As soon as the dot on the screen crossed the preset range line, Captain America's hand landed on the communication key.
"Action."
The two words cleaved the silence of the entire base like a knife splitting the water's surface.
Ye Mo moved almost simultaneously with the command, pushing off the reinforced ground with his feet and rushing towards the central passage. Almost the next second after he started, an explosion came from the east outer wall, flames suddenly licked the ceiling, the alarm finally blared, and the red light began to rotate in circles.
"They're here," he thought to himself.
This wasn't a test, it wasn't harassment, it was the real deal, right in their face.
Black Widow's gunshot rang out immediately, a line of fire shooting out from the northern elevated point. An enemy rushing towards the ventilation shaft had his head blown off instantly, his body lurching forward two steps before collapsing. At the same time, Bucky emerged from the northwest pipe, his shoulder-fired electromagnetic catapult launcher making a muffled thud. The front wheels of an enemy light armored vehicle were locked by the electromagnetic storm, sending it swerving and crashing into the wall.
"Vanguard clear." Black Widow's voice came through the headset, as calm as if she had just finished a game.
"Leave the communications officer to me," Bucky added, adjusting his gun slightly. The second bullet pierced the smoke and hit a figure holding a signal device.
Ye Mo had already rushed to the outer edge of the main control area. Before him lay a chaotic battlefield: fire, thick smoke, shattered bunkers, and at least eight enemies wearing tactical exoskeletons were advancing through the collapsed walls. They carried small artillery emplacements, their firepower so intense that it was impossible to lift one's head.
"The first crack." He went through the pre-battle plan in his mind.
Without hesitation, Ye Mo took a deep breath, and the Steel Bone -like texture from the " Gene Spiral Tower " within his body instantly spread throughout his entire being. It felt as if metal wires were being stretched under his skin, his muscles bulged, and his bones emitted a slight "click" sound, as if he had been filled with molten iron.
He crashed into something.
The bullets clanged against him like raindrops hitting a tin bucket. Two bullets lodged in his shoulder and thigh, but didn't penetrate; they just Mars. He ignored them and kept charging.
Three meters, two meters, one meter --
"Boom!"
Ye Mo crashed into the center of the enemy ranks, smashing half of their makeshift cover. Debris flew everywhere, and two people were thrown into the air. One of them landed with his arm twisted at an odd angle, and before he could even scream, he was swallowed by the dust.
"Firepower cleared!" he roared, grabbing a vibrating baton that had fallen to the ground and sweeping it across, forcing the two approaching men back.
On the elevated highway to the north, Black Widow switched her sniper rifle to armor-piercing rounds, aimed at an enemy setting up a heavy machine gun, and pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced the power core in his chest, and the man and his gun exploded into a fireball.
"The perspective has shifted," she said casually.
Ye Mo took a breath. The Steel Bone State was still ongoing, but he could feel his muscles starting to ache. This thing was more physically demanding than he had imagined. He leaned against the half-collapsed concrete block and glanced at the rear of the enemy formation. There were still a few people standing still, their positions too orderly, unlike ordinary soldiers.
"Command node?" he thought to himself.
Almost at the same second, Emma Frost's voice came through the headset. "To the left rear, three people in gray combat uniforms, the one in the middle is the brightest."
"Received," Ye Mo replied. "Go ahead, I'll cover you."
"I don't need your nonsense." Emma Frost's voice trembled slightly, but her tone was firm. "I'm already inside."
She sat before the makeshift terminal extending from the monitoring station, her fingers still resting on her temples, beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Her consciousness spread out like a net, precisely locking onto the rhythm of the commander's brain activity. Instead of launching a direct attack, she simulated a retreat order and quietly inserted it into the enemy's internal communication frequency.
Three seconds later, the six soldiers at the front suddenly turned around and ran towards their own rear.
"Are you all crazy?!" someone roared from the other side.
But chaos had already erupted. Two soldiers even exchanged fire, clearly having misjudged the source of their orders. The once orderly advancing formation immediately crumbled; some lay down, some retreated, and others stood frozen in place, bewildered.
"Great." Ye Mo grinned, rushed out from behind cover, and headed straight for the stuck armored vehicle.
The car wasn't completely totaled yet, and the engine was still humming. He walked around to the side and saw a power interface with a flashing red light at the bottom—a typical Stark design, an older power supply module with obvious weaknesses.
"System, vibration location," he thought to himself.
In an instant, he felt a slight vibration under his feet, and immediately determined the internal structure of the interface. He raised his leg and kicked, striking the weakest point.
"Bang!"
Sparks flew, the whole car jolted violently, and then it stalled completely.
