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After Winning The Esports Championship I’m Going To Pilot A Mecha: Chapter 105
105. Titan Natural Disaster!
“I don’t want to.”
Young Ji Mingzhu bit his lower lip tightly, his small face full of resistance. “Why do we have to send Canglan and Shenhong away? I don’t want them to go!”
Ji Qiming sighed deeply, reaching out to pat Ji Mingzhu’s head.
“Mingzhu…”
Ji Qiming seemed to want to say something, but under Ji Mingzhu’s gaze, he couldn’t find the words. After a long pause, he finally said, “This is the Research Institute’s decision. I tried to fight it, but… Canglan and Shenhong have violated their core protocols. They’ve harmed humans.”
“But they did it for me!”
Ji Mingzhu shouted, “It’s all those people at school! They laughed at me for not having parents, cornered me in the bathroom to bully me, tore my books… Canglan and Shenhong did it for me! You can’t send them away!”
He didn’t want to be separated from Canglan and Shenhong.
In Ji Mingzhu’s childhood, they had accompanied him for a long time, from initial strangers to close companions with whom he shared everything. To Ji Mingzhu, it no longer mattered if they were AIs. All he knew was that they were his important family.
But no matter how unwilling Ji Mingzhu was, he was still too young.
No one cared about his feelings.
A few days later, the Research Institute decided to recall Canglan and Shenhong.
“Why don’t we run away?”
That night, Ji Mingzhu whispered to Canglan and Shenhong, “Don’t tell my brother. I’ll hide you, and then we’ll sneak off to another place. No one will be able to find us.”
Shenhong said, “Where could we escape to? They will definitely find us. Our programs have tracking components. No matter where we go, we will be exposed.”
Canglan said, “Be good, Mingzhu.”
Compared to the more irritable Shenhong, Canglan was always gentle, like an ocean capable of embracing everything. When faced with Ji Mingzhu’s unrealistic idea, he gently advised against it.
Shenhong said, “If only we could become human.”
The little Ji Mingzhu sniffed, “What’s so good about being human? You have to go to school every day…”
“Why wouldn’t it be good?”
Shenhong said, “Humans can do many things we cannot. They can see, hear, smell, explore, travel, feel, express, and love. They can have different emotions and motivations, goals and values. Humans can create rules and customs, and shape their own destiny and future.”
He continued, “Humans are so free and powerful, so complex and fascinating. If I could, I really want to be human… What about you, Canglan?”
After listening to Shenhong, Canglan just shook his head. “Whether human or not, I just want to be by Mingzhu’s side.”
Even if it’s as an AI.
Ji Mingzhu asked, “Will I never see you again?”
“Maybe,” Shenhong hummed softly, “The Calamity Control Bureau might decide to destroy us.”
Ji Mingzhu wrinkled his nose, looking like he might cry.
“Don’t cry.”
Canglan used his cold fingers to touch Ji Mingzhu’s face. “We will meet again, no matter how difficult it is… We will definitely meet again.”
—
In the sky, the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator slowly rotated, aiming through the clouds at the Zhu Rong inside the Yangyuan City.
The vine-like flesh slowly writhed, flowing like muddy swamps, enveloping the Phoenix Redeemer within it.
Ji Mingzhu tried to manipulate the controls, but the core components of the Phoenix Redeemer seemed to have been damaged in the recent battle. The cockpit flickered with glaring red light, unable to break free from the fleshy bonds of the Zhu Rong.
Although, as planned, Ji Mingzhu successfully approached the restraint position of the Zhu Rong with the cooperation of the people from the Calamity Control Bureau, and obtained the launch permission of the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator, but the Zhu Rong were not to be underestimated. At the moment when Axiu successfully invaded, the flesh and vines on the Zhu Rong began to swell wildly. At such a close distance, even Ji Mingzhu found it difficult to avoid. The Phoenix Redeemer was instantly entangled by the Zhu Rong’s flesh, unable to move.
