weapons. Warning, lay down your weapons.
"Countdown initiating!"
Drones flashing red lights swept over the streets. Amid the shrill whistling of parting air, shadow after shadow darted across the ravaged thoroughfares and the rioting crowd.
Like a flock of crows cutting through storm clouds.
Voice after voice stacked together in unison, suppressing every shred of noise below.
Delivering the final warning and the countdown.
"Ten... nine... eight..."
*Bang!*
A gunshot cracked. A drone trailed smoke as it plummeted to the asphalt, where a boot promptly crushed it to pieces.
The crowd cheered, surging in wild ecstasy, paying no heed to the warnings blaring from the sky.
They continued their wanton smashing, looting, and brawling.
Until the very second the countdown hit zero.
*Boom!*
It felt like an earthquake.
The ground groaned as steel ground against steel.
At the far end of the street, a line of pitch-black silhouettes emerged. The exoskeletons stood over two meters tall with ferocious angular frames, snapping out riot stun batons in perfect synchronization.
Iron boots struck the asphalt, throwing off sparks.
Footsteps boomed like thunder in unified cadence.
Forward!
*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*
What began as a slow, deliberate march rapidly accelerated.
Amid the thunderous din, the exoskeletons tore into the mob like freight trucks, barreling left and right without restraint. The whoosh of electric batons slicing through the air never ceased. The once-ecstatic chants vanished instantly, replaced by terror-stricken shrieks and curses.
The boiling crowd was torn apart by flashes of black steel, swept aside in utter ruin!
Bloodstained stun batons rose and fell, showing no bias toward faction or skin color, delivering equal greetings to every skull and sending sparks flying. The impassioned slogans were abruptly silenced, leaving behind only the cold drone of sirens and the metallic hum of grinding gears.
The iron curtain advanced.
Gunfire rang out, leaving mere paint scuffs on the armored exoskeletons. Molotov cocktails hurled from the mob smashed against the plating, bursting into sheets of flame.
Amid the blazing fire, the crimson indicator lights on a visor gleamed with chilling frost. A head turned slowly, guided by drone telemetry, locking onto a face in the crowd that was still laughing maniacally.
The man's expression froze, draining of color in an instant.
Terror seized him as he spun on his heels, desperate to lose himself in the crowd.
Unfortunately, it was already too late.
Electric motors within the metal behemoth whined as assault mode engaged, catapulting the suit forward!
It bowled over everyone in its path with effortless ease. An iron gauntlet shot out, seized the rebel by the throat, and hoisted him into the air.
A camera flickered, capturing the man's features.
[Identity confirmed: Illegal immigrant. Offenses: murder, robbery, incitement, theft. Multiple active bounties.
Evaluation complete: No rehabilitation value.
Countermeasure protocol unlocked; authorization granted.
—Handle at discretion.]
Under the stunned gaze of the onlookers, the iron arm swung downward, slamming the man into the pavement like a soiled rag. After the dull squelch of a burst water skin, the exoskeleton raised an iron boot and stomped down.
*Crack!*
Crimson splattered outward.
"M-Murder! They're killing people!"
Shrill screams broke out. As the crowd scattered in sheer terror, the exoskeleton, drenched in blood and fire, raised its visor once more.
It locked onto another target in the mob.
Garbage disposal protocol: engaged!
***
"Warning! Warning! Warning!"
The drone's loudspeaker boomed across the sky, echoing along the perimeter of a school. "Martial law in effect. Vacate immediately. All uninvolved personnel, disperse at once—"
*Crash!*
Another Molotov cocktail arced into the air, missed its mark, and fell past the fence into the dilapidated schoolyard, igniting into flames.
The mob outside grew even more agitated and crazed. They pulled and shoved violently against the fragile gate until the hinges groaned and snapped, sending the gate crashing to the ground.
A dense swarm of rioters rushed inside.
Screams echoed from the classrooms. Students peered in horror through the windows at the contorted faces outside, desperate to flee.
Then a colossal crash detonated across the muddy sports field.
*Boom!*
A pitch-black silhouette descended from the sky!
The armored exoskeleton raised its head. Its cameras swept across every face in view, logging and locking targets.
[Threat level: Red.]
The retinal projection flashed before the pilot's eyes: [Purge authorization granted. Weapons unlocked. Reinforcements en route, ETA 3:00. Maintain position.]
"Three minutes?"
Beneath the armored shell, the soldier, cigarette dangling from his lips, spoke with a sneer: "In three minutes, I'll have slaughtered every last one of these worthless bastards! Tell those sons of bitches in the reserve squad to eat shit!"
[Support center acknowledges receipt—] The Spirit of Creation faithfully relayed the greeting from the other end: [They said: 'Fuck your mother, we're not coming next time!']
"Hahaha! I'm an orphan, didn't see that coming, did ya?!"
The pilot threw aside his stun baton with a booming laugh and drew an impact spear and folding shield from his back. He grinned silently at the dazed intruders.
"Soon enough, plenty more of you will be orphans too!"
With a deafening roar, the exoskeleton charged, slamming violently into the crowd like a tiger among sheep. Amid desperate wails, the hunt began!
***
It wasn't just here; it was happening everywhere.
