校對：shy，阿鹽

The speed at which the sword swung from the mech, even if human response time was increased by sixteen times, they could not evade it. When they could feel the burning, it would already be too late to hide. Otherwise, there wouldn't need to be an automatic defense system in the mech's design.

It was not until the energy sword fell at the corner of the control room and thick dark smoke rose in the air that BixingLu -- whose eyes were blurry from the dazzling energy swords-- was finally able to focus his eyes on the person in front of him.

Lu: " … "

When those d.a.m.n students played around with that mech, he locked himself in the lab. At long last he was able to finagle a vehicle and catch up; then, as soon as he stepped in, he ran into the hosts. He played tricks after tricks to get rid of his pursuers before finding his students by following their coordinates, only to almost get shot into the handsomest coal briquette in history for no reason … Every time Lu felt like he couldn't be any more unfortunate, destiny would give him a surprise at the next corner.  

For a moment, scientist Bixing Lu wavered. The idea came to him then to just pick a random religion and wors.h.i.+p its G.o.d.,because it seemed like science could not explain his roughlife any more.

Jingheng Lin put him down and put his hands behind his back, asking with a wry: "Well, do I need to give you five minutes to organize your thoughts?"

Bixing Lu was just about to speak, when suddenly, he heard something. He shot a glance, realizing the mech that attacked them was making some frightening noise — the particle cannon was warming up!

Even if it was an insignificant light particle cannon in the boundless universe, it was still enough to wipe out all living creatures in a mile radius in a second.

Lu didn't think twice. He estimated the position of his mech, dragged Lin by his arm and ran for his life. At the same time, he turned on the defense system of the mech: "Didn't you see that crazy mech? You just broke in alone. Are you nuts?"

Lin: " … "

Coming from him? The cheek.

In the heat of it all, headmaster Lu, the "gentle scholar", had forgotten that he was very different from what he used to be - he was now a drug-using scholar strong enough to dent the lab security door.

This imprudent dragging made the shoulder of Lin's mundane body crack, almostdislocating it. Fortunately, Lin, the ex-commodore, was a tough man who had went through tons of bloodshed, and was able to swallow his scream.

Lin clenched his teeth, before the cold sweat caused by paincame out. He slid out of Lu's grip with a clever flick of his wrist. But just then, the particle cannon had already been fired! 

The four kids let out a uniform screamas if they had rehea.r.s.ed. Since there wouldn't be enough time no matter what, Lu shut the mech door remotely in order to keep the students inside. Then at the same time, he shoved Lin forward, holding his hands up against the wall, and instinctively archEd his back to protect him —

For a moment, Lin's looked kind of confused; Lu didn't see it. He had instinctively lowered his head and shut his eyes. The last image reflected on his retina, was the long scar that ranacrossLin's neck and collarbone.

If one had gone to the dermatologist, got the cheapest salve, taken it home and used it couple of times, even a person who scars easily would have nothing left on his clear skin. There would be no trouble at all.

Why did he keep it?

It was so malevolent, so furious, just like a vicious dragon with its mouth wide open, ready to devour a man. 

Just when Lu was lost in his own thoughts,a huge thunder boomed in the air, much like a howl. Then, a giant shadow rose into the air, just like a roc in ancient legends. With a slight shaking of its wings, it could cover the entire sky. It looked as if it was going to smash the mech launch platformand the entire s.p.a.ce station.

The shadow disappeared in a flash, and three of theunactivated mech around the corner moved Just like chess pieces they stood in a vertical line one after another The core of the first mech was melted by the particle cannon, the docking valve on the side of second mech flew out, the third mech was slightly shaken. The payload from the thundering particle cannon decayed three times and disappeared into thin air. .

It was not over yet.

The mech which had just fired thecannon failed halfway, as if it had been violently invaded by external forces . After swaying left and right several times and cras.h.i.+ng into things, it suddenly started its own energy sword and hacked towards itself. It was a solid blow.The whole mech was split down the middle. The energy valve in the square base exploded, and the oval-shaped mech defense system was divided into halflike a tofu cut by a hot knife. The cracks on the hull of the mech were like a spider's web. After a few minor explosions, the c.o.c.kpit popped out like a gla.s.s marble from this giant monster. The pilot inside had fainted, shaken by the shock to the psycho-network -- it was 001!

Those four students who were shut in the mech scrambledopen the unlocked door and peered out anxiously.

Lin: "When do you plan on ending this hugging?"

Lu quickly backed away. He turned to look at the messy wreckage of the mech behind him, and then looked at Lin. Anexpression of disbelief started to appear on his face.

