Chapter 12: Who Calls Whom Master?

When Zhuang Yun and Lin Yiwen’s aircraft approached the edge of Zone 11, they were forced to land due to the complex terrain and potential dangers.

The craft hovered in midair, surrounded by endless barren mountains. The morning light cast a faint golden glow over the rugged landscape, bathing the desolate land in a gentle radiance.

Out of necessity, Zhuang Yun activated the “Lingkong” system and, following the compass, traveled southeast for twenty or thirty miles.

This region was notorious not only for frequent appearances of star beasts, both flying and roaming on land, but also for desperados who exploited the chaos to form the “Highway Robber Hunters” syndicate, specializing in ambushes.

Inside the cockpit, Zhuang Yun noticed a faint signal source trailing them stealthily from behind.

Leike in the rear was puzzled—how could the turns and mountain crossings ahead match their movements so precisely? Had their secret base been exposed?

As Leike pondered, Zhuang Yun’s mech signal suddenly vanished ahead, instantly alerting him. He slowed their advance.

Zhuang Yun, on high alert, deliberately shut down her mech to block tracking signals, using the steep mountains and deep pools around as natural cover, ready to launch a surprise attack.

Her nerves taut, she waited for Leike to reach the target location.

“Fire!”

“Pfft!” The cannon blast was met with a dull, muffled sound.

“Damn!” How could it fail at such a critical moment?

Lin Yiwen calmly explained, “You should be grateful your mech can even cover these dozens of miles.”

Zhuang Yun pouted. This was bad—the enemy’s mech was clearly superior. It was obvious she could neither defeat nor outrun them. If her third apprentice wasn’t rescued soon, she would be lost first.

Leike thought the other side was bluffing, but it really was a big...

“This can’t be right. Such a shabby mech covering so many miles?”

“And this dilapidated ‘Lingkong’ looks strangely familiar.”

Leike tentatively asked, “Splitting a watermelon in half?”

His mech’s mechanical voice echoed eerily and absurdly through the quiet valley.

“Huh?”

“You take one half, I take the other?” Zhuang Yun replied.

“Are you the one who defeated the Blue Whale Giant Mech this morning?” Leike pressed.

“Yes.” Zhuang Yun remained cautious. Who could be good guys appearing in the Black Factory besides herself and the senior apprentice?

Lin Yiwen observed quietly nearby. Though he never visited the Black Factory, he often browsed forums and battle videos. It made sense the Blue Whale Giant Mech had been damaged by the “Lingkong” like this.

What was hard to explain was the young girl before him—how could this new disciple of Master Zhuang, so young, defeat the Black Factory’s number two ranked Blue Whale Giant Mech?

Zhuang Yun felt uneasy under the scrutinizing gaze behind her. Suddenly, the cockpit ahead opened, and a blonde boy waved vigorously with a bright smile: “Please, master, take me as your disciple!”

...

The voice was oddly familiar—it was the same person she had questioned about the Black Factory before.

“Is this guy sane?” Zhuang Yun sized him up, sensing no trace of banditry, and relaxed slightly as she opened her cockpit. “Who are you calling master?”

Leike’s smile froze. The cockpit held only a girl with a bun hairstyle; behind her sat a pale, slightly sickly man.

Looking closely at the girl’s black stealth suit and hearing her voice, he recognized her as the newcomer who had asked him about Black Factory information.

“Ah, it’s you!” The pilot from this morning clearly seemed a master of extraordinary skill—how could it be this seemingly harmless girl?

It must be that the man was her grandfather!

“Hello, my name is Leike. May I...”

“No,” Zhuang Yun cut him off, closing the cockpit. She still had to find her third apprentice.

“Wait for me! Where are you going?” Leike stubbornly followed. He knew this was a desolate area, with no foothold within ten miles except his and Jiang Mingxu’s bases.

Soon, he saw Zhuang Yun reach the entrance of their base.

This was their private stronghold, deeply concealed, with its signal source hidden so well even the military couldn’t find it.

The surrounding fields were planted with lotus-scented grass to deter star beasts.

“Did Jiang Mingxu send you?”

Before Zhuang Yun could answer, she opened the base door, stepping into utter darkness.

She tiptoed cautiously, feeling her way forward.

At that moment, Leike skillfully turned on the lights, and the entire room brightened instantly.

Zhuang Yun looked puzzled. “Is this... your home?”

Before Leike could answer, Jiang Mingxu appeared from the inner room upon hearing the noise: “Leike, finally you’re here!” He looked up and suddenly saw two strangers behind him.

That wasn’t right. He and Leike had agreed only the two of them would know this place. He whispered reproachfully, “Why did you bring people?”

Leike looked innocent. “Weren’t you the one who called them?”

As they glared at each other, Zhuang Yun swiftly raised a knife to Leike’s neck. “Enough talk. Hand them over!”

Jiang Mingxu instinctively drew his pistol, aiming it at Zhuang Yun.

The tension instantly peaked; the air crackled with hostility.

From the shadows, Lin Yiwen stepped forward slowly and pressed down Zhuang Yun’s hand holding the knife. He spoke softly to Jiang Mingxu: “Xiao Ming.”

“Long time no see.”

Jiang Mingxu looked at Lin Yiwen in confusion. The pale face seemed to have come from the past, overlapping quietly with the memory of a boy who had stood up countless times to shield him.

“Brother Lin?!” Jiang Mingxu’s eyes flashed disbelief, then he lowered his gun.

Lin Yiwen had once been a prodigy.

His parents were revered mech designers on Planet A4, often commissioned by Jiang Mingxu’s family for the finest mech equipment.

Back in preparatory school, Lin Yiwen had been a shining star, while Jiang Mingxu was an unnoticed speck of dust. Whenever Jiang Mingxu was bullied, Lin Yiwen was the first to stand up for him. They became the closest of friends.

But fate was cruel. Lin Yiwen’s parents died in a sudden car accident. After that, he became like a soulless puppet and stopped attending school.

Jiang Mingxu lost all contact with him.

He never expected to reunite on this small planet where his father had just taken up his post.

Zhuang Yun cut through the tension: “Since you all know each other, then hand him over quickly.”

Meanwhile, the third apprentice, who had been eating snacks with cream still on his lips, opened the door upon hearing the commotion and saw Zhuang Yun.

“Junior... sister! You’ve come!”

“I knew you’d come to save me!” he said happily, running up to her.

Zhuang Yun had imagined her third senior brother was kidnapped and in dire straits, rushing to rescue him, but he appeared completely unharmed.

Leike quickly intervened, “It’s all a misunderstanding! A misunderstanding!”