Upon hearing this, Chi Yu swelled with pride. He looked at Yun Xingze, his eyes brimming with tenderness and affection.
Just as Qin Shuang was about to continue pushing Chi Yu and Yun Xingze to “build their relationship,” a cold voice suddenly cut in: “Xingze, the school newspaper reporter wants to interview you.”
Yun Xingze froze for a moment before turning toward the speaker. Luo Wenchuan stood beside him expressionlessly, directly grabbing his wrist.
Without giving him a chance to refuse, Luo Wenchuan pulled Yun Xingze away from the group.
Chi Yu was taken aback. By the time he processed what had happened, Yun Xingze was already walking away with Luo Wenchuan, and his face darkened once more.
“Who is that guy? How tactless,” Qin Shuang frowned at Luo Wenchuan’s retreating figure. “He is tall and handsome, though, and he was first place earlier, wasn’t he? Does he have feelings for our Xingxing?”
Chi Yu’s expression soured further. He said coldly, “He’s from a backwater planet.”
“A backwater planet?” Qin Shuang’s eyes flashed with disgust at the words. “Absolutely not. Someone from a backwater planet dares to approach our Xingxing?”
“Our ancestors were from backwater planets too.” Yun Wu muttered quietly.
“Why must you always talk so much?” Qin Shuang glared at Yun Wu. “We’re citizens of the capital planet now of course we can’t associate with some poor boy from a backwater planet!”
Precisely because their ancestors came from backwater planets, the Yun family was often secretly referred to as “nouveau riche,” a label Qin Shuang was particularly sensitive about.
Yun Changsheng cut in, “Alright, enough arguing. Today was supposed to be about celebrating Xingxing’s achievement, but you just had to stir up trouble. I have company matters to attend to, let’s go.”
Before leaving, Qin Shuang turned to Chi Yu and said, “Don’t worry, Xiao Chi. You two are highly compatible, you’ll definitely end up married.”
Chi Yu paused briefly, then smiled. “Yes, thank you, Auntie.”
His gaze shifted to Luo Wenchuan and Yun Xingze, the gloom in his eyes replaced by smugness. He thought to himself, Yun Xingze would be his sooner or later no matter how much Luo Wenchuan competed with him, it would be pointless.
Yun Xingze was led to a secluded corner by Luo Wenchuan.
“Where’s the school newspaper reporter?” Yun Xingze looked around. “I don’t see anyone.”
Luo Wenchuan curled the corner of his lips, extended his hand in a microphone-holding gesture, cleared his throat, and asked in a reporter’s tone: “Interviewing this student, how do you feel about winning third place in this competition?”
Yun Xingze was momentarily stunned before realizing Luo Wenchuan just wanted to help him escape from that family.
He couldn’t help but laugh too, answering with mock seriousness: “The feeling is absolutely exhilarating.”
Not only had he won the 500,000-prize money, but Yun Changsheng also transferred him two million. Now he had a substantial sum.
“The national league is in about two weeks,” Luo Wenchuan said, looking at Yun Xingze. “You should focus on upgrading your mecha to prepare for the competition.”
Yun Xingze nodded, then suddenly asked, “Is there prize money for the national league?”
Luo Wenchuan didn’t expect the question, but it was just like Yun Xingze to ask. After a brief pause, he smirked and replied, “If you make it to the top three, the prize money will be very generous.”
Yun Xingze said firmly, “Then I’ll definitely prepare well.”
After receiving the money, Yun Xingze repaid the loan from Zhuo Feiyue and still had plenty left. After careful calculation, he figured it would be enough for a complete overhaul of his Twin-Star mecha.
But before Yun Xingze could start his upgrade plans, he had to attend daily training sessions with the school team to prepare for the national league in two weeks.
The school placed great importance on the team, so the training was intense, requiring early arrivals something Yun Xingze wasn’t quite used to yet.
One day, before dawn, Yun Xingze arrived at the training ground.
Rubbing his sleepy eyes, he realized everyone else was already there.
The vast training hall was brightly lit, contrasting sharply with the dim, gray sky outside.
The team coach, Richard, was the one who led the school team to outstanding results last year. Around the same age as Zhuo Feiyue but looking younger, he was an Alpha who piloted a Twin-Star mecha, with a scar near his left eye and closely cropped hair.
Seeing Yun Xingze arrive late, Richard bluntly ordered, “Yun Xingze, ten laps around the training field.”
Yun Xingze was dumbfounded. “Why? I’m not late. ”
He checked the time, it wasn’t even 5:30 yet.
“You were the last one here,” Richard said coldly. “So, you run laps.”
Yun Xingze swallowed hard. He hadn’t expected the coach to be this strict. Gritting his teeth, he turned to start running.
Chi Yu couldn’t help but speak up sympathetically, “Coach, Xingze didn’t know.”
“You too,” Richard said, giving Chi Yu a cold look. “Ten laps.”
Chi Yu, surprisingly, seemed pleased and immediately set off to run.
Luo Wenchuan frowned at the scene and suddenly raised his hand.
“I’ll run too.”
But Richard merely glanced at him and said flatly, “Why would you? You don’t need endurance training.”
Only then did Luo Wenchuan realize Richard was specifically working on Yun Xingze’s stamina. Still, seeing Chi Yu subtly trailing behind Yun Xingze, his mood soured.
