The laughter was still echoing in the training area when, just as Tony regained his footing, Ye Mo's pupils shrank to pinpoints.
The ice floe didn't continue crawling—it suddenly accelerated!
It seemed to come alive, rushing along the crack in the ground, heading straight for the main control line interface. Five meters, three meters, one meter away... Just as it touched the metal connector, the entire ice layer suddenly shuddered, exploding into a pale blue arc of electricity.
Snap!
The base lights flickered, the monitor screen went black for half a second, and the alarm sounded three seconds late, piercingly loud enough to make your eardrums tingle.
"Damn!" Tony growled, "EMP pulse! This thing has a brain!"
Ye Mo didn't speak. The ice core that was spinning in his palm exploded instantly, turning into a ring of ice waves that swept across the ground, severing the spreading ice path with a crack. The cold air seeped back along the fracture surface, freezing the remaining conductive structure.
He closed his eyes and unleashed his full mental power.
The Telepathy spread out like a net, instantly sweeping across the outer walls, pipes, and roof vents. Seventeen targets, all dressed in gray-black combat uniforms, with breathing masks covering their faces, and carrying electromagnetic guns and breaching hammers, were pressing in from three directions.
One of the leaders thought to himself, "Database priority, Mr. X must be captured alive."
Ye Mo opened his eyes, his voice extremely low. "It's not a trap, it's a signal. They're using ice as a beacon to guide their invasion route."
Tony sneered, "I knew it! Who would be so bored as to stick ice pops on someone else's wall? Turns out it's a home delivery service."
After he finished speaking, he raised his hand and the storage compartment opened with a roar. The MK armor module shot out and automatically assembled in the air. Armor plates snapped onto his body one by one, blue light flowed at the joints, and the energy core emitted a deep hum.
"What's the situation on your end?" Tony asked while calibrating the system.
"The east gate is the main attack direction; twelve people, equipped with heavy demolition equipment." Ye Mo quickly brought up the control panel projector. "The other two teams, six through the underground pipes and four climbing up the roof ventilation shafts, are trying to flank the server area."
Are drone swarms still usable?
"That EMP attack only affected a localized area; the defense system is still functioning." Ye Mo swiped his finger across the screen. "I manually activated the patrol group and sealed off the courtyard passage."
"Alright, you have three minutes to set up the defenses." Tony stretched his shoulders, the armor clicking as it meshed. "After that, clearing the area is my job."
"Don't be too reckless." Ye Mo turned and walked to the hidden cabinet in the corner, opened the drawer, took out a tactical vest and put it on, followed by wristbands, leg braces, and an energy suppressor bracelet. Finally, he touched the silver half-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose and said in a low voice, "System, enter combat cooldown monitoring."
[ Ice Manipulation Ability restored to 87%, Telepathy unburdened.]
He nodded, and with a flick of his finger, an ice spike materialized in his palm. It was about thirty centimeters long, with sharp edges, and held as steadily as a knife hilt in his hand.
At that moment, a heavy thud came from the outer corridor.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
A high-frequency vibrating hammer struck the alloy door, each blow causing the wall to tremble slightly. The structural stress alarm began flashing red, and tiny cracks were already appearing in the door seams.
Ye Mo strode back to the main control area and stood to Tony's right.
"Do you think this counts as suicide?" Tony's helmet glowed red, and the palm cannons hummed as they charged.
Ye Mo raised his hand, twirling the ice spike between his fingers before firmly grasping it. "Let them try to see if they can get out alive."
Before the words were finished, a tearing sound of metal came from the roof ventilation shaft.
Splash--
A metal plate was blown away from the outside, and two dark figures tumbled to the ground, quickly setting up their electromagnetic guns and aiming at the control room glass.
Almost simultaneously, a muffled explosion was heard from the direction of the underground pipeline, and smoke billowed out from the inspection port.
"They're here," Ye Mo said in a low voice.
Tony raised his arm, his palm-sized cannon aimed at the ceiling. "Shoot the ones in the sky first."
"Wait," Ye Mo reached out to stop them, "They're just feinting. The real breakthrough is ahead."
Sure enough, the banging outside the door suddenly intensified.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
After the four consecutive blows, the alloy door emitted a piercing metallic twisting sound, and a vertical crack appeared in the center, with the edges already beginning to curl up.
Ye Mo took half a step back and placed his hands on the ground.
A burst of cold air erupted, spreading Speed along the floor and forming an arc-shaped ice wall in front of the main control area, half a meter thick, its surface gleaming coldly. He flicked his fingertip, and several weak currents seeped into the ice layer, forming a simple tactile warning network—he would immediately sense if anyone touched it.
"Alright." He stood up, gripping the ice spikes tightly once more.
