Rumor Has It, That Omega Rocked the Stage Again! - Chapter 13

“Excuse me, senior, are you only recruiting five members? There are so many of us here.” They didn’t know that originally, the number of applicants should have been several times larger. However, since the First Military Academy’s comprehensive scores often reflect combat capabilities, only the top-performing students from each major were retained during the preliminary screening.

A red-clad Alpha stepped forward beside Gu Chen. Unlike his stern demeanor, she wore a friendly smile as she addressed the crowd, “Hello everyone, I’m Nina Donovan. In previous years, we had many more recruitment spots. But this year, because the Mecha League has been moved up, time is tight. So, we’re treating this recruitment as our selection process. Please give it your all and showcase your true abilities.” Nina’s gentle voice slightly eased the restless hearts of the students present.

Before anyone could react, Gu Chen took the lead and began the recruitment process: “Everyone, please follow the instructions displayed on the screen behind me. Log into the StarNet Simulation Battle System and fill in your desired position—either Mecha Combat or Mecha Repair. First, we’ll have a five-person Team Tournament with randomly assigned teams based on the standard position ratios used in competitions. There will be two competition zones. After three rounds in each zone, the top five members by points will advance to individual combat trials.”

Nina added, “Successfully defending your stronghold earns bonus points, as does personally capturing an enemy stronghold. The final ranking will be based on the total score.”

Mu Li sighed quietly. She didn’t have much experience cooperating with others and could only hope her teammates wouldn’t be too weak or difficult. Connecting her Mental Strength to her Personal Terminal, she saw that names were hidden—the system had assigned letters A through E to each team member.

When transported into the map, Mu Li’s mecha display showed the locations of each team’s stronghold.

Teammate A suggested, “Both defending and attacking strongholds earn points, but the stronghold can’t be left unmanned. That means attackers can potentially earn both types of points. I’m from the Mecha Manufacturing Major, so I’ll stay here. The rest of you can go on the offensive. If our stronghold comes under attack, just rush back. How does that sound?”

Mu Li considered this. If every team sent four members to attack, a single defender wouldn’t last until reinforcements arrived—their stronghold would be taken effortlessly. “Let’s have two people defend. Losing the stronghold means instant elimination. I’ll help defend in the first round.”

This wasn’t due to lack of skill. In an unfamiliar environment, Mu Li opted for a conservative strategy—first understanding the competition’s specifics before going on the offensive. Taking down all four enemy strongholds one by one wouldn’t be easy either.

Mu Li and Teammate A guarded their stronghold cautiously, carefully observing all approach routes to prevent ambushes, leaving no vulnerabilities unchecked. As time passed, no one came for their green stronghold, but neither let their guard down.

Suddenly, two stars near both the green and orange strongholds dimmed on the map. Then, the entire orange stronghold went dark.

The five stars around each stronghold represented the five team members. Mu Li realized their teammates must have attacked the orange stronghold, perishing alongside its defenders in battle.

Mu Li frowned deeply as their team was reduced to just three members. Those selected for the competition were all outstanding talents from each grade level. In battles between experts, the slightest difference could determine victory, let alone when a team missing two members faced a full squad.

Before long, teammate C who had gone out to attack returned to the stronghold. “When we tried raiding the orange team’s base, they tricked us. There was only one defender initially, but as we three charged out, laser beams suddenly shot from nowhere and took out one of us. After locating the ambusher, another teammate engaged them while I attacked the defender. The defender specialized in Mecha Repair and wasn’t skilled at Mecha Combat. After eliminating them, I was about to assist my teammate when they both perished together. That’s what happened.”

Both Mu Li and teammate A fell silent. With each team employing unpredictable tactics, their now smallest squad was at a clear disadvantage. The road ahead would be difficult, and their “fallen” teammates wouldn’t score highly either.

As teammate C reported, another red team base was attacked, with purple and blue teams each losing one member. Now just one more captured base would secure victory for two other teams.

“Playing purely defensive won’t earn enough points. You two stay here—this time I’ll scout ahead,” Mu Li volunteered. Though unfamiliar with some teammates, even having never spoken to some, they were bound together since forming the team. She wanted to win honor for their squad.

In a bold move, Mu Li removed her Mecha suit, moving through the terrain in her natural form. While human speed couldn’t match Mecha, it provided excellent concealment. The remaining three teams formed an equilateral triangle, so Mu Li chose the blue team after calculating routes showed no difference.

All four blue team members remained at their stronghold—whether from undecided strategy or conservative play. Mu Li hid in bushes. Most Mecha stood over 5 meters tall, making her nearly invisible to their pilots’ sightlines.

