Under the cold lights stood two massive mecha giants. Their control pods located in the abdomen allowed room for a single pilot. Made of high-density alloy, the arms were equipped with six-barrel heavy flamethrowers and nuclear-powered cannons on the back of each hand, with a laser cutter embedded in the index finger. On the back were jet thrusters, and sharp, serrated steel wheels protruded from their heels.
Lance and Xiang Yu were familiarizing themselves with the mechas while Zheng Rong received a crescent-shaped long case. Inside was a lightweight alloy frame.
“As long as you pull open the metal outer ring and activate the core energy,” the physicist explained, “it generates a gravitational field that can reverse any energy or matter attacking you.”
Zheng Rong pointed at a button on the ringed frame. “How does this work?”
The physicist responded, “Uh, that’s for connecting additional equipment. It was personally designed by my mentor, but it lacks the most important device. Please don’t touch it yet.”
Zheng Rong pulled out the two-meter-long frame from the box. It was a half-circle that, when opened and fitted together, formed a ring.
“I mean…” Zheng Rong held the ring in front of him. “This is just terrible taste. Can’t you design something that looks better? Are all the industrial designers dead? Or do you want me to go to the mountaintop and play hula hoop? Let me see the manual.”
“Oh, please... It’s not a rice cooker. Don’t expect too much.”
“No, seriously. Who came up with the idea of a hula hoop energy device?”
“Professor, the sketch was drawn by your brother.”
Zheng Rong: “…”
The observing scholars burst into laughter and then dispersed.
Holding the metal hula hoop, Zheng Rong gave it a shake. The physicist said, “It can last for six to eight hours, depending on external conditions.”
Xiang Yu glanced at the hula hoop and asked, “Will it explode?”
The physicist replied, “Absolutely not. We guarantee that much. Though it’s hard to explain the principles to you, trust me—it doesn’t rely on filling it with massive amounts of electricity. Its basic energy source is the Earth’s magnetic field, so only a small amount of traction energy is needed.”
Zheng Rong nodded.
“You’ll need to remove your coats and pants, or the internal scanner won’t be able to detect your body contours,” the female mechanic said before tactfully exiting the room.
Xiang Yu and Lance began to undress. Lance, blushing furiously, removed his military pants. Zheng Rong burst into laughter.
Without responding, Lance swiftly leaped into his cockpit. He was wearing a pair of black silk thong underwear that Zheng Rong had given him long ago, and his handsome face flushed all the way to his ears. Xiang Yu, wearing boxer briefs, hadn’t noticed Lance and asked in confusion, “What’s so funny?”
Leaning against the wall, Zheng Rong waved his hand, laughing so hard he cried. Lance, embarrassed, mouthed silently for him to stop.
“I bought both of your underwear,” Zheng Rong suddenly felt a strange warmth in his heart.
Xiang Yu and Lance climbed into their mechas as the protective hatches closed. With a notebook tucked under his arm, Zheng Rong knocked on the mechas with his metal ring.
“Can you hear me?”
Almost completely naked, Lance and Xiang Yu stood still inside their mechas. The iron waist belts clicked, fastening around their well-built waists, while cold alloy braces supported their feet at the ankles. They stretched their hands, sliding their fingers into the hollow alloy gloves that reached out in front of them. Xiang Yu clenched his fist uncomfortably, and the mecha’s wrist extended a short blade.
The helmets descended slowly, with a dark red chip positioned over their left eyes.
The female mechanic returned and spoke into a headset: “The left eye reads environmental variables, and the right eye sees the outside world directly.”
The hatch had transparent viewing windows. Xiang Yu glanced outside and nodded.
Lance pointed at his ear and said something.
“The broadcast system is built-in; you don’t need to wear a headset,” the female mechanic explained. “The small device on your left hand is a miniature communicator. When it detects nearby acceptable frequencies, it will automatically adjust and connect. You can communicate directly by speaking to the back of your hand.”
“Good luck, and please return safely.” With that, she placed a headset on Zheng Rong.
“Can you hear me?” Zheng Rong asked.
Both Lance and Xiang Yu responded in unison, “We can hear you.”
