During the recruitment, Han Xiao knew that he would not be able to hide the recruitment from DarkStar. If the enemy wanted to barge into their camp alone, the most likely person to come would be Ember because his ability was the most suited for a group battle. All carbon element beings that were weaker than him would essentially be killed instantly. As such, Han Xiao got the majority of the mercenaries to aid Nagakin in saving Alvin. They would only be committing suicide if they stayed behind.
Only he would be able to restrain Ember. The longer he could restrain Ember, the higher the chances of Nagakin rescuing Alvin.
If he wanted to fight a battle of attrition, Han Xiao was extremely confident.
“Wait for me?” Ember’s expression was odd. “You want to hold me back alone?”
“Not really alone.” Han Xiao shrugged his shoulders. By his side, a light flashed, and Aroshia drifted beside him. Apart from her, there were another few useless mercenaries in another monitoring room with their attention focused on the screen.
Han Xiao had left them behind on purpose, and their mission was to ignite the explosives that were laid all around the building to hold Ember down. At that moment, their palms were completely soaked in sweat and their breathing heavy. The look of nervousness could be seen all over their faces.
It was understandable for them to be nervous. After all, the figure in the surveillance image was a Calamity Grade Super. If they had been standing in Han Xiao’s position, they probably would not even have been able to speak fluently. They could not help but feel nervous for Han Xiao.
The moment the enemy takes action, Black Star will be in danger.
If Black Star dies, we won’t be able to benefit from his connections.
Ember raised his finger and found out that there was no reaction from Aroshia when he used his Esper abilities. He then shook his head and said, “It turns out your trump card is this energy lifeform. Do you think that you can stop me like that?”
Han Xiao twiddled a compressed orb and said with a smile, “We never decided the victor in our previous battle. Could it be that you are afraid?”
As Ember heard that, he could not help but chuckle. He had already entered the next grade and was no longer the same as before. He did not understand where Han Xiao’s confidence came from. Could it be that Han Xiao thought that he was the same as before?
“Overestimating yourself.” Ember’s tone became cold. “Even though the rest aren’t here, it isn’t too bad to get rid of you. I will be able to fulfil a small wish of mine from the past. It won’t be too late for me to provide reinforcements after getting rid of you.”
A rustling sound could be heard as though there were numerous grains of sand rubbing against each other. However, this rustling sound quickly turned into the sound of rushing waves. Around Ember, countless carbon atoms had already formed a mysterious black cloud that was rapidly expanding.
The range of Ember’s Esper abilities was greater than before, and he could control it much more easily than before. Countless carbon atoms were stuck to the surface of his clothes and skin, and it was just like a weapon that he could bring around with him. He was not afraid of fighting in a place without any carbon.
“This is the strength of a Grade A Super…” The sound of the mercenaries gulping with nervousness could be heard. They felt a wave of pressure emanating from the screen, and their legs turned to jelly.
But the next moment, they saw Han Xiao’s body shaking and bolts of electricity being shot out in all directions. It accurately connected to the ceiling, ground, and the compressed orbs in every corner. With him as the center, he seemed to have formed a web of electricity!
Ka ka ka!
The next instant, hundreds of machines were activated. The scene was truly breathtaking!
Those compressed orbs had been set up by him before the battle!
The entire base was a trap that he had laid!
Chapter 486 - Fierce Battle
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Ka ka ka!
The sound of the machinery unfolding covered the sound of Ember’s carbon particles rubbing against each other.
Following the walls and corners, hundreds of artilleries slammed onto their pedestals. The three-pieced large caliber cannons gave out a sense of ferocity. The majority of the gunpowder artillery had been replaced with electromagnetic kinetic artillery, and there were ten additional laser light ray artilleries, providing higher penetrative force. [High Class Energy Control] had allowed Han Xiao to obtain the energy weapon technology.
Dong! Dong!
The artillery let out an angry howl as the large caliber cannons started to operate. The metallic hum of the turrets was reflected in the roar of the machinery.
Thirty to forty Black Panther mechanical beasts pounced out, their shoulder cannons spitting fire non-stop. On the ceiling, the mechanical spiders gleamed coldly as they scuttled around. Other than the Black Panther mechanical beast, Han Xiao was also able to manufacture smaller machines, such as the mechanical insect series. Other than spiders, he could also produce centipedes, scorpions, and wasps.
He only needed the blueprint of the mechanical spider for reference, and he could come out with the blueprints for other insect series by himself.
Phillip launched a unified attack, commanding all the machines to fire toward the ash.
The black carbon particles that were originally saturating the air contracted inward to form a sphere, with Ember wrapped inside it. The outer layer was made up of diamonds, and as the bullet rain cluster bombed it, the diamonds shattered, disintegrating into particles and reforming to fill the gaps. The capability of the shield seemed to be almost endless.
Seeing this, Han Xiao’s face twitched. This is the Carbon Shield? It’s practically cheating!
