"If you can't, you just can't. Older men sometimes run out of steam. I understand," Alan said, patting Zola on the shoulder with a sympathetic look.
"I'm a robot," Zola protested.
"I know, I know. A man can't say 'no'."
"…" You idiot, you don't understand. We're talking about two different things.
"Oh no! The robot army is here!" Zola's signal analysis revealed dense concentrations of Sentinels converging on their location.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion. A hole was blasted through the concrete wall. In the darkness within, pairs of crimson eyes stared out at the mutants.
"Evacuate the building!" Apocalypse immediately commanded. This area had a special force field that limited his full power. They needed to retreat outside to break the stalemate. Besides, if they remained trapped in the data processing center, they'd be like turtles in a jar. And they couldn't be the main force against the Sentinels. They needed to wait for the X-Men and the Brotherhood to join the fight.
Soon, they retreated the way they came. As for Skynet, they didn't need to worry about it. If they fought through every floor, the data upload might finish before they reached it. It was better to wait outside.
"There's an escape route here! Don't let them get away!" Zola warned. He had downloaded the building's blueprints when he linked to the network and knew there were at least three escape routes.
"They won't escape." Outside, Apocalypse regained his confidence. He raised a hand and unleashed his sand power. The interference field's coverage was limited. He would simply convert the surrounding earth into metal, completely sealing off the area.
Meanwhile, inside the safe room. Trask was preparing to make his escape. The safe room was like a large elevator, designed to transport them miles away to a hidden location. Suddenly, the screen showed all escape routes were blocked.
"How is this possible? Who leaked the data processing center's information?" Trask felt his intelligence crushed again, as if he had encountered an all-knowing enemy who understood all his methods.
"Are we going to die here? I don't want to die! I have a bright future ahead!"
"Damn mutants! Why don't they just die?"
"Filthy, despicable mutants! They shouldn't even exist!"
The five chiefs cursed, venting their inner fear. They were in the prime of their lives, with promising political careers ahead, and they refused to accept this end.
"Don't worry. Once Skynet transfers to the Sixth Generation Sentinel prototype, none of them will survive," Trask said, his voice brimming with confidence, as if all their problems would be solved.
"Sixth Generation Sentinel?" This was the first time they had heard of such a project. Clearly, Trask had deliberately kept it hidden. But they had no time to question him. They only cared about the Sixth Generation Sentinel's combat capabilities.
"While it's still in the research and testing phase, we've already mastered liquid nanite technology. Its mechanical regeneration and repair capabilities are unparalleled. The reason we haven't announced it is simple: the prototype cost five billion dollars. Full production would likely be even more expensive," Trask explained.
The five chiefs wisely didn't press the issue. At five billion dollars a unit, Congress would rather invest in B-2 bombers and F-22s, which at least yielded significant profits. But Sentinel production was a direct cost.
Meanwhile, various models of Sentinels poured out onto the ground like zombies. Machine guns, rockets, and guided weapons were unleashed. The scene was reminiscent of a World War II battlefield, filled with intense artillery fire.
Apocalypse maintained his force field with one hand while using his sand manipulation to counterattack with the other. Seeing this opportunity, Alan excitedly suggested, "Boss, bury the enemies, leaving only their heads exposed. I'll collect the experience!"
"Be careful." Apocalypse gave his capable subordinate a lot of leeway.
Alan pulled out his butcher knife. "Dr. Zola, block their fire for me!"
"Can't you stop trying to die?" Zola's voice was full of exasperation.
"Between death and looking cool, I choose death."
Hearing Alan's answer, Zola immediately transformed into a steel body. If he had dared to refuse, Alan's butcher knife might have come down on him.
After some preparations, Dr. Zola blocked the incoming fire from the front, with Alan close behind. The two rapidly approached the first robot.
A swift, clean cut.
At the same time, Apocalypse provided remote support. When they approached a target, he would soften the ground, causing the Sentinel robot to stumble and sink, leaving only its head exposed. Then, Alan's merciless butcher knife would deliver the final blow.
Sentinels attempting to surround them found their legs entangled in sand, which instantly hardened, imprisoning them. Some Sentinels tried to fly, attempting to gain aerial superiority, but the swirling sand obscured their vision.... [Killed 4th Generation Model 120 Sentinel. Experience +750]
[Experience sufficient. Current Priest level is Lv120.]
[Learned skill: Greater Resurrection.]
[Greater Resurrection: Prerequisite: target must have been buffed. Revives target once within 24 hours. Cooldown for the same target: one year.]