The loudness of their voices almost deafened Zheng Rong. The female mechanic added, “They can hear your instructions, but they can’t hear each other. You’ll have to coordinate between them, so please don’t mix things up. The light blue door is T10, and the red one is T4.”
Zheng Rong: “…”
Female mechanic: “?”
Zheng Rong: “This is specifically designed to confuse Chinese people when read aloud. Forget it—let’s begin.”
“How do we tell them apart?” Xiang Yu chuckled.
Zheng Rong said, “Big dog, carry me out.”
One of the mechas stepped forward, extending its massive alloy arm to gently lift Zheng Rong and place him on its shoulder. Scholars gathered behind a metal safety net, removing their hats and saluting Zheng Rong and the two mecha warriors inside.
Anthony said, “Please come back safely.”
Zheng Rong replied, “Anthony, I’m counting on you to take care of Ugoss.”
With a flourish, Anthony removed his hat as the two mechas activated their jet thrusters and flew out of the canyon.
Along the way, the anti-gravity generators were deactivated, and the metallic shielding once again radiated blue light, sealing the cave’s entrance.
Zheng Rong said, “We need to move farther away… Let’s head for that mountain. Brother, fly steady! I’m going to fall!”
Lance said in a low voice, “I am a lion.”
Zheng Rong: “…”
They found a hidden spot in the woods at the top of the mountain, where the mecha gently set Zheng Rong down. Kneeling on one knee, he spread out the metal ring on the snow and activated the button. With a press on his headset, he instructed, “Move back a few steps.”
The gravitational field shield was activated with a hum, and the thin alloy sheets unfolded again, transforming into four separate rings that slowly rotated around Zheng Rong in clockwise and counterclockwise directions.
The four steel rings spun around the central axis, layer by layer, creating a blue energy net that isolated the two-meter diameter sphere from the outside world. Inside the sphere, Zheng Rong floated weightlessly, adjusting his posture uncomfortably before pressing another button and securing himself to a fixture on the alloy frame.
Snowflakes gently fell toward the light sphere, only to be redirected upward, floating back into the sky.
Zheng Rong used a safety strap to anchor himself to the axis line. He opened his notebook, inserted a probe behind him, and tucked it into his collar.
Beeping noises filled the air as a topographical map spanning nearly a thousand miles appeared on the screen, dotted with tens of thousands of glowing points.
“There are too many,” Zheng Rong muttered. “Be careful, you two. Xiang Yu, you go first. Your route has been transmitted to your navigator.”
“What about me?” Lance asked.
“You wait here for a few minutes,” Zheng Rong said, staring intently at the screen as Xiang Yu’s red marker slowly moved away from the command point.
“Xiang Yu,” Lance called out, “can you hear me?”
Zheng Rong interjected, “He can’t hear you. All communication must go through me. Do you have a message for him?”
Lance replied, “Tell him, if I die…”
“Shut your mouth! You can move now. The route’s in your navigator.”
Lance: “Okay, Zheng Rong, I love you.”
The mecha warrior leaped down the slope.
Floating within the anti-gravity field, Zheng Rong stared at the screen, lost in thought. Li Ying’s chip, pressed against his chest, burned almost unbearably hot.
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“Li Ying,” Zheng Rong murmured, “may your spirit in heaven watch over them.”
Xiang Yu and Lance’s mechas diverged, each following their designated paths. Zheng Rong split the computer screen in two, forcing himself to simultaneously monitor two completely different scenes. Each view was further divided between the snowfield topographical map and the real-time feeds from Lance and Xiang Yu’s mechas.
This meant that he had to manage four different displays at once, all while staying sharp enough to make immediate decisions, issue orders, and remain vigilant for the presence of mechanical assassins nearby. Zheng Rong closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again, forcibly concentrating and clearing his mind of all distractions.
“Lance, four enemies are approaching from your right. Power down all systems and wait.”
“Xiang Yu, there’s a single enemy behind the slope. Avoid direct confrontation…”
A distant explosion rang out, and Zheng Rong shouted angrily, “Follow orders!”
Xiang Yu chuckled, “Alright, alright, I was just too quick and destroyed it before you could finish.”
