In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

Above the ruined city.

Five figures, arranged in a tactical skirmish line, stopped in the middle of a wide street.

All around were collapsed high-rise buildings and the wreckage of burning armored vehicles.

The Thor team.

Vice-captain Elena, a third-tier ice mage, hovered on the left side of the mecha, wielding a specially made crystal core staff.

From a high vantage point in the distance, sniper Hawke set up a two-meter-long heavy crystal core sniper rifle, its crosshairs locked firmly on the front.

The other two melee Awakeners stood on either side, each wielding an alloy battle axe, their expressions tense.

"Listen, the Great Xia also has top-tier Awakened Ones on their way."

Ryan spoke through the mech's external loudspeaker, his voice carrying a hint of ruthless determination.

"We must take care of this mutated beast before they do; this is our best chance to make a name for ourselves!"

He piloted a six-meter-tall steel giant, wielding a deep blue, high-frequency vibrating heavy sword, with its shield fully activated.

This war machine, which he acquired from the Great Xia at great expense, is his greatest source of confidence in intercepting and killing high-level mutated beasts here.

"Captain, something's off about this thing."

Vice-captain Elena's blonde hair danced wildly in the wind, her brows furrowed.

The icy blue chill was rapidly compressing around him, causing fine ice crystals to condense in the surrounding air.

"Even the thermobaric bomb didn't kill it; it must be in a state of extreme weakness and serious injury right now. Fortune favors the bold!"

Ryan stared intently at the huge red dot on the radar screen that was approaching them, speaking rapidly.

"Hawk, have you secured the high ground?"

A crisp click of a bolt being pulled back came through the headset.

"Ready in position, the specially made third-tier armor-piercing crystal core missile is loaded."

"The visibility is excellent; if it peeks out, I guarantee I'll shoot its eyeball through."

Sniper Hawke lay prone on the top floor of a clock tower, the two-meter-long barrel of his heavy sniper rifle protruding from the shattered glass.

"Taylor, Ron! You two melee fighters spread out and stick to the cover on both sides!"

Remember, don't engage it head-on right away. Wait until Hawke breaks down and Elena has control over its movements, then we'll launch a four-pronged attack to sever its lower limbs together!

Ryan issued tactical instructions methodically.

"clear!"

The two team members, each wielding an alloy battle axe, immediately rolled away and disappeared behind the burning wreckage of armored vehicles on either side of the street.

The ground began to tremble.

The rubble in the ruins began to bounce.

Accompanied by heavy footsteps, a pungent smell of sulfur and burnt wafted in from the end of the street.

"It's here."

Elena lowered her voice, and the frost-like light at the tip of her staff shone brightly.

Around the corner, the enormous body of the beast finally came into view.

It is over twenty meters long, covered with a thick, dark purple keratin layer, and has a thick, twisted horn on its head.

It was speeding recklessly along the city's main road.

Upon closer inspection, large areas of charred and cracked skin remain on the surface of the stratum corneum, traces left by strategic thermobaric weapons.

Deep within the crack, dark red flesh and blood could be faintly seen.

It has no eyes, or rather, its eyes have evolved into two thick bony plates.

"Damn it! It has absolutely no eyes?"

Hawke cursed under his breath in the channel and quickly reported back.

"Captain, this monster doesn't use sight to locate enemies!"

"Then shoot at its respiratory gills on the side of its neck! Fire!"

Ryan gave the order without hesitation.

"Bang!"

The sound of a sniper rifle tearing through the air.

A beam of azure spiral light shot down from mid-air, striking precisely into the flesh on the side of the dragon's neck.

"I won!"

Hawke roared.

Armor-piercing projectiles specially made with third-order crystal cores possess terrifying kinetic energy.

The bullet exploded a second time the moment it pierced the dragon's flesh, spraying out a cloud of dark red blood mist.

The dragon let out a deep hiss, and its massive body paused slightly.

"Elena! Do it!"

Ryan seized the momentary opening and steered his mech forward with a roar.

The Snapdragon mech unleashed a brilliant blue flame from its feet, its steel body leaving afterimages as its heavy sword pointed directly at the dragon's wounded neck.

"Extreme cold and frost!"

Elena pointed her staff downwards, unleashing her supernatural powers without reservation.

The ground beneath the dragon's feet instantly formed a layer of ice armor half a meter thick, and the extreme cold ice flowed rapidly upwards along its limbs, freezing its lower body in place in the blink of an eye.

"Well done! Taylor, Ron, go!"

Ryan shouted with ecstasy.

The Thor team's tactical coordination was flawless, from breaking through defenses to controlling the enemy, and then to close-range engagements—it was incredibly smooth.

Two melee fighters burst out from behind cover, their crystal core battle axes gleaming as they cleaved the dragon's frozen hind leg joints.

Ryan's mech also rushed to the dragon, slashing down with tremendous force at the bleeding wound.

"Die! Your crystal core is mine now!"

Just as the heavy sword was about to pierce flesh, an unexpected change occurred.

The twisted horn atop the giant dragon's head suddenly glowed with a dark light.

