The edge of Blackrock Town.

  The Abandoned Warehouse District.

  Once a logistics hub of the Old World, it was now nothing but rusted steel frames and collapsed structures. It stood like the carcass of a steel behemoth, exuding a deathly pressure in the night.

  Kane stood at the entrance of the district, looking up at the skewed steel girders in the distance.

  He turned toward Crag.

  "Keep watch on the perimeter. Notify me if anyone comes."

  Crag nodded, his massive frame vanishing into the shadows, his footsteps thumping like a pile driver.

  Kane stepped into the depths of the warehouse district.

  He chose an area choked with rusted frames and ruins as his training ground. The terrain was complex—girders, debris, and collapsed walls intersected in a chaotic web, making it the perfect place to break in the power legs.

  Kane stood beneath a slanted steel beam and bent his knees slightly.

  "Begin."

  BOOM—!

  The ground erupted, sending gravel flying.

  Kane’s figure shot into the sky. Mid-air, he activated [ Aerial Step ], his body pulling a grotesque angle as he rocketed toward another girder twenty meters away.

  The speed was extreme.

  But just before impact—

  Sssss—!

  The agony of neural overload struck again, like a red-hot wire churning through his spine.

  Due to the momentum, Kane’s body was on the verge of slamming into the steel beam.

  However, before he could even consciously realize it, The Predator automatically adjusted its angle. His legs pivoted slightly, allowing him to narrowly avoid the girder and land on a nearby pile of rubble.

  Kane dropped to one knee, gasping for air.

  Cold sweat dripped from his brow, hitting the ground with tiny splashes.

  That sensation of "body faster than brain" had returned.

  He gritted his teeth, forcibly suppressing the pain of the neural load.

  "Again."

  He stood up and leaped once more.

  This time, he didn't use [ Aerial Step ]. Instead, he relied solely on the explosive power of The Predator to perform high-speed jumps between the girders.

  Once.

  Twice.

  Thrice.

  With every landing, he could feel his neural load spiraling upward.

  But simultaneously, he could feel his brain gradually adapting to the reaction speed of The Predator.

  That "latency" was shrinking, bit by bit.

  From 0.1 seconds to 0.08 seconds.

  Then to 0.05 seconds.

  Though it was still far from enough, he could at least barely keep up with the rhythm of The Predator.

  Minutes turned into half an hour.

  By the thirtieth minute of Kane’s training, his neural load was nearing its absolute limit.

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  His legs began to tremble uncontrollably, and the cold sweat from his forehead had nearly soaked through his hood.

  He landed on a ruin, bracing himself with one hand while panting heavily.

  Right then—

  "Kid."

  Crag’s low voice crackled through the communicator.

  "Someone’s here."

  Kane’s pupils constricted.

  He ceased all movement instantly, vanishing into the shadows of a collapsed building.

  ...

  The edge of the warehouse district.

  A patrol squad of six was slowly advancing into the area.

  Leading them was a captain equipped with military-grade exoskeletal plating, standing over two meters tall and radiating a heavy sense of oppression. The remaining five were outfitted with standard-issue rifles and tactical armor, their movements disciplined and well-trained.

  The captain raised his arm, signaling the squad to halt. He clicked the communicator at his waist and reported in a low voice.

  "Sector 3 clear. Proceeding toward Sector 4."

  A cold female voice responded through the comms.

  "Copy that. Continue the search. Target codename: B-07. He is accompanied by a Stoneborn giant. Upon discovery, report immediately. Do not engage on your own."

  The captain acknowledged and cut the transmission. He turned to his subordinates.

  "You heard the lady. Stay sharp."

  "That 'Ghost' isn't easy to deal with. Don't let your guard down."

  The squad members nodded, leveling their rifles as they continued their advance.

  In the shadows.

  Kane hid behind the ruins of a collapsed building, watching the patrol through a narrow fissure. His gaze fixed on the metallic emblem hanging from the captain’s waist.

  It was the insignia of the Kunlun Corp Security Division.

  The same department as Commander Andrew Zoe, the man who had been hunting him.

