Chapter 356: Backhand Snatch

Zhou Naiyi took a deep breath; she was too fragile, and she had actually fallen into self-pity before the match had even ended. That's right, meet every move with a counter; she needed to prepare her state of mind for the team battle now.

Li Hao kept a smile on his face; life is a process, and even if others say it ten thousand times, it cannot compare to experiencing it once for oneself.

"Is Ma Long still okay?" Zhou Naiyi asked; the Nailong horse was still very critical.

"This guy is like a dairy cow; if you squeeze, there's always some!" Li Hao laughed.

"Fine... if a second person finds out about what just happened, I'm taking the lion's share of the prize money!" Zhou Naiyi suddenly said.

Li Hao's smile came to an abrupt halt, "That ruthless?"

"Hmph!" Zhou Naiyi walked ahead with a haughty air; she had already recovered her dignity as the Class Monitor.

"Class Monitor, Class Monitor, anything is fine, but don't touch the prize money," Li Hao said in a panic... he had already calculated how to spend it down to two decimal places.

Everyone was actually a bit worried about Zhou Naiyi; seeing her return, they hurriedly pretended to watch the match. Ma Long was currently treating Wuzang. "I'm about done, switch to the Class Monitor," Wuzang said; he saw that Ma Long's legs were shaking a little.

"One is milk, two is milk, come on, we've barely started!" Ma Long patted his chest, "Sister Nai, come, I'm very brave!" Li Hao had just said that regardless of the result of Cheng Konghai's match, he and Zuo Xiaotang would follow up, so Ma Long could heal with all his might; he had nothing to worry about, at worst he'd just lie flat.

Wuzang and Zhou Naiyi nodded. Both closed their eyes, recovering their bodies and Mental Power while Ma Long's effect was a bit slow and needed some time to buffer. Both were also reviewing the previous battle. They had to admit, they were still influenced by the reputation of Tianqi. In reality, they were all human; it was just that the opponent had more experience and was more ruthless and precise when seizing opportunities. This was what they needed to learn, but as for how strong they really were, that wasn't necessarily the case. They had also waited a long time to find an opportunity. If they could make it to the team battle, everyone would be playing with their cards on the table, and it was still unknown who would emerge victorious. Their resolve must absolutely not be broken!

——Kepler Battle Zone.

Cheng Konghai revealed his specialty, the Leiting Guard.

Leiting Guard (USE)

Configuration: Heavy Armor, 110 tons

Dual-Engine Nuclear Fission Drive, Gatling Laser Cannon, K23 Titanium Shield, K23 Chain Giant Hammer

Meanwhile, Romero brought out the Nether Fire Genesis.

Nether Fire Genesis (ROM) 80-ton class

Dual Core Fission Engine, K23 Underworld Blade, Genesis Mimicry System

T53 Laser Gun, Laser Shield

The Hailong Team, having finished their match, did not leave the operation room but instead watched the match between Tianjing Mecha and Langwu via projection. Seeing Romero catch Cheng Konghai, Klein and the others couldn't help but laugh. This move by Lone Wolf was ruthless enough; if he really eliminated Tianjing Mecha like this, it would probably make Li Mo so angry he'd jump off a building. They really wanted to see him lose his composure.

In the contestant area, the USE Tianqi crowd all perked up. They knew Ant's talent, and since Li Hao was so certain, there must be preparations. Even if he and Romero were at a slight disadvantage, it would ultimately depend on how the two handled the critical moments.

The two Mobile Suits had already landed on the Kepler Battlefield. They were old rivals, and there wasn't the slightest sign of stage fright in Cheng Konghai; his problem was being overly excited. He immediately hoisted the Gatling Laser Cannon, fully charged the energy, and rushed toward the Nether Fire Genesis opposite him. Defense had never been Ant's personality.

Romero's expression was cold, and his only eye revealed ferocity. He had no intention of a long-range shootout. He activated the Laser Shield, and the Mecha emitted an eerie roar as it charged directly at the opponent.

Da-da-da-da-da-da...

