Ch. 137 - The Brute

"Scatter! Everyone scatter!"

Ji Yu shouted loudly. As the most experienced Ascender besides Han Shu, even Cang Du had no doubt about her orders, and the others followed suit.

Including Tianyang, the entire team dispersed. The interior of the building was spacious enough. Especially in the area where the squad was now, it seemed like an office hall with a wide space and many desks and chairs.

Of course, these objects have long since become decayed and fragile due to the passage of time. Even the metal items were covered in rust.

The wires that had once been hidden in the ceiling now hung like poisonous snakes, dangling from the cracked gaps in the shadows.

Once everyone had scattered, they had more space to maneuver.

Tianyang and Cang Du drew their weapons, while Ji Yu pulled back her bowstring. Then Yang Bing and the other troops spread out behind the Ascenders, crouching low with their rifles aimed at the spot where the wall had cracked open.

Everyone was on high alert!

A roar came from within the wall, and the massive hammer swept across, causing the wall to collapse like paper.

It emerged from the wall, and through the gap, it could be seen that behind the wall was a small room resembling a break room.

Had it been resting there all this time, only awakened by Raven Squad?

The creature resembled a human brute, but even the strongest person Tianyang had ever seen, like Adam, was a size or two smaller in comparison.

It had exaggeratedly broad shoulders, thick and long arms, and a slightly hunched figure with slightly bent knees.

However, anyone who saw it could be certain that it was not a human.

Because no human would have two metal objects like jet engine pipes installed on their back. Nor would anyone wear a face mask welded shut with metal bars, let alone have a face with no eyes or nose, only a mouth that continuously roared.

Additionally, there was a device on its chest that resembled a mechanical engine. When the blood-red light in the center of the device lit up, the two pipes on its back expelled black smoke.

It was as if, beneath that flesh, there was a precise machine!

"Biological and mechanical characteristics," Ji Yu whispered. "Be careful, this is a Level 3 threat. It represents violence, with inhuman strength, and its power can easily destroy a building. Don't—"

Before she could finish, Cang Du had already charged forward. He dashed ahead, his long ponytail flying straight behind him, and his Springwater Longsword dragging along the ground, sparking as he neared the brute.

The silver-white star essence on the ponytailed youth's right wrist flared, and with an explosive burst of energy, Cang Du slashed at the brute's shoulder, where it held the hammer.

His intent was clear, disarm the brute first.

Clang!

Although the Springwater Longsword struck the brute's shoulder, cutting through its skin and drawing a spurt of blood, the sound that followed was the clash of metal. It seemed there really was machinery beneath the brute's skin. The Springwater Longsword was deflected, and the brute lifted its hammer in a wild horizontal swing, forcing Cang Du into a panicked retreat.

Barely dodging the powerful hammer, Cang Du hadn’t yet caught his breath when the brute kicked him in the chest.

Cang Du was sent flying back to where he had come from!

The immense force, like a flood, hurled him back like a cannonball, smashing through several desks and chairs before coming to a halt. Struggling to clutch his chest, his face suddenly twisted, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Don't, don't engage it head-on! Idiot!" Ji Yu finally finished her earlier sentence and then released her bowstring. A star essence arrow shot through the air, aimed precisely at the brute’s mouth beneath the mask.

The arrow pierced through the back of the brute’s head, but the mouth under the mask bit down, snapping the arrow, and the star essence energy dissipated into the air.

Using Ji Yu's attack as a signal, Yang Bing and the others unleashed their full firepower, beams of star essence forming a fan-shaped web of fire from different directions.

The brute was caught at the center of this web of firepower, with the rapid-firing beams of blue light from the assault rifles converging on its body.

The brute lowered its center of gravity, using both hands to shield its head and chest, allowing the beams to strike its other parts.

Beams that could pierce through walls only burned teacup-sized wounds on the brute's body. Its flesh couldn't stop the beams, but beneath the charred skin, complex mechanical components were revealed, providing an answer to the team.

Even so, the fact that the brute's mechanical parts could withstand star essence beams left everyone puzzled. At the same time, a sense of dread grew. What could have caused the creation of such a hybrid of biology and machinery?

The existence of dark creatures was truly baffling!

After a barrage of concentrated fire, the soldiers' gas magazines were depleted. As they reloaded, the brute finally lowered its hands, and from beneath the metal mask came a chilling roar.

The device on its chest glowed even brighter, and red lines of light appeared on its body, spreading like veins and flowing like liquid toward its hands.

When the brute gripped the hammer and raised it high, a nearly black, deep red glow had condensed on the rough metal head of the hammer!

The hammer came crashing down.

In everyone's eyes, aside from the scarlet light, no other color could be seen.