  Kane’s eyes turned glacial.

  "Codename B-07?"

  He let out a cold sneer in his mind.

  "They actually gave me a codename. Kunlun Corp’s efficiency is impressive."

  "However..."

  He looked down at his legs. His neural load hadn't recovered yet; his legs were still trembling slightly. Under normal circumstances, he should have chosen to retreat.

  The problem was—

  He scanned the patrol's search route. This squad was pushing directly toward Crag’s position. With Crag’s massive build, he would be impossible to hide once they got close.

  And the moment Crag was spotted, they would call for reinforcements. At that point, every Kunlun Corp asset in Blackrock Town would swarm this location.

  Both he and Crag would die here.

  Kane tapped his finger against the ground three times.

  This was the pre-arranged signal between him and Crag. It meant: Stay put. I'll handle it.

  Deep in the distant shadows, Crag received the signal. His massive frame pressed even tighter against the ground, becoming as still as a mountain.

  Kane retracted his gaze and focused on the patrol.

  Six men. One captain with military-grade plating. Five members with rifles and tactical gear.

  In a head-on confrontation, he stood no chance.

  But he didn't need to fight them head-on.

  Kane’s eyes swept across the surrounding terrain. Abandoned steel frames. Collapsed walls. Rusted pipes.

  And...

  His vision settled on a derelict warehouse fifty meters ahead of the patrol. Half of its roof had already caved in; the remaining section hung precariously, ready to collapse at any moment.

  The patrol’s route would take them directly beneath that structure.

  The corner of Kane’s mouth twitched upward.

  "A target delivered right to my doorstep. It would be a waste not to take it."

  He activated [ Kinetic Boost ].

  At the same time, he toggled The Predator into full-power mode.

  Beneath the matte black shell of his legs, a layer of pale blue bio-electric arcs surfaced. His neural load instantly spiked into the red warning zone.

  Kane gritted his teeth, pushing down the agonizing sting. He flashed a hand signal to Crag.

  Don’t interfere.

  Crag hesitated for a fraction of a second before nodding and retreating further into the deeper shadows.

  Kane rose from behind the ruins.

  He didn't charge directly at the patrol. Instead, he moved in the opposite direction, toward that derelict warehouse, gliding with ghostly silence. The explosive power of The Predator allowed every step to be weightless and soundless.

  He wove through the shadows at a staggering speed.

  Thirty seconds later.

  Kane appeared at the side of the abandoned warehouse. He looked up at the precarious roof. Its support structure was severely corroded; only a few swaying steel beams were barely holding the weight.

  It only needed a tiny nudge of external force. Then, it would collapse entirely.

  Kane drew The Cyclone from his waist. He didn't load a bullet. Instead, he directly channeled his [ Aero Blade ] ability.

  A pale blue current of air coalesced at the muzzle. Kane aimed at the most critical steel beam supporting the roof.

  He pulled the trigger.

  Chiii—!

  An invisible blade of wind shot out, precisely severing the beam.

  CRACK—!

  The sound of the steel snapping was exceptionally jarring in the night air. The patrol captain alerted instantly, snapping his head up.

  "Look out!"

  But it was already too late.

  RUMBLE—!!

  The entire roof came crashing down. Tons of steel frames and concrete slabs rained toward the patrol squad!

  "Scatter!!" the captain roared, activating his exoskeleton’s thrusters to blast himself to the side.

  The other five members scrambled frantically in all directions. But the collapse was too vast. Two members were a second too slow and were buried instantly beneath the rubble.

  The screams were cut short.

  The remaining four crawled out from the edges of the ruins, disheveled and covered in dust. The captain’s exoskeletal plating now bore several deep dents.

  He panted heavily, his eyes darting around the environment.

  "It’s a trap! The target is nearby!"

  He raised his arm, about to activate his communicator to call for reinforcements—

  Chiii—!

  An invisible wind blade streaked through the air, precisely severing the device. The communicator let out a puff of acrid smoke, completely fried.

  The captain’s face paled.

  "Damn it!"

  Right then—

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