Thick laser beams swept toward the Nether Fire in an overwhelming barrage. The Underworld Fire Fighter dodged and shifted constantly, weaving at high speed through the Kepler Jungle. Huge plants were turned into a sea of fire one after another. Amidst the flames, the Underworld Fire Fighter dashed out, firing a volley head-on, which the Laser Shield blocked head-on.

Cheng Konghai was just enjoying himself; opportunities to blast Romero like this were rare.

He discarded the two laser cannons directly and gripped the Chain Giant Hammer in his hands. At this moment, the Underworld Fire Fighter struck like a Ghost,

still carrying residual flames. The Thunder Mecha's hammer didn't even look at the Underworld Blade stabbing toward it, but instead brought the hammer down on the opponent's head, ensuring that even if it were pierced, it would smash the opponent flat.

Boom~~~~

The Underworld Fire Fighter changed its angle instantly, not intending to clash head-on at all. While dodging the giant hammer, the Underworld Blade slashed toward the Thunder Mecha from a tricky angle. Clang...

A loud explosion rang out; the Titanium Shield blocked it. The hammer smashed down with a roar, but the Underworld Fire Fighter's agility was far higher than the Thunder's, and it dodged directly. Just as the Underworld Blade prepared to attack, the massive momentum had already arrived, and the Thunder Mecha crashed directly into the Nether Fire.

The Nether Fire dodged flexibly again. If a super medium-sized Mecha with superior mobility was still caught by a Heavy Armor, then there was really no point in playing in the S Tournament. But just as the Underworld Fire Fighter dodged, a black shadow suddenly struck, and the Laser Shield opened.

Boom...

The Chain Giant Hammer hit the Underworld Fire Fighter directly, and the massive force sent the Underworld Fire Fighter flying.

"Beautiful! Cheng Konghai's Thunder Mecha used a Meteor Hammer to hit the Nether Fire. The Nether Fire's Laser Shield can't take many hits like that, and it's extremely aggressive toward the pilot. Although he's using Heavy Armor, he's a technical Heavy Armor pilot; even the Armor Leopard could go back and forth with the Puppet!" Kuangwu Daren roared.

Beside him, Huonan looked disgusted, "Don't shout suddenly, acting like you've never seen the world. We Martian warriors are all made of steel."

Sure enough, Romero on the other side seemed not to have suffered any impact. The Underworld Fire Fighter strode toward the Leiting Guard. At this moment, the giant hammer whirled in the Thunder Mecha's hands. As soon as it entered the attack range, the giant hammer was immediately flung out, striking toward the Nether Fire like lightning. The Nether Fire tilted its head sharply and continued to close in, but the next second, the retracted giant hammer flew out again. Getting hit by this thing at close range was really not something an ordinary person could withstand.

The Nether Fire did not retreat; the Mecha suddenly swayed, its center of gravity shifting violently. The Genesis Mimicry System activated, instantly pulling out trails of afterimages. The Variable Frequency Step + Mimicry System made the Underworld Fire Fighter pull out trails of afterimages.

But Cheng Konghai wasn't playing games with him at all. The Chain Giant Hammer in his hand immediately danced like a hurricane, forming a terrifying circular strike. The bulky Thunder Mecha appeared very flexible under Cheng Konghai's control. A heavy Mecha manipulating a soft weapon—this combination was truly beyond everyone's expectations.

In fact, this Chain Giant Hammer was a creation given by Master Jiabo of the USE later on. It was originally equipped with a giant hammer, but that made the entire Thunder Mecha appear even clumsier. If it couldn't hit the opponent, even the strongest attack was useless. This Chain Giant Hammer immediately gave the Leiting Guard a margin for error, but... the problem followed immediately: under high-intensity operation, the Chain Giant Hammer was more lethal to itself. If one throw went wrong, let alone hitting the opponent, it would often trip itself, which was equivalent to suicide.

With a loud explosion, the Underworld Fire Fighter soared into the air, an arc Jump Slash!

Just at this moment, the Leiting Guard let out a loud explosion, directly lunging into the air. The titanium steel chain in its hand pulled sharply, the giant hammer was gripped, and it chiseled toward the Nether Fire.