Xiangzhou, which had been engulfed in smoke and fire, was now experiencing an overwhelming devastation far beyond anyone's expectations.
The rioters who had just been gathering in gangs to smash everything in sight were now receiving a taste of genuine military-grade discipline!
Under the watchful gaze of hovering drones, every face was swiftly cataloged and cross-referenced with the database, cataloging all their crimes and misdemeanors.
With support from Haian Industry's rail-launch system, primed Knight-class exoskeleton armors erupted into the air amid showers of electric sparks, hurtling like artillery shells toward their designated drop zones.
Banks, police precincts, schools, shopping malls.
And even more suppression-model exoskeletons marched into the rioting masses in squads, sweeping through them without restraint.
Over ten times their number in Riot Cats took over secondary containment, rounding up stragglers, escorting prisoners, and handing them over to holding facilities with mechanical precision.
At the same time, swarms of smaller mechanical contraptions scuttled through streets and alleys, establishing a brand-new surveillance grid. Following the security protocols of Xinquan, they brought the entire island under the absolute oversight of the authorities.
There was no need to worry about losing control, for every sector was mapped and monitored in real time. Nor was there any fear of operational error; the central system could accurately verify a target's identity in under a tenth of a second, regulating power output and authorized force accordingly.
As for the pilots operating the exoskeleton suits, they were all elite security contractors drawn from Haian Industry's Mid-Continent branch. Under Liang Mo's lead, the vast majority were veteran Federation soldiers who had joined the company right after their discharge!
Just last week, they had been trading rocket fire with White Nation warlords around the factory grounds. And before that, while these line-holding grunts were trading their lives against lycanthropes from the Resistance Front amid hails of bullets, these Thousand Islands rioters probably didn't even know where the safety on a rifle was!
This was an absolute, crushing dimensional strike.
From command structure and armament to tactical execution, it was a total, unyielding rout.
Against rioters armed with little more than small-caliber pistols and Molotov cocktails, it was like taking candy from a baby—effortless in every sense.
Less than half an hour after four hundred and ten exoskeleton suits and three thousand Riot Cats were deployed across Xiangzhou, the expanding chaos took a brutal blow to the head and began retreating on all fronts.
No matter how loudly the agitators behind the scenes screamed, after witnessing countless bloody examples and the spectacular, made-to-order brutality dished out before their eyes, even the most hotheaded participants quickly regained their senses. It didn't take a genius to realize that sticking around meant suicide.
"Don't be afraid, everyone! The Chopra family is at the end of its rope!"
A voice screamed hoarsely over a pirate radio broadcast: "Their dark dictatorship and tyrannical rule are destined to fall! As long as we stand united, we will shatter this tyranny and win true freedom and liberation!"
Sadly, almost no one answered.
With a sharp click, the transmitter was cut off.
"Damn it, a bunch of useless trash!" The ringleader's face was livid as he hurriedly ordered his subordinates to pack up. Turning to the hired help brought in as special reinforcement, he spat, "These idiots are completely worthless. We can't salvage this. Grab the explosives—we'll blow the bank, and then we immediately—"
*BOOM!*
A lance as thick as a utility pole blasted through the wall.
With uncanny precision, it pierced right into his wide-open mouth, burst out the back of his skull, and pinned him firmly to his radio console.
Then the wall caved in, and the building shattered.
Under the brutal impact of a mechanical beast, the fragile structure collapsed into rubble.
Titan-class Autonomous Frame [S789], registered name "Gouzi," broke through the perimeter!
"Oho, we've got a Celestial Chosen here?"
Amid the swirling clouds of dust, the knight atop the mechanical beast's back lowered his gaze from behind his lance, chuckling at the dazed survivors below.
"You hid yourself pretty well, didn't you?"
The Desolate Ruins cultivator retreating at the very back went pale. With a wave of his hand, iron and stone coalesced over his frame, turning him into a stone giant. He spun and rammed into the wall behind him, fleeing toward the labyrinthine alleys of the slums.
Yet directly in front of him, countless drones converged, hovering in formation.
Before he could even change direction—after merely three strides—
Behind him, the mechanical titan locked its target. Its jaws parted, crackling with lightning and flame. A beam of scouring light erupted like a dragon's breath, converging into a single lance that burned through stone and steel with contemptuous ease, incinerating the fleeing enemy into ash!
[Sorry about that, kids~]
Liang Mo cheerfully snapped two photos and posted them to the internal channel, accompanied by a caption: [Uncle just cleared out another nest! Did you catch Uncle's slick moves?]
ICE: [Liang, you motherfucker!]
Dongri: [Where are the mods? Someone's hacking!]
Qingming: [Get off Gouzi first if you've got the balls, then talk to your daddy!]
Gouzi: [Who the fuck changed my name to this?! Change it back right now!]
...
Amid the chorus of curses, Liang Mo let out three hearty laughs toward the sky. Using his administrative privileges, he snatched yet another high-threat target. Then, riding atop Gouzi—who was still furiously cursing in the group chat—he sped away as though cruising in a motorized wheelchair.
Who said anything about talent?
Soon enough, though, you'll all get to see what real hard work and sweat look like...
Chapter 721