When Yun Xingze finished his laps, Luo Wenchuan was waiting nearby, handing him a bottle of water and a towel.
Chi Yu had just finished running as well. Seeing this, he couldn’t hide his irritation and said with a hint of jealousy, “Luo Wenchuan, don’t you have anything better to do?”
Yun Xingze walked aside to rest, while Luo Wenchuan didn’t hold back with Chi Yu, saying coldly, “Chi Yu, he already said he doesn’t like you. Can’t you have some self-awareness?”
Hearing this, Chi Yu pressed his lips together, clenched his fingers, then sneered, “Luo Wenchuan, even if Yun Xingze is throwing a tantrum or temporarily doesn’t like me now, the Yun family is very satisfied with me.”
Luo Wenchuan looked at him expressionlessly. “So?”
“So Xingze will definitely end up with me,” Chi Yu declared confidently.
“He doesn’t like you,” Luo Wenchuan repeated, the atmosphere between them turning icy.
“But our compatibility is as high as 89%,” Chi Yu said smugly. “I’m the only one in the entire galaxy who can make him happy. Luo Wenchuan, can you?”
Luo Wenchuan frowned slightly at these words, pressing his lips together.
“You should know how important high compatibility is for an Omega,” Chi Yu wiped his sweat and said slowly, staring at Luo Wenchuan. “Only a highly compatible Alpha can bring an Omega true happiness.”
Luo Wenchuan looked at Chi Yu with cold eyes. “Is that your excuse for forcing a bond on him?”
“If you truly care about him,” Chi Yu took a step forward, glaring coldly, “then think about his well-being. You and he aren’t highly compatible, you can’t make him happy. Besides, the Yun family needs the support of a major family like the Chi clan, not some son-in-law from a backwater planet.”
After speaking, Chi Yu let out a mocking laugh, as if declaring his victory. Luo Wenchuan stood still, his fingers slowly curling into fists, his gaze involuntarily drifting toward Yun Xingze.
Yun Xingze was sitting nearby, drinking water, when He Haoming suddenly approached with a sports drink, looking down at him hesitantly. “You still won’t forgive me?”
Yun Xingze glanced up at him briefly before looking away. “What do you want?”
He Haoming handed him the drink. “I was wrong to say those things to you during the match.”
“Oh.” Yun Xingze didn’t take the drink. “Finished?”
He Haoming took a deep breath. “I know you won’t forgive me right away, but since those mech parts were originally meant for Chi Yu, I have to thank you. Otherwise, my mech wouldn’t have reached S+.”
Yun Xingze finally looked at him. “No need to thank me. You paid for them.”
He Haoming might not be a bad person, but Yun Xingze still didn’t want much to do with him.
“One last question,” He Haoming frowned slightly, studying Yun Xingze. “How… how did you activate that mech’s cannon and hit me? Are you really only B-rank?”
“Your mech’s arm load-bearing design is flawed,” Yun Xingze said flatly. “When raising the shield, the time difference between the two plates creates a gap; something even you might not have noticed.”
He Haoming froze, surprise flashing in his eyes.
He was about to ask how Yun Xingze had spotted it when Richard’s voice suddenly cut in. “I’m signing everyone up for the National Mech Championship, so we need to test your mental and physical stats.”
At this, Richard glanced at Yun Xingze and raised an eyebrow. “You—are you sure you’re B-rank?”
Yun Xingze stiffened, slowly lowering his water bottle.
“In a moment, you’ll be the first to undergo the test,” Richard said to Yun Xingze.
After Richard left, He Haoming lowered his voice and warned Yun Xingze, “Richard and Zhuo Feiyue are sworn rivals. When he found out Zhuo Feiyue had a student who made it onto the school team’s main roster this year, he wasn’t happy. Be careful.”
The mental energy assessment took place in the team’s dedicated training chamber.
Zhuo Feiyue had brought Yun Xingze here once before.
The reason Yun Xingze had been able to activate that mech with twin heavy cannons was because he had withdrawn all his mental energy from the mechanical beast’s neural link just before it split in half, transferring it to the main mech’s neural link instead.
This was the result of his rigorous training in mental energy transference.
Of course, that alone hadn’t been enough. He had also leveraged his ability to control mechs beyond his level, which allowed him to successfully activate the cannons.
But Yun Xingze wasn’t eager to reveal this capability. If word got out, future opponents would be on high alert, making it much harder for him to use this skill as a trump card.
Clearly, Coach Richard had watched Yun Xingze’s match, which explained his pointed questioning.
Yun Xingze put on the testing helmet.
Richard stood nearby; arms crossed. Despite being Zhuo Feiyue’s rival, he was also a coach who valued talent. After watching the match, he couldn’t help suspecting Yun Xingze might possess the rare ability to control mechs beyond his mental energy level.
If true, with just a bit of mental energy training, Yun Xingze could become a highly sought-after asset not just by military factions, but even by the neighboring Alliance.
After all, the two interstellar superpowers—the Stellar Empire and the Stellar Alliance were constantly searching for individuals capable of cross-level mech control. Only such individuals could pilot SSS+-rated mechs of extreme difficulty, and only they could assist military research in breaking through the neural link technology’s mental energy limitations.
Besides Richard, the rest of the team was clearly invested in this matter too including Luo Wenchuan.
As the test results were about to appear, teammates crowded around, eyes fixed intently on the screen.