Tony glanced at the data panel: "The drone swarm is in position, and the two on the roof have been locked."
"Don't fire yet." Ye Mo stared at the doorway. "Let them think we're being held back from the front."
Tony grinned. "Acting, huh? That's my specialty."
He deliberately raised his voice. "Hey! You guys outside! Do you know whose door you're kicking down? This is private property! Trespassing! I'm going to sue you until your own mothers don't recognize you!"
Ye Mo almost burst out laughing, but quickly composed himself.
The banging outside the door stopped for a moment.
The other party was clearly taken aback.
In that brief silence, Ye Mo's mental energy quietly extended outwards, following the ice wall's early warning network to detect the signal source. He discovered a faint data link connecting the enemies, resembling some kind of synchronized command system.
He also noticed that one of the commanders was wearing a special glove on his left hand with the Hellfire Club's hidden markings.
"No wonder the frequencies overlap," he thought. " Hydra and Hellfire have hooked up."
Just then, Tony suddenly lowered his voice and said, "Those two on the roof moved."
Ye Mo nodded. "Let one of them in, keep the other as bait."
Tony chuckled. "You're becoming more and more like those old foxes from S.H.I.E.L.D.."
"I learned it." Ye Mo squinted. "After all, I hang out with Black Widow every day."
The two tacitly fell silent and waited quietly.
Outside the door, the cracks were getting bigger and bigger.
Finally, with a loud crash, the alloy door was smashed open, and three Hydra special forces members rushed in, armed with electromagnetic guns. They quickly spread out, one providing cover while the other two advanced.
Ye Mo stood motionless behind the ice wall.
Tony didn't move either, slowly pressing down with his palm cannon.
When the enemy closed to within ten meters, the leader raised his hand to prepare for a volley.
Just then--
A short, sharp scream came from the direction of the roof ventilation shaft.
Immediately afterwards, a dark figure fell from above, crashing heavily into the center of the hall. It was the intruder from before. His body was wrapped in Silk- like ice threads, and he was frozen solid, cracking several times upon impact with the ground.
The remaining two special forces soldiers suddenly looked up.
Chance!
Ye Mo waved his right hand, and dozens of ice spikes instantly extended from the top of the ice wall, shooting out in a fan shape. The two enemies reacted very quickly, immediately rolling to dodge, but one of them was still hit in the shoulder and fell to the ground.
Taking advantage of the moment, Tony activated flight mode, skimmed low into the air, and blasted the ceiling with a palm strike, detonating the pre-programmed power supply to the drone swarm. A flash of bright light illuminated the entire hall briefly.
Taking advantage of the chaos, Ye Mo dodged around the ice wall, his left hand touching the ground, the cold air spreading again, and the ground quickly frosted over. He flicked his right hand with an ice spike, accurately hitting the ankle of another enemy lying on the ground, freezing it solid with a crack.
The man struggled to reach for his gun, Ye Mo stepped forward, stomped on his wrist, and pressed an ice spike against his mask.
"Who sent you?" he asked.
The other party gritted their teeth and remained silent.
Ye Mo pressed down hard, the ice spikes pressing against the gaps in the mask. "Last chance."
The communication channel suddenly became static.
" Mr. X... we've been waiting for you for a long time."
It's an electronically synthesized sound.
Ye Mo's eyes turned cold.
Tony landed beside him, his armor clicking. "Looks like you're a key client."
"I don't recall ordering this service," Ye Mo sneered.
Just then, footsteps came from the direction of the underground pipes, in unison, indicating that at least six people were approaching.
Outside the main gate, new enemies began to gather, clearly preparing for a second wave of attack.
Tony looked around. "We're surrounded now."
"Then let's flip the table." Ye Mo retracted his ice spikes and stood up straight. "You attack from the front, I'll flank from the side and take out the commander."
How did you know where the commander was?
"His gloves gave him away." Ye Mo pointed to the prisoner's left hand on the ground, "A special Hellfire model, only two pairs available citywide."
Tony was taken aback. "You know about luxury goods?"
"Before I transmigrated, I was a poor student, but I watched live streams."
Tony laughed, "Alright, you go catch them, I'll make a scene."
The two stood back to back.
The lobby lights flickered on and off, and the alarm continued to blare.
Outside the door, another crashing sound rang out.
This time, it's not a hammer.
It was the sound of hydraulic propulsion from some kind of heavy machinery, deep and powerful, each thrust feeling like stepping on your heartbeat.
Ye Mo gripped the ice spikes tightly, his breathing steady.
Tony raised his arms, simultaneously charging his palm cannons and shoulder cannons, illuminating the entire space with blue light.
The metal door began to deform as a whole, its edges detaching from the frame, and dust fell in clumps.
Just as the door was about to collapse, Ye Mo whispered:
"Count to three, then all together."