The Bulgasari let out a deafening, metallic roar as it recovered its footing. Its massive, red-hot iron tusks swept through the air, completely melting the edge of a nearby conveyor belt. The heat radiating off its metallic carapace warped the very air around it.
High above them, the distant, echoing sounds of shattering glass and heavy impacts reminded everyone that the leader of their group was currently engaged in his own brutal war. The metallic shrieks of the Stryx filtered down from the upper walkways, completely isolating the survivors on the ground floor. They were entirely on their own.
Lu Zhang was not coming to save them.
The Bulgasari glowed with a terrifying, bright orange heat. Every time its heavy paws struck the concrete floor, a sickening sizzle echoed through the dark space as the residual heat tested the ground itself.
Cai Dajian grit his teeth, ignoring the agonizing pain in his shoulder. The skin was blackened and peeling despite his high Endurance, a direct consequence of tackling the beast's searing hot metal exterior.
He stepped firmly into the path of the monster, placing his wide body directly between the Bulgasari and the terrified, screaming survivors scrambling in the shadows behind him.
The monster locked its unblinking, yellowish-brown eyes on the man who had dared to interrupt its hunt. The thick iron tusks jutting from its lower jaw scraped against each other as they grew longer, sending a shower of bright sparks into the air. Against the surface of it's tusks, liquid hot metal flowed into tiny sharp spikes, designed to tear through flesh rather than iron.
It charged, moving like a runaway freight train made of burning steel.
"Move!" Cai Dajian roared at the people behind him, planting his feet wide and strengthening his stance, in preparation for the inevitable impact.
The Bulgasari crashed into him with overwhelming force. The impact was akin to being struck by a falling boulder. The ground beneath them shook violently under the extreme pressure of the beast's iron tusks.
Its spikes punctured his arm, opening a series of wounds which were instantly cauterized, due to the heat. He screamed in agony, and was immediately thrown backwards by the sheer force of the charge, landing twenty meters away from the monster.
The sheer, suffocating heat radiating from the beast's armor had washed over him, instantly blistering the exposed skin on his arms and face. He tried to get up, but his muscles screamed in protest. His bones felt as though they were on the verge of splintering into a thousand pieces due to the impact.
He might really die if he took another hit.
He didn't hesitate for even a fraction of a second. With his life rapidly draining away under the burning weight, he mentally pulled up his interface, and dumped every single point he had into the only thing keeping him alive.
[Stat Points: 8 -> 0]
[Endurance: 40 -> 48]
A sudden, violent surge of vitality flooded his entire body. It was a feeling of absolute, dense fortitude. The excruciating pain in his shoulder dulled briefly to a distant throb. His muscle fibers thickened under his torn shirt, packing together with increased density. His skeletal structure fortified in a fraction of a second, cementing his stance.
The Bulgasari snorted angrily, taking a heavy step back to resume its attack. Its long trunk raised high into the air, the tip glowing with a terrifying, concentrated bright orange heat. It was preparing to fire another volley of molten metal spears directly into the crowd.
In the shadows behind Dajian, the group of survivors devolved into absolute, uncontrolled chaos.
People shoved each other blindly in the dark, desperate to put bodies between themselves and the glowing monster.
Elena's eyes widened in sheer terror as the beast's glowing trunk swept toward their side of the factory. She moved backwards by instinct. An old, frail woman standing next to her tripped and stumbled in front of her, exposed to the beast's wrath.
As the beast's iron spear ran through the elderly woman without mercy, Elena ran into the crowd of survivors, her face seemingly twisted with fear and guilt. Those from the new faction followed her quickly, hiding behind the other survivors so as to avoid imminent death.
"Hey!"
A heavy, rusted iron piece sailed through the air, clanging loudly against the side of the Bulgasari's metallic cheek.
Arthur stood a few meters away, completely exposed in the moonlight filtering from above, his arm still raised from the desperate throw. He had another piece of jagged scrap metal tightly gripped in his other hand.
He was terrified. His legs were shaking visibly under his torn pants, and his face was pale. But he stood his ground, shouting loudly and drawing the monster's attention entirely away from the huddled masses and the fallen survivors.
The Bulgasari turned its massive head toward Arthur, letting out an annoyed, rumbling trumpet that shook the dust.
Su Yao watched the entire sequence of events unfold from the side, her expression one of complete, chilling detachment.
She analyzed the Bulgasari's glowing, red-hot carapace with cold logic, having calmed herself from her near-death experience. Her fire had done absolutely no actual damage to the creature.
It had only heated the metal to a more dangerous degree, making the beast's melee attacks lethal just from the surrounding heat.
Her mind raced, processing the variables with terrifying speed. 'It lives in heat. It is comfortable in the fire. Direct, physical attacks from Dajian are useless against that shell. My flames only make it stronger.'
She tore her eyes away from the burning monster, her dark eyes quickly scanning the cavernous, dark interior of the iron factory.
Her gaze followed the thick steel support beams all the way up to the high, vaulted ceiling. Above the rusted, silent machines and the shattered glass wall, massive industrial pipes crisscrossed the upper structure. Large, cylindrical tanks marked with faded hazard symbols sat precariously on elevated iron walkways, directly above the central factory floor.
They were industrial liquid coolant tanks. Massive reservoirs of liquid used to temper steel and cool the heavy machinery.
A sudden realization dawned in Su Yao's dark eyes.
It was basic, undeniable physics.
When heated metal was subjected to rapid, extreme cooling, it suffered from severe thermal shock. The sudden, violent contraction of the material would warp and crack the structure. It would make the seemingly invulnerable iron exterior incredibly brittle and fragile.
Even if it didn't work, it would at least cool the iron to reduce the creature's lethality.
She looked back down at the Bulgasari, watching the bright orange glow of its heated armor illuminating the dark factory floor. The beast was entirely focused on Arthur, preparing to charge at the terrified man.
She looked at Cai Dajian, who was panting heavily, readying himself for another brutal, agonizing clash with the beast. He could not kill it in its current state.
'In its current state....'
She didn't need to be the executioner. She couldn't pierce the armor herself.
She just needed to be the architect.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Name: Cai Dajian]
[Level: 9]
[Strength: 30]
[Speed: 30]
[Intelligence: 20]
[Endurance: 48]
[Stat Points: 0]
[Mana: 200/200]
[Skills: Inspect lv 5]