Chapter 810 - Takeaway!
"Ling Lan, you are being too much!" Du Mingyi was furious. He slammed the table and got up.
Ling Lan just looked at him coldly without saying anything. She was not intimidated by his outburst at all. She just disregarded Du Mingyi entirely.
However, Yan Three couldn't take it anymore. He got up and slammed the table with his fist forcefully, causing all the cutlery on the table to clatter and fall to the ground.
Yan Three's eyes were bloodshot. He glared at Ling Lan and shouted angrily, "Regiment Commander Ling, the Evil Wind Mecha Team belongs to Base 013. I will not join any random mecha clan. So, please stop your wistful thinking!"
The Evil Wind Mecha Team was able to enjoy a good time at Base 013 because the commanding officer had been secretly taking care of them. Yan Three was grateful towards the commanding officer because of that, so he couldn't bear to see Ling Lan treating him so disrespectfully.
Ling Lan raised her eyebrows and she slowly got up from her seat. When Li Lanfeng saw that, he came forward and draped the white cloak over Ling Lan's shoulder. Then, he presented her the silver short whip.
Ling Lan pulled the cloak on her shoulders and took the silver short whip. After setting up the atmosphere, she slowly walked towards Yan Three and glanced at him intently. Then, she raised her short whip and knocked on Yan Three's shoulder lightly.
Yan Three frowned. He wanted to flick the whip away. However, Li Lanfeng rushed forward and pressed Yan Three firmly against his chair, making him unable to move.
Ling Lan used her short whip and patted Yan Three's indignant face. She said calmly, "I said I'm informing you, not asking for your opinion. Yan Three, he who understands the times is a wise man. Yan Three, you only have three days. If someone doesn't report to my mecha clan three days later at 8 am, I will let you know the consequences of offending me. Good luck to you."
Ling Lan turned and looked at Du Mingyi. "Senior Colonel Du, looks like no one wants to eat. I will take my leave first."
After she finished speaking, she calmly walked out of the canteen. In the first place, Ling Lan agreed to attend this dinner because she wanted to understand the inner workings of Base 013 better. All the battle teams that were stationed here had their own thoughts. They were like a pile of loose sand. Du Mingyi instilled discord among the battle teams and made them guard against each other so as to protect his position as they couldn't collaborate with each other due to them having their guard up against one another. If the battle teams were unable to unite together, no one would be able to threaten his position. Ling Lan felt that this was the worst method someone could use to consolidate his or her power. If a base was disunited and the people inside didn't trust each other, that base would get destroyed very soon.
The other reason why Du Mingyi was able to sit in his position safely was that he had the Evil Wind Mecha Team, the most powerful mecha team in the base, backing him. From their conversation, she could tell that Yan Three respected Du Mingyi very much. Once someone threatens Du Mingyi's position, Yan Three would be willing to clear all the obstacles for him.
Yan Three was a good knife and the Evil Wind Mecha Team was a good weapon. So, that weapon shouldn't stay in the hands of a useless person and become a tool in the fight for his power. This was why Ling Lan decided to act that way.
She didn't care if Yan Three and the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team would hate her. Even if they wanted to hate her, they would need to survive the hellish training first. Well, if they could survive it.
As the members of 250 Mecha Clan saw their regiment commander leave from the chairman table, they stood up and walked behind their regiment commanders to the exit of the canteen.
While they were walking, Lin Zhong-qing winked at Qi Long and Luo Lang secretly. The members of the Lingtian Battle Team slowed down and gathered behind everyone. Li Yingjie had sharp eyes so he noticed their little actions. He stayed behind too. 'Damn it, I won't let them leave me out.'
"Why are you winking weirdly at us?" Qi Long asked curiously.
"Do you want to go back on an empty stomach?" Lin Zhong-qing rolled his eyes at Qi Long. He was in charge of the logistics of the mecha clan. Therefore, money was very important to him. He was not willing to fork out another sum of money to pay for dinner today.
Luo Lang shook his head. He didn't like to be hungry.
"What's your plan?" Qi Long's eyes lit up. 'Hehe, I love to be naughty.' It made him feel accomplished.
"Let's go grab some takeaway from the kitchen." Xie Yi clenched his fist excitedly. This was so interesting. If they didn't want to spend on a meal, they should be more creative with their ways of acquisition.
Luo Lang finally understood what was happening. He looked at Lin Zhong-qing in awe. 'As expected of the head of logisticians, he is so smart.'
Li Yingjie was excited too. He rubbed his hands and said, "Let's go quickly. I'm so hungry."
While they rushed to the kitchen to take away some food, Du Mingyi fell on his chair in anger when Ling Lan walked away without giving him any respect for his position.
The people sitting at the table exchanged glances with each other. They didn't know what to do. The person in charge of the canteen was dumbfounded when the main leads of the dinner today left. 'Should he still serve the food or not?'
Without Li Lanfeng's suppression, Yan Three was able to finally move. He panted heavily a few times before managing to control his anger. "Senior colonel, I'm leaving!" He got subdued by an adjutant. 'Who on earth is Ling Lan?' He needed to calm down to think about this situation carefully.
Just like that, Yan Three left with his mecha team.
The lively canteen turned quiet again. The JMCs acting attendants today retreated into a corner in fear. They had forgotten why they were here in the first place. They only had one thought in mind now. 'When will they be able to go back. This place is too frightening.'
Only Lady Mei's eyes were shining. Her heart pounded furiously when she saw Han Xuya bringing a bunch of junior officers out of the cafeteria. 250 Ace Mecha Clan… she must go there. She wanted to be like that lady, an independent lady and not an accessory of a man.
Amidst the silence, a commotion arose in the kitchen. Du Mingyi was looking for a way to vent his anger so he instantly shouted, "Dong Jiahong, come out!"
Dong Jiahong, the person in charge of the canteen, ran out of the kitchen with a sad face. "Senior colonel!"
"Why is it so noisy at the back?"
"Senior colonel, the people from 250 Ace Mecha Clan came and took all the food away…" Dong Jiahong wanted to cry. "They said if we don't give it to them, they will hit us."
They didn't say that… When the people from 250 Ace Mecha Clan entered the kitchen, all the cooks got frightened and kneeled on the ground, conceding their all the food without even a single argument. However, to keep himself safe, Dong Jiahong pushed the blame to the other party.
Chapter 811 - Mistake!
"Good, good, what a good move!" Du Mingyi was so angry that he started laughing. Crack! The entire table collapsed under the pressure of Du Mingyi's trembling hand.
'Ling Lan, since you are so arrogant, don't blame me for not showing you mercy!' Du Mingyi gritted his teeth. He hated people who had powerful backgrounds. That was why he didn't like Song Yiqing and used him to his advantage without any hesitation. However, now, he hated Ling Lan even more. Hence, he decided that he would not provide them any supplies at all from now on. He wanted to see how arrogant 250 Ace Mecha Clan could be if they didn't have food and weapons.
"Senior colonel, what about today's dinner?" Dong Jiahong asked worriedly. There was no more food. What was he supposed to serve them?
"There is no food left so let's go" Du Mingyi flicked his sleeve and left.
When Du Mingyi left, the other officers knew today's dinner had ended. They shook their heads and left. Of course, they were unhappy at the Regiment Commander of 250 Ace Mecha Clan. Even if he didn't reach a general consensus with the commanding officer, he still shouldn't have taken all their food away.
At the chairman table, Xu Shiming and Cui Yunxuan shook their heads when they saw the mess in front of them.
"You have been watching the show for such a long time. What do you think of the new Regiment Commander Ling?" Cui Yunxuan asked in a low voice.
"This is not someone easy to handle. Senior Colonel Du met a difficult character this time," Xu Shiming replied.
"If he continues what he is doing, Base 013 will eventually be internally destroyed one day. We need a strong character such as him to teach him a lesson." Cui Yunxuan smiled coldly. He didn't like this commanding officer.
"We can't form that conclusion now. This Regiment Commander Ling is just too domineering. He left no leeway for himself, and that is not a good thing. Let's observe him for a while longer." Xu Shiming frowned. He didn't like how Du Mingyi treated the base as his own house but Ling Lan's domineering attitude was not to his liking too. This person took away all the food that was meant to be served to the hardworking and hungry soldiers. He was so hungry that he felt like cursing.
"That's true. We only met him once. We need to understand him further. I hope 250 Ace Mecha Clan is a capable mecha clan. I don't want Base 013 to be the first base to be destroyed by our enemy." 250 Ace Mecha Clan attacked the most powerful mecha team of the base, the Evil Wind Mecha Team, the moment they arrived. If 250 Mecha Clan was not strong enough to protect the base themselves after they had destroyed the Evil Wind Mecha Team, this entire base would be in danger. Cui Yunxuan knew that they were just small characters. They were unable to resist against the advanced weapons of the Hailiya army.
"If the two ace mecha clans stationed at the bases beside us didn't help us, our base would have been destroyed. I believe that by this time, the Hailiya army should have noticed the oddity with our base. We will definitely face a harder time when they attack us again in the near future." Xu Shiming sighed. They were in a dire situation now but their commanding officer was only worried about his position. He felt dejected. He shook his head and put on his military cap.
"The next battle might be our hardest battle. There are too few people in 250 Ace Mecha Clan!" Cui Yunxuan frowned as he sat up and took his military cap from his adjutant.
"Our base is the most dangerous but they still sent a broken mecha clan here…" Xu Shiming smiled bitterly, "I wonder if that problem stems from our commanding officer or is there a problem with the higher authorities."
