30: The battle continues

"BOOM——!!!"

A deep, thunderous roar, mingled with the crisp sounds of countless building materials snapping, tore through the clamor of the Square! The walls of the Experience Center were as if struck by a massive cannon, with bricks, concrete chunks, twisted steel bars, and dust spraying outward like explosive shrapnel!

Amidst the swirling dust and debris, an immense, heart-stopping white figure smashed through the final barrier and stood imposingly on the dazzling, colorful Square! White Star!

Its form was now worlds apart from the elegant, gentle image on the aquarium posters. Its body had swelled to a more massive, imposing stature, covered in a layer of weathered, grayish-white thick skin that was rough and covered in uneven scratches and charred marks. Its once smooth lines were disrupted by distinct, bulging muscle groups, exuding a savage sense of power.

Its limbs had mutated into thick appendages like stone pillars, ending in curved claw blades that gleamed coldly, sharp enough to tear through steel plates, sinking deep into the Square's paved tiles and leaving spiderweb-like cracks. Only its mutated head still faintly retained the rounded basic outline of a White Whale, but the huge, irregular crystal-like organ bulging on its forehead crackled with unstable blue-white electric arcs, emitting faint yet dangerous crackling sounds.

Its eyes, no longer gentle black but filled with rage and pain, were like two burning gateways to Hell. They instantly pierced through the chaotic crowd and fixed firmly on the massive electronic screen at the center of the Square—on the screen, Zookeeper Zhao Yongqiang's face, wearing a professional, friendly smile, was magnified to the extreme!

"ROAR——!!"

All the accumulated humiliation, pain, and hatred transformed in that moment into a roar capable of piercing metal and shattering stone! The muscles in its hind legs tensed like iron, and its massive body erupted with a terrifying initial speed disproportionate to its size. Like a heavy tank with the accelerator floored, it charged toward the huge screen with a resolve to crush everything in a death-defying collision!

"BANG—BOOM!! CRACK—!"

The massive electronic screen let out a groan of strain the moment it made contact! The glass panel shattered into countless fragments, pouring down like hail! The internal supports twisted and snapped, and the exposed dense wiring and electronic components erupted with blindingly bright blue-white sparks from short circuits, forming a brief yet deadly electric web that sizzled and wrapped tightly around White Star's body at the point of impact!

"Ugh—!!"

High-voltage electricity surged through its specialized skin, with most of the energy forcibly absorbed and converted into a faint glimmer within its Melon.

But the intense, instantaneous shock that seemed to awaken every painful memory cell in its body made it let out a piercing howl mixed with agony and conditioned fear! Instinctively, almost clumsily, it leaped backward violently, its thick limbs scraping against the ground with a grating sound, putting distance between itself and the screen wreckage still spewing electric sparks.

It landed on the ground, its chest heaving violently like bellows, exhaling hot breath that formed white mist in the cold night air. Its crimson pupils rapidly dilated and contracted from the sudden stimulus and the churning energy within.

In the Square, time seemed to freeze for an instant. Then, all the previous music and laughter were replaced by even sharper, heart-wrenching screams of terror! The crowd, like a disturbed swarm of bees, completely lost their senses, frantically pushing, shoving, crying, and fleeing in all directions.

Amidst this uncontrolled chaos, a little girl of about five or six, wearing a pink jacket, was suddenly knocked to the ground in the crowd's shoving. Her small hand still tightly clutched a brand-new, fluffy little White Whale plush toy. She looked up in terror, her tear-filled eyes seeing the white giant beast standing like a mountain amidst the interplay of light and shadow. Extreme fear drained the color from her small face, and her body trembled uncontrollably.

Yet, the child's intuition, not yet fully tainted by the world, allowed her to glimpse a faint, buried memory from television and posters within the ferocious, distorted outline and the still vaguely recognizable white color.

Pursing her lips, mustering all the strength left in her terrified body, she spoke in a thick, tearful voice, soft as a mosquito's hum yet clear amidst the clamor: "...White... White Star?"

The white giant beast, poised to unleash its fury on its next target, jolted to a sudden halt.

Its head, filled with destructive desire, lowered extremely slowly, with an almost mechanical sluggishness. Those blood-red pupils burning with the fires of Hell pierced through the spatial barrier and met the little girl's pure eyes, blurred by tears, filled with extreme fear, yet holding a trace of bewildered inquiry deep within.

At that moment, the Square's clamor, flashing lights, and fleeing crowd seemed to vanish.

