Chapter 59

Chapter 59

"I think it works!" Chu Yun said, then she glanced around and added, "As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest place. Setting up camp here seems like a good idea to me!"

Xi Qing nodded in agreement.

So the four of them found a spot nearby to set up camp, choosing a location inside a cave. The cave appeared to be naturally formed, though it wasn’t very deep, so there was little risk of anything alarming suddenly emerging from within.

Each Mech had been equipped with corresponding cloak-style tents that could be inflated to instantly set up a tent, making the process incredibly convenient and quick.

Jiang Se, with her eyes downcast, distractedly inflating her tent, occasionally glanced toward the cave entrance.

Outside, the sky was nearing dusk. The flow of time in the holographic simulation seemed faster than usual.

By the time Jiang Se finished inflating her tent and looked up again, the sky outside had deepened into pitch-black.

Under the ink-black canopy of the sky, occasional eerie cries of strange creatures echoed briefly.

Jiang Se took a deep breath and gazed outside, saying, "I have a feeling tonight is going to be quite eventful."

Chu Yun raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "What makes you say that?"

Jiang Se replied mysteriously, "Based on what I know about those instructors, they probably won’t let us have a peaceful and pleasant night that easily!"

Of course, if they were allowed a peaceful and pleasant night, it definitely wouldn’t be on the first day—most likely, it would be on the last day.

And even then, it would probably feel somewhat like an act of charity.

"You’re absolutely right!" Zhu Jin chuckled, looking at the other three. "So tonight, we’d better not sleep too soundly. Let’s take turns keeping watch—I’ll assign shifts in a moment."

Jiang Se was lucky enough to draw the second half of the night shift. She yawned, settled down peacefully inside her tent, and slipped into the sleeping bag like an eel, leaving only her dark hair visible. Her voice, slightly muffled by the tent, followed: "I’m going to sleep now. Don’t forget to wake me up for my watch later!"

With that, her final words trailed off indistinctly, clearly already dead to the world.

*

Elsewhere, in front of a silver screen, a group of instructors watched the large display.

The screen showed a three-dimensional map of the entire exercise area.

The entire exercise region was displayed on the screen, with each squad marked by special indicators, making everything clear and easy to follow.

A thick, ink-like darkness gradually encroached upon the entire exercise area.

Watching this, the instructors began commenting:

"I wonder what the higher-ups are thinking, throwing these things at the recruits on the very first night. Are they treating these kids like they’re fighting alien beasts?"

"Exactly! They’ve unleashed everything—vampire bats, hallucinogenic butterflies—it’s enough to make your scalp crawl."

"I doubt most of these students have ever seen these creatures before. This isn’t just theoretical—these things aren’t even covered in textbooks!"

"Right? I bet the higher-ups want to teach these students a real lesson through actual combat!"

...

Amid the chorus of voices, a middle-aged man with graying temples on the elevated platform smiled faintly and glanced at the instructors behind him. Among them was Jiang Se and the others’ squad instructor.

"What do you think? Do you feel I’m being too harsh on these students?" the middle-aged man asked gently.

Jiang Se’s instructor replied without hesitation, "It does seem a bit harsh, but I’m sure you have your reasons, sir."

If Jiang Se had been there, she would have been shocked—who knew their instructor, with his stern appearance, was so skilled at flattery?

The middle-aged man chuckled and said, "I do have my reasons for doing this…" As he spoke, a nostalgic expression crossed his face. "Back when I was a new recruit, my squad leader and I went out on a mission and encountered hallucinogenic butterflies. Our entire squad suffered heavy losses. After all, these kinds of alien beasts are extremely rare, and most people will probably never come across them in their lifetime. But if you’re unlucky enough to run into them, the consequences can be fatal."

"So this year, I decided to include these hallucinogenic butterflies in the exam to teach these students a proper lesson. After all, we never know whether tomorrow or an accident will come first."

With that, the middle-aged man gazed toward the distant sky and sighed. "The capital star may seem peaceful and prosperous now, but at least two star systems are still locked in arduous battles against alien beasts. These students will eventually find themselves on the front lines of those battles. I hope the lesson I’m teaching them today will truly help them learn something."

Chu Yun leaned against the cave wall, peering outside through gaps between the Mechs. A thin blanket covered her legs.

She was responsible for the first watch. In the thick, darkness-woven fog, the outside was silent, barely a human sound to be heard. Occasionally, the cries of unknown alien beasts echoed in the distance.

*

Everything seemed calm and peaceful.

For a moment, Chu Yun felt herself growing drowsy.

In her daze, she seemed to see a pinkish-white glow flash not far away.

Its outline resembled that of a butterfly.

A butterfly?

Chu Yun was taken aback. In the dead of night, especially in this remote wilderness of the exercise area, how could there be butterflies?

Driven by her instincts as a Mech Pilot, she sensed something was wrong and was about to wake her companions to be on alert.

But then she saw Jiang Se crawling out of her sleeping bag, yawning. Her hair was a mess, almost fluffy in its disarray. Beneath the tangled strands, her usually sharp and cunning eyes were clouded with confusion. Upon closer look, one could see a faint, eerie pinkish-white glow flickering incessantly in the depths of her pupils.

Chu Yun: ???

Though she didn’t understand what was happening, she could clearly tell that her good friend Jiang Se was most likely under some kind of spell. And the cause was almost certainly linked to those pink, flapping moths outside.

Jiang Se, now fully out of her sleeping bag, still seemed utterly disoriented. She moved, staggering unsteadily, toward the cave entrance.

Chu Yun stepped forward and patted Jiang Se’s shoulder, trying to snap her out of whatever trance she was in. But it was futile—Jiang Se remained trapped in the nightmare, showing no signs of waking.

What’s more, Jiang Se continued to move forward. Chu Yun tried to hold her back, but the usually frail Mecha Pilot now displayed surprising strength. Despite being a top-tier Mech Pilot herself, Chu Yun found herself unable to restrain Jiang Se. Instead, she was being dragged toward the cave entrance by her.