Chapter 36: Triple Micro-control
Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, sunrise.
“Wu Shang, how do you feel?”
“How much progress have you made in entry-level?”
Zhang Qing Wei, sitting cross-legged, exhaled a deep breath of white air and looked toward Luo Wu Shang beside her. Bloodlines trickled from the corners of her mouth and eyes, yet there was light in her gaze, an incomparably blazing flame.
But this rather frightening scene did not make Luo Wu Shang stop repairing the wall. Instead, one hand continued patching, while the other casually thrust out to the other side.
In an instant, six explosive bangs rang through the air.
“This Stellar Explosion Meditation Technique is really powerful. So far I have reached three percent entry-level.” Luo Wu Shang glanced at the six finger marks on the wall and said with great satisfaction, “Originally, during Pilgrimage I could reach Point Star thirty-three stars, and here my limit was only at about five-star level. But this meditation technique has further enhanced my control over my body and my reaction speed. Now I can easily reach six stars.”
“I feel that if I improve a bit more, I should be able to reach seven stars. By then, even if I encounter a Beginner Apprentice master in the wilderness, I should be able to fight.”
“You are improving this fast?” Zhang Qing Wei was a bit tongue-tied after hearing this. “We clearly started entry-level at about the same time. You are already at three percent, and I am only at two percent. No way, I am not going to headquarters to report today.”
With that, Zhang Qing Wei formed a saber with one hand and slashed at a wall.
Suddenly, a star-shaped mark formed by three traces appeared on the wall, with faint cracks emerging at the center.
“At just two percent entry-level and I can already unleash the First Level of Rippling Wave Saber. It really is amazing.” Looking at the marks on the wall, Zhang Qing Wei felt incomparably excited.
Rippling Wave Saber was the signature technique she became known for during Pilgrimage. At that time, it was no weaker than Luo Wu Shang’s Point Star. However, Rippling Wave Saber, unlike the speed-type Point Star, was a strength-type saber technique. Unlike Crushing Stone Fist, which doubles one’s physical strength, Rippling Wave Saber uses technique to merge three strikes into one, directly doubling the power.
But ever since the car accident, her bodily reactions could not keep up, and she had never used Rippling Wave Saber again.
“What are you doing?” Lin Qi looked at the two who were practicing against the walls early in the morning, his expression a bit dark. “I had you come to repair the martial arts hall, not to damage its walls. Each of you is fined two hundred points, and today you must also repair ten walls as compensation, or you will be expelled from the martial arts hall.”
As soon as Lin Qi spoke, the two who had been excited were on the verge of tears.
They would rather Lin Qi give corporal punishment multiplied by ten.
In High Martial Arts Descend, earning points was too hard. Even if they worked hard for a whole day, they could only earn a bit over one hundred points. A sudden loss of two hundred points pushed their weapons two more days further out of reach.
Seeing the two say nothing and obediently go patch the walls, Lin Qi’s expression eased somewhat.
“These players are getting stronger and stronger, and the martial arts hall really cannot withstand their torment. Once the hall is fixed, more players will come. I cannot keep an eye on everything. Looks like I need to set some new rules.” Lin Qi glanced at the cracked wall the two had made and sighed inwardly.
What had originally been only a theoretical meditation technique had actually been cultivated successfully, and not by just one person, but three. With this Stellar Explosion Meditation Technique, even though the three were only quasi-apprentices, they already had the strength to challenge Beginner Martial Artist Apprentices.
Now it was equivalent to Obsidian Martial Arts Hall having four Beginner Martial Artist Apprentice level combat powers. In the wilderness, this was already the standard of a small gang, enough to formally undertake some transport trade jobs outside.
Blue Star, Ku Rong City, Storm Shadow Club.
Simulation match battle space.
“This time the random battle map is Ruined City. It is not very suitable for a sniper battle.” Looking at the arena before him, Li Ranxing could not help but command in the team channel, “You four switch to melee combat response mode and find a way to lure away the four members of Blue Enchantress. I will handle Chen Ya!”
“Yes!”
Randomly assigned across various parts of the city, Fang Zhen and the other three also moved toward the city center.
In Mecha Continent’s team competition, ten players fight on one map. The ten starting positions are random, and the map will continuously shrink. If you cannot quickly move toward the center, you will be killed by the collapsing map.
So as soon as the battle starts, everyone heads toward the center. Whether they encounter teammates or enemies along the way all depends on luck.
“Such bad luck. I drew backline support this time and did not bring any melee weapon. My mech is also a ranged mech.” Fang Zhen looked at his set of ranged weapon and equipment and could only feel helpless. “Looks like I can only lie in ambush and set up an ambush.”
In Mecha Continent, mecha combat is divided into melee and ranged according to weapons. To match melee weapons, the mecha will be adjusted to some extent, such as improved agility and speed, to facilitate quick engagement.