At this time, Ember’s indifferent voice could be heard inside the ball of diamonds. “Even if you planned a trap in advance, even if you are immune to my Carbon Deconstruction, in the face of my current strength, you only have one outcome… Defeat!”
Boom!
The next moment, the diamond sphere transformed into a black-colored wave, slapping down with a force that could destroy mountains. Dozens of the mechanical beasts were caught within, and they turned into a pile of scrap metal in the blink of an eye. Not only did the metal bear signs of being crushed, it also had grooves and marks, traces of violent tearing.
What a strange force this is. It can instantly cripple the armor of my mechanical beasts!
As this thought rang through Han Xiao’s head, he did not pause to observe further but slammed his palms together, releasing a compressed orb from each side of his hands. The orbs expanded to form thirty-two golden-white Hovering Shield Shuttles, which lined up in a circular manner around himself. They each spat out a thin ray of light, with every four beams combining into one, causing eight points of light to appear before Han Xiao’s body.
The connection between each light point caused a reaction to occur immediately. A glowing line strung the eight light points together, forming a circle. Within the light circle, a mirror-like golden protective light shield appeared, as though painted by an artist!
The black wave welled up, slamming on the golden shield. The scene resembled one where waves from the sea dashed against the reefs, only to be split apart to move on either side instead. Under Ember’s control, the split waves recombined behind Han Xiao, rushing from his back this time.
However, at that moment, the formation of the Hovering Shield Shuttles changed yet again. The eight light points were arranged in a 3D manner, forming shields surrounding Han Xiao’s figure. It formed a trapezoidal shape, causing the black wave to be unable to attack from any angle. While the trapezoid flickered every time that the waves hit it, it ultimately remained motionless.
“Hovering Shield Shuttle Formation, Halo Array!”
[High Class Energy Control] was one of the core knowledge of the Mechanic class. During this period of time, Han Xiao had bui
lt quite a few interesting toys, and this [Halo Array] could be considered a stronger version of the Sonic Sphere, integrating offense and defense into one.
Han Xiao squinted as he scrutinized the waves and finally understood the reason for its weird strength difference.
The black tide only existed as a wave on the surface. If one looked closer, they could see that some carbon particles inside had been transformed into diamond fragments, and supported by high speed spinning inside the waves, they turned into something resembled a circular saw. The cutting force was abnormally strong as a result.
This swathe of black contained at least a few hundred of such ‘diamond wheel saws’. Just like the undercurrent in a river, it would be difficult to notice without careful observation. It was no wonder the mechanical beasts had turned into scrap metal in an instant.
The significance of this was that if the wave was set to engulf a whole building, it would be able to turn it into rubble in a matter of seconds. This destructive power far exceeds that of its appearance on the surface, like a Golden Ant Colony that could strip an elephant down to its bare bones in a matter of seconds.
While he was confident in his tanky body, Han Xiao had no desire to let his tender skin be exposed to such a horrifying force.
They indeed live up to their names as Calamity Grades, to be able to have such control over conflicting operations of subtlety and aggressiveness. Ember was unable to achieve that in the past, but now he has more control over his abilities. I have to be more careful, Han Xiao reminded himself.
Even as the thoughts spun in his head, the Void Dragon Mechanical suit covered his body. He strode with large steps toward Ember in assault mode. There was no way of him breaking past Ember’s defense from mid range; he had to get within close range to be able to have a chance.
Aroshia turned into a stream of light, penetrating into the diamond sphere that enclosed Ember. The carbon particles within could only cause her energy body to swell up but were unable to perform an effective attack, since she was highly immune to physical damage after transforming into energy.
Hum!
The rays coming from an energy explosion shone out from within the diamond sphere.
Ember had eaten a close-range energy bomb from Aroshia. Unable to retreat, he could only choose to deactivate his diamond sphere, turning it into a flat shield to ensure his visibility. He felt extremely uneasy in the presence of Aroshia, whose energy form made her immune to physical damage.
Numerous bullets sparked on the surface of Ember’s diamond shield, ricocheting off with metallic noises. Ember glanced over the scene once before waving his hand. The carbon particles surrounding him wildly spread out, no longer clustering together. They turned into a black colored sandstorm, drilling into the various machines and destroying their internal circuits.
Buzz!
Sparks flew out as a large number of machines became crippled.
Ember coldly laughed. “The battle has ended.”
As long as he managed to destroy all the machinery, the Mechanic class would become akin to a tiger whose teeth and claws had been pulled out.
While Black Star could mitigate his abilities, he could do the same to Black Star!
However, upon casting his eyes forward, Ember found out that Han Xiao seemed to have no intention to stop, as though he was indifferent toward what had happened.
With quick footwork, Han Xiao rushed up to Ember as a complicated machine unfolded in the palm of his hand. This melee weapon was very thick and almost two meters in length. It resembled a giant knife with a hand guard, but the shape was more futuristic, akin to a rifle with a barrel. This was a weapon in that category, named [High Frequency Strike Cannon], a multipurpose, close-range weapon.
This new equipment replaced his original electromagnetic scythe, which could not keep up with his strength.
