Apocalypse: I Built the Infinite Train
Chapter 348: Mechanical Team

20:35. The 14th Inner Tide has begun. The dead-silent mountain city rotted quietly under the pitch-black darkness. Strange butchering sounds echoed through the alleys, and from the shadows, the outlines of many-legged creatures occasionally flickered. In the underground morgue of Baicheng Hospital, the Unified Train Exploration Squad and several key members of Silent City were huddled together, faces tense, discussing the plan. As more intel was decrypted, the current situation became increasingly dire.

Lin Xian had been right—the memory cores retrieved from the first two transport ships were all cannon fodder. Their key mission data had been wiped, leaving behind only traces of personality consciousness and fragmented memories—basically useless. But the missile that Lu Xingchen had snatched back at the last moment? That was the real key.

With the help of ACS and Grace for decoding, followed by data processing by Moonlight Shinji, they discovered that a catastrophe, catalyzed by the fanatical Descent Faction, was brewing inside the Abyss Zone No. 5 beneath the Tidal Sky Canopy.

Cross-referencing possible intel from Silent City, they inferred that the Crimson World had been conducting brutal and bloody human experiments through mycelial mediums, and had even obtained a sample of living tissue called Umbra-Cell from Baicheng's Hive Research Institute.

They still didn't know the true purpose behind the Crimson World's cultivation of this living tissue—only that the experiment seemed to have provoked an Abyssal Fiend. If the Great Purge System at the wastewater plant were triggered, it was certain that all of Baicheng, including Silent City, would be swept into the chaos. If they were all marked with a Level-5 Mark, then Moonlight Shinji's fallback plan involving the sacrifice of a floating city to cover their evacuation would be ruined.

So right now, it wasn’t about how much critical experimental intel they could retrieve from the Crimson World's memory core or what effect the Umbra-Cell might have.

At this moment, they had only one thing left to consider: escape.

“So, you’re telling me we have just one hour after the tide recedes at 21:05 to get into the wastewater plant, disable their so-called purge system, and evacuate after that?” Qian Dele flicked away a burial shroud from one of the corpses on the table and leaned on the slab, his voice skeptical. “One hour to relocate both the Unified Train and Silent City? That’s not realistic, is it?”

“Not happening,” Senju Shun replied flatly. “Lin means that by disabling the purge system, we’ll earn ourselves another tide cycle. As long as we’re not flagged with a high-level mark, we’ll still have a shot at evacuation.”

“What the h*ll did those people do to provoke an Abyssal Beast?!” KIKI snapped. “Being trapped in the Abyss was already bad enough, and now this mess? They’re unbelievable!”

Chen Sixuan stayed unusually calm. “But didn’t we say earlier that there’s a Fish-Tail Colossus above the wastewater plant? How are we dealing with that?”

“I remember you guys saying that it only triggers when observed. So... as long as we don’t look at it, we’re fine?” Monica added.

Amano Ran crossed her arms. “Actually, we’ve only encountered that thing once. But Shinji did say that if they figured out a way to send living people in, then there’s gotta be a method.”

“Living people? Is that... is that even considered ‘alive’?” Ning Jing frowned at the replicant curled inside the rocket cryo-chamber. Its brain was hooked to an interface and mycelial network, limbs completely modified. The massive G-force from the rocket had nearly torn the body apart—now it was a pulpy mess, kept barely alive by some kind of life-support device protecting the heart and brain. According to Moonlight Shinji, this was nothing more than a Living Delivery Package—its only value was the memory core and the Umbra-Cell sample in its blood culture.

Lu Xingchen, fresh from his heroic feat, sat slumped in Senju Shun’s heavy mech. Though Shiori had purified him with her ability, he still lacked the energy to speak.

Senju Shun turned to Lin Xian, exhaled, and said,

“Lin, besides intercepting the purge command, we’ve got another problem. We don’t know where that Abyssal Fiend is... or how long we’ve got left.”

BOOM!

