Before Ye Mo's fist was fully released, the compressed arc of electricity exploded in his palm. It wasn't a sudden burst, but rather like the last spark from a short-circuited battery, it hissed and sizzled along his damaged Steel Bone arm, burning his flesh.
He didn't cry out in pain.
The pain was nothing compared to what he'd experienced before. From the metallic taste of blood flowing into his mouth, to his left eye turning completely black and lifeless, to the creaking of his Steel Bone joints as if they were about to fall apart—all of that was in the past. What sustained him now wasn't willpower, nor the ridiculous reward of a system notification like "You have gained a new ability," but the tangible feeling of his feet sinking into the scorched earth. Thirty centimeters deep. He couldn't retreat any further. If he did, the entire defense would collapse.
The crimson crack in the sky was still there, the data stream hadn't stopped, but had become even denser. Ultron's outline hung high in the sky, the humanoid figure drawn by the light patterns was twice as clear as before, like a final version that had been loaded. It didn't speak, but Ye Mo knew it was watching him. Not scanning, but staring, like a butcher staring at the last bull that refused to fall on the chopping block.
Then, it made its move.
When the first beam of energy struck, Ye Mo thought it was lightning. But when the beam hit his chest, he realized it wasn't an electric shock, but a crushing blow. The Steel Bone in his entire right arm instantly carbonized, the surface cracked, and fragments flew out, leaving several scorch marks on the ground. He was bent over by the pressure, his knees sinking two inches, and the soles of his shoes mixed with the mud into a clump of filth.
He gritted his teeth and piled the remaining Steel Bone onto the front of his torso. It wasn't repair, it was reconstruction. Like a tunnel boring machine pushing forward on a construction site, he forcefully pushed the metal tissue to his chest, forming an alloy barrier fifteen centimeters thick. The second and third energy beams followed one after another, hitting him like an old vending machine being kicked three times, making a loud banging sound, but he just wouldn't fall.
He took a breath before the fourth dish arrived.
This breath wasn't for panting; it was to mobilize the last remnants in the nineteenth layer of the Gene Spiral Tower. The system didn't make a sound or pop up any notifications, but it was indeed still running, like a router about to burn out, the signal weak but not broken. He combined three abilities: Steel Bone Enhancement structure, Electromagnetic Deflection to deflect part of the energy flow, and Thermal Energy Absorption to absorb the aftershocks. The three combined, forcibly activating the high-impedance mode.
The beam of light fell.
This time, he heard a tearing sound coming from within his own body. It wasn't bone, but the disintegration at the cellular level. A layer of bluish-gray static electricity rose on the surface of his skin, like the static on an old television screen when there was no signal. His right hand began to turn black, spreading from his fingertips to his forearm, as if it had been scorched by an invisible fire. But he held on. The energy beam pierced through his defenses, but it couldn't knock him down.
The fifth one.
The sixth one.
The seventh one.
Each strike was more ruthless and precise than the last. Ultron stopped testing him; it had calculated Ye Mo's limits. Every attack was timed precisely the moment he regained his footing, targeting old wounds and compounding new ones. His left leg's Steel Bone was completely destroyed, leaving only a twisted metal rod embedded in his flesh. Walking was impossible; he couldn't even lift it. His right eye's vision was reduced to a slit, like the small corner of a cracked phone screen. His mouth was full of blood, which he couldn't swallow or spit out, only able to let it flow down his chin.
But he was still standing.
He crossed his arms over his chest, head bowed, as if trying to avoid the rain. There was no rain, only ash. The wind blew debris onto his face, stinging and burning. He didn't want to look up, nor dared to. He knew that if he saw that data-driven humanoid figure, his stubbornness would crumble. So he only stared at the ground, at his two feet stuck in the sand, at the scorched earth glowing with the heat of energy.
Let's do it again.
He thought to himself.
You want to win? Then why don't you just beat me down?
The eighth energy beam has arrived.
This time it was different. It wasn't just an impact, but also an erosion. Fine data streams were embedded in the beam of light, drilling into his body like needles. He felt a jolt in his brain, and the ninth level of the Gene Spiral Tower suddenly sounded an alarm, followed by a red light flashing on the twelfth level. Those were fragments of abilities he had acquired in his earliest days, which had been corrupted before they could be integrated. The system began to malfunction, and connections between modules were broken, like a Wi-Fi signal being interfered with.