That faint, childish call was like a pure drop of water falling into a boiling cauldron of hatred, eliciting a tiny yet real sizzle.

The pure, all-consuming madness in its eyes seemed splashed by this drop of "cold water," showing a fleeting moment of stagnation and confusion it couldn't understand itself. It simply stared at the tiny human child, at the ridiculous, distorted image of itself in her hand, its nostrils twitching slightly, as if trying to catch the long-distant, now-corrupted scent from memory.

But this ripple vanished as quickly as a stone thrown into raging waves. A more turbulent dark tide instantly swallowed it. Its gaze, like a cold searchlight, instantly swept past the little girl and locked onto the Event Host collapsed at the edge of the stage, microphone fallen aside, pants wet, unable to even scream—this face, it remembered! He always stood with Zhao Yongqiang! He was that demon's kind!

"GROWL——!!"

A suppressed, seemingly chest-deep growl replaced the roar, carrying a killing intent even colder and more piercing. It paid no further attention to the ant on the ground. Its powerful limbs erupted with strength again, its massive body transforming into a white hurricane of death, charging straight toward the trembling Event Host! Its gaping maw revealed sharp, pale teeth reflecting cold light under the lights, its target clear—to tear apart!

At this critical moment, just as the sharp teeth were about to touch flesh and blood!

Lu Jianchuan, who had been lurking in the shadows of the breach, suddenly narrowed his pupils to pinpoints, discarding all hesitation and distractions!

Action!

His body reacted faster than thought—his hands grabbed his lapels and tore them apart violently! Buttons flew off, and his jacket and inner clothes were shed with trained efficiency, thrown behind him, revealing his lean upper body. Almost simultaneously as the clothes left his body, his right index finger shot out like a bullet, pressing precisely and fiercely onto the crimson gem at the center of the silver-gray armband on his left wrist!

"HUMM——!"

A low resonance, seeming to act directly on the Soul, rang out! The crimson gem on the armband seemed infused with life, its light surging! A scorching torrent instantly flowed from the contact point into his left wrist, racing up along the meridians and Bloodline of his arm. Where it passed, the blood vessels beneath his skin seemed to have silver light streams rapidly coursing through!

Next, a stunning sight unfolded: beneath the skin of his left arm, countless silver tendrils seemed to grow and spread wildly! Silvery-white armor, with the unique texture and luster of biological keratin, "sprouted" directly from beneath the skin of his left arm!

This growth process was swift and orderly, like coral formation sped up millions of times, accompanied by faint yet clear rustling sounds. It rapidly covered and enveloped his entire left arm, extending toward his shoulders, chest, waist, right arm, and legs!

This wasn't covering; it was a violent evolution and reconstruction of life form. He could clearly "hear" his bones strengthening with low hums, muscle fibers tearing and reassembling with subtle pain, bursting with newfound power. A set of extraordinary sensory Systems was being constructed alongside this living armor.

When finally, the streamlined helmet with azure blue Lenses extended upward from behind his neck like a living creature, closing silently to completely protect his head, the evolution was complete!

Just as White Star's foul-smelling maw was about to snap shut, devouring the Event Host in the previous instant!

This silver figure, having just completed its life leap, wrapped in an unstoppable Aura, like a silver meteor falling from the Nine Heavens, cut in from the side at a speed difficult for the naked eye to follow! It landed solidly in the empty space between White Star and the limp Event Host!

"BOOM——!"

Where it landed, the paved stone tiles shattered and sank, spiderweb-like cracks spreading outward, and the stirred dust diffused in a ring around it.

A warrior clad entirely in silvery-white biological armor, with lines as sharp as an ancient deity, stood imposingly amidst the swirling dust.

The azure blue Lenses on his helmet, like two cold flames ignited in the deep sea, pierced through the dust with sharp light, firmly locking onto the nearby white giant beast.

He raised an arm completely encased in streamlined arm armor, palm open, fingertips seeming to gather intangible power, pointing directly at White Star's rage-filled head. He let out a roar, modulated by the armor, carrying an inhuman metallic quality and absolute, unquestionable authority:

"White Star—stop!"

The sound wave exploded like a tangible shockwave in the chaotic Square, briefly overpowering all screams and noise.

The white, sorrowful Vicious Beast driven by hatred. The silver, evolved armor fighting to protect. On this cruel stage woven from light and shadow, fear, tears, and destructive desire, in the heart of the city, they once again formed a fateful confrontation.

The final battle had arrived here.