"You already know the answer. It's because of Du Mingyi." Cui Yunxuan scoffed. 'If he hadn't offended someone he shouldn't, would their base be in such a bad state and have resources be reduced too?'
Xu Shiming patted Cui Yunxuan's shoulder. "Don't be angry. Since we are already here, we have to put in our utmost effort and prepare for the next battle. Let's hope that we will still be able to see each other again." No one knew if they were able to come back alive in the next battle. After Xu Shiming finished speaking, he gathered his men and left. Cui Yunxuan left with his team too. They returned to their respective camps.
The welcoming dinner ended on a bad note but all the officers in the base saw how domineering and powerful 250 Ace Mecha Clan was. Even the heir of the 13th division, Qi Long, was inside it too. Thus, all of them cleverly chose to sit at the side and didn't participate in the feud between Qi Long and Song Yiqing.
On the other hand, the members of Lingtian were carrying their spoils of victory happily back to their camp.
Lin Zhong-qing felt that something was amiss with them. He turned and looked at Li Yingjie's team. The food they were carrying was much more than what his team was carrying. His heart dropped, "Li Yingjie, how much did you take?" Lin Zhong-qing had a bad feeling in his stomach.
Li Yingjie said proudly, "You left most of the food behind. Luckily, I was smart enough to bring all of it with me."
The veins on Lin Zhong-qing's forehead popped. 'They left those behind so that they wouldn't offend the rest of the soldiers at the base. This fellow… he took everything without informing them!'
"Li Yingjie, you bastard! I will kill you!" Lin Zhong-qing rushed up to Li Yingjie and kicked him.
"Hey, what are you doing! Why are you being so unreasonable?" Li Yingjie dodged the attacks with two huge containers in his hand. "Stop kicking me! The food is going to spill out!"
Lin Zhong-qing stopped immediately when he heard that. He looked at the two huge containers of food in Li Yingjie's hand. He couldn't bear to waste them. He gritted his teeth and said angrily, "I'll let you off for now!" Once they go back to their camp, he would teach this person a lesson.
Li Yingjie still didn't realize he did something stupid. He happily left with his two huge containers of food. Lin Zhong-qing looked at the bastard's back, and he wanted to cry in frustration. 'Sob, did he mess up Boss's plan?'
The thoughtful and thorough Lin Zhong-qing finally made a mistake because of Li Yingjie!
'I should have known, Li Yingjie is my mortal enemy! Nothing good will happen when I am together with him! I must keep my distance from him from now on!' Lin Zhong-qing made a decision quietly.
"Will it be a problem if we offended the commanding officer of the base?" Li Lanfeng asked worriedly when they arrived at their camp.
Ling Lan glanced at him and replied calmly, "As long as we don't bow down to him, he will always try to pull some tricks on us. Rather than wasting effort to scheme against him, it's better to distance ourselves right from the start and lay everything on the table clearly. That way, it won't seem weird if the commotion got bigger."
If the commanding officer of this base was a capable and smart person, she didn't mind following him. But, Du Mingyi didn't have to right to make her bow down to him.
Chapter 812 - I'm Hungry!
Li Lanfeng thought for a moment and understood what Ling Lan meant. "I see!"
"This is the frontline of the battlefield so we can't afford to make any mistakes. Unless there is another way, I don't want to make the relationship so strained. Plus, I don't wish that we have to guard our backs when we are fighting for our lives on the battlefield."
Ling Lan's gaze turned vicious, a killing intent flashed passed her eyes. This was the reason she was so domineering today. She hoped that the people in the base would be united and fight their enemies together. She didn't want the people inside to be scheming against each other and fighting for power while ignoring the crisis that is coming towards them.
"I understand." If Du Mingyi would listen to them and prioritize what should be prioritized, they would let him continue his position as the commanding officer of the base. If he dared to play tricks on them… Li Lanfeng gave a cold smile. They would destroy him. He wouldn't allow anyone to spoil his Rabbit's plans.
"Are they back yet?" Ling Lan asked.
Li Lanfeng shook his head. He stayed beside Ling Lan so he didn't know what her friends were doing.
"Based on Lin Zhong-qing's personality, he will go and grab some food for us. I'm hungry," Ling Lan said with frustration. She rarely did something so impressive but she still ended up with an empty stomach. 'Is this a warning by God? Is God telling her that she mustn't be so haughty in the future? It looks like I'm was more suitable to be the main villain. I should keep a lower profile in the future.' To make sure that she was able to lead a stable life, Ling Lan always reminded herself that she was the main villain. She mustn't become those insignificant bosses that other people fought when they were leveling up.
Li Lanfeng sensed Ling Lan's frustration and smiled. He quickly consoled her, "They should be back soon. Let me go out and take a look."
Ling Lan's ear suddenly twitched. "No need. They are back!" As expected of her head of logistics. He knew what his Boss needed. Ling Lan gave Lin Zhong-qing a thumbs up in her mind.
Li Lanfeng wanted to laugh when he saw the cold aura subsiding from Ling Lan's body, revealing a young man with a hint of anticipation on it. 'Ever since Rabbit knew my real identity, he would restrain his force of presence when they were alone together. Isn't this an unexpected gain of the situation?' For the first time, Li Lanfeng felt good about his appearance.
"Boss!" Lin Zhong-qing shouted while carrying a few plates over with a very rare expression of worry on his face.
Ling Lan raised her eyebrows. "What is the matter?" Something must have happened for Lin Zhong-qing to show such an expression. It had to be said that Ling Lan understood her friends well.
"Due to an error in my commands, we took all the food in the kitchen." Lin Zhong-qing lowered his head after putting the plates of food down, waiting for his boss to scold him for his blunder.
"You took everything?" Ling Lan was stunned. 'Fine, they have offended all the officers there. 250 Mecha Clan have become the main antagonist of the base.' She looked at Lin Zhong-qing's guilty face and comforted him, "Nevermind, our plan has already been initiated beautifully so this will not affect anything."
"But the food…" There was too much food. The mecha operators wouldn't be able to finish all of them. Lin Zhong-qing was anxious. He didn't want to waste any of the food.
"Since there is enough food, we can have our own dinner party. Let's enjoy the food together. Let everyone have a taste of the food that was meant to be served for dinner today," Ling Lan replied after some thought.
"Yes, regiment commander!" Lin Zhong-qing answered excitedly. If his logisticians knew about this, they would be exhilarated!
Lin Zhong-qing looked at Ling Lan in admiration. His Boss treated everyone fairly. He didn't ever forget anyone. Even if others looked down on logisticians, his boss didn't. He even took much effort to invent a set of physical skills technique suitable for them so that they could become strong too. Lin Zhong-qing never expected his Boss to treat them so well. He used his own money and let every logistician get their own personal mecha. Their boss even promised them that their mechas would upgrade when their mecha piloting skills improved. Hence, besides the time spent on their work, the logisticians would use the rest of the time to train so that they could become better and stronger.
250 Ace Mecha Clan gave them an opportunity to climb higher. They do not have to stay as a logistician for life. They do not have to admire the mechas that they were not able to get. Only their Boss had the courage and ability to help them realize their dreams.
Lin Zhong-qing had always been interacting with the logisticians so he knew how much the logisticians respected Ling Lan. They had already viewed themselves as a member of 250 Mecha Clan. Even if they became ace mecha masters in the future, they would not move to other mecha clans. This was how charismatic his Boss was. He was able to sway people to follow him and conquer the world with him, with just his actions.
Lin Zhong-qing wanted to leave and tell the logisticians this good news. However, Ling Lan called him before he could ask if he could be excused.
"Zhong-qing, you might need to work harder in the next few days. Try to save as many supplies the base gave us as you can," Ling Lan reminded Lin Zhong-qing that they might meet some troubles in the next few days.
Lin Zhong-qing's gaze turned cold as he understood Ling Lan's words. "Boss, do you mean that the commanding officer would stop giving us food and other supplies?"
"It's impossible he wouldn't do that," Li Lanfeng answered.
Lin Zhong-qing turned serious. "I understand. I will arrange everything."
"I trust you. However, don't be too careful. He will not do things so blatantly. They will think of some reason to shut you up." Ling Lan said calmly, "As long as you are able to find a loophole, you can do anything you want and I will back you up."
Ling Lan was not afraid of whatever obstacles Du Mingyi could throw at her. She would be afraid if he didn't do anything and gave 250 Ace Mecha Clan whatever they want, as it meant that he might give them a lethal blow at a crucial time. Hence, she wished that he would do more obstacles to 250 Ace Mecha Clan so she could get rid of him faster, only then she would feel at ease when she brings her mecha clan out to fight with their enemies.
Lin Zhong-qing smiled. "Yes, I understand. Boss, I will definitely complete this mission."
Ling Lan waved her hand and asked Lin Zhong-qing to go down to prepare for dinner.
After Lin Zhong-qing left, Ling Lan looked at Li Lanfeng, who hadn't moved a single inch, and raised her eyebrows. "Shall we eat together?"
Li Lanfeng touched his chin instinctively. "They should have put my food in the team leader's office." He wanted to eat with his rabbit but he was shy.
"Then go back and eat your food. I will not send you off." Ling Lan originally wasn't planning to share her food with Li Lanfeng. The reason for that was because she had a huge appetite. The amount of food served to her was just enough for her. There was no extra. However, Li Lanfeng served her for the entire day so she couldn't bear to chase him away like that. That was why she decided to be polite for once.
