Chapter 347: Birth Of A War Machine!
Online discussions had indeed boiled over because of one of Chen Han’s videos.
Previously, when people saw the video of the Chen family head practicing martial arts together with that dark mecha, everyone was sure it was just an AI video.
So when the Robot Mecha League inexplicably invited the Chen family head to participate in the competition, in many people’s eyes that was shamelessly trying to piggyback on his popularity.
Things made with AI could not possibly be brought into reality.
Besides, even if the Chen clan really had such a mecha, would it even be the same type as those in the Robot Mecha League?
Forcing a hype crossover like that was just shameless, and many fans of the Chen family head even went to the official site of the Robot Mecha League to post abusive comments.
Later, as time passed, people stopped paying attention to this matter.
If you fuss too much with shameless people, you only lower your own worth.
But no one expected that the Chen family head actually posted another video, agreeing to participate in the Robot Mecha League.
Nobody saw that coming.
Moreover, from this video it could be seen that it was no longer that dark mecha, but a normal mecha model.
It was the one the Chen family head had previously purchased.
The Chen family head agreed to participate; could it be that he was going to use this to compete?
Don’t be so abstract. This is just a mecha model; it cannot move by itself.
Many fans saw it and could not help leaving comments under the video:
“Chen family head, I think you must be joking.”
“Chen family head, is this another abstract video? I don’t get it.”
“Holy crap, don’t tell me you’re really going to use this model to compete? Come on, that’s taking the joke too far.”
“…”
Not only were Chen Han’s fans surprised, Tong Fei, the person in charge of the Robot Mecha League, was also shocked.
He had not expected that just when this wave of popularity was starting to die down, the Chen family head suddenly dropped a popularity bomb on him.
When he posted that video before, it was purely to piggyback on the hype; he had never really thought the Chen family head would actually have a robot to participate in the competition.
Now that the Chen family head suddenly agreed to come, he did not know how to respond for a moment.
Looking at the mecha model in the other party’s video, it was one of the models from the Southern Heavenly Gate Plan, the same as the one he had bought earlier, right?
It looked nice, sure, but using it in their competition? Never mind the fact that they were more than two meters tall; any random robot in their league could knock them over.
If the Chen family head really brought this to compete, wouldn’t they have to get those competitors to cooperate in acting, or deliberately lose to the Chen family head?
Not sure what to make of it, Tong Fei even found the contact number and got in touch with the Chen clan to confirm the authenticity of this matter.
Once he received definite confirmation that the Chen family head would indeed participate, he did not hesitate; with this popularity delivered to his door, he immediately had people announce the news that the Chen family head would participate in the robot league.
As soon as he confirmed it, the online buzz around this matter rose even higher.
Soon, the higher-ups also took notice.
In the capital city.
Minister Ma had long since led people to a canyon within a hidden mountain peak.
In the capital’s vicinity, such mountains and canyons were very rare, and it was obvious that the terrain here was very special, seemingly situated in a particular kind of landform.
You could see many people busy in the canyon.
Some were carrying special stones and placing them in designated positions.
Some were cutting down trees in certain places, or planting trees in others.
In the central area there were several instruments set up, and on each instrument lay a special coin sword, with many people surrounding them, observing.
The secretary said with some emotion, “Minister, this is our tenth adjustment. If it still does not work, we really will have to invite that Chen family head to help.”
“Mm.” Minister Ma nodded.
A sudden phone call made him answer at once, and then he exclaimed in surprise, “What? That Chen family head is really going to some Robot Mecha League? Is this a joke…”
After hanging up, he immediately took out his phone and went online to check the situation.
When he saw that the Chen family head had posted a video saying he would participate in the Robot Mecha League, and that even the league’s official side had announced it, he suddenly noticed his heart beating faster.
After all, they had previously suspected that video of his might not be AI, and that the Chen clan might really have created that kind of mecha.
They just had no evidence.
Now that the Chen family head was going to participate in this Robot Mecha League, this seemed like an opportunity to find out.
Without hesitating, he instructed his secretary, “Looks like you’d better get me a ticket to the scene.”
The Robot Mecha League was being held right there in the capital, so he definitely had to go take a look.
And since the Chen family head would be coming over anyway, they could have him come see this canyon and help them out.
…
Over the next two days.