As a freak who frequently surprised others, Lu was not easy to surprise. But at this moment, all his common sense stood at attention and babbled on about how this situation doesn't add up.

"Mental power" was not like "sight" or "brawn"; it was not an inherent physical quality that any ordinary human would have.There was absolutely no such item to be tested in a physical examination, and it's even further away from being the so called source of power of ancient magicians in legends. 

When the human nervous system was connected to the mech, each person's ability to control the mental network of the mech would be different. A a series of indicators such as strength of control, precision, reflex, mental strength, combat consciousness and so on, would be collectively called "mentalpower".

Apart from the small influence of innate talent , mental powerultimately depended on the rigorous training acquired -- for instance, Rickhead, the fool who got on the mech for the first time today,, didn't know s.h.i.+t, so after connecting to the mech,it could be said that his mental power was around zero.

For some of the advanced mechs, due to their complex inner structure and high standards for their pilot, there is a pilot qualification which was called the "mental power threshold". If one did not reach the mental threshold of a mech, this person would need special clearance from the owner of the mech, so that the mech could allow them to log-in and connect, giving them some extent of operating permissions -- When Zhanlu's mech was locked in the Silver Fortress, Admiral Lee tried to ask Jingshu Lin tounlock Zhanlu due to her blood connection with Jingheng Lin. This was actually just false pretense. The truth was, Jingheng Lin only had one sister left, and some members of the Military Committee suspected that she hadspecial clearances for Zhanlu. Unexpectedly, the angry Admiral Wolfe himself interfered before it could be confirmed.

In any case, only somebody who was connected to the mechwould possess "mental power" of this kind and have the ability to invade another mech via their own network. 

This was like hackers only being able to invade other electronic devices through an electronic device. One could not rule the world by sending out brain waves alone. 

But the remote link, through a special magnetic field equipment and technology, could communicate with a mechwithout having to be inside it. Usually, the operating distancewould not be longer than ten meters. This was already pretty much equivalent to an "intrusion", and the strength of the mentality would be greatly affected. Therefore, in a remote link, only a few simple operations could be carried out. It was impossible to manipulate another mech through the mental network of one's remotely controlled mech.

That being said, if all these events were not Bixing Lu's illusion … Jingheng Lin was connected to a mech that n.o.body could see.

"Who said that I came alone?" Lin walked to 001, with a slight unnatural movement on his left shoulder, "Did I not bring a mech?"

Lu s.h.i.+fted his gaze slowly to Lin's right arm - that mechanical arm. 

Zhanlu has two forms: human and mechanical arm. Sometimes he would also wander in the network, directly having remote conversation with other people through other devices. Lu only knew that he was an amazing AI, but he didn't like to stick his nose where it didn't belong, he never thought about what Zhanlu's AI was for.

That's when an idea suddenly popped into his mind - it is very likely that Zhanlu was the central AI of a mech.

He had mastered all kinds of military skills, such as blocking,tracking, and so on. At the same time, he also contained a perfect housekeeper function. Only "mech cores" would bedesigned this way, due to the fact that some military missions demanded being stationed in s.p.a.ce on a long-term basis, even drifting with the mech through the uninhabited outer s.p.a.ce.

However, an inconspicuous mech core like Zhanlu which could blend in the crowd, must be a mech with very sophisticated technology. He might even be a mechregistered with the Interstellar Union Army… 

Lu jerked up his head - Zhanlu! His name is also Zhanlu!

"Zhanlu" was not an unusual name. Since the beginning of human society, there have been all kinds of childish delusions of grandeur. A critical patient would even turn his eyes into those of a Persian cat Compared to that , naming an AI was not really serious. 

Of all the name used, names of famous ancient swords andlegendary creatures were particularly overused.

Take a walk in an army and one would find tens of thousands of names like "Zhanlu*", "Yuchang*", and "Durandal**". Also, too many people in the Eighth Galaxy simply didn't know where they were from. Therefore, they would just randomly give themselves a name. Even if a real person called himself"Zhanlu", it wouldn't be all that surprising so Lu never connected Zhanlu with that mystic mech. 

*Zhanlu and Yuchang are names of famous legendary Chinese swords, forged on Mt. Zhanlu by the famous swordsmith Ou Yezi. 

**Durandal is the sword of Roland, a legendary paladin of Charlemagne in French epic literature

Plus, didn't the owner of that famous Zhanlu already … 

Lu murmured: "Lin … Lin what?"

Zhanlu quietly hung on Lin's arm while Lin cracked the broken mech door open with his bare hands, pressing on the door fiercely. After the deformed cabin door fell down with a huge sound, 001 slipped out like an invertebrate, white foam coming out of his mouth.

