Ice Manipulation Roadblock, delaying the pursuit

Footsteps came from the parallel pipe, unhurried and steady like stepping on a metronome. Scott tensed up, instinctively pulling Emma Frost closer, and grabbed Ye Mo's arm with his other hand, lowering his voice. "Still following? Is this guy's GPS navigator on a supernatural level?"

Ye Mo leaned on his shoulder, his face pale and his forehead covered in cold sweat, but his eyes didn't waver. He stared at the pipe opening that gradually widened in front of him, where a faint light shone through, illuminating the slippery marks on the ground and an upward slope—that was the maintenance passage leading to the surface maintenance well, steep and narrow, with drainage channels on both sides and several old cable trays hanging overhead.

"It wasn't a sensation of heat," Ye Mo's voice was hoarse, like sandpaper grinding iron. "That road was too smooth; he didn't even need to chase us to know where we were."

Scott was taken aback. "You mean... we've been marked?"

"A beacon." Ye Mo gritted his teeth. "That little thing he shot out stuck to the outside of the pipe and followed us as we climbed."

Scott looked down at himself, then up at the top of the pipe, his heart sinking. "What do I do now? I can't shake them off, and I can't beat them in a fight. I can't just sit here and put on a show of 'three people lying down and being arrested,' can I?"

Ye Mo didn't reply, but slowly slid off his shoulder, supporting himself on one leg. His right leg was still twitching, but he managed to stand up straight. His left hand was on the wall, and his right hand was pressed against the cold metal pipe wall, his fingertips touching a thin layer of frost.

"That slope ahead... is the only place we can make a move," he said. "Beyond that is open space, with no cover whatsoever. We have to stop him now."

Scott frowned. "What do you mean? What are you going to do? You can't even use skills in this state? Don't end up freezing yourself before you can even freeze the enemy."

"The system notified me." Ye Mo smirked. "It says this move is called ' Ice Manipulation Roadblock,' with an unknown cooldown time. Side effects may include catching a cold, cramps, or being instantly frozen into a statue. It is advised to use it with caution."

"Don't give me that crap!" Scott rolled his eyes. "Every time something goes wrong, you say it's a system notification. I'm sick of it! Speak like a normal person—are you even capable of anything?"

Ye Mo ignored him, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. The moisture in the air seemed to be drawn by something, beginning to gather in his palm. Beneath his skin, a cold current flowed slowly, like an underground river suddenly changing course, rushing into his limbs and bones. His fingers turned white, and the white mist from his breath grew thicker and thicker.

"Whether it works or not... we'll know once we try," he said softly.

Scott knew he couldn't persuade him, so he gently placed Emma Frost in the corner, against a thick pipe, and then squatted down next to Ye Mo, putting one hand on his shoulder, ready to help him at any moment. His eyes, however, were fixed on the passage behind them—the footsteps were getting closer and closer, the sound of metal boots hitting the ground was clearly audible, and there was also the hum of the combat suit turning in between.

"Thirty seconds left," Scott counted, "You'd better hurry."

Ye Mo didn't respond, but suddenly pressed his hands against the drainage channels on both sides. Ice-blue patterns exploded from his palms, spreading rapidly along the metal surface, as if someone had frantically drawn on the sheet metal with a highlighter. Moisture condensed into frost, and the frost turned into ice, climbing up the slope with a faint "crackling" sound, like tree branches breaking in the night.

The first ice wall rose, half a person's height, curved, blocking the middle of the slope. But as soon as it took shape, Ye Mo groaned, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his knees buckling and he almost collapsed to his knees.

"Damn!" Scott quickly grabbed him. "Are you using yourself like a refrigerator? Save it, buddy!"

"Not thick enough..." Ye Mo gasped, "He could punch right through it."

As he spoke, he pressed his hand back down, his fingernails digging into the ice. The cold current surged again, the ice layer thickened, extended upwards, and the edges began to converge, eventually forming an arc-shaped ice barrier more than three meters high and nearly five meters wide, completely sealing off the entire slope. The ice surface was as smooth as a mirror, reflecting the light from the emergency lights overhead, so cold it could freeze your breath.

"It's done?" Scott looked up, somewhat incredulous.

"For now." Ye Mo let go, falling backward, only to be caught by Scott. His face was deathly pale, his lips purple, and his teeth chattering. "This thing is too draining... I feel like my insides are freezing."

"Then why didn't you stop sooner?" Scott cursed, raising his hand to touch his forehead, which was alarmingly hot. "Good heavens, you're freezing on one hand and running a fever on the other, have you gone mad?"

"The system didn't tell me I could do this." Ye Mo grinned, then coughed up a mouthful of bloody saliva. "Next time I'll have to ask about the side effects."

Scott, too lazy to argue with him, turned to carry Emma Frost on his back. She was still unconscious, her breathing steady, but her body temperature was low. He hoisted her onto his shoulder, turned back and glared at Ye Mo: "Are you coming or not? Stop playing the martyr."

Ye Mo leaned against the wall, barely managing to stand up. His right leg trembled violently, but he still took a step. The two of them, one in front of the other, dragged their heavy steps forward along the upper pipe. Behind them, the ice wall stood silently, like a sudden snow mountain, blocking the only route of pursuit.

After walking about fifty meters, Scott suddenly stopped. "Did you hear that?"

Ye Mo raised his hand to signal for quiet.