The building was shaking, and trembling, and from the ceiling and around every support column, clouds of dust were desperately falling.

Suddenly, the floor of the hall erupted like a volcano, an invisible yet immense force surged forth, shattering the tiles of the hall floor into pieces!

Tianyang, who had originally tried to circle around the brute to attack it from behind, Ji Yu, who had been drawing her bow to hold the target, Cang Du, who had gotten back up to face the enemy, and the soldiers who were reloading their magazines...

All of them felt their footing gave way and their bodies uncontrollably falling downward. The brute’s hammer had shattered the floor of this level, and amidst cries of alarm, everyone plummeted to the level below.

Tianyang managed to disperse the impact of his fall with several rolls. Suddenly, his heart raced as the shadow beneath his feet rapidly expanded!

His mind went blank, and before the thought even had a chance to form, his body instinctively reacted.

A large forward roll allowed Tianyang to dodge the brute descending from above and its massive hammer, which could easily crush a person into a pulp.

This time, the brute didn’t use its abilities, so the hammer only created a three-meter-wide, irregular hole in the ground.

As Tianyang quickly regained his posture, the brute was already striding toward the boy, hammer raised, swinging it in a wide arc as it came crashing down.

Tianyang precisely calculated the angle and timing of the hammer’s descent and dodged away just before it could smash him into a paste.

The brute roared as it relentlessly targeted Tianyang. Its destructive power was terrifying—every hammer strike left another hole in the floor.

However, its speed was lacking, and its movements were overly broad, giving Tianyang ample opportunity to evade in advance.

Once again dodging an attack, the blade of the Crimson Moon sword in Tianyang’s hand glowed with a crimson light.

As Ji Yu drew her bow once more, she saw a streak of red light slice across the brute’s left leg, causing its leg to twist unnaturally to one side.

Tianyang was somewhat surprised that even with the sharpness of Crimson Moon and the high-temperature cutting, he still couldn’t completely sever the brute’s leg. But the strike had still damaged its limb.

Sure enough, the brute’s left leg knelt to the ground, making it difficult for it to move, and even harder to hit its target.

This made the situation increasingly dire for the monster.

From a distance, Ji Yu’s arrows provided cover. Nearby, Cang Du re-entered the fray, and along with Tianyang, the two circled the brute. Whenever there was an opening, they would slash or strike it.

After enough strikes, the brute’s movements became slower and slower.

While attacking, Tianyang observed the monster. In his vision, the brute’s body began to fade. Beneath its flesh, he could see the intricate machinery. The parts and metal components gradually disappeared, leaving only the engine-like machine in the brute’s chest!

Tianyang was unsure. Could that machine be another form of a Will Prison?

However, with the engine at the brute’s chest, it was nearly impossible to destroy it from the front, especially with that massive hammer it wielded.

And the chest area was exactly within the hammer's attack range!

If he got hit, especially if the brute used its abilities, he would surely die heroically.

Tianyang wasn’t ready to die yet. He hadn’t forgotten the promise he made to Xun, so he circled to the monster’s back. While the brute’s attention was divided between Ji Yu and Cang Du, the boy raised the Death Bell.

He aimed the barrel at the brute’s back and fired!

A thunderous shot echoed through the building. Even with Uncle Iron's modifications, the recoil of the massive handgun still caused Tianyang’s arm to jerk upwards.

But compared to back in Gemstone Town, the recoil was much reduced, and at least it didn’t send Tianyang’s feet off the ground as dramatically.

A bright burst of light exploded from the brute’s back. Flesh, metal armor, internal components, and pipes were blasted into fragments.

The brute was slammed to the ground by the immense force of the explosion, and from behind, a head-sized hole could be seen in its back.

Whether it was blood or some kind of oil, a thick, viscous liquid was oozing from the hole. Sparks were spraying from its body, like a machine on the verge of breaking down!

Even so, the brute still hadn’t died. Suddenly, it pushed itself off the ground with its left hand. With a powerful leap, it swung the hammer in a wild sweep behind it.

Tianyang quickly leaped backward, but then he noticed that the hammer was enveloped in a dark red glow.

The glow flashed, and a massive invisible wave surged through the air. Tianyang had barely crossed his arms when the wave slammed into him, sending him flying as if struck by a war chariot.

His nose felt hot, his mouth tasted of blood, and blood flowed from his nose and mouth. Tianyang crashed to the ground, having taken the brute’s ability head-on. Even though he wore protective armor and had undergone one enhancement of his physical abilities, his body was now limp and weak, unable to get up.

At that moment, the brute’s two jet pipes emitted thick smoke, and the engine device on its chest glowed even brighter.

A violent and intense energy radiated from the monster.

The color drained from Ji Yu’s face, and she cried out in horror, "No, it’s going to self-destruct!"

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