Ethan gritted his teeth, his mind racing for a solution. He had never encountered a defense so absolute; it was as if Boris existed in a different layer of reality where physical laws simply didnât apply. Every spark of lightning and every bullet was swallowed by that shimmering, silent frost.
"Is this the limit of a billionaireâs ambition? Staring in silence?" Boris said.
Before Ethan could retort, the ground beneath the square began to vibrate with a low-frequency hum. A split second later, the permafrost erupted.
ROAR!
A deafening, primal scream shattered the silence. A massive crater opened directly beneath Boris. As the commander leapt backward to maintain his balance, a colossal, jet-black clawâeach nail the size of a shortswordâswiped through the air. Boris was fast, but the sheer scale of the attack was too much to fully evade. The very tip of one obsidian claw grazed his cheek, tearing a deep gash that sprayed crimson across his pristine white hair.
Borisâs expression shifted instantly from cold indifference to sharp, focused malice. He landed twenty meters away, touching the wound on his face. Standing in the center of the ruins was the Great Bear, its black fur matted with frost, and perched upon its massive shoulders was Kira, her eyes burning with fury.
"Crul... why did that hit? How did it get through his defense?" Ethan said.
[Analyzing... Master, the beastâs claws are emitting a resonant frequency that actively disperses the molecular dampening field. It isnât just physical force; itâs a natural counter-energy. I would need a biological sample to confirm, as my deep database on âSpirit Guardiansâ is currently restricted,] said Crul.
Ethan wiped the sweat from his brow and let out a dark, jagged laugh. The tide had finally turned.
"Kira!! Keep that piece of shit busy! Iâm going to clean up the trash!" Ethan shouted.
Ethan didnât wait for an answer. He turned his gaze toward Leager, who was still trying to knit his shattered hand back together. The purple electricity around Ethanâs body surged, turning into a violent aura.
Ethan blurred. He appeared in front of Leager before the giant could even raise his arms.
"My turn to show you the big leagues," Ethan said.
The battle became a one-sided slaughter. Ethanâs fist, coated in high-voltage Qi, slammed into Leagerâs ribs with the sound of a structural collapse. The giantâs reinforced sternum shattered instantly. Ethan didnât stop; he delivered a brutal uppercut that launched the three-hundred-pound man into the air, then caught him by the ankle, slamming him back into the frozen ground with enough force to create a shockwave.
CRACK. SNAP. THUD.
Leager screamed as Ethan systematically dismantled him. A roundhouse kick pulverized the giantâs knee into white powder; a follow-up strike caved in his shoulder, sending shards of bone piercing through his own muscle tissue. Despite the genetic regeneration, the sheer volume of damage was overwhelming the Scavengerâs system.
Nearby, the square was a chaotic ballet of death. Boris was forced into a frantic defensive dance. The Great Bear lunged and swiped, its massive weight causing the earth to tremble with every step. Boris launched spears of ice and walls of frost, but the Bear simply crashed through them, the "Molecular Dampening" failing to stop the Spirit Guardianâs claws.
Boris shot a glance toward Ethan, attempting to freeze the boyâs blood from a distance, but Ethan sensed the shift in Qi. He rolled past a frost spike and hammered another punch into Leagerâs face, turning the barbarianâs jaw into a mess of pulp and broken teeth.
"Stay down, you overgrown experiment!" Ethan said.
Blood painted the snow a deep, dark red as the village square became a meat grinder. The Khriscar soldiers tried to intervene, but the Falcon helicopters rained fire from above, keeping the regenerating army pinned down.
Ethan glanced over his shoulder and saw the dust clouds rising in the distance. His reinforcements had arrived. A convoy of heavy tactical trucks roared into the village square, tires skidding on the blood-slicked ice.
Ethan smiled, signaling Jason with a sharp wave. "Jason! Round up these regenerating freaks! Toss them in the backâtheyâll make excellent toys for the lab!" Ethan shouted.
Without wasting another second, Ethan turned his attention back to the broken giant beneath him. With a series of sickening cracks, he snapped Leagerâs remaining limbs, pinning the barbarian to the frozen earth. Leager let out a pathetic wheeze, his genetic healing too exhausted to keep up with the destruction.
Nearby, Boris was beginning to lose his cool. The Great Bear was relentless, a mountain of black fur and rage that ignored his frost barriers.
"You are a massive pain in the ass!" Boris shouted, his voice finally losing its calm edge.
Kira, perched atop the beast, let out a piercing war cry in her ancient tongue, her eyes locked on the Commander. The bear roared in response, its claws tearing through the air like scythes.
Ethan watched the exchange, his eyes narrowing as he looked for an opening. He saw the bearâs massive claw swingingâthe natural frequency of the spirit energy momentarily shattering Borisâs molecular dampening field.
"Now!" Ethan said.
Just as the claw bypassed the frost, Ethan funneled his Qi into a concentrated bolt of purple lightning. He timed it perfectly; the bolt followed the path carved by the bearâs claw, slipping through the gap in the defense and slamming directly into Borisâs chest.
The electrical shock made Boris stumble, his concentration flickering for a fraction of a second. That was all the Great Bear needed. The massive beast lunged, its obsidian claws raking across Borisâs torso. Three enormous, jagged furrows were carved into his chest, nearly splitting the Commander in half.
Blood sprayed across the snow. Boris gasped, looking down at the ruin of his body. Realizing he was seconds away from death, he didnât stay to fight. He whirled around, his body blurring into a trail of mist as he bolted toward the shoreline.
"Heâs running! Donât let him reach the water!" Ethan shouted.