Li Lanfeng gave a bitter smile. He shouldn't have rejected the offer. It was rare for him to have a chance to eat with Rabbit but he missed the chance, so he left the regiment commander's office with some regret in his heart and closed the door behind him. He was afraid that Ling Lan's table manners would scare the people that walked passed the office.
Although there was a dinner party for the entire mecha clan later, they needed to maintain their dining etiquette. They couldn't eat too heartily. In Ling Lan's office, Ling Lan patted her bloated stomach in satisfaction after burping out loud. It was hard to be a regiment commander.
Chapter 813 - Didn't Come!
The welcoming dinner ended on a bad note due to Ling Lan's dominance. The next day, the news of 250 Ace Mecha Clan being a domineering and fierce mecha clan spread throughout the entire base. Of course, this news was able to spread so quickly thanks to some certain people.
Everyone was secretly observing the movements of 250 Ace Mecha Clan, as 250 Ace Mecha Clan had offended the three most powerful people in the base. The first person was the Regiment Commander of 224 Mecha Clan as well as a descendant of the Second Marshal, Song Yiqing. The second person was the leader of the unruly and powerful Evil Wind Mecha Team, Yan Three. Even the boss of the base had to bend to their will them sometimes, as they were the aces of the base to protect them from their enemies. All the battle teams were afraid of offending them, as they could just leave them to wolves when the 'wolves' come and attack them. The third person they had offended was the boss of the base, Du Mingyi.
If 250 Ace Mecha Clan wanted to hold power in Base 013, they needed to deal with the retaliation of these three people first.
Du Mingyi could not harm 250 Ace Mecha Clan directly. After all, 250 Ace Mecha Clan was a mecha clan sent by the higher authorities. As the commanding officer of the base, he needed to treat them well. However, Du Mingyi as a narrow-minded person couldn't bear to let them off just like that. Hence, he would definitely pull some tricks behind the scenes. All his actions would be done in secret so nothing could be seen in the short while. Thus, his retaliation was not what everyone in the base wanted to see. They wanted to see what the Evil Wind Mecha Team and Song Yiqing would do.
Many people felt that Song Yiqing would be the first to take revenge on 250 Ace Mecha Clan. However, he surprisingly did nothing as everything seemed calm on his side, surprising many battle teams. They knew Song Yiqing was not someone who accepted defeat easily. Yet, this time, in the face of the heir of the 13th division, Qi Long, he chose to bear with his anger… after everyone took some time to think about his actions, everyone understood why he didn't do anything. He was waiting for the Evil Wind Mecha Team to act first. He wanted to use the Evil Wind Mecha Team to test the 250 Ace Mecha Clan'd depths. He could afford to wait for the Evil Wind Mecha Team but they couldn't as Ling Lan only gave them three days. After the three days, they had to report to 250 Ace Mecha Clan at 8 am.
Song Yiqing was a haughty person but he was not stupid. He knew he should stay low first and let other people test the waters of 250 Ace Mecha Clan.
Just like what Song Yiqing expected, after the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team came back from the welcoming dinner, they felt extremely uncomfortable. They didn't know what to do. Ling Lan forced them to make a decision. 'Are they going to submit to him or should they retaliate back?'
"Leader, we will not go. Unless we die, we will not leave the Evil Wind Mecha Team!" The mecha operators from the Evil Wind Mecha Team gathered at the training ground and pledged their alliance to Yan Three loudly. They met many life-or-death situations on the battlefield before, making them stubborn and unyielding.
"I'm thinking about what Ling Lan would do to make me regret if we don't go…" Yan Three wouldn't submit to Ling Lan just because of a single sentence. However, he couldn't throw the threat to the back of his mind. Ling Lan was someone who had the heir of the 13th division as his mecha operator so she definitely must have some capabilities. This made him worried.
If he was alone, he was not afraid. He might just be forced out of the military and become a commoner. However, in reality, he had many mecha operators under him. They had a bright future ahead. He couldn't let them suffer just because of his decision.
"He will just force us out of the military. What is so frightening about that? I don't like wars anyway. It's not too bad if I can go back and become a normal worker." The mecha operators were not stupid too. They had considered this possibility before.
"Yes, leader. We made a vow before. We will rather stand and die instead of kneeling to live. We will not go back on our vow even if we have to suffer," one of the mecha operators said what everyone was thinking. 'If they betrayed their belief and lived without meaning, what is the point of living?'
Yan Three looked at his team members intently and saw their firm expressions. He said slowly, "Are you really not afraid?"
"Why should we be afraid? We have been through so many near-death situations on the battlefield. Why will we be afraid of a mere ace mecha clan?" Someone laughed and replied.
Everyone laughed along. Their fearless laughter portrayed their feelings now. They were really not afraid. They were people who struggled to survive on the battlefield. Their lives were clawed back from the brink of death. Nothing was able to threaten them compared to what they had experienced on the battlefield.
"Well, let's not care about that damn 250 Ace Mecha Clan and do what we are supposed to do!" Yan Three waved his hand and made a decision. Even the commanding officer of the base asked him to ignore 250 Ace Mecha Clan so why should he be afraid of them?
The three-day deadline finally ended. Everyone's attention was on 250 Ace Mecha Clan and the Evil Wind Mecha Team. Finally, it was 8 am. The entrance of the two camps was quiet. No one came out, no one went in.
"Looks like the Evil Wind Mecha Team decided to ignore Ling Lan." Cui Yunxuan and Xu Shiming were sitting in the camp of the scouts. They were looking at the information Cui Yunxuan's scouts brought back.
"Isn't this within our expectations? If Yan Three submitted to Ling Lan that easily, he wouldn't be Yan Three." Xu Shiming worked with Yan Three many times. Yan Three had a bad temper but he had the capabilities and morals. Xu Shiming admired this man.
"It's time to see how Regiment Commander Ling will handle this." If Ling Lan didn't subdue the Evil Wind Mecha Team today, he would be embarrassing himself.
Times passed. Yet, there was still no activity within the 250 Ace Mecha Clan camp. Just when everyone was anxious, they heard a loud vibration coming from the two camps.
'What is happening? Let's rewind the time.'
At the regiment commander's office at 250 Ace Mecha Clan camp. The time was before 8 am.
Ling Lan was flipping through some documents. The ten team leaders were already prepared to receive orders. Li Shiyu and his medical team were inside the office too. Luo and Han Xuya wore their white gowns again and waited excitedly for 8 am to arrive.
Finally, it was 8 am. Luo Shaoyun, who was in charge of guarding the entrance, immediately report to Yang Mingzhi that the Evil Wind Mecha Team didn't appear.
"Regiment commander, the Evil Wind Mecha Team didn't come!" Yang Mingzhi immediately reported to Ling Lan.
Ling Lan stopped flipping the documents. The next second, she closed the file. "As expected, they didn't come."
She stood up. The temporary adjutant for the day, Lin Zhong-qing, quickly draped the white cloak over her shoulders. Just as he was about to pick up the silver short whip, Han Xuya had already rushed forward and brought it to her.
Ling Lan had no choice but to take it. She knocked Han Xuya's forehead. 'This little girl thought that I like to use the whip to punish people.'
Han Xuya touched her head and smiled like an idiot, making Luo Chao felt frustrated. She should have gotten the short whip just now. She missed a chance to interact intimately with her Boss.
Chapter 814 - Break The Wall!
Ling Lan brought all the team leaders to the wall that separated their camp and the camp of the Evil Wind Mecha Team. All the team members of the 10 teams were waiting there. They rubbed their hands in anticipation as they waited for the command from their regiment commander.
Ling Lan knocked the short whip against her palm. She smiled, and shouted, "Luo Lang!"
"Here, regiment commander." Luo Lang came out excitedly. His beautiful face seemed extremely vibrant today. Many logisticians who came to watch the show got dazzled by his looks.
Suddenly, a piercing flash of lightning flashed past their eyes, instantly blinding them for a moment. When they finally recovered their vision, they saw a calm Xie Yi looking at them intimidatingly. The logisticians immediately lowered their heads in response. They couldn't afford to offend Leader Xie. Of course, they couldn't provoke Leader Luo Lang too. They should just stick to looking at First Lieutenant Luo Chao as it was much safer.
"Well, well, you actually cooperated." The calm-looking Xie Yi was actually not calm at all.
The dark character smiled coldly, "I don't want you to humiliate yourself in front of so many people. This is my body after all." If he turned into a lump of black coal after releasing that lightning bolt, everyone spectating would have laughed at him.
"If you cooperated with me every time, we would be fine." Xie Yi felt gloomy.
"I'm not happy!" The dark character disappeared after he said his piece.
"Hey, hey, hey…" Xie Yi shouted for a while but no one replied to him. He knew his dark character was ignoring him again. 'That fellow had such a bad temper. It was so difficult to interact with him.'
Ling Lan walked to the wall slowly and patted it with her short whip, it made a dull sound, meaning that the wall was solid the whole way through. Shoddy projects would not happen in the military.
She took two steps back and placed the short whip back in her palm. She smiled. "Luo Lang, break it down for me."
"Yes." Luo Lang rubbed his hands and walked to the wall. Just before he acted, his Boss added, "Fifth level One-Inch Punch. I want the entire wall to be destroyed." 'Why is there a wall in the middle of her camp? I should take it down.' Ling Lan decided to expand the camp of her mecha clan.
