Chapter 15 Tree Man?

Li Ang was expressionless. Everything in the data world was an image based on a material foundation.

The Tree Man summoned by Merlin was essentially a data attack method such as command intrusion, SQL injection, or MAC flooding. It was just that the special form of existence in the data world allowed these methods to be concretely displayed in an image that the human brain could understand.

Boom—

The ground shook and cracked. From the abyss burning with flames, a massive number of tree spirits crawled out, covering the mountains and plains, densely packed, surging like a tide.

The tree spirits in the front were trampled underfoot by their kind behind them, mercilessly passed over.

The tree spirit army stacked higher and higher.

In an instant, they built a ramp at the foot of the building.

Dong!

Merlin tapped his staff again, and the dark sky covering the entire city formed countless black spheres.

From within them, gargoyles, harpies, griffins, and other monsters were released, swooping down toward the building where Li Ang was.

Although the Great Witch's magic power was strong, it was still very difficult to create a massive data flood in such a short period of time.

Unless the other party was prepared and had calculated that someone would go to the Venezuelan network node to look for clues...

Could it be that Thomas was captured? Or did the Mailer anticipate that Thomas would leave a backup plan?

Li Ang suppressed the doubts in his heart and stomped his foot on the roof of the building.

Crack—

The concrete floor cracked open, and Li Ang's figure flew straight toward Merlin in the distance like a cannonball.

Several gargoyles swooped down vertically like fighter jets, trying to intercept him, but were struck by the Tyrant's Cross Spear in mid-air.

Some exploded on the spot, while others flew far away, shattering the glass of office buildings, rolling in a chain reaction in the narrow corridors of the office floors, smashing countless office partition boards.

The griffins and harpies were more agile, rushing forward, their sharp claws flashing with cold light, avoiding the Tyrant's Cross Spear, and grabbing at Li Ang's back.

Mind Enchantment, Level 2 Ability, [Cause Pain].

The psionic energy that Li Ang possessed was converted into a virus program that invaded the harpy's brain.

The latter trembled as if struck by lightning, her winged arms covering her head in pain, screaming, and falling downward.

Mind Enchantment, Level 3 Ability, [Lesser Domination].

The pupils of a griffin suddenly became cloudy, changing its dive direction, turning around, and pouncing on its companion.

Dagger-like claws and sharp beaks easily tore open the defenseless throat of its companion, disemboweling it along the neck, turning the latter into a beam of white light.

The distance of a thousand meters was reached in an instant. Merlin did not expect Li Ang to arrive so quickly. His expression changed slightly, and he tapped his staff lightly.

A heavy firewall made of alloy was constructed in front of him.

As soon as the firewall landed, it quickly self-replicated and proliferated.

In the blink of an eye, a defense line like an iron barrel was constructed around Merlin.

However—

"Dong!"

Accompanied by a deafening roar, a fist print appeared on the firewall, clear and incomparable.

Merlin's heart also trembled with the sound, and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. His mood became inexplicably chaotic.

What was going on?

As a wizard walking in the data plane, he had many and strange methods.

However, when they fought each other, they usually used remote attacks and spell duels.

Whoever could break through the other's defense line first, bypass or dismantle the firewall, break through loopholes, implant viruses, disturb data, or hijack domain names, would win.

Close combat was meaningless.

It would not only fail to increase the probability of breaking through the opponent's defense line, but would also put himself in a dangerous situation where his flaws could be seen.

Merlin had never fought Samast face-to-face, but from his interactions with the Coastline Wizard Association, he could feel that the other party should also be a traditional wizard.

How could his entire appearance, along with his habits of casting spells, be completely changed in a single day?

Dong!

Another punch came, and the alloy firewall was dented inward as a whole.

Immediately afterward, the sound of laser cutting (Ten Finger Disintegration) and pistol fire (Colt Revolver) sounded outside the firewall.

Merlin subconsciously took half a step back, but the next second he was annoyed by his actions.

This was his home field!

Merlin's expression was ferocious. In the center of the spherical firewall, he waved his staff.

In the dark sky, black clouds suddenly descended, generating rolling thunderstorms, indiscriminately bombarding the surrounding firewall.

In an instant, the walls of the high-rise building exploded, and pieces of reinforced concrete fell downward, crushing a tree man to death.