Ant———Wu Tian Hammer! Boom...

Accompanied by an earth-shattering roar, the Underworld Fire Fighter was sent flying dozens of meters, knocking down seven or eight huge fern trees before it stopped its momentum.

The Thunder Mecha gripped the giant hammer, looking at the distant Underworld Fire Fighter with a half-smile, "Lone Wolf, haven't seen you in years, do you look down on me that much?" The Underworld Fire Fighter stood up, swept away the debris around it, and swung the Underworld Blade to clear the obstacles in front of it. Romero's mouth curled into a cold sneer, "Just letting you warm up, so you don't break so easily, Ant."

Both of them showed a curve at the same time. Romero's nickname in Tianqi was Lone Wolf. At that time, he still had two eyes, but among the Martians, he was unruly and eccentric, and his strength was both strong and ruthless, so he was called Lone Wolf. Later, Tianqi disbanded, and he lost an eye, but he was still called Lone Wolf by the Martians, though it no longer meant the same thing.

Both of their eyes turned crimson at the same time. The meaning of this "Lone Wolf" was something only Tianqi people understood, even if they hadn't seen each other for many years.

One returns! Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap-tap

The Underworld Fire Fighter charged toward the Leiting Guard at full speed. The Thunder Mecha used the Meteor Hammer again. The terrifying giant hammer whirled; if it hit the Mecha squarely, the feeling would be terrifying to watch, and this fighting style was truly very rare.

However, the Underworld Fire Fighter had no intention of stopping at all. The Nether Fire's Laser Shield had already blocked two heavy hits; it probably didn't have much energy left. Moreover, having activated the K23, the Meteor Hammer was emitting an even more terrifying red glow; the Laser Shield probably really couldn't take another hit.

The distance between the two sides continued to close. The Nether Fire actually entered the Meteor Hammer's attack range without the slightest hesitation.

Whoosh~!

The Meteor Hammer roared toward the Underworld Fire Fighter. The Underworld Fire Fighter's body swayed, and the Meteor Hammer missed. Following closely, the Thunder Mecha rotated backward to pull back the giant hammer, and with a turn, a backhand—snatch! Boom...

The Meteor Hammer struck out again from the lower position. The Underworld Fire Fighter suddenly took a staggered step, its center of gravity swayed, and the Meteor Hammer missed again. At this point, there was no chance for a third strike; the Underworld Fire Fighter had already entered attack range.

Flash Strike————Nether Slash! Boom...

Just as he gripped the giant hammer, the Underworld Blade had already arrived. The Titanium Shield blocked it directly. The Thunder Mecha just swayed, and Cheng Konghai felt something was wrong; the power of this strike was too light. The Underworld Fire Fighter had already soared into the air, kicking wildly toward the Thunder Mecha's head. Boom-boom-boom-boom...

In an instant, a dozen explosive kicks landed, and the Thunder Mecha retreated continuously. The next second, the Underworld Fire Fighter used a forced Thousand Catty Drop to land, kicking directly into the Thunder Mecha's right leg. A massive force struck, and at the same time, the Underworld Blade went straight for the center.

Clang~~Boom!

The Thunder Mecha braced its right leg, taking the kick head-on, while the Titanium Shield blocked the attack again in the nick of time. The massive Mecha pressed toward the Nether Fire, and the Underworld Fire Fighter had already opened up the distance.

The two Mobile Suits returned to their original positions.

The entire audience was stunned; what kind of monsters were these two? One used Heavy Armor like an assassin—could a Heavy Armor really pull off those details of leg-powered parrying??? And what the hell was that Meteor Hammer that combined hardness with softness?

And the other one actually engaged in close-quarters combat with a Heavy Armor; what was all this?

The arena was in an uproar; one was the long-renowned Lone Wolf Romero, while the other was just a fledgling kid—how could he be so fierce?

Since when did Tianjing Martial Arts produce such an expert? No wonder Romero had to take action personally to capture him; the intelligence from Langwu was extremely detailed—as long as they suppressed the point of Cheng Konghai, even if Li Hao won one match, it would be of no help.