Luo Lang's eyes shone brightly as he understood what Ling Lan wanted. His Boss didn't just want the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team. He wanted to take over their camp too. He liked this idea!
A few team leaders and mecha operators who had a quick mind managed to get what their regiment commander was thinking. They smiled happily. This bunch of experienced soldiers weren't like the new soldiers who had a clear idea of what was right and wrong. They only knew one rule: survival of the fittest. Everything could be settled with strength and power. Ling Lan's brutal and domineering method suited their taste perfectly. They felt that they would never go wrong if they followed their regiment commander. One of the reasons why these mecha operators became useless and developed mental illness was because their past regiment commanders were not powerful enough. They were forced to keep their emotions to themselves so in the end, it twisted their minds.
Luo Lang released his power. It slowly climbed up from the primary stage of Qi-Jin to half a step before the domain stage.
Boom! Luo Lang released his fist. The five waves of Qi-Jin caused the sturdy wall to collapsed instantly. The entire ground vibrated due to the impact, alerting everyone who was in the vicinity.
Qi Long and the other people looked at Luo Lang in envy when they saw how powerful the fifth level of One-Inch Punch was. Ling Lan said, "If you are interested, I can teach you all the fourth level One-Inch Punch." In order to ensure that Luo Lang's One-Inch Punch remained as his personal technique, Ling Lan would only teach her other friends the fourth level One-Inch Punch." If Luo Luo Lang didn't enter the domain stage and show that he could handle the backlash from the fifth level One-Inch Punch now, she wouldn't teach her friends One-Inch Punch at all.
"Thank you, Boss!" Qi Long was so excited he forgot to call Ling Lan their regiment commander.
Lin Zhong-qing took out a small notebook from his pocket. He flipped it open and uncapped his pen. Then, he looked at Qi Long helplessly. "Qi Long, you breached a military rule."
The temporary adjutant had to step in as the military discipline master too. 'I must be impartial!' Lin Zhong-qing apologized to Qi Long in his heart.
"Ah! No!" Qi Long remembered that this was not a personal interaction with his Boss. His Boss had warned them before. He hugged his head in agony and his face turned pale. He could almost imagine the miserable scene when his Boss punishes him later.
Qi Long's exaggerated behavior made the other team leaders and experienced mecha operators smile. Qi Long didn't have the temper of a young master. He was like the mascot of 250 Ace Mecha Clan. These experienced mecha operators hated people with special backgrounds but they were willing to accept Qi Long. They treated him like a junior. This was why Qi Long was able to become the team leader of team 03, not because he was powerful. It was because the experienced mecha operators really loved him and wanted to help him.
Every team leader had their own style, and no one was better than the other. Ling Lan only wanted them to lead their teams well. She didn't care about how they did it. If they were unable to shoulder this responsibility, she wouldn't show any mercy to them too. She would remove them from the position. Fortunately, all her friends didn't embarrass her. Although they were not as good as the three experienced leaders, the difference between them was not too wide, making Ling Lan relieved.
At the camp of the Evil Wind Mecha Team, Yan Three wasn't calm from the moment he woke up early in the morning. He felt worried and uncomfortable.
Although he had decided to ignore Ling Lan's words, he was still anxious. He didn't know what Ling Lan would do to his mecha team.
At that moment, he heard a huge explosion from their camp. He jumped up instantly. "What happened?"
The members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team rushed out of their dormitory. They came to the place where the sound came from and saw a collapsed wall. On their side of the now collapsed wall, a young and beautiful major was dusting his hands calmly. When he saw them coming, he stepped back into the camp of 250 Ace Mecha Clan and looked at them coldly.
"Ling Lan, this is too much!" The moment Yan Three came, he saw Ling Lan standing behind the beautiful major. His heart burned with anger. 'This person has the guts to destroy the wall between their camps.'
Ling Lan glanced at him nonchalantly. She raised her silver ship and slashed it in the air.
The whip made a slashing sound in the air. It seemed like a command. The moment the ten teams behind her heard this sound, they charged towards the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team.
Li Shiyu stood at the back and looked at his medical team indifferently. "Are you prepared?"
"Yes, leader!" The people in the medical team raised their syringes high in the air. Their eyes were shining with anticipation.
They had new test subjects to play with!
Chapter 815 - The Root Of All Evil!
Yan Three was caught off guard but he still reacted correctly to the situation. He quickly pressed the alarm of his camp.
As the alarm rang, members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team instantly rushed over from different parts of the camp. The two groups of people collided, and a fierce battle ensued.
"Ah!" However, the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team didn't last for long. They started screaming in agony and everyone kept losing their grounds.
Although they had fought in many battles before, they came from all kinds of backgrounds and just learned through their own experiences. Their knowledge of fighting in a battle couldn't be compared with the experienced soldiers who had trained for many years and had been through standardized training. When the two parties collided, the results were lopsided. The members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team were subdued quickly.
The most important factor that contributed to this lopsided result was the 250 Ace Mecha Clan coming prepared for the battle. Moreover, the Evil Wind Mecha Team didn't expect this to happen so they were caught off guard, causing them to get subdued that quickly. If the Evil Wind Mecha Team had time to prepare, they could have resisted for a longer time. However, the end results would still be the same.
Among the many messy battles, Yan Three was in one of them, trying his best to force back a middle-aged man. Before the middle-aged man could attack him again, he charged towards Ling Lan who was standing on the camp of 250 Ace Mecha Clan and was looking at the battle calmly. Yan Three knew his mecha team would have a chance to survive only if he caught Ling Lan.
The middle-aged man wanted to chase after Yan Three but when he saw him rushing towards their regiment commander, he stopped. He instantly turned and dashed towards another person who was fighting with his comrade. Since Yan Three wanted to die, he would not stop him. Only the mecha operators of 250 Ace Mecha Clan knew their regiment commander was a beast. Whoever who offended him would have a terrible time.
Halfway through him dashing towards her, Ling Lan already noticed Yan Three. She looked over and glanced at him coldly. Yan Three was shocked to see Ling Lan had noticed him. He then realized that Ling Lan didn't move at all. She seemed to think that Yan Three was not a threat to him.
'It's good that Ling Lan looks down on me.' Yan Three thought. As long as he subdued Ling Lan, he would be able to turn the tides around and return them the humiliation she had given him. Yan Three's gaze turned cold. He extended his right hand, trying to grab Ling Lan's throat. He wanted to subdue Ling Lan with a single move.
A figure suddenly appeared in front of him.
Boom! Yan Three was pressed firmly onto the ground by this person. It was Li Lanfeng. He was already not far away from Ling Lan when he saw Yan Three attacking her. He was immediately furious and blocked Yan Three's attack.
Li Lanfeng choked Yan Three's throat tightly in his fit of anger, almost suffocating Yan Three to death.
Ling Lan walked over slowly. Her military boots stepped on the ground and made a clear tapping sound that traveled through both camps. She tapped Li Lanfeng's shoulder with her short whip. Li Lanfeng released his grip and took a step back.
Ling Lan looked down on Yan Three as though he was a nobody. "Yan Three, you are so stupid that you still don't know you are used by everyone as expendables."
Yan Three glared at Ling Lan with bloodshot eyes. 'What does he mean by everyone was using him? Isn't he the one who was destroying his mecha team?'
Ling Lan knocked the short whip on her palm and pondered for a moment. "Rather than letting you become everyone's tool and dying in their hands without even knowing the reason, why don't you become my guinea pig and let yourself be useful? At least you will not die for nothing." A simple sentence sealed the fate of the Evil Wind Mecha Team.
'Guinea pig?' Yan Three narrowed his eyes. He glanced around his surroundings and saw Li Shiyu and his medical team. He saw the military doctors in white gowns (they were actually logisticians who joined Li Shiyu's medical team temporarily) taking out a syringe and stabbing it into his one of his immobile team members.
That member started howling in pain as he couldn't bear with this excruciating pain. He wanted to bite his tongue to commit suicide, but he realized he didn't even have the energy to do that. He was unable to kill himself. That meant that he had to be tortured to death.
As he was struggling, he saw his leader lying on the ground. He looked at him hopefully. He was not hoping that his leader would save him. Instead, he was hoping that his leader would kill him and end his pain.
The strained veins in Yan Three's eyes showed how indignant he was now. His eyes popped out as he stared at his team member as he was familiar with this person. His name was Peng Jiayuan, a strong man who was not afraid of death. Once, his cockpit was hit by his opponent which got heavily injured. His stomach was slashed by his opponent's mecha, releasing his intestines out. However, even in that kind of situation, he forced himself to stay conscious and stuffed his intestines back into his body, before continuing to operate his mecha until he killed his opponent.
That time, if the military doctor didn't come on time, Peng Jiayuan would have sacrificed himself then. He was a strong man but he still couldn't handle the agent his opponent injected into his body. Yan Three finally understood what Ling Lan meant by guinea pigs. He was planning to let his entire mecha team test the agent they had created.
"Bastard!" Yan Three exploded in anger. He screamed furiously and leaped up from the ground. He wanted to stab this devil in the heart.
Boom! An invisible wall stopped his hand. Ling Lan raised her eyebrows. "You must have not learned to be obedient from your parents."
The minute she finished speaking, she waved her short whip. The short whip formed lingering shadows in the air. Yan Three felt a sharp pain in his chest. His entire body flew out, before slamming hard onto the ground. Blood spurted out of his mouth, staining the ground.
One move and he got seriously injured. Yan Three looked at the cold young officer and he thought of three words: domain realm master.
