Lord of the Sky City-Chapter 842 - 824: Jumping for Joy

The sound of cannon fire gradually faded, and smiles spread across everyone’s faces—it was clear that this shot had left everyone very satisfied.

The primary focus of today’s test was the range of the new tank-type armor, especially the dual-barrel magic energy cannon mounted on its shoulders. Following comprehensive design enhancements, the range of the upgraded cannon had been doubled, achieving an impressive extended range of two kilometers.

This range marked a significant breakthrough for the entire world. Previously, due to limitations posed by magic stones, magic energy cannons struggled to achieve extended ranges without sacrificing power. The magic stones could only provide a finite amount of mana, leaving designers to choose between enhancing power or extending range, with no possibility of both.

But now, thanks to advancements in rune technology, not only has the magic energy cannon’s power been greatly enhanced, but its range has also skyrocketed—a groundbreaking achievement for the entire world.

Lowering the telescope, Rocky nodded at Caryus, prompting the test tank armor on the city wall to raise dual cannon barrels and commence sustained fire. This time, however, it was not magic energy bullets being fired but consecutive streams of magic energy beams.

One of the major changes in the new tank-type armor was the removal of the mid-range waist-mounted magic energy beam emitter and the close-range dual magic energy bullet launchers. Instead, the armor’s hands were equipped with beam machine guns. These beam machine guns featured mana regulation capabilities, allowing adjustments to beam intensity and enabling both mid-range suppression and close-range self-defense functionalities.

This modification not only simplified the weapon system but also significantly improved operational and production convenience. However, the most important change made to the new tank armor was the introduction of a new attack mode.

After the beam machine gun tests concluded, excitement and eager anticipation were written all over everyone’s faces, especially those of Caryus and the other tank corps members—all visibly awaiting Rocky’s command.

Rocky didn’t keep them waiting. As he nodded in approval, the test tank armor’s driver took a deep breath and began maneuvering the armor, aiming at a distant target.

With the armor adjusting its position slightly, the two ultra-long cannon barrels mounted on its shoulders once again activated. But this time, unlike earlier, the barrels’ front, middle, and rear sections started glowing with red runes. Following the thunderous roar of cannon fire, two basin-sized fireballs hurtled out of the barrels!

Fireballs—not metaphorical, but real fireballs!

Elemental technology—

This was the biggest innovation in the new tank armor! ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com

The two fireballs sped forward, drawing everyone’s attention as they streaked across over a thousand meters. All eyes followed them as they landed, erupting violently on the ground and forming two large craters!

"Amazing!"

"It worked!"

"Such tremendous power!"

As the fireballs hit the ground and exploded, cheers rang out from those on the city wall, their joy unmistakable.

It was no wonder everyone was so thrilled. Elemental technology represents cutting-edge research at its peak; apart from Thunderhawk City, no one else had mastered it. Even within Thunderhawk City, only the White Demon Armor had successfully applied elemental technology. Thus, the successful integration of elemental technology into the magic energy cannon of the new tank armor was a monumental achievement.

This meant the new tank armor would become the first mass-produced armor equipped with elemental technology. It also signified that the new tank armor had surpassed every knockoff armor on the market, once again taking the lead in the land combat armor sector. More importantly, it showcased how Thunderhawk City’s mastery of elemental technology was maturing, bringing its widespread application and popularization one step closer!

This was precisely why everyone was so enthusiastic, including Rocky.

Nonetheless, Rocky’s excitement was restrained—not because the new tank armor had performed poorly, but because he had an even larger goal in mind. Let’s not forget, he was simultaneously working on two projects. While the new tank armor was one, the other was his main priority—the development of the next-generation land combat armor.

Although tank armor had dominated nearly the entire land combat armor market, it was still markedly different from traditional Void Magic Armor and carried many limitations. This was why Rocky had positioned it as a support armor, and it explained the heavy investment by Sigma and Uranus Corporation in developing derivative models of the tank armor.

To put it plainly, with the onset of counteroffensive warfare, demand for land combat armor will only grow—far beyond what a single tank armor model can satisfy. To address this huge gap, Sigma and Uranus Corporation temporarily sought to bridge it with derivative tank armor models. Yet Rocky chose instead to focus on developing an entirely new type of armor.

Recently, the next-generation land combat armor project had undergone significant progress. All development directions were now clearly established. Beyond the initially agreed removal of flight functionality, effective brainstorming by the team—and particularly direct involvement from Hammerfire—had fully defined the armor’s concept.

First and foremost, this armor would be designed for close combat, tasked primarily with countering direct demon assaults. Therefore, it had to wield an exceptionally powerful arsenal and possess the capability to take on multiple enemies simultaneously. After all, no matter how broadly this armor is deployed and how many units are equipped, the sheer number of demons will always vastly outweigh that of humans—making multi-enemy combat capabilities non-negotiable.

Second, as a frontline battle armor operating under the assumption of taking on a multitude of enemies, its defensive power needed near-maximal reinforcement.

At the same time, to adapt to the battlefield’s ever-changing dynamics, high mobility had to be maintained alongside strong defense capabilities.

The aforementioned standards were the essential targets the next-generation land combat armor needed to meet. With these goals clearly defined, the research and development team devoted themselves fully to the project. Additionally, since the new tank armor had already entered the data-collection phase and its test models had been produced, a significant number of personnel were freed up to focus on the next-generation land combat armor.

Let’s not forget, Thunderhawk City possessed extensive technical capability and expertise in armor research and technology accumulated over years, further accelerating the development of the new armor.

As such, according to Rocky’s estimates, within two to three months, the prototype of the next-generation land combat armor would be completed. Once that milestone was reached, the development pace would reach its peak, and the finalization of the new armor wouldn’t be far away.