Observing the blue team’s formation—two members guarding the stronghold’s flanks while two patrolled the perimeter—Mu Li saw their tight defense offered few openings. Alone, she stood little chance.

As Mu Li debated scouting the purple base instead, a laser beam shot past her, striking a blue perimeter member’s arm—non-lethal. The blues immediately returned fire toward the purple team, who had left only one defender while bringing three to attack blue.

The uninjured blue perimeter member charged the purples. With melee combat preventing Laser Cannon use, the two engaged hand-to-hand. The remaining three blues quickly took cover at prepared positions, exchanging fire with the purples. Mu Li’s right hand hovered over the activation button on her left wrist—one press would summon her Mecha. She waited for the perfect moment to strike decisively while preserving herself.

“Can you hear me? What’s your situation?” came a teammate’s voice through her earpiece.

Mu Li replied, “I’m at the Blue Team’s stronghold. All four Blue Team members are here, while the Purple Team only left one person to defend their base. You can ambush the Purple Team. If they try to return, I’ll intercept them.”

“Got it. Keep in touch at all times.”

The three Purple Team members were formidable, evenly matched against the Blue Team’s four. The back-and-forth battle dragged on with no casualties.

Suddenly, one Purple Team member ducked behind cover, followed by the other two seemingly receiving some message as they prepared to retreat.

Now was the moment! Mu Li stood up and pressed a button, summoning her mecha before everyone’s eyes. She swiftly launched two laser cannon shells that exploded in front of the group.

The Purple Team hurried to return to their stronghold, making a quick withdrawal. The Blue Team seemed to guess their intentions, exchanging glances before continuing their fierce assault to prevent their return. With the Green Team down to only three members, there might still be sacrifices when attacking the Purple Team’s position. By cooperating with the Green Team to pin down the Purple Team’s main forces, victory was within reach.

Mu Li saw through the Blue Team’s plan. She had never intended to take on two teams alone. Drawing her sword, she charged straight at the Purple Team.

The Purple Team was caught off guard. In close combat where laser guns couldn’t be used, everyone had defaulted to hand-to-hand fighting—yet Mu Li could still wield a sword! Those who hadn’t seen her combat footage shared the same bewildered thought: Weren’t the swords equipped on mechas just decorative to make them look more imposing? How could they actually be used as weapons?

In a battle between flesh and steel, the sword undoubtedly held the advantage—especially when wielded by someone like Mu Li, who had practiced swordsmanship for hundreds, if not thousands, years. With a single leap, she blocked the Purple Team’s retreat path. Just as they raised their laser guns, Mu Li struck first, slashing at their chests and knocking their weapons aside. With swift, precise wrist movements, she carved as many wounds as possible in the shortest time, pushing their mechas beyond their endurance limits.

Stunned by Mu Li’s maneuvers, the Purple Team tried to counterattack, only to be bombarded by the Blue Team’s fire from behind. Trapped between a rock and a hard place, the Purple Team’s formation collapsed entirely. One by one, all three “fell in battle.” As they exited the match, the last thing they saw was their stronghold being captured on the map.

With four Blue Team members and three Green Team members remaining, the battle raged on. Seeing Mu Li isolated, the Blue Team turned all their firepower toward her. A barrage of laser cannon shells screamed toward Mu Li as she leaped and dodged. But the onslaught was too intense—she couldn’t wait for reinforcements.

In that instant, Mu Li unleashed an overwhelming surge of Mental Strength, forming a powerful barrier that deflected the incoming attacks. While Mental Strength could be used to operate mechas, few could simultaneously wield it as a defensive or offensive tool.

Those with low Mental Strength lacked the capacity for dual control, while even high-level users rarely dared to attempt it. Someone as formidable as Ji Yu, when battling the Queen Zerg, had divided her focus between piloting her mecha and attacking with Mental Strength—only to fail in blocking the venom that ultimately invaded her Sea of Consciousness.

Mu Li released her Mental Strength with a do-or-die resolve. Though she possessed SSS-Rank Mental Strength, there were limits to what one person could endure. She couldn’t maintain the barrier for long.

Taking advantage of the Blue Team’s momentary daze, Mu Li sheathed her sword and unleashed laser fire at maximum intensity. Her barrage cut through the defensive fire of the four Blue Team members and exploded upon their Stronghold. After erupting in a powerful beam of light, the Stronghold dimmed into nothingness. The moment the map displayed the Blue Team’s elimination, Mu Li’s depleted Mental Strength finally gave out, forcing her to kneel on one knee as she gasped for breath.