Ranged mecha emphasize stability. They are somewhat clumsy, but can deliver sustained, precise fire from range. Accordingly, once they are engaged at close quarters, they are at an overwhelming disadvantage.
After Fang Zhen had gone less than two kilometers, a burst of explosions came from a distant building, followed closely by his teammate’s short-range communication in his ears.
“Requesting support! Requesting support! Is anyone nearby? I have been discovered by two melee members of Blue Enchantress.”
“I am currently retreating eastward. Requesting support! Requesting support!”
After the string of short-range communications ended, Fang Zhen saw on the street ahead of him a red melee mech tangled in battle with two blue melee mechs.
In Mecha Continent’s team matches, the two sides are usually divided by color: one side red, the other blue. In this simulation match, Storm Shadow was red and Blue Enchantress was blue, so both sides could be distinguished at a glance on the battlefield.
But before Fang Zhen could react, the red mech was cut into several pieces by the two blue mechs and was directly eliminated.
“Well, lucky us, there is another one.” Meng Gang, the Blue Enchantress member wielding a war spear, looked at Fang Zhen directly down the street and smiled. “Blade, let me handle this one. That last fight was really boring. The captain said my evasion has always been lacking. This ranged one is just right for practicing my evasion technique.”
“Fine, but make it quick. If you are too slow, the captain’s fight might have already started.” The teammate named Wang Yi Dao did not mind and said, “Ten seconds. I will only give you ten seconds to end it.”
Though Storm Shadow Team had qualified for the national competition, they were only a top 32 team. Compared with these top 4 in the nation regulars, they were always a cut below in technique and reaction, which was why these opponents did not take Storm Shadow seriously.
“All right. You count.”
Without hesitation, Meng Gang directly controlled his mech, activated thrust acceleration, and charged at Fang Zhen with a war spear more than ten meters long. His speed was so fast he left trails of afterimages, yet the mech itself could always subtly avoid the obstacles in the street.
“So fast.”
“At such speed he can still execute such precise control. Is this the strength of a top 4 in the nation team?”
In front of the Storm Shadow Club’s big screen, a group of Storm Shadow members watched the blue melee mech, agile like a monkey, and could not keep from exclaiming.
In Mecha Continent, mecha control is extremely difficult. It is not like other virtual games where controlling your character is like using your own body, easily performing all kinds of actions. Mecha control is more like driving a car, only far more complex. To make a mech move like a person, even top experts in Mecha Continent can hardly achieve it.
But right now, Meng Gang had done it, controlling the mech like it was a human body, to an unbelievable extent.
“Who is piloting that ranged mech? Why has he not opened fire to snipe yet?”
“That mech seems to be Fang Zhen.”
“Fang Zhen is really unlucky. Running into a melee mech at such close range, even if he fires, he has only one chance. If he misses, it is a dead end.”
The Storm Shadow members present all shook their heads as they watched the red ranged mech. Normally, ranged mechs would hide three kilometers away and snipe. Now the Blue Enchantress melee mech was only a bit more than one kilometer away. There was not even time to run, and with all the cover around, it was far too easy to dodge bullets.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Just as the blue mech with the war spear closed to under five hundred meters from the red ranged mech, three gunshots echoed down the street.
“Has Fang Zhen lost it? He actually fired three shots in a row. Does he really think spraying bullets will hit?”
“Probably just desperately trying anything.”
Seeing Fang Zhen fire three consecutive shots, everyone felt he had given up. Because of recoil, each successive long-range shot is harder to control than the last. Firing three in a row is no different from random spraying.
“Given up? How boring.”
Meng Gang looked at Fang Zhen, who had fired three shots, and shook his head helplessly. He had wanted to practice evasion, but now he did not need to. Aside from the first shot needing a slight dodge, the other two could be completely ignored.
He instantly made a sharp side movement, directly dodging the first bullet aimed at his head.
Just as Meng Gang was preparing to hack Fang Zhen into pieces, he suddenly found another bullet right in front of his eyes.
“Damn.”
Meng Gang jerked his arm up, trying to bring the war spear in front of his head to block the shot.
Clang!
A crisp metallic sound rang out.
The war spear shuddered as the bullet struck it, knocking it off its original blocking line.
The next moment Meng Gang felt everything go dark before his eyes.
“Triple micro-operation.”
“He actually used triple micro-operation. Is he Li Ranxing?”
Meng Gang woke up in the virtual game pod and stared deathly at the big screen in the distance, filled with unwillingness. A mecha control technique like triple micro-operation was something only captain level experts from teams in the top 8 in the nation could perform.
He had thought he was just bullying a Storm Shadow member, but had not expected to run into Li Ranxing in disguise. How were they supposed to fight that?
But when Meng Gang looked at the battle on the other side of the big screen, he was completely stunned.
On the other battlefield, Captain Chen Ya was fighting a red mech, and the two sides were locked in an evenly matched struggle.
“Are you kidding me? Who is that?”
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