A giant commercial spaceship floated in the limitless universe, its pale silver exterior resembling a streamlined design, making it the brightest star under the starry sky as it gazed gracefully down below. Due to the scarcity and high cost of interplanetary navigation energy crystal ore, this spaceship from the Westwood Grand District's Ancient Bell Company attracted the attention of many officials and residents from the Eastwood Grand District. Beyond the routine commercial activity, the Ancient Bell Company brought friendly regards and official visits from the Westwood Grand District.
Among the visiting scholars and officials from the Westwood Grand District, most of the influential figures in the Eastwood Grand District were unaware of the big warehouse hidden in the rear machine control room of this commercial spaceship. The warehouse was filled with numerous goods covered in military green oilcloth, the contents of which remained a mystery.
Lake, the team leader of the Fourth Military Region's special machine armor group, was in his prime at just over 30 years old. He stood by the porthole, gazing down at the star, his facial features firm and resolute, exuding a tranquil confidence.
Only a few individuals knew about the secret mission of the machine armor squad, and even the distinguished members of this meritorious team were unaware of the full story.
Machine armor master Yu Feng... the name was truly memorable.
Lake squinted his eyes, recalling the explosion over ten years ago. At that time, he was a rookie following the Federal Counter-Attack Army, successfully conducting a risky space jump to attack and capture the Resource Starball in the middle of the empire. However, no one expected it to be a trap set by the empire. Countless empire soldiers swarmed in battleships, and the explosion at the depot directly took the lives of over 10,000 federal soldiers, indirectly undermining the confidence of the federal army!
If it weren't for the Charter Bureau's investigation into the machine repair master named Yu Feng, the sinister role he played in that explosion, and the fact that he gave the empire the opportunity... it was likely that the federation's defense strategy would have fallen into a painful predicament in front of hundreds of millions of people. Lake thought bitterly, "Damn it... no, these shameless people should die ten thousand times." But as a federal soldier, he believed he should personally capture this machine repair master and bring him back to the federation to face trial in front of hundreds of millions of people. What was somewhat strange was... even though he had initially received a secret order from the Ministry of Defense to apprehend this person and execute them summarily in case of resistance, on the second day after arriving in the Eastwood Grand District, he received a new instruction: to execute this treasonous thief directly.
This instruction was transmitted through the highest-ranking sentiment breath channel, so Lake had no doubts and conflicts of thought. He put on his sunglasses and looked at the pictures and information flashing on the lens, a slight smile forming at the corner of his lips.
The Level 1 fugitive Yu Feng, also known as Feng Yu, was hiding in a repair shop on Xianglan Main Road, Block Four, in the Hexi Province capital of Eastwood Grand District. He made a living by servicing electrical appliances. Lake's smile gradually disappeared as he read through the information about this machine repairer. He knew enough about his social connections and had all the information from the records, except for a few missing details. This machine repair master who dared to commit treason... why had he hidden in the Eastwood Grand District for over ten years instead of choosing to live out his remaining years in the empire?
Confirming the machine repairer's location in the Eastwood Grand District one last time, Lake turned around slowly and calmly said to the more than ten team members behind him, "Our goal is to monitor all of his social connections under the surveillance of the Eastwood Police. What we need to do is... kill him."
"Yes." Several team members responded promptly, and the air in the entire cabin filled with a murderous intent. Lake removed his sunglasses, pressed the activation transmitter, and sent a signal to the Eastwood Grand District. From that moment on, the Eastwood Police Headquarters began to clean up the surrounding area. Meanwhile, the locally stationed forces in Eastwood received a direct order from the Ministry of Defense to secretly coordinate with their group.
"Do not underestimate your opponent. The information you see now is incomplete. This machine repair master named Yu Feng did not achieve excellent results in the Second Military Academy, but... that's because he wasn't a student at all! He was the first military instructor in history to not attend the military academy!" Lake coldly read the target data to his subordinates and said ruthlessly, "The federation dispatched a hundred-point soldier to capture him, but he slipped away. If any of you are negligent, I will execute you on the spot."
Having said that, he walked up to the green military oilcloth covering the front and took a deep breath. With a strong pull, he unveiled what lay beneath, revealing an array of unusual configurations exuding a strong metallic and deadly aura... machine armor!
In a corner coffee shop, affable piano music played softly. Xu Le, who disappeared from sight, strolled along Bell Tower Street to the melody, exchanging friendly greetings with his neighbors. The word "stroll" truly described his demeanor because his toes seemed to be dancing a little, completely different from his previous honest and steady appearance.
Two years had passed, and the life of the Eastwood Grand District residents remained unchanged. The coffee shop was the same, the bar was the same, as if time had left no trace on this city. However, Xu Le had changed. Like the young female student with purple hair in the distant Capital Star Circle, he had aged two years, but while Jian Shui'er's birthday received the attention of the entire federation, Xu Le went unnoticed. Except by himself.
During these two years, he had been learning about machine repair from the repair shop owner, enriching his mind with countless books from the state university. Every evening, he practiced martial arts stances and danced rigidly, slowly becoming more and more like the first machine described by Feng Yu. He even felt that he could listen to his own instructions.
Within these two years, the residents of Bell Tower Street and Xianglan Main Road became aware of a diligent and hardworking young man in the repair shop. But Xu Le didn't feel anything special; he was just living an honest life, offering help to his neighbors whenever they needed it. However, he was happy today because he had successfully passed the written examination of the officer recruitment test conducted by the Ministry of Defense. He had advanced to the second round of selection, and he celebrated with a beer in a black market with Li Wei.
Thinking about joining the army and entering the Capital Star Circle for training, Xu Le felt that his life's dream was getting closer. So, rare moments of happiness overcame him, and he even smiled as he saw an elderly person struggling to cross the sparsely trafficked intersection. He naturally stepped forward to lend a supporting arm to the opposite party.
"I'll help you cross." Xu Le smiled and said. He then proceeded down the street and turned into a small alley leading to the repair shop, unaware of the danger awaiting him.
A dense group of soldiers wearing standard helmets and deep silk ceramic armored clothing surrounded him. The soldiers were fully armed, exuding a terrifying blood and iron aura that felt particularly chilling in the peaceful environment.
In the darkness, a cold, hard barrel was pointed at Xu Le's head, the nearest one pressing against his temple, causing an intense and immediate pain.