The two people fighting aggressively on the holographic screen, with very quick movements, were the two from that day! Ye Chong knitted his brows as he played the video repeatedly, trying to uncover every single detail of the fight, analyzing their attacks and defenses.
If it were up to Mu, he could do this faster and present a more complete and logical assessment. However, Ye Chong understood that the results from his own effort would be more valuable than Mu’s.
Shang had hacked the room’s surveillance system, and what Wei Xi saw through the surveillance video was only a short recording of Ye Chong’s image by Shang. The mech had put some effort into this cover, for he must ensure that the video remained largely unchanged, except for some minor details. For example, Ye Chong’s expression, the schematics on display and so on, were changed occasionally to make the effect more realistic.
Every time Wei Xi visited Ye Chong’s room, she did not discover what Ye Chong was really doing due to Ye Chong’s astoundingly sharp hearing. Wei Xi was not a combatant, and her footsteps could be heard from afar by Ye Chong. Every time Wei Xi came to Ye Chong’s room, Ye Chong would have been prepared with the schematics on his desk, and a thoughtful expression on his face.
For a full 13 days, Ye Chong did not step out of the room, and Wei Xi found that the schematics Ye Chong had been studying was changed three times.
Ye Chong’s battle skills were mainly of the basic superficial principles he learned at Black Cove, without any complete logical basis. The duo’s battle recording was dissected by Ye Chong into a thousand details, as Ye Chong tried to find some pattern in it. It was undeniable that both of them were very skilled, and Ye Chong believed that, in terms of skills, they were roughly on the same level as the average mech pilots from Black Cove.
However, any patterns in their battle could not be identified easily. Ye Chong could only mimic their movements for now, since he found their battle moves more powerful, more difficult to predict, or would increase his overall strength!
As for their easy defeat against two mentalist pilots, Ye Chong was quite surprised. To him, they were both on about the same level as Black Cove mech pilots in terms of battling skills, but they were still easily brought down. In terms of combat, no matter between humans or mechs, Black Cove was definitely far better than the Sanctuary. For two Black Cove level combatants to be defeated in a few moves by two mentalist pilots, the outcome was odd for Ye Chong.
Ye Chong brought his confusion to Shang.
Shang replied immediately, "That’s quite normal, perfectly understandable given the circumstances. Ye, think about it, those two mentalists were ambushing, and the two idiots were still engaged in a fight. Tsk tsk, Ye, if the person before you is about the same level as you, and fighting you to the death, do you think you’ll have time to watch out for other enemies?"
Ye Chong shook his head.
"There you have it. Those two fellows were obviously roughly equal in strength. As they were deep in battle, someone attacked from behind their backs, and that’s absolutely normal! Besides, if you think about it, what’s the unique ability of mentalist pilots? Hmm, sigh, this, I’m actually not quite sure of this, but it should be some kind of clairvoyance ability, tsk tsk, Ye, that’s an ability that best complements an ambush. You saw what happened that day, that golden opportunity taken, tsk tsk, splendid indeed!" Shang spoke enthusiastically, his emotions high, but he then sobered up and said, "If it’s one on one though, hehe, it’s hard to say who will win!"
"That makes sense!" Ye Chong carefully thought through Shang’s words and felt relieved.
Shang noticed that Ye Chong seemed eager to chat with him, and swiftly began on the one topic he’s most interested in, "Ye, what do you think of Xi Xi’er?"
"Xi Xi’er? Who’s that?" Ye Chong did not recall knowing anyone called Xi Xi’er.
"Sigh, you’re such a dumb*ss, it’s the nickname of our most beloved Wei Xi!" Shang sounded intoxicated, and Ye Chong felt like he was getting goosebumps.
"Not good at all!" To completely reject Shang’s obsession, Ye Chong replied with firm determination.
"Not good at all? Sigh, I’ve forgotten that you’re a wild animal! Asking that question to you is like asking for directions from the blind. Our dear Ye’s favorite is that white-robed violent woman! Hehe, that passionate kiss, oh, wait, I should call it a lick, has let our little Ye experience true emotions for the first time, hehe, but that kick was too cruel …" Shang was laughing more and more lasciviously.
Ye Chong knew that if he were to argue with Shang right then, it would only excite the bored Shang even more, so he opted rationally for ignorance.
However, Ye Chong’s mind could not help but think back of that snow white training garb, although the imposing and inviolable face was gradually becoming out of focus. Only the white training garb remained clear as day in Ye Chong’s mind.