At this moment, the battle between the two teams had ended. Yan Three heard the leaders of the ten teams reporting to Ling Lan. He felt despair. 250 Ace Mecha Clan acted quickly and viciously. Even if the commanding officer arrived now, it would already be too late. Yan Three didn't believe that his ruthless young man would let them off.
"Are you going to walk into 250 Ace Mecha Clan or do we have to drag you in?" Ling Lan heard the reports of the ten team leaders and went back to Yan Three.
"Evil Wind will never submit to anyone." Yan Three bit his lips forcefully. Blood dripped down his lips.
"Very good. What a strong character. Shiyu, send him off." Ling Lan turned around suddenly and called the military doctor.
Li Shiyu put down what he was doing and walked over slowly. His gentle aura and amiable smile made Yan Three feel that he was a good person. He didn't understand why such a person would appear in this mecha clan which was filled with devils.
Li Shiyu sensed Yan Three's puzzlement and smiled. "My nickname is Dr. Frankenstein."
'Dr. Frankenstein?' Yan Three was stunned. He couldn't understand what Li Shiyu meant.
Li Shiyu took out a miniature syringe. His smile got brighter. "I am also the head of the medical department of 250 Ace Mecha Clan."
Yan Three's eyes widened. He finally understood this seemingly good person was the root of all evils!
As he thought of that, the syringe stabbed through his skin. Yan Three fell backward.
Chapter 816 - Man!
Xu Shiming and Cui Yunxuan were unable to sit still after they heard the explosion. They rushed to the entrance of the camps of the Evil Wind Mecha Team and 250 Ace Mecha Clan.
When they arrived, they saw many people had already arrived before them.
Before they could ask around, the alarm at the Evil Wind's camp sounded.
Xu Shiming was the leader of the scouts team so he immediately knew something was amiss. "Damn it!"
Cui Yunxuan asked hurriedly, "What's the matter?"
"250 Ace Mecha Clan has started its action." Xu Shiming gave a bitter smile.
"But they didn't come out." Cui Yunxuan was confused.
"The Evil Wind Mecha Team and 250 Ace Mecha Clan are just separated by a wall. They can break the wall and get into the camp of Evil Wind directly." Xu Shiming felt frustrated. 'Why didn't I think of this earlier?'
"But that is against the rules of the base. They won't do this." No one could destroy the boundaries segregating the different camps. If someone broke this rule, they would be charged with treason. This rule was enforced because the military was afraid there were spies in the camps who would damage the walls that protected the base and the various camps so that their enemies could enter without any hindrance. Once this rule was released, no matter how bad the relationships of various mecha clans were, no one dared to break into someone else's camp through the walls. They were afraid that they would accidentally damage something, allowing their competitors to find a reason to charge them with treason.
Because of this, Xu Shiming and Cui Yunxuan didn't expect Ling Lan to destroy the wall between the two camps. They were not the only ones who thought this. The commanding officer and the other commanders at the base probably didn't think of this too. This was why everyone only looked at the entrance of the two camps. They believed that any disputes would occur at the entrance.
"Aren't they afraid that Du Mingyi would charge them with treason?" Cui Yunxuan gasped.
"Did they damage the camp?" Xu Shiming asked him back.
Cui Yunxuan was stunned for a moment. He couldn't understand what Xu Shiming meant.
"What if the Evil Wind Mecha Team's camp belongs to 250 Ace Mecha Clan now? He has the right to do anything within his own camp." Xu Shiming's eyes shone. If what he thought was true, Regiment Commander Ling was a difficult person to deal with. He was arrogant and domineering but smart too. Du Mingyi was definitely not his match. It looked like he needed to consider his own stand.
"But that is the camp of the Evil Wind Mecha Team." Cui Yunxuan still couldn't get what Xu Shiming was saying.
"Evil Wind is part of 250 Ace Mecha Clan now so their camp belongs to 250 Ace Mecha Clan." Xu Shiming didn't beat around the bush anymore.
"…" Cui Yunxuan was speechless. He realized that if that was really the case, they couldn't do anything to 250 Ace Mecha Clan now. "But will Evil Wind be willing to submit to them?"
"I don't know. They are the most important factor now. However, I suspect that Evil Wind will not be able to appear in front of us anytime soon." Xu Shiming seemed to be in deep thought. He wasn't sure what method Regiment Commander Ling would use to force the people of Evil Wind Mecha Team to bow down to him, but he knew if the Evil Wind Mecha Team didn't appear soon, 250 Ace Mecha Clan would be safe for the moment.
It wasn't easy for Du Mingyi to harm 250 Ace Mecha Clan as 250 Ace Mecha Clan belonged to the 23rd division. They were sent by the higher authorities to guard Base 013. Even as the commanding officer of Base 013, Du Mingyi didn't have the right to enter the grounds of 250 Ace Mecha Clan to carry out an inspection unless he had ample evidence and courage to strike before reporting. If not, he had to follow the procedure and submit a request to the military headquarters or the headquarters of the 23rd division and wait for the 23rd division or the military to send an inspection squad to inspect 250 Ace Mecha Clan. This would take some time. If 250 Ace Mecha Clan had some background and managed to get the 23rd division to suppress this issue, the time for the inspection squad to come over would be even longer. Thus, Regiment Commander Ling definitely had enough time to settle the issue with Evil Wind.
The crux of the matter was whether Regiment Commander Ling was able to force the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team to admit that they belonged to 250 Ace Mecha Clan before the inspection squad came.
"This means that 250 Ace Mecha Clan is fine for now but it doesn't mean that they would be safe in the future." Cui Yunxuan was enlightened. However, his focus was different from Xu Shiming. He didn't believe that Regiment Commander Ling could make the people from the Evil Wind Mecha Team submit to him.
"Even if the people from Evil Wind didn't submit to them, the 250 Ace Mecha Clan has other ways out too." Xu Shiming sighed. Cui Yunxuan's perspective was too shallow. Regiment Commander Ling was someone who was able to gain the respect of the young master of General Qi Yaoyang's household. He was definitely not a simple person. If not, would General Qi Yaoyang allow his son to be under him?
As the leader of the scouts team, it had to be said that Xu Shiming was an expert at analyzing. After putting all these links together, he believed that Du Mingyi had no chance of succeeding against Ling Lan.
However, Xu Shiming didn't think that 250 Ace Mecha Clan would be safe too. Du Mingyi was not the only person that could affect 250 Ace Mecha Clan's future. There was still Song Yiqing, the young master of the 2nd division. Before Song Yiqing acted, no one knew what the result of this battle was.
At that moment, the people of 250 Ace Mecha Clan were very busy. The logisticians entered the camp of the Evil Wind Mecha Team and started tidying the place.
Lin Zhong-qing was having a headache now. His four deputies, Li Jinghong, Luo Shaoyun, Yuan Youyun, and He Chaoyang were asking him for more manpower.
"Our general management department is lacking in manpower. There are 400 more people for us to attend to. The pressure is high. We must have more people," He Chaoyang wore a bitter smile on his face as he said. All his logisticians worked from 4 am till 10 pm. There was no break for them in the middle. Every time they ended their work, they would be so tired they instantly fell asleep in their bed. Now, there were even more people at their base. His logisticians would not be able to handle the workload.
"Your general management department is still able to push through but my coordination department is really having a hard time. Everyone looks for us. One person has to handle the workload of three people. My logisticians have to run all the time. This time, the medical department came to ask people from us. We sent the JMCs too but there is still not enough people. I really have no one I can spare now." Li Jinghong was desperate too. Han Xuya and Luo Chao kept pestering him. If he didn't send them people soon, they might come over and flip his office table over.
"My resource department has no one to gather the statistics of the input and output of our mecha clan. I have to do it personally many times. Is this what a person-in-charge should do?" Luo Shaoyun had many complaints too. He was like a general without soldiers. All his men were transferred to other departments.
"Me too! There should be two logisticians for each mecha operator but we only have one for each mecha operator. Now, the number of mecha operators doubled. Are we supposed to let one logistician take charge of two mecha operators? Is there any other mecha clans like us?" Yuan Youyun had a hard time. His logisticians were outstanding so they were able to handle one mecha operator each. However, if they were asked to handle two mecha operators each… they should not be called logisticians. They should instead be called invincible warriors.
"Head, Zhong-qing, we grew up together. Please give us some manpower!" The four of them surrounded Lin Zhong-qing and begged him.
Chapter 817 - Rely On Your Own Effort!
The entire 250 Ace Mecha Clan was bustling with activities.
In the regiment commander's office, the ten team leaders were discussing with their vice-captains about the various new arrangements they had to commence.
Ling Lan sat in her office and looked at the physical constitution reports of the members of Evil Wind that Li Shiyu sent her. She flipped through every page of the report, and her frown kept getting keeping after each consecutive page.
"So bad?" She didn't expect their physical constitutions to that poor. She at least expected three people with good physical constitutions, as they were all hailed from a mecha team on the battlefield after all.
"Their physical constitutions were normal, to begin with. They were able to reach this state because they had achieved breakthroughs through life-or-death situations. This method, although quite economically friendly, was quite exhausting to one's body to its limit, making it more brittle in each process. Yet, there are no military doctors here to nurse back their health. I feel it was a miracle that they had managed to survive until now." Li Shiyu pondered for a moment. The body constitution of the members of Evil Wind suddenly gave him new inspirations for some "interesting" new concoction.
"Can you patch it back?" Ling Lan looked up and asked. She couldn't bear to let these good soldiers leave the army before with a body full of injuries.