The spherical firewall, which had lost its support, was suspended alone in mid-air.

He didn't kill him.

Using the tree spirits and dark clouds as his eyes and ears, Merlin could see the opponent in the shape of a dragon-headed white coat.

At the moment when the thundercloud descended, his figure merged into the ground (Boots of Phase), hiding under the spherical firewall, avoiding the thunderstorm, and now he was hanging on the bottom of the firewall like a gecko.

That is... here!

Merlin's eyes were sharp, staring at a corner inside the firewall space. He waved his staff, and the alloy firewall immediately extended several metal spikes like a hedgehog, stabbing at Li Ang hanging outside.

Clang!

The metal spikes tore open the fragile white coat, revealing the Shenlong Red Mane coat hidden underneath.

Li Ang was like being hit by a high-speed train, falling downward, barely adjusting his body and balancing his center of gravity twenty meters above the ground.

"..."

Li Ang looked up and looked at the constantly reinforced firewall in the high altitude.

The power of the Biological Template was naturally released, healing the pain in his chest.

He slowly exhaled a mouthful of turbid air, and the psionic energy in his body slowly circulated, from slow to fast.

Time was limited.

Merlin could squat and defend here, proving that he was prepared, and the resources of this network node could be used.

The dark sky based on the physical foundation of the real-world network equipment had been laid down.

Li Ang could not get the computing power support from the Social Security Administration. If the time was prolonged, he would be defeated.

The most important thing was that the Mailer had not taken action yet.

Every second of delay was increasing the space for the Mailer to implement his final plan.

He had to make a quick decision.

The massive number of tree men below had changed at this time.

A large number of tree spirits extended their limbs and branches, intertwining with each other, slowly but surely condensing into thirteen giant tree men as tall as nine meters.

The giant tree men's legs plunged into the soil, and their thick arms smashed the city roads, picking up huge rocks and throwing them at Li Ang.

Li Ang's hand showed a [Lesser Master Ball], which he threw out casually.

Accompanied by a lightning-like white light, the hideous and ugly Finx Pit Beast appeared in the data world.

"Roar!!"

As soon as it jumped out of the Poké Ball, the Finx Pit Beast roared to the sky, and green, poisonous, viscous saliva flowed between the serrated teeth in its circular mouth.

"Roar! Roar! Roar?"

The Finx Pit Beast's endless roar suddenly interrupted itself.

This low-intelligence creature lowered its head, staring blankly at the plant vines that were wrapped around its waist dozens of times, not knowing what was happening.

"I'm counting on you, Finx Pit Beast."

Li Ang encouraged his Pokémon and flicked the plant vine whip in his hand.

The Finx Pit Beast, tied to the end of the whip, immediately flew out like the hammer part of a meteor hammer, and hit the boulder thrown by the giant tree man head-on.

Bang!

The boulder hit the Finx Pit Beast's back, splashing and shattering.

The virus program contained in the boulder penetrated into the skin surface of the Finx Pit Beast, causing the latter to scream in pain.

"Good job, Finx Pit Beast."

Li Ang praised his Pokémon, swinging the Finx Pit Beast back and forth, smashing countless flying gravel.

He then stepped on the invisible steps generated by [Ladder Cloud Steps] and rushed towards the firewall sphere above.

Now was the time.

Li Ang frantically twisted his wrist and threw the vine meteor hammer with full force.

The Finx Pit Beast, which was already dizzy and unconscious, crashed head-on into the surface of the firewall, its short head stuck in the wall, and its limbs instinctively clinging to the surface of the firewall sphere, preventing itself from falling down.

This monster had just been used as a meteor hammer by Li Ang, and had been hit back and forth by boulders. While dizzy, it also stimulated its ferocity.

A large amount of poisonous saliva was secreted from its mouth.

Its webbed claws desperately scratched the spherical firewall, making a sharp, hissing noise.

Merlin was inside the firewall, and his heart was trembling as he listened.

He waved his staff and dropped the thunderstorm again.

Bolts of lightning as thick as buckets struck the top of the Finx Pit Beast's head, striking four times in a row before smashing the head of this tenacious biological weapon, releasing its limbs that were grabbing the firewall, and free-falling downward.

Finally killed it.

Merlin breathed a sigh of relief, but instinctively felt something was wrong...

