Chapter 600: Walking a Tightrope
Translator: mole Editor: Tscvanessa /EndlessFantasy Translation
200 mechs were heading their way, fast. In the many years he was away, the mechs models in the Five Galaxies had changed a lot. Ye Chong could no longer tell their make. These were probably a prefabricated model. The mech had a pair of gray and blue colored fins and a compact body. It was designed for better flexibility in movements.
Appilok frowned. He could see that these mechs were in combat mode. He could not accept this open display of hostility.
He took a glance at Ye Chong, and the man shook his head. These 200 mechs were no threat to Darkniss. Their warship had the toughest hull in the world, and can surely protects its crew from normal mech attacks. Ye Chong did not want to escalate the situation. Once upon a time, he would have opened fire without hesitation. However, now that he had grown mature, he realized that he had no time to instigate unnecessary altercations.
“Let me handle this.” Gu Qing offered. She was the head of the Gu Family, after all. This was usual business for her.
Ye Chong nodded. It was better to have Gu Qing deal with this kind of problem.
Both parties were soon in contact.
“Please identify yourselves.” A cold voice hailed them.
“Gu Family of Tian Luo.” Gu Qing replied succinctly.
“Welcome to Csebesini Galaxy.” The usherer spoke rigidly. “We welcome anyone other than space pirates to our Galaxy. Immigration is notified of your arrival. They will soon assign you with accommodation. Please lend us your cooperation.”
“I see.” Gu Qing replied plainly. Of course she knew what sort of accommodation they would be getting. However, they should just be thankful that they survived. It was impossible to keep Gu Family whole given their circumstances. Csebesini Galaxy’s authorities would never allow any forces that could threaten their position to regroup.
“By our latest military rulings, all large starships will be expropriated and modified as warships for our defense against the red-tailed beasts. We will offer compensation according to the market price of your ship.”
“What?” Gu Qing was taken aback. She realized what a huge mistake this would be, and quickly replied, “No!”
Sweat beaded on her forehead. She understood very well the nature of this conflict. Ye Chong would never give up his warship.
“Please reconsider.” The other party’s hostility was clear. It was only to be expected, since anyone who seek their protection must pay the price. All the aristocratic families that came this way had surrendered their large starships without argument.
Gu Qing saw Appilok gesturing to his subordinates in the background and began to panic. Her mind raced for a solution as she spoke, “We need to keep our starship. You may have all our supplies onboard. In exchange, we will not seek compensation.”
“I’m afraid that’s not possible. I must abide by the military rulings.” The other party pushed her.
The crew of Darkniss had never been treated this way before, and felt indignant about it. If Ye Chong was not here, they would have shot down all the 200 mechs in front of them. Even Sha Ya looked angered. She had only ever been humiliated like this twice – once by Sun Sieha, and another by Ye Chong. One was the King, and the other her master. These, she could accept.
Shooters placed great importance in honor and respect. The unreasonable demands made by the other party was clearly a challenge to them.
Appilok gestured towards a crew member besides him. The latter nodded in understanding.
Ye Chong did not want to escalate the situation, but he would not simply lie down in compliance. Besides, Ye Chong could tell from the other party’s attitude that there was no room for negotiation.
If that was the case, a demonstration of greater power would encourage greater cooperation.
Ye Chong nodded at Appilok. Gu Qing saw them, and closed her eyes in despair. She knew that once the fight began, they would be put on the defensive.
Appilok was prepared to give the order. “Warning fire!”
12 laser beams shot out from Darkniss towards the mechs.
The throats of 12 mechs were shot. The mechs lost their balance fell from the sky. Boom! The 12 mechs made 12 craters in the ground, kicking up dust around them. None of the mechs exploded, but they were already rendered useless.
When the ship fired, Wei Zheng’s immediate thought was, “Are they crazy? Don’t they understand the situation they’re in? Don’t they realize that they are the ones seeking protection here?”
When the 12 mechs were shot down, Wei Zheng was surprised by their accuracy. He was also relieved when the mechs did not explode. After all, he had a close relationship with his subordinates.