Lin grabbed 001's hair and dragged him to his feet. He raised his head and gave Lu a smile, as if he was praising Lu's cleverness.

Right at that moment,a noise came from a distance. Then, a man's voice with its own booming effect came in: "JinghengLin you b.a.s.t.a.r.d! Get away from my son!"

The four ill-educated students from Starry Sea Academy looked at each other. These illiterate teenagers from the remote areas did not even know anything about the Military Committee's Admiral of fleets. let alone who the f.u.c.k a single Admiral is. They were completely lost in this situation.

The terrifying idea that hung in Bixing Lu's heart suddenly settled, which caused his pupils to shrink.

"I … I saw an atlas a couple years ago." Lu stared at Lin's gray eyeswhispering, "It listed all of the famous admirals of the Alliance after the NSC."

Lu remembered that young general from the book - the last Admiral of the IU.

When he first opened that book in his youth, he was attracted by that young general on the last page. His uniform was meticulous like a model who posed for a recruitmentadvertis.e.m.e.nt. His face was cold and his lonely eyes stared through the paper, seeming like he was staring at a distant place. These made him a little bit melancholic.

Lu once asked Monoeye Hawk about this man. That cold look from Monoeye Hawk was still as fresh in his mind as yesterday. He remembered that old arms dealer clenched his teeth and said: "Jingheng Lin? That is a son of a b.i.t.c.h."

Lin neither confirmed nor denied it. He merely tilted his head: "Do I not look like that picture?"

Lu's eyes swept over his eyes, nose, the respirator that hungon his ear, the lab coat that opened at his chest… and the s.h.i.+rt that was sloppily untucked from his pants. He said in spite pf himself: "Yes, but … " 

But even if there was someone who looked exactly like the man in the picture, even if he proudly announced that he was Jingheng Lin, wandering around the galaxy, people would just a.s.sume he was a crazy fan who lost his mind.

Because Jingheng Lin's death was confirmed by Eden --which meant that this man, this spirit, this soul -- completely disappeared from this world, not even an active brain waveleft. Only when he is completely undetectable to the Edensystem would he be announced dead.

The confirmation of Eden was even more credible than seeingthe corpse with your own eyes.

So, how could that be possible?

At this instant, Monoeye Hawk had already run up f to the front, training his gun on Lin: "What is your purpose in gettingclose to my son?"

Lin answered nonchalantly: "My purpose, in Mr. Lu's eyes, must be an immoral one."

Bixing Lu quickly got between these two: "Dad, what are you doing?"

"Get away. " Monoeye Hawk waved his hand away, "This is none of your business."

But he could not brush aside the hand that almost dislocated Admiral Lin's shoulder.

Lu put his unwavering hand on the gun, exasperatedC"Calmdown." 

Lin walked over, dragging 001 along, and nodded his head politely towards Monoeye Hawk, "friendly" suggesting: "Yes, calm up. The best time to treat rabies is three days after the onset of the disease[*]. Look at the symptoms, dude, you have to hurry up."

Lu was frustrated: "You should say less yourself!"

Lin gave him a glance and was very understanding: "Alright, for your sake."

Monoeye Hawk: "I am going to shoot you!"

Suddenly, a beastlike roar sounded. Everybody turned aroundand saw those monster-like test subjects chasing them, squeaking and wailing on the way.

Monoeye Hawk had to lay down his grudge against Lin for a short while, cursing in a low voice. "Still not over?"

Right before he started to fire, a test subject fell down abruptly. Its flesh had started to melt, leaving the pinkskeleton wriggling madly on the ground. After that, a whole bunch of humanoid monsters fell down like a set of dominoswith horrible screaming, causing a ma.s.s grave!

Lu and his student had never seen anything like it, freezing into five human-shaped pillars

Lin's expression suddenly changed. He straightaway took control of the mech,pulled open the door forcefully, and thefour students staring through the door gap almost fell out. "Get in, now!"

Right after he said those words, an explosion came from a distance. The whole s.p.a.ce station was on the brink of collapse.

001, in his depraved state of mind, had timed everything perfectly. He was going to use all of the test subjects to hold off the people in the s.p.a.ce station, sneak out then bomb the whole station afterwards, destroying all the evidence and killing all eyewitnesses.

[*]Author's note:

Look here, look here -- rabies in our Earth era cannot wait for the onset to be treated. Our primitive medical technology is not so advanced. The onset of the disease means death. If you are bitten, hurry up and get vaccinated.

T/N: "childish delusions of grandeur" sounds sophisticated but this actually refers to "being a chuunibyou"...yes, Priest used the characters 中二病.

TBC