Endless Evolution: Last Star

It was like a man trying to defeat a bear with his bare hands. The bear was superior to the man in everything - speed, strength, defense, and arsenal. The man had only fists and muscles, while the bear had sharp claws and an incredibly powerful jaw.

However... Everything changed dramatically if a man had a weapon, for example: a gun. One shot was enough to defeat a beast several times bigger.

People were sure that sooner or later, they would be able to defeat monsters with large-caliber weapons, bombs, or rockets. However, they quickly realized that even White Threat Level monsters were too durable.

They seemed to be protected by the genes, absorbing some of the damage onto themselves and blocking the rest with their tough skins. In the end, even supersonic fighter missiles were ineffective.

Laser turrets showed that killing monsters was possible, but they were too energy-consuming and immobile. Turrets were only on walls, powered by generators the size of entire houses.

In the end, the development department came to the only true solution - they tried to copy the power of the Phantoms but with technology instead of genes. Thus, the first prototypes of exoskeletons and FNs appeared.

Sure, it was still a long way from the Phantom level, but it was hundreds of times better than stationary turrets.

After all, if the military could defeat White Threat Level monsters on their own, it would make the Phantoms\' job easier and raise the control of territories to a new level!

\'Hmm... Looks like they didn\'t succeed here, what every military man dreams of.\' Adam inwardly pondered, staring intently at Layla.

He could sense that her aura as a being had hardly changed. It was clear from her gaze that she had killed monsters before, as the military previously conducted tests and battles to show the public the finished result.

However, she was unable to become a Phantom, neither an Artificial one, much less a Natural one. It was obvious that it was impossible to ignite Spark by killing the monster with the Exoskeleton and FN.

\'Well, it\'s even a little sad. Some military men spend more time training than Phantoms, but without genes, one can\'t become seriously strong.\' Adam pondered with a deep gaze.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

The triple-horned Buffalo was trying to break through the ice cage created by the Phantom. Slowly, the monster succeeded, and cracks began to form in the ice bars, but the military had plenty of time to prepare for the fateful battle.

Sure, any Phantom would have no trouble dealing with this monster, but right now it wasn\'t the Phantoms who were the main fighters.

Layla opened the case and put on her FN, just like the first time, it was combat gauntlets. The first soldier had a massive sword with thread-thin wires with powerful electric shocks running through it.

The second military man took out a massive triangular shield with several plates heated to extremely high temperatures. With these, the military man could leave severe burns on the monster\'s body.

"ROOOOAAAAAARRRRRR!!!"

At the same moment, the Triple-horned Buffalo finally broke free from its capture.

Layla and the two military men launched into action immediately. The man with the shield stepped forward, about to take on the furious Triple-horned Buffalo\'s attack.

The Phantom Rookie would not be able to block such an attack due to a lack of strength and experience. Thus, the outcome of their clash was crucial.

Bam.

The three horns collided with the shield, but they couldn\'t break it, however, the momentum was powerful enough to throw the man back a few meters.

The military man skillfully did a somersault in the air and landed on his feet, staring intently at the monster to which his partners moved closer.

"Take that!" The sword-wielding military man swung his massive weapon, plunging the sharp blade straight into the Triple-horned Buffalo\'s back leg.

As expected, the FN had trouble getting through the monster\'s tough hide. Otherwise, the man would have simply sliced off the Triple-horned Buffalo\'s head with one sharp swing, as any Phantom would have done.

However, that didn\'t mean the man was going to give up.

"AAARRRRGGHH!!!" The man roared like a beast, directing all his power towards the sword and pressing down on the hilt as hard as he could.

This had its effect, for the energy flowing through the threads from the engine traveled to his hands and sword, increasing the pressure and force of the electrical discharges.

In this way, the sword severed part of the Triple-horned Buffalo\'s leg, revealing its flesh with clots of dark blood.

"RRRRGGGGGHHHH!!!" The Triple-horned Buffalo howled in pain before swinging its tail like a whip, bringing it down on the man.

The man\'s pupils narrowed as he put his sword out in front of him at the last moment for defense.

The spiky tail curled around the sword, snatching it from the man\'s hands in a sharp motion and tossing it aside.

Then, the Triple-horned Buffalo attacked the man, but he dodged the tail that flew over his head and ran for his sword.

The monster realized that this wasn\'t supposed to happen and was about to ram the man, but... Layla was already here!

She hadn\'t entered the battle yet, so it was time for her to show what she was capable of.

Bam. Bam. Bam.

Layla unleashed a hail of blows at the Triple-horned Buffalo\'s head, each time using more energy from the generator.

Unlike the two men, she actively used the generator - first channeling the energy into her legs for speed and now to her arms for maximum damage.

Soon, the Triple-horned Buffalo exhaled a puff of steam through its nostrils and slammed its hooves into the ground, forcing Layla to take a few steps back.

She was about to continue attacking, but the Triple-horned Buffalo made a run-up, quickly pointing its horns at her.

Whoooooooosh.

The energy transferred to her legs again, giving Layla acceleration. At the last moment, she was able to dodge the monster\'s dangerous attack, which would have surely hurt her badly. After all, the exoskeleton didn\'t offer impenetrable protection.

"Look out!" The man with the shield exclaimed, trying to get to the Triple-horned Buffalo as fast as possible.

The monster wasn\'t going to stop, moving straight towards the First Ring - to Adam. Triple-horned Buffalo had to hit something or move a very long distance to stop, so... a collision with the iron fence was inevitable.

Trici\'s eyes narrowed at the sight of the monster bearing down on her, however, the rapidly building fear was gone when she saw Adam step forward.

He reached out his hand with a calm face and grabbed the middle horn of the Triple-horned Buffalo, stopping the huge monster instantly.