A sudden thunderclap shattered the silence. The tremor could be felt throughout Baicheng, even by those gathered around the corpse chamber.

Chen Sixuan’s eyes dropped toward the floor. “Maybe... it’s already beneath Baicheng.”

Everyone turned to look at Ning Jing, who went momentarily quiet, then raised her voice toward Senju Shun.

“Senju Shun, how long will it take to launch the Unified Train, accelerate, and dock?”

[According to the current convoy prep status, the train needs to exit the defense perimeter and initiate the Superconducting Magnetic Anchor Array, which requires trajectory corrections based on noisy field feedback from launch coordinates. This will consume the majority of the timeline. Estimated total time: about 21 minutes and 40 seconds. If complications arise, it could extend by up to 30 minutes unless Lin personally handles the rail construction.]

Twenty minutes. Normally, that would’ve been bad news for Ning Jing—the team could’ve escaped quickly via Baicheng’s rail lines. But now, it felt too long. She had to personally pilot the Infinite Train. Letting others handle rail-laying would only waste precious time. Most importantly, once they got outside the defense zone, there’d be no risk of triggering a Monster Tide.

But 30 minutes? The casualties might be catastrophic, especially if that serpent messed things up.

Just as Lin Xian was about to ask Moonlight Shinji for input, his voice came through first.

“Alright then. The bunker can finish evacuation in 40 minutes. It’ll take 25 minutes to reach Silent City. Startup time for Silent City is negligible—I can activate the core engine in advance. The issue is, once Silent City is powered up, it may attract more attention than the Crimson World’s purge system. Lin, I get it—disabling the purge system is critical. But trying to do everything at the same time is risky... There are just too many variables.”

Lin Xian shook his head with a wry smile. “I know. I never expected to solve it all in one go. But even if we get into the plant, we still don’t know what the purge system is. Whether we can disable it is one thing. Even if we do, if the beast has already been stirred, your hydrogen bomb decoy plan has to go early. And let’s be honest—Crimson World wants us buried in the Abyss. Who knows what else they’ve got up their sleeve? We might only get one shot—this time gap. With your computational power, you must’ve already figured it out. The longer we wait, the worse the odds, right?”

Silence. Everyone from Silent City went quiet. In the bunker’s control room, Moonlight Shinji said nothing as he stared at the screen, watching Lin Xian in his power armor, fingers tapping rhythmically on his crossed arms.

A few seconds later, he smiled faintly and exhaled.

“You’re right. From a probability standpoint, everything’s stacking against us. Time to prepare for retreat. Let me check the time—20:40. The next tide cycle ends at 21:05. So we’ve got 85 minutes. I’ll use the next 40 minutes to get everyone in the bunker ready for evac, including those merchants.”

Lin Xian checked his watch too. “I’ll get the Unified Train ready. As soon as the tide drops, I’ll head to the wastewater plant with Shun and the others, then rush back to the rail zone and wait for your Magnetic Anchor Array.”

“So we’re really pulling out during the next tide?” Amano Kin looked stunned. “That’s...”

“No better option, Kin.” Senju Shun gave a helpless smile. “Once Silent City starts up, it’ll definitely attract an S-Class Eerie Entity or the Abyssal Overlord itself. But if we don’t start it up, the Unified Train can’t get through. That Abyssal Fiend is closing in—we can’t just wait around. Compared to that thing, the Tidal Storm is the lesser threat.”

Hearing this, Amano Kin nodded slowly and let out a breath. “You’re right.”

Lin Xian turned to Ning Jing. Their eyes met, and they nodded in agreement. Then he sent the final plan to the Unified Train team stationed in the Dark Forest.

Once the message arrived, Shi Diyuan and the others immediately grasped the severity of the situation. The atmosphere in the previously calm camp grew tense. Convoy leaders quickly passed the word down, and every position started prepping according to the contingency plan crafted by Grace and Lin Xian.

“15 minutes left.”

Senju Shun piloted the ACS robot forward and projected a full holographic map—it was a panoramic view of the wastewater treatment plant. Lin Xian took one look and could tell they had clearly done a lot of prep and reconnaissance beforehand.

