Gu Ya and Liu Feng both looked back. The speaker was Gu Ya's new classmate, Xuan Lang.
Xuan Lang had a good physique, tall, thin, and with a rogue charm. Coupled with his extraordinary aura, he could be spotted at a glance even in a cafeteria with hundreds of people.
Behind Xuan Lang stood a girl who also attracted attention, Jiang Tingyue, Gu Ya immediately realized.
When the two of them appeared in the cafeteria, it was as if they were the center of attention. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the cafeteria seemed to shine because of them.
Gu Ya stood up and nodded at Xuan Lang.
Xuan Lang naturally placed his meal tray next to Gu Ya, extended his hand for a handshake, and then sat down just as naturally.
Jiang Tingyue also sat down with Xuan Lang, but she sat next to Ye Ying, opposite the three boys.
Gu Ya introduced Liu Feng and Ye Ying to them.
The group lightly bumped their wrists, a simple way to get acquainted.
The meal was rather dull. The individuals were not familiar with each other, and with strangers present, Gu Ya and the other two didn't feel comfortable chatting among themselves.
After lunch, Xuan Lang and Jiang Tingyue left.
Liu Feng then let out a long sigh and said, "Phew~ Being classmates with them, how can one not feel stifled?"
Gu Ya smiled and said nothing.
After lunch, Gu Ya helped Ye Ying move her luggage from the lounge to the new dormitory.
Ye Ying didn't have much luggage, just two backpacks, a few outfits, and some daily necessities.
But Gu Ya insisted on doing it.
It wasn't just for Ye Ying, but also to show the other boys that Ye Ying had his care now.
In the afternoon, the new students cleaned their dormitories, distributed textbooks, and familiarized themselves with the academy. It wasn't until evening that they had free time again.
Gu Ya checked the time; it was past 9 o'clock. His plan to take Ye Ying for a walk around the school was abandoned. They exchanged goodnights via their communication bracelets and didn't contact each other further.
At night, Gu Ya lay in bed. His new roommate, Wang Zhanpeng, snored loudly.
Coupled with the numerous errands on the first day at school,
Gu Ya found his mind restless and had no sleep.
Gu Ya got up and walked to the balcony, gazing towards Ye Ying's dormitory building in the far distance.
Regarding other girls, whether it was the tall and beautiful Fu Yafang or the ethereal Jiang Tingyue, Gu Ya only found them attractive at first glance.
The only one who truly made Gu Ya's heart flutter was Ye Ying.
Furthermore, Ye Ying's unfortunate background instilled in Gu Ya a sense of protectiveness.
Perhaps, this was love.
Gu Ya smiled gently.
"Thinking about it now, Youyou, Liu Feng, and Brother Wu really helped a lot."
The next day, the official mecha practical combat class began.
The sixteen students from the A-grade class entered the hangar.
This hangar was more massive than any Gu Ya had seen before. Even the competitor lounge during the mecha bounty battles wasn't this large.
The giant metal gate, 30 meters high and one meter thick, was enough to be awe-inspiring.
The crisscrossing pipelines on the ceiling were as thin as pencil lines.
The hangar was somewhat messy, with spare parts and materials piled up next to each mecha.
Not only were there training mechas parked, but also some private mechas from outside.
The students lined up by height in front of a row of training mechas. Gu Ya was among the shorter students in the class, ranking second to last.
Almost an adult, Gu Ya was still under 1.75 meters. His face was slightly immature, looking like he hadn't fully grown yet, but his expression was very serious and calm, completely incongruous with his appearance.
The teacher for the mecha practical combat class hurried over. His name was Shi Heping, a kind middle-aged man, but his sturdy build and well-defined muscles made anyone hesitant to underestimate him.
"There was a slight delay. Hmm, the first class is flight training. Everyone choose your mecha and assemble on the east side of the training ground."
Shortly after, sixteen students, piloting their mechas, arrived at the eastern entrance of the training ground.
Shi Heping turned on the mecha's public address system and asked, "Those who can fly, raise your right hand."
All students controlled their mechas to raise their right hands.
"Good! Just as I expected, the A-grade classes are always the most hassle-free."
"I'll explain the training matters. Once you exit this gate, you will enter Gate 32. That is the professional flight training ground."
"It's incredibly, incredibly fun inside! Haha!" Shi Heping's tone was teasing, and it was clear he was very happy.
Shi Heping continued, "There's also one more thing. Our A-grade class operates on a last-place elimination system."
"Ten consecutive failed training sessions will result in demotion to the B-grade class."
"At the mid-term and final assessments each year, the last-placed student will be demoted to the B-grade class."