"Found you."

A faint voice sounded above Merlin's head.

Li Ang was squatting on top of the spherical firewall, and a massive number of spiderweb-like plant vines extended from his body, firmly wrapping the firewall.

He himself was looking at Merlin inside the firewall through a small hole less than two centimeters in diameter.

The firewall could control the inflow and outflow of information on the network, allowing, rejecting, and monitoring information.

Merlin could formulate spellcasting strategies based on external changes, which meant that his firewall was not completely isolated inside and outside.

Where there was an exit, there must be an entrance.

Since there was an information entrance, he only needed to find it.

The plant vines generated by the Swamp Divinity suddenly exerted force, quickly tightening the firewall like an embrace.

Making it impossible to expand or change its shape again.

The dark muzzle of the Colt Revolver was aimed at the information flow entrance, aiming at Merlin's head.

Bang—

The gunshot rang out, and Merlin turned into a beam of white light.

The firewall in mid-air disappeared.

Only the griffins and tree spirits, which served as automatic antivirus programs, were still attacking Li Ang—but because they had lost their commander, these dead objects became much slower and more sluggish.

Li Ang stepped on the ladder cloud steps, looked down at the Finx Pit Beast that had been torn into pieces by the tree men.

A look of grief appeared on his face.

Like the protagonist in anime who had lost his teammates, he shouted:

"Fin—x——Pit——Beast!

No!

What did they do to you?!"

The grief on Li Ang's face disappeared in the next second.

He raised his arm with an indifferent expression.

The beams of light from the Ten Finger Disintegration and the Colt Revolver fired at the same time, hitting the dark sky.

Tearing a hole in the sky that had lost its controller.

The information restriction was lifted.

Several figures fell from the sky and landed around Li Ang.

These people were all wearing suits and sunglasses. They were not enemies or other wizards, but employees of the cybersecurity department of the American intelligence agency.

American intelligence agencies have always disliked walkers in the data plane. In recent years, they have been forced to hire some wizards out of the need for network protection.

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The department has also launched training courses to cultivate its own walkers in the data plane.

However, the important characteristic of the Great Witch is extreme sensitivity to external information, a high degree of creativity and rigorous logical reasoning ability, sensibility, and the ability to rationally recognize the outside world and oneself while believing in intuition...

Such talents are very, very rare.

Training and screening alone cannot cultivate them.

And staying in the cybersecurity department, working as a civil servant, going to work on time every day, and mechanically handling affairs, will also stifle and weaken this talent.

In simple terms, being forced to work stifles one's nature.

The wizards trained by intelligence agencies everywhere are never as powerful as the wizards who grow wildly in the folk.

A suit wizard scanned the broken and messy city and said to Li Ang in a deep voice, "Mr. Samast, we are sent by the Social Security Administration to support you..."

"Wait a minute."

Li Ang was not angry because the other party's support was not timely (the dark sky could isolate support).

He directly interrupted the other party's words, stepped on an invisible ladder, and swooped toward the Venezuelan data center.

A great battle broke out in this area last night, and the traces of the battle between Thomas and Merlin have not been cleared until today.

Li Ang overlooked the data center, and the power of the swamp dug three feet into the ground, plowing close to the ground.

The wizards of the Social Security Administration also landed, frowning and asked, "Mr. Samast, have you discovered the identity of the Mailer?"

"No, but it's coming soon."

Li Ang casually threw out a handful of plant seeds.

He stepped on the ground again, and his figure leaped up, flying towards the location of the light network tunnel, "Follow me."

His voice echoed in mid-air.

The wizards of the Social Security Administration looked at each other, both angry at the other party's neglect and calling them around.

And they were helpless because their superiors wanted them to obey Li Ang's command.

They had no choice but to keep up and shouted to Li Ang, "Mr. Samast, where are we going?"

Li Ang's face hidden under the dragon head mask did not have a trace of expression, "Jet Propulsion Laboratory."

He understood why Brown Murphy appeared at the entrance of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory when the mission began...

————

He didn't know what the Mailer had done in the real world.

The wizards of the Social Security Administration were obviously much more respectful.

They did not take Li Ang to the server of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, but took Li Ang to the Advanced Research Projects Agency of the American Department of Defense, which was connected to the server of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency, or dArpA for short, is an administrative agency under the Pentagon, founded in the late 1950s.

