That afternoon, in a blind spot directly behind the gray barrier.
"Lower it slowly! Line up the axle!!"
Two craftsmen, drenched in black ash and sweat, worked together under the cover of a Heavy Riot Shield to slam the final thick section of the Bionic Drive Axle into its mounting slot!
Click!
The hydraulic catches locked snugly into place. An accompanying biochemical craftsman pressed the precultivated drive tissue into the slot and swiftly connected the nerve cables at the interface. With a deep, powerful rumble of biochemical pulses, the enormous Heavy Demolition Winch finally began spinning smoothly and forcefully in the depths of the wasteland!
"Power circuit connected! Front shield wall, open a two-finger gap for the cables, damn it!!"
Two reinforced tier two Tower Shields shifted half an inch outward, exposing the diagonal load-bearing supports below, their interlocking struts tightly entwined with Abyss flesh-roots.
The mountain path was narrow and rugged; heavy engineering vehicles could never reach this blind spot beside the sheer cliff. But these members of the Fourth Calamity had dismantled the entire demolition rig, weighing well over ten thousand pounds, and relied on dozens of melee players to relay its pieces across the narrow cliff path. Right behind the monsters' lair, they had assembled a miniature demolition line by hand!
[Vanguard Across the Realm] flexed his slightly numb wrist impassively, his deep gaze sweeping over the lurking dangers on either flank.
On the left stood a LV.64 Tier Three Fiend covered in obsidian bone armor;
on the right crouched a LV.67 Abyss Elite, its entire body bristling with spikes as it tore great mouthfuls from a corpse.
The two tier three sentries guarded either side of the rear ground anchor, completely blocking ordinary players from reaching the central cable knot.
"Same as always. Engage the leaders