Chapter 18: Testing the Mecha – I Always Feel Like This Matter is Especially Enraging.
By the time Yu Xia finished the exam papers for all four subjects, the entire afternoon had essentially passed.
Yu Xia slumped over the desk. Although it was only a virtual exam, he felt an inexplicable sense of exhaustion, as if his mental power had been nearly depleted by the four-hour testing session.
Qin Yizheng could see right through Yu Xia’s thoughts. Watching the tulip’s lazy posture, he let out a chuckle and reached out to rub the boy’s fluffy head. “SS-rank mental power isn’t that easy to exhaust; you’ve only done four papers. You’re just tired of working. Once the system finishes grading your results, I’ll take you to the Fourth Physical Education Hall to have a look, yeah?”
Yu Xia lifted his head slightly from the desk. “The Fourth Physical Education Hall?”
Until now, he had only visited the Second Physical Education Hall—that was for his mental power contest with Luo Dian. He had only vaguely heard of the other three halls and roughly knew what they were for. He thought back for a moment. “The Fourth Physical Education Hall… I think that’s for mecha combat.”
Qin Yizheng answered him, “Correct. The Fourth Physical Education Hall is specifically for mecha combat matches. I’ve purchased quite a few mecha models in my holographic account. Want to go see?”
Yu Xia’s eyes instantly lit up. “Yes!”
As someone aiming to become an interstellar mechanic, Yu Xia wasn’t about to turn down a chance to inspect mechas. Although he’d only be seeing virtual simulations for now, they were based on real-world mechas, so getting a look was still a great opportunity.
Yu Xia even began thinking that once he got to the academy, he would have to earn enough money to build a mecha library like this for himself.
How cool would that be!
Furthermore, the virtual platform could simulate real-world mecha assembly. While it wasn’t a 100% match, it served as a significant reference. Since virtual assembly materials were vastly cheaper than real ones, the platform was extremely practical for mechanics.
However, that was still a bit far off for the current Yu Xia. First, he had to pass the special entrance exam for Imperial Star Academy in a week.
The system graded the papers quickly. Not long after, Qin Yizheng received the results.
Each of the four subjects was worth 150 points, totaling 600. The score the system gave Yu Xia was between 510 and 530.
Yu Xia leaned in close to Qin Yizheng. “Why is it a range?”
Qin Yizheng explained, “Some subjective questions are graded based on key points. Your answers could be docked points, but if the grader is more lenient, they won’t. Most of the professors grading you won’t make things too difficult for you; as long as your answers aren’t completely off-base, they’ll want to recruit a student with such high mental power. So, they’ll likely use the most lenient grading possible. That said, Student Tulip, you’re quite the scholar! To reach this level in just a month is impressive.”
Yu Xia felt a bit embarrassed. “Not really. It’s mostly thanks to Qin-ge’s hard work in highlighting the key points for me this past month. Otherwise, I’d probably still be on my second round of review and wouldn’t have such a good score.”
Qin Yizheng looked at him with a smile and said, “Not necessarily. You’ve always been serious. Even without me, you would have just spent a bit more time. Reaching this level is your own achievement.”
Yu Xia blinked. “But the thing I lack most is time! The exam is coming up soon, so your contribution is actually huge!”
That was true enough.
Qin Yizheng raised an eyebrow, accepting Yu Xia’s praise. “Shall we head to the Fourth Physical Education Hall now?”
Yu Xia checked the time and saw there was still a while before dinner, so he nodded. “Let’s go, let’s go! Let me see what real mechas look like!”
The two walked out of the elevator together and saw the crowded library below the Examination Hall.
Although the virtual platform’s system lowered the volume of strangers’ voices to keep the library quiet, Yu Xia was still shocked to see almost every seat taken. “There weren’t this many people when we came before. But there have definitely been more people in the library lately.”
This was his first time seeing the library as a spectator. Usually, he arrived early and stayed all morning, and he spent most of his nights in his personal space. He rarely saw such a scene.
Qin Yizheng took a glance as well, though he was used to it. “These are likely students rushing to finish their homework before the break ends. These past few days, even Luo Siqi has been whining that his coursework isn’t done.”
Hearing this, Yu Xia couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Students were the same in every era—starting to panic about their homework in the last two or three weeks, with the most extreme ones finishing an entire summer’s worth of work in a single night.
Qin Yizheng pulled Yu Xia along. “Let’s head to the Fourth Physical Education Hall. Don’t go picking up bad habits like that; if you can do something early, don’t leave it until the next day.”
Yu Xia nodded obediently and followed Qin Yizheng out.
