Chapter 103: Found a Mecha

As the female officer stared in shock, Yang Bo’s energy suit emitted a soft glow, and he rushed forward without hesitation, the grasslands around him crushed as he moved.

The female officer quickly followed behind. The grass was so tall that even after it was flattened at the bottom, there were no visible traces on top, and if she didn’t keep close, the grass would just press down again.

Yang Bo whistled while briskly moving, scanning his surroundings as the officer trailed closely.

After about half an hour of zooming through, Yang Bo stopped and asked, “Are we going in the wrong direction? Why aren’t we at the mountains yet?”

“We’re still about 500 kilometers away from the mountain range,” the female officer replied.

Hearing this, Yang Bo nearly pulled out his energy weapon to knock some sense into her. How could she be so lacking in basic communication? Couldn’t she have just given him a heads up earlier?

“I’ll lead the way. You follow behind; it’ll be easier that way. Stay close,” the officer said, glowing in her own energy suit as she dashed toward the mountain region, just like Yang Bo.

“Uh.” Yang Bo found her behavior strange, but then he thought to himself: maybe this is just how society works these days. Looking back at those from his old level, even living in the same building didn’t mean talking to each other.

Ten minutes later, just as Yang Bo passed a particular spot, he called out, “Wait, ma’am!”

Yang Bo’s whistle had revealed a mecha hidden in the nearby grass.

The officer, puzzled, turned around and saw Yang Bo heading toward something. When she reached him, there it was—a mecha.

It was a ninth-gen mecha, seemingly dropped here not too long ago.

After a brief thought, Yang Bo figured maybe something had happened here. A player in this mecha game probably got disconnected.

“This mecha’s useless, though,” the officer remarked, knowing that each mecha had its own key and that these were manufactured with remote control systems, making them almost impossible for anyone planetside to command.

“Let’s try fixing it first,” Yang Bo muttered under his breath.

The officer was stunned. Fix a mecha? Gaining control by just fixing it? If it were that easy, the Mech Company would be bankrupt. These mechas were custom-made after all.

“Interesting, interesting!” the officer thought as she watched Yang Bo tinkering away, her curiosity piqued.

Yang Bo had a knack for mecha repair, dismantling parts here and there. Actually, he was using his metal skin ability to gain access to the mecha.

He crawled underneath the mecha, turning his entire body metallic to absorb its permission codes.

It took him only eight minutes to gain control of the mecha, but he didn’t show it immediately, instead pretending to fiddle with some parts. Worried the officer might notice? Not at all. It’s not like he was himself anymore, after all.

After half an hour, the cockpit popped open, leaving the officer slack-jawed.

In the next second, she saw Yang Bo climb into the mecha’s control room. Moments later, the mecha moved, flexing its arms and legs.

“All done.” Yang Bo wiped his hands and then started reassembling the parts he had taken off.

“Get in, ma’am,” Yang Bo called out after finishing the reassembly.

The mecha was lying in the grass, and though the control room wasn’t spacious, it was big enough for two.

The officer hesitated for a moment, then asked, “You know how to operate a mecha?”

“I’ve seen some colleagues train with them. Hurry up, ma’am,” Yang Bo brushed off her question with an excuse before seating himself inside, making the mecha sit up.

The officer debated for a second, but then climbed into the cockpit, sitting behind Yang Bo. Though cramped, Yang Bo could still operate the controls.

In the next moment, the mecha stood up. It even had a laser cannon, which Yang Bo tested briefly, finding no issues.

The next second, he activated the jetpack, making the mecha leap into the air.

Yang Bo surveyed the terrain, noticing a mountain range in the distance. After landing, he directed the mecha toward the mountains.

“These players are broke, playing with such a low-end mecha,” Yang Bo grumbled, ridiculing the fact the mecha couldn’t fly, not even considering how terrible his own mecha was in the game.

The officer, clad in her energy suit, watched Yang Bo maneuver the mecha, skillful beyond mere observation. This was more than just ‘having seen colleagues train.’

Yang Bo put the radar of the mecha to work, controlling it with ease—a clear perk of being a mechanic.

But due to interference from the warship’s electronics, the radar data remained blurry.

Suddenly, the mecha’s alarm sounded. The officer shouted, “Mutants incoming!”

“No worries. If they had spotted us, they’d have run by now,” Yang Bo said leisurely. With a mecha in hand, the mutants didn’t stand a chance.

Still, Yang Bo fired a few laser shots at the mutants, just to be safe.

Mecha Repair +4!

To his surprise, he actually hit some, earning a Mecha Repair bonus. Were these mutants dismantling mechas at home in their spare time?

The officer stayed silent, amazed. Yang Bo had manually operated the laser cannon and managed to kill a mutant hiding in the grass 900 meters away.

Bear in mind, the warship in the sky had activated electronic interference mode, making it nearly impossible for the auto-targeting system to lock onto anything.

“A ninth-gen mecha really does operate smoother than my third-gen model. The controls and added features are top-notch,” Yang Bo said after piloting for a bit. Of course, it was better than his in-game third-gen model, though not as good as his personal one from the warehouse.

But the ninth-gen’s laser cannon still outmatched his own third-gen model.

“Why aren’t you a mecha pilot? You’ve got the skills for it—fixing fighter jets seems like a waste,” the officer mused, watching Yang Bo operate smoothly.

“I like fighter jets more than mechas,” Yang Bo replied casually. In truth, he’d never even flown a Drone Fighter.

Suddenly, an urgent alarm rang. Yang Bo glanced at the radar, noticing a swarm of mutants approaching. He remained composed, maneuvering the mecha into a charge to put distance between them.

The mutants, using some sort of communication, attempted to surround him, adjusting their positions as Yang Bo moved. This time, the mutants were further away.

Yang Bo activated the rocket jetpack, soaring into the sky, while simultaneously firing the laser cannon.

Lasers sliced through the air, targeting the mutants.

Mecha Repair +2!

Mecha Repair +2!

Eight shots were fired, but only two mutants were hit. After landing, Yang Bo reactivated the jetpack, further distancing himself from the remaining mutants.

The officer remained quiet. There was a huge difference between manual fire and auto-targeting. The auto-system adjusts the power of the laser cannon based on the scan strength, but manual shooting requires precise aim, as well as adjusting the power manually. Auto-fire can launch 200 rounds per second, but manual shots are much more difficult, especially when hitting moving targets while also in motion.

“He’s got talent,” the officer thought silently.