However, the next thing he thought of chilled him to the bones. He now realized the distance between him and the ship, and how difficult it must be to shoot down the mechs at the throat without making them explode.
Sniper mech pilots!
Wei Zheng swallowed heavily. He thought he was going crazy. Sniper mech pilots, at least a dozen of them, were on that ship. What could this possibly mean?
It meant that … He wanted to turn tail and run, knowing that his comrades were easily shot down from this distance. In other words, if they started shooting at each other, he would be first to be shot down.
He could the God of Death running the blade of His scythe against his face. The cold sense of dread spread across his entire body.
Sniper mech pilots were known for their abilities to turn the tides of a battle. The first thought that people usually had on sniper mech pilots was not how strong they were, but how rarely they came by.
There were 12 sniper mech pilots in this starship, and Wei Zheng found himself paralyzed by the thought.
One sniper mech pilot was scary enough, but if 12 mech pilots banded together … Wei Zheng felt goosebumps all over him.
He immediately sent out a request for backup. It was better to let the higher-ups handle this.
Wei Zheng ordered his men to back down slowly. The longer they stayed so close to the ship, the more nervous he felt.
However, four laser beams quickly graced past the four mechs at the rear end. This warning stopped the entire squad’s retreat.
“Consider your next actions carefully. Your provocative actions will only threaten your safety …” A laser beam shot past his mech’s throat, off by a mere centimeter.
Time seemed to pass so slowly that it drove Wei Zheng crazy. He and his men all felt nervous. No one expected to encounter such a difficult visitor. The Gu Family of Tian Luo was not your average aristocratic family. Everyone sighed quietly about their misfortune to have to deal with this arrogant organization.
The other starships from the Gu Family did not know what was happening, but since Darkniss had fired, it was natural to assume that there had been a disagreement with the mechs. Having travelled together for awhile, they had come to think of Darkniss as one of their own. Since the mech pilots of Darkniss had also trained their mech pilots, they were more ready to side with Darkniss.
Thus, they made their move.
The starships immediately broke their current formation and regrouped into battle formation. All the ships raised their battle alarms. The combatants rushed to their positions.
Gu Qing watched their reactions with worry. It seemed that they would have to go along with Darkniss. After the initial shock, she quickly gathered herself and reassessed their situation. I turned out that this might be a good opportunity. Ye Chong’s background was a mystery, but she knew how much power he had on his side.
She had been focusing on going to Csebesini Galaxy that she had not considered about joining forces with him. The risk was great, but then the Gu Family would remain together. It also meant that the Gu Family’s fate would be tied with this man.
Gu Qing was always decisive. She made her decision quickly.
With orders coming directly from Gu Qing, the other Gu Family members acted more confidently. They were now prepared for a shootout.
The Gu Family’s adamant display left Wei Zheng deeply unsettled. The backup squad was still not here, and he cursed them inside for being so eager to share his better moments but refused to show up when trouble arrived.
Wei Zheng did not know that the matter had shocked Csebesini’s authorities. This was the first incident of its kind ever since the red-tailed beasts appeared. Their opponent was the Gu Family, but no one wanted them to set a precedent for fear of the many unpleasant consequences in future.
If they set a precedent, new visitors would surely imitate them. The local authorities would find their position in jeopardy.
Hence, they gave strict orders to the soldiers stationed nearby to destroy the Gu Family’s fleet if they refused to follow orders. To deter other parties from disobedience, the authorities decided to stream the battle live to Csebesini Galaxy.
Since soldiers were deployed to the warp jump point to prevent space pirates from entering, there were many soldiers in the vicinity, numbering close to 100 thousand.
News of there being 12 sniper mech pilots reached the local authorities as well. This made them even more determined to annihilate the newcomers. Sniper mech pilots were like a nightmare, enemies that were well concealed and impossible to avoid.
30 thousand mechs advanced towards the Gu Family’s fleet. They were the closest to the fleet, and the first to arrive.