“Based on our observations, there are barely any Eerie Entities within a 500-meter radius of the plant. So we suspect the Colossus was intentionally drawn to that spot. It hasn’t moved for a long time.

But for some reason, it's been floating and spinning continuously—rotating about once every 2 to 3 minutes.”

“Wait... that sounds like a giant searchlight or something,” KIKI said, puzzled. “They’re using this thing to protect their lab? That’s pretty nuts.”

“It really is,” Lin Xian turned to Senju Shun. “What’s the field of view on this Colossus?”

Senju Shun gave a resigned smile. “You’ve got me there. Like we said before, the Crimson World collected this data at the cost of human lives. We honestly don’t know much about it.”

“And the place is heavily armed. Just drones or mechs alone won’t cut it.” Amano Ran twisted a mech component on her wrist and said grimly, “We tried drone reconnaissance before, but they all got intercepted by EMP defense systems.”

Lin Xian’s expression turned grim. Now he understood why even with Silent City’s elite forces, they still hadn’t been able to breach a facility guarding just a replicant.

Trapped inside the Abyss, with Inner Tide cycles, a terrifying Fish-Lion Colossus, and heavy firepower—it was like storming the gates of hell. He’d seen firsthand how even with his Black Hawk Armor, one glance at that thing had caused a complete reboot. No doubt the same would happen to other ability users.

“Wait—don’t your ACS and heavy mechs have microwave plasma shields? Shouldn’t they be immune to EMPs?” KIKI turned to Senju Shun.

He nodded. “Technically, yes. But once the mech enters the EMP zone, even if the mech itself isn’t disabled, I lose all control. I can’t get any data back either. The main issue is—we have no clue what’s inside. Compared to storming the lab, intercepting the transport ships has always been less risky and more effective. That’s why they pulled this stunt with the transport ship this time.”

Hearing that, Lin Xian understood Silent City’s hesitation. Their combat mechs weren’t just any machines—they were top-tier assets, remote-controlled via ACS, not true AI. Sending them in blind was a huge risk.

Then something clicked. He looked at Grace—and then at the similar robot they had seized from the Crimson World transport ship earlier. It had the same core architecture as Grace, and after a swift system overwrite with Grace’s OS, it could be activated on the spot.

“What about her?” He pointed.

“You mean...” Senju Shun furrowed his brow. “You want your AI Core to go in and disable the defense systems?”

Lin Xian took a deep breath. “I don’t believe any of us ability users can withstand electromagnetic cannons or rapid-fire auto-guns.”

He knew exactly what those things could do—he’d personally built multiple 1130 CIWS and G3 Electromagnetic Railguns. Against monster hordes, those weapons weren’t enough. But turned against humans? Against ability users? They were absolute death machines. In Akesai, they'd just wiped out an entire group of elite Sand Raiders using heavy weapons. Who among them could walk straight into Gatling firepower and survive?

Even in power armor, storming that place head-on was suicide.

“The plan is viable,” came Moonlight Shinji’s voice. “With the intelligence level of this Crimson Dancer Unit, she can handle the mission.”

Lin Xian smirked. “So you already thought of this and just waited for me to bring it up, huh?”

From the bunker control room, Shinji stood with his arms crossed. “Well, it’s your asset. Besides, you probably don’t realize the value of an AI Core with 8192 quantum capacity. Julius saw that robot earlier—Crimson World will never give up trying to retrieve it.”

“Then let them try.” Lin Xian said coldly, then turned to Grace. “Grace?”

Grace stepped forward, hands clasped behind her back, calm and composed.

[Understood. You want me to infiltrate the facility, disable its EMP defense and weapons systems, and perform internal reconnaissance. It’s a challenging task—but I accept.]

She turned toward the similar robot curled on the floor.

[Additionally, I recommend activating this Crimson Dancer-class combat robot as my support unit. Deploying as a team will improve mission success rates.]

