To the relief of Hu Wenjun and Xia Yu outside the arena, after Pei Yan successfully eliminated an opponent, he didn't recklessly advance but made the most correct choice.
He immediately crawled from the ground to a corner of the stage, raising his hands high as several streams of iron rapidly flowed from his palms, coagulating into tightly linked steel anti-explosive shields that protected him.
Hearing the continuous explosions erupt on the protective shield and feeling the intense vibrations as the large shield was struck, Pei Yan calmly lifted the visor of his helmet, spitting a mouthful of blood and fragmented teeth onto the ground.
"Damn it!" he couldn't help but curse, glancing at Pei Yong, whom he had just eliminated, now sitting by the arena's edge being supported by others, anxiously observing the situation inside. Seeing that Pei Yong had indeed recovered as usual, Pei Yan felt somewhat more at ease, then mockingly thought that it seemed he wouldn't have to worry about needing dental work after he got off the stage.
Withdrawing his right hand, he returned to his human form, forcefully wiping the blood flowing across his face, brushing off the embedded fragments in his skin onto the ground, rubbing his blood-soaked eyes. After handling all that, Pei Yan reassembled his helmet's mechanisms.
At this moment, the thick mist permeating the arena slowly encroached amidst the sounds of explosions, with over a dozen cameras on the pipes probing beyond the steel shield, surveying the misty scenery outside. Shen Bing, whom he had just knocked down, somehow escaped from his ropes and merged back into the dense fog.
Having initially failed to attack the thermal imagery figures, Pei Yan remained skeptical of everything appearing in this thick mist. With this in mind, he lowered his body again.
Soon, a faint humming of machines emanated from inside the iron shield, and one by one, small drones rose into the air, flying towards the sky. They quickly filled the airspace above the entire arena from various directions.
"Bang, bang, bang!" A series of explosions followed, and one drone after another crashed down. Seeing this, Pei Yan quickly maneuvered the drones to fly higher, and as they ascended, the arena's high walls surprisingly rose in coordination with their altitude. Once they reached over seventy meters, the explosive attacks on the drones finally ceased, and no more drones were destroyed for a short period.
"Is there someone among them with abilities similar to Xiaoliang?" said Hu Wenjun worriedly outside the arena.
Familiar with her friend's abilities, Xia Yu said indifferently, "Yes, but much weaker. If it were Liang Qian, she could make those drones explode simultaneously at this distance. Look, Pei Yan is about to counterattack!"
Unlike the contestants inside, whose view was blocked by the large shield, the audience outside could clearly see what Pei Yan was doing behind the shield. Three rows of steel shields pushed forward continuously, and in the space left in front, three tall fans were lined up. At his feet were numerous four-wheel drive car models resembling children's toys, with mechanical ropes seemingly attached to a few.
"This guy really has some cunning tricks!" Hu Wenjun showed a slight, comforting smile despite his nervousness.
Time waits for no one! The attack commenced at this moment. As soon as the three large fans were set up, the iron shield unfolded, releasing an unstoppable wind that dispersed the mist before them.
One, two, three, four!
The targets became apparent! The drones in the air, like vultures seeking prey, frenziedly swarmed towards Zhao Xian, whose hands were still spewing fog.
Too late to destroy the fans set up by Pei Yan, one of the four, dual-wielding guns, continuously pulled the triggers at the drones diving down from the sky.
Pei Yan focused his gaze and realized that this person was Zhang Liren. Guns? Each bullet fired from his pistols caused an explosion far more powerful than any regular bullet. What kind of strange ability is this!
But the on-site situation was too urgent for him to think more, so he flicked his hands, causing streams of iron to surge and coagulate into two revolver electromagnetic guns. The magazine ejected twelve bullets, which accurately landed in place from his body to complete loading. With a swift flick, the magazine returned, and in one smooth motion, he lifted the gun and fired, targeting Zhao Xian!