Lance stood in the snow for a while, sweating profusely in the sealed cockpit.
Zheng Rong instructed, “You can move now. Be cautious—there’s a patrol of machines coming at your ten o’clock.”
Xiang Yu teased, “Don’t be so tense. Sing us a song, will you? You should learn from Gu Carter.”
Zheng Rong asked, “What do you want to hear?”
Lance interjected, “What’s this about singing?”
Zheng Rong said, “Not your concern.”
Lance: “…”
Zheng Rong then started, “I can pull mountains with my strength, and my spirit covers the world…”
Xiang Yu: “I take it back.”
Zheng Rong smiled. “Lance, scan carefully in the low area. There’s metal debris down there.”
Lance: “I’ve reached the area. What is it?”
Zheng Rong: “Lower your view. Let me see. What caliber are these shells? Xiang Yu, don’t go into the woods—there’s an ambush. It’s a dense energy beam! You can’t handle it! Turn back now!”
Lance: “These aren’t American or Russian weapons; they’re Chinese-made.”
Zheng Rong: “They’ve arrived. But where could they be? Keep moving. Don’t stop.”
Lance: “If it were me, I’d start by searching the underground city for any survivors…”
Xiang Yu: “I’m at the northern hangar of the underground city, the place we escaped from. Should I go in?”
Zheng Rong didn’t reply.
“Zheng Rong!” Xiang Yu shouted.
“I’m thinking. Don’t panic. Turn your camera to the ground. Lance, continue exploring the lowlands until you reach the ice crevice a kilometer ahead.”
Xiang Yu crouched slightly, and Zheng Rong warned, “Xiang Yu, watch your back!”
Xiang Yu leaped, his mecha carving a graceful arc in the air, slicing a mechanical spider in half with the blade in his heel wheel!
The explosion alerted nearby spiders. Zheng Rong estimated their numbers and time of arrival, his voice trembling slightly, “Hold on, let me check the ground.”
A metal pipe, uncovered by the nuclear blast, glistened with purple-black frozen blood under the sunlight. Data flickered across the crystal display in Xiang Yu’s helmet as infrared scans and long-range analysis focused on a protruding metal tube.
“No signs of human entry. Head right at three o’clock and begin your escape—now!”
The metal pipe extended, firing a beam of red light that pierced Xiang Yu’s right eye through the mecha’s viewport.
Xiang Yu stood still.
“What are you doing? Brother! Run now!” Zheng Rong shouted.
Jolted by the shout, Xiang Yu snapped out of it, turned, and leaped into the air, running eastward.
“Don’t use the thrusters—there are flying bugs in the sky!” Zheng Rong ordered.
Panting heavily, Xiang Yu’s voice came through the headset. Zheng Rong focused on the screen. “Lance, search along the crevice. Zoom in and check for… Xiang Yu! The east is blocked! Change your escape route to one o’clock!”
The mecha giant planted a foot in the snow, kicking up a blizzard as it swung its massive polymer alloy sword, sending six compressed bombs from the wrist cannon.
Mechanical spiders were blown away as a metal pipe over a kilometer long lashed out from the hangar’s opening, coiling around the mecha’s ankle, dragging it to the ground with a crash.
More and more metal tentacles emerged, slithering toward the downed mecha.
Explosions erupted one after another. Lance reported, “I’ve reached the crevice.”
The magnified image appeared on the screen, and Zheng Rong barked, “Xiang Yu! What are you doing? Don’t go back to the hangar!”
Xiang Yu responded, “I’m trapped!”
“Fire the magnetic cannon!” Zheng Rong commanded.
Another explosion followed. “Aim at the high ridge on your right!”
A massive blue electromagnetic energy orb roared toward the mountain, triggering a landslide. With a roar, Xiang Yu swung back and severed the metal tendrils entangling him. Lance exclaimed, “I’ve found them! It’s the Hope Cape armed forces, with forty military helicopters stationed in the crevice!”
Zheng Rong said, “Lance, start frequency scanning. Xiang Yu! Fire another shot!”
