Chapter 61

Chapter 61

While Bai Luming was configuring the settings, he had already calibrated Chu Xiao’s mech data. Once he received He Yilan’s signal confirming the adjustments were complete, the first round began.

When he turned his gaze to the arena, his usual relaxed demeanor sharpened into intense focus.

Both pilots operated identical mechs—the exact model assigned to Chu Xiao upon joining the elite team.

Training in the simulation system closely mirrored real mech operation, except for the absence of a copilot in the passenger seat.

After the previous phase of training, Chu Xiao had begun grasping the fundamentals of mech combat. Rather than charging recklessly as before, he remained calm and withheld his move.

Yet while he held back, He Yilan acted the instant the countdown ended. Piloting with fluid precision across the arena, he switched the weapon mounted on his mech’s arm to a burst-fire cannon. Without regard for whether Chu Xiao could react in time, he unleashed rapid, expertly coordinated maneuvers—erecting an impenetrable wall of fire.

Bai Luming watched in silence: “…”

He’d intended to gather more battle metrics—but did He Yilan really need to go all-out *immediately*?

Clearly, He Yilan had no intention of drawing out the engagement. The moment the first shot struck Chu Xiao’s mech, a torrent of even fiercer, sustained assaults followed without pause.

The barrage sent shockwaves rippling across the arena. By the time Chu Xiao realized something was wrong and switched to defense mode, the overlapping attacks left him no opening to counter. Helpless and immobile, his mech was reduced to scrap within seconds under the unrelenting onslaught.

The outcome was decided.

By the time the match-end signal appeared in his vision, Chu Xiao had already been returned to the ready room.

He’d originally planned to wait for his opponent to slip up and strike back—but never imagined being utterly dominated from start to finish.

Everything happened far too quickly. Without exaggeration, he hadn’t even had time to formulate a response before elimination.

Chu Xiao stared at He Yilan, eyes wide with awe: “You’re incredibly skilled…”

On the other side, Bai Luming sighed: “Aren’t you being excessively brutal?”

He tapped his digital clipboard lightly, regarding He Yilan with genuine concern. “Aren’t you afraid of giving my apprentice combat stress by fighting like that?”

He Yilan replied indifferently: “Don’t worry—our apprentice has a resilient mentality. He won’t be traumatized.”

Bai Luming opened his mouth, unsure whether to reprimand him for speaking without understanding the pressure—or to question when exactly Chu Xiao had become *“our”* apprentice in his vocabulary.

Before he could say anything else, Chu Xiao chimed in. Far from discouraged, he sounded eager and excited: “That’s right—my mindset is extremely durable! Yi Lan, you’re amazing! Let’s keep going—I won’t make it so easy for you to defeat me so decisively next time!”

He Yilan glanced at Bai Luming, his eyes seeming to say: *See?*

“Seen it, seen it,” Bai Luming waved his hand. “Then let’s continue—as long as you’re happy.”

Bai Luming didn’t mind how quickly the matches ended. After all, intense pressure sometimes optimally unlocks latent potential. Still, based on past military training experience, many personnel had developed operational stress injuries under excessive pressure—making him cautious about this factor.

Fortunately, Chu Xiao appeared to possess exceptional psychological resilience, rendering Bai Luming’s concerns unnecessary.

The second match began—and He Yilan adopted a completely different approach.

He no longer overwhelmed Chu Xiao with ranged dominance from the outset. Instead, he constantly cycled through weapons, alternating between long-range barrages and close-quarters melee. The only constant was relentless engagement: the two mechs clashed from the very first second, neither retreating nor pausing.

Bai Luming instantly recognized He Yilan was teaching Chu Xiao how to master the tempo of weapon transitions while in motion.

Every mech carried a configured armory. Though impossible to carry every weapon simultaneously, selecting and switching equipment from the arsenal according to combat distance already demanded considerable expertise.

Compared to the first match, the second lasted significantly longer.

Yet even this reciprocal engagement didn’t endure for long. Chu Xiao soon found himself at a disadvantage, gradually losing his movement rhythm until He Yilan completely outmaneuvered him—and defeated him.

Bai Luming gave He Yilan high marks for his performance in the second match.

At the very least, it demonstrated willingness to invest effort.

For the third match, He Yilan modified his tactics once again.

He abandoned long-range weaponry entirely, instead wielding a plasma whip for direct melee confrontation. Compared to the visual spectacle of heavy artillery, this close-quarters duel delivered visceral, kinetic intensity.

Even Bai Luming had to admit the whip suited Mr. He’s personal style perfectly—the way it coiled and clashed against Chu Xiao’s energy sword was truly mesmerizing.

Of course, the victory remained decisive and absolute.

