The echo of the Gestalt captain's order to not fire had not yet faded.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
The sharp, crisp sounds of several Federation-standard assault rifles firing high-energy polymer rounds came from Ryan's left flank. This eager-to-impress, redheaded kid had once again ignored the captain's orders.
"Ryan! I order you to stay hidden!"
"You disobedient fool!"
The Gestalt captain's roar nearly shattered Shen Kai's eardrums. Gestalt quickly adjusted his tactical posture and moved toward the source of the gunfire like a cheetah while issuing orders to the other two team members.
"Nadeshiko, find a favorable firing position and prepare for suppressive fire."
"Shen Kai, monitor our right flank and rear to prevent other monsters from ambushing us!"
Shen Kai took a deep breath, forcing down the increasingly chaotic and piercing "core whispers" in his mind caused by the gunfire and the captain's roar. He took cover quickly behind a rock half his height, covered with a thin layer of ash, and raised his AR-18 assault rifle.
In the low shrubbery ahead, tinted a dull gray by the "anomalous color," several ash giant scorpions as large as small tanks had been thoroughly enraged by Ryan's firepower. Their bodies were covered in dark gray, rock-like armor.
In Shen Kai's perception, they emitted a dull ochre hue filled with brutality, hunger, and primal murderous intent. At the tip of their high-arched tails, the menacing tail spines glowed with dark red energy, resembling red-hot branding irons.
"Come on, you ugly bastards!"
"Taste the power of my 'Scarlet Flame Core'!"
Ryan shouted over the communication channel. The high-energy composite rounds he fired sparked on the giant scorpions' carapaces but failed to inflict significant damage.
Nadeshiko's gunfire also rang out. She fired cautiously, primarily to divert the attention of one of the giant scorpions and relieve the pressure on Ryan.
Suddenly, a gray ash giant scorpion lurking in the soft soil nearby burst forth!
Shen Kai clearly "saw" an ochre-colored burst representing a deadly ambush explode like a ghostly apparition behind Ryan's side. Its massive claws, accompanied by a whistling wind capable of tearing through the air, swept toward Ryan's unguarded waist and ribs like lightning.
"Ryan, watch your back!"
Nadeshiko was the first to spot the danger and screamed in alarm.
At that critical moment, Ryan sensed the deadly threat. His pupils contracted sharply, and he let out a wild cry, instinctively relying on his combat instincts and the frantic warning from the "Scarlet Flame Core." His left hand flashed toward the silver-gray metal device at his waist—the "Tactical Link Drive"!
"Type-12 Mod. I, Sentinel!"
Ryan roared, slamming down the activation lever on the side of the driver simultaneously.
His other hand had already drawn a "Sentinel-Modified Core Pod (Fire)" that was flickering with crimson light. He forcefully inserted it into the center of the driver.
"Clack!"
"Set!"
"Engage: Enhanced Sentinel!"
A cold, synthetic electronic voice echoed over the communication channel simultaneously.
In an instant, a torrent of fiery red data erupted from the drive like solidified flames and swiftly enveloped Ryan's body. Amid a series of "Ka-chunk!" mechanical clinking sounds, additional armor plates with crimson, flame-lizard-scale patterns materialized at visible speeds and locked into place across his body.
Just as the Ash Giant Scorpion's massive claws were about to tear through his ribs, the "Enhanced Sentinel" armor on his shoulders and chest absorbed the fatal blow!
"Clang——!!!"
A deafening clang echoed as metal and armor collided, sending sparks flying everywhere.
The newly formed armor's surface was scratched by the giant claws, leaving glaring marks. The immense impact force sent Ryan flying as if he'd been hit by a sledgehammer, yet he managed to withstand it. The crimson and gray "Enhanced Sentinel" armor flickered with an energy overload at the point of contact, but it wasn't pierced!
"Roar! Get the hell out of here!"
Having narrowly escaped death, Ryan roared inside the armor. The activated "Scarlet Flame Core" filled him with a savage intent to kill. Suddenly, he twisted his body, and the small elemental projector on his armored right arm fired a one-meter-long column of scorching flame. It lashed out like an angry fire whip toward the face of the nearby Ash Giant Scorpion.
"Boom!"
The flames struck the giant scorpion's multiple compound eyes. The exploding fireballs were accompanied by the crackling sound of its shell burning. The giant scorpion let out a piercing scream of agony and retreated instinctively.
Shen Kai watched the scene in silence, feeling no excitement whatsoever. He could sense the chaotic, destructive power erupting from Ryan's body—the essence of the "Red" core—was powerful but also brimming with an uncontrollable, ruinous aura of danger.