Chapter 571: Self-inflicted Consequences
Just when Qin Feng’s Sky Dweller was about to be blown apart, a transparent s.h.i.+eld abruptly extended around the entire hover copter from its tail.
The energy of the s.h.i.+eld felt familiar. Qin Feng had used the same energy to unlock the sixth level of the sanctuary earlier.
It was a C5-tier, emperor-cla.s.s conscious power.
The consciousness s.h.i.+eld that had materialized instantly turned the tables before the aircraft’s crews from the Red Sun Corp had enough time to react.
The powerful laser reflected once it hit on the s.h.i.+eld and traveled straight down to the ground.
The C-tier gunners on the aircraft were astounded.
“Consciousness reflection!” They did not expect it. This meant they had just missed a golden opportunity.
Hong Lie’s smile immediately vanished from his face. His eyelids fluttered as he bellowed angrily, “Morons! Why didn’t you realize your target, an ability user, is preparing a reflecting s.h.i.+eld with that much conscious power? Are you guys stupid?”
His rant did not change the fact in front of them.
The two C-tier gunners were half-ashamed, half-infuriated. Their faces were all red.
They both had infused their shot with consciousness too. Otherwise, they would lose the target once the Sky Dweller switches direction. The laser may be quick but a straight-line trajectory was always easy to evade.
Nonetheless, it never crossed their mind that Qin Feng would change the laser direction with a consciousness s.h.i.+eld.
In hindsight, they should have seen it coming. Did Qin Feng not just show the prowess of his consciousness?
This was when the large monitor showed a new development.
After the laser beam was deflected and went straight down, another screen appeared before the laser hit the ground and changed its direction once again.
This time, it was sent right back to where it came from.
Everyone thought about the same name of the skill that had once made a formidable gunner famous.
Consciousness Refraction!
But no one had the time to utter the words.
The attack came in too fast. The refracted laser was right in front of their eyes and their ears were occupied by the deafening alarms.
“Beep! Beep! Beep! Warning! Warning! Dangerous laser waves incoming! The aircraft would automatically enter full defense mode! Insufficient energy! Insufficient energy!”
The main cannon had been charged to its maximum capacity to kill Qin Feng for good. Under the gunners’ modification, most defensive power from the aircraft had been exhausted in exchange for the largest possible attack power.
Everyone understood the risk but n.o.body had raised it up. They did not think it would be an issue and were confident that the attack would destroy Qin Feng’s hover copter instantly.
Since there was not any other threat around them, the safety of the aircraft was the least of their concern.
But as the laser beam was coming straight back at them, they had only themselves to blame for not reserving a trick up their sleeves.
It was a horrendous and regrettable decision.
A weak energy s.h.i.+eld formed in the last minute around the aircraft but it was shattered almost immediately.
Arghhhh!
The two C-tier gunners shrieked desperately and unleashed their conscious power. Their last-ditch effort to emulate Qin Feng’s consciousness reflection had failed miserably.
The laser fired at full power was enough to kill a B-tier apt.i.tude user. How was it possible for two C-tiers to stop it?
Both of their faces turned pale and they dropped from the stool they were sitting on. But that was not the worst to happen to them yet.
The laser beam had penetrated the lower deck of the aircraft. It went all the way and tore the flying wars.h.i.+p apart.
The next moment, the laser beam turned into a terrible eruption.
Boom!
The aircraft exploded into a mushroom cloud in that instance. There was no salvation for the aircraft at this scale of the blast.
The after-impact could be felt a few thousand meters away but Qin Feng’s Sky Dweller was long gone. He was watching it happen through a surveillance camera.
Qin Feng saved the images and sent them along with the videos he had recorded earlier to He Liming.
Hong Lie had sought He Liming’s help to resolve their previous dispute. But now the two of them had once again fallen off.
Qin Feng collected the evidence to prove that he was not the one who betrayed the treaty first, and he thought that He Liming deserved an explanation.
He Liming did not understand why Qin Feng had sent him the video because it did not really bother him whether Qin Feng and Hong Lie were friends or foes.
But he was immediately intrigued after he watched the videos.
In the video, Qin Feng and Hong Lie had apparently reached an agreement but in the end, Hong Lie had eaten his own words and decided to kill Qin Feng.
Though Hong Lie was killed deservingly in the end, it was still a humiliation to He Liming.
“Beep!”
Qin Feng received a call from He Liming not long after. He was expecting it and answered swiftly.
“Mr. Qin, I am sorry for the debacle. If I knew Hong Lie was such a person, I would never have vouched for him!”
Qin Feng smirked and said, “I hope this would clear things up. I am worried that you might think that I didn’t honor our agreement after your intervention. I at least owe you an explanation.”
“Completely understandable. This is clearly not your fault but Hong Lie’s. I will punish him accordingly if he survives. If he is dead, then he has asked for it.
He Liming was on the lower end here. He understood that he now owed Qin Feng an apology.
This was not some debt that he could simply write off by apologizing. He was forever indebted to Qin Feng now! Hong Lie had indirectly set him up this time.
They chatted for a while more and hung up. Qin Feng’s fury had calmed down after the call. He looked at the monitor one last time and ordered the crew to sail off.
Amid the blaze, a figure crawled out from the wreckage.
It was Hong Lie! Hong Lie had survived the attack. Though the laser could easily erase any B-tier organism, Hong Lie managed to escape in the last second. The weak s.h.i.+eld and his two underlings bought him just enough time.
He used up all his internal force to protect himself. Though he lived, the attack had nonetheless damaged his dantian and backtracked his tier by two levels.