As the alloy gate opened a sliver, three to five people squeezed through, only to stare dumbfounded at the two mechs already powered up in the hangar, freezing in place.
Unaware of what was happening, Black Star soldiers behind them continued to surge forward, pushing aside those in front and climbing over their bodies!
Gu Ya and Ye Ying’s faces contorted in grim determination. Facing these ruthless devils, there was no need for mercy.
The twin mechs simultaneously increased their thruster output. The scorching, powerful blast wave instantly blew back everyone at the entrance.
The alloy gate opened wider and wider, and those pouring in were swept back by the blast wave.
The twin mechs swiftly raised their massive fists and smashed them towards the entrance simultaneously. With one blow, they pulverized both people and walls, and bloody debris rained down from their fists.
Ye Ying quickly maneuvered her mech backward, flicked open her chest armor to reveal the warheads within. Gu Ya followed suit, extending beam sabers from his arms, severing the restraints on two adjacent mechs and kicking them hard. The enemy mechs behind them toppled over like dominoes.
Ye Ying launched two rocket projectiles, blasting two massive craters into the hangar's main gate. Beam sabers then cleaved the gate in two. The twin mechs shot out, one after the other.
As soon as they exited the hangar, Ye Ying swiveled her mech and unleashed dozens of high-explosive rockets at the hangar. A deafening explosion echoed within the structure, flames pushing dust and smoke out, followed by black smoke. The hangar erupted in a raging inferno.
At this point, Gu Ya had piloted his mech into the sky and looked towards the coast. Under the cover of Red Beast and Tao Xi, the Wind House mech had already reached the shoreline.
On the ground, Black Star troops lay scattered everywhere, countless tiny impact craters peppering the earth, even the towering command building covered in them. This was the Wind House mech’s “Fire Dragon 480” inactivation rocket, a long-range offensive weapon specifically developed for ground infantry, with a flight range of about 30 kilometers. Each warhead carried 300 to 600 submunitions, covering an area of 100,000 square meters, equivalent to a football field. The dense crater coverage indicated not just a few, but a multitude of rockets. No wonder the Black Star soldiers had scrambled into buildings for cover earlier.
Gu Ya and Ye Ying rapidly piloted their mechs upwards, simultaneously disengaging all external mech armament. Giant plumes of white smoke erupted, and warheads shot out from their bodies, striking the ground.
Even the sturdiest defensive structures could not withstand such concentrated, numerous, and close-range bombardment. Even if they could withstand it, the personnel inside would not be able to escape the shockwave!
After a round of intense bombing, the smoke dissipated with the wind. All the windows and doors of the buildings were shattered, concrete walls peeled away in large chunks, revealing the underlying rock. Some buildings were reduced to mere steel skeletons, with broken rebar sticking out at odd angles. The entire Black Star camp was devoid of any living soul.
Black Star mechs in the air, witnessing this scene, turned around and flew back towards Black Star territory. However, dozens of kilometers outside the camp, high in the sky, large formations of golden mechs were arriving in swarms. Those were the troops of the Golden Authority. Little Golden Authority led the forces, eliminating any Black Star military that obstructed them as they advanced. Soon, all retreating and fleeing Black Star mechs were either destroyed or surrendered under the pursuit and encirclement of the Golden Authority army.
Red Beast mech flew above Gu Ya and Ye Ying. Liu Feng shouted, “Brother, is that you?”
Gu Ya let out a long sigh. “If it’s not me, then who else could it be…”
Just as he was about to say something celebratory, Gu Ya suddenly felt his heart lurch violently. A wave of weakness spread outwards from his chest, like thousands of tiny currents, permeating his entire body, piercing his skin and escaping into the air. The sensation was slightly milder than when the Jar of Equilibrium’s effects were activated.
Gathering a bit of strength, Gu Ya tried to stand up and exit his mech. However, his head suddenly felt dizzy, and then, everything in his vision turned blood red! Unorganized lines of black and white appeared in his sight. Gu Ya closed his eyes and rubbed them hard. When he opened them again, it was even more bizarre. Everything now had white, blue, and red afterimages, like the logo of a certain video app from his previous world.