“No problem.”

Lin Xian raised his hand, and the Dancer bot’s power module rebooted. Grace had already overwritten its system. As the power core hummed, its joints realigned and the unit stood up.

[Program booting...] The robot walked over and, in a flat mechanical tone, said: [Protocol accepted. Importing control matrix.]

Now, two Dancer-class robots stood side by side—both elegant and lethal, blending mechanical precision with a kind of unsettling aesthetic grace.

[You may name it, or we can call it Dancer Unit-01. It shares the same core protocols as me.] Grace added.

“Let’s go with that,” Lin Xian replied. He had no time to care about names right now.

“Lin.” Step. Step. (sound of approaching footsteps)

Just then, a few heavy mechas standing at the back stepped forward. Senju Shun pointed toward the ACS robot and said sincerely, “In that case, please bring along my mechas as well. Let the Crimson AI temporarily take over their command—I believe they might be of some use.”

Lin Xian glanced at him and nodded without hesitation. “Alright, let’s do that.”

With Senju Shun’s mechas assisting, the success rate would definitely be higher. Lin Xian didn’t want the valuable Crimson AI to be damaged either, but they had no better options. He understood that Senju Shun was showing his commitment to fight side by side.

Chen Sixuan spoke up, “Lin Xian, once the defense system is taken down, what about that colossus?”

KIKI offered a suggestion, “What if we just skip the surveillance part and drive a vehicle straight in?”

Ning Jing added, “The aircraft used by the Crimson World are fully sealed cabins. That might be intentional.”

Senju Shun nodded. “We’ve monitored their transport ships taking off. They launch while the colossus is rotated away from them. We could use that moment—but the timing has to be precise.”

“That’s exactly what I was thinking.”

Lin Xian checked the time and said, “Once the tide recedes, Grace will lead the machine squad through. KIKI and I will grab the two transport vehicles from that ship. Once the defense system is down, we’ll look for an opportunity to rush in.”

Since they didn’t know the exact surveillance angles, the best they could do was enter when the Fish-Lion Colossus had its back turned.

“Squads?”

“The fewer people, the better,” Lin Xian replied flatly. “That colossus emits strong Dark Invasion energy. Since it’s not manually operated, we don’t need too many inside. Just me, KIKI, and Fire Bro. The rest stay outside and hold off the Eerie Entities. Breaking into the research facility is bound to cause a stir.”

Senju Shun nodded. “In that case, Shiori and I will go with you. Lin, we can’t let you go in alone. Shiori can help resist the dark energy, and Shinji and I know the Crimson World and Baicheng best. Plus, without my mechas, I’m not much help out here anyway.” He said it all casually.

“Brother Lin, piloting this mecha myself is a bit... tough!” came Lu Xingchen’s urgent voice from inside a mecha.

“Oh, right, I almost forgot.” Senju Shun glanced at the mecha, then at Lin Xian.

Fire Bro had burned his Power Armor earlier and was now squeezed into one of Senju Shun’s Heavy Assault Mechs, which was slated for use in the operation. Obviously, Fire Bro couldn’t stay inside.

Just then, Qian Dele walked over, popped open his power armor, stretched, and said, “You can have this set. It’s way too stuffy for me anyway.”

His tone was half generous, half honest—he genuinely disliked the bulky armor, and it wasn’t even useful against the dark energy.

“Thanks, Brother Qian!” Lu Xingchen breathed a huge sigh of relief. He didn’t want to stay crammed in that heavy mech. But with his clothes burnt and shredded, stepping out in public was a hit to his Fire God image. He wasn’t the type to back out of a critical mission, so he’d been stuck—until Qian Dele’s move saved the day.

The plan quickly came together.

Grace would lead Dancer No.1 and a few heavy mechs to storm the Sewage Plant Research Institute and destroy the EMP and defense systems. Then Lin Xian, KIKI, Lu Xingchen, along with Senju Shun and Shiori from Silent City, would seize the chance to breach the colossus’ surveillance and enter.

