Chapter 534: Expenses (1/2)

Chapter 534: Expenses

Translator: EndlessFantasy TranslationEditor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Ye Chong took the laser gun that he had just completed and tried to aim. The truth was, Ye Chong did not improve very much in long range attacking, mostly because he did not train himself in it. He had chosen to specialize in close range combat since the very beginning. However, this did not mean that Ye Chong was completely clueless about long range combat. On the contrary, he had studied the art deeply.

Long range attacks will be the main threat of close range mech pilots. Every close range mech pilot would study about long range attacks to learn how to avoid them.

Ye Chong was no exception. However, unlike other close range mech pilots, he was lucky enough to have an expert, Mu, to help him out. Mu had in fact given Ye Chong a comprehensive training program for long range mech pilots.

Shooting was basic knowledge for all long range mech pilots, but was not enough by itself. Knowing how to predict a target's movements was also crucial to become a competent long range mech pilot. Unfortunately, Ye Chong had stumbled at the very beginning of the list of prerequisites. That was why he always thought that he lacked talent in long range combat.

Shooting was the most basic requirement. Ye Chong had never mastered it before, but could he have changed over time?

Ye Chong lifted the laser gun and aimed, narrowing his eyes like a hawk. Every object in the room showed up clearly in his vision. He had hands that were as precise as mechanical instruments, allowing him to make the slightest adjustments in any way, even though these movements were still new to him.

Fire!

Ye Chong steady arms did not move at all when his right hand pressed onto the trigger, and a laser beam shot out of the gun, hitting squarely on a black dot on the wall. Puff! A thumb-sized hole was left on the wall. Sunlight from outdoors flooded through the hole.

Sha Ya arrived quickly, in an alerted state. She was puzzled when she saw nothing was wrong, but left Ye Chong to his devices.

Ye Chong looked at the hole in the wall, momentarily taken aback.

Was that it?

Surprised by his action, Ye Chong lifted the gun and fired a few more times. All of them resulted with the same accuracy.

Ye Chong stayed where he was, stunned.

In fact, the result was hardly surprising. Compared to his younger self on the trash planet, he had grown so, so much. He had improved in many respects, such as muscular control, observational skills, and understanding in combat. If his abilities were represented as numbers, his current numbers had increased many times over compared to when he first started. This kind of gradual change often happened unnoticed. If the current Ye Chong were to try his hand in the training routines that he had practiced with before, he would find himself managing all the harder parts with ease. Ye Chong was surprised but also happy with the massive changes within him.

Ye Chong may not have focused his training in long range combat, but many of the close range combat skills he picked up were also essential for long range combat.

However, this was still the first step. Shooting on a fixed target was the most basic training for every long range mech pilot.

Ye Chong soon realized the reason for his improvement. He was not overwhelmed by happiness due to his achievement, but instead felt a little melancholic. All his efforts throughout the years, his hard earned victories through sweat and tears had allowed him to become who he was today. His hands had moved faster and faster; his combat skills had developed from the initial mimicking to a Jie expert's level; he had started mech piloting with the most basic Raven, and ended up with Celest today; he had also learned alchemy, and mech manufacturing, and more …

Who could understand the hardships that he had endured throughout it all?

And who had he become today? ”What's with me being so emotional today?” Ye Chong laughed at himself mockingly.

Soon, Ye Chong relieved himself of these emotions. He had never allowed his own emotions to trouble him for long. All feelings of sadness, hopelessness, or tiredness would come to pass. In the end, the only way to solve any problem was calm thinking, courage in making decisions, and the perseverance to carry out the necessary actions.

Ye Chong was now still a beginner in shooting. If he wanted to improve himself, he must train hard. His current level would not be threatening in actual battle. However, Ye Chong did not dismiss this skillset. Even though his shooting could not be very helpful in actual battle, Ye Chong realized that it presented a new pathway for him.

Indeed, he could not be like the shooters in this world who could aim with their parapsychic sense. However, he had something they did not have – holographic scanning. Of all the long range mech pilots he had encountered, none of them could aim through mental control. Nevertheless, they were still excellent combatants. Even Xi Feng Tribe's mech pilots were aided by holographic scanning systems.

He had an advantage in shooting distance.

Ye Chong finally had a few peaceful days for himself. Unexpectedly, the soldiers did not come knocking to seek revenge. In these few days, Ye Chong drew up a plan for the main structure of the manor's defense system.

12 cannon arrays did not feel like enough for the huge manor, but they would at least provide some form of protection against aerial threats. The holographic scanning system for the manor was already set up. With the manor at its center, Ye Chong now had a 120-kilometer radius of land under surveillance.

The military base was only 40 kilometres away from Ye Chong's manor. This allowed Ye Chong to feel safer. Knowing the enemies' every movement was a desirable outcome.

Nevertheless, Ye Chong did not lower his guard. There was no huge response from the camp, but it would still send scouts to spy on them regularly.

Ye Chong did not react to that. As long as the soldiers did not invade his space like that night, he would not retaliate. This kind of spying activity was useless against him. Unless they had a highly advanced mech like Mu and Shang, they would not penetrate the thick walls around the manor. If they tried to trespass the manor, Ye Chong's defense system would identify them and initiate an attack.

Ye Chong was now more than capable of setting up an effective defense system. Every weapon was placed strategically and well hidden. The rich greenery on the manor's land and the uneven terrain was also to his advantage.

Ye Chong built a good number of heavyweight firearms in a few days, with enough time in his hands. Aside from the 12 cannon arrays, he also installed more than 600 laser guns all around the manor. Besides the high accuracy firearms, Ye Chong also created a new kind of weapon that he called the Hive.

Each Hive was a set of laser shooters arranged into a matrix, like a beehive. Each Hive could fire up to 144 shots simultaneously, where each laser beams was separated from the ones around by 20 centimetres. This was a weapon designed to take on the more capable shooters. The attack had larger coverage, so that even if the enemies noticed the attack with their parapsychic sense, they would not be able to avoid it. Besides, the Hive could adjust its shooting angle through the control photon processor.

The only disadvantage of this weapon was its high energy consumption. Nevertheless, given how energy rich materials come easily in this world, and at affordable prices, it did not really matter.

Ye Chong was inspired by the G-Z laser gun structure of the Research Consortium when he developed this new weapon. The final product was devastatingly powerful with the excellent raw materials he found on this planet. Even an aircraft would be destroyed by this weapon.

Hence, Ye Chong modified some of the Hives to have larger spaces between the lasers. These modified ones would be used to target aircrafts.

Now, Ye Chong's defense system was making headway. He could continue with his research, being safer against external threats.

…

Sun Sieha was very busy. There were too many matters that required his attention. Despite all the preparations he had gone through since he was a child to inherit the throne, and despite his long experience in governance and military affairs, he still found himself strained by the workload. He could now appreciate the pressure that his father once faced.

Nevertheless, all the work did not make him forget about the weaponsmith called Ye Chong.

The mysterious young man was such an interesting character! Whenever he had a moment's idleness, he would think about that cold young man. A smile would come to him whenever he thought about how he was forced to an impasse that day. Being a proud man, he would only ever think favorably of talented and skilled people. However, he quickly dismissed all of these subjective thoughts and emotions. He was King, and he needed to consider every matter from the country's perspective.

Sun Sieha's expression reverted to his usual coolness. He considered for a moment, then summoned, ”Ask Master Karu to see come see me!”