--June 18, 2043, 3:42 a.m.--
Only four short minutes had passed since the battle began, yet the situation was already becoming clear.
Having fallen into the water, the "Goshawk" could no longer display its former might. Anshan's rapid, ferocious barrage of punches had beaten it so badly that it could not even raise its head.
Every straight punch Anshan threw carried electric pulses of tens of millions of volts. Each time he struck the monster, a powerful azure pulse storm swept across the battlefield. The Chinook helicopters in the air all climbed higher, terrified of being caught in it.
The "Goshawk" raised its head and roared, trying to stand, but Anshan's powerful knee immediately drove into it, pinning it back down to the floor of the Pacific Ocean.
Had it been any ordinary monster from before, so many pulse currents and jet-powered punches would have killed it long ago. But the "Goshawk" was no ordinary beast. It quickly regrouped and launched a counterattack against Anshan.
One monster and one mech became locked in close-quarters combat.
The entire world stared fixedly at their battleground. Those in the Command Center, especially, were already too tense to speak.
Angie Beckett still maintained nearly perfect synchronization—and she had not spoken a single word for four full minutes. Through the comms, everyone could practically see her utterly focused, grim expression.
Relying on its overwhelming physical attributes, the "Goshawk" gradually gained an advantage in this contest. Its enormous wings continuously beat the seawater, sending Anshan reeling in the violent currents and nearly knocking him off balance.
Anshan immediately activated his jets to stabilize himself, but the Goshawk seized the chance to break free from the icy seawater's restraint and soar into the air once more!
"Sethi!" Angie's furious shout immediately came through the comms!
"Got it!"
Sethi shouted back at the same time!
Only then did everyone realize that Changbai, who had been standing by as an observer, had somehow already joined the battle. Like a bolt of black lightning, he charged into the battlefield and thrust the "Yajiao" in his hand forward. Its massive spearhead spanned two hundred meters and instantly pierced through the "Goshawk's" right wing, spraying blood everywhere!
The "Goshawk" let out a miserable shriek and crashed back onto the ocean surface. The two mechs pressed their advantage and charged in!
Yet the "Goshawk" proved unexpectedly tenacious. It swung its left wing and violently knocked Anshan down, then fought Changbai with only its injured right wing. The two traded blows in a brutal battle.
Anshan, who had been blown away, shook his head and stood up again. With a flick of both hands, two pairs of narrow wrist blades extended to their full length. He then charged forward, determined to make the "Goshawk" bleed properly.
The battle on the other side was far more straightforward. There were not many techniques or tricks involved—or rather, the "Raptor's" power was enough to ignore all techniques and tricks.
It only knew how to ram and bite. Simple and direct, yet terrifyingly effective.
Whenever the "Raptor" opened its enormous jaws, which made up a quarter of its total body length, massive amounts of air were drawn inside by air pressure like a black hole. And when it closed them—the sound of its upper and lower jaws colliding could be heard clearly even by residents of Hong Kong City ten kilometers away.
Zhang Wenhu had no idea what it would feel like to be torn apart by those jaws, but he had no desire to find out.
Huangshan steadied his stance and threw a right punch, knocking aside the bloody maw lunging for his head. But the enemy's force was simply too great. Huangshan's right arm was badly worn down, sparks spraying into the air as several pieces of armor shattered and damaged the components beneath. His right pinky also lost power.
But Huangshan seized the opportunity to circle behind the "Raptor"—then raised both arms and hammered fiercely at the reptilian beast's back!
The "Raptor" howled in pain and tried to flee, but Huangshan took the opportunity to latch onto it tightly. A Chain Sword shot from his left hand and plunged straight into the "Raptor's" heart!
The "Raptor" let out a heart-wrenching roar. The sudden piercing pain nearly drove it mad. It thrashed wildly from side to side, trying to throw Huangshan off its back!
Fortunately, Huangshan's balance far surpassed that of other models. He could remain standing amid the combined devastation of hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, and monster attacks. Thus, no matter how the winds howled and waves crashed, Huangshan remained firmly astride the "Raptor's" back.
"Tang Jia, Tang Yi!" Zhang Wenhu's voice came through the Command Center comms. "I can't use the ion cannon! It's up to you!"
"Yes!" "Received!"
The two brothers immediately responded.
Dongting and FL responded as well.
The sixth-generation Dongting retained the ion cannon design of earlier mechs. His deep-blue arms shifted shape, and two muzzles gleaming with brilliant plasma extended from his wrists, replacing his fists!
FL, meanwhile, used the 609MM Heavy Cannon mounted on his right hand—609 millimeters in caliber, firing specially made depleted-uranium armor-piercing shells. Each shell weighed four tons, and the damage it inflicted upon a single target was no less than that of a tactical nuclear weapon.
Three of the most vicious weapons in human history aimed at the "Raptor's" head and unleashed their first round of artillery fire.
Amid a roar that seemed to tear through the air, three powerful beams of energy burst from their barrels—
Under the assault of that energy, every trace of water vapor within fifty meters of the "Raptor" instantly evaporated!
BOOM!!!!
At the instant of the explosion, a flash bright enough to illuminate the heavens erupted across the battlefield!
"Ugh..."
The television's brightness instantly surged to its maximum at the moment of the explosion, making Rosen and Sun Zheng Tang's eyes somewhat uncomfortable.
But that could not dampen either man's enthusiasm. Sun Zheng Tang immediately leaped out of his chair!
"It's dead!" he shouted excitedly, completely ignoring his injured neck. "It's definitely dead this time! I've never seen any monster withstand an attack like that!"
Rosen nodded with equal excitement. The power of those three barrages was unparalleled, something he had never seen before.
How would it compare to Shandong's "Full Brust"?
That day, Rosen had only survived by luck after using the powerful magnetic field of the Cloud-Mist High-Pressure Magnetic Storm Ring to alter the shell trajectories. But now, Rosen had no confidence at all that he could emerge unscathed from the triple barrage.
Strong... truly strong. Rosen could not help thinking. It looks even more powerful than Shandong's full-scale assault.
But... Rosen still could not forget the "Viper."
Since the battle began, Rosen had not seen any sign of the "Viper." It was as though it had vanished into thin air.
Monsters would never flee before battle, Rosen immediately deduced. It may be hiding somewhere, lurking in some corner of the battlefield, waiting for an opportunity to launch a fatal surprise attack.
The flash on the screen gradually faded. Smoke still swirled at the center of the battlefield. FL and Dongting stood outside the smoke, their cannon muzzles still open as they prepared for another round of bombardment.
Then—an abrupt change erupted on the screen!
Rosen saw Dongting's deep-blue body shift slightly to the right, while his head turned left—his pilot seemed to have received some warning and was guarding against an attack from the mech's left side!
At that moment, a black shadow appeared beneath the water by Dongting's left foot!
Rosen's gaze sharpened—the "Viper" burst from the sea in an instant!
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