The online discussion about the Chen family head participating in the Robot Mecha League grew more and more intense.
Nobody had expected that the Chen family head would really go to that Robot Mecha League.
This made quite a few people buy Robot Mecha League tickets because of him, wanting to go and see.
Above all, they wanted to see the mecha model he would bring.
Could that store-bought model really work?
Even many tourists visiting the Chen clan started paying attention and asking about this.
As a purely casual tourist, Zhang Yan was not concerned about this matter.
He had come to the Chen clan because a colleague recommended it, saying the place was excellent, so he used his free time to bring his wife and daughter to visit.
Also, the Chen clan’s environment and air were really good, and this climate was particularly unbelievable.
Who would have thought that while outside people needed to wear jackets, here in the Chen clan they could still wear short sleeves.
His wife, however, was very curious and asked, “Honey, do you think the mecha model that the Chen family head bought can participate in that Robot Mecha League?”
Zhang Yan felt awkward. He had not followed this matter closely and did not really know the details, so it was hard for him to answer.
Just then, he suddenly saw his daughter pointing excitedly in one direction, surprised and thrilled: “Dad, mom, a robot, there’s a robot coming over.”
Drawn by her, Zhang Yan curiously looked in the direction she pointed, and saw an astonishing scene.
There really was a mecha walking over from that side, and it was very agile, just like the fully formed mechas in anime.
The sight was so captivating that people could not help but stare.
“Ah… this mecha is really walking on its own…” His wife was also drawn in by what she saw, her face full of shock.
She had seen the news online and naturally knew about the Chen family head planning to use this mecha to participate in the Robot Mecha League.
But this did not seem to be the mecha model sold by that company.
A model could not walk by itself.
The surrounding tourists were likewise drawn in.
No one could stay calm seeing this; in this era you could only see freely moving mechas in movies.
Now they were seeing it here at the Chen clan.
The Chen family head clearly meant business about using this mecha in the Robot Mecha League.
They could see that behind the walking mecha, the Chen family head was wearing a kind of AR glasses device, obviously controlling the mecha.
The tourists all took out their phones to record, watching as the Chen family head controlled the mecha as it walked out of the Chen clan.
“Senior brother, let me play a bit.” Xiao Yu stood beside Chen Han, her face full of eager expectation. She had been unable to control that black model, but this one she could.
She also knew this was no longer the original mecha model; it had been refined by her senior brother into a puppet.
And in her eyes, it was just a very fun big toy.
Chen Han smiled and handed her the CBI-type AR glasses.
In the past two days he had already inscribed the beginner Puppet Technique onto the Family Heritage Stone Tablet, setting it so that anyone entering the Family Cave Mansion would be eligible to learn it.
Over these two days his junior sister had already learned the Beginner Puppet Technique on it and had even tried refining one herself, naturally ending in failure, so she directly set her sights on this puppet he had made.
Now, seeing him hand over the AR glasses, she excitedly took them, put them on, then stirred her true qi, reactivated the runes, and controlled the puppet.
Next to Xiao Yu was Xiao Mi, also full of anticipation, but she already knew from Xiao Yu that this was a Chen clan secret technique, not to be spread.
The reason they were controlling the mecha and walking out was, of course, to head to the capital to participate in the robot mecha competition.
The competition would start tomorrow; by going today, they could have a good rest that night and then take part in the first preliminary match the next day.
In the Chen clan parking lot, a transport vehicle had long been parked and ready. It would transport the beginner puppet to Qingming City, and then, by air, send it to Beijing.
After loading the mecha into the vehicle, Chen Han also got in to head to Qingming City Airport. His junior sister and Xiao Mi went with him; both were quite interested in this competition.
After all, it was trending now. Shooting some videos and material at the competition scene would bring them a lot of popularity.
As the Chen clan tourists watched him leave the clan with his group, they all uploaded their recorded videos online.
Some of the videos quickly caused a sensation, especially the scenes of the mecha actually walking on its own. Those steady, agile steps were something this era simply did not have.
In an office of the Robot Mecha League, Tong Fei was looking through the competition information for this round, thinking about how to arrange the schedule for the Chen family and how to cooperate.
The Chen family head had popularity, so he planned to assign some very weak competing robots, having them deliberately lose to the Chen family head. Even pretending to have a short circuit and stop working so the Chen family head could win would be fine.