In the distance, a dull thud resounded—like a heavy metal hammer striking the ice. Then came a second, a third, each strike steady and powerful. The ice trembled, and fine ice shards cascaded down from the top.

"He's breaking the ice," Ye Mo said softly, "Faster than I expected."

"Then why are you laughing?" Scott noticed a slight smirk on his lips.

"The laughter is because... it's enough." Ye Mo gasped for breath, "Just these few minutes are enough for us to create distance. He'll have time to go around or force his way through, giving us a chance to enter the shaft and get to the surface through the maintenance opening."

"You're just relying on this little time difference?"

"Isn't that what fighting is all about?" Ye Mo leaned against the wall, inching forward step by step. "You hold off the enemy, I'll find cover, and we'll run while he reloads. Right now, I've just extended the 'reload time' by a tiny bit."

Scott was speechless and could only continue forward. The pipe went lower and lower until he could only walk with his back bent. The ground was sticky mud, and every step felt like walking on rotten tofu. The air was filled with a sour stench, and dirty water dripped from above, hitting his shoulders with a cold thud.

"There's a fork in the road ahead," Scott squinted. "The left side has collapsed, the right side looks passable, but the supporting beam above is about to break."

"Go to the right," Ye Mo said, "Stay close to the wall, don't touch the beams."

The two carefully traversed the collapsed section, and as soon as they landed, another loud crash sounded behind them—closer and deeper than before. The sound of the ice wall cracking was crisp and piercing.

"He's out." Scott turned around, his heart pounding.

"Don't look back." Ye Mo gritted his teeth. "Keep moving forward. There should be a ventilation shaft ahead with water at the bottom, a good place to hide."

How do you know everything?

"It's just a guess," Ye Mo coughed twice, "But the probability of me being right is quite high."

Sure enough, a hundred meters further on, a circular vertical shaft appeared at the end of the pipe, about three meters in diameter, with half a meter of black water at the bottom, and oil and garbage floating on the surface. There was a rusty ladder on the shaft wall leading to a square maintenance opening above, about eight meters above the ground.

"We're here." Scott put Emma Frost down and plopped down on the floor himself. "Finally, a place to catch my breath."

Ye Mo leaned against the well wall, panting heavily, his forehead covered in cold sweat. He looked up at the ladder, then looked back at the way he had come—in the distance, deep in the passage, he could vaguely see metallic reflections moving, accompanied by low footsteps.

"He's still chasing," Scott said in a low voice, "And he hasn't slowed down."

"But he took a detour," Ye Mo chuckled, panting. "That ice wall wasn't just for show. He either had to spend time breaking it, or he had to take a longer route through the side pipe network. Either way, it was a waste of time."

But he still came.

"Even if they come, we're not afraid." Ye Mo closed his eyes. "Our current position is in his blind spot. He'll have to rescan, locate, and then advance. We... just need to hold out for another ten minutes."

Scott glanced at him. "You think you can last another ten minutes? You'll be lying flat on your back in ten seconds."

"I don't need to hold on." Ye Mo opened his eyes. "You'll be the main force from now on. Once I've caught my breath, we'll go in two groups. You take Emma Frost up there first and provide support. I'll cover the rear."

"You're going to cover the rear? You can barely take two steps, what kind of rear cover are you?"

"I'm the bait," Ye Mo grinned. "If he really catches up, I'll jump into the water and pretend to be dead, then you can take her and run away."

"Don't give me that crap," Scott glared at him. "Last time you said you were bait, but you rushed in and took the particle beam yourself, leaving me no time to save anyone."

That was a special case.

"This is a special case! You're a walking medical malpractice case right now, don't try to be a hero."

As the two were arguing, Emma Frost suddenly moved.

Scott immediately leaned closer. "Awake? Emma Frost? Can you hear me?"

She didn't open her eyes, her brows furrowed, and her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she fell into a deep sleep.

"What a relief." Ye Mo breathed a sigh of relief. "If she had woken up now, I would have had to explain a ton of things."

"You're just trying to make things easy," Scott shook his head. "But... do you really think we can shake him off?"

"Not necessarily." Ye Mo stared at the maintenance hatch above the shaft. "But he won't be able to overwhelm us like before. We have a choice—when to run, where to run, and how to run. That's the key."

In the distance, the sound of impact rang out again, this time coming from the side pipes. The Yellowjacket did not launch a direct assault on the ice wall, but instead chose to go around it. However, he had clearly pinpointed the approximate location, and although his advance was slow, his determination was unwavering.

"He's here." Ye Mo straightened up, though his legs were still trembling. "Get ready to climb the ladder."

Scott nodded, hoisted Emma Frost onto his back, and tested the center of gravity. "I'll go first, you give me a push from below."

"Don't fall."

"Stop talking nonsense and hurry up."

Ye Mo reached out and supported Scott's feet, giving him a push. Scott gripped the ladder and climbed step by step, his movements slow but steady. His reflection shimmered on the water's surface, like a blurry black shadow.

Ye Mo stood there, looking up, one hand on the well wall, the other secretly reaching for his waist—there was an electromagnetic interference device there, not fully charged yet, but it could explode at a critical moment.

The footsteps grew closer.

He didn't turn around, but just whispered, "Come on, let's see who can take it longer."

Scott was halfway up the mountain when he suddenly heard a "splash" from below—it sounded like something had fallen into the water.

He suddenly looked down. "Ye Mo?"

At the bottom of the well, Ye Mo's figure had vanished. Only a ripple spread across the water's surface.