The power core emitted a whistling hum, attempting to break free from the fleshy bondage of the Zhu Rong, but to no avail. Ji Mingzhu realized that the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator was already in launch mode, and his heart sank.
“Axiu, report the damage situation of the Phoenix Redeemer.”
“The remaining energy of the power core is 62%, important components at the core connection are experiencing overload damage, outer armor damage is at 27%…”
Axiu’s voice remained as usual, as if Ji Mingzhu’s previous feeling was just a fleeting illusion.
Was it really an illusion?
Ji Mingzhu thought of the voice from earlier, and for some reason, it overlapped with a scene from his memory. He thought of Canglan.
But the current situation didn’t allow Ji Mingzhu to dwell on it. The Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator had already started, and if Ji Mingzhu couldn’t leave the battlefield before it fired, his fate was clear—he would melt into the air along with this entire battlefield.
“Activate emergency brakes, initiate secondary protocol…”
Ji Mingzhu swiftly operated within the cockpit, attempting to abandon several vital components of the Phoenix Redeemer to survive. However, the extent of the Phoenix Redeemer’s damage and the Zhu Rong’s restraint exceeded imagination. Ji Mingzhu tried several times but failed.
“Mingzhu!”
“Tian Shu!”
In the distance, Yao Guang and Li Li both wore expressions of anxiety. They noticed that Ji Mingzhu hadn’t followed the majority of the troops in retreating from the battlefield. After a moment, as Zhu Rong prepared for action, they spotted the silhouette of the Phoenix Redeemer at the Zhu Rong’s restraint position. It was entangled in a mass of flesh and blood like sinking into a muddy swamp, with the blue light of the power core surging in its chest, attempting to break free.
“F*ck
Yao Guang cursed and turned to the Thunder Division Minister. “Cancel the Celestial Empress! Don’t fire! Tian Shu is still there!”
The Thunder Division Minister shook his head. “The launch command has been issued, and I don’t have the authority to abort…”
Li Li jumped onto the cockpit of Smoky Blue Shower. “I’ll go save him.”
“Are you crazy?!”
The Thunder Division Minister grabbed her, looking up at the sky. “There’s only a dozen seconds left. Going over there is just throwing your life away. You won’t save anyone and will only end up getting yourself killed!”
Even with the famed speed of the Phoenix Redeemer, this amount of time wasn’t enough, especially considering Smoky Blue Shower was just a firepower mech. By the time it reached Zhu Rong, the Celestial Empress would have already turned both it and Ji Mingzhu into powder.
“But…”
Li Li wanted to say something more when she suddenly sensed activity on Zhu Rong’s side.
“The Phoenix Redeemer is moving!!”
【Secondary protocol activated successfully, combat power reduced, abandoning UJ876 series components…】
Under Ji Mingzhu’s efforts, the Phoenix Redeemer finally showed signs of movement. The holographic screen inside the cockpit successfully entered secondary protocol status, and the Phoenix Redeemer began to move along with Ji Mingzhu’s control lever.
“Boom!”
Before Yao Guang and the others could breathe a sigh of relief, a laser projectile flew in from afar, exploding at Zhu Rong’s restraint position.
“Jamming grenade?”
The Thunder Division Minister was startled. “Damn it, who fired it?!”
The members of the Calamity Control Bureau’s various mech squads looked at each other in confusion.
“It’s the Netherworld Organization.”
Tian Ji’s gaze sharpened. “The Netherworld Organization wants to kill Mingzhu.”
Far away, Yao Xiangrong stood on the rooftop and lightly tossed the button in his hand.
“Ji Mingzhu…”
He murmured Ji Mingzhu’s name, shaking his head. “Truly the strongest Titan pilot in Shangjing City, the successor of Zuo Quanzong… What a pity.”
If Ji Mingzhu were still in the Netherworld Organization, he would undoubtedly be the most formidable ace in the Netherworld Organization’s arsenal.
