Of course, Li Yue didn't need to handle the mech modifications personally; Little Dumb could take care of that. Li Yue focused solely on modifying the mech's cockpit.
Lin Zhenguo's team handled the external modifications and surface changes. Li Yue's changes were primarily about how the mech was piloted, as he found the Pacific Rim piloting too outdated. He had no intention of piloting the mech like the protagonists, requiring direct presence inside the mech and neural interfacing with another pilot. It seemed foolish to him, like shadowboxing in thin air.
If he wanted to fight monsters personally, he didn't need a mech; his strength surpassed any mech. Hence, he replaced the old piloting method with Tony Stark's technology, integrating Little Dumb into the mech to control all its systems.
It's worth noting that Little Dumb has evolved significantly. Before leaving the Avengers 4 universe, future Tony and others had embedded Little Dumb into Thanos' warship, making it the AI controlling the entire spacecraft. Little Dumb's computational power now far exceeded JARVIS.
While Little Dumb wasn't as empathetic and understanding as JARVIS due to its relatively short existence and Li Yue's limitations, Li Yue was confident it would eventually evolve into a true AI, perhaps even surpassing JARVIS.
...
During these preparation days, Li Yue met the protagonists and supporting characters from the movie. Although the world's events differed from the movie's plot, the protagonist, Raleigh Becket, was brought in by the Black general and a modified third-generation mech, Gipsy Danger, to participate in the mission.
No one objected to adding another mech, increasing their chances of success. However, Li Yue was more impressed by the Black general and the two mad scientists than the protagonist.
When Li Yue watched the movie, the supporting characters, with their distinctive personalities, left a deeper impression on him. Therefore, with Little Dumb managing the mech, Li Yue sought out the mad scientists instead of bonding with the protagonist.
...
"Damn it, what's going on? Why did the number of kaiju suddenly increase from one to three? This doesn't align with my calculations!" an exasperated voice rang out as Li Yue approached the door.
"Haha, I told you your theory was useless!" another voice replied, dripping with schadenfreude.
"My theory can't be wrong! My previous predictions were accurate! There must be some data I overlooked that caused this error. I need to recalculate and find what I missed!" the first voice insisted.
Li Yue was confident the voices belonged to the two mad scientists, one puzzled by the sudden appearance of three kaiju.
Knock, knock, knock...
Li Yue knocked on the door.
...
"Hermann, who do you think would come looking for us madmen at this hour?" Newton asked, intrigued, as he examined a kaiju brain specimen.
"Who knows, maybe the general. Go open the door; I'm at a crucial point and can't be interrupted," Hermann replied without turning around.
"Haha, your theory is definitely wrong. No matter how many times you calculate, you won't get the correct result!" Newton quipped as he went to open the door, revealing a young Asian man smiling at him.
"Sorry, who are you? You must have the wrong room," Newton said, puzzled. He had no Asian friends in the base.
"No mistake. I'm here to see you, Dr. Newton. Hello, I'm Li Yue," Li Yue greeted, smiling at the familiar face, and walked past Newton into the room.
"Wait, Li… Li Yue? Are you the renowned pilot who can single-handedly control the latest fifth-generation mech?" Newton stammered, shocked, forgetting to stop Li Yue as he entered.
"Haha, am I that famous? No wonder people have been giving me strange looks!" Li Yue mused. He hadn't expected to become so well-known in just a few days at the base.
"You're indifferent? Do you know what this means? It means your mental strength is extraordinarily high, able to handle the mental pressure that normally requires two people! You could become the most talented pilot, even a world-famous superstar!" Newton exclaimed, his excitement mounting.
...
"Most importantly, you could be the perfect candidate to prove my hypothesis!" Newton added, eyes gleaming with enthusiasm.
"Oh? What do you mean by that?" Li Yue asked, already suspecting but curious to hear Newton's explanation.
"I've always theorized that pilots could use neural interfacing technology to access another's memories. If we replace one pilot's brain with a kaiju brain, think about what we could learn! We could uncover the kaiju's memories, their origins, why they're sent to Earth, and the aliens' plans!"
"If my plan succeeds, finding answers to these questions will be a breeze!" Newton said, his eyes excitedly shining, embodying the quintessential mad scientist.
...