86: Chapter 86 Three li rounded up is ten thousand li!

Su Ming shook off the feeling of being ignored.

He looked toward Shen Qingci:

"Senior, that hit just now—you cut to the cervical spine, didn't you?"

Shen Qingci nodded.

"Good. Among everyone here, your ability is the sharpest."

"Ride the Crimson Gold Wasteland Mastiff and maneuver along its flank. Keep widening the wound on its neck. I need you to cut through one-third of the flesh around its neck."

Then, he turned to Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng:

"Brother, if you still have energy, pin it down for me for five seconds."

"Leave the rest to me!"

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng nearly rolled his eyes into the back of his head.

A little brat commanding a Tier 5 team fight here?

But when he saw Su Ming's wild eyes, he felt a sudden jolt.

This kid... could he actually have a way to take down this quasi-Tier 5?

"What ability do you have that can kill in one blow?" Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng couldn't help but ask.

Su Ming shifted his gaze away from the line of dark golden text in his mind and chuckled.

"It's a secret. But I'm absolutely certain!"

"Fine! Today, I'll take a gamble with you, you little lunatic!"

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng steeled himself. Military orders were absolute.

The order from the Jiangcheng City Defense Commander was still burning in his ears.

Seeing Miss Shen also preparing to risk her life, Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng knew he couldn't afford to slack off any longer.

If they could actually coordinate to take down this Source Beast, it would be a monumental achievement on his record!

His eyes instantly turned a pure azure, and ice-crystal patterns even began to surface on his skin—a sign that his Tier 5 Source Core was operating at maximum load.

"I've only got this one last move left! Let's get the unpleasantries out of the way first: after I unleash this, if I kick the bucket, you two better remember to carry me back!"

"Deal."

"【Extreme Cold Domain: Frozen Ten Thousand Miles】!!!"

Hum—! A ring of tangible, ice-blue shockwaves swept wildly outward from him. Within a three-mile radius, the wasteland was instantly transformed into a silent world of ice crystals, frozen in the -180°C extreme cold!

Under the effects of this reckless, extreme freezing, the massive body of the Iron-Spine Rhinoceros—its limbs, along with the rock beneath its belly—was firmly "welded" deep into the earth's crust by a layer of dark, bluish-black ice several meters thick!

The giant beast roared frantically, dark red steam rising from its body, but it remained unable to move.

Su Ming was stunned by the spectacular sight.

Tsk, elemental-type AOE abilities are seriously cool!

He immediately gauged the range of the freeze, and his mouth couldn't help but twitch:

"...Brother, be honest with me, who taught you math? At most, this is a three-mile radius—you actually have the nerve to call this 'ten thousand miles'?"

Lieutenant Colonel Chu Feng was trembling like someone with Parkinson's, but he stiffened his neck and roared back:

"What the hell do you know! 'Ten thousand miles' is my career plan and grand goal! Is it a crime to still be working toward it?! Hurry up and attack! My low-spec version is about to give out!!"

"Roar!!" Without needing Su Ming to urge it, the Crimson Gold Wasteland Mastiff's gold and fire heads roared in unison.

Shen Qingci's long hair danced wildly in the cold wind. Merging with her blade, she became a blazing, crimson-gold rainbow. Using the momentum of the mastiff's slide, she struck fiercely toward the charred wound on the Iron-Spine Rhinoceros's neck!

One strike. Two strikes. Three strikes!

Each strike landed precisely along the same line, tearing, widening, and deepening the wound.

The high-frequency vibrations of the Geng Metal Secret Marrow made it impossible for the flesh to heal. One-third of the flesh around its neck was sliced cleanly open, exposing the grayish-white cervical vertebrae beneath.

The Iron-Spine Rhinoceros let out a death-rattle wail, and cracks began to appear in the black ice.

"Enough! Retreat!" Su Ming roared.

Shen Qingci decisively disengaged, and the Crimson Gold Wasteland Mastiff made a sharp turn, dashing out of the attack range with her.

And at that very instant—Boom!!!

The ice beneath Su Ming's feet shattered under ten tons of mass.

【Mass Engine】, ignition once more!

He transformed into a black meteor, launched from the ground, and instantly soared a hundred meters into the air!

The wind howled shrilly. High in the air, Su Ming suddenly twisted his body, diving headfirst, his palms locked firmly onto the head of the frozen giant beast below.

On the system panel, at the very bottom of the Mass Resonance entry, a line of dark golden text that had never lit up before was flashing frantically.

【Second-Stage Echo】 (Exclusive Hidden Trait)

【Trait Rating】: ??? (Scales with the host's base mass)

【Trigger Condition】: Automatically activates when the host's body sustains an absolute physical impact or recoil that exceeds the structural limit of their current bone density.

【Trait Effect】: Once activated, the host's body automatically transforms at a microscopic level into a "solid-state resonance chamber." It absorbs all destructive impact energy, subjects it to extreme secondary compression within the body, and then releases it again in a targeted manner. The power is 200% of the initial impact!

【Negative Cost】: Once the kinetic energy is discharged, the host's entire skeletal structure and muscle fibers will enter an "overload" state for 10 seconds. During this time, the host cannot actively attack or defend, and movement speed is reduced by 70%. The duration of this negative status decreases as the host's mass increases.

…Looking at the description of the sequence skill, Su Ming grinned, revealing an incredibly cruel smile.

To hell with rank suppression. To hell with those law phantoms! No matter what tricks you have up your sleeve, today... I'll shatter them with sheer force!

Amidst the howling winds a hundred meters up, he looked down at the arrogant giant beast and laughed wildly: "Beast! Come on... let's clash!"