The dome of the geothermal central station had now become a target for the Blacksteel Council's heavy siege weapons. The massive shock cannons tore through the air with a shrill howl and slammed violently into the metal dome. Each bombardment shook the entire station violently, sending showers of dust and rubble cascading down as if the whole structure would collapse at any moment. The tracks of steam tanks rumbled over ruins, their gunports flaring as they poured searing projectiles into every entrance of the station.
"Wanchao, the North Zone One entrance is about to fall!" Ah Huo's voice crackled over the communicator, sharp with anxiety. His steam exoskeleton was battered and scarred; the hydraulic system on his left arm had ruptured from a shell blast, spewing high-pressure steam without stop. Yet he stood his ground like a wounded beast, holding fast at the front line.
Jin Wanchao sat before the Resonance Framework, his eyes tightly closed. A flood of information surged through his mind—every corner of the geothermal station, every energy vein, even the positions and fire emplacements of every enemy, all laid out clearly before him. He could *see* the terrifying cracks spreading rapidly across the alloy barrier at the North Zone One entrance under the relentless pounding of heavy artillery.
"Ah Huo, hold on! Old Zhong's repair team is on their way!" Jin Wanchao's voice was steady as he channeled his Flame, rapidly mapping the repair team's route in his mind.
Old Zhong led several veteran craftsmen, clutching modified tools, darting through the chaotic corridors. The ground trembled beneath their feet with every step. The shockwave of an explosion sent a massive load-bearing steel beam crashing down, blocking their path.
"Dammit!" one of the craftsmen cursed, ready to clear the obstruction.
"Don't move!" Jin Wanchao's voice suddenly echoed inside their heads. "The energy veins inside the beam are unstable. Forcing it aside will trigger a secondary collapse!"
He guided Old Zhong to cut precisely at several inconspicuous nodes along the side of the beam with a cutting lance, then secured temporary support poles to safely shift the wreckage out of the way.
"Valerius is insane! He's throwing everything at us!" Spanner snarled. Her forces held another entrance to the station and were also under heavy pressure. The scavengers fought bravely, but against the tide of Blacksteel Guards and their heavy weaponry, casualty numbers climbed rapidly.
"How much longer can our reserve energy crystals last?" Jin Wanchao asked.
"Thirty minutes at most!" Old Zhong's voice was hoarse, laced with despair. "All defensive weapons are operating at overload, and the Resonance Framework's energy consumption has hit its limit!"
Thirty minutes.
Jin Wanchao's Flame flared violently. He could see the enemy closing in at every entrance. For all its power, the Resonance Framework was barely holding back the Blacksteel Council's all-out assault.
His gaze shifted to the center of the station, where the rescued children had been gathered in the safest area, guarded by Little Xing and several members of the Fire Cult. The children huddled together, fear etched on their faces—but at the sound of Jin Wanchao's voice, a flicker of resolve returned to their eyes.
He could see that among those frail children, several burned with an unusually bright Flame. They had never seen battle, never received training, yet having just been freed from the childcare factories, they still retained an instinctive sense for machinery.
One boy, around eleven or twelve years old, stared firmly at a damaged steam cannon. The soldier manning it had been blown to pieces.
"Old Zhong, bring those children here!" Jin Wanchao ordered abruptly.
Old Zhong hesitated but did not hesitate, quickly escorting the children to the Resonance Framework.
"Do you know how to fix this?" Jin Wanchao pointed to the damaged steam cannon on the display.
The children stared blankly at him. But when Jin Wanchao's Flame gently brushed their consciousness, transmitting clear diagrams of the cannon's damage and repair methods, a light unlike anything they had ever known sparked in their empty eyes.
"I… I know!" a girl stammered. "The energy crystal here is overloaded. We just… just need to replace the auxiliary heat dissipation valve!"
"And here! The hydraulic drive rod is warped—it needs to be straightened!" another boy exclaimed excitedly.
Jin Wanchao gave them no time to hesitate. He wove a wisp of his own Flame into the children, instantly amplifying their perceptual abilities.
"Go! Use what you learned in the factories to fix it!"
As if touched by divine revelation, the children charged toward the damaged weapons and equipment. Their small figures darted into the broken machinery like tiny mechanics. With no tools, they used their hands, their teeth, anything they could to mend the cold steel.
"These… these kids!" Spanner watched, her expression complicated. She had thought them nothing but pitiful "raw materials," never imagining they could unleash such power.
Aided by Jin Wanchao's Flame, one damaged defensive weapon after another miraculously roared back to life. Steam cannons boomed again; electromagnetic pulse generators reactivated, blasting waves of charging Blacksteel Guards into chaos.
"Wanchao! North Zone One held!" Ah Huo's voice shook with shock and elation.
Jin Wanchao did not reply. He could see Valerius's heavy siege puppets breaking through every barrier, rolling toward the station's main entrance—the rusted iron gate through which they had first entered. The corridor behind it was the weakest point in the entire defense.
"Jin Wanchao! Do you think these cheap tricks can stop me?" Valerius's voice suddenly blared over the station's internal broadcast system, echoing everywhere. His elegant, arrogant face materialized as a faint projection before the Resonance Framework.
"Your little toys will soon be crushed to dust by my masterpieces! My siege puppets can pierce hundreds of meters of reinforced concrete! Your base, your children, your so-called hope—all will be reduced to nothing!"
Valerius's voice dripped with biting mockery.
"Long live the Blacksteel Council!"
"Long live Lord Valerius!"
Thunderous cheers erupted from the Blacksteel Guards outside, certain of victory.
Jin Wanchao's expression turned grimmer than ever before. He could see the energy veins of the siege puppets, gaping like enormous black holes, devouring everything in their path. Their power far exceeded any foe they had faced.
"Your end has come, Jin Wanchao!" Valerius laughed loudly.
At that moment, Jin Wanchao's Flame abruptly detected Valerius's mental fluctuations—frenzied, focused, intense. He could *see* Valerius's will forging an eerie resonance with the siege puppets through some hidden connection.
"It's you!" Jin Wanchao snapped his head up, staring at Valerius's projection, his eyes flashing with unprecedented sharpness. "You share a resonance with these puppets! You… you're controlling them remotely!"
Valerius's smile froze, surprise flickering in his eyes. He had not expected Jin Wanchao to see through it.
"Correct!" Valerius sneered. "These are my true masterpieces! They are not mere puppets—they are extensions of my will! Now, how much longer can you resist?"
Jin Wanchao said nothing. He spun sharply and rushed toward the Resonance Framework. The Flame within him ignited under a force of will, stronger and more concentrated than ever before.
"Old Zhong! Ah Huo! All core members!" Jin Wanchao's voice was quiet yet carried the weight of a shifting mountain, piercing every consciousness. "Prepare to… link with the framework!"
He was about to stake everything on a gamble unlike any before.