At Ares College, Wang Zheng and friends were getting better in their group training. Their equipment might not have been the best, but that made them cherish it even more. They would pay more attention and feel things in greater detail when operating the mechs.
After two hours of training, they were all hot and sweaty. In Zhang Shan's case, using Ability X once a day was pretty good. But this one-time use was important. He had to pay close attention and get it right based on memories and grasp it well. After all, Zhang Shan was no simpleton.
"Well, somehow I feel that I perform better with Wang Zheng around. The ability flows through better,"
Zhang Shan said as he gulped water down.
"I feel so too!"
"Same."
Meng Tian and Zhang Runan chimed in agreement.
Wang Zheng did not know whether to laugh or to cry at this. "Don't look at me that way. I'm not cake."
Wang Zheng was aware that his ability had awakened, it was just that there were issues when he used it.
For some reason, his Ability X was... too powerful. His body could not take it. It was okay if he were to use mental strength, but when it converted to Ability X, things were tougher.
This could also be the reason why he hadn't made any breakthroughs in the past. It was his body's defense mechanism. Right now, only training the Primordial Regression Technique could help.
"Even then, the effects are pretty good. This time around, we will stand a chance in a fight!" Zhang Shan was full of ambition.
"Let's hope that you'll be able to move a meter when the battle begins. Otherwise, we'll just be there to watch others fight," Zhang Runan said.
Making the mech move was a heavy burden for Zhang Shan, but he was making improvements every day.
"Hah. Sister Nan... Hey, did you guys notice? Sister Nan seems to have become more good-looking."
"Are you itching to be beaten up, Zhang Shan?" Zhang Runan raised her brows.
"Really! I swear to the heavens!"
"Yeah! Nicer, gentler curves."
"Hehe. Are you guys looking for a treat? Alright then, dinner's on me."
"Long live Sister Nan!"
Zhang Runan knew that her Ability was stabilizing. Just as Zhang Shan said, Wang Zheng was like some sort of energy source, enriching those around him.
Deep inside, Wang Zheng knew that this was actually caused by his powerful ability causing a reaction in others when used and amplified in the surroundings, and not some kind of enhancing ability.
If only he could use his ability as he wished... it would be such a wonderful thing. The war god Bonehead talked about... would truly exist.
That night, the official CT site made an announcement that went viral instantaneously.
Never was there ever a public announcement that could go so crazily viral that in just half an hour, close to ten million people had replied.
Skeleton wanted to take on a hundred people on his own!
The officials wanted to pick a hundred candidates from Earth to take part in this battle.
This was definitely something that would make people go nuts.
One against one hundred?
Was that even possible?
The answer was definitely no. No one type of mech could withstand a battle like that. Had he never heard of concentrated fire?
No one could blow up a mech with just one shot, let alone the worst laser guns.
Close combat?
Everybody would be using laser rifles. Even if they were to stand still for you to attack, the mech would run out of energy!
If it were anyone else, everybody would think it was an act of an insane person, but... this was Devil King Skeleton!
The entire Earth region was impassioned. More accurately, players from the Moon and other areas were all fired up.
They had all flocked to sign up, but it was limited to Earth players only. Other areas could only watch.
Who was the most excited? Who was the most agitated? Who remained the most logical?
Old Deer!
Only Old Deer!
The Deer God had decisively sent out an invitation to everyone in his district. It was time to put Skeleton's winning streak to an end.
He, the legendary, undefeatable Deer God, was finally making a move.
Old Deer had made it clear long ago that the day he took action would be the time Skeleton's tale would come to an end.
He wanted to take on Skeleton one on one!!!
... a one-on-one battle with 99 bodyguards!
Still a one-on-one!
The best part was, he had obtained 50 places from Solon. Of course, it was unclear what methods he had used to get hold of them.
The conditions Solon laid out were simple: ranked above platinum, more than two years of battle experience, whether they were solo or team players didn't matter.
Qualified players were randomly selected. The lucky chosen ones would get an opportunity to end Skeleton and become a war god.
Want to take on a leading role? Bring it on!
Old Deer's deep voice had attractive qualities in it. Never think that Old Deer lacked supporters.
On the contrary, his fans had formed a group called the Deer Isle, and Old Deer was the Isle's owner.
Countless players went crazy over these 99 places. This was going to be a grand event.
The major forums had calculated and put up the winning rates. Apart from the Shadow Executioner MK, there were no other mechs that possessed solo battle capabilities that could accomplish this.
Plus, it would be highly stressful since a carpet search could be conducted within the conventional battle maps with a hundred people.
Moreover, Old Deer was a truly deserving leader. Given how well he understood Skeleton, he would definitely come up with a strategy to deal with him specifically.
Old Deer had given word that he would definitely defeat Skeleton. If Skeleton could beat him under such circumstances, he would drink a hundred cartons of milk.
An average person would be killed with less than a hundred cartons. Old Deer was betting on his life!
Was there a need for that?