Outside, Ning Jing, Xiao Qing, A Bai, Qian Dele, Monica, Ryunosuke, and Amano Ran would hold the line against the Eerie Entities and protect the evacuation corridor.

At 21:00, in the underground nuclear facility beneath Baicheng's western hills, personnel from Silent City, Hu Lushou, Lu Zhao, and others were intensely prepping for evacuation. Swarms of drones were neatly lifting supplies onto Silent City’s giant Evacuation Vehicles. Combat drones buzzed silently as they charged, lights flashing in unison—the whole bunker felt like a storm was about to break.

Meanwhile, Shinji Mochizuki stood silently in the control room. He could stand still like that for an entire day. His powerful quantum core—Silent Heart No.18— was constantly calculating. But it wasn’t focused on evacuation logistics or coordinating with Lin Xian’s team—those were trivial.

The bulk of its power was being used to compute solutions to the Dark Invasion equations, using data collected from every Abyss. Every second, countless hypotheses, simulations, and resets ran in cycles. Meanwhile, thousands of robots in the bunker’s automated labs were processing these experiments.

The bunker was essentially one massive AI experimental hub, and the teams from Silent City and Hu Lushou’s group were only a small part of it.

This was why Shinji brought his core team into the Abyss two months ago—not just to flee. He could’ve evacuated the entire City No.2 long before Silent City was dragged in. Senju Shun and the other core members knew it too—Shinji Mochizuki was locked in a game of chess against the Dark Dimension and the Crimson World!

In the morgue of Baicheng Hospital, Lin Xian checked the time. Only five minutes remained before the tide receded. At the velocity of rocket aircrafts, those dozens of missiles loaded with replicant cryo-pods would either have been destroyed or already left the Abyss. The Crimson World forces were likely already performing retrieval and confirmation operations at the targeted recovery zones.

Within a few minutes, the Purge Order might be transmitted to Baicheng Research Institute through covert signal relays. At that point, whether or not the purge triggered the Abyss Overlord didn’t even matter—a mass outbreak of Eerie Entities in Baicheng would be unavoidable.

For the Crimson World outside, each purge only took 12 to 24 hours.

But for Lin Xian and the Silent City crew still trapped inside the Abyss, that meant six or even twelve days. And for the Unified Train stationed in the Dark Forest by the Bottomless Lake, it could be even longer.

“Lin Xian.”

Chen Sixuan approached him. “Our train is pretty far from here. If the Baicheng Abyss loses control, the maglev leap system will take at least 20 to 30 minutes. Do you think we’ll make it?”

Lin Xian looked over. “You’re worried Shinji Mochizuki’s plan to use the floating city as a decoy will leave us behind?”

Chen Sixuan’s expression darkened slightly. She took a deep breath and voiced her concern. “I just think… if one of those monsters locks onto us, we probably won’t get any ‘perfect timing’ to slip through…”

“No worries,” Lin Xian comforted her. “As long as Silent City launches the Superconducting Magnetic Anchor Array, our train can break free. After that, how we run will be up to us. Silent City won’t be able to help.”

Chen Sixuan paused for a moment, then understood. Once Silent City was airborne, there was no way they’d wait to leave together with the train. According to the plan between Shinji Mochizuki and Lin Xian, the idea was for the Unified Train to land in Baicheng, after which the floating city would bait enemies with a hydrogen bomb plan. But if any S-Class Eerie Entities or the Abyss Overlord itself appeared, Silent City wouldn’t wait—they’d leave to survive.

So whether or not they could catch this window of opportunity… depended entirely on Lin Xian’s team.

“If worse comes to worst, I’ve got a few other methods,” Lin Xian said, noticing her unease.

“What methods?” Chen Sixuan asked in surprise.

“I’ll tell you when the time comes.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Lin Xian glanced at the electromagnetic cannon on his shoulder. This specially crafted weapon, named Flicker No.1, had been designed by Shinji Mochizuki specifically for use with silver bullets. Lin Xian figured if things got desperate, maybe this thing could help him dash back to the train lines and start up the Infinite Train.

