Mo Chen saw that Noise was injured and originally wanted her to retreat, but seeing the determined girl before him, he couldn't help but be affected by her resolve.
"I understand."
After secretly assigning a few vanguard Nikkes, he went to find the Counter Squad.
Thanks to Noise's resistance against the sonic attack, the squad's injuries weren't too severe.
Before long, he found them in the ruins of a collapsed building.
"No need to help me, Master. I can do this."
Neon stopped Mo Chen from reaching out to support her, gripping the boltgun tightly. She clenched her teeth, forcing herself to stand up despite the pain. Her eyes burned with an intense fire.
"Whether it's firepower or myself, I will never back down!"
Pretty stubborn.
Mo Chen turned to the other side, where Anis was buried under the rubble. He grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the debris as if uprooting a radish.
"You okay?"
Covered in dust, Anis spat out a few times, puffed out her chest, raised her chin slightly, and declared proudly, "I'm a member of the Counter Squad, the Commander's Nikke! What's this 'okay or not' nonsense? Don't underestimate me. It's just some loud, annoying noise! Just wait—I'll slap a fine on her in no time!"
If it weren't for her wobbly stance and the dust on her face making her look like a raccoon, Mo Chen might have almost believed her.
At that moment, Shifty's voice came through the communicator.
"Commander, Commander...!"
Mo Chen was slightly startled and asked, "What is it?"
"Thank goodness, I finally got through to you," Shifty on the other end of the communicator seemed to breathe a sigh of relief before quickly saying, "There's a weapon grappling hook at the northwest military base. It was originally prepared to deal with the Mother Whale. You might find it useful, Commander."
A grappling hook?
Mo Chen suddenly remembered.
In the original story, the Ark had specially developed a massive grappling hook to hunt the Mother Whale. It functioned somewhat like a ballista, equipped with barbed hooks. Once it hit the target, it would latch on like a trap, restraining the prey.
Eden had a similar weapon as well, which was used in later battles.
"Commander, is this information useful?"
Hearing no immediate response from Mo Chen, Shifty became a little anxious, unsure if the intel she provided was valuable.
Mo Chen snapped out of his thoughts and replied, "Useful—very useful. This intel came just in time. Good job. I'll treat you to a meal later."
Shifty, flustered by the praise, felt her ears heat up slightly.
"I'm just glad I could help, Commander."
She actually wanted to ask when that meal would be, but before she could, Mo Chen had already hung up.
With this new information, he immediately adjusted their battle strategy.
Anis and Neon were tasked with heading to the military base to locate the grappling hook Shifty mentioned. Once they had it, they needed to find the right opportunity to fire it and drag Storm Bringer down from the sky.
Marian and Rapi were assigned to clear out smaller Raptures on the flanks, holding off enemy advances while remaining ready to provide support.
Meanwhile, Mo Chen would act as the distraction.
He had already noticed that from the very beginning, Storm Bringer had been fixated on him.
Technically, Mo Chen was capable of flying—he could channel spiritual energy beneath his feet to do so.
However, Storm Bringer was too high up. Rushing in recklessly would only make him an easy target.
Seeing the eagerness in Anis and the determination in Neon, he couldn't help but remind them, "Be careful. Your safety comes first."
"Commander, who do you take me for!"
Anis puffed out her chest proudly, raised her chin, placed her hands on her hips, and declared arrogantly, "I am the great Lady Anis!"
So full of herself.
Mo Chen was speechless.
Still, seeing their confidence reassured him.
With no further hesitation, Mo Chen dashed out of cover, immediately drawing Storm Bringer's attention.
The massive autocannons locked onto him and fired instantly. A barrage of missiles tore through the air, blazing with scorching trails as they homed in on his position.
Mo Chen moved at an incredible speed, sprinting across the battlefield like a blur, weaving through the swarming Raptures.
With a flick of his thumb against the hilt, the blade of Ryūjin Jakka was unsheathed with a crisp clang.
In the next instant, his arm swung, and the blade traced a shimmering arc of destruction, slicing cleanly through a Master-class Rapture in a single stroke.
"Boom—!"
The explosion echoed through the sky, with flames and thick smoke rising high.
The sharp blade light tore through the air, slicing apart the incoming Raptures.
The heavy armor was as fragile as frosting on a cake before the sharp edge of Ryūjin Jakka.
Whether it was Storm Bringer or the Rapture army on the ground, all of them had their attention drawn to Mo Chen, bombarding him frantically.
And this played right into Mo Chen's hands—while attracting firepower, he also cleared out the swarming enemies.
"Earned 20 points."
"Earned 76 points."
"Earned 11 points."
"Earned 132 points…"
The points kept scrolling on the screen, but he had long gotten used to this.
He kept charging toward the densest Rapture clusters. Especially toward the breach in the Ark.
That was where the Raptures were gathering.
As Mo Chen expected, Storm Bringer had locked onto him. With a powerful flap of its massive wings, razor-sharp winds mixed with blade-like gusts formed a giant tornado, covering everything below!
He didn't choose to confront it head-on but kept moving and dodging.
Storm Bringer was flying at a height just beyond his reach. Even with Shunpo, he couldn't instantly get close. Not to mention, despite its enormous size, Storm Bringer was highly agile—trying to catch it wouldn't be easy.
Dodging through the storm of bullets and missiles, Mo Chen weaved through the battlefield filled with Raptures, maneuvering effortlessly across the ruined cityscape. It was as if he was untouchable; the Raptures couldn't stop him, not even the Lord-class ones.
Storm Bringer's relentless attacks didn't land on Mo Chen but instead bombarded the Raptures below, causing havoc among its own forces.
"Boom—!"
At that moment, accompanied by a loud roar, a motorcycle sped onto the battlefield like a lightning bolt, crashing into a group of Raptures and sending them flying. With a sharp drift, the bike came to a halt right in front of Mo Chen.
The Nikke sitting on the motorcycle extended a hand toward him.
"Hey, handsome, need a ride?"
Mo Chen was stunned.
It wasn't because of the Nikke's driving skills, but rather the fact that she had the audacity to ride a motorcycle straight into this battlefield.
The Nikke spoke up, "Ah, I forgot to introduce myself—Sugar, from the Café Sweety squad. Also, thanks for saving my café. So, this ride is on the house."
Mo Chen remembered.
It was her.
Even more bold and dashing than he had expected.
Without wasting time, he leaped onto the back seat of the motorcycle.
Sugar revved the engine, and in the next moment, the bike shot forward like a raging storm, tearing across the battlefield at lightning speed.