Before Gu Ya could even ponder what was happening, his brain began to spin, and a sensation from his chest upwards felt like it was about to burst forth. Gu Ya braced himself and roared in pain, “Ah—!” Then he blacked out.
He didn’t know how long he was unconscious. In Gu Ya’s consciousness, it felt like a very, very long time. He had experienced a long, long dream. When he opened his eyes again, his surroundings had transformed into a pristine white room.
Gu Ya, enduring the lingering pain, turned his head. Ye Ying was sitting on a hospital chair, head bowed, dozing. Outside the window, it was night, and the bedside clock showed 3:12 AM. The room was exceptionally quiet, with only the rhythmic “drip-drip” of the monitoring equipment and Ye Ying’s soft snores. Gu Ya’s lips curled into a slight smile. No matter when, Ye Ying always looked as beautiful as a painting.
What was this lingering pain all over his body? It felt as if every inch of his bone, joint, sinew, nerve, and even every cell was howling in agony. It was continuous, not intermittent. If he hadn’t been unconscious, this intense pain could have driven a person mad.
Gu Ya deepened his breathing and let out a heavy groan, sighing, “So painful!”
Ye Ying was startled awake. She grabbed Gu Ya’s hand, her eyes filled with tired joy, and asked worriedly, “You’re awake? How do you feel?”
“Not good…” Gu Ya said weakly. “I feel completely drained, and my whole body hurts…”
“What… what happened to me…”
Ye Ying’s expression immediately turned somber. She murmured reproachfully, “I told you not to touch my blood, but you wouldn’t listen! Now look…”
“Are you saying I’ve been infected with the ‘Mech-Blood’ factor?” Gu Ya’s eyes widened as he asked.
Ye Ying sighed. “Currently, yes.”
“Your body is fine, but doctors extracted a mysterious substance from your blood and are analyzing it. This substance doesn’t harm blood cells; it simply exists, coexisting with them until death. I haven’t told anyone, but this substance is the ‘Mech-Blood’ factor.”
Gu Ya nodded, gripping Ye Ying’s hand tightly. He whispered, “It’s better that you didn’t say anything. Let them research it…”
“How long have I been unconscious, and how long will this condition last?”
Ye Ying looked at Gu Ya worriedly and whispered, “Ai Li said it takes three days for normal people. And you’ve been unconscious for five days.”
“Wh-what? Five days?” Gu Ya was shocked. But what worried him more was that he had been infected with the ‘Mech-Blood’ factor for five days, and there was still no sign of improvement.
Gu Ya asked again, “Did Ai Li say what would happen if it fails?”
Ye Ying shook her head worriedly and comforted him, “I can control it completely, and you certainly can too!”
Gu Ya steadied himself and, enduring the pain, propped himself up to sit on the edge of the bed. “Now is not the time to be thinking about these things…” Gu Ya slowly put on his clothes and shoes, continuing, “I need to find Little Golden Authority and understand the recent military developments.”
Ye Ying helped Gu Ya up. A small object slipped from her hand and fell to the floor with a few soft clinks. Gu Ya looked and saw a small medicine bottle.
“What are you taking that for?” Gu Ya asked.
Ye Ying silently picked up the small bottle, put it in her pocket, and said naturally, “Nothing.”
“Ying… you’re hiding something from me…” Gu Ya took Ye Ying’s hand and asked softly, “Can you tell me?”
Ye Ying lowered her head in silence. After a few seconds, she suddenly let out a light laugh as if she had made a decision, then took out the small bottle again and said, “I promised you, from that moment on…”
“And this… it’s a token of your proposal to me…”
Even Gu Ya found this too sudden! A Black Star military external wound medicine bottle had become their proposal token! If Gu Ya hadn’t knelt on one knee that day, holding up the medicine bottle in such a perfect posture, Ye Ying probably wouldn’t have thought of this! No wonder she had tears in her eyes that day. This silly girl! How could she be so easily satisfied!
Gu Ya, enduring the pain, took the bottle and said earnestly, “Ying, this doesn’t count… If you want, I’ll use something else to propose to you again!”
Ye Ying took the bottle, tilted her head slightly towards Gu Ya, and gave him a sweet smile. “Another proposal would be a heartfelt gesture. If you want to, let’s save it for later.”
“Either way, I’ve already promised you, forever.”