Chapter 9: Bucking Up

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It was almost the 8th year since Winnie started staying by his side. They had been through thick and thin, and rode through piles of garbage of varying heights. Winnie shielded him from raids and protected him from extreme weather. Winnie was the reason for his survival. It was his reassurance in life. She might be worn out but in her lay the kindest elderly soul he could have asked for, in which she faithfully and dutifully fulfilled by serving her owner for the past few years.

Something felt trapped within Ye Chong. What was it? Through all the years that Ye Chong lived, there was only once when he felt such a sensation, and it was during his father’s death.

Is this grief?

He whispered to himself.

I wonder if papa was doing fine on the other side?

Holding his chin, he thought in an endearing misery.

For the whole day, he spent his time alone at a deserted spot on the planet. After that, he made his way to the training center and called Mu Shang.

“Mu, show me the course plan!” he said in a casual tone.

…

In the meantime, Xuelin was irritatedly occupied.

These few days she searched every single room on the battlefield, longing for a rematch with that person that left her with more questions than answers. That YC guy. Though disappointment slapped her in the face again and again upon seeing rooms with anyone else other than YC, she was not going to give up. If YC could face failure or any kind of letdown over and over again, so could she. The encouragement rang in her head.

Yet, this is going to be another wild goose chase today!

The day seemed to be anticlimactic as expected. Meh! I’ll just go and visit Cousin Shew. She should be at the basic training field.

Cousin Shew was the daughter of her second aunt and they had been good friends since childhood. Unfortunately, Cousin Shew had failed her mech examination several times before. Her mother thought of Xuelin’s father, Sun Ninghai, while she was thinking of a solution. She then begged the great man to enlighten her poor daughter so she could pass. Still, the man was great for a reason. He was so engaged in his work routine, he didn’t even have the leisure to keep the promise. As a result, the promise was inherited by Xuelin.

The basic training field was used to its vacancy. At most, there would only be a few people using it. Most pilots-in-training did not fancy the NR training for its efficiency in comparison to actual hands-on pilot training. In addition, these were so elementary that everyone had mastered the training back during their early childhood. The emptiness of the field was justified.

Idly, Xuelin browsed through the rooms on the field. The room Cousin Shew was in was soon found and she entered immediately. It was a spacious, open land with a number of obstacles on the ground. Cousin Shew was unsteadily walking through. Xuelin did not intend to interrupt the training her hardworking cousin was having. She just watched on at the spectator stands.

Wait, there’s another person!

A dark silhouette slithered through the obstacles at an overwhelming speed. Who would still train here with such standard of piloting? She went to have a closer look.

Wha! She was dumbfounded. That… That…

That has to be YC! YC! She hopped excitedly. Yes! It’s him! It’s him! The wound she made that day was still on the left shoulder of his Raven! And the scratches on the rib! Yes! It must be him!

Is this what they mean by “God never disappoints the studious” and “Heaven would help those who help themselves”?

She mumbled.

Ye Chong frowned as he checked out the data shown on Raven. Almost. He muttered. He was so close to Mu’s standards. It was so near, yet so far. How many times have he tried already yet he still couldn’t pass?

“Ye, with your learning capacity and basic theoretical knowledge, it would not be hard to complete the basic training courses, instead it would be a piece of cake! But if you find such standards satisfactory, you should never think of touching me. At all!”

“Most people deny the significance of training. However, they are so foolishly wrong!”

Mu Shang sounded like a hermit in his teaching, sassy and aloof and this brought up a raging storm in Ye Chong, an unstoppable one!

“According to my calculations, 99.328% of actions of high complexity are actually derivations from basic execution. Thus, I could daringly conclude that, basic executions are the root of all pilot’s skills!” Ye Chong reflected on the statement.

Mu Shang pulled out a detailed list of parameters, “Ye, these are the training requirements I had prepared for you. The standard has been tailored for Raven’s capacity accordingly. Just do everything on this list!” Mu Shang’s mechanical eyes blinked.

