Chapter 173: Cunning

The exoskeletons in this world were different from what Leo had seen in his previous life. Here, the exoskeletons are connected directly to the brain through a neural interface, making them feel like an extended part of the body. This extra body was extremely powerful, with signal transmission and processing working differently from a biological body. As the power of the exoskeleton increased, the user would start to ignore the weak biological electric currents and hormone responses in their body, forgetting they were still human, and instead, immerse themselves in the pleasure of controlling such a powerful mechanical body. Without proper training, it was easy to slip from the edge of cyberpsychosis into madness. "Spread out!" The Minotaur mecha was equipped with a military-grade armor-piercing ion cannon composed of six ultra-high-frequency electromagnetic charging arrays. Four ammo supply arrays operated wildly, feeding charged particle streams into the cannon barrel. The high-frequency charging array continued to increase its power, converting magnetic energy into heat energy as the particles accumulated inside. When the charging array reached its peak, the cannon would fire at 200 meters per second—not too fast, just enough for the shot to be visible but almost impossible to dodge. Boom! The red-hot semi-plasma shell effortlessly melted through the 12-centimeter-thick warehouse door, molten metal dripping from the hole it left behind. The Minotaur mecha held a gun in one hand and a shield in the other, with synthetic blood and electrolyte fluid streaming from both sides of the Wraiths strapped to it. "I'm invincible! Screw the family, screw the Wraiths! Today, I'm going to wreak havoc!" Bang! Nekomata fired a shot, but the Minotaur mecha moved at an astonishing speed, and the enormous synthetic shield deflected the bullet. A white mark was left on the shield, but the strongest spear couldn't pierce the unbreakable shield! V ducked behind cover after firing a shot. "Can't penetrate it?!" Leo responded from the other side, "That's military-grade synthetic material—you can't break it without a direct hit!" The Minotaur mecha was, in essence, a large exoskeleton, with the user's upper body fully exposed. However, the exposed part was small enough to be fully shielded by the large shield on its left arm. Nekomata's firepower was strong, but if the shot didn't hit at the right angle, it couldn't penetrate the shield. Worse still, the person piloting the Minotaur mecha was clearly equipped with Sandevistan, reacting so fast that they could deflect bullets with just minor adjustments. It was almost impossible to find the right angle to break through the shield! "What do we do then? Use your invincible hacking skills?" "This thing uses full neural linkage! It doesn't accept external signals!" Leo scanned the area. The machines here were still usable but lacked power. If he could reroute the power... "Jackie—see that electrical box next to you? Toss it over!" "Maine, throw a grenade where I point!" As soon as Leo gave his orders, he heard the exaggerated energy cannon hum again. "Dodge!" This shot was aimed at V. Without a second thought, she jumped out of the way after hearing Leo's warning. Boom! The enhanced Achilles tendons allowed her to leap onto the crane, using her magnetic gloves to hang onto it, and swiftly flipped herself up. Taking advantage of this distraction, Maine's team threw a grenade. But the Minotaur mecha pilot merely raised the shield when the grenade landed in front of him. Boom! Fire and electric sparks exploded, but the massive black shield absorbed it all, leaving the mecha completely unscathed. The shockwave barely disturbed the formidable Minotaur mecha, only causing slight discomfort for the pilot. Even the EMP pulse embedded in the grenade had no effect on the military-grade mecha, as it had severed all external connections and was fully protected against EMPs. Taking advantage of the fire and smoke, Jackie tossed the electrical box to Leo, who immediately dismantled the power lines and plugged them into the crane's control panel. Sparks flew. The grenade had damaged the crane's structure, leaving the huge platform hanging precariously, held by safety locks. Leo quickly adjusted the engine's power. The platform began to crash against the mechanical safety locks, producing loud creaking noises. The Minotaur mecha now turned its attention toward Maine's side. However, this time, it didn't foolishly stay in place. With Sandevistan activated, the machine's power surged to its limit. Its speed, though limited by design, still provided fast reactions, though its movements were restricted by its massive weight. The giant mecha ran forward with a terrifyingly loud rumble, sweeping away forklifts in its path like a bulldozer. Shield raised, it charged toward Maine's group. Maine, Dorio, and Pilar squeezed their triggers desperately, but their bullets only left faint scratches on the shield. Tension mounted as they fired frantically, even forgetting to count their bullets, pulling the trigger on empty chambers. The mecha raised its shield and swept it toward Maine's group. Both Maine and Dorio instinctively blocked with their arms at the last moment. Bang! With just one hit, the two giants were sent flying into a pile of debris, unconscious. The Minotaur mecha aimed its energy cannon at Pilar. But at that moment, the crane platform finally broke through the safety lock! Crack— The crane roared into motion, screeching as the platform raced along its track straight toward the Minotaur mecha! The platform smashed into the shield, pinning the mecha beneath it. The crane engine continued to push, but its circuits were already fried. "V!" Bang! A bullet finally pierced through the shield, but the remaining kinetic energy was only enough to embed the bullet in the pilot's skull—not deep enough to kill. One more shot! V pulled the trigger again, but the Minotaur mecha pilot abandoned his defense, letting the platform crush down as he dodged. The bullet grazed his chest. "Aaaah!" Half of the mecha's body was smashed, and the wraith strapped to it screamed in agony, firing the energy cannon wildly. The disrupted electrical system caused the cannon to go out of control, spraying charged particle streams everywhere like a fountain. Even though these streams lost speed and accuracy, their temperature remained deadly. Crack! In the chaos, a massive fist pounded on the mecha's power supply area, warping the thick armor plate. The energy cannon's charging array turned an even brighter red before releasing a puff of black smoke. The Wraith's face twisted in pain as it yanked its arm back unnaturally, tearing