"Alright, that's all for now. Hurry up and enter the grounds."
After Shi Heping finished speaking, he activated his mecha and flew out of the east gate first, with all the students following.
"Wow, a last-place elimination system, that's so brutal."
"Well, we are in the A-grade class."
"My brother said that all the training grounds are perverted!"
The students discussed among themselves using their mecha's communications. Before long, they arrived in front of Gate 32.
After Shi Heping reported to the gate staff, the metal gate was opened. Inside, a high wall blocked their view, preventing them from seeing the training ground.
Shi Heping stood outside the opened metal gate and said, "All students enter together! The last two students to pass will have their performance marked as a failure!"
At Shi Heping's command, sixteen mechas activated simultaneously and flew towards Gate 32.
Gu Ya was the first to rush through the gate, while the other students were holding back their speed.
Gu Ya instantly understood that none of them wanted to be the first to try.
Alright then, I'll be the one to test it first.
Gu Ya boosted his acceleration, bypassed the high wall constructed of reinforced concrete, and the scene inside suddenly opened up.
It was an artificial canyon, about 500 meters wide, with flat high walls on both sides, stretching as far as the eye could see. Many mecha wreckage was piled on the ground.
This was different from what Gu Ya had imagined; he thought there would be giant mechanical contraptions to impede flight.
Gu Ya maneuvered his mecha into the air. The high walls on the sides slowly receded.
He vigilantly stared at the flat high walls, his eyes gradually becoming blurry.
"This is bad." Gu Ya quickly averted his gaze.
The gaps and patterns on the high walls seemed to possess a magical quality, capable of gradually relaxing the brain until it wandered.
The ground suddenly cracked open, and a giant steel needle erupted from the earth, piercing directly towards Gu Ya.
"There are indeed traps!" But this didn't trouble Gu Ya. He slightly shifted his mecha and easily dodged it.
With another indistinct roar, four giant Gatling guns emerged from the high walls on both sides. Gu Ya frantically piloted his mecha forward.
The four machine guns spat fire, accompanied by a deafening "thud thud," and countless bullets poured out, like streaks of fire tearing through the sky, shooting wildly at Gu Ya.
Ha! Easy stuff! Gu Ya smiled and maneuvered his mecha in a rapid spin in the air, quickly flying out of the range of the fiery chains.
But immediately, dense clusters of about two hundred machine guns emerged from both sides of the wall ahead.
A deafening rumble echoed through the canyon, seeming to shake the very ground, and the air instantly became scorching.
With no time to marvel, countless fiery chains shot towards Gu Ya, turning even the sky into a fiery orange.
Gu Ya gritted his teeth and slightly adjusted his mecha, dodging the fiery chains.
Gradually, Gu Ya noticed that these crisscrossing fiery chains had their own unique paths and did not track him.
Therefore, as long as he stabilized his mecha and utilized the gaps between the fiery chains, he could advance steadily.
In other words, this was actually a training exercise for mecha flight micro-control and the pilot's psychological resilience.
Gu Ya's heart leaped with joy. He slowly and cautiously entered the dense fiery chains.
The fifteen students behind him, seeing Gu Ya disappear into the fiery chains, all understood the principle and promptly activated their mechas to follow.
Within the fiery chains, everything was orange-red. Gu Ya had to stare for a long time to distinguish the gaps.
Looking for so long made his eyes very uncomfortable.
Some classmates had already caught up behind Gu Ya, following closely behind him.
The closer they got to the end of the fiery chains, the narrower the gaps became, until finally, they were only the height of one mecha.
Gu Ya maintained his composure and focused his gaze. After passing through one more gap, he would see the blue sky.
Unexpectedly, a mecha from behind suddenly grabbed Gu Ya, pulled him back, and then stomped on him, lunging forward.
Gu Ya quickly stabilized his mecha. The deadly fiery chains were less than a meter away from touching his mecha.
Then, another mecha stomped on Gu Ya's mecha and flew out.
"How can you do this!" Gu Ya exclaimed in shock.
"Are you alright!" At this moment, Xuan Lang's voice came from behind Gu Ya. He maneuvered his mecha to pull Gu Ya up.
"Thank you!" Gu Ya replied.
"Attention, there are no rules in this training. You can resort to any means necessary," Xuan Lang reminded him again.
"Understood! Thank you, Xuan Lang!" Gu Ya expressed his gratitude again, his gaze turning cold.
Resort to any means necessary, huh? Trying to harm me? Fine, I'll play along with you two.
With that thought, Gu Ya stared intently at the two mechas that had already rushed ahead and forcefully pushed the control stick, flying out.