Chapter 193: THIS is God-Ranked! (1/2)

Chapter 193: THIS is God-Ranked!

The difference in equipment quality for the two mechas wasn’t much. As such, the green mecha wasn’t significantly faster than the yellow.

Before long Su He’s mecha dipped in to the cloud cover. The stately green predator followed half a second behind.

Here the benefits of a sim match were made apparent, for as they drilled through the clouds and mist the spectator’s screens filtered them out and revealed a crystal clear picture. Now, they could see every minute detail of the fight despite the environment.

Su He did not pause as he penetrated the clouds. He became distorted and difficult to pinpoint, with a fuzzy grey light hovering around him. He looked very much like the clouds he hid in. More importantly, however, this aura he exuded hid the fluctuations of his mech and discipline power.

Slowly, he lifted the laser cannon to his shoulder. He continued to move backward through the mist while carefully aiming for the encroaching green hunter.

The suit stopped. Tan Lingyun felt the vibrating of the sim pod come to a halt, and although she couldn’t see Su He she was immediately filled with dread. What was this person doing? Why where they stopped when a sniper likely had their sights trained on her, especially a sniper as strong as this?

It was an opportunity Su He couldn’t afford to miss. With a sizzling bang, the laser cannon released its first shot. The clouds turned an angry red as the sizzling laser raced towards its target.

But what happened next was a strange turn, for just as the laser was set to obliterate Tan Lingyun, a powerful green aura gushed forth. The nimble mech side-stepped ever so slightly, as the verdant light congealed in to a thick layer before its chest.

The laser burst in to a fiery explosion, but the brunt of its force was avoided with the juke. The rest was deflected by the intense shield.

The impact force caused the suit to spin around.

Su He saw how his attack was mitigated until it was useless. In surprise and frustration, he began the procedures to ghost his suit once more.

He knew God-ranked pilots didn’t do anything unless it specifically granted them a combat advantage. There was definitely a reason the green mecha had stopped to suffer the strike.

As expected, the moment his shadow appeared he saw a green flash streak by. He broke out in a cold sweat.

The light had been one of the suit’s spikes, fired from its hand at incredible speed.

Su He stopped on a dime, refusing to let inertia pull him to the side. It was a poignant display of his mastery. The sudden change in trajectory saved him, for as anticipated a second flash of green raced past. Had he kept going, that spike would have impaled the cockpit.

Sweat had already soaked through Su He’s flight suit. The intensity was oppressive, and an underlying fear crept through his brain as he continued to narrowly avoid destruction.

ζ

In the sim pod.

Tan Lingyun watched the exchange on her screens, absorbed in every tiny detail. Though she wasn’t the one piloting the suit, she was nevertheless full of a deep satisfaction.

Her observations were interrupted when that deep voice from before filled her cockpit. “The reason for leaving myself open for the blast, was to resolve this fight as quickly as possible. He’s got a very powerful shield defense system installed in his suit, capable of blocking our radar. Add in the cloud cover, and he’s practically invisible. Nearly all high-level snipers are outfitted like this. So, the best way to determine a sniper’s location is to have him take a shot. The precondition, of course, being that you’re confident you can avoid or block the shot.”

As the voice was instructing, she did indeed see Su He’s mecha partially concealed in the clouds.

Su He had indeed avoided the two attack, but in the course of evasion was forced to stop his retreat. In the same instant Su He’s location was revealed, the green mecha launched forward at top speed. Spin, launch, sprint – three actions that blended seamlessly in to one. No movement was wasted.

By the time Su He reacted, trying desperately to turn and flee, the green mecha was already hovering directly in front of him.

However, Su He’s training was immaculate, and his estimation of the situation appropriate. He knew that running at the needed speed would take time, time he didn’t have. If he tried, his enemy would catch up quickly, with his back exposed. What’s more, though his cannon was a far sight better than his student’s, it still needed time to cool before another shot could be fired. There wasn’t time for him to fire one off before Tan Lingyun could land a fatal strike.

So he didn’t run. Instead his hands relaxed around the grip of the laser cannon, allowing the powerful weapon to fall away. His arms rose and warded him, the blades wrapped around them dull against the gray clouds. Close combat was his only option, now.

The green mecha was unarmed, having fired its spikes earlier.

Finally, the two mecha met once again. The audience watched with baited breath, throats tight with anxiety.

The green mecha stuttered. Ghosting?

No, or… yes?

It appeared as though there was some problem, that the maneuver failed. Though there was the hint of a phantom, it wasn’t as expertly executed as before. The image was only partially separate from the real thing, not unlike Su He’s own attempts earlier.

But Su He saw something else entirely.