Tony stared, dumbfounded, at the fully charged cannon muzzle.
He only had time to say, "...Fuck..."
Then the muzzle abruptly flashed.
Fire!
A beam of energy blasted toward Tony.
The moment he saw the muzzle flash, Tony felt as though the world had frozen, and he had frozen along with it.
The only thing in the entire world that could move was that beam.
But this illusion arose only because the energy cannon was too fast.
In the end, Tony could only watch helplessly as the beam struck him.
A thunderous explosion rang out, and its flames engulfed Tony.
Seeing this, the mech stood where he was, waiting for the flames to clear.
Unexpectedly, fierce winds suddenly swirled within them, dispersing the smoke, and several sharp wind blades flew out, heading straight for the mech.
The mech immediately deployed his shield, blocking the wind blades.
By then, Tony had fully emerged from the smoke and dust.
He looked utterly bedraggled. The hair over his forehead was singed, his clothes were tattered, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
In reality, however, Tony's injuries were negligible.
The energy cannon looked terrifying, but its actual power was not excessive.
After all, its design focused on speed; it was meant to catch people off guard.
So Tony only looked somewhat battered. In reality, under Earth's Protection, he had suffered only minor injuries.
And under Water's Protection, those injuries had already all but healed.
"I really didn't see that coming, buddy. You look so cold and emotionless, but you actually know how to play dirty!" Tony said, his expression decidedly grim.
Yet the mech still said nothing. His response was to raise both hands again and cross them before his chest.
The next moment, the mech's legs shifted slightly.