Beyond Death

The armor on the Shooter Model Armament's back opened, and two mechanical arms emerged, each holding a section of a sniper cannon.

The mechanical arms automatically assembled the cannon. The Fifth-Generation Armament dropped its railgun, reached behind its back, and drew out the sniper cannon, which was almost taller than the machine itself.

Crouch, aim!

Locking onto a point one-third of the way up Ghost Car's body cavity, the pilot pulled the trigger. A long tongue of flame instantly erupted from the muzzle.

Boom, boom, boom!

Three shots in succession.

Three energy rounds formed from compressed star essence energy crossed the battlefield almost in the blink of an eye, hurtling straight toward Ghost Car!

The monster seemed to sense them. The moment the first shot rang out, the red crystals on its surface lit up with a bloody glow, enveloping its body in a High-Heat Field.

The first round screamed toward it. Before it even touched the field, its shape began to distort. The heat altered its molecular structure, stretching and twisting it. Finally, upon contact with the field, its already unstable energy discharged completely, exploding into a roiling ball of silver flame.

The second and third rounds merely raised two more balls of flame, unable to penetrate Ghost Car's High-Heat Field!

"Damn it!"

When the flames cleared, Han Shu saw the monster turn and pounce on the Shooter Model Armament, its outer body covered by a High-Heat Field.

Fortunately, the Armament had not anchored itself to the ground, and its mobility was decent. The moment the monster moved, the machine took evasive action, narrowly avoiding the strike.

The Three-Dimensional Armament fell onto its back and slid away on its momentum. Its rear armor scraped across the ground, producing a string of piercing screeches and a great shower of sparks.

The sniper cannon in its hands fired again, but this time it did not even hit the monster. Ghost Car had leaped ahead of the shot and came plunging down.

A reddish scythe limb swept across the sniper cannon, instantly slicing off a section of its barrel. The severed surface glowed red, as though it had been cut by a high-energy laser.

Ghost Car raised its scythe limb, about to drive it into the Armament's cockpit. Thankfully, cannon fire from the other side, together with attacks from the Ascenders, blasted the monster off the Three-Dimensional Armament.

Then another round of pursuit began.

Han Shu's expression turned utterly bitter. "Now we really are out of options. Even the sniper cannon's useless. There's just no answer to this thing!"

"No, there may still be a way."

Captain Yellow Dragon, who had severed one of the monster's arms earlier, approached with his sword in hand. "I was watching just now. That thing's High-Heat Field doesn't cover its entire body, only two-thirds of it. In other words, we can get underneath the field and attack at close range."

Han Shu immediately perked up. "Then leave it to me. You War God Class types hit hard, sure, but you can't stand the heat. A Fortress Class like me doesn't have that problem. I'll crawl right into its mouth and cut it a hole for some fresh air."

The bald woman's voice came over the communicator. "Quit bragging, Han. You can resist high temperatures, but you aren't immune. At the temperatures that monster gives off, you won't last three seconds. Besides, when my Withering froze it earlier, I could feel it. Its High-Heat Field can actually extend into its body cavity to dispel the cold inside."

"The whole process took less than ten seconds. So even if you manage to crawl into its mouthparts and destroy the will cage in time, with that barely-faster-than-a-snail speed of yours, could you get out before the heat inside cooks you alive?"

Han Shu actually laughed. "I never planned on getting out in one piece. As long as I kill this thing, I'll have gotten my fucking money's worth."

Lida paused for a moment, then said, "Maybe Tianyang..."

"No!"

Han Shu refused flatly. "If anything happens to him, how am I supposed to answer to Ling? Besides, we Nightwalkers don't have a tradition of sending rookies off to die!"

"Captain." Tianyang had heard Lida's words as well. The boy stepped forward. "I'm confident in my speed. Let me go."

"Shut up!" Han Shu shouted without a second thought. "As long as I'm still alive, you stay put!"

Tianyang tightened his grip on the Warblade and said loudly, "Captain, let me try."

He had another concern. If some other organ inside Ghost Car's body cavity was masquerading as the cage, Han Shu would only be throwing his life away. It would be better to take the gamble himself. If he could get inside the monster, he believed Weakness Sense would be more accurate.

Han Shu was wondering whether he should simply knock the kid unconscious with one blow when Ling Feng's voice came over the communicator. "Han Shu, let him try."

Han Shu froze, then grabbed his communicator. "Are you sure?"

Ling Feng did not answer. Instead, he said, "Tianyang, have you thought this through? I can tell Han Shu to let you try, but if you fail, you won't be coming back."

Tianyang thought for a moment, then nodded firmly. "I have, Chief of Staff Ling. An easy life has never been in the cards for a Nightwalker. Even if I escape disaster today, as long as I keep doing this job, I'll face the same dangers again. Maybe even worse ones."

"If failure means death, then I'll go beyond it! Isn't the point of ascension to keep pushing past your limits and challenging them?"

The communicator fell silent for a while before Ling Feng said, "Han Shu, do you still object?"

Han Shu sighed. "Fine, but even if I agree, Tianyang isn't a Fortress Class, and we didn't bring any heat-resistant equipment. How's he supposed to get close to that monster?"

Lida's voice cut in. "That won't be a problem. I can use Withering once more and control the concentration of star essence so its mouthparts don't freeze. That will let Tianyang enter its body cavity. But if I do that, the monster will recover faster than before. Its High-Heat Field might extend inside in just five seconds!"

Tianyang gritted his teeth. "Let's do it, then. Sorry for the trouble, Captain Lida."

Lida laughed. "Brave boy. I'm starting to like you. If you survive, would you consider being my young boyfriend?"

Then, without waiting for Tianyang to respond, she continued, "I need time to prepare, about a minute. Keep the monster occupied as best you can. Tianyang, switch your communicator to a private channel. I'll let you know when I activate my ability."

"All right," the boy agreed, switching his communicator to a private channel so messages on the public channel would not interfere with his judgment.

Next, under Han Shu's direction, the Ascenders and combat vehicles used their firepower to draw Ghost Car's attention, luring the monster away from the noncombatant Recovery Team and Medical Team to keep them out of the crossfire.

Because Ghost Car could activate its High-Heat Field, close-combat Ascenders like Han Shu were entirely unable to join the fight.

As Han Shu watched the changing battlefield, he spoke into his communicator. "Ling Feng, what exactly are you thinking? Isn't that kid pretty important to you? Why send him into danger?"

Ling Feng's voice came through a moment later. "He is important. But if he backs down from danger today, what about next time? Am I supposed to protect him every time he faces danger from now on? Trust me, that kid isn't reckless. He knows what he's doing."

"You said it. If he dies, don't say I didn't warn you." Han Shu chuckled, then switched off his communicator.

Just then, the monster destroyed another combat vehicle, but a cloud of icy mist quietly rose around its body.

Lida's Withering had been unleashed!