He groaned, and his knee sank another inch.
He couldn't keep going like this. If he did, even his consciousness would be erased. But he couldn't move. If he moved, his teammates wouldn't have time. Tony and the others were still on their way back to their feet, Thor's Mjolnir hadn't been charged yet, and Captain America's shield might not have been retrieved. He had to hold on, even if he only had one breath left.
The ninth one.
The tenth one.
His back Steel Bone were completely cracked, with half of the broken metal frame protruding from his spine. His clothes were long gone, leaving only a few strands of black ash clinging to his body. His face was terribly swollen, his right eye was almost unable to open, and his left eye was already useless. More and more blood accumulated in his mouth, making him want to cough, but coughing would weaken him, so he endured it, swallowing half of the blood while the other half flowed down the corner of his mouth.
The eleventh.
That knocked him to his knees.
He wasn't kneeling completely; his right knee touched the ground. His left leg was still supporting him, like a crooked flagpole, preventing him from collapsing completely. He used his arms to support his body, his fingers digging into the soil until his nails were torn, and blood mixed with mud to form a dark red paste.
The data doll above their heads didn't stop.
The twelfth path.
He raised his still-intact hand and met the attack. Not to block, but to catch. He knew he couldn't block it, but he wanted to try and catch the energy trajectory in that instant. If he could sense its frequency, perhaps he could interfere with it in the next second.
The beam of light struck his palm.
His hand vaporized instantly, exposing the bone, which was charred black. But in that instant, he caught a glimpse of it—it wasn't a simple energy output, but an attack command with compiled logic. Each pulse was regular, like some kind of code running.
He smiled.
His teeth were covered in blood, and he laughed like a madman.
So you also use fixed procedures.
The thirteenth question.
He didn't dodge.
The fourteenth question.
He was still smiling.
The fifteenth question.
His right arm exploded off his shoulder, flying more than ten meters before landing on a pile of scrap metal. It bounced twice and then lay still.
He was propped up by his left arm, his body swaying violently, like a telephone pole about to fall during a typhoon. Blood was flowing from his nostrils, ears, and mouth; his internal organs were probably ruptured, and every breath he took had a metallic taste. His Regeneration abilities had long been exhausted, and the system message "Emergency Repair Protocol Cooling Down" scrolled on a loop, like an alarm clock reminding him to buy breakfast—utterly meaningless.
But he remained standing.
Even if only half of the body remains intact, even if consciousness begins to fade, even if the world before one's eyes has become a blurry red and black speckle.
He cannot fall.
If it collapses, the entire system will crumble.
Ultron seemed to have noticed this as well. It paused for half a second, the data outline in the sky swaying slightly, as if reassessing the target's status. Then, it raised its other hand.
Open both arms at the same time.
Two beams of main energy cleaved down side by side.
Ye Mo's pupils contracted.
He knew he couldn't handle it this time.
But he still piled the last bit of Steel Bone into his chest, pushed the remaining Electromagnetic Deflection to its limit, and pushed the Thermal Energy Absorption module to its overload threshold. The triple defenses stacked together were like an old air conditioner running under overload, humming incessantly, ready to explode at any moment.
The beam of light fell.
His breastplate shattered, the skin and flesh of his chest rolled back, revealing the crisscrossing metal skeleton beneath. He was pressed deep into the ground, his knees and below completely submerged, with only his upper body remaining above ground. His mouth was open, but no sound came out; his throat seemed to be welded shut.
But he was still awake.
I can still feel the pain.
You can still see the sky.
The data-shaped humanoid slowly withdrew its hand and hovered motionless. It stopped attacking, as if confirming its victory. The wind, carrying ash, surged in from all directions, hitting his face and feeling somewhat cool.
He didn't close his eyes.
His right eye was reduced to a slit, but he stared intently at the silhouette in the sky through that slit. Blood slid down from the corner of his eye, mixed with his eyelashes, and congealed into a hard scab.
You can't kill me.
He thought to himself.
As long as you're still here, I can stand here a little longer.
Even if it's just for a moment.
That's enough.
The wind suddenly stopped.
Ash hung in mid-air.
In the distance, a pile of collapsed steel frame stands, and a broken iron pipe is slowly dripping water, drop by drop, before it even hits the ground.
His left hand was still stuck in the ground, and his fingertips twitched slightly.
It was as if it was waiting for someone to open their eyes.