Ten thousand I am across the heavens

However, humanoid vehicles, even without targeting themselves, have limited combat capabilities. They are inherently at a disadvantage. They may be helpless against heavy enemy armor, and even with highly intelligent artificial intelligence that can accurately identify enemy weaknesses, they may not be able to successfully launch a surprise attack targeting those weaknesses.

Dao Tian, ​​however, was not worried at all. Having made mecha for so many years, he knew all about its performance. Moreover, he was quite confident in the armor he had created. Not only did it have a one-time defense similar to ceramic armor, and explosive reactive armor that could also withstand armor-piercing attacks, but it also had a layer of specially treated material with ridiculously high strength, which served as the main body of the armor. It was practically the Gundam Nim alloy of this world.

With such preparations, even humanoid mechs inherently have defensive weaknesses. Their joints are particularly vulnerable to attack, but the superior quality of the materials used more than compensates for these shortcomings.

With most contestants having completed their creations, the first round of elimination matches officially began. The massive prototype, the Colosseum, had hundreds of gates around it, through which units participating in the duel could be released. It was clear that this enormous Colosseum was designed for massive free-for-all battles, and in extreme cases, it could even host battles involving thousands of people.

Of the hundreds of gates, only 100 were opened, and several of them had no contestants because the contestants corresponding to those gates failed to complete their designs within the allotted time. This is quite common; plans often change, and some contestants' designs heavily rely on certain materials, which the organizers happened to not provide, making them very difficult to create. It's perfectly normal that they couldn't complete their designs.

The audience was incredibly enthusiastic, as if someone on Earth in the 21st century could attend a live sword-forging competition. Everyone was eagerly anticipating a thrilling and exhilarating killing test.

The competition had barely begun when players were already eliminated. Among the many vehicles, some specialized in long-range attacks, immediately launching relentless taunts and unleashing a barrage of fire on surrounding targets. Bullets and shells flew everywhere.

"What's going on? Why are they carrying so much consumable ammunition? Based on my estimation, the first round of combat will likely be a protracted war of attrition. Carrying a large amount of consumable ammunition will significantly impact their armor, rendering them ineffective in subsequent combat and potentially making them among the first to be eliminated. What does this strategy mean?"

Dao Tian's humanoid mech took several hits. Fortunately, his mech was agile enough that, by adjusting its position, most of the shells grazed the armor. This meant that most of the shells, hitting at an angle, bounced off. The few that did hit didn't directly damage the armor, only shattering the surface explosive reactive armor.

Master Ding Er chuckled and shook his head: "That's because you don't understand. This battle isn't just a one-man show. In fact, many people aren't fighting alone; they're operating as a group. To advance, they'll bribe a few opponents to help them set up a scheme. Although the rules of the competition dictate that it's impossible to bribe all competitors to advance—the cost would be too high—it's better to spend that money on backdoors. But if they can find some people to cooperate with, let them dominate in the first round, and then eliminate them directly, that can reduce the pressure during the advancement process."

Notice those shells; their attack methods are quite unique. They primarily use a metal jet armor-piercing mechanism. When designing their armor, most other designs consider various types of attacks, creating a composite defense, including yours. This means that their armor will perform less well against single types of attacks.

These hired fighters disregard their own defenses, unleashing all their consumable ammunition in the initial stages for indiscriminate attacks across the entire battlefield. Composite defenses are ineffective against this targeted assault, resulting in many being eliminated instantly. As for the remaining fighters, they'll naturally face one-on-one combat. However, after enduring such widespread attacks, their mechs will undoubtedly be severely damaged. Meanwhile, the targeted defenses, designed to withstand this widespread assault, will not suffer significant damage after a round of attacks. Having the advantage of being well-rested, and with only half eliminated in the first round, it's easy to survive the first round with minimal losses.

This also means they can minimize the amount of materials they need to stockpile on their external vehicles, allowing them to use more materials in the second round of equipment warfare. The more materials used in equipment warfare, the greater the advantage, without a doubt. So, in the first round, you'll face not only overwhelming attacks, but also a second round of equipment warfare against a much larger force. Even with exceptional skill, victory will likely depend on luck. Good luck; I'm eager to see how far you can go. Even I'm not confident I can pass the Level 2 Mechanic exam on my first try. After all, many things aren't determined by skill; luck plays a significant role. The designers can't control how the robot's AI forms alliances and betrayals. If you're unlucky enough to attract the most hatred and get ganged up on, even with exceptional raw power, you could still be utterly crushed.

"Good heavens, this kind of unfair competition, aren't you going to do anything about it? If you let them operate like this, won't many talented people be unable to get promoted?"

"Huh? You think we lack talent? Obviously not. Where would we lack talent? Do you think there are few people with Level 2 Mechanic abilities? At least a third of the participants possess qualified Level 2 Mechanic abilities, they just don't have the title. And is this title really crucial? For the title holder, of course it's crucial; it relates to their income and social status. But for others, it's really not crucial. Because as long as there are enough people with Level 2 Mechanic abilities to complete the corresponding commercial orders, everything is fine. Conversely, hiring people without Level 2 Mechanic status is actually cheaper. So why not sell this spot for more money? All of this is controlled by the commercial groups behind it. Under these circumstances, do you think they would give up this money-making opportunity?"
Who wins is irrelevant, so to get this title, most people need to pull some strings behind the scenes, unless your skills are exceptionally outstanding. Hmm…it seems your skills are indeed quite impressive. That barrage of attacks didn't seem to have much of an effect on you.”