If he were to back out, he could forget about staying on in the commentary industry. Was he just so confident?
Or was that pre-battle pressure?
The amount of attention this battle was receiving was unprecedented; it had far exceeded everything else.
Of course, the Skeleton Corps did not take that lying down. Being the largest group in the Solar System, with members from many other districts, they were also busy recruiting.
Spies?
Instigators?
All sorts of tricks and strategies, commenting on all types of mech. Ten vs a hundred would do fine, but one...
Even if the technology existed, it couldn't be put to use.
Was it just a joke that had been taken too far?
Spies, instigation, it could all be a joke. But everyone just could not seem to come up with other possibilities.
Hercules? Courting death!
Wargod No. 1? Not even close!
Gold Guardian? Dream on!
Slayer? No!
The Slayer would be useful for moving in short distances, but the movement was limited to a straight line and it wouldn't be quick enough. With a hundred mecha to battle, it would only mean death.
Jungle Scamper? Probably the only one with some hope.
But the settings would have to be a jungle, one as huge as possible, for it to pull tricks and mount sneak attacks.
Yet... it still wouldn't be reliable. It'd be done for if the opponent used a couple more scout-type mechs.
The entry requirement was to be platinum rank. One-on-one battles may require finer techniques, but in this case, platinum would be more than enough.
Those who managed to make it to this level possessed good understanding of mecha and had their own opinions. They were actually pretty solid players.
Was that insanity or the ways of a god?
The Milky Way Alliance Science Representation Team, led by Mu Fengchun, had completed their academic exchange and visit to the Solar System. Their unexpected visit was a huge form of encouragement to the Solar System's scientific world.
The press conference was held on the Moon and was attended by scientists from hundreds of different areas of study. Mu Fengchun was on the chairperson's seat, answering question after questions posed by journalists.
"Professor Mu, what do you think are the differences between the scientific environment here in the Solar System as compared to that of the Milky Way Alliance?"
Mu Fengchun smiled and answered, "To me, the concept of difference does not exist. Every district has its own bottleneck and development periods. Right now, the Solar System is walking out of its slump. For example, in terms of space physics, the Solar System has opened up a whole new world for humankind. Their great contributions make them the leader in this aspect."
Clap clap clap clap... Deafening applause ruptured.
Given Mu Fengchun's status, his compliments were of great significance to the Solar System's scientific world.
And it affirmed the Solar System's contributions to space physics.
Following that, the other scientists reported their insights on this visit and commented on the results. They were all professional, scientific talks.
When the press conference ended, the farewell party commenced. This visit was a successful and fruitful one. Many partnerships were formed. It could be seen as a step forward for the Solar System's return to the stage of the Milky Way Alliance.
Ai Te, the Chairperson of the Solar System Federation, also attended the farewell party, honoring the event.
"Professor Mu, the Solar System welcomes you any time," the Chairperson said passionately while gripping Mu Fengchun's hand tightly, shaking it again and again.
The elections were due next year, and in his term as Chairperson, he had managed to form many collaborations with top-notch scientists like Mu Fengchun. Now he had many more things to emphasise and talk about in his campaign to run for the position for another term.
Mu Fengchun replied, smiling, "The Solar System is very passionate about science. I shall visit again."
"Please do so."
"I will."
After the Chairperson, came the chief of defense, Yutak. "Professor Mu, it has been very pleasant working with you. We welcome you back here any time."
"Yes, I will."
One by one, the officials shook hands and chatted.
It wasn't just Mu Fengchun. The other scientists also had their hands shaken. On the other end, journalists and photographers from all over the Solar System were taking pictures and recording this scene. It was an important moment for the Solar System. It had been a long time since they last worked so closely with the top scientists from the Milky Way Alliance. The officials represented authority, and this news story would be fantastic in helping the public gain confidence. The Solar System rising once more, regaining significance in the Milky Way in terms of politics and in science.
The scientist representatives naturally played the most important role. Professor Xiao Fei - everybody knew for a fact that Mu Fengchun and the rest were all here because of her. On a deeper level, Xiao Fei and her team's potential had an extremely important place in the future of science.
The Solar System had three members in the top scientists' club, and all three were in Xiao Fei's team. It seemed like the Solar System Science College had to find a new place.
The grand event was broadcasted live across the entire Solar System.
The host of the live broadcast introduced the founding and latest developments of the Solar System space project in detail.
Once again, the whole Solar System was shown the latest development of the space project in full.
Little Fortune Star Company.
On the stock market, in a mere thirty minutes, Little Fortune Star Company's stock value skyrocketed to the maximum threshold. OMG also came close to arriving at the highest possible value. This allowed OMG, who was troubled by the new mech developments, to take a short breather.
Because of the negative impacts they had been faced with, OMG's growth in the future was not too optimistic, unlike small companies like Little Fortune Star that had a long way to go and much more room for growth. As of now, to this extremely fortunate small company, the owner's only trouble was how it should spend its money.
No doubt, this trouble was in itself a blessing.