“Remember, Ye, never acknowledge the existence of limits within you!”

Ye Chong took the suggestion with pleasure. After staying on Trash Planet-12, he was more than eager to try improvising himself. Nonetheless, he forgot about Mu’s hysteria, the capricious and mischievous nature of his. Those parameters… were impossible to achieve by Raven’s capacity… at all!

He faced the reality of this after going through the training. He worked on them through days and nights, whimpering, spitting blood and then he finally made it. Just one of them. That was an achievement joyous enough to make him cry.

“Good job, Ye.” Mu Shang smiled, “But you still need a little bit more momentum. Yes, yes, a motivating factor is what you would need! I should implement a system that includes rewards and punishment. How about this? If you fail to fulfill at minimum one (1) subject on the list after this, you would be having an organic liquid diet for a week. That’d be good! Yes!”

Mu sneered on as Ye Chong witnessed it. He didn’t have a choice, without Winnie, only Mu could do the hunting! You fox! Ugh!

Ye Chong hated liquid diet, flow food, fluid food, or whatever you name it! He hated it with a passion since he was young, be it organic or not. He had to make it! By hook or by crook!

Soon it was the last day of the week, if he did not succeed, he was going to be fed with the infamous white, sticky, gooey liquid food for real! Just by looking at it was enough to choke him. It was so digusting that only a man who had lost his mind would consider eating it!

What was the problem? Why could he not make it? Ye Chong knew Mu well. He would never simply set parameters that a Raven could not fulfill. But why, why was it always so close? Ye Chong was collecting his thoughts pitifully.

…

Cousin Shew who was in training spotted her cousin on the stands, in which she quickly piloted her Raven towards. That did not go too well, however. Her skills were way too incompetent that the Raven was led to a floating metal pole.

Bang! Cousin Shew panicked, screaming and shouting loudly until the entire field could hear her.

The scream alerted Xuelin who was staring at YC since the beginning. She was horrified seeing the Raven her cousin drove stuck in mid-air and was apparently going to fall anytime soon.

“This is bad!” she thought.

Cousin Shew had always portrayed a fragile, timid impression since her childhood and that was why she never thought of driving a mech. If she ever fell, the shock would land her in bed for the next few months! Or even worse, a trauma in her memories forever! Then, she would not even dare to approach a mech ever again!

Xuelin immediately got onto her SP-II and moved towards Cousin Shew at maximum speed, hoping to grab her before she fell. But there were too many random obstacles in the air, and those halted her. Cousin Shew would hit the ground in no time and she could not reach her! Tears flooded her eyes as it was filled with anxiety. No!

Meanwhile, the scream from Cousin Shew had also alarmed Ye Chong as he turned his head and noticed a mech of the same Raven he piloted too. He did not hesitate and began inputting commands, his Raven glided to its compatriot on a whim.

Perhaps it was the conscience sunken deep in his mind, in which he wished for a companion more than anybody else after his lonely days with Mu. There was no time to think, and those scattered obstacles relived the scenery of the hunting field he used to go to. The set of inputs he learned over the past week flashed in his mind. As if awakening, he subconsciously began inserting commands without difficulty. He turned out to be much slower than usual in the end!

Ye Chong’s Raven weaved its way through the flock of obstacles, like a breeze on a spring day, naturally, freely and directly. Right when the other Raven was about 3 meters from the ground, his Raven caught it in one go. He gradually decelerated and made one last glide for a short distance. He then landed successfully.

“There! All done!” he exclaimed as he put down the Raven.

About 2 seconds later an SP-II came after him. It must be the ally of the Raven. He speculated enviously while the mech was landing right in front of him. That seemed, oddly familiar… ahh! This was the SP-II he matched with the first day he was here! He nodded slightly in respect as he watched it inching towards him.

He intuitively took a look at the processor. What?!

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