"The engine is broken," he reported.
"Leave the front to me," Captain America's voice came from the other side.
Immediately afterward, the shield sliced through the smoke, striking an enemy who was reloading squarely in the face and slamming him into the wall. Captain America himself followed closely behind, suppressing the enemy with bursts of fire from his submachine gun, and steadily advancing. As he went, he shouted, " Ye Mo, how much longer can you hold out?"
"Give me thirty more seconds!" Ye Mo replied.
The Steel Bone State were starting to wear off, and the muscle soreness was intensifying, but he knew he couldn't stop. He turned to another small, still-operating turret, which was firing directly at the elevated highway to the north, effectively locking down Black Widow's position.
He rushed over, this time not to take the hit head-on, but to use the remaining speed to get close to the side and snap the power supply pipe in half. High-temperature steam sprayed all over his face, and he squinted as he overturned the entire device, casually pulling out the fuse safety.
"The north is safe," he said, panting.
"Roger that." Black Widow's voice remained cold. "But I still have two moving targets on my side; we haven't given up the push."
"I see it," Bucky replied, "Northwest corner, circling around."
"Don't let them get close to the control area," Captain America ordered. " Emma Frost, can we still interfere?"
Emma Frost didn't answer immediately. She closed her eyes, her breathing became shallow, and her fingers trembled slightly. The previous wave of mental intrusion had taken a toll, but she gritted her teeth and persevered, extending her mental tentacles once more.
"Found them... they're using a backup channel..." she whispered. "I'm changing their coordinates... leading them to the fake signal area to the east..."
Before the words were even finished, the two enemies in the distance indeed changed direction and sped off to the southeast, completely deviating from their original route.
"Well done." Captain America nodded. " Ye Mo, can you still move?"
Ye Mo was leaning against the wreckage of the armored vehicle, panting heavily Steel Bone State had completely worn off, and the two abrasions on his shoulder were starting to burn. He wiped the dust off his face and looked up. "I have to move even if I can't, otherwise who among you big shots will reimburse my medical expenses?"
"The system is telling you it's time to take a break," he muttered to himself, though it was actually an excuse for his teammates.
"Then take a five-second break," Captain America said. "Then we'll push in and completely dismantle them."
Ye Mo nodded, squatted down to check the spare battery in his shoe heel—thankfully, it hadn't come loose. He casually patted his pocket to confirm the signal receiver was still there.
In the main control area, the fire was half contained by the automatic sprinkler system, but thick smoke was still billowing out. The remaining enemy personnel were scattered in three locations, out of contact with each other, and their formation was in complete disarray. One of them was attempting to rebuild a communications tower, but the action was slow, clearly indicating a lack of command.
"They're about to collapse," Black Widow observed. "One more round of suppression, and we can force them back."
"Let's do it then." Ye Mo stood up and stretched his shoulders. "This time I'm not charging, I'm throwing things instead."
He bent down, picked up a piece of concrete, weighed it in his hand, and fixed his gaze on the half-built communications tower.
"Three, two, one--"
He threw it out suddenly.
The fragment traced an arc, striking the very base of the tower with a loud crash. The entire structure shook before tilting and collapsing.
"Shot successful," he said.
"Stop joking." Emma Frost opened her eyes, her voice a little weak, "There's still movement behind us, the frequency has changed... it wasn't brought by this group."
"The second batch?" Bucky asked.
"No, it's the same batch of reserves." Emma Frost frowned, "But their signal patterns are different... it's like they were activated remotely."
"Then we need to finish this quickly." Captain America raised his shield. " Ye Mo, can we still push forward?"
Ye Mo took a deep breath, sensing the cooling progress of his internal abilities. His Steel Bone Body hadn't fully recovered, but the emergency activation should last for another ten seconds.
"Yes," he said. "Ten seconds is enough for me to pull off something big."
He walked towards the front of the battlefield, his footsteps crunching on the gravel. The firelight ahead reflected on his face, flickering in and out of focus. In the distance, the last few enemy soldiers were frantically trying to rebuild their defenses, unaware that they were already surrounded on three sides.
Captain America led the team, advancing slowly from the front, shield in front of them. Black Widow's gun remained locked on the key target. Bucky lurked on the flank, ready to launch a surprise attack at any moment. Emma Frost remained seated at the terminal, exhausted but not leaving her post, her fingers still resting on her temples.
Ye Mo stood beside a collapsed bunker, adjusting his breathing. He knew that the next ten seconds would determine whether they could hold off this wave.
He raised his hand, feeling the premonition that his bones were tightening again.
Steel Bone Body, rebooted.