its own joints apart. Jackie ducked and circled to the front, pulling out his Widowmaker from behind. Bang—bang—bang! Three consecutive shots, six electromagnetic rounds, reduced the cyberpsychotic Wraith to pulp. "Phew." Jackie let out a long breath. "That was close. Thank goodness none of that stuff hit me." Leo also popped out from behind cover. He was the unlucky one—several plasma bursts had come his way. If he hadn't used Sandevistan for a split second, he would have been roasted by the thousand-degree heat. On the second floor, V gave a thumbs up. "Awesome, Jackie. I recorded the process for you, but adjusting the separation chip will cost you 100 eddies." "Haha, I knew you'd have my back, bro. I'll transfer it to you later, now let me see it." Jackie was grinning from ear to ear, looking almost like a fool. Leo also sighed with relief—this thing, Militech, and they really dared to use it for Wraiths. Over by Maine, the big guy's arm was broken again, and he was lying next to his girlfriend, looking a bit dazed. Jackie walked up to Leo and whispered, "I think my knee joint made a weird noise earlier. Could there be a problem?" "Maybe. I noticed some deformation in your knee last time at the Aldecaldo camp. You might need to get it adjusted when we get back. "But the job's not done yet. Netrunner team?" "Lots of people in the basement, but we're connected to the network—wait, someone's coming! You all better get down here!" Leo waved to Pilar. "Take those two guys and pull back. We'll handle the rest." Pilar grabbed the two big guys, dragging them along the ground. "Alright—I've seen it all today." The large doors opened, and the Aldecaldos had already taken over the cement factory. Seeing the huge bullet holes, the high-temperature plasma scorches all over the place, and the massive Minotaur mech, even the Aldecaldos couldn't help but gape in awe— This was insane. Cedric walked in, no longer using his cane, now holding a small handgun— It seemed he had a deep grudge against the Wraiths. Truly determined, despite his injuries. He ran over to check the dead bodies. Despite the fact that they were scattered everywhere, he could still see one with not-so-exaggerated cybernetic hands. "Ugh, that bastard Bowen is still alive. Be careful, he's like a rat in a sewer. You think he's harmless, but he might be carrying all kinds of viruses. One bite, and you're done." "Well, that gives us one more reason to finish him today. Let's move forward—hold the cement factory." "Understood." The three of them reloaded their magazines and headed down to the basement— After only a few steps, Jackie suddenly said, "You think there might be a second one of those things?" V shot him a glance. "Don't jinx it. There's no second one." But Leo looked unsure. "Didn't see anything in the network, but it's possible. I'll release the daemon. Turn off your cybernetic modems." Two signal-boosting drones followed the group into the basement— These drones would automatically sync with the Wraiths' network signal and execute large-scale hacks. Leo then unleashed a series of pre-prepared "Daemons" to launch cyber attacks: Cyberware Malfunction: Flood enemy cyberware systems with junk data, causing operational errors. Cyberware Overheat: Overclock cybernetic systems, igniting the body and destroying heat-sensitive cyberware. Electromagnetic Short Circuit: Systematically activate circuits, causing short circuits and damage. Toxic Leak: Cause leaks in the enhanced circulatory systems, releasing various toxins and disrupting bodily functions—the more heavily modified the circulatory system, the higher the chance of death from poisoning. These Daemonsts had been thoroughly tested during Leo's brief but rich hacking career and were neatly packaged into one integrated attack. [Daemons Uploaded Successfully.] In the network, there were 34 Wraiths remaining in the basement and hiding in crates or other odd places around the cement factory. In an instant, 7 of them disconnected, and more went offline over time. One thing was for sure—none of them could move properly anymore. All the faint footsteps stopped. The three of them walked down the stairs and immediately saw corpses on the floor, still smoldering. V whistled in amazement. "That efficient?" Efficient was an understatement. Leo's ridiculous computing power, exposed in that instant, made the other two netrunners in the local network question their very existence. It was like dealing with a humanoid server. But Leo frowned. As the daemons took effect, he also decrypted the Wraiths' database and compared the list of names. The list was accurate, but Bowen's data wasn't there. This detail both made sense and felt off. It made sense because a slippery character like him would never leave his data in a public network. But it was off because this kind of behavior showed he had never considered himself part of his own team. In other words, he had been ready to sell out the entire camp from the start. Leo, uneasy, cross-checked even more data. When comparing network traffic changes with the number of people listed in the database, something didn't add up. These changes were subtle, almost imperceptible, but with some attention to detail and decryption, it became clear— Two names were missing from the database! If one was the Minotaur mech pilot that had been kicked from the network... Leo's pupils contracted— Was there a second Minotaur mech? The nearly thirty Wraiths left in the basement were bait! "Retreat!" Leo suddenly grabbed V and Jackie— Though the two didn't understand what was going on, they immediately started running for the stairs— The dim lights in the basement flickered, then went out completely— Replaced by blinding flashes of white and orange! Upstairs, Cedric and Navi sat by the factory. Cedric stared intently at the entrance to the basement, not relaxing for a moment. His tense attitude made the rookies stay on guard too— Navi suddenly asked, "The Wraiths are done for. Our priority now is Militech, right?" "No, you don't get it. First, if you don't see their brains splattered, assume they're still alive. Second, Bowen is an extremely cunning man. Very, very cunning, and utterly inhumane— For someone like that, if you haven't seen his body, you definitely can't assume he's dead." Cedric was practically grinding his teeth as he spoke. Suddenly, the ground shook. Urgent footsteps echoed from the basement, and Cedric shot to his feet. The scene froze at that moment— The ground near the basement entrance turned dark red, and a thick white-orange laser beam shot out, shredding the doorway like tofu! Boom! The whole floor trembled, collapsing down— The support pillars in the basement had been blown to pieces!