This leg of the competition in the capital lasted four days; the more days the Chen family head appeared, the more days of popularity they would gain.
As for those weak robots, many of them were there for a bit of support funding anyway. With some arrangements on his side, those teams would be willing.
Just as he had picked out a few robots to play this role, an employee rushed in and handed him a video. “Director Tong, quick, this is really the mecha the Chen family head is bringing to the competition.”
Puzzled, Tong Fei took the video and watched, and his face immediately showed disbelief.
Was that not the model from the model company that the Chen clan had bought?
How could it possibly walk so freely?
This was unscientific.
Was it a model exterior with a person inside?
Tong Fei subconsciously shook his head. Impossible. The texture and heavy feel of that mecha were completely unlike some flimsy shell that a person could fit inside.
In the capital, this was exactly what Minister Ma was watching most closely, so he also saw the video of the freely walking mecha at the first opportunity.
He was full of shock. “This… is this real?”
The reporting secretary nodded firmly. “It’s real. This was shot by tourists at the Chen clan, and many tourists filmed it. From the videos it is clear that it should be the Chen family head controlling it.”
“Is this a joke?” Minister Ma was truly stunned. He immediately took out his phone and called the number of the model company’s person in charge.
Back when the Chen family head and that model hit the trending searches, and the video of him practicing martial arts with the model spread, they had already contacted the model company to ask about it.
So he had the company head’s number.
But as soon as the call connected, the model company’s head spoke awkwardly. “Minister Ma, about that mecha, I have no idea what is going on. It absolutely has nothing to do with our company.”
Honestly, when he saw that mecha model in the video, he was dumbfounded.
No one knew the capabilities of their own models better than he did. The joints were flexible, yes, but nowhere near that flexible.
More importantly, their mecha models absolutely could not walk automatically like in the video.
If they really had the ability to build such a mecha, they would not have needed to piggyback on the Chen family head’s popularity like that.
But that mecha model had indeed come from his company. He just had no idea why it had become like that.
So when people called to ask whether his company’s models were really that powerful, he really wanted to say he also wished they were that powerful.
After receiving this reply, Minister Ma watched the video again. Looking at the freely walking mecha, he felt a profound shock.
The Southern Heavenly Gate Plan was only a conceptual plan pushed by the higher-ups, with no concrete direction yet. Was the Chen family head about to blaze the trail ahead of them?
They had to admit, regarding the Southern Heavenly Gate Plan, the higher-ups themselves were at a loss.
The mecha controlled by the Chen family head was clearly no longer just a model. It could walk freely, and if it could adapt to environments and even have offensive capability, what would that represent?
Calling it “epoch-making” would not be an exaggeration.
As he thought of this, he grew even more alarmed. Could the Chen family head really have created something this astonishing?
…
Time passed. Chen Han arrived in the capital again, and after landing at the airport, he saw people from the Robot Mecha League holding a sign to pick him up.
On this front, they were clearly very proactive.
With their help, he quickly completed the relevant procedures. The beginner puppet had already been airlifted ahead of him; once the paperwork was done, it was transported to their lodging. The league even provided a dedicated place to store the mecha, with full monitoring, supposedly reassuring.
In fact, when it came to surveillance, Chen Han did not trust it. With stronger technology or a skilled hacker, tampering with surveillance would be easy.
He trusted rune sensing far more.
After arriving at the lodging, league staff came specially to help him fill out the competition-related information and procedures.
The night passed without incident.
The next day, after breakfast with his junior sister and Xiao Mi, he and the transport vehicle carrying the beginner puppet headed to the suburban competition venue.
A robot fighting arena had long since been built here. There were five such venues domestically, and the league would be held in rotation at each. The top few from each venue would then enter a final round.
Although robot competitions were not heavily promoted, the competition system itself was very well developed.
There would be a preliminary match in both the morning and afternoon today. He would face two robots, and his match had been placed first in the morning.
He understood what the league wanted: to open with a bang.
They just did not know that his beginner puppet might give them an enormous shock.
Outside the competition venue, Chen Han found it packed with people, dense crowds at the ticket check. This level of excitement did not look like a poorly promoted, lukewarm event at all.
However, once he appeared, the staff at the ticket checks started calling out to him and greeting him, filming with their phones. He more or less understood: they were here for him.
