This is really not mechanical ascension
Chapter 1009 - 519: Attacking from the East and West, A Battle of Wits and Courage (Part 2)
CHAPTER 1009: CHAPTER 519: ATTACKING FROM THE EAST AND WEST, A BATTLE OF WITS AND COURAGE (PART 2)
The armor on the left arm stood up like scales, revealing the magma-like energy veins below. The power was transmitted to the tightly gripped Infinite Hammer in the hand, with the head of the hammer glistening like a nebula.
As soon as he moved, the surrounding space appeared twisted and distorted, then gradually collapsed, trailing a purple energy tail.
At the very moment Li Ming made his move, the purple Star Cluster behind the Mechanical Sovereign silently rippled.
A gray-white giant claw emerged, seemingly ready to penetrate the mechanical body before him.
Feign one way, attack another!
But Li Ming reacted at the last moment, just as the gray-white giant claw reached out.
The Infinite Hammer had already struck down!
Boom!
The instant the hammerhead made contact with the giant claw, the surrounding air was compressed to its extreme, followed by a series of deafening sonic booms.
Powerful energy fluctuations spread wildly from the collision point to all directions.
Although this space was incredibly solid, visible distortions and wrinkles still appeared, immediately followed by tearing apart.
The stone slabs on the ground shattered as gray-white thunder exploded around, yet Li Ming felt a sense of overwhelming invincibility in his heart.
The metal right arm bent with a cracking sound, various shock-absorbing structures engaged, ejecting energy sparks under the unbearable strain.
In the next instant, the body of the Mechanical Sovereign flew backward abruptly, tearing out an energy trail, piercing through the surrounding black mist, and falling into the farther storm.
Meanwhile, the purple Star Cluster in the center was torn open, with a gray-white giant claw gripping the edge, the other claw in purple.
As the rift expanded, a strangely shaped Star Beast emerged. Its figure was not too large, about ten meters long, and appeared slender.
Its robust limbs touched the ground, but it had two giant claws at the front, exuding an aura of eerie otherness hard to ignore.
The surface of its skin had no hair or scales, only muscle lines, with half of its body appearing in a deathly gray-white color, lifeless, cold, and decayed.
The other half of its body, however, shimmered with a mysterious and enchanting purple, energy flowing ceaselessly.
"So strong..." At this moment, Li Ming finally steadied his body, the mechanical left arm showing an odd reverse angle, clearly at a disadvantage in the recent collision.
The storm raged around, this narrow space maintained high solidity, roaring incessantly yet not entirely disintegrated.
His eyes remained fixed on the Star Beast, most notably its neck adorned with a silver chain extending back into the purple Star Cluster.
"Its combat ability is at least over 1500X... even beyond 2000X," Li Ming thought heavily.
In the recent collision, though slightly at a disadvantage, he did not think this was its full force.
Until the claws collided with the hammer, there was no sound from it, making it hard to unleash full power in such a state.
This creature did not launch further attacks, its slender limbs walking on the cracked stone slabs.
One white and one purple eye of the beast stared intently at the enemy before it.
Such a level of Star Beast possessed extremely high intelligence, just having employed feign and diversion tactics. If not for his last-moment reaction, he could have been heavily damaged immediately.
"Troublesome..." Li Ming felt a solemnity in his heart, his gaze falling on the space portal not far away.
This Star Beast was too powerful, too difficult to confront head-on.
However, it seemed to have sensed his intent, already preemptively standing before the space channel, looking at Li Ming provocatively.
Not only that, but it also seemed to want to go through this space portal to the outside world.
It tentatively extended its giant claw, and as soon as it broke the space boundary, the silver chain around its neck suddenly lit up, shooting out blinding golden arcs.
The power was terrifyingly strong.
"Wu--" The Star Beast let out a tragic howl, its body twitching slightly but it did not retract its claw, stubbornly enduring for three to five minutes before reluctantly pulling back, baring its teeth with black mist spewing out.