Li Shiyu shrugged. "As long as they could resist the torment of the restorative agents." People with poorer health would experience greater pain when using his restorative agents. This was why a portion of the mecha operators from Evil Wind felt like dying when they were injected with the agent.
The agents that Li Shiyu injected to the people from the Evil Wind Mecha Team were not some form of torture agent. It was the restorative agent. When he received the data his boss gave him regarding the members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team (Little Four laughed: this is my work.), he noticed that they all made an advancement in the battlefield. From there, he suspected that there was a problem with their bodies. Hence, he decided to use the restorative agent instead of other agents. Reality proved that the effects of the restorative agent were exceptionally good. The members of the Evil Wind Mecha Team got tormented until they wanted to commit suicide. They all thought that they were harmed by the 250 Ace Mecha Clan.
"That's good. It's time to teach these people a lesson too." Ling Lan knew that the people from Evil Wind were loyal to the Federation. However, they came from the grass-roots units so their discipline was bad. They liked to act on their own accords and didn't listen to commands. This was something Ling Lan couldn't accept. She hoped that her team members would execute every order given without fail.
Ling Lan closed the file and put Li Shiyu in charge of dealing with the members of Evil Wind. At that moment, Lin Zhong-qing walked into her office with a stern face.
"Regiment commander!" Lin Zhong-qing placed his hands on the office table. "I need people!"
"Why?" Ling Lan raised her eyebrows.
"With our current manpower, we are unable to handle the influx of people from the Evil WInd." Lin Zhong-qing went berserk. His deputies didn't give him any choice. If not, he would have tried to handle everything himself and not asked Ling Lan for help.
Lin Zhong-qing's words caused Ling Lan to remember the plight of the logisticians in her 250 Ace Mecha Clan. The 300 people she got from He Xuyang were working beyond their fullest capabilities. Now, with another 200 mecha operators from Evil Wind, the logisticians were unable to serve everyone.
Ling Lan knocked on the table and started pondering. This was an important problem that needed to be solved immediately.
The team leaders saw this and lowered down their voice. They were afraid of interrupting their regiment commander.
"Why do we need logisticians?" Ling Lan asked herself.
"This is so that the mecha operators can focus on mecha piloting. That way, they are able to release their full potential. The Federation had a series of services for mecha operators. There are two kinds of logisticians in general. The first kind is the lifestyle logisticians. The other kind id the mecha logisticians. Lifestyle logisticians only appear in mecha clans and other higher-level teams. They serviced the entire mecha clan. Mecha logisticians also appear in mecha clans and higher-level teams only. They are in charge of many things but most of them are mecha engineers. The mecha engineers are distributed base on the level of the mecha operators. A normal mecha operator will have one mecha engineer servicing three of them. A special-class operator will have one mecha engineer to himself. An ace mecha master will have two mecha engineers servicing him. As the mecha operator's level gets higher, he will enjoy better service…" Little Four repeated the information he stored in his database. "Lower mechas are easy to handle. Hence, one mecha engineer is enough for three lower mechas. The higher the level of the mecha, the more sophisticated it gets. Thus, more people are needed to service it."
"Only mecha clans will have logisticians? Then what about those mecha teams or smaller battle teams? How did they solve such matters?" The Evil Wind Mecha Team had no logisticians. They would go to the cafeteria to fetch some food to eat and go to the logistics department at the base to take their clothes and other resources personally. This was why Lin Zhong-qing was so frustrated when the Evil Wind Mecha entered their mecha clan only had mecha clan. They had no could logisticians he could use.
"Some of them belong to a mecha clan so they will use the logisticians of the mecha clan. Those that didn't belong to various bases or ground units. The bases and ground units will be doing logistics services." As expected of the knowledgeable Little Four. He could answer all the tricky questions due to her being a younger brother of his Boss. "Of course, there is another worse method. Have them rely on their own!"
"Rely on their own." Ling Lan smiled. The members of Evil Wind were not here to be saved by them. After they survived the effects of Li Shiyu's restorative agents and her brutal training, she would send those that still had energy left in them to the logistics department.
"Reply on their own?" Lin Zhong-qing frowned when he heard Ling Lan's words. 'Is his Boss asking them to solve their problems from now on themselves? If they could do that, he wouldn't have come to look for his Boss.'
"Yes, ask the people from Evil Wind to rely on themselves. Zhong-qing, train the people from Evil Wind and let them learn the skills of a logistician," Ling Lan replied calmly.
'So that was what his Boss meant.' Lin Zhong-qing relaxed. He smiled. 'Does this mean that they would have 200 more logisticians?' However, soon, he stopped smiling. He knew that the people from Evil Wind couldn't be used instantly. From what Li Shiyu said, they would need some time before they could be reined in completely. What would they do during this time? With the current manpower, he was unable to handle an additional 200 people's worth of daily necessities.
"What do we do during this period of time?" Lin Zhong-qing looked at Ling Lan pitifully. He hoped that his boss could think of a better plan for him.
"Didn't I say the answer already? Rely on their own!" Ling Lan looked at Lin Zhong-qing helplessly. 'This young man used this pitiful look to soften my heart. What a bad boy.'
"Rely on their own?" Lin Zhong-qing's expression got bitter. His boss was asking him to rely on himself.
Ling Lan couldn't bear to see Lin Zhong-qing like that so she added, "The people that can help you are all here." She looked at the ten team leaders and signaled for Lin Zhong-qing to look for them.
Lin Zhong-qing looked at the ten team leaders. Even if he pulled all of them along, it would not solve the problem… wait!
Lin Zhong-qing suddenly thought of what Ling Lan did to the people from Evil Wind. A thought flashed past his mind, and he finally understood what Ling Lan meant.
Lin Zhong-qing smiled. Their department could finally be the boss for once.
Chapter 818 - Overturned!
After Yan Three survived the day's time of torture, his body felt refreshed just like what was happening for the past few days. As the leader of the Evil Wind Mecha Team, he was not stupid. He had noticed this feeling on the first day after he woke up from the pain.
It was obvious that this medical agent, which he thought was used to torture them, was actually beneficial to their bodies. However, Yan Three just didn't know why this medical agent was causing so much unnecessary pain.
Yan Three didn't understand what was happening but he was not an ungrateful person. When he realized that his team members felt the same way as him after they experienced the pain, the anger in him subsided a little. He started thinking carefully. 'Why is the regiment commander of 250 Mecha Clan doing this to us?'
'Pressure them at the start before showing them leniency?' Yan Three scoffed. If he thought that the people from Evil Wind would submit to him because of this, he was wrong.
Yan Three thought that Regiment Commander Ling would negotiate with him within these few days but he didn't carry out any actions at all. He started to get anxious again. 'Was I wrong about my assumption?'
Li Shiyu carefully observed the members of Evil Wind these few days. Besides those that were in terrible condition, the others were more or less healed. He nodded his head in satisfaction. His mission was completed one day in advance. Lin Zhong-qing must be really anxious now.
"Hey, why are you still lying down? Hurry and get up! Wear your clothes and follow me!" One morning, Yan Three, who was resting on his bed with his eyes closed, heard a loud voice calling him. He opened his eyes and saw the big-sized man who sent them their meals every day kicking their beds furiously. He woke up all the members of the Evil Wind who were still sleeping.
The members of Evil Wind looked at Yan Three, and Yan Three nodded to them secretly. Everyone wore their clothes quickly and walked out of the room in an orderly manner.
This was the first time they had walked out of this room. They had always been injected with the agent in there for the past six days. If anyone dared to retaliate, big-sized men would come in and pinned them down. The big-sized men would tie the troublemakers up and inject them with two sets of agents instead of one, amplifying the pain they experienced. No matter how much they pleaded and begged the big-sized men, they would disregard them like they were ants. They just watched them with cold eyes as they suffered from the excruciating pain.
After seeing the consequences of retaliating, the members of Evil Wind never retaliated again. Everyone now obediently accepted the injections. That way, they could at least maintain some of their dignity.
Yan Three went out and realized that they were not a prison. They were instead in a hospital of the mecha clan. The people that worked here were all medics. They had the medic logo printed on their military uniforms. However, Yan Three was surprised as these medics looked out of place.
Base 013 had a medical center too. However, the medics inside were mostly weak ladies and skinny men. Actually, medics were the weakest among the logisticians. Only those people that weren't able to do even the basic job of a logistician were sent to become medics.
Yet, the medics here were entirely different. There were no women. They were all big-sized and muscular men. Yan Three suspected that even he couldn't win against some of them from the force of presence they exuded.
'Such strong soldiers are medics?' Yan Three felt his world view being overturned.
One of the medics sensed Yan Three's surprised gaze and glared at him fiercely. "What are you looking at? Have you not seen a medic before?"
Yan Three lowered his head quickly. 'Yes actually, I have not seen such a fierce medic like you before.'
At that moment, another member of Evil Wind came out from the other room. He walked a little slow so the logistician looking after him reminded him patiently to move a little bit quicker. However, that member of Evil Wind got triggered by the reminder, so he pushed the logistician angrily.
"Bang!"
The medic closest to them suddenly jumped up and pinned that member from Evil Wind on the ground. Then, he knocked on the back of the person's head, making him unconscious. After knocking him out, he asked two logisticians to come and drag the person away. The medic looked at the logistician that got pushed and asked, "Are there any more troublemakers? You can leave them to me."
The logistician smiled. "Leader, you can drag whoever you don't like away."