“Lin.” Senju Shun called out.

21:04 — in the morgue, the team was watching the time closely. The imminent Purge Device activation loomed like a time bomb over everyone’s head. The tension was rising. Even the normally calm and composed Monica, the so-called queen of the train, looked visibly uneasy. This feeling of powerlessness—of not having control over life and death—was suffocating.

21:04:59

Time froze at 59 seconds.

59... 59...

21:05! Low tide!

A high-pitched vacuum-like ringing echoed in everyone’s ears. The ruins of the hospital and surrounding streets suddenly fell silent.

In that instant, everyone’s attention locked on Lin Xian.

He took a single step forward. “Grace, execute!”

【Understood】

Wham!

The secured doors opened layer by layer. Grace, Dancer No.1, an ACS robot, and three heavy mechs stormed outside. Within seconds, the sounds of mechanical clashes and eerie screeches erupted outside.

“Area clear. Split up,” Lin Xian turned and said to Ning Jing and the others.

Immediately, the team split into two squads. Ning Jing, Amano Ran, Ryunosuke, and others moved toward several key coordinates within the Sewage Treatment Plant, clearing the way and staying concealed. Meanwhile, Lin Xian headed toward the transport ship they'd secured earlier, with KIKI, to retrieve two transport vehicles.

These armored transports weren’t heavily armed, but that didn’t matter. They just needed something to break through the gates of the research facility.

【Target distance: 3 kilometers.】

Lin Xian and Senju Shun’s groups each boarded a vehicle. Grace continuously relayed intel.

At the same time, they drove toward the sewage plant.

Fire Bro sat in the back, eyes shut, regulating his breathing—ready for a fight. KIKI used the holographic system to guide Lin Xian using surveillance data from across the city, piped in via Silent City’s network.

“Lin Xian, turn left ahead. Ryunosuke and the others have cleared that path. We can cut through that unfinished building and wait for Grace’s signal.”

“Lin, let’s not get too far apart. This way Shiori can cover both vehicles,” Senju Shun’s voice came through.

“Got it!” Lin Xian replied, then kept driving into the shadows.

“Lin Xian, a large Eerie Entity spotted near the old factory building southeast of the sewage plant. Reroute via Peace Road,” reported Chen Sixuan from a rooftop, standing beside Ning Jing, watching a massive black figure hunched in the shadows, unmoving and ominous.

“There are floating creatures above Yulong Street Office Tower—B-Class, in a cluster. Ryunosuke and I didn’t engage. Other areas cleared,” said Amano Ran, crouched on a high-voltage tower with Ryunosuke hovering behind her.

“Robot squad about to breach.”

On a mall rooftop near the sewage plant’s main gate, Monica used her mech radar and abilities to track Grace’s movement. Her eyes fixed on the plant, where a floating colossus cast a looming shadow as it rotated slowly. She felt a terrifying wave of Dark Invasion energy sweeping toward them and immediately crouched, saying, “Adjust angle—approaching from due south.”

Lin Xian, monitoring multiple team positions and Grace’s updates, drove into an old factory and parked beneath a half-finished building. A short wall ahead blocked their view of the sewage plant.

Of course, in this darkness, "view" didn’t mean much. Just because Lin Xian couldn’t see the Fish-Lion Colossus didn’t mean it wouldn’t see them.

【Target distance: 1000 meters. Engaging tactical mode.】

Grace’s voice buzzed in Lin Xian’s earpiece.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

As Lin Xian stopped the car, a piercing alarm howled in the distance. At the same time, cannon fire roared—Grace had begun her assault!

Under the cover of night, the Baicheng Sewage Plant was deathly quiet, like an abandoned steel tomb. Rusted pipelines shimmered a sickly red under the moonlight.

Boom... boom... boom... Suddenly, heavy thuds shattered the silence—three Heavy Assault Mechs charged through the dense night fog straight at the facility gates.