"Really treating it like a pet." Li Ming was secretly amazed; the owner of this creature must be a Dominator Level Titan.
Otherwise, this level of Star Beast couldn’t be contained.
The chain seemed to confine its range of activity, and at this thought, Li Ming retreated further.
His opponent, however, seemed unconcerned, merely circling around the space portal.
"This creature seems intent on blocking me here." Li Ming hesitated internally; he had the Life Power Core as a trump card.
A full sixty seconds of immunity time, even taking its attack head-on, he could still walk through this space portal.
However, he came for this very Star Beast; leaving just like that felt somewhat unwilling.
Narrowing his eyes, he considered a different plan, tricking Mikhail and Reynolds, borrowing five to six billion of their Mechanical Army.
But if he actually made such a request, even Reynolds would reconsider, necessitating him to follow along.
Once they come along, the trouble increases.
Moreover, he wasn’t the only one who knew of this place; it would take at least half a year for a round trip.
And once the gateway he absorbed participates in the Dinner at Dusk, others could easily enter here.
It would be like making wedding clothes for others.
He pondered these thoughts, and meanwhile, the Star Beast moved unpredictably, disappearing out of sight without any warning, causing Li Ming’s heart to tighten, and he retreated swiftly.
But the collision he anticipated did not occur.
Crackle--
The chain was pulled taut, the Star Beast fell onto the stone slab, unable to move further, its body quivering.
This seemed to be the chain’s maximum range; if it wanted to exceed this range, it would be punished.
After a long while, it managed to stand upright again, casting an unwilling glance at the disappearing Li Ming in the darkness before returning to its post at the space portal.
"Maximum range?" Li Ming looked at the spot where the Star Beast had just fallen, sneering in his heart.
This old trick, he had seen it in cat and mouse animations when he was over a decade old in his past life.
He refused to believe that was the maximum range it could be active within.
This Star Beast was extremely cunning, definitely leaving itself room, just waiting for him to step into that range, ready to deliver a thunderous strike.
Mind set, the combat system of the Mechanical Sovereign reminded him, detecting extremely faint electromagnetic fluctuations, resembling the characteristic functioning of machinery.
"Is it that metal remnant?" Li Ming locked onto a target, looking at the remnant floating mid-air.
The position of that metal remnant, upon slight comparison, was not far from the limit distance exhibited by the Star Beast.
He hesitated slightly, raised both hands, gathering them before his chest, with the clattering sound of mechanical structure reformation, temporarily turning into a gravitational pull device.
He aimed at the metal remnant, trying to pull it over.
However, the gravitational force sufficient to shake the planet’s continental shelf had no effect on the metal remnant.
"Hmm?" Li Ming couldn’t help but be surprised; the metal remnant seemed no more special, yet it resisted his gravitational pull, surely hiding some secret.
He hesitated momentarily, revealing himself from the surrounding darkness, and the Star Beast immediately focused on him, energy particles swirling between its sinisterly sharp teeth.
Li Ming attempted to get closer from several angles but did not step into the limit distance.
The Star Beast was eager yet seemed helpless as well.
Until a certain moment, Li Ming abruptly stepped into the limit distance, and almost instantaneously the Star Beast moved.
But only for a step as Li Ming retreated, wind whistling past, the Star Beast stopped within the limit distance, less than ten meters apart.
"Truly clever." Li Ming was extremely wary internally; the Star Beast was still pretending.
It seemed to only make a move when it had 100% certainty.
Li Ming withdrew again; as the Star Beast returned to the space portal, he moved once more.
This time, he disengaged the Guardian Armament, only wearing the Tank Guard.
In that instant, he transformed entirely, speed buffing, his speed geometrically multiplying.
His speed was so fast it even momentarily stunned the Star Beast, only then rushing toward Li Ming.
Although Li Ming’s speed in that moment surged nearly eight hundred fold.