This is the same woman I just met.
Heavens, why would a recruitments office employee be a substitute teacher?
Gu Ya quickly lowered his head, brought up the holographic textbook again, and used its light to shield his face.
"Teacher Hao is on extended leave, so I will be teaching this Basic Mecha Flight Knowledge course temporarily..."
"To help everyone get acquainted, I... I'll start by taking attendance."
The woman, as usual, kept her head down, not daring to look forward.
An older male student spoke up, "Teacher, you haven't introduced yourself yet."
The woman panicked slightly, blushed, and gave an embarrassed laugh. "My name is Dou Wen. Taking attendance now, Wang Lan, Hua Xin..."
When she reached the last name, Dou Wen suddenly paused. She then raised her head and scanned the classroom, finally spotting Gu Ya shrunk in the corner.
"Zhan Yan."
"Present." Gu Ya responded very calmly.
Dou Wen's shoulders slumped, her mental tension rising. She turned to face the holographic system and said softly, "Let's begin the class..."
At four in the afternoon, as soon as the dismissal bell rang, before Dou Wen could even announce the end of class, the students all stood up of their own accord, put on their holographic wristbands, and filed out of the classroom.
Gu Ya was so drowsy he could barely keep his eyes open. He couldn't wait to get back to his dorm, so he simply slumped onto his desk and fell asleep.
He didn't know how long he slept before he vaguely felt someone beside him.
He struggled to open his eyelids, which felt stuck together, and looked up, asking hazily, "Teacher, do you need something?"
Dou Wen was now sitting in the seat in front of him. Seeing Gu Ya wake up, she quickly lowered her head and asked softly, "I wanted to ask what the school's secret department actually does? Why are they investigating me?"
Gu Ya, still groggy, replied casually, "There's no secret department, I made it up to scare you."
Dou Wen breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I've been timid since I was a child. Then why are you bothering me?"
Gu Ya squinted and said, "Uh... I want you to help me with my studies." Having a teacher help him was better than studying alone.
Dou Wen nodded. "Your methods are quite unusual. We can talk more later."
As soon as she left, Gu Ya slumped back down.
When he got up again, it was already ten at night.
Gu Ya went to the scrap depot. The moment he entered, he heard a man's voice loudly proclaiming, "...Let's strive for the great cause of mechanical repair!!!"
Lu Hua was engrossed in his own impassioned monologue.
Seeing Gu Ya arrive, he excitedly ran up to him and said, "Let's get your mecha built tonight."
Gu Ya smiled and asked, "What were you just talking about?"
"Ah!" Lu Hua became a little dejected. "I went to a lecture today that claimed theoretical science's status was higher than experimental science, and experimental science was higher than engineering science. I disagreed, thinking all three sciences complement each other, so I refuted that scientist."
"And then I was attacked by the mob."
"I think those theoretical scientists, while seemingly mysterious and unfathomable, require extensive experiments to prove their veracity."
"And after their truth and usability are proven?"
Lu Hua stared at Gu Ya and asked.
Gu Ya replied, "And after?"
"Then engineering scientists need to put it into practice! Look!"
Lu Hua suddenly stood up, pointed at the warehouse full of mecha spare parts, and shouted, "Ask those theoretical and experimental scientists to fiddle with a mecha spare part, would they know how?"
"Practical!"
"The most crucial aspect of science is practicality!"
"Science that is useful to humanity is practical."
Gu Ya smiled faintly and said, "You're too biased. It's like asking Yang Zhenning to fix a hovercar; he might not be able to."
"Who is Yang Zhenning?" Lu Hua asked, puzzled.
Gu Ya suddenly remembered that in this world, someone else was researching the "theory of parity violation," so it wasn't surprising Lu Hua didn't recognize the name.
Gu Ya continued, "I mean, you can't say that a mechanic who fixes hovercars is great, can you?"
"Those theoretical scientists are great torchbearers, guiding lights. They illuminate the path with their faint flames, only then can we follow."
Lu Hua's mood sank again. "I know, I just get angry at that look of disdain he had for the grassroots engineering personnel."
"Not everyone is like that," Gu Ya said. "Alright, enough idle talk. Let's get to repairing, we need it tomorrow."
The next morning.
Gu Ya finally finished modifying his mecha. There was no joy or excitement, but rather a calm observation of it.
"It's too ugly. But for now, it's the best."
In reality, he could have bought a standard trainer mecha from the system store.
But Gu Ya didn't want to. Having built it himself, he knew every part, joint, and cable, and it also improved his mechanic skills. Why wouldn't he?
Getting into the new mecha, Gu Ya arrived at the training ground's hangar.
Clearly, the other students in the class wore expressions of utter bewilderment when they saw this rather peculiar trainer mecha.
It looked like a monster cobbled together from various parts.