That era was a very special era. The Cuban missile crisis occurred, the Cold War heated up, and the American public's fear reached its peak.

The best way to overcome fear is to face fear.

At that time, the American people believed that maintaining a leading position in science and technology was the key to determining the outcome of future wars.

Therefore, dArpA, composed of first-class experts and scholars from various disciplines, came into being. The initial mission of the agency was to prevent the United States from suffering technological breakthroughs from other forces, and also to create technological breakthroughs against hostile forces.

The Internet, semiconductors, personal computer operating system Unix, lasers, GPS global positioning system, and a series of other pioneering inventions can all be traced back to dArpA's independent projects.

Li Ang stood in front of the headquarters of dArpA, took a deep breath, and under the guard (and supervision) of the wizards of the Social Security Administration, walked towards the entrance of dArpA.

The panel at the main entrance spat out a password key, allowing Li Ang to enter the dArpA server.

Allowing him to use the processor of the Advanced Planning Research Bureau.

Computing power poured in continuously. Li Ang stood in the hall and could clearly feel his power expanding exponentially.

The plant vines under his skin issued an instinctive cheer.

Even involuntarily pierced through the skin and penetrated the Shenlong Red Mane coat, stretching freely.

If someone opened Li Ang's white coat at this time, they would definitely be able to see countless plant fibers rapidly wriggling on the surface of his body.

Fortunately, the joy of power expansion came quickly and went quickly.

Li Ang calmed his mind and controlled the plant vines to retract under his skin.

"Mr. Samast."

The suit wizards of the Social Security Administration all had tense faces and said very quickly, "We allow you to use the supercomputer, and we allow you to enter the server of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory—as far as we know, you just tried to invade there this morning.

But you have to explain the reason to us."

"It's very simple, because I suspect that the Mailer is not on Earth."

Li Ang took a step, holding the restricted password key, and walked towards the port representing the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

"The biggest characteristic of the Mailer is that no matter who he communicates with, he has to use a typewriter. Each conversation will have a delay of several hours for short and a week for long.

The form it takes is like he has a data processor with an extremely slow computing speed.

Of course, you have also seen his destructive power.

It is impossible to invade your system with an old machine.

So why does he set a communication delay?"

The wizards of the Social Security Administration opened their mouths, "Does he not have enough time in the real world? Can he only log on to the network for a short time each time?"

"There is this possibility."

Li Ang shook his head and said, "But don't forget, the military subversion in Venezuela can be said to be swift and decisive, with no lag or delay at all.

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The real world is more complex than the data plane.

Living people are not data, they have their own thoughts, ideas, and encounters.

The Mailer can complete the military subversion in just a few days.

It not only requires him to conduct long-term and meticulous planning,

It also needs real-time command and control in the most critical days, and cannot be slack or handed over to an automatic program—otherwise his control traces will be discovered by us, the Great Witch, in an instant."

"Is it possible that the Mailer's accomplices are handling it?"

A suit wizard thought for a while and asked, "For example, Merlin, he came to uniformly dispatch the armed forces in Venezuela."

"Merlin doesn't have that ability. The greater possibility is that the Mailer can observe the real world in real-time, but he also has a slight delay in time, such as a few seconds, a few minutes."

Li Ang said, "In order to prevent being seen by wizards of the same level, he had to deliberately exaggerate the time lag and package himself as a typewriter."

"Wait, a few seconds?"

A suit wizard was stunned, "How is that possible? The current low-Earth orbit communication satellites..."

"...can control the delay to below 100 milliseconds or even 80 or 70 milliseconds, and the delay within the global range will not exceed the standard line."

Li Ang helped the wizard answer the second half of the sentence and said calmly, "But what if the Mailer is not on Earth?

If he is on a large space station in geostationary orbit, there will be a delay of 120 or 150 milliseconds.

The delay will be even higher for medium and small space stations further away.

Once he shows a regular time delay in front of top wizards, he will instantly expose his location and even expose his real name.

So, he is not on the ground, but in the sky."

At the same time, this is also the reason why "I", or rather Brown Murphy, invaded the Jet Propulsion Laboratory this morning.

Brown Murphy was the first to guess the Mailer's location.

Li Ang silently added the last sentence in his heart.