Hold the Fort and Await Reinforcements?

"Activate, Destruction: Decomposer Mode!"

As Luca's voice fell, the Dominator pistol in his hand rapidly unfolded.

Cyan particles gathered incessantly, and a massive energy sphere contracted rapidly amidst a low, humming drone.

However, before he could truly fire this high-energy particle sphere, a large number of gang members brandishing firearms rushed out from the building with ferocious expressions.

Dun Shan's gaze shifted instantly; he raised his muzzle and shouted loudly.

"Covering fire!"

"Rat-tat-tat-tat—"

Dense gunfire erupted all around, and golden shell casings rained onto the ground like droplets.

Yet, these subordinates of Kingpin were, in the end, merely thugs who thrived on violence; how could they possibly compare to seasoned veterans like Dun Shan and his men?

The situation turned one-sided in an instant.

Cries of agony rang out one after another; four or five gangsters collapsed backward before they could even raise their weapons.

However, Luca was the first to notice that quite a few gang members inside the building had aimed their guns at Baymax, who was currently pushing the cart.

Looking at the fully charged energy sphere in his hand, Luca immediately roared.

"Baymax! Get back!"

"Okay!" (●-●)

As Baymax flashed away from his original position, countless bullets from the gangsters struck the windshield of the Mercedes-Benz, shattering it into spiderweb-like cracks.

The Mercedes-Benz, however, managed to break free, and with the accelerator floored, it surged rapidly toward the building.

At that moment, the Dominator in Luca's hand instantly fired a beam of green light.

"Hum—"

A cyan-blue high-energy particle beam slammed into the ground just behind the rear of the car.

Previously, due to concerns about hitting Baymax, and because the Mercedes-Benz had been accelerating hard with a very fast start, Luca's shot had actually missed the vehicle body.

Even so, at the exact point where the particle beam struck the ground, the cyan and white light surged violently, instantly transforming into a massive, sizzling energy sphere.

The Mercedes-Benz, having moved forward only half a meter, found nearly a third of its body engulfed within this massive sphere of light.

In that fleeting instant, the vehicle's armor, which possessed VR7-level defensive capabilities, was instantly melted and decomposed, vanishing into nothingness.

The entire rear half of the car, along with most of the wheels, looked as if it had been bitten by an invisible giant mouth, leaving behind only a row of neat, glowing red edges radiating intense heat.

Perhaps because the decomposition was so rapid, the vehicle's body did not explode from the damage.

Relying on its previous momentum, it charged forward without pause, slamming into the building ahead.

After knocking several gang members flying, it crashed through a distant wall with a loud "boom" and came to a complete stop.

Seeing this, Luca nodded in satisfaction and retracted the Dominator.

Well, the reason Luca could put his gun away so calmly was not only because Baymax had already arrived at his side, using its body to shield him from any stray bullets that might threaten him.

It was also because, despite the firefight having only just begun, the enemies who had rushed out from the building had already been largely dealt with by Dun Shan and his team.

Especially Thresh, the bald, burly man standing beside Luca.

After giving up on shooting the bulletproof Mercedes-Benz, he had directly turned his muzzle and begun firing indiscriminately toward the warehouse building.

The rapidly spitting tongue of fire acted like the scythe of the Grim Reaper, turning everything in its path into a honeycomb.

Moreover, as this guy fired wildly, he couldn't stop laughing maniacally.

"Die! Die! You scum! Hahahaha~~~ Taste your grandpa's hot, big gun!"

Yet, even in this seemingly frenzied state, the machine gun in Thresh's hands remained incredibly precise and stable. He was even able to switch to burst fire between sweeps and rapidly change ammunition magazines during lulls in the attack to ensure sustained firepower.

It wasn't until the 200 rounds in another ammunition belt were completely spent, followed by the constant "click" of an empty chamber, that Thresh seemed to regain his sanity. His expression suddenly stiffened, and looking at the slightly reddened barrel, he scratched his bald head in a very awkward manner.

"Uh, Young Master Luca, I don't usually act like this..."

Seeing this, Luca, who was hiding behind Baymax, felt his mouth twitch slightly, not knowing what to say for a moment.

In fact, what Luca didn't know was that the Thresh before him was truly not in his "usual state."

He had only used the M249 light machine gun today because the battle was taking place within the city and against a gang.

If it were the usual Thresh fighting on overseas battlefields, as the squad's gunner, he would typically use the XM556 micro-gun—commonly known as a handheld Gatling gun—equipped with an electrically driven tactical backpack ammunition box for fire suppression.

Thresh in that state, well, his laughter was louder and his expression more manic; it was indeed quite different from how he was today.

Back to the matter at hand.

As the last of the enemies before them collapsed, the boiling roar of gunfire finally ceased.

Spent shell casings were scattered everywhere across the ground, the heavy scent of gunpowder stinging Luca's nose and throat, while the faint ringing of gunfire still lingered in his ears, his vision filled with the bodies of gangsters riddled with bullet holes.

Yet, among the dead before him, Luca's true target for the day was clearly not to be found.

"Longbow, Wrench! Did anyone escape from the building just now?" Dun Shan quickly asked the other two teammates over the comms.

"Negative." Longbow's calm voice was the first to respond.

Wrench's reply came a beat slower, only after he had taken a few breaths.

"I've been watching the screens on my end, and I didn't see anyone either."

However, noticing something unusual about Wrench, Dun Shan immediately countered with a question.

"Wrench, report your situation."

"A car that should have belonged to Kingpin's men passed by my position, and I've already taken it out. But I suggest you all pick up the pace; the target likely has other reinforcements on the way."

Wrench gave his answer in a rapid-fire tone.

Dun Shan didn't dwell on Wrench taking out a carload of gangsters, but as he had analyzed, the situation was dire.

Kingpin was, after all, the overlord of Hell's Kitchen, and they were attacking his stronghold; it was true that more of his men could arrive to provide support at any moment.

If they didn't want to be surrounded by those people, they had to speed things up now.

Without a moment's hesitation, Dun Shan immediately looked toward Luca on the other side.

However, he didn't need to remind him; Luca had already pressed his hand to the temple of his [Tracking Glasses], activating his thermal imaging.

"1, 2, 3, 4..."

His gaze swept quickly across the area. Sure enough, Kingpin was still being protected by his last few men in a room on the third floor that lacked surveillance. Judging by the thickness of the reinforced walls, it was highly likely that the room had undergone special fortification.

"Preparing to hold out for reinforcements? No, that's not it!"

"Watch out, grenade!!!"