In reality, with Li Lin's combat prowess and his nano-armor, eliminating The Lady of Blood—Faris Noladi—would be a straightforward task.
Even though she possesses the ability to "reborn from blood," merging her soul into a drop of essence and escaping, as long as her location is locked onto by the armor's intelligent system, she can't escape far.
However, Faris's other ability made him reconsider engaging her directly:
[Blood Sacrifice: Absorbs the blood of all nearby living beings, transforming into a "Blood Bat" form, greatly enhancing her power, agility, spell power, and defenses.]
Li Lin lacked confidence in a one-hit kill against Faris, but after witnessing the power of the armor, she could no longer hide her strength. She would inevitably drain the blood of all nearby soldiers, including Jarvan IV.
Given the "Force Field Shield" and "Energy Barrier," Li Lin was confident he could survive Faris's ultimate attack.
Jarvan IV and his subordinates, however, were in a different situation.
Even though they wore rune-forged steel armor that granted immunity to a significant portion of magical damage, it was only partial protection.
With Faris's strength, draining all their blood and turning them into "human husks" would be a simple task.
Li Lin already felt he was slightly late, resulting in the prince's elite guards suffering severe injuries.
He could not allow such a thing to happen again.
After careful consideration, he decided to deploy the mechanical troops he had assembled to intimidate Faris.
Over two hundred aerial combat mechs—Storms, one battlefield mech Skarner, Abomination, Tyrant, and nearly a hundred battlefield mechs Kog'Maw.
If not for cost-saving measures, the mechanical engineers would have had "Hextech Teleportation" modules installed, and he would have called in an additional thousand to bolster the scene.
Sure enough, upon seeing this massive and suddenly materialized force, Faris's mind went blank. She shot a cold glance at Li Lin and immediately turned into a cloud of blood mist, fleeing into the distance.
Seeing this, Jarvan IV, in desperation, hurled his spear.
Unfortunately, his body was still aching from injury, and the spear missed Faris, now reduced to misty blood droplets.
"Damn it! This Noxian bloodsucker!" Jarvan IV cursed, not questioning Li Lin's decision to let her go.
In fact, this outcome aligned with his wishes.
After all, he was no longer in danger, and continuing to fight Faris would only delay the aid for his critically injured subordinates.
Jarvan IV, his face dark with worry, watched Faris's fleeing form for a moment before quickly turning back to Li Lin and bowing. "Sir, could you assist my subordinates?"
Li Lin nodded and promptly flew to the side of the gravely injured soldier, who was on the brink of death.
He activated the nano-materials, administering a Shimmer potion to this soldier, even more than what he had given Jarvan IV.
Like gene enhancement potions, the effect of the Shimmer potion is much greater when injected intravenously rather than taken orally.
For those with frail bodies, this enhancement is more pronounced, though it may lead to an addiction to the strength it provides.
Of course, for the resolute and physically robust individuals like Jarvan IV and his elite subordinates, this is hardly a problem.
Over the next few minutes, Li Lin swiftly injected Shimmer potions into all the soldiers.
Gradually, the less severely wounded soldiers began to wake up and immediately sought out the prince, struggling to their feet to inquire about his condition.
After Jarvan IV stopped them and explained the situation, they noticed Li Lin and the large contingent of waiting mechanical troops, their expressions one of astonishment.
"This... this is the Hextech from Piltover, and it has reached this level?" remarked the prince's new adjutant, Alberk.
Among the soldiers, due to his robust physical condition and extensive combat experience and skills, Alberk was less affected. He had been thrown to the ground by Faris's blood magic shockwave but was merely knocked unconscious.
As for the soldiers whose eyes had been burned blind by the blood magic, Li Lin could do nothing for them. The Shimmer potion could only reattach severed limbs and required intact and clean limbs with professional medical assistance.
This condition of having eyes burned blind by magic could not be cured by the Shimmer potion.
Alberk pulled Jarvan IV aside, glancing back at the blind soldiers being attended to by others, and hesitated. "Your Highness, their condition…"
"I understand. Once we return to Demacia, I will appeal to my father for honors and the best retirement benefits for them."
Jarvan IV's mood was somber. "They are excellent soldiers…"
While they were speaking, Li Lin, having checked the condition of all the soldiers and removed his helmet, returned to the prince's side.
"Actually, I have a way to restore their sight, but…"
Upon hearing this, both Jarvan IV and Alberk were immediately excited, not giving Li Lin a chance to finish.
"What is it?! No matter the cost—money, titles, whatever you want, I can plead with my father on your behalf, as long as you can cure them!"
Jarvan IV grasped Li Lin's shoulders, but Alberk, more composed, stopped him. "Your Highness, don't be reckless!"
He took a deep breath, turning his gaze to Li Lin. "You mentioned earlier that your potion couldn't heal them, but now you say you can restore their sight…"
Alberk glanced at the distant mechanical troops and then back at Li Lin's armor. "I've heard Piltover has a technology for replacing limbs with mechanical ones called Hextech Augmentations. Is this what you're referring to?"
"Actually, it's a different technology," Li Lin said, tilting his head. "I call it: 'Genetic Engineering.'"
"Ge…netics?"
Jarvan IV exchanged a puzzled glance with his adjutant, clearly unfamiliar with this academic term that was known only in the university and professional literature of Piltover.
Li Lin, seeing their confusion, quickly explained the relationship between genes and the human body, emphasizing the importance of genetics.
Of course, they remained baffled, their expressions indicating that it sounded impressive but they didn't truly understand.
"In summary, I can perform a micro-level procedure to re-edit their genes, introducing a genetic sequence that allows their bodies to regenerate their eyes.
"This way, after removing their damaged eyeballs, new ones can grow in their place."
"Th… that's impossible!" Alberk gasped, his face showing serious concern. "Such a miracle—this is like magic!"
Li Lin shot him an exasperated look. "It's science! I just explained this to you."
No wonder many brilliant scientists from Piltover had such short tempers; explaining science to someone who didn't understand was incredibly frustrating.
They always seemed to equate astonishing scientific advancements with magic…
Fortunately, Jarvan IV was different from Alberk.
Having been educated in "spiritual energy" by the Grand General Xin Zhao since childhood, and with Jarvan III secretly pushing for reforms in Demacia's "Magic Regulation," Jarvan IV was actually quite open to the concept of "magic."
As long as it could heal his subordinates, what did it matter if it involved magic?
A legal document and the regulations on magic pale in comparison to the future of his subordinates. They were real, living people!
Jarvan IV, his expression somber, locked eyes with Li Lin and once again bowed deeply.
"If possible, no matter the method, please, help them!"
(End of Chapter)