Earthling in Uncharted Dimensions

Chapter 154: The Battle Puppets of Long Sect

"Hello."

The feminine voice that was almost mechanical, did not feel hostile, and Lee turned around. Before he could take a detailed glance of what it was, something came and collided with his face.

*BAM*

Like a cannonball coming out of the cannon, Lee lost his footing and flew straight to the nearby building. He broke through the wall and went deep into the clothing store and vanished from the daylight. By this time, the empty glass bottle had touched the ground, and a powerful force came down on it and shattered it to pieces.

'Ouch!'

Numbing pain rampaged over Lee, as he laid over a bunch of broken down furniture. All he was able to see before receiving the immense amount of pain, was a circular metal object. From the force with which it delivered Lee, he assumed that it could be a hammer. As he was thinking what could possibly give away such immense force, his body began to move, as an intense grip caught his feet. Lee raised his head and saw a shiny bald head.

As Lee was dragged out of the building, the puppets became visible to his eyes. He was wondering whom it might be, and turns out to be the Long Sect. The wooden construct threw Lee towards the street and he rolled on the floor and came to a rest.

The pain and surprise had subsided, and he stood up. As his eyes scanned his 360, things became clear to him. Till now, he was chased by the Long Sect disciples, but now the elders have entered the battlefield. Lee smirked at their faces confused with how he was able to stand up after receiving such a powerful force. An elder's eyes went towards a different direction, and Lee found the culprit which threw him away into the store, as he followed the gaze.

Four sturdy puppets stood in a row, and one among them had a gladiator hammer on its shoulder. The long handle with which the large solid metal weight was supported, gave a conclusion of how the force was produced. Anyone could guess that the angular momentum from such a hammer would be lethal.

Other puppets had swords, axes and spears respectively in their arms. From the first glance, one can determine that these puppets are exclusively made for attack and defense rather than speed and nimbleness. Lee took a scan of the puppets and those around him. The uncomfort sensation had mostly gone, and he rubbed his shoulders.

"Where are my disciples?"

A question filled with anger and threat came from his side and Lee turned to the source. The third elder of the Long sect was fuming in rage and his fist was clenched. The whip in his hand was developing faint icicles over it. Those near the elder had their weapons ready in their hands.

Lee was surrounded from all sides. Even the nearby rooftops were occupied by the core disciples of the Long sect. If Lee was to say that he knew where they were, he was still unable to access them from the EsGen storage. So he had no other choice but to lie.

"Why would you ask me about your disciples? I do not know whom you are talking about."

Lee made his statement clear. He conveyed that he was unknown of the elder's disciples, which made the whip unroll and touch the ground. The elder glared at him and brandished the whip.

"I can sense their Qi traces on you. There is no use lying."

Lee remembered how Drake described about Qi leaving their traces on other people. Since the system was undergoing upgradation, he couldn't do anything about it. Now Lee was caught with evidence.

The spear wielding puppet swung its weapon vertically downward onto Lee's right shoulder. He couldn't register its movement as it was silent and swift, and thus pinned Lee to the ground on his knee. As he glanced at the puppet, he noticed a faint purple glow in its eyes, as if it was alive. Since Lee couldn't find anyone controlling the puppet, he assumed that the puppet is an autonomous one, with a soul residing in it.

Gripping onto the spear, Lee felt the density and strength of the unknown spear, and lifted it to stand up. But the puppet's arm pressed it down on his shoulders. Instinctively, Lee glared at the puppet. The puppet was taken aback by the glare, and pressed it further. Lee slipped from the beneath of the spear, which pressed and cracked the ground beneath it.

The axe came at Lee from his behind, and he was expecting it. As it came right above his left shoulder, he stepped right and turned left, and the axe went past his face and crashed on the ground.

The double headed axe was a little too big for a common human, but was suitable for the artificial puppets which were two metres tall. Lee kicked the forearm of the puppet and it let go of the axe handle in reflex. Taking this chance, Lee grabbed onto the axe and swung it at its chest. Like a recorded machine, it brought its arms in front of its chest like an X, and blocked the hit, while taking a step back in the received force.

Lee was expecting to make a warning strike, as he broke the puppet's arms. But the puppet's arm did not even have a scratch by the attempt. Lee froze there for a second, and the whip shot at him from his behind. It coiled around his neck in an instant, and pulled him back.

Lee lost his footing and stumbled backwards. The ice element imbued on it was not very powerful, but the absence of the system and it's immunity proved troublesome for him. The icicle whip began to choke Lee, and he was slowly gasping for breath. As he was on the ground supported by his knees and palms, the spear came down on his back and planted him firmly on the ground.

The ground cracked and Lee heard his bones crying in pain. He can tell that the 300 value of health was slowly being corroded away by the choking whip. The spear placed on his back made him less agile. The puppets carrying swords and axes slowly stepped towards him. Lee found himself being cornered, and thus decided to flee at once.

"Don't speak, so that I can torture you with all my heart."

The elder spoke and the whip began to tighten. Its icy surface slowly spreaded coldness to his neck and down to his torso. Lee grabbed onto the whip and tried to pull it with all his strength. But before he could exert his maximum strength, the puppets caught his wrist and pulled it away from his neck.

The elder was amused with the futile escape attempt, and came walking at him. Sinister smile on his face reflected malicious intentions. Lee, lying flat on the ground, scanned his surroundings, and saw more than 23 people along with the elder, around him. The four battle puppets belonged to the 18 wooden constructs, among which eight were wooden horses. The four other puppets were similar to armoured infantry. They had twin daggers on their waists.

Channeling all his strength, Lee pushed the weight upward, and jumped towards the elder. The split second proved its usefulness, and Lee evaded the pressure on his body by a hair's breadth. The action was quick and flawless, and the elder was stunned by this. With the last bit of energy, Lee dashed at the third elder to deliver a knee to the man's chest. The elder moved to his right to avoid, but Lee then stretched his leg and his foot made contact with the elder's neck. The strike made the elder lose his stability and Lee exploited this fraction of a second to throw his off balance. The grip on the whip loosened and fell on the ground.

The very instant, the choking sensation began to subside. Without wasting a second, Lee unwinded the icy whip from his neck, and fled the scene. He did not forget to deliver a kick to the third elder's chin in the process.

The escape was very difficult. For almost half an hour, Lee was tailed by the lackeys of the third elder. Initially, they were so close to catch him, but Lee slipped away by his uncommon agility. As minutes passed, the breathing came back to normal, and Lee picked up distance from them. Then the bloody puppets entered the scene.

As he ran aimlessly through the streets, Lee had no choice than to evade the spear, axe and hammer swinging at him. The large cracks upon contact with the wall and ground, proved the fatality of the devastating blows. Though they were slightly inferior in agility, their large limbs and powerful muscle mechanism compensated this flaw. When the next reminder panel popped up, Lee had maintained a very good distance from all troubles. But he always felt a sense of something locking on him throughout the time.

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32 HOURS TO COMPLETION.

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Lee was sure that the people of Long sect had the inn as their target since day one. So he ran at the inn when he was in their visual, and immediately hid and took a U-turn and silently moved towards the opposite direction. Constantly observing while moving, and simultaneously trying to blend in, Lee made sure that he was not followed anymore. He moved forward slowly and steadily until the next reminder popped up.

=+=+=

31 HOURS TO COMPLETION.

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It was then he felt that his intuition was right.