Shi Lang went back to the hotel and taught the students a few tricks for using mechs. They had never driven a real thing before and only had the experience of a simulator. Although the mech in the simulation was life like, the fact that if they screwed up they will not be able to restart the program made the students nervous.
This was the reason Shi Lang wanted to be with them. He was not worried about the investigations, the people he passed on the work were all responsible and if they lied or fell short of delivering a satisfactory result, he will have thei jobs on his platter.
The night passed in a jiffy and the students all lined up in front of the hotel. Shi Lang was already waiting for them and said, “Let’s run to the venue, it will help you all clear your minds.”
The students nodded and they all began to jog to the Elton Military academy. The speed was not slow but the roads were slightly empty in the early morning and thus they did not meet any resistance. Theseus and the rest still had a lot of questions but when they started running, they tried to match up the pace of the young man walking in front of them.
At first, Shi Lang was slow, but gradually as he noticed that the people were keeping up easily, he increased his speed slowly. They were all running at a speed quite faster than a normal sprint but yet they could not keep up with Shi Lang, who seemed to be taking one step and covering five meters.
It was as if he was about to fly off into the sky. They soon arrived at the venue, the Elton Military Academy. The rules of the competition did not stop anyone from ganging up or targeting a special school, but they did mandate that the equipment level must be standard. If the difference in the conditions of the machine was found, their jobs will be lost and they will be put under investigation as well.
Shi Lang and the rest arrived in front of the academy and Theseus led the group with his participant Identity Card. The security was tight, Shi Lang was impressed by this and entered the campus with the students using his identity card.
The campus was generic, a row of neat white buildings whit green patches of grass. Shi Lang liked the cleanliness and the silence in the air. It was probably because it was early in the morning that the place was calm. However, Shi Lang cursed himself the next moment, ‘You had to think too early, did you not, jinx.’
The tranquility was broken by a steady set of footsteps. It must be the resident students of the Academy who came over for daily jogging. Shi Lang did not say much and only waved his hand. His students all took half a step to the side and cleared the path as they followed the young man.
This act was witnessed by the instructor leading the pack, and his eyes flashed, to think that a team was trained so well that they did not even need vocal instructions. He became curious and then squinted his eyes at the uniform mark on the backs of the students and frowned slightly as he mumbled, “Federation Star Academy.”
The instructor said, “Halt.”
p-a- n-d-a-n-0-v-e-l、 The pack stopped behind him and the man walked up to see who was the instructor of the Federal Star Academy to train such a disciplined pack. The spirit of competition was not limited to the actual competition, but it was also instilled in the individuals. The young instructor came to stand beside Shi Lang and asked, “I am Major Aztec, may I ask who you are?”
Shi Lang turned to look at the young man with a smile and said, “General Shi Lang.”
He reported his name out of courtesy, otherwise, the young man had already recognized him by face. Major Aztec stood shocked, and saluted crisply as he said, “Greetings, Sir.”
Shi Lang smiled and said, “At ease, Major, you were looking for me, can I do anything for you?”
The major shook his head and said, “Actually, I noticed how your students reacted to your silent gesture and became curious to see who trained them so I came over. I apologize to disturb you, Sir.”
Behind Major Aztec, the students were shocked, they could not believe that the demon they were scared of was now acting like a lamb, and when they saw Shi Lang’s face, they were shocked to their core.
Shi Lang chuckled and said, “You worry too much, Major. I am not a demon, do not worry carry on with your training, I only hope to see your students fight with mine fairly and without holding anything back. If my students lose that will be because they have more to learn.”
Aztec nodded slightly in approval, indeed this man was the true idol. Shi Lang was not going to be biased against his students, this made them all happy. Major Aztec nodded and after wishing him goodbye, he left. The pack followed him but not before catching sight of their idol from the corner of their eyes.
Theseus asked, “Sir, what is it that we lack? I look at others and I find that our momentum is not strong as theirs.”
Shi Lang smiled and said, “These people are those who have fought against each other and you are lacking real battle experience. Stimulators gave you the skills but you have yet to use them in your favor. That is why you lack aura and momentum.”
The class was enlightened and they made their way through the campus and arrived at the mech bay. This entire area was made for the competition. The sheds and mech bays were temporary. The mechs were all provided by the military after they are decommissioned. They could still be used in checking your agility and overall control in the obstacle run.
Shi Lang led the group inside the mech bay and said, “All of you will do one thing before you get ready for the battle. So, get ready and clean them up, make a log of every scratch you find, and memorize it.”
Theseus asked, “Sir, all this data can be gathered from the onboard computer.”
Shi Lang gazed at him and said, “The onboard computer can pilot the mech as well, what is the need of you all?”
The students did not say much and simply began to clean the mechs and pay attention to all the parts. As they worked, they realized that this process was very meditative and they all learned a lot of things, for example, the anatomy of the mech was imprinted in their minds like a blueprint now.
They gained an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the mech. The time they took to clean the mechs was not long but they managed to clean them all completely. Soon they all dressed up in their suits and boarded the cockpit. The next test needed them to run through an obstacle course alone, one after the other with a gap of hundred meters between them.
This was like an assembly line test and it was really hard to maintain this distance between each other. Those who managed to get through this test will definitely rank supreme.
The class was notified of their communicators and they came to the field standing in a queue, the leader of the pack was Quo Lina, beside whom stood Theseus. The queue was behind the girl and Theseus was going to instruct the people about their pacing and he will follow the last.
This arrangement was allowed according to the rules. The invigilators stood on high towers and the computers were all ready to compile various data. The man in charge nodded and then Quo Lina rushed forward. Her speed was fast, but suddenly she controlled her pace, and then as soon as she reached ninety-five meters, Theseus said, “Go.”
The second guy followed without hesitation and then the same happened to the third and the fourth. Theseus was guiding them to monitor their pace and match their breathing with Quo Lina. At this point, they were all connected with the programs on their communicators that could transmit the sinus rhythm to others as well.
It was like a machine working with many big and small cogs spinning together. The mechs were moving in a pattern that made the people feel like they were watching a movie reel in slow motion, each action was perfectly imitated and the distance of hundred meters was maintained with such precision that it looked easy for the invigilators.
The in charge said, “How are they doing this? Are you sure the pilots are humans and not machines?”
The person nodded and then he thought of something before adding, “Sir, they are students from the federal Star Academy, taught directly by the first general, Shi Lang.”
His words shocked the entire room.