They made their way to the Fourth Physical Education Hall without any trouble.
Normally, the Fourth Physical Education Hall would be the busiest place, as young people were always passionate about mechas. But now, with everyone rushing through their studies, only a few people were scattered at the entrance. You could count the people in the lobby on one hand.
Qin Yizheng expertly submitted an application for a training room at the sub-system.
Yu Xia wasn’t familiar with the process but could guess what he was doing. “We need to open a specific training room?”
Qin Yizheng took the card issued by the system. “These are mechas, after all. They’re huge when deployed. Even though this lobby is big, it can’t actually fit many mechas. So, mecha combat always takes place in training rooms. You can apply for a free room, but those can’t be locked, so anyone can walk in.”
For example, when he dueled Ye Zhichen that day, it was in a free room. But today, since he was showing his mechas to the tulip, he’d rather keep the door locked—lest someone walk in and think he was showing off!
Yu Xia finally got to touch a mecha. Even though it was virtual, it still made him incredibly excited.
He hopped a few times on Qin Yizheng’s mecha seat and leaned over the armrest to look down. “Can I drive this too?”
Qin Yizheng held onto the hem of Yu Xia’s shirt to make sure he didn’t fall. Even though falling in the virtual world didn’t cause actual harm—and the system would trigger a “floating” state to land a person slowly if it detected a fall from a height—mechas weren’t actually that tall.
A fall wouldn’t trigger “floating,” so if Yu Xia hadn’t turned off his pain system, he would feel a bit of a sting. It wouldn’t be a big problem since virtual bodies didn’t affect the real body.
Still, Qin Yizheng was worried. It was best not to fall unless absolutely necessary. “You can drive mechas in the virtual world even with a D-rank constitution. However, in the real world, you need at least a B-rank constitution to withstand the impact a mecha generates.”
Yu Xia pulled himself back. “Are there people who can’t drive mechas even in the virtual world? I thought everything in the virtual world relied on mental power?”
Qin Yizheng retracted his hand from Yu Xia’s shirt and pressed a few buttons on the console. The mecha’s protective shield closed in front of them. He placed his hands on the controls and linked his mental power to the mecha as he spoke. “Other things do rely on mental power, but mechas are different. They are built according to real-world principles, so they still require some level of endurance. Someone with an F-rank constitution wouldn’t be able to handle starting a virtual mecha.”
Yu Xia didn’t know how to pilot, so he just gripped his seatbelt and asked carefully, “What would happen then?”
“The mental body in the virtual world would be directly dispersed, and the person would have a headache in reality for a while. However, if your mental power is high enough—say, A-rank or above—it can act as a buffer for your constitution, allowing you to pilot a mecha.”
Yu Xia did the math. “A-rank mental power for someone with an F-rank constitution… that would put them in the range of Mental Power Disorder. Just like the grade-gap I used to have.”
Qin Yizheng’s brow furrowed. He keenly caught a specific word. “Used to?”
Yu Xia nodded. “Yeah. Before the mental power surge, my Mental Power Disorder was at a four-level gap. But then I was provoked—I think I mentioned this to you—and my mental power surged again. It’s more than a four-level gap now, and it hurts way more than before.”
It had jumped from SS-rank to SSS+ in one go. He didn’t even know how far that “+” went. All he knew was that it hurt like hell. Fortunately, after a month of exercise, he had managed to recover a bit.
Qin Yizheng’s expression changed instantly. He asked very seriously, “If that’s what happened, didn’t the other party receive any punishment?”
Yu Xia said, “They did. I heard he has a record in the military now. But since he’s not actually in the military, it’s just a record; they can’t really do anything to him. His school, on the other hand, seems to have suppressed the matter on the grounds that he didn’t know the situation. They just asked me for a letter of forgiveness.”
Yu Xia spoke very calmly, as if he had already moved past it. But the more Qin Yizheng listened, the tighter his brow became.
I always feel like this matter is especially enraging.
Translator’s Note:
For those new to the genre, “Mental Power Disorder” (精神力紊亂症) in these settings usually means the brain is too powerful for the body to handle, leading to chronic pain or even becoming a “vegetable.”
Yu Xia mentioned a “letter of forgiveness” (諒解書). In many web novels with academy settings, this is a formal document that can clear a student’s disciplinary record. Our MC is being way too nice about it, but our ML clearly thinks someone needs a good face-slapping.
Also, for the mecha fans: constitution (體質) is usually the physical stat, while mental power (精神力) is the “mana” or control stat. Driving a mecha without the right physical stats is like trying to drive a Formula 1 car without a neck—the G-forces will just break you!
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