"Sigh, what am I thinking all of this for? It’s all that d*mn Shang’s fault, I still prefer Mu! Hmm, counting back, it’s about time for Mu to come out, Mu must now still be analyzing that recording underneath!"
Shang’s words were thoroughly ignored by Ye Chong, as his thought began to wonder somehow, from the past to present, through battle after battle, meeting people after people. Images and figures from the past came to mind like a dream, and for a moment, he felt a little dazed.
Finally, on the sixth day of the flight, throughout which Shang continued blabbering on, Mu finally came out. Ye Chong could finally have some peaceful silence! Once Mu came out, he discussed the results of his analysis with Ye Chong. Ye Chong also presented his own analysis, and they both exchanged their opinions on the matter.
In the next seven days of the journey, Ye Chong benefited very much! Mu’s analysis results were the main reason for that. Mu’s database had a good volume of information on kinematics and combat, which made his logical analysis unquestionable. Unlike Mu’s typical statistical analysis, Ye Chong’s analysis may be incomplete or even inaccurate, but he still had some rather unique insights. If a master in combat were here, he would definitely approve of Ye Chong’s intuition! However, Ye Chong did not understand that concept, as he could only vaguely sense that certain alternatives would be better than others. As for Mu, he was only focusing on the analysis results.
However, these were only theories. Theoretical understanding and application were two different things. Without proper training, the body could not remember the movements, and with large variation in the enemy’s moves, it would not only reduce one’s capabilities, but also present an opportunity for the enemy. It seemed that he had a new training course now! Fortunately, Ye Chong never complained of too many training courses.
It was only a pity that the time and location did not allow him to begin with this training.
Wei Xi looked at Ye Chong through the surveillance device. The man never left the room, and even had her send him his meals. No matter how she looked at it, he was a thoroughly obsessed scientist, and should not pose a threat. Nonetheless, why did she feel that something was wrong? Wei Xi frowned, her delicate profile tinged with vexation.
Nast finally docked, and this meant that the moment of truth was near! In truth, Ye Chong had thought of hijacking Nast in this period. With Guardian and Mu, Ye Chong believed that the probability of success was high. However, even if he hijacked Nast, he still could not leave the Orbits. Without the Orbits’ star map, he could not even know where he was and hence, could not do a warp jump. Leaving the Orbits would be impossible.
On the thirteenth day, the starship finally reached its destination.
Under Wei Xi’s guidance, Ye Chong left the ship.
Ye Chong took one step across the ledge of the cabin’s door, and his eyes automatically swept across the view in front of him. Abruptly, as though struck by lightning, he stood frozen and his eyes glowed in stupefaction!
Heavens! What was this place?
Before him was a dream-like metropolis!
From afar, the city’s silhouette seemed like a scale model right in front of Ye Chong, giving a feeling of surrealism. Skyscrapers rose in all kinds of shapes under the illumination of dazzling artificial lighting, reflecting off glaring halos. One could not help but gasp in amazement at the sight. The buildings were massive, some shaped like large honeycombs, others like towers; while they came in a variety of designs, the one thing they share in common was their soaring heights. Blue Ocean Academy’s 800-storey main building would fit in perfectly. Unlike the natural refreshing style that Ye Chong saw in other places in the Orbits, the buildings here were all in modernistic and metallic fashion. The Five Galaxies’ most popular and common high-tech vibe permeated every corner of this world.
Ye Chong could not see the sky, since above him was an endless stretch of light blue metallic ceiling, reaching all the way to the horizon. The ceiling was equipped with numerous artificial lights. This place did not look dim at all; the world was bright as day.
Countless mechs flew swiftly across the sky, like a dense swarm of bees returning to their nests, casting many vague shadows on the ground.
Ye Chong smelled an earthly scent. Could this be underground? Ye Chong’s thoughts began to run wild, as he was shook like a storm was inside him. How much had the Sanctuary’s technology really advanced?
Behind him was the docked Nast starship. Nast was a large ship, a truly massive structure. Here, however, it looked tiny. Ye Chong found that many of the docked starships here were about the same size as Nast, although some of them were even larger. Numerous engineering mechs were busying themselves around in an orderly fashion.
He was now probably at the city’s docking station. Ye Chong even had a sinister thought - if he destroyed a starship here, would it have a domino effect?
"Welcome to Nine Gates of Daylight!" Wei Xi’s sweet and mellow voice was tinged with pride.