[Notification: Requirements met. Can return to original timeline at any time.]
Under Dr. Zola's protection and Apocalypse's assistance, Alan successfully killed over thirty Sentinels, finally accumulating enough experience to meet the return requirements.
"Max level! Time to go, time to go!" Alan shouted, retreating to the safety of the force field. Now that he was max level, Alan wasn't interested in killing any more Sentinels. He had achieved his goal. If not for the system's upgrade requirements, Alan wouldn't have bothered with such thankless work.
"Little Butterfly, I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?" Alan sidled up to Psylocke, eager to show off his Greater Resurrection skill.
"I don't want to hear either," Psylocke replied, rolling her eyes.
"Since you asked, I'll begrudgingly tell you."
"…"
Alan put his hands on his hips and said, "The good news is that I get one more chance to court death."
"And the bad news?" Psylocke asked, falling for it.
"I can only use it once a year," Alan said, deflating. Greater Resurrection was powerful, but its long cooldown made it seem almost useless.
"They're here!" Archangel announced.
Everyone looked towards the teleporting X-Men and Brotherhood members. They had successfully destroyed ten factories and had rushed to provide reinforcements. Seeing the thousands of various Sentinel models, they felt a chill. The hundreds of fifth-generation Sentinels were the biggest threat.
Gathered within the force field, they discussed how to eliminate the Sentinels. With their heavy weaponry, directly engaging the Sentinels would result in too many casualties. They had no perfect solution. In their daily skirmishes, mutants usually fought one-on-one. They had no experience fighting unthinking killing machines.
"Holy cow, do you really need to discuss this?" Alan said, looking at them with disdain. "Boss, can't you just turn the ground into metal, and then Old Magneto can just smash them all?"
"…"
The three leaders' faces fell. It wasn't that Alan's plan was bad. It was that they hadn't thought of it themselves. And hearing it from a madman was simply humiliating.
But the solution was there. They had to use it.
Dust swirled, coalescing into spheres, then transforming into multi-ton iron balls. As Magneto raised his hands, hundreds of these iron balls ascended into the sky. With a downward thrust, the iron balls plummeted like meteors.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The ground shook with explosive impacts, ringing in their ears.
Raise hands, push down.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
After repeating this several times, no robots remained. They were all shattered beyond recognition.
"If I had these two abilities, it would be awesome," Alan said, looking envious. "Every time I travel through time, I'd just bring hundreds of iron balls and bomb fish in the ocean. Tsk, tsk, tsk…"
"It's here. Skynet is coming!" Zola warned anxiously. His green signal lights flickered red, as if battling for control. The nearby mutants immediately stepped back, their eyes filled with wariness.
"I'm pulling out. Skynet is taking over the body," Zola said. With that, his signal light turned red, and Zola abandoned the body, transferring his data back to his main processing unit.
"One slash, open the heaven's gate!" Before the Sentinel program could fully execute, Alan slashed and destroyed it.
Meanwhile, a mercury-like liquid seeping onto the battlefield, writhing irregularly, gradually forming a humanoid body. Magneto extended his hand, attempting to control the metallic liquid, but his efforts were in vain. The liquid continued its transformation. Apocalypse also tried to turn the metallic liquid into sand. Clearly, the liquid metal was the Sixth Generation Sentinel, and it was immune to mutant abilities.
"My turn!" Pyro extended his hands, triggering his ignition device, and a torrent of furious flames erupted. The roaring flames reached thousands of degrees Celsius, turning the ground to crystal. But the liquid metal showed no sign of softening.
In less than a minute, the liquid metal transformed into a hulking figure.
"T-800!" Alan exclaimed, shocked. "It can even mimic clothes? Is this a crossover episode?"... Pyro stopped, and Iceman took over. Freezing cold poured from his hands onto Skynet's body, which solidified into ice at a visible rate.
"It's frozen!?"
CRACK!
Before they could cheer, Skynet burst out of the ice. A stiff, synthesized voice announced, "Executing extermination protocol."
BOOM!
With a single thrust of its leg, its body shot out like a cannonball, slamming into the force field. The translucent shield vibrated violently.
Trask, hiding in the safe room, watched Skynet's debut with excitement. "The show has begun! This is the Sixth Generation Sentinel's first real combat. It's historically significant."
"It just looks human. What's so special about it?" Trask scoffed at the five laymen. They couldn't possibly comprehend the horror of the Sixth Generation Sentinel. He simply said, "You'll see the results soon enough."
[Chapter Complete]
***
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