Chapter 102: Solving the Mechanical Ace
Zhao Longze rushed forward like a sharp arrow, his speed as fast as lightning, the tiny black phantom shadow almost impossible for human eyes to catch.
“Bang—!” A powerful punch, carrying immense force, slammed into the abdomen of Mechanized Ace, who had not reacted in time. Then, with a single powerful leg thrust, he leaped straight toward the thousand-meter-high sky, preparing to launch the Leo Kick!
Although Mechanized Ace felt no pain, the fierce impact sent him staggering back several steps.
Mechanized Ace let out an unwilling roar, swinging his arms backward before extending them into an L-shape, aiming straight at the Zhao Longze who was condensing his Leo Kick and unleashing his attack.
Metalm Light!
Colorful beams of light surged like fountains toward the falling Zhao Longze. Rather than dodging, he roared in fury and intensified the Leo Kick, the flames on his right foot burning even more intensely, as if causing the very space around him to ripple.
“Ha—!”
The Leo Kick collided head-on with Mechanized Ace’s Metalm Light!
Though hindered by the Metalm Light, Zhao Longze’s Leo Kick pressed forward relentlessly, closing the gap.
Sensing the approaching danger, Mechanized Ace ramped up his energy output, making the Metalm Light even more overwhelming!
As Zhao Longze’s Leo Kick continued to approach, the increasingly powerful Metalm Light kept neutralizing its force!
“Boom—!”
Zhao Longze’s right foot, wrapped in raging flames, shattered through the Metalm Light’s barrier. The silver foot sole struck Mechanized Ace’s head with a resounding impact!
Mechanized Ace crashed to the ground, but Zhao Longze knew it was far from over!
The Leo Kick’s power had been largely offset by the Metalm Light, so the damage inflicted was probably not severe.
Zhao Longze stayed hyper-alert, body slightly crouched, his sharp white eyes locked onto the motionless Mechanized Ace lying on the ground as if lifeless.
“Swish—!”
Mechanized Ace suddenly rose, arms shooting out horizontally before crossing in front of his forehead. Energy from his core formed a serrated ring, which he then flung outward in a wide arc!
All of it unfolded in an instant.
Ultraman Head Cutter!
This was an incredibly lethal light technique. An ordinary monster would be sliced cleanly in half by its razor-sharp blade of light.
It had been classified as a forbidden technique in the Land of Light!
Ultraman Ace had once needed special permission from the Land of Light to use it on Earth. Later, however, it could be unleashed directly, possessing roughly four times the power of Metalm Light and consuming half of Ultraman Ace’s internal energy with each activation.
One could only imagine how devastating this move truly was!
Though Zhao Longze was unfamiliar with Ultraman Ace’s many light techniques, the crescent-shaped Ultraman Head Cutter hurtling toward him filled him with a sharp, intimidating aura.
He knew that blocking it head-on with his current strength would be extremely difficult!
In the blink of an eye, the gleaming Ultraman Head Cutter, radiating lethal cold light, closed in.
Zhao Longze twisted aside, thinking he could evade it, only to realize the Ultraman Head Cutter possessed tracking and locking abilities!
Just as he thought he had dodged the fatal strike and relaxed, a chill ran down his spine, and a fierce sense of crisis erupted in his mind.
“Bad!”
Shocked, Zhao Longze immediately performed several flips to retreat, yet the Ultraman Head Cutter pursued relentlessly, closing in.
He deliberately headed toward the rocky terrain, hoping the hard stones would blunt some of the Head Cutter’s power.
...
“Swish! Swish!”
As anticipated, the Ultraman Head Cutter sliced through every obstacle in its path, cleaving them in two without mercy. The tough granite shattered instantly, and Zhao Longze kept flipping backward to evade.
Naturally, each successive cut reduced the Head Cutter’s power!
Looking around, every rock in the area had been destroyed. Some granite had even been sliced back and forth multiple times, reduced to fragments.
Mechanized Ace watched the now much weaker Ultraman Head Cutter and realized that relying on it alone could not defeat Zhao Longze. He immediately leaped skyward, flying straight toward Zhao Longze’s position.
The airborne Ultraman Ace kept launching small light waves to harass Zhao Longze’s retreat, making it easier for the Head Cutter to lock on.
...
“Damn!”
Seeing the barrage of small light waves streaking from every direction, Zhao Longze cursed under his breath. In a flip, his feet gained power, propelling him into the sky to dodge the relentless assault.
But the Ultraman Head Cutter still chased him through the air!
Mechanized Ace continued unleashing fragmented light waves. To avoid them, Zhao Longze once more dropped to the ground.
Facing the renewed assault, he now had a brief moment to catch his breath.
He had been flipping repeatedly on the ground to evade, but now seizing the chance, he slid his feet across the surface, his steps becoming fluid and ghostly.
The special steps taught by Jingtian Jilong!
Ghost Step!
This movement did not increase speed but granted extraordinary agility. It was like the protagonist’s Ghost Shadow Steps from the novel *Battle Through the Heavens*—an indispensable tool for evading attacks.
Zhao Longze rarely used it, however, because employing skills reminiscent of fantasy worlds in the Ultraman realm always felt alien to him.
Moreover, against bulky monsters, such a precise step was unnecessary, so he had rarely practiced it.
...
With a Ghost Step, Zhao Longze moved like a fish gliding through clear water, fluid and unpredictable. He took angles the Ultraman Head Cutter could not follow in time.
“Ha!”
Mechanized Ace roared in fury and charged forward, clearly preparing another light attack!
Seeing this, Zhao Longze sneered and stepped with the Ghost Step, closing the distance to Mechanized Ace’s front in the blink of an eye!
“Whoo—!”
The Ultraman Head Cutter followed relentlessly. Zhao Longze twisted at a bizarre angle, his body shifting aside. The Head Cutter, unable to adjust, struck Mechanized Ace directly!
“Swish—!”
Ultraman Ace was sent flying backward, though not sliced in half. The Head Cutter had already been depleted, yet its remaining force was still formidable.
Mechanized Ace collapsed motionless! The skin over his chest had been severed, exposing the intricate machinery beneath.