Chapter 345
Chapter 345 Gradual Downfall
Xia Xinyan paused slightly.
She naturally felt the sensation of a touch on her waist, but it felt a bit strange, as if Ling Mo was contacting her through some sort of barrier—obviously, this couldn’t be attributed to the flimsy T-shirt she was currently wearing.
“What is this?” she couldn’t help but ask curiously.
Ling Mo smiled and retracted his hand: “Quantum Shield, it can protect areas not covered by Battle Armor.”
As the saying goes, when in doubt, consult quantum mechanics. He had previously considered whether incorporating this field into the Battle Armor would yield unexpected results, and it seemed that it actually did.
Xia Xinyan’s fighting style mainly revolved around close combat, so agility was extremely important to her. Therefore, the primary consideration for the Battle Armor Ling Mo crafted for her was that it shouldn’t affect her movements, or rather, it needed to minimize any such effect as much as possible.
Thus, this set of Battle Armor only generally covered her limbs and torso. Areas like her waist, which might undergo significant posture changes, were not covered with conventional Battle Armor but instead substituted with an energy shield powered by the armor itself—what could also be referred to as a Quantum Shield.
In fact, even Ling Mo himself didn’t completely understand the principles behind this, but he didn’t need to as long as he could conceptualize it during manifestation, and it truly worked.
After all, many sci-fi works feature such intangible protective shields, which could mean this was indeed feasible.
However, after manifesting it, he discovered a flaw in this protective method—it required energy, which was inevitable. The greater the impact suffered, the more energy consumed, and the overall protective strength was also inferior to that of physical armor. The only advantage was that it wouldn’t hinder the user’s movements.
So, Ling Mo did not design any additional nonsensical functions for this Battle Armor; all of its main energy core was used to provide power for the energy shield.
…No, wait, he did design one function for this Battle Armor—internal communication, directly linked to his armor, complete with coordinates so he could always check on Xinyan’s location.
“Let’s test whether this Battle Armor affects your mobility,” Ling Mo circled around Xia Xinyan and nodded in satisfaction.
Hearing this, Xia Xinyan tried moving her body, and the Battle Armor indeed fit well, feeling extremely light, with almost no effect on her movements.
“Pretty good.” Xia Xinyan flicked her tail, feeling pleased. “If there’s another chance, I’ll try it in an actual battle. For now, I can dissipate the Battle Armor.”
“No need,” Ling Mo shook his head, then suddenly pressed his hand against her chest. “Xinyan, can you try retracting the Battle Armor?”
Xia Xinyan instinctively took a half-step back, wanting to ask if he had forgotten their earlier agreement. But then she froze again upon hearing his words.
Only then did she belatedly notice a prompt appear in her mind—
【Would you like to retract the Battle Armor?】
This felt completely different from communicating with Tianji, allowing her to sense it as merely a mechanical inquiry, lacking the liveliness of Tianji.
After pondering for two seconds, she chose 【Yes】.
In the next moment, the Battle Armor on her suddenly began to shrink, even folding up in a way that completely defied spatial laws, ultimately converging into a palm-sized energy core on her chest.
The energy core still pressed against her clothing, appearing just like a decorative element originally sewn into her outfit.
Ling Mo retracted his hand and smiled, “Whenever you want to equip the Battle Armor again, just place your hand on the energy core and silently select the equipment in your mind, just like retracting it. It can directly communicate with your brain, and the operation is very convenient. If it bothers you, you can also store the energy core away, but I’d still recommend keeping it on your chest; it won’t be in the way.”
Xia Xinyan: “…”
She suddenly wanted to ask what principle made the Battle Armor capable of such a miraculous retraction.
But then she thought about the spaceship she had crafted in her previous life and decided to give up.
Forget it, this ability is tantamount to being overpowered; those playing games probably wouldn’t nitpick why a cheat character could fly or vanish.
She looked at the energy core on her chest with curiosity and asked, “Are you planning to maintain this thing’s existence indefinitely? Won’t it consume too much energy?”
“It’s just this one thing; it shouldn’t consume too much.” Ling Mo smiled. “Moreover, it also serves as training for me.”
He had never maintained the existence of anything he created for long, so this was indeed worth trying.
Xia Xinyan sighed, “It’s really unnecessary… I could just manifest it when I need it.”
“It’s necessary, very necessary.” Ling Mo nodded earnestly. “Although I don’t hope for it, we will inevitably have times when we must part. If you encounter danger while I’m not beside you, this set of Battle Armor could provide significant help, and it can let me know immediately to come assist you.”
After pausing for a second, he placed his hands on Xia Xinyan’s shoulders, his eyes particularly sincere: “Xinyan, you are one of the most important people in my life. I don’t wish for you to encounter any danger, let alone get hurt. So, for my sake, can you keep this Battle Armor safe?”
Xia Xinyan pressed her lips together slightly.
She really… couldn’t handle this guy’s sudden emotional outbursts at times.
So much so that she had developed a bit of guilt several times now.
Ling Mo had been sincere with her from the start; she could feel it—and since he stopped pretending, this genuine display of emotions had only increased.
Everyone’s heart is flesh; faced with someone who treats her so sincerely, Xia Xinyan couldn’t help but experience some emotional changes.
She remembered that at first, she wanted to train Ling Mo to be her tool, hoping he could grow capable enough to save the world single-handedly, allowing her to fish for leisure without worry.
But she didn’t know when the situation had changed.
Now she felt somewhat lost, unsure of how to respond to Ling Mo’s genuine feelings.
Was she really someone who softens up to gentle words? Perhaps she had already started to fall before realizing it.
At least Ling Mo didn’t seem to pressure her for a response. Just as he was about to say something more, a game communication suddenly popped up—it was from Tang Tang—
【Big news! Someone has brought the Space Watch into reality!】
Ling Mo blinked: “The Space Watch can be brought into reality now? That was quick?”
He had heard from Xia Xinyan about the major events following the Cataclysm, including the Space Watch being brought out, which hinted that reality would become even more chaotic.
However, this was occurring much sooner than he had expected.
Xia Xinyan was also instantly pulled back into thought by this news, her expression suddenly turning serious: “The Space Watch… something big might be about to happen.”
