Chapter Thirty-Nine: A New Challenge

As Li Daoran ran along the road, he simply couldn’t fathom where Liu Meng’s blind confidence in him came from. When he asked her why, she only replied, “A woman’s intuition.”

Li Daoran was deeply curious about this body’s past, but Liu Meng remained mysterious and tight-lipped, refusing to tell him anything. He couldn’t push her too hard either.

In the end, he could only carry his doubts with him as he set out to complete his task. Halfway through his run, Xu Xingxing caught up to him.

“Out for a run?” Xu Xingxing asked.

Li Daoran rolled his eyes and replied, “Obviously. I’m finishing my task.”

“Wait, isn’t this yesterday’s task? Why are you only doing it now? Did you slack off yesterday?” Xu Xingxing sounded genuinely surprised.

“Yeah,” Li Daoran responded perfunctorily.

“I didn’t see you all day yesterday. Where did you go? You really skipped the farewell event after saying you wouldn’t go, huh?” Xu Xingxing pressed on relentlessly.

“Enough questions, you’re annoying me,” Li Daoran said, unable to explain that he’d gotten drunk and forgotten about the task.

“What’s wrong? Is Elu bothering you? Don’t mind him. It’s just idle gossip, nothing worth worrying about,” Xu Xingxing misunderstood and tried to console him.

“Elu? What did he do?” Li Daoran was puzzled. What had Elu done?

“You don’t know yet? Elu’s challenged you now,” Xu Xingxing said, excitement lighting up his face as he realized Li Daoran hadn’t heard.

“A challenge?” Li Daoran was even more confused.

“That’s right. Yesterday, the public opinion shifted suddenly. They’re saying you only got first place because you registered for more subjects, so you had an unfair advantage. Your actual pass rate was only a bit over sixty percent, and you didn’t take any practical operation courses. They even dug up your bottom-ranked performance in mecha piloting.

“They’re comparing you to Elu, who has a one hundred percent pass rate. They claim if he registered for eighty-three subjects, he’d definitely outperform you. Mainly, he was distracted by mecha piloting.

“Right now, Elu’s ranked first in piloting and is close to breaking into the top hundred thousand. He’s even boasting he’ll earn the piloting merit reward next month—way better than you, apparently. Lately, the discussions have been trashing you. You know how it is—mecha pilots are every man’s dream, and our academy specializes in training them. So your spotlight’s been thoroughly stolen.”

Xu Xingxing didn’t seem the least bit out of breath, managing to talk at length while running, complete with passionate gestures and expressions.

“Ding. Task complete. New task: one hour of five hundred push-ups in Gravity Chamber under double gravity.” The wristwatch chimed.

Li Daoran stopped, turned, and headed toward the Gravity Chamber.

“Hey, aren’t you going to react at all?” Xu Xingxing was anxious, seeing how unfazed Li Daoran seemed.

Li Daoran paused, glanced at Xu Xingxing, and asked, “What’s your current intranet ranking?”

Xu Xingxing was caught off guard, then replied, “A little over one hundred ten thousand.”

Li Daoran shrugged. “I remember you were desperate to be the first to break into the top hundred thousand. What are you doing now?

“Like you said, it’s just idle gossip. Why care?

“You want a reaction from me? What do you expect—me to go beat up all the people talking or go after Elu?”

Xu Xingxing’s expression froze.

Li Daoran continued, “You’re pinning your hopes on me to step on all the rumors and slap them in the face—I get it. But, Little Star, what about you? Have you given up on yourself? Are you still the Xu Xingxing I knew who refused to let me be class leader, who insisted on doing a hundred more push-ups than me?”

Xu Xingxing’s face flushed red, blood rushing to his cheeks. Then he laughed heartily. “I get it, boss. It’s true—since I could rely on you, I’ve let myself slack off. Just wait, next month Elu won’t be first—it’ll be me—”

Before Xu Xingxing could finish, Li Daoran interjected, “It’ll be me, of course.”

With a wave, he turned and walked toward the Gravity Chamber.

Xu Xingxing stood there in a daze for a moment, then chuckled at himself. He was gradually getting used to Li Daoran’s ways.

After finishing his task in the Gravity Chamber, Li Daoran dragged his exhausted body back to his room, exited the Daoran World, and returned to Azure Star.

He turned off his stream. Soon after, Chen Ming and the others knocked and came in.

“Well done, Daoran. What you said to Xu Xingxing just now almost moved me. Congratulations—you’ve gained a little fan. But Xu Xingxing does have real potential,” Chen Ming remarked.

Li Daoran scratched his head. “I just spoke from the heart. I always thought he was stronger than me. If it weren’t for you guys, I’d probably be his fan instead.”

“You’re being modest. You’ve got real potential, at least now you can run thirty kilometers and then do five hundred push-ups under double gravity. Not many people can manage that,” Charles said.

“It’s all thanks to the gene serum, not me,” Li Daoran replied, shaking his head.

“Don’t sell yourself short, Daoran,” Natasha disagreed.

Li Daoran shook his head again, unconvinced, still thinking of himself as a rookie.

“Let’s keep studying. What’s the third key here for again? I forgot,” he asked.

The five exchanged glances. They knew Li Daoran’s self-effacing attitude actually helped his growth, so they said no more and began a new round of teaching.

“As mechas evolve, their controls become more complex for a reason. Early mechas were so smart they could replace a human pilot entirely. But look—every move was rigid, precise, without deviation. With little combat experience, you wouldn’t know the risks until you fought real battles. Only then would you understand. Chen Ming, why don’t you explain?” David said.

“Actually, mechas are just amplifiers for the human body. In melee combat, fighting with a mecha is like fighting with your own fists. If you’re up against someone whose every move you can predict, would you be afraid? If all he knows are simple punches and kicks, and you know every move in advance, you’d take him down in no time. That’s why pure AI operation modes were phased out,” Chen Ming explained.

“The more complex the controls, the greater the flexibility and the more possibilities. Take this video for example—it’s an early duel between sixth-generation mechas. One side was fully manual, the other used smart assistance.

“In the beginning, both sides were evenly matched. But once damage occurred, the manual pilot kept battling undeterred, while the smart-assisted side struggled. When a sensor failed, multiple commands couldn’t be issued. Just one faulty key in the left leg, and the entire mecha was helpless.

“That’s why seventh-generation mechas ditched preset smart assists. If any key failed, preset commands depending on it would be lost, and in high-level combat, predictable moves get seen through. If you only know one routine, once your opponent figures you out, you’re done for.

“So, what you need to remember is the function of each key, and develop your own combat style. Later, we’ll teach you our fighting styles and some tricks. That way, no one will ever figure you out. The best outcome is that you can master all styles and switch between them at will—that’s true mastery.”