Gu Ya understood their gazes all too well; he had endured far more malicious stares in mecha bounty battles.
All the students got into their mechas and headed to the training ground.
It was early morning, and the sunlight was gentle. Combined with the transparent canopy that blocked UV rays, the entire field offered excellent visibility.
"First group, Zhan Yan versus Amber." the coach said tonelessly.
Another match against Amber. Gu Ya felt reluctant. It wasn't because the opponent was a girl, but because he had been fighting Amber for the past two days and had already figured out her tactics. Fighting her again offered no novelty or progress.
"Teacher, can I switch opponents?" Gu Ya asked softly.
The coach replied, "Opponents are fixed. You and Amber were the last to enroll, so it's normal to be grouped together."
"Enough talk, begin!"
Gu Ya immediately became serious, silently thinking, First, she'll charge forward and launch a three-hit combo at me.
Just as Gu Ya predicted.
Amber's mecha charged forward and immediately drew its beam saber, thrusting it directly at Gu Ya three times.
Gu Ya easily retreated to counter.
Next, she'll charge past my mecha and launch a powerful thrust at my rear thrusters.
Still as Gu Ya predicted, Amber's mecha, seeing the initial probing unsuccessful, immediately charged past Gu Ya's mecha and swung towards the rear thruster.
Gu Ya quickly surged forward, dodging Amber's blade, and spun his mecha around.
Amber erupted with even greater intensity and charged again.
These few times, she was defeated after three moves. How would she attack after the three moves?
Gu Ya rapidly charged forward, drew his beam saber, and slashed towards the opponent's eyes. With his other hand, he quickly reached from below, upward, and grabbed Amber's mecha's sword-wielding hand.
The opponent was clearly not expecting Gu Ya to do something like this and quickly tried to pull her hand away.
"Hmm, a very calm person. But their calmness is somewhat superficial," Gu Ya's instant assessment of people, through subtle actions, helped him quickly understand the pilot.
Gu Ya dropped the beam saber, gripped both of the opponent's wrists simultaneously, leaned down, and executed an over-the-shoulder throw, flipping Amber over.
Amber erupted with thruster flames in mid-air, stabilizing herself upside down. With her other hand, she drew a second beam saber and thrust it fiercely at Gu Ya.
"This is it."
Gu Ya's gaze sharpened. He suddenly pulled back on the control stick while simultaneously pushing the acceleration lever forward.
His mecha flew up in the same inverted posture!
He tightly embraced Amber's mecha with both hands and forcefully slammed it towards the ground.
But Amber was no pushover. She bent her knees, pushed off Gu Ya, and kicked forcefully.
Gu Ya was sent flying back tens of meters.
Amber herself, however, slammed heavily onto the ground.
Both mechas hit the ground almost simultaneously.
Gu Ya smiled inwardly and said, "It's not that difficult. Once I figure out her tactics, I'll take her down next time."
"That's enough!" the coach's voice boomed. "This is a draw. Neither of you will have points added or deducted."
"Both mechas will be sent to the mechanic bay for repairs. The next group, hurry up and begin."
About ten minutes later.
Both their mechas were simultaneously hoisted into the mechanic bay.
Gu Ya did not have the mechanics repair his mecha; instead, he maneuvered it to the scrap depot.
He laid the mecha flat on its back, climbed out of the cockpit, and began using the repair platform to dismantle the outer armor himself and inspect the damaged internal parts.
Before long, the mechas of the second group of contestants were being hoisted in.
Three mecha pilots from the same class explained their mechas' faults to the mechanics, then handed over the ignition devices.
They walked out of the mechanic bay and into the scrap depot. As they passed Gu Ya's mecha, they all looked with curiosity at Gu Ya repairing his mecha himself.
A tall male student frowned, tilted his head, and looked at Gu Ya, asking, "Repairing it yourself? Doesn't that take a lot of time?"
Gu Ya simply nodded calmly, not answering him.
"How strange. If you have the time, why not relax instead of coming here to fix a mecha?"
"Yeah, classes are busy enough. Training is actually a way to relax the mind. With this time, why not enjoy life?"
The two boys said their piece and walked away.
Gu Ya glanced back and saw Amber's pilot, the girl with hair reaching her waist, looking at him with a blank expression.
Noticing Gu Ya looking at her, she averted her gaze, turned, and left calmly.
Gu Ya ignored her and continued to focus on checking for faults.
Just then, his communication wristband lit up. It was an unknown number.
Gu Ya answered, and a holographic image of a strange man appeared.
The man wore a stern expression, his brow furrowed as he stared at Gu Ya.
"Your name is Zhan Yan?" the man asked.
Gu Ya nodded.
The man stared for a few more seconds before speaking, "Come to the admissions office. I have some questions for you."
Gu Ya hung up the communication and put down his tools.
He already knew the man's purpose.
He had been suspected so quickly.