We agreed on mecha combat, so what the hell is this about your physical body exploding into a planet

At this moment, in a certain corner.

"Late Qing".

Chen Tianhao's voice suddenly became very soft, so soft that only the two of them could hear it.

Su Wanqing turned her head and saw Chen Tianhao's face, her heart skipped a beat.

There was no anger or fear on that face, only a desperate, almost manic expression.

"Tianhao, what's wrong?"

She instinctively stepped back.

"Wanqing, I need you to do something for me." Chen Tianhao's voice was very calm, eerily calm.

"What is it?"

Chen Tianhao approached her and whispered a few words in her ear.

Su Wanqing's face instantly turned from pale to deathly white.

"You're insane!"

She took a step back, her voice becoming shrill and distorted.

"Do you know who's watching Ye Yan right now? All four war zones! All four war zones are watching him! If we kill him, none of us will escape! We'll all die!"

"I don't care!"

Chen Tianhao's face contorted into a ferocious expression, his eyes bloodshot.

"If Ye Yan doesn't die, I die! You choose!"

"You're insane...you're really insane..."

Su Wanqing retreated, step by step, as if she had seen something terrifying.

"No way! I don't want to die!"

Chen Tianhao stepped forward and grabbed her by the neck.

"Well--"

Su Wanqing's throat was being choked, and she couldn't make a sound.

"Do you think you have a choice?"

Chen Tianhao's voice was as cold as ice.

"You stole the design drawings, you betrayed him, and you drove him to the brink. Do you think Ye Yan will let you off the hook if he makes a comeback?"

"Me, me"

Tears welled up in Su Wanqing's eyes.

It wasn't because of the pain in my neck.

It was because she knew that what Chen Tianhao said was true.

She is also Ye Yan's enemy.

Ye Yan will not let her go.

"I..." she began with difficulty, "I'll help you..."

Chen Tianhao released his grip.

Su Wanqing collapsed to the ground, clutching her neck and gasping for breath.

"That's more like it."

Chen Tianhao squatted down and looked into her eyes.

"Don't worry, I have a plan. Ye Yan doesn't have a mecha right now. His powers most likely require a mecha to activate; without a mecha, he's just an ordinary person."

Even if that's not the case.

He wanted to do it too.

After all, he had no way out.

"I've already made the arrangements," he said. "We'll make our move on the way back after he comes out."

"But...but what if it gets found out..."

"There are no 'ifs'!"

. . .

"Principal Zhou, a letter from the four war zones"

A person came out from behind the door and reported to Zhou Hengyuan.

"I see"

Zhou Hengyuan's communicator started ringing the moment Ye Yan killed the Abyss Lord.

It's still ringing now.

First War Zone, Second War Zone, Third War Zone.

All the invitations were placed on his desk. Some invited Ye Yan to join the reserve force, some offered full scholarships, and some offered exorbitant contracts.

There was even an invitation from the Federal Institute of Technology.

They wanted to study Ye Yan's powers.

"snort!"

Zhou Hengyuan pushed all the invitations aside, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and snorted coldly.

"Principal, aren't you going to reply?" the secretary asked.

"No rush," Zhou Hengyuan said. "Let him digest what he's learned from this assessment first."

He put down his teacup and looked at Ye Yan on the screen, who had finished the battle and was waiting to leave the secret realm in the teleportation channel.

"This child..." he murmured, "he has no idea how much he is worth."

He paused.

"No, he might know. But he doesn't care."

The scene on the screen has ended.

Ye Yan has left the secret realm and is undergoing a medical check-up in the maintenance area.

None of the three spoke.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Finally, Fang Mingyuan spoke first.

"What a pity."

"What's a pity?" Qian Cheng asked.

"His physical strength."

Fang Mingyuan pointed to Ye Yan's physical data on the screen.

"His physical body has reached at least the level of a fourth-level martial artist."

"And, if one uses one's talents..."

He paused.

"A level one mech pilot with the physical body of a level four martial artist. This has never happened before in the history of the Federation, no! In the entire history of humankind."

"So?" Qian Cheng asked.

"So he faces a choice."

Zhou Hengyuan took over the conversation, his voice calm.

"Mech pilot, or martial artist?"

The spectator room fell silent again.

In this world, there are two paths to becoming stronger.

One is a mecha pilot.

By cultivating mental strength, one can control mechs in battle.

The stronger one's mental strength, the higher the level of mecha one can pilot.

The pinnacle of mech piloting is the ability to single-handedly control S-class or even SSS-class mechs, unleashing devastating power on the battlefield.

The other path is that of a martial artist.

Temper your physical body by absorbing energy from the abyss.

The stronger the physical body, the more abyssal energy it can withstand.

The pinnacle of martial arts is physical immortality, where one punch can shatter mountains and one kick can split the earth.

Throughout history, no one has ever been able to successfully traverse both of these paths simultaneously.

Because of—rejection.

When a martial artist's physical body is strengthened to a certain extent, the abyssal energy flowing within the body will strongly interfere with external mental energy.

This interference would prevent them from accurately controlling the mechs.

The mech's reaction speed, aiming accuracy, and energy distribution all depend on the precise output of mental energy.

Once the mental energy is interfered with, the mecha will turn into a pile of out-of-control scrap metal.

The reverse is also true.

Once a mech pilot's mental strength is enhanced to a certain level, that precise, outward-radiating mental energy field will inhibit the physical body's absorption of abyssal energy.

Their bodies will become increasingly "pure," making it increasingly difficult for them to bear the energy of the abyss.

Ultimately, their physical bodies will become even more fragile than those of ordinary people.

Two roads, two directions, mutually exclusive.

No one can get through at the same time.

nobody.

Those who tried to make it through all died.

Without exception.

From then on, the human power system was divided into two.

Mechs, warriors.

If we're talking about who can go further, there's no doubt it's the martial artist.

But of those who can walk the path of a martial artist, less than one in ten survives.

This applies to those with natural talent. Statistically speaking, if one out of ten thousand people becomes a martial artist, that would be considered extremely lucky.

It is precisely because the path of a martial artist is difficult.

Therefore, in order to deal with the endless stream of abyssal monsters, mech pilots came into being.

Compared to martial artists, the requirements for mecha pilots are not as high.

By simply enhancing one's mental strength, one can control a mecha to unleash devastating power.

just.

"What a pity."

Fang Mingyuan repeated it again.

"With his control skills, that precision, that anticipation, that composure under extreme pressure, if he focuses on becoming a mecha pilot, he can definitely reach the eighth or even ninth tier within twenty years!"

He sighed.

"But his physical body... is so good. The physical body of a fourth-level martial artist cannot be achieved by talent alone."

. . .