Chapter 289 – Heroes Photo
The leader of the alien beasts had already turned back and charged toward Tu Ran with its mouth wide open, aiming to bite her.
Tu Ran calmly raised her mecha arm, and the cannon mounted on her arm shot out a burst of flames. A cannonball flew straight into the beast’s mouth, and the recoil caused Tu Ran to take a small step back.
The beast didn’t have time to close its mouth, or perhaps it didn’t intend to. It had never experienced the power of human weapons. A cannon just slightly larger than its fangs—how much power could it have? It even ignorantly attempted to swallow the cannon.
During the swallowing process, the cannon exploded, and black smoke billowed from the alien beast’s mouth and nostrils.
The intense burning sensation forced the alien beast to open its mouth, and its shattered teeth, mixed with flesh and blood from its mouth, fell to the ground.
Looking at its wide-open mouth, it was a bloody, mangled mess.
Tu Ran pressed the attack and fired two more shots, causing blood to splatter from the alien beast’s mouth.
The alien beast didn’t die. Tu Ran was about to fire again, but the alien beast had already closed its mouth and charged toward her in a fit of rage.
It had learned its lesson. Tu Ran watched as the alien beast charged and leaped into the air. The beast ran beneath her, and she timed her descent perfectly, landing squarely on its broad back.
She swiftly turned and plunged a knife into the previous wound.
This time, Tu Ran tried to inject her mental power to her superpower.
[Immense Strength]
The first combination of her mental energy and superpower.
It worked.
The blade smoothly slid into the beast’s nape. Tu Ran didn’t pull it out immediately; instead, she gripped the hilt tightly and leaped off the beast. The blade twisted in the beast’s neck, severing all the connected flesh and bone.
When Tu Ran landed and withdrew the knife, the beast’s neck was neatly severed. Only a thin layer of skin kept its head attached to its body, preventing it from falling to the ground.
[Mental Power +18889]
[Mental Power Collection Progress 6%]
Tu Ran was stunned.
The progress had already been at 6% before this additional 18,889 mental power, yet after adding nearly 20,000 more, the progress was still stuck at 6%.
Had using [Immense Strength] consumed that much mental power in one go?
The consumption rate was faster than the collection rate. At this rate, how long would it take to reach 100%?
[Using mental power to activate the mecha and perform abilities consumes ten times the amount of mental power compared to using the ability without the mecha. If you still want to accumulate mental power, it’s best not to use the mecha to drive the abilities.]
Tu Ran suppressed the urge to curse and mumbled, “Got it,” before charging at the nearby beast with her knife.
Fast, accurate, brutal.
She wasn’t aiming to kill, just to create some wounds.
[Mental Power +166]
[Mental Power +666]
[Mental Power +1888]
…
On the live broadcast, the viewers watched in awe as the mecha seemed to go berserk. It swung its knife here, then there, one moment gouging out the eyes of a beast, the next moment riding on another beast’s neck.
The beasts in the middle of the group were thrown into chaos, scattering in all directions, leaving a large empty space.
At the center of the empty space lay the leader of the dead alien beasts.
The leader’s head was nearly severed, with a clean cut constantly oozing blood, filling the ground with it. The smell of blood in the air was palpable, sending a chilling shockwave through the remaining beasts. Their fighting spirit waned significantly.
Ye Hongci had been keeping a close watch on Tu Ran’s situation. She knew exactly how long 100,000 mental power could sustain a mecha. Given how long the battle had already lasted, far beyond what she had initially estimated, it was clear that Tu Ran truly had the ability to upgrade her mental power.
Ye Hongci’s heart, which had been hanging in the air, finally settled. She felt relieved that her gamble had paid off. She withdrew her focus from Tu Ran and fully immersed herself in dealing with the alien beasts before her.
Tu Ran was so engrossed in the killing that she tried to ignore the endless pop-up windows. At this moment, the constant barrage of notifications felt like a nuisance to her, much like an annoying ad that kept popping up during an intense game session.
“Can’t I remove these pop-ups? I can’t even see where the beasts are,” Tu Ran complained as she attempted to strike at a beast’s tail, only to miss because of a sudden pop-up window that had appeared in her way.
[Cannot.]
The [Tally Board] replied bluntly.
Tu Ran: “…” This was really frustrating.
She had no choice but to adapt and try to ignore the pop-ups.
She soon found her rhythm, her movements swift and decisive as she killed the alien beasts. When she finally noticed the pop-ups again, she saw that her mental power collection progress had reached 13%.
The slow but steady increase in data gave Tu Ran more motivation.
Unfortunately, the number of alien beasts here wasn’t enough for her to keep killing for much longer.