"Of course, my composite armor includes types that can withstand metal jet penetration. And while humanoid mechs are relatively fragile, if made well, they can indeed be more agile. I've installed more sensors so that the artificial intelligence can collect data from all directions. The AI ​​is already calculating the trajectory of the shells as soon as they're fired, so only the least powerful part actually hits the mech."

"Hmm, judging by the time, this thing I know should be close to stage two. The outer ceramic armor and explosive reactive armor were almost completely destroyed. It should be exploding by now, right?" During their conversation, many players had already been eliminated. The effect of the area-of-effect attack was quite significant, and several players had suffered significantly less damage. They had clearly prepared for this special type of attack beforehand, so the area-of-effect attack caused them negligible damage, and now they were ready to reap the rewards.

Just then, a faint explosion rang out in the arena. The Dao Tiandi mech's outer armor was completely discarded in the explosion, and after the armor burst open, the previously chubby mech appeared much more slender. Its proportions were also closer to those of a normal human body, making it look like a bodybuilder.

After discarding the outer armor, almost all the cooling fans on his body began operating at maximum power. In his hands, the two machine guns he originally held were replaced with two molten swords, their blades gleaming with a blinding white light. As he crouched and assumed a starting stance, the entire mech displayed a dazzling and terrifying speed. Despite not having a split shape and relying solely on its legs to run on the ground, it achieved a supersonic speed akin to a ground-effect vehicle. Several tanks preparing to leap out and eliminate him were caught completely off guard, the molten swords piercing the gaps in the mech's structure. In an instant, terrifying power erupted, destroying their vital ammunition depots or energy cores. The instantaneous explosion tore their tanks apart; despite their thick armor, it was easily breached through the gaps, requiring no second strike before their mechs were rendered unusable.

The humanoid mech moved across the battlefield at breakneck speed, like a whirlwind. In the blink of an eye, over a dozen opponents fell to his sword. No matter how strong the mech, it seemed unable to withstand a single strike. The inexplicable weakness and ability to break through defenses instilled intense fear in everyone present. This was something no one of their level could possibly accomplish. With the battle already one-sided, the remaining one or two who had cheated were frantic, fearing elimination as the blade was about to destroy their mechs. But then, the scorching blade, distorting the air, stopped. It stopped before their horrified eyes. After careful observation, they realized the organizers had cut off the mechs' power. The reason was that time was up, enough people had been eliminated, and only half of the 50 remaining would advance to the next round of elimination matches.

Players participating in this round of melee must discard all the equipment they used in the first round. They will no longer have the protection of vehicles.

The differences became immediately apparent. Previously, everyone's size was roughly the same. But after the first round, some remained almost as large as their previous mechs or tanks. Others were left with only a few pieces of personal equipment, some firearms, and some mobility tools. The worst off were left with only a gun and a few grenades. They had poured almost all their resources into the first round of elimination. Having barely survived, they had no chance in the second round.

Everyone felt that the mech that had dominated the first round would struggle to perform well in the second. This was because, theoretically, the mech had already consumed a significant amount of resources in the first round. Creating such a flexible and powerful machine wouldn't be cheap. How many resources would they have left for the second round? Theoretically, they should only have a few basic weapons left.

As they were thinking this, the mech's cockpit opened. Then they saw a smaller version of the mech emerge from the cockpit.

The larger mech was like a giant garment worn over the smaller one, so the apparent loss in size wasn't particularly significant. Although smaller than those who had merely cheated their way through the first round, he was clearly among the better-equipped present. While only eight spots were available for advancement, he appeared to be one of the more promising contenders.

The first round had already demonstrated the terrifying strength of this creature. However, they were unable to devise a strategy to overwhelm it, as artificial intelligence was a technological black box to them. Even if they wanted to adjust it, they didn't know how. They could only let the AI ​​make its own judgments, and all the contestants prayed that the AI ​​would play conservatively, like a cunning old fox, avoiding damage as much as possible, not provoking others, and making others the target of everyone's attacks. But this was obviously impossible. As the competition began, the battle was still on the verge of erupting. There was absolutely no restraint; in an instant, the battlefield became a hellish hail of bullets.

Some contestants were equipped with extremely luxurious gear. In the second round, one even had a complete heavy mech with a massive mechanical arm wielding a huge six-barreled machine gun. He swept across the battlefield like a god of war, instantly turning any contestant with inferior equipment into dust in his wake.

Some retreated into their spherical shells like turtles, the metal storms striking the shells causing almost no damage. Aside from these well-equipped mechs, the most attention was focused on the mechs that had previously wreaked havoc. Dao Tian, ​​a character never before seen, had suddenly displayed terrifying power, becoming the biggest dark horse.

[To be continued]

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