The members of Evil Wind didn't dare to resist anymore. These were not medics. These were human tyrannosaurus. Their comrade was knocked unconscious with a single blow.
One of the middle-aged medics suddenly appeared in front of the medic that knocked the person unconscious. "Leader Xie, our leader hopes you can gather soon." Then, the person disappeared. Yan Three narrowed his eyes. The middle-aged medic was definitely at the optimal peak of Qi-Jin.
The medic called Leader Xie looked at the time on his communicator and shouted, "Ah! It's already so late."
Sob, he and Qi Long were so unlucky. They unluckily picked the medical department out of all the various other departments he could choose. The mecha operators in their teams had such a hard time in this department. They were well-versed with mecha piloting but they couldn't handle a small syringe. In order to learn the emergency treatment skills for the battlefield, all their mecha operators poked their arms many times so they knew what it felt like.
Fortunately, this was coming to an end soon. The moment they sent the people from Evil Wind to Lin Zhong-qing, they would regain their status as mecha operators. After this experience, all of them knew how hard a medic's life was. They all decided they would treat the medics in their mecha clans better.
"Hurry up. Pick up your pace!" Xie Yi was excited when he thought of the end of this misery so he shouted loudly.
The logisticians that were leading the members from Evil Wind (they were actually team members of Xie Yi's team) heard this and got rougher on the people from Evil Wind. Yan Three and his team members saw how powerful these medics were so they didn't dare to retaliate. They quickly arrived to a field. Yan Three scanned his surroundings. Most of his team members were here. There were around 20 people who hadn't arrived. They probably retaliated and got knocked unconscious.
Yan Three could only pray that his team members would control their emotions and not remain stubborn.
A major wearing a mask walked over. He glanced at the members of Evil Wind and said, "Now, I will tell you your homework for the next few days. Listen carefully. If you can't complete it…" The major gave a meaningful smile. "I will wish you all good luck in your future endeavors."
Chapter 819 - Cut All Forms Of Retreat!
The people from Evil Wind looked at the major coldly and waited for him to continue. Although they knew that the people from 250 Ace Mecha Clan didn't torture them, they were still invaded and dragged into their base. This was an utter humiliation to them. They wouldn't forget about their humiliation just because they were given some small benefits.
"In a while, you will get your personal number from the senior captain on my left."
The people from Evil Wind went into an uproar. They already had their own numbers. If they changed it, wouldn't it mean that Evil Wind no longer exists?
"Don't even think about it!" Someone shouted in anger.
Soon after that first shout, everyone from Evil Wind started shouting. The situation went a little out of control.
"Hmph!" The major scoffed. Everyone were below the optimal peak of Qi-Jin felt blood churning in their chest. Those that hadn't achieved Qi-Jin stage felt an iron taste in their mouths and blood started dripping out of their mouths. Even Yan Three, who had reached the optimal peak of Qi-Jin, felt his heart shuddering.
The frightening force of presence from the major made everyone silent. They looked at the major in fear. 'Where on earth did 250 Ace Mecha Clan come from? Even an insignificant major is so powerful.'
When everyone quietened down, the major continued, "Of course, you can choose whether you want to change or not. Those people who chose not to change their numbers will be sent to the medical department directly."
The major clapped his hands and two muscular medics jumped out. One of them was holding a huge syringe while the other cracked his knuckles loudly. They smiled and looked at the members of Evil Wind like they were looking at a piece of steak. They seemed to be hoping that someone would not change their number.
Yan Three noticed that one of the medics was the person who knocked his team member unconscious with one strike. That team member was at the middle stage of Qi-Jin. Yan Three remembered that the other logisticians called this medic, Leader Xie. He must be the leader of the medical team. Yan Three didn't know who the other medic was but from the aura he was giving off, he was as strong as Leader Xie. No, the feeling these two medics gave him was similar to the masked major.
Yan Three felt confused. 'What is going on in 250 Ace Mecha Clan? Why are their logisticians so powerful?'
Many of the people from Evil Wind had suffered in the hands of these two medics. Hence, when the two of them walked out, a few people's faces turned pale. Those that didn't meet the two medics before got anxious when they saw this scene. They started to hesitate. 'Should we bare with the humiliation now and wait for a chance to take revenge in the future?' They thought.
"Those that don't want to change their numbers will be sent back to the medical department." The masked major explained patiently to the members of Evil Wind. "There is a lack of manpower in the medical department. The head of the medical department had some new agents and requires some help with it. I'm sure that he welcomes you all to go back."
The members of Evil Wind trembled in fear. They were tortured for six days there. Even though they knew that the agents would not harm them and are instead good for them, they never wanted to experience it again. This major was trying to tell them that if they went back, they would be used to test out the new agents the head of the medical department invented. No matter how stupid the members of Evil Wind were, they knew that new agents came with a random effect. Some might be good while some might be harmful. If they were unlucky, they might die from the side effects of the new agents. No human would want to die, especially in such a manner too.
If they didn't agree to change their number, they would face a huge crisis. They might even lose their life because of it. The members of Evil Wind were anxious. They looked at Yan Three and hoped that their leader could give them an answer. If their leader didn't want to change his number, they would follow him even if it meant death.
The masked major noticed everyone's gaze and turned to look at Yan Three. He smiled and asked, "Leader Yan, your members seemed to be waiting for your order. In that case, I will not ask them for their opinions anymore. I will ask you directly. Do you agree to change your number?"
Yan Three narrowed his eyes. 'This masked major is an evil person. Whether he agrees or not, he will become a sinner.'
If he didn't agree, he would have to bear responsibility for the lives of all his team members. Once one of his team members died during an experiment, he would regret for life. If he agreed, he would be giving up Evil Wind. He would personally destroy the spiritual pillar that supported all his team members. Once this spiritual pillar was destroyed, they would never be able to become the courageous Evil Wind Mecha Clan again. Even if they left 250 Ace Mecha Clan, they wouldn't be able to go back to being who they were.
Yan Three was in a dilemma. Actually, when he heard what the major said, he had already made a decision. He wouldn't change his number. It was not because he was afraid of death. He wanted to use his death to uphold the spirit of Evil Wind. But now, he couldn't even do that. Once he says that he didn't want to change, all his team members would follow him no matter how hesitant they initially were. He was not afraid of dying but he was afraid of the responsibility of dictating the life and death of all his team members.
The major smiled when he saw Yan Three hesitating. He slowly walked towards Yan Three and sized him up. "Why do you need to take so long to consider such a simple question?"
Without waiting for Yan Three to reply, the major mocked him, "I shouldn't have asked you this question in front of so many people. Leader Yan, you want to change your number but because I asked you in front of so many members, you got embarrassed. You are afraid of losing your dignity as a leader, right?"
The masked major sneered at Yan Three. The two medics looked at Yan Three intently. If he says that he didn't want to change, they would start their work instantly.
Yan Three's lips twitched. He was speechless. He had already walked into the other party's trap. Only a heartless and selfish person would be able to walk out of the trap. This was a test of humanity. Yan Three's sweat dripped down his forehead. Should he protect his members and get cast aside by his team members or should he give up his humanity and become a selfish person?
"Leader Yan?" The masked major looked at Yan Three sharply. He was not going to let him escape this time.
Yan Three forced a smile on his face. He gritted his teeth and said, "I want to change!"
The members of Evil Wind gave him a look of disbelief. 'Their leader going to abandon the Evil Wind Mecha Clan?'
"Good. You are a wise man." The major clapped his hands and invited Yan Three forward. "Please lead the way and get your new number."
This was a final blow to Yan Three. It cut off all paths of retreat for him. He would never be able to hold his head high up again.
Chapter 820 - Good Cat!
Yan Three looked viciously at this major who caused him to disgrace himself. However, no matter how much he glared at him, the major was seemingly not affected at all. He just continued to smile gently at him.
Yan Three took his new number and went back to join the crowd. The members of Evil Wind exchanged glances with each other. Finally, one of them took his first step forward. Soon, all the members of Evil Wind got their new numbers.
The major continued, "Since everyone got their new numbers, I will now announce what you will be doing for the next period of time. Don't think that everything will be fine after getting your numbers. This is just the start. You will need to work hard to protect your number. You will be eliminated after failing three times to complete your mission or test. The eliminated people…" The major then gave an evil smile before he continued, "Unfortunately, will have to go back to the medical department and become the talent the head of the medical department is looking for." What he meant was, they still couldn't escape their fate of becoming guinea pigs if they do not work hard.
The members of Evil Wind got a shock. They put aside their anger and started to listen to the major attentively. They were afraid that they would miss something and get eliminated because of it.
Yan Three was shocked too. However, his reason was different. He was shocked by how eloquent the major was. Each scheme was sneakily sowed in between his sentences, making him not have time to think carefully. Firstly, the other party gave him an opening gambit, destroying his reputation and lowering his position in the hearts of his team members. Next, he shifted the attention of his team members away from the anger and frustration of changing their numbers. All his team members were now focused on the missions and tasks they were assigned to.
When everyone focused on completing missions to prevent them from getting eliminated, the hatred and anger caused by destroying their mecha team would subside as time goes by. In the end, all the negative emotions towards 250 Ace Mecha Clan would disappear.
"From today onwards, this will be your daily mission."
"You will wake up at 6 am and have breakfast at 6.15 am. Breakfast will be held at the logistician canteen. If you are not sure where it is located, please find a logistician and ask him for a map."