However, the opponent wasn't easy prey; the moment he lifted his hand, they discerned his true intention. Shen Bing, priorly suffering severe blows, dashed forward with an arrow's speed to shield Zhao Xian.
"Thud, thud, thud!" With his visor magnifying his vision, Pei Yan saw Shen Bing's hands, sweaty and raised, supporting an invisible, camouflaged air wall that blocked all the bullets he had fired.
Buzzing sounds erupted as the miniature cars on the ground sprang into action, racing towards the four from all directions at incredible speeds.
Seeing them bypass Shen Bing's air wall and making their way towards Zhao Xian, the last of the four, Han Wei, took action. Using his telekinetic abilities connected to the squad's information transmission and mental protection, he tapped continuously, directing his telekinetic attacks at over a dozen miniature cars under his control, causing them to fly up and collide, emitting a series of electromagnetic sparks.
"Ah, telekinetic manipulation!" Pei Yan, after roughly understanding the opponent's capabilities, shifted his gaze to his true target of this attack.
While the others were defending Zhao Xian from different angles, the three small cars with ropes silently approached Zhang Liren's feet.
"Zhang'Er, watch your feet!" Zhao Xian, stuck in the middle yet had the time to observe the entire scene, noticed something amiss and loudly warned.
The drones had captured Zhang Liren's attention, and only now did it dawn on him, as he moved sideways, aimed down without looking, and fired three shots beneath his feet.
Two small cars shattered in response, but their mission was already accomplished. Three mechanical ropes leapt up, wrapping around Zhang Liren's ankles, while Pei Yan unleashed a powerful electric current without hesitation.
"Ugh ahh!" Zhang Liren screamed, his body convulsing uncontrollably. Overwhelmed by the sound of engines, Pei Yan accelerated like a car speeding on the highway, directly knocking into Zhang Liren, who was dragged to the ground.
"Poof!" A mouthful of blood splattered onto Pei Yan's visor; Zhang Liren's abdomen collided with Pei Yan's protruding steel knee with a cracking sound and vanished amidst the stage's glow.
But before Pei Yan could be pleased, his entire body was suddenly tugged and pulled off the ground, thrown sideways to the left.
What awaited him was Shen Bing's fiery eyes and poised fist.
"Poof!" Another spurt of blood sprayed inside his helmet. Truly, how fortunes shifted! One moment, Pei Yan was beating someone until they spat blood; the next, he was dazed, as powerful gas struck through the visor, slamming into his head, making his eyes sparkle and his nose stream with blood.
On the ground, despite having blood-blurred vision, Pei Yan looked through his mechanical mask to see Han Wei on his knees, utterly exhausted, seemingly much weaker than that lovely elder sister who managed to free herself from his ropes. Simply moving him has drained his mental and physical resources.
Rotating his eyes, he noted that at some point, the dense fog had once again engulfed the arena. Soon, a figure gradually stepped through the fog and approached him: "Brother, I'm just too soft-hearted. I should've just taken you down with a punch when you first came on, saving all this trouble!"
"Same to you! If I hadn't stopped to repay you, directly piercing through your abdomen, I wouldn't have ended up like this!" Pei Yan decided to remove his helmet, gasping for fresh air.
"That's why I say men need to be ruthless. You were pretty good, fighting one against five to this extent! If you're not holding grudges, join us for a drink after this!" Shen Bing said, standing before him, preparing to land a punch.
"No hard feelings! Hope you won't hold grudges either!" Pei Yan clenched his teeth, moving a finger as the ropes beside him quickly rose, aiming to coil around Shen Bing.
Shen Bing wore a smug smile, and to Pei Yan's astonishment, the ropes passed through his body, transforming into a wisp of mist!
Seeing the situation worsen, Pei Yan swiftly closed his helmet, but Shen Bing's fist had already penetrated the fog, smashing into Pei Yan's visor.
Bam! A gust of energy slammed into the visor, penetrating through!