“3–0,” Chu Xiao said, somewhat dejected despite having mentally prepared himself. “The only consolation is that I managed to extend the duration of the last two matches a bit longer, right, Master?”

“Yes—putting up a fight against him like that is already quite impressive,” Bai Luming replied, smoothly shifting into a tone one might use to coax a child. He then sent Chu Xiao the customized training regimen he’d just finalized. “Those three matches revealed several critical deficiencies. Follow the focused drills I’ve assigned—and we’ll continue tomorrow.”

“Understood, Master!”

Chu Xiao enthusiastically accepted the training list from Bai Luming and logged out of the room.

He Yilan watched the figure vanish swiftly, a rare glimmer of appreciation finally flickering in his eyes. “If we’re talking about execution capability alone, he could definitely outperform 99.99% of trainees.”

“Just execution capability?” Bai Luming casually tossed over his comprehensive combat logs. “After three matches with him, I refuse to believe you haven’t noticed. With each round, this kid independently corrected numerous operational flaws. That’s not experience—it’s pure talent.”

He Yilan took the notes, skimmed them briefly, and asked offhandedly, “So, this is why you couldn’t resist playing talent scout—wanting to nurture this gifted individual for the Blaze Legion?”

“Even without the Blaze Legion, Chu Xiao alone would be worth the effort,” Bai Luming said. “You wouldn’t understand. Only those who’ve climbed up from the bottom know how difficult it is. It’s not just Chu Xiao—if anyone is a hidden gem, their potential shouldn’t be wasted.”

His tone sounded casual—but his gaze, fixed on the training arena, seemed to drift somewhere far away.

He Yilan watched his profile quietly for a moment before looking away. “Indeed. Only those who’ve experienced it would know.”

He handed the notes back. “So—what’s the plan now? Your prized apprentice has gone off to train diligently. Are you planning to go back and watch a few more immersive holograms?”

Bai Luming replied, “I don’t feel like watching movies now. I want to play something else.”

He Yilan was about to ask what he meant by “play”—but when his eyes met Bai Luming’s, he paused subtly beneath that bright, intense gaze.

His intuition told him it wasn’t anything good.

Sure enough, the next second, he heard the man before him ask eagerly: “Want to fight?”

He Yilan: “…”

He’d come to realize Bai Luming always had a way of leaving him speechless. “You want to fight *me*?”

“Well? Want to or not?” Bai Luming had originally intended to observe Chu Xiao from a third-person perspective—but after watching He Yilan’s performance, he couldn’t help but feel an itch to fight.

It was a long-lost sensation, as if certain dormant cells had stirred awake. Once the thought surfaced, it became utterly irresistible.

Whether it was the tacit understanding they’d shared back on Planet 6616—each piloting a basic mech against the winged insect swarm—or the three brief matches where He Yilan guided Chu Xiao using three entirely distinct styles—all the evidence pointed to one conclusion: He Yilan was strong.

And he loved nothing more than fighting the strong.

What's more, unlike those in the military he was long tired of, He Yilan was a completely new experience for him.

He Yilan should have flat-out refused the request, but under Bai Luming's gaze, his words turned into: "Sure."

Before Bai Luming could speak, he continued unhurriedly: "But if I fight you, you get what you want. What do I get out of it?"

"Truly a merchant, immediately setting terms." Bai Luming saw right through He Yilan's little game. "Just say what you want."

"A very simple little condition." He Yilan smiled, his gaze drifting downward with his words until it settled on Bai Luming's chest. "I’d like to see your mechanical heart."

Bai Luming hadn’t expected that to be the condition: "Just that?"

Actually, He Yilan had brought up wanting to see the mechanical heart before, but he had refused back then. Bringing it up again now was reasonable, but with such a rare opportunity to make a big demand, making such a small request felt almost wasteful even to him.

He Yilan just smiled: "Yes, just that."

Bai Luming said sincerely: "...So into all things mechanical? Your tastes really are pretty unique."

He Yilan glanced at him: "Not everything mechanical-related interests me."

Bai Luming responded: "Alright then, let’s have a match, and I’ll show you when we get back."

He Yilan showed a satisfied smile: "Pleasure doing business with you."

"Hold on." Bai Luming said, opening the settings panel to change the training ground settings.

Unlike the map used for the training match with Chu Xiao, in moments the virtual map of the training ground expanded more than tenfold, completely transforming into imperial-grade combat specs.

He Yilan watched, silent for a moment before saying: "You really seem to want to fight me."

Bai Luming laughed: "How could that be? It’s just that, starting now, I suddenly feel like fighting you."

A sudden pop-up message notification interrupted their conversation. Bai Luming looked down and saw that several friend requests had popped up in just a few seconds.

As for who these applicants were, it made Bai Luming once again confirm that a certain four marshals had been just bored lately.