Xiang Yu let out a defiant roar, executed a flawless backflip with the mecha, and landed with a thud. Unleashing rapid volleys from the six-barrel cannon, the recoil drove the mecha back. The final magnetic cannon blast was fully charged, glowing brilliantly blue as it was fired into the hangar.
“Head west…” Zheng Rong said, “Lance! Hold your position! Don’t advance any further! There are over a thousand mechanical killers ambushed along the crevice edge!”
Lance: “What about the other side?”
Zheng Rong: “The other side too!”
Lance: “What should we do?! I’ve already picked up the frequency. Should I start the communication?”
Zheng Rong decisively replied, “No, you’re too close. They’ll intercept it! Keep moving west along the crevice…”
Xiang Yu said, “I’ll draw them away! Lance, call for reinforcements!”
The explosion rocked the area for miles around, stirring thousands of mechanical spiders out of their snowy hiding spots, all converging on the blast’s epicenter. Lance activated his thrusters and leaped toward Xiang Yu.
Zheng Rong called out, “You…”
Lance: “Tell him to run toward me!”
Zheng Rong took a deep breath as the sound of six mechanical mantises hovered above him. The whirring of drills echoed—their position had been exposed.
Lance: “Zheng Rong? What’s that sound?”
Zheng Rong glanced up briefly as the anti-gravity field deflected the incoming claws, flipping the first wave of attackers. The magnetic field interference caused static to hiss over the communication link.
“No problem! Now, follow my lead!”
“Your positions are exposed! Xiang Yu, activate your thrusters and head west at full speed! Lance, charge your magnetic cannon and move east to intercept! When I say fire, Xiang Yu will turn, and Lance will target the flying machines behind him…”
More static crackled as the approaching machines closed in on Zheng Rong.
“Did you hear me clearly?!”
Xiang Yu’s thrusters roared, propelling him skyward. With a graceful turn, he slashed through an incoming mechanical insect with his alloy sword.
Lance shouted, “You go for reinforcements! Leave this to me!”
The two mechas crossed paths in the air, Lance fully charged, firing a powerful electromagnetic blast at the ground below. The mountains shook, triggering an avalanche like a tidal wave of snow.
“No need for reinforcements,” Zheng Rong said. “Anyone alive must have heard that!”
Helicopters buzzed from the depths of the crevice. Lance shouted, “No! I must lure all these machines away! Only then can they rescue the survivors! Xiang Yu, take Zheng Rong back!”
Zheng Rong’s vision blurred as he gasped, “Lance… you…”
Lance replied, “I’ve already sent them the coordinates of the cave!”
Lance’s mecha plunged into the swarm of mechanical killers, while Zheng Rong’s anti-gravity field rapidly depleted its energy.
“Warning: Anti-gravity field energy depleting rapidly. Three minutes remaining.”
The communicator fell into dead silence.
Lance’s voice came through: “Zheng Rong.”
Xiang Yu: “Zheng Rong!”
Zheng Rong removed his headset, staring blankly into the distance.
One mecha gestured to its companion, pointing upward.
The other mecha understood, turning and activating its thrusters, flying toward the mountain peaks.
They appeared within view. A massive golden beetle broke through the ground, extending thousands of tendrils that ensnared the retreating Lance.
Lance clenched his fists, then abruptly released them, stretching out his limbs and tilting his head back.
His clear blue eyes gazed at the top of the cockpit, where an ocular device emitted an invisible beam that scanned Lance’s right eye, confirming his identity as the pilot.
“Commander of the 71st Army of the Human Federation, General Lance. High-level intelligent system activated. Switching to voice command mode.”
Lance commanded, “Emergency plan SS. Federation program code 079042. Confirm execution.”
A robotic female voice responded, “Mecha damage at 65%. Irreparable. Self-destruct sequence initiated. Sixty seconds remaining.”
“Zheng Rong!” Xiang Yu’s mecha flew toward the mountaintop.
“Anti-gravity field energy remaining: sixty seconds, fifty-nine, fifty-eight…”
Zheng Rong sensed something. He turned and saw a small silver metal cocoon crouching in the snow.
“How long have you been watching me?” Zheng Rong muttered. “Are you going to take me back for experiments?”
He closed his eyes, tilting his head back in exhaustion.