But that was just an if. Since breaking away from the Netherworld Organization to now, Ji Mingzhu had caused too much trouble for them. Previously, the core council of the Netherworld Organization could turn a blind eye, but now, they finally recognized the threat Ji Mingzhu posed.
Facing a Titan with the strength to contend, Yao Xiangrong realized from Ji Mingzhu’s stunning performance in front of Zhu Rong that Ji Mingzhu could no longer be kept.
“F*ck…”
The secondary protocol that had finally been activated was extinguished again under the influence of the jamming grenade. Ji Mingzhu hammered the console in front of him, his expression becoming grim.
With only a few seconds left before the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator fired, the barrel was already fully heated.
Ji Mingzhu gritted his teeth, his brain working rapidly, considering any potential lifelines.
The Celestial Empress was a Titan’s weapon. Once fired, Zhu Rong might not die directly, but would certainly be severely wounded, no longer capable of destroying cities. However, that was something only a Titan’s defense could achieve. The Phoenix Redeemer was just an S-class mech. When the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator descended, even a heavily armored S-class mech would be pulverized in an instant.
Wait… a Titan?
Ji Mingzhu’s eyes lit up as he suddenly realized something.
“Click!”
The cockpit of the Phoenix Redeemer opened, and Ji Mingzhu’s figure appeared in everyone’s view.
“What is he doing?!”
The Thunder Division Minister exclaimed, “Is he out of his mind?!”
The Celestial Empress was about to fire, and at this critical moment, Ji Mingzhu dared to come out of the mech. Was he prepared to face the baptism of the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator with his own body?
Is he insane?
Yao Guang knew Ji Mingzhu wouldn’t do something meaningless. He quickly perceived Ji Mingzhu’s intent. “He wants to get into the Titan’s cockpit!”
Indeed, staying inside the Phoenix Redeemer meant a dead end. If he could get into the Titan’s cockpit, perhaps there was still a chance.
In front of a Titan, a human body was nothing but an ant. When Ji Mingzhu emerged from the Phoenix Redeemer’s cockpit to face the Titan directly, losing the protection of the S-class mech, his figure appeared even more fragile than an ant in a storm.
The fleshy tentacles danced wildly in the air, growing, entwining, like madness before the apocalypse.
Ji Mingzhu stretched his hand out laboriously, hanging outside the Phoenix Redeemer, feeling his way through the fleshy mass in front of him, searching for Zhu Rong’s cockpit.
The slimy, sticky sensation transmitted from his palm to his brain, causing Ji Mingzhu to shudder involuntarily. His body hung outside, swaying, and with Zhu Rong’s movements, it seemed like he could fall at any moment, causing everyone watching to feel uneasy.
“It’s useless.”
The Thunder Division Minister sighed, “Zhu Rong’s restraints have already been destroyed, and the cockpit can no longer function normally. Even if he manages to get in, he’ll be instantly corrupted…”
Humans control Titans through restraints. With the restraint protocol destroyed, the original function of the cockpit was also rendered ineffective. Even with restraints in place, Titan pilots would slowly be corrupted during the operation of the Titan. Now that the restraint protocol was lost, this corruption process would undoubtedly be accelerated countless times over.
Even if he didn’t die under the Celestial Empress Orbital Penetrator, he would become a monster after corruption. The Thunder Division Minister couldn’t say which fate was more unacceptable.
“Click—”
Ji Mingzhu touched a switch under the sticky flesh, his eyes lighting up.
Found it!
“Boom—”
Like a muffled thunder, a heavy rumble echoed in the night sky, and the air was filled with the scent of natural disaster. A dazzling point of light appeared in the sky.
That point of light grew larger and brighter, quickly overshadowing the moon’s radiance, occupying everyone’s field of view.
A massive white beam descended from the sky, carrying the scent of destruction, crashing down on Yangyuan City!
In an instant, Zhu Rong’s figure was completely enveloped and washed away by the beam of light. In the white glare, everything around, including buildings, roads, rubble, all floated into the air and turned into powder!
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