Zone Zero, deep within the colossal mining pit.
The roaring excavator, like a steel behemoth, gnawed furiously at the mine wall. Every swing sent deafening booms echoing through the air, hurling massive chunks of shattered rock and dirt into the sky. At the center of the pit, a cluster of resonant crystals glowed with an eerie light; each flicker under the excavator's assault held a breathtaking, unsettling beauty.
Jin Wanchao stood at the edge of the pit in his steam exoskeleton, the loose gravel beneath his feet still trembling slightly. The "flame" inside him, drawn as if by some magnetic field, surged violently, allowing him to clearly "see" the raging energy currents within the excavator and the immense power contained in the resonant crystals.
"Wanchao! The main force is here!" Ah Huo's voice crackled over the communicator, unbridled excitement sharp in his tone.
Jin Wanchao spun around sharply. At the pit entrance, a dark tide of figures poured in. Ban Shou's people led the way, armed with a motley array of weapons, half-shrouded in toxic mist as they carefully evaded its corrosive effects and scanned their surroundings warily. The Fire Cult warriors followed close behind; though they lacked exoskeletons, their modified weapons and the burning fire in their eyes made them appear fiercer than any scavenger.
"Move fast! Valerius won't give us much time!" Jin Wanchao's voice boomed across the entire pit through a loudspeaker.
Beneath the excavator, several massive guardian puppets jolted to life. Forged from heavy black alloy, they boasted thick, powerful limbs and enormous energy cannons mounted on their backs. Their scarlet electronic eyes swept over the crowd, triggering shrill alarm blares. This was the final line of defense guarding the resonant crystals.
"Dammit! Knew it wouldn't be that easy!" Ah Huo roared and charged forward first. Clad in his steam exoskeleton, his massive gauntlet blurred through the toxic mist and slammed hard into one guardian puppet's head.
*Bang!*
A dull, thunderous crash shook the air. The alloy plating on the puppet's head caved in, but the machine did not shut down completely. Its energy cannon swiveled toward Ah Huo, beginning to charge.
"Watch out!" Jin Wanchao shouted, moving like a streak of lightning to stand in front of Ah Huo. His internal "flame" surged into the steam exoskeleton at once, sending his speed and strength soaring. He crossed his arms, and his steam gauntlets crashed head-on against the puppet's cannon muzzle.
*Boom!*
The explosive impact sent Jin Wanchao staggering back several steps, carving two deep furrows into the ground beneath his feet. His arms went numb, and a charred black mark seared into the armor of his steam exoskeleton.
These guardian puppets were far more formidable than the combat drones they had faced before.
"Ban Shou, pin the puppets down! Lao Zhong, protect Xiao Axing and lead the others to harvest the crystals!" Jin Wanchao snapped out orders swiftly, his gaze locked on the roaring giant excavator.
Ban Shou snorted. With a wave of her hand, the scavengers behind her spread out, using guerrilla tactics to flank and harass the guardian puppets. They hurled modified electromagnetic jamming rounds, briefly disabling the puppets' energy cannons and buying precious seconds for the Fire Cult warriors to strike.
Lao Zhong, meanwhile, led Xiao Axing and several laborers toward the edge of the pit, where thick veins of resonant crystals lay exposed. Their tools, boosted by Jin Wanchao's "flame," sliced through the ore in swift, efficient streaks of light.
Jin Wanchao charged at the guardian puppets once more. The "flame" within him burned fiercely, letting him clearly "see" the intricate energy flows inside the machines and the charging pattern of every energy cannon. He did not linger in combat, only harrying and distracting them, searching for an opening.
His real target was the giant excavator.
"Dammit, there are too many of them!" Ah Huo bellowed, his steam exoskeleton sustaining damage under the siege of multiple guardian puppets.
Jin Wanchao's gaze hardened. He could "see" that the massive excavator housed a vast, complex energy core, linked directly to the resonant crystal veins deep in the pit, drawing endless power from the crystals to fuel itself.
A wild idea exploded in his mind.
He sprinted toward the excavator, moving at blinding speed. Several guardian puppets moved to intercept him, but he dodged them by the narrowest of margins with an eerie, erratic path. He leaped onto the excavator's treads and climbed upward along its huge steel arm.
"Wanchao! What are you doing?!" Ah Huo shouted from below.
"Link with it!" Jin Wanchao roared. He burst onto the excavator's central control platform, his massive steam gauntlet smashing through the heavy shield to reveal dense control crystals and energy ports beneath.
He slammed his palm against the largest energy port. The "flame" inside him erupted like a breaking dam, surging violently into the excavator.
*Hum —*
A deafening tremor shook the entire machine. Its steady roar turned chaotic at once. By forcefully merging his "flame" with the excavator's energy core, Jin Wanchao could "see" the colossal, raging energy currents within it — and its ancient, primal "consciousness."
The giant excavator had been violently "awakened" by Jin Wanchao.
He closed his eyes as a flood of information surged into his mind. Every structure, energy flow, and control system of the excavator unfolded clearly in his head. He no longer felt like Jin Wanchao — he *was* the steel behemoth.
"Tear them apart… for me!" Jin Wanchao's eyes snapped open. His voice was no longer his own; it merged with the excavator's rumble, growing immense and majestic.
To the stunned shock of everyone present, the once-uncontrolled excavator now seemed to possess life. Its huge steel arm swung around, and the massive bucket sliced through the air with a shrill whine, slamming brutally into a guardian puppet.
*Crash!*
The struck puppet did not even have time to wail before it was crushed instantly by the excavator's overwhelming force, reduced to a twisted pile of scrap.
"My God…"
"Wanchao… he's controlling the excavator!"
The Fire Cult warriors erupted into thunderous cheers.
Under Jin Wanchao's command, the excavator became a true steel leviathan. Its massive arm swept the battlefield, the bucket tearing and smashing one guardian puppet after another with precise, lethal strikes. The supposedly indestructible machines fell in droves, fragile as toys before it.
In the pit, Valerius's carefully laid defenses were being obliterated — by his own machinery, fueled by Jin Wanchao's "flame."
Ban Shou and her crew stared in dumbfounded awe, their eyes blazing with fanatical reverence. They had never imagined an excavator could be mastered like this, turned into such a terrifying war machine.
"Harvest! Hurry!" Jin Wanchao's voice boomed again, made all the more imposing by the excavator's deep rumble.
Once the excavator had torn apart the last guardian puppet, Jin Wanchao forcibly severed his connection to it. A crushing wave of exhaustion washed over him. He swayed unsteadily but managed to stay on his feet. The excavator fell silent once more, though its internal energy core still hummed faintly, as if echoing his earlier link.
Ah Huo rushed to Jin Wanchao's side, staring at him in awe. "Wanchao! That was insane! Are you a god?!"
Jin Wanchao said nothing, only gasping for breath as he stared at the wide expanse of exposed resonant crystals at the pit's center. The excavator's rampage had unearthed even more crystal veins, their faint blue glow shimmering — every single one holding power enough to change their fates.
"Move! Gather these crystals! Don't leave a single one behind!" Jin Wanchao hoarsely shouted.
Everyone's eyes lit up. None had ever seen such precious ore. They swarmed forward, frantically harvesting the crystals and stowing them in specially prepared containers.
But just as they neared a full haul and prepared to retreat,
a pale blue light flared brightly at the center of the pit. A hologram materialized before them all.
Valerius.
He clapped slowly, a approving smile on his face. "Well done. Prophet. As a reward, let me show you something interesting."