The mechanical swarm overwhelmed Lance’s mecha, metal tendrils lashing out, toppling it to the ground. Lance drew his alloy sword, struggling fiercely, slashing at the oncoming killers. He activated the thrusters again.
“Forty-seven, forty-six…”
Lance’s furious roar echoed through the headset, snapping Zheng Rong out of his daze. The rotating alloy ring froze, and gravity slowly returned. The widest ring passed over his head, bearing a circular insignia.
What was that? Zheng Rong vaguely remembered seeing the same insignia before.
Twelve strange symbols were engraved on the side of the alloy ring.
Zheng Rong quickly pulled out a particle generator from his pocket—a small circular device—his hands trembling as he slotted it into the disc. With a light touch, clamps extended from the sides, locking it in place.
“Thirty-three, thirty-two…” The electronic voice announced, “Unknown device acquired. Converting particle energy. Confirmed: Beta-type particle disintegration cannon charging.”
The spherical device lit up, emitting a beautiful glow like the aurora blending day and night.
“Retreat toward me!” Zheng Rong frantically grabbed the headset and shouted, “Lance! There’s hope! Come back! Everyone, come back!”
Inside Lance’s mecha, the self-destruct countdown continued. The cockpit canopy was cracked with countless fissures from the slashing mechanical killers. Lance struggled desperately, pushing the thrusters to their limit.
“Lance—come back!” Zheng Rong screamed, shaking as his finger hovered over the firing button.
The thrusters roared at full power, turning the mecha into a blazing fireball in the twilight.
The brave knight burned his armor, melting all nearby enemies in the blood-colored dusk.
Lance’s golden hair, drenched in sweat, clung to his body, and sweat ran down his taut muscles as he listened to the countdown.
“Ten, nine, eight…”
A sharp metal spike suddenly shot up from the ground, spanning a thousand meters in an instant, piercing through the mecha and shattering the cockpit canopy.
The thrusters sputtered and fell silent as Lance, along with his mecha, was skewered on the sharp spike. Purple-red blood flowed out, trickling down the sleek silver alloy frame and dripping onto the snow.
The sun slipped behind the mountains, vanishing, leaving the land in eternal darkness.
“The polar night is long… the sunlight fleeting,” Zheng Rong muttered, his vacant eyes reflecting the final scene.
He pressed the firing button.
“Zheng Rong—!” Xiang Yu finally reached him.
The light sphere erupted in a blinding white beam, shooting straight into the sky. Earth’s magnetic field scrambled at that moment, cutting off all communication signals. Massive auroras gathered at both poles, and a surge of solar wind particles streamed toward Alaska like a primordial flood.
The metal orb emitted an unbearably bright silver light as a white ring of energy obliterated the alloy rings, sweeping horizontally across the mountains. The solar wind tore through everything in its path, causing a cataclysmic storm that pulverized all metal into dust.
The first mecha took the brunt of the blast. Its metallic shell disintegrated into nothingness. Xiang Yu, still rushing forward, grabbed Zheng Rong and shielded his head as they tumbled into the snow.
As the light ring swept through, all the mechanical killers, conduits, and tendrils—every alloy weapon of the Mayan invaders—was reduced to dust, blown away by the raging winds.
The blood-stained mecha shell crumbled, leaving no trace, even the sharp blade that had impaled it dissolved into white powder.
The particle generator lay quietly in the snow, emitting a faint glow.
Lance’s nearly naked body lay in the snow, resting gently in the cold, soft white.
Zheng Rong’s voice grew closer as he called out. Lance coughed a few times, revealing a bleeding wound on his shoulder.
The helicopters roared incessantly as they emerged from the depths of the crevice. Zheng Rong took off his coat, wrapping it around Lance, then cried out desperately, holding Lance’s body and pleading frantically.
Anthony, handcuffed, rushed down from one of the helicopters, followed by several Chinese medics who quickly placed an oxygen mask over Lance’s face, pressing cloth tightly against his wound.
Xiang Yu held Zheng Rong’s shoulder, guiding him onto the rescue helicopter. Forty helicopters in total carried the last two hundred remaining human scholars toward the underground city at Hope Cape.