The blade of the weapon was a protective shell covering the inner structure. The blade inside consisted of a high-frequency oscillation, which was hard to trace, carrying a strong cutting force. Along the side of the blade were two rows of holes, and each time the blade came into contact with the target, those holes would spew out gunpowder to ignite and cause an explosion.
The gunpowder could also cause internal heating, resulting in an electromagnetic overclocking of the equipment, allowing it to enter a second stage of Super power output, something akin to a Great Release 1 .
Surrounded by sparks and carrying lightning within, it was violent.
Boom boom boom!
One strike after another rained down, and the explosions continued unabated as Ember repeatedly used his diamond shield to resist. His brow was slightly furrowed. His forte did not lie in melee battles, so he attempted to retract the particles to surround his body, trying to sabotage Han Xiao’s armor. However, the Sonic Spheres that followed Han Xiao disrupted the particles, foiling his scheme.
Sound waves were constantly released toward Han Xiao, forming an invisible shield around him. The moment that the carbon particles neared him, they would be forcefully repelled, bouncing off instead of adhering to the surface of his mechanical suit.
The three of them seemed to have rolled into a ball from the fighting. Ember’s expression no longer showed ease, as Han Xiao was giving him more trouble than expected. It seemed like he was not the only one who had improved. He had originally thought that he would be able to eliminate Black Star quickly, but to think that he was tangled up with him now!
In Ember’s original vision, only Nagakin would pose some trouble. Now, he found out that Black Star was also not easy to deal with. However, Ember thought that this was a good chance!
To be able to discover this point sooner was a blessing, compared to being caught off guard.
Because the enemy soldiers had split in two, Black Star had taken the risk to hold Ember up. However, he did not have many helpers with him. Thus, this could be considered the best chance to get rid of a strong enemy.
As he thought up to this point, the look in Ember’s eyes changed.
He had initially wanted to resolve this quickly and meet up with Anur once more, but now, he would not mind putting in some more time to remove any possible hindrances.
At this time, a carefree laugh suddenly rang out from Han Xiao.
“Ah-ha, that’s a good look you have there. I feel more killing intent. It seems like you’re finally willing to waste more time with me.”
“I certainly do not think it a waste of time,” Ember coldly replied. “The majority of your machinery has gone to waste, and I can destroy your mechanical suit sooner or later. By that time, what other methods will you show me?”
“What other methods, you say?” Han Xiao chuckled twice before his tone suddenly turned ferocious. “Then, I’ll let you experience it firsthand!”
Hum!
His Mechanical Force gushed out, and as though a shockwave of electricity, it swept across all the machinery present.
The next instant, the crippled machines were reactivated with [Waste Modification], and all of the weapons came back to life, awaiting orders!
The War Mechanic Class was one that was borne from war itself!
The mechanical roar resounded once again!
Ember was caught unprepared and was blasted flying. His face was blackened with soot, and he quickly blocked the follow-up attacks using this Esper abilities. While it was not a huge problem…
… he had indeed been injured!
Ember suddenly looked up, the anger blazing within his pupils.
The pain that he was suffering awakened his body’s memory of Han Xiao.
The shame and humiliation that he suffered, which he had gradually forgotten, came rushing back like a tsunami!
Chapter 487 - I Do Not Believe Heroes Cannot Fall to Their Deaths!
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
The enthusiasm from the duo’s battle radiated outward, causing the mercenaries that were hidden in the surveillance room to stare with their
mouths hanging agape.
Black Star could actually fight equally against a Calamity Grade Super‽
The first thought that came into everyone’s minds was that the opponent might not be so strong after all. While they had never seen the full capabilities of a Calamity Grade Super, they had heard many rumors about their frightening powers and how Grade B Supers were effortlessly destroyed in front of them.
However, looking at the battle between Han Xiao and Ember, maybe the rumors about the Calamity Grade Super’s combat capability were simply overexaggerated.
This gave the mercenaries some form of confidence.
“I want to go down and help.” A bearded mercenary suddenly stood up, withdrawing his gun from its holster.
Everyone else had a strange look on their face. While the enemy was not as strong as expected, it was definitely safer to be seated where they were. W hy do you have to seek danger?
The bearded mercenary glanced at everyone, secretly disdainful. He thought that this was a godsent opportunity!
Since there was little danger, going down to help meant showcasing his good side to Black Star. If he left a deep enough impression, he might be invited to join the Black Star Mercenary Group!
This person thus hurriedly left the surveillance room. Nobody else dared to lecture him, turning their attention back to the surveillance cameras.
When the bearded mercenary reached the battlefield, the atmosphere made him feel a little nervous, causing him to start regretting his decision. He took a deep breath before telling himself that riches were obtained through encountering dangers.
Following which, he barged through the door loudly, firing continuously at Ember’s back as he shouted, “Black Star, I’m here to reinforce you! Quickly….”
Pa!
In the blink of an eye, before the bearded mercenary could even finish speaking, his body ‘collapsed’. Dust leaked out from within his clothes.
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