Reborn as a Mechanist with a God-Tier System-Chapter 309: Gulf in power

Well, there was a very thin line between confidence and arrogance, and to Talia’s Wraith Cell-9, their companion definitely crossed the line from confidence to arrogance when he made that statement.

And for veteran agents like them, that was unacceptable.

They were not going to take that quietly; they were going to show him that though they were weaker, collectively, they were still a force to be reckoned with.

And of course, Tyla tagged along simply because she wanted to support Talia after she supported her first.

And just like that, Leon succeeded in rage baiting all his friends, making them forget about his own awkward moment back in the restaurant.

Putting the awkward moment aside though, Leon also wanted to test himself to see the current bottom line of his power as a D Rank Warmachine Specialist.

...

At Iron Reef’s heart, inside the Lion Heart Gym.

Inside this indoor gym that felt more like a high-tech training facility rather than a typical workout space, 6 Ascended faced each other in a 5v1 and clashed in a violent sparing session!

BAM! BAM! BAM!

The gym was reinforced and strong enough to withstand the shockwave of D Rank Ascended combat.

The architecture is industrial and imposing with thick concrete pillars, exposed ceiling structures, and a vast open layout.

The lighting inside is dramatic as deep shadows contrasted against the sharp red accents running along the floors and stairs, giving the space a slightly intense and dystopian vibe, while suspended circular light rings hovered overhead, casting a cool white glow on the workout areas.

The workout area is divided into sections with sleek, minimalist equipment with pull-up bars, parallel bars, and open court spaces that resembled multipurpose training zones for calisthenics and functional training.

This was a high-grade military gym and once again, the entire crew benefited from Leon’s influence as they easily got access inside.

They didn’t use any of the work-out equipment though, they just fought.

In Leon’s bid to avoid the embarrassing situation that he found himself with Tyla, he ended up flaring up the pride of his comrades and every single one of them became motivated to show him that they were not to be trifled with.

They went all out.

But despite trying their best, the spar lasted only 5 minutes, a period of time where Leon demonstrated the gulf in power between a D Rank Ascended and E and F Rank Ascended. It was a gulf that simply could not be breached easily.

The higher the rank, the bigger the gulf in power.

Daren was the last man standing but even he couldn’t survive for long, especially when all his other teammates were already decommissioned.

BAM!

Daren was slammed into the opposite wall of the gym, coughing blood even as a few of his ribs dislocated from the force of impact.

"Ugh...!" He groaned, grabbing his chest.

Cell Repair!

Bzzz!

His ADE flared immediately as he pushed himself away from the wall, and though he was already healing, he couldn’t stand steady as he collapsed to the ground the next moment.

The force of impact rattled his entire frame and bones and for a few long moments, his entire body was numb.

Standing a few meters away from him, Leon scratched the back of his head.

"Uh..., sorry?"

He chuckled in a bid to defuse the tense atmosphere in the gym. "You guys tried, honestly. I mean, you lasted 5 minutes".

"Shut up!" Talia growled.

Leon wisely kept his mouth shut.

For Ascended like them who had taken years to hone their craft and become this good at what they did, to lose in such a convincing manner to a guy who barely started walking the Ascended path a few months ago must have been demoralizing.

’Uh... I may have overdid it’. Leon scratched the back of his head again.

In the end, despite how much he thought he already understood his own powers, Leon still ended up underestimating himself.

To make the battle even for them, of course he refrained from using any of his heavy hitters like the Bulwark MK.II Titan Frame and the Sentry-IV Autocannon Drone, he didn’t even use any Doom Rover v0.1 or v0.2 for the spar.

And yet, him in his base state was too difficult for them to contain.

The primary weapons that he used were the Flux Crystal Spear, the modified VX-09 Emberfist Gauntlets, and the upgraded Terra Nova 71 Rifle. Though he used a lot of other supporting weapons, he refrained from using any explosives.

Leon approached the battle with a handicap to see how he would fare against such experienced and powerful Ascended, but in the end, it was still a one-sided sweep.

The density of his ADE was so much now that with Enhance to empower the VX-09 Emberfist Gauntlets, paired with his own combat instincts and technique, he was able to overpower a genuine E Rank Cyber Gladiator like Daren who were supposed to be the Kings of close combat in close combat.

The disparity in power brought by the Ranks was just too much.

Every attack from him hit harder, every turn was sharper, and everything he did just screamed the superiority of his Rank.

With Enhance, each shot from the Terra Nova 71 Rifle hit with the force of a full-on D Rank attack!

With the modified VX-09 Emberfist Gauntlets, Leon bullied any of them that dared approach him for close combat, even Daren!

Despite the fact that he tried to deliberately tone it down, it was still extremely lethal for the likes of Tyla and Ghostwire especially.

F Rank Ascended felt like paper in front of the current him, and he was especially careful not to injure them more than intended.

The only reason why they lasted so long was because of Talia who kept hopping through the psionic network and harassing him with her Data Lash, but with his vastly superior WIL, the damage and mental disruption from her Data Lash was massively diminished.

Only D Rank NetRunners could theoretically really affect and damage him with psionic-based attacks.

And with his sword drones coordinating with him, Leon’s defense and offense was air tight. It was a massacre as 25 sword drones hovered in the air and harassed them, leaving them no space to truly contain him.

Only now that he tried it did he realize just how versatile, well-rounded, and overpowered a D Rank Warmachine Specialist was especially when pitted against weaker Ascended.

If the current him was unleashed in an aerial battle like the invasion of Leviathan Quay, and if there was no enemy D Rank Ascended opposing him, Leon was confident in singlehandedly harvesting tens of thousands of lives due to the nature of his abilities. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Looking at his comrades who were on the gym floor with various degrees of injuries, he coughed, then he finally called the gym medics.

A few minutes later, bandages covered their most glaring injuries after they received treatment, and Leon finally sat on the floor of the gym alongside them.

He pretended to breathe heavily to make them feel better, but it only made them feel worse.

Brick and Ghostwire still looked nonchalant though.

Most of them avoided his gaze, but those that looked at him did with a complicated emotion in their eyes.

Kain chuckled in a self-deprecating manner. "Now, I see why Rex was always glazing you".

"You bastard, you truly are a monster".

The others didn’t say a word but their silence told the full story.

Leon stayed quiet for a few seconds, then he suggested. "I’ve not yet visited Rex’s grave since the events 3 months ago".

He looked at Talia. "I want to visit and pay my last respects now".

He also looked at Daren. "And oh, I have a gift for you".

...

[Special Appreciation to Katcan20, Shadesworn, Robert_Luckau, Darks4int, and spikey670 for the Golden Tickets. spikey670, thanks man! I truly appreciate all the support.]