A terrifyingly high temperature instantly erupted from the dragon's body.

"Snap! Snap!"

Elena's extremely cold ice armor, which she had used with all her might, shattered inch by inch in a second!

The purple patterns on the dragon's body lit up, and energy was gathering wildly.

Under the pull of some invisible force field, the shattered ice crystals turned into scalding water vapor, which was then sucked into the dragon's mouth!

"What the hell?! My ice armor is shattered!"

Elena's pupils dilated sharply, and her heart clenched tightly.

The behemoth's chest bulged high, and a dark purple beam of energy was brewing wildly in its throat.

Then, it fixed its gaze on what lay ahead.

"roar!"

A dark purple breath swept out indiscriminately in all directions from the center of its massive body!

"Bang! Bang!"

Taylor and Ron hadn't even gotten close yet.

The moment they were hit by the dark purple energy beam, their Tier 3 combat suits, along with the two of them, instantly vaporized!

"Taylor! Ron!"

Ryan's eyes were bloodshot.

The Snapdragon mech accelerated its charge once more, its heavy sword slamming into the dragon's neck wound!

"clang!"

Ryan felt an overwhelming force of recoil coming from the control lever.

The mech's alarm blared wildly and shrilly.

The greatsword was stuck in the seemingly blood-soaked crack in the dragon's neck, unable to advance any further.

The dragon lowered its head, its bony-covered face aimed at the Snapdragon mech.

"Captain! It's charging up again!"

Elena wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and screamed wildly into the channel.

"Run! Captain! Run!"

Ryan's eyes were bloodshot, and he was no longer as arrogant as before.

With the Snapdragon mech engine running at overload, he abandoned the heavy sword stuck in the dragon's neck and ran backwards at breakneck speed.

"Hawk! Fire! Cover me!"

Ryan roared hoarsely.

"Bang!"

The second armor-piercing round whistled through the air. This time, Hawke aimed at the dragon's raised forelimb joint.

The bullet hit its target precisely, exploding into a cloud of blood mist.

However, this seemingly powerful blow did not hinder its movement in the slightest.

The second wave of deep purple breath struck again.

Fortunately, Ryan's escape was decisive enough that the Snapdragon mech completed a sideways glide at the limit, with only the edge of its outer layer of energy shield being swept by the breath.

"Sizzle!"

The aircraft landed out of control, crashing through an entire shop building next to the street before finally coming to a stop.

Inside the cabin, red lights flashed wildly.

"Warning! Energy loss rate on the left side is 47%!"

"Warning! Connection to the rear-mounted chain gun has been lost!"

Ryan gasped for breath, staring intently at the smoky, dusty street in the center of the street outside the screen.

The dragon did not have a pursuing mech.

The enormous head suddenly twisted, and although it had no eyes, it locked its gaze firmly onto the clock tower where Hawke was, a kilometer away.

Its chest bulged high, and the purple light on its single horn became even more profound.

Ryan looked in the direction the monster was facing, and his heart sank to the bottom.

"It's locking onto Hawke, Elena, stop it!"

Ryan roared.

"Hawk! Jump! Jump now!"

"Extremely cold ice walls!"

Elena brandished her staff wildly, unleashing her supernatural powers as if they were being overdrawn.

A five-meter-thick, dark blue ice wall rose from the ground, lying between the giant beast and the clock tower.

"boom!"

A beam of energy erupted from the giant beast's mouth and struck the frigid ice wall directly.

There was no stalemate.

There was no resistance.

The five-meter-thick ice wall only lasted for half a second before it evaporated completely into a cloud of water vapor.

"puff!"

The spell was forcibly broken, and Elena suffered a severe backlash, spitting out another mouthful of blood.

The energy beam, still powerful, struck the dilapidated clock tower with pinpoint accuracy.

"Boom!"

The buildings along the way disappeared completely, and the upper half of the entire building melted away instantly.

"Hawk!"

Ryan's eyes were bloodshot, and his gaze was almost bursting.

"Cough cough... Captain... Captain, I'm not dead yet."

Hawke's extremely weak cough came through the communicator.

"Luckily, Elena's ice wall blocked me for a moment, and I jumped out of the window beforehand... Now my right leg is broken..."

"Retreat! Everyone retreat!"

Ryan roared as he gave the order.

"This dragon-shaped mutated beast is beyond our ability to handle!"

This isn't just some near-fourth-tier; it's very likely that it has already fully advanced!

Ryan abandoned the mission without hesitation.

To make a name for yourself, you must first survive.

Facing a true Tier 4 beast, even a fully armed top-tier team would only be throwing their lives away.

"Boom boom boom!"

Ryan piloted the mech, launching all twelve miniature crystal core missiles from his chest, which exploded into a sea of ​​fire in front of the behemoth.

They used the firelight for cover.

Ryan maneuvered his mech around, grabbed Elena and Hawke in front of him, and quickly retreated.

"roar!"

The dragon seemed to be completely enraged.

Seeing that their opponent had disappeared, they began to destroy all buildings in sight with even greater impunity.