113: Ultimate biological weapon

"General, are you sure you want to do this?"

A raspy, cold voice came from the other end of the communicator.

"The 'Sea Wolf Matrix' is our final trump card, and it's still in an extremely unstable experimental stage. Once released, we will completely lose control over it."

"I don't care!" Davis roared lowly into the communicator like a cornered beast. "I only want results! I want to see the Dragon Country mechs torn to shreds! Even if it's just one of them!"

Consecutive failures had caused him to lose all reason. He was now like a gambler who had lost all his chips, willing to bet his own life for one last gamble.

The other end of the communicator fell silent.

After a long while, the voice spoke again, tinged with a hint of helplessness and resignation.

"...As you wish, General."

The call disconnected.

Davis slumped into his chair, gasping for breath, but his eyes flickered with a morbid excitement.

Just watch, people of Dragon Country.

You think you've already won?

Soon, I will show you what true fear from the abyss looks like!

...Deep sea, at the bottom of an unknown trench.

A massive, rugged steel cage, several times larger than the Dragon Country Base, sat quietly here.

This was the Coalition's final hope—the secret experimental base of the Sea Wolf Plan.

As General Davis's order was issued, a ten-meter-thick alloy gate at the deepest part of the base let out a tooth-grinding screech and slowly rose upward.

Behind the gate was a pitch-black darkness where one couldn't see their own hand.

But immediately following, a nauseating stench, a mixture of blood and rot, wafted out from that darkness.

"Roar—"

A low, guttural roar filled with tyranny and hunger, unlike any known creature, echoed from the darkness.

Then, a gargantuan monster, seemingly stitched together from countless pieces of twisted flesh and tumors, slowly crawled out of the steel cage.

It was the Sea Wolf Matrix!

An ultimate biological weapon fused with the genes of dozens of deep-sea predators and forcibly mutated!

Its size was comparable to a small submarine, its entire body covered in a thick, black, cuticle-like carapace. Viscous dark-green liquid flowed between the cracks of the carapace. It had no fixed form; every part of its body seemed to be constantly writhing and proliferating, growing new tentacles, sharp claws, and mouthparts.

It was like a living, constantly evolving nightmare.

"Target locked... Dragon Country mechs..."

A vague intent, filled with the desire to kill, formed in the Matrix's mind.

It opened a massive mouthpart on its body, lined with circular sharp teeth, and let out a sharp hiss.

With its hiss, the tumor-like tissues on its body surface began to heave and rupture violently.

Tens of thousands of black micro-organisms, the size of tadpoles, swarmed out from those ruptured tumors!

These were its "children"—micro-parasites.

Though tiny, these parasites possessed terrifying destructive power. Their front ends were equipped with drill-like mouthparts that could easily gnaw through metal, while their bodies could secrete highly corrosive acid.

Once attached, even the sturdiest armor would be riddled with countless holes in a short time.

"Go... my children..."

"Go devour those steel shells... go taste the delicious flesh inside..."

The Matrix let out a satisfied low growl.

The tens of thousands of parasites converged into a massive black cloud in the seawater, sweeping toward the location of the Dragon Team indicated by Su Yuan at an incredible speed!

..."Hmm? Another new trick?"

At the Dragon Country Operations Center, Su Yuan's brow twitched slightly as he looked at the massive biological signal moving at high speed on the sonar map, along with the dense cluster of light dots surrounding it.

"Is this... a biological weapon? And it comes with sub-munitions?"

He quickly accessed the system to analyze the so-called "Sea Wolf Matrix" and its parasites.

[Species: Genetic Chimera 'Sea Wolf Matrix' (Experimental Stage)]

[Danger Level: B+]

[Abilities: Ultra-fast Regeneration, Genetic Devouring, Parasite Swarm]

[Weaknesses: Core Brainstem, High-intensity Energy Impact]

[Subsidiary Species: Drilling Parasites]

[Danger Level: C]

[Abilities: Metal Gnawing, Strong Acid Secretion]

[Weaknesses: High Temperature, Strong Electromagnetic Pulse]

"Interesting. They'll really create any disgusting thing just to win." Su Yuan's gaze turned cold.

What he hated most was this kind of disgusting swarm tactic.

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately issued a warning to the advancing Dragon Team.

"Wang Yi, watch out! Ten o'clock direction, five kilometers away, a large biological weapon is approaching at high speed! Also, it's accompanied by over ten thousand micro-parasitic units!"

"I repeat, parasitic units! Do not let them get near your mechs!"

Wang Yi and the others, who were admiring the scenery of Atlantis, instantly tensed up upon hearing Su Yuan's warning.

"Parasitic units?" Wang Yi immediately ordered, "Everyone, activate close-in defense scanning! Chen Hu, take the lead and activate full-power shields!"

"Understood!"

The moment the order was given, the detection systems of the three mechs immediately switched to microscopic mode.

Soon, a "dark cloud" composed of countless tiny black dots appeared on their radar screens.

"Holy crap! So many!" Chen Hu's scalp tingled as he looked at the dense signals.

"They're here!" Zhao Zihan's voice rang out.

In the seawater ahead, the "dark cloud" was now clearly visible, surging toward them with overwhelming force.

Without waiting for Wang Yi's order, Chen Hu had already controlled his titan mech to meet them.

"Zzzz—"

Countless parasites slammed into the titan mech's thick energy shield like moths to a flame, producing a series of tooth-grinding scraping sounds.

"No! The shield energy is dropping like crazy! These little things are gnawing on my shield!" Chen Hu discovered with horror that his proud energy shield was actually melting away like snow before this swarm of insects.

"Don't go head-to-head with them!" Su Yuan's voice came just in time. "They're afraid of high temperatures! Zhang Wei, remember the 'Ultra-high Temperature Thermal Energy Circulation' system on your mechs?"

"Thermal Energy Circulation?" Zhang Wei froze for a moment, then slapped his forehead. "I remember! That's a backup function used for de-icing the mech in extreme cold environments!"

"Now, crank it up to the maximum!" Su Yuan ordered. "Turn your mechs into red-hot branding irons!"

"Roger that!"

Zhang Wei immediately told Wang Yi and Chen Hu the operation method over the team channel.

"Everyone, immediately switch to auxiliary power and engage the hull thermal energy circulation system! Maximum power!"

The next second, a piercing red light glowed from the gaps in the alloy armor on the surface of the three mechs.

A terrifying amount of heat was conducted from the inside of the mechs to the outer shells.

In just a few short seconds, the surfaces of the three mechs became entirely crimson, as if they had just been pulled from a furnace!

The surrounding seawater instantly boiled under this terrifying high temperature, sending up clusters of dense bubbles.

The parasites that had been so arrogant just a moment ago were instantly carbonized into clumps of black ash the moment they touched the scalding mech shells, without even having time to scream.

Swath after swath of parasites were boiled to death in the turbulent seawater surrounding the mechs.

The originally overwhelming black swarm was rapidly dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The crisis seemed to have been easily resolved.

However, at that moment, a roar filled with anger and pain came from behind the swarm.

The "Sea Wolf Matrix," whose size was comparable to a submarine, fell into a complete frenzy as it watched its children being slaughtered in droves.

Its massive, twisted body crashed through the remaining swarm and charged toward the three mechs of the Dragon Team with an aura of total destruction!