When Chen Han entered the arena, league staff guided him to a dedicated rest and modification area and helped transport the beginner puppet.
In the dedicated rest and modification area, participating teams could repair and adjust their robots.
None of that was of any use to Chen Han.
He did not know how long had passed when he realized the music in the arena outside was thundering and the host’s voice was booming. That meant the competition was about to start.
In a VIP room, Minister Ma appeared, accompanied by his secretary and guards. He had not entered under his real name; everything had been arranged.
The secretary held the match list. “Minister, the league organizers are quite shrewd. They’ve put the Chen family head in the first match to grab a wave of popularity. If the Chen family head wins too, the hype will be even bigger.”
“And they’re even going to rig matches to let the Chen family head win.” Minister Ma smiled. “This popularity is being delivered to his door.”
But he wondered, did this mecha of the Chen family head even need help?
That was why he was curious enough to come in person.
While they chatted, the opening ceremony wrapped up, and the host announced the start of the competition and read out the competitors for the first match.
As soon as the name of the Chen family head came out, the crowd erupted in cheers. Many of them had bought tickets specifically for him.
Minister Ma and his secretary instinctively leaned toward the VIP room window and saw the Chen family head walking out from a passage.
He was wearing the AR-style glasses from the video, but what drew everyone’s eyes most was the J-16 mecha following behind him.
The mecha was actually walking on its own, just like in the video.
The spectators who had come just for this sight, seeing the mecha walk by itself with their own eyes, all gasped.
“It’s actually real. How on earth did the Chen family head do it?”
“The mecha models sold by that company can’t walk at all. The Chen family head must have done something.”
“It’s so agile, unbelievable. Has a self-walking mecha really appeared already?”
“…”
As the audience voiced their disbelief, something even more astonishing happened. The opponent’s robot was a flat, wheeled design that could not enter the fighting cage on its own and had to be carried inside by staff.
But the Chen family head’s mecha walked to the entrance, bent down, and stepped in by itself. The staff were stunned.
The live audience was stunned as well.
Minister Ma was also dumbfounded. Being able to bend down and step through like that was completely different from just walking freely; it was orders of magnitude more difficult.
This showed that the mecha’s joints, or rather its whole structure, were flexible to the extreme and extremely refined.
“To what degree has the Chen family head taken this thing?” Minister Ma muttered, then widened his eyes again as he watched the mecha draw the long sword from the groove on its back.
That move completely shocked everyone.
Was this really not a person inside wearing a shell?
In an instant, the exclamations grew even louder.
On the opposite side, the robot team from Zhou State University’s science and technology institute were graduate students. Young and hot-blooded, they felt a bit sour watching the other side’s robot cause such a stir.
But… the Chen family head’s mecha really was cool.
They knew that model company’s products and had studied them; there was no way they could be this terrifyingly agile.
Knowing they were supposed to act and lose to the Chen family head this time, they planned to make their robot circle the mecha a few times. Even if they had to throw the match, they could not lose too fast, or they’d look weak and fake.
Of course, they also had to be careful not to accidentally flip the Chen family head’s mecha. Even if a mecha was agile, once it fell, getting it back up should be a big control problem.
Once both robots entered the fighting arena, the host’s loud voice rang out, announcing, “The long-awaited first match of the Robot Mecha League now begins!”
Almost at the same time, the team from Zhou State’s academy controlled their robot to zip around the Chen family head’s mecha in circles.
Their robot’s strength was its agility; this speed could leave other robots unable to keep up, much less a big mecha like the Chen family head’s.
But in the next instant, they saw an astonishing scene: the mecha suddenly bent its legs and leaped high into the air.
The audience all had their jaws drop at that moment.
“What the…”
“Holy…”
“Damn…”
“…”
“What?” Minister Ma practically stuck his head out of the window.
It was one thing for the mecha to walk and bend into the cage; now it could jump?
And jump that high?
Before Minister Ma could recover, he saw the mecha’s sword suddenly angle downwards, and it crashed down fiercely.
Bang!~
Clang!~
A terrifying metallic impact rang out instantly, accompanied by a burst of sparks. A shocking scene appeared, and even the audience seemed to freeze for a moment, falling silent.
In that instant, Minister Ma’s whole body was trembling.
He felt as if he were witnessing the birth of a war machine.