Darkniss slowly flew out to the front of the fleet. Its massive hull raised more than a few jealous eyebrows. It would be so wonderful to have a huge starship like that. The 15-kilometer long starship made it look like a fortress in outer space, or a mobile high class headquarters.
Everyone’s attention was on the starship Darkniss.
Under their curious attention, the seemingly harmless Darkniss finally bared its menacing teeth.
“Open weapons ports.”
“Energy at max.”
“Target locked.”
…
The comms channel was flooded with chatter. The warship’s crew members executed their duties methodically. The warship’s armaments were brought to life.
Darkniss opened up its weapons ports, revealing huge ship cannons for all eyes to see. The cannon barrels were thick and intimidating. The energy core radiated a faint blue light that illuminated the dark hull of the ship.
The viewers inhaled sharply. The comms channel on Csebesini’s side went silent.
One, two, three, four … 46! There were 46 ship cannons. It was a staggering number.
The warship was not done yet, however. 600 shooters were now in position, and the 600 gun ports all opened, pointing their laser guns at the mechs outside.
This was a day that many would never forget.
The passageways opened, and rows and rows of mechs came out.
This left the viewers shocked.
Harmony of the Winter Aria was one of the more fancy mechs that Ye Chong had used. It was also the Ji Family’s best mech model. Since these mechs were built with large amounts of rare alloy metals, the mechs shone with a unique metal lustre that made them look even more solid and elegant.
Their laser guns were based on the work of the Research Consortium from Gray Valley. One could tell immediately that they were unusual weapons.
This world had gone mad!
Suddenly, there were so many identical advanced level mechs. All the mech pilots could tell that these were top quality mechs.
People inhaled sharply in the comms channel.
A single mech of this quality would not have warranted so much attention. However, the simultaneous display of over 4000 Harmony of the Winter Aria was an impressive sight.
The difference between having one advanced level mech and 4000 of them was more than about numbers.
As the broadcast went life, viewers were treated immediately with a view of the 4000 mechs. “The Gu Family of Tian Luo chose not to comply with the local authorities, and had responded provocatively. To ensure the safety of all residents, local authorities have -” The newscaster stopped short when she saw the image on the holographic screen.
She had just received orders from the higher-ups and could barely absorb the news when she saw this shocking image. Whatever she had planned to say was forgotten completely.
The viewers watching the holographic screen, however, were in an uproar.
“Oh my God! What’s happening?”
“They’re gorgeous! What mech is that, and where can I buy it? Do you think I can book one?”
“What a strong presence … That’s f*cking swell!”
…
Unlike the mech pilots at the scene, the public welcomed the image. The local authorities did not expect this, and could not respond in time. They had acted first and made Csebesini into the last haven in the world. People rushed towards the Galaxy for protection, encouraging acts of bribery and illegal agreements … The local authorities turned corrupt very quickly. They were no longer who they used to be.
30 thousand mechs positioned themselves firmly in front of the warship Darkniss firmly.
These mechs were on a completely different level compared to the ones from Csebesini. The Galaxy had more soldiers, but their opponent had a warship! That was a weapon that could turn them to ashes. The commander of the Csebesini army was able to glean some details and make certain conclusions. He could tell that the opponent was much more capable in battle. For example, over 4000 mechs were deployed into formation in under five minutes. His own army would need at least 15 minutes to achieve the same thing. This tiny detail told the difference in strength between both sides.
He was facing an elite army, what could he possibly do? He had strength in numbers, but the commander knew that the difference in strength between them could not be balanced with their numbers. Besides, there was that warship. The commander could only stare at it enviously.
Many of the viewers were gratified to see the local army being put in their place. After all, most of the people who escaped to Csebesini were taken advantage of. It was satisfying to see someone put up a fight to the local authorities.
Records would show that the official channel viewership at the time reached a record high of 42%, breaking the previous record of 11%. The newscaster never recovered from her shock to continue her script.
Everyone followed the event closely.
Ye Chong, however, decided to make his next move as he noticed a large army of mechs heading his way.