Two hours later, the last beast was impaled into the ground by Ye Hongci’s blade, its life extinguished.
The camera pulled back and rose just in time to capture the victorious scene in its entirety. Thus, on the live broadcast, the following image appeared.
Amidst the mountain of alien beast corpses and sea of blood, only the human mechas stood firm, like eternal mountains, resolutely standing atop the blood-soaked ground.
Some stood back-to-back in pairs, others alone atop the highest point of the corpse mountain. Each mecha exuded the aura of a hero. At that moment, the dark sky cracked open just enough for a beam of purple light to shine through, instantly filling the scene with a violent and bloody beauty.
This image was widely screenshot and became the backdrop for recruitment posters across the Haenden star system. It successfully inspired generations to dedicate their lives to the Haenden star system.
However, there was one flaw in this otherwise striking image.
In the top right corner of the composition, a white mecha was suspended in mid-air, leaning forward with its arms spread wide. It was clear that something had tripped it, and it was on the verge of falling.
The white mecha, of course, was Tu Ran.
She had intended to find a relatively blood-free spot to stand for a while. As she was walking, a sudden pop-up appeared, blocking her view, and she didn’t notice that she had stepped on the tail of an alien beast, causing her to trip.
Her reflexes were quick, and she didn’t actually fall. Unfortunately, the image that would later become widely circulated captured the exact moment just before her fall.
As a result, whenever someone saw that image, their gaze would inevitably shift to her, often followed by a remark.
The first half of the comment would always start with, “Look, Tu Ran even trips while walking in a mecha.” The second half would usually follow with, “So, it’s not a big deal if we haven’t learned to walk in mechas yet,” “So, it’s not a big deal if we can’t design mechas properly,” or “So, it’s not a big deal if we don’t want to go to work.”
…
After leaving the foul-smelling corpse nest of the alien beasts, Ye Hongci led everyone to a cleaner area where they could take a break. The mechas provided a place to rest, but the crew could also step out for a breath of fresh air.
Tu Ran, curious about the environment of this small planet, crawled out of her mecha. She stepped onto the gravel-covered ground and wandered around, like an inquisitive child, examining everything around her, even picking up rocks to inspect them.
Once Ye Hongci had made arrangements for their next course of action, she too stepped out of her mecha and found Tu Ran.
“How does it feel to have your first kill of the alien beasts?” Ye Hongci asked casually, as if talking to a friend, walking alongside Tu Ran.
“It’s not bad,” Tu Ran replied.
Though she was looking down at the ground, her eyes couldn’t hide the joy that flickered in them.
Ye Hongci glanced at her curiously. “You’re so happy. Is it just because of the alien beasts?”
Tu Ran smiled and pressed her lips together. She avoided revealing her true thoughts, answering only with, “Of course.”
What was there to be happy about from killing the beasts? She wasn’t a native of the Haenden star system. Her happiness came from accumulating 13% of mental power. With so much energy, she couldn’t wait to see the effects when she used her special abilities. She was already beginning to feel a sense of anticipation.
Ye Hongci didn’t press further. She turned her gaze to the vast, gray-black expanse before them and shifted the conversation. “What do you think of the Haenden star system?”
Tu Ran’s temple twitched slightly as she became more cautious. “What exactly are you asking about, General?”
“Humans,” Ye Hongci looked at her intently. “What do you think of the humans of the Haenden star system?”
Haenden star system?
Tu Ran squinted, sensing something was off.
Why was Ye Hongci asking about the people of the Haenden star system? The way the question was framed suggested it was from the perspective of someone who wasn’t a native of the Haenden star system.
“Well… it’s pretty good, everyone is united,” Tu Ran carefully responded.
“I think so too.” Ye Hongci seemed not to notice the caution in Tu Ran’s eyes as she continued, “The Haenden star system is a very harmonious system. Our leader is a wise commander. He’s ruled the Haenden star system for fifty years—during the first thirty years, he led us into space, and in the last twenty years, he has led us in the battle against the alien beasts.”
“You’ve seen how powerful the alien beasts are. From the beginning, the people of the Haenden star system were at their mercy. But we developed mechas capable of matching them, from nothing to something. Now, we can fight back against the beasts, we can reclaim planets taken by them.”
As she spoke, there was hope and pride in Ye Hongci’s eyes—pride in the world they had built.
“We’ve been through so much, but the people of the Haenden star system still live orderly lives. Although our technology isn’t as advanced as it was before the beasts appeared, the basic living conditions are still met.”
“We have natural food, entertainment, strict laws, elderly care, education for children. There’s no oppression, no murder cases everywhere, no corrupt officials, no social discrimination. Everyone is equal.”