Bai Luming’s first reaction was to reject these friend requests, but then he thought this temporary account wasn't going to last long anyway. Rather than refusing and dealing with even worse pestering from them, it was better to put up with it short-term and just accept them.

After accepting the friends, Bai Luming received an internal message from Jin Wumian.

"The Most Elegant Jin: Knew you’d be on at this time."

"The Most Elegant Jin: But why in a custom training room? Shouldn’t you be in the holo-cinema?"

"The Most Elegant Jin: Let me see what you’re doing. I’m coming."

Bai Luming had just wanted to send "Don’t you dare come," but the next second, he saw a figure appear in the room lobby.

Jin Wumian, using a default avatar, landed with the elegance his ID promised, and immediately spotted He Yilan standing nearby: "Who are you?"

He Yilan frowned: "And who are you?"

Bai Luming: "..."

Before he could explain, he watched as one figure after another entered the room, clearly all brought in by Jin Wumian.

That saved him the trouble of introductions.

Aside from Jin Wumian and Shen Yanfeng, marshals Chi Yan and Qing Yileng both used their real names for their IDs.

They weren’t logged in via sim-pods; their figures used the default avatars for guest login, but just their IDs were enough to indicate their identities.

"Now do you know who I am?" Jin Wumian smiled, looking from Bai Luming to He Yilan with a knowing smile. "So this is why you’re not watching holographic movies—up to something else here. We came to take a look; hope we’re not interrupting."

Bai Luming glanced at him: "You are interrupting. Can you leave?"

As he spoke, he painstakingly set a belated password on the custom room.

Before Jin Wumian could respond, Chi Yan had already noticed the situation in the custom training area: "Are you two going to have a simulated match?"

When Bai Luming and He Yilan logged in via sim-pods, they default imported their own holographic images, so Qing Yileng recognized them at a glance.

Hearing Chi Yan’s words, his cold eyes lifted slightly.

Bai Luming vs. He Yilan?

Interesting.

Qing Yileng said: "Interesting."

Chi Yan: "Let’s watch."

Shen Yanfeng, standing to the side, already had the thought of voluntarily leaving the room but didn’t dare speak.

Bai Luming: "...Watch what? Did I say you could watch? I’m the room owner; I can kick you out anytime."

Bai Luming’s attitude was enough for the others to realize that He Yilan probably knew his identity, which only made them even more curious.

Jin Wumian scrutinized He Yilan, then turned to Bai Luming with a smile: "Don’t be so cold. We’re the ones who kept your secret. That's kind of harsh."

"Threatening me? That doesn’t work on me."

As Bai Luming spoke, he was about to start showing people out when he suddenly thought of something. He glanced over the few people before him, and a faint smile gradually appeared in his eyes. "It’s not impossible to let you watch me fight, but quid pro quo. Your desire will be satisfied—what do I get out of it?"

The familiar rhetoric and tone made He Yilan glance up at him.

Jin Wumian asked: "What do you want?"

Bai Luming’s lips curved slightly: "Haven't figured that out yet. I’ll owe it to me for now. Remember to come when I need your help later."

Even empty promises came effortlessly. Jin Wumian was amused by this nerve, but just as he was about to speak, he heard Chi Yan respond: "Deal."

Jin Wumian glanced at Chi Yan and sighed: "Alright, whatever."

Bai Luming got the promise he wanted and stepped back to He Yilan, asking in a voice only the two could hear: "Should we fight seriously or just casually?"

He Yilan, having heard the whole exchange, raised an eyebrow and commented truthfully: "Getting such a sweet deal and still thinking about throwing the fight? With your talent, if you came back to Zhong Sheng Machinery with me, you’d definitely make a fine shady businessman."

As he spoke, his gaze subtly swept over the other marshals.

He reasonably suspected that if these people found out Bai Luming had such intentions, they might just come up and beat him up.

"Isn’t this for your sake?" Bai Luming had messed with these guys plenty before and felt no guilt, but he said to He Yilan: "I’m the one who has history with them; they’re here for me. There’s no reason to get you involved directly. If you’d rather not expose your identity, we could really consider taking a dive—"

"Whatever works."

Bai Luming: "What?"

He Yilan indeed hadn't expected that, after Bai Luming managed to secure a favorable condition by setting a trap, he would still remember to consider He Yilan's situation at such a moment.

Looking at Bai Luming now, he merely wore a faint smile at the corner of his mouth and repeated unhurriedly: "As long as you can fulfill what you promised me, I'm fine with everything else."

Their eyes met, and the surroundings fell into a subtly tense silence for an instant.

It felt somewhat too agreeable.

After a long while, Bai Luming spoke again given He Yilan's remarkably laid-back attitude: "Then we'll get right to it."

He Yilan nodded: "Yeah, let's fight."