"At 6.30 am, even if you are not full, you must gather at the training ground and run two hours with weights on. At the start, we will only put 15kg on you so that you can get used to it."
"After running for two hours, you will go through our special training." The masked major gave an evil smile again. "This special training has another name. We call it The Living Hell. I sincerely hope that you all will have the energy to crawl out of the training ground after that."
As the major recited the mission, the expressions of the people continuously turned more complex after every sentence. They didn't know if they should retaliate or obediently go through The Living Hell. The name of this training was enough to send a chill down their spines. Of course, the two hours of running was enough to tire them out already.
"You will only have the right to eat lunch after you completed all these missions. I hope that you can do this, as there will be even worse things waiting for you in the afternoon. I highly suspect that some of you will use up your three chances on the first day."
"Okay, the time is 8 am now. It's slightly later than the time we said just now, so we will spare you today. There will be no The Living Hell today, but you still have to complete the two-hour run." The masked major kindly gave the members of Evil Wind a let off. Yan Three looked at him with suspicion. He felt that this let off was a trap. However, he couldn't determine what the trap it was.
"Qi Long, Xie Yi, you two will lead them to the training ground." The masked major finished speaking to the members of Evil Wind and started talking to the two medics beside him.
"Why is it us again?" Qi Long asked unhappily.
"Li Lanfeng, you can't push your responsibilities to us," Xie Yi refuted. He wanted to take off his medic uniform already.
"I'm not pushing my responsibilities away. The regiment commander wanted me to tell you two that he is waiting for you two at the training ground." Li Lanfeng was schadenfreude. "You two hadn't trained for three days, right?"
Xie Yi and Qi Long's face turned pale. Li Shiyu gave them so much work that they didn't have the time to train their team. They thought their Boss would not notice such small matters but he did. Not only did he notice it, but he was also planning to punish them personally at the training ground. Xie Yi and Qi Long felt that they were going to die today.
"I wish you two good luck!" Li Lanfeng patted their shoulders and disappear instantaneously.
Li Lanfeng was very busy too. His team had its own mission. It was as bad as Qi Long and Xie Yi.
Military cook. This sounded like an easy job. They just had to cook some food. How hard could it be. However, the agile mecha operators almost destroyed the entire kitchen while they were trying to cook. The old military cooks looked at them with disdain. If they weren't mecha operators, the old military cooks might have scolded them already. Oh, these military cooks hated people who wasted food.
Just as the mecha operators were about to breakdown from the torment and embarrassment, (It couldn't be helped. They really couldn't cook. The food was either raw or burnt. If it was cooked properly, there would always be a problem with its taste. It was either too bland or too salty. All in all, these powerful mecha operators couldn't cook at all.) their life savior arrived.
'This is bad.' When Li Lanfeng walked into the kitchen, he could already feel the depressing atmosphere in there. He was afraid that after they finished this temporary job, his mecha operators wouldn't be able to operate their mechas anymore. Hence, he had no choice but to do it himself.
Fortunately, Li Lanfeng had some cooking talent, he managed to make a delicious dish in his first try. The military cooks complimented him and his team members looked at him with admiration. They didn't expect their team leader to be so good at cooking.
Li Lanfeng helped his mecha operators gained some of their confidence back. At the same time, all his team members finally acknowledged him as their team leader. They didn't look down on his weak and skinny frame anymore. This was an unexpected outcome for Li Lanfeng.
Li Lanfeng was surprised. Although this was not a generic way to obtain respect in the military, he didn't mind. According to what Ling Lan said, any cat that can catch mice is a good cat. Similarly, any method that could help him gain the recognition of these experienced mecha operators was a good method.
Chapter 821 - Tyrant?
Yan Three and his team members followed Qi Long and Xie Yi to the training ground. When they arrived there, it was already filled with many people. From their attire, Yan Three knew that they were logisticians. He felt confused. He didn't see any mecha operators the entire time he was here. 'Are the mecha operators at some other special training ground?'
A young and handsome major was flipping through a logbook in the middle of the training ground. The two medics leading them saw the major and immediately hurried over with bright smiles.
"Zhong-qing, are you in charge of today's training?" Qi Long was elated. It looked that they managed to escape Boss's punishment today.
Lin Zhong-qing looked up. He stared at them curiously before raising the logbook in his hand and counting towards it. "I'm in charge of Evil Wind's training." Qi Long and Xie Yi were not part of his responsibilities.
Qi Long's expression dropped. "Not you? Is it really our Boss?"
Xie Yi frowned too. He didn't want to see his Boss. His boss was an impartial person so he definitely wouldn't listen to their reasons for not training in these past few days.
Lin Zhong-qing looked at Qi Long with a peculiar expression after hearing what he said.
Qi Long thought that Lin Zhong-qing didn't know what situation they were in so he smiled bitterly and explained, "We were helping Brother Shiyu in the medical department for the past few days. We were so busy helping him so we didn't have time to train. Just now, Brother Feng said that Boss is waiting for us here." Qi Long couldn't help but shiver when he thought about this.
Xie Yi leaned on Lin Zhong-qing's shoulder and cried, "Zhong-qing, you should know that if we land in our Boss's hands, based on his tyrannic methods, we will be dead."
"Tyrannic?" A cold voice sounded behind them. "How tyrannic?"
Xie Yi turned and answered at the same time, "Do you know what is a tyrant? Boss is a tyra…" Xie Yi suddenly saw Ling Lan standing behind him and smiling at him. His tongue got stuck in the back of his tongue. He just kept repeating the word tyrant.
"Tyrant, tyrant…" Ling Lan knocked the silver whip on her palm and slowly said.
Lin Zhong-qing looked at Xie Yi and Qi Long helplessly. He had tried to hint them with his eyes but the two of them didn't notice it. Lin Zhong-qing didn't see his Boss at the start. By the time he saw his Boss, he was already behind Qi Long and Xie Yi. His boss signaled for him to keep quiet so he could only use his eyes to hint Xie Yi and Qi Long. However, the two idiots didn't receive his message.
Qi Long, who was shocked too, managed to regain his senses. "Boss, how can you be a tyrant? You must have heard wrongly." Qi Long decided that he would not admit it no matter what. If not, they would definitely be tortured until their last breath, and Brother Shiyu would then save them with his agents and their Boss would continue torturing them until he vented his anger out.
Qi Long's humble-looking face looked really funny when he was lying. Ling Lan purposely asked, "What did you two say then?"
Qi Long was dumbfounded. "Erm…" Cold sweat formed on his forehead. He nudged Xie Yi forcefully to remind him that this was not the time to feel scared. He should think of a way out of this predicament first. 'Sob, why isn't Jijyun beside me? If Jijyun was here, he will be able to find a good reason to escape punishment. I wouldn't have to be so agitated if he was here.'
Xie Yi regained his composure after Qi Long nudged him. He gathered his wits and said hurriedly, "We are saying that you are like a king who cares about his people."
Ling Lan was speechless as these two people were just talking nonsense. She snorted. "Qi Long, Xie Yi!"
"Yes!" The two of them immediately straightened their bodies.
"You miss three consecutive days of training. Your training will be doubled as a punishment and you will have to complete it with six times of the normal training load. If you can't finish it, you will not go back tomorrow." Ling Lan directly announced her punishment. As for them talking behind her back, she would take revenge slowly in the future. As a lady, she bore grudges.
"Yes!" The two people heaved a sigh of relief when their boss left immediately after announcing their punishment. They felt as if they had come back from the brink of death.
"Six times." Lin Zhong-qing reminded them thoughtfully. It was not easy to complete it with six times of the training load.
Qi Long gasped. He made a prompt and resolute decision. "Zhong-qing, please prepare the best restorative agent for us and three big portions of food." They would definitely be on the verge of collapsing after going through training with six times of the training load. They would probably have to crawl out of the training ground.
"Don't worry. I'll prepare everything for you," Lin Zhong-qing replied. Then, he looked at them pitifully as they carried 250kg of weight and started their training.
'Do they think that everything will end today?' Lin Zhong-qing shook his head as he looked at their silhouettes. Qi Long and Xie Yi thought that they had escaped from their Boss's revenge but he saw a faint smile on his Boss's face just now. He knew that their real punishment was just starting.
"Wish you two good luck." As their comrade, Lin Zhong-qing gave them his blessing and walked towards the members of Evil Wind.
The members of Evil Wind were astounded by the intensity of the logistician's training. 'Is that really a mission for logisticians? Our training is not even worth mentioning when compared to theirs.'
"Major Li should have told you all the mission for today, right? These are the weights. The lightest is 15kg followed by 25kg, 40kg, 50kg, 60kg, all the way to 150kg. There are the special weights for team leaders which weigh 250kg. You do not have to care about the other weights for now, just put on the 15kg weights and run for two hours. You cannot stop, sit down, or collapse during the run. You are given three chances to have a one minute slow walk. You can use all three chances at one go too and make it into a three minutes slow walk. Once you used up all your chances, your points will be deducted the moment you walk again. Once you go below the passing mark, you will fail the mission," Lin Zhong-qing explained to them.
"You should know that you all only have three chances of failure. One you exceed, you will be sent back to the medical department. I'm sure you all know what the consequences are. I hope that you all will complete the mission." Lin Zhong-qing told them what they would be doing today. He disregarded the pale and fearful faces of the members of Evil Wind and asked the guards of the training ground to lead them to the weights section.
If anyone walked slowly, the guards would poke them with their electric prod so the members of Evil Wind didn't dare to waste any time dawdling.