The automated sentry systems hidden atop decaying factory structures detected incoming threats. In response, the whole plant seemed to moan awake.

Panels disguised as sludge beds snapped open violently. From them rose dual-mounted EMP cannons, black metallic claws reaching out from hell. Blinding blue-white arcs flared at their tips, exploding into a blizzard of light in the drone feeds.

On the gates and rooftops, auto-turrets swiveled out from concealment, unleashing a hail of suppressive fire.

BWAAANG!!!

Firepower tore into the oncoming mechs as red-eyed drone swarms burst from ventilation shafts, diving at the invaders like a plague.

ZRRRT! A burst of electromagnetic static roared across the airwaves. The EMP defense system had activated. Communications between Lin Xian’s squads were cut instantly. Even their vehicles’ motors stuttered and died.

But at the front lines, the three Heavy Mechs reacted swiftly—activating microwave plasma shields, while their mechanical arms morphed into thick alloy shields.

An instant later, thousands of shells exploded on impact—metal storms crashing down in a blinding flurry.

Despite their defenses, two of the mechs were torn apart within seconds, overwhelmed by the combined might of autocannons and EMP strikes.

Yet that sacrifice gave them the opening they needed.

Grace, Dancer No.1, and the ACS robot immediately counterattacked. Pulse lasers burst forth, targeting and annihilating auto-turrets.

From distant rooftops, Chen Sixuan used a sniper rifle to help clear firing positions. Monica, A Bai, and other ranged fighters joined the fray.

Soon, drone swarms, CIWS, and EMP guns were being torn apart one after another. Even the alarm system was silenced—Chen Sixuan sniped it clean through the darkness.

The battle shifted fast.

Grace and Dancer No.1 moved with deadly elegance—ghostly figures in the chaos. Their metal plating seemed even sturdier than Senju Shun’s mechs. Amid the storm of bullets, they charged into the facility without pause.

In the moonlit haze, the twin dancers sliced through the mayhem like ballerinas in a storm.

As the first tungsten round from an EMP cannon tore through the air, Grace’s carbon-alloy frame lifted off, toes flicking from the ground. Her limbs extended in perfect precision—like a drawn blade slicing through chaos.

Missiles lit up her frame in ghost-blue glows—like will-o’-the-wisps dancing on ocean waves.

“Ballistic prediction complete.”

Her quantum processor solved the incoming fire trajectories in 0.0003 seconds.

With a flick of her wrist, a high-frequency blade swung outward—three incoming micro-missiles split apart silently, exploding behind her into orange fireballs.

Under supporting fire, the twin dancers breached the facility.

With the last of the mechs destroyed behind them, the research base briefly fell silent again.

But the chaos had stirred the city—Eerie Entities began to swarm. That huge black silhouette standing silently below Chen Sixuan and Ning Jing’s building suddenly moved.

Elsewhere, Amano Ran and Ryunosuke found themselves surrounded by swarms of flying, twisted beasts. On Monica’s side, where she sat hidden in the mall shadows, Qian Dele could feel something crawling rapidly up the stairs.

Eerie outbreak! Targets marked!

21:22. Comms still down—but Lin Xian could sense combat erupting in every direction.

Ryunosuke’s inorganic manipulation ability flung half a street into the sky. A Bai’s laser carved light through the darkness.

“They’ve engaged.”

Zzzzzttt—! A green light barrier flared up around the two transport vehicles, purging the waves of dark energy closing in.

Lin Xian had just started to breathe easier when a tidal wave of terror swept over them—the Fish-Lion Colossus was rotating.

He steadied himself, eyes locked on the time display and the intel from Grace.

One minute... Two... Three...

21:27. Suddenly, Grace’s voice—and the rest of the team’s comms—flared back to life.

【System overwrite successful. All base weaponry is under my control. Captain Lin, you're clear to proceed into the research facility.】

“Beautifully done, Grace!” Lin Xian exhaled hard, then coordinated with Senju Shun to match the colossus’s blind spot.

【You're welcome.】

【You can always count on Grace.】