Federation Year 60, January 5.
The Federal Fleet's first Mech Tournament began. The people who came to attend the opening ceremony truly exceeded Lin Fan's expectations.
Besides Liang Xingchen, the commander-in-chief of the Space Fleet, Saunders, Federal Vice President Ed, Interstellar Military Academy President Li Fulai, and a whole host of high-ranking military and government officials had all shown up. The lineup on the podium was staggering.
It was worth mentioning that, besides the First Fleet and Fourth Fleet, the Federal Fleet's Lunar Headquarters and students from the Interstellar Military Academy had also been added to the competition.
However, those two sides had only sent a small number of their most elite mech pilots, and they would only participate in the individual and squad events. The corps event would still only be contested by the First Fleet and Fourth Fleet.
"Lin Fan, this is our first time meeting, isn't it?"
Old Marshal Saunders came up to Lin Fan and greeted him warmly.
"Yes, Marshal Saunders. You are the Federal Fleet's pillar of stability, and you have always been the person I admired most!"
Lin Fan was not being hypocritical. He genuinely admired the old marshal.
After all, the man before him was no less famous than Liang Xingchen. Saunders' military career could be said to have witnessed the entire history of the Federation. He had enlisted at sixteen, and now, at eighty-eight, he had served for a full seventy-two years—longer than the Federation itself had existed.
More importantly, the old marshal before him had been the first commander of the Federal Fleet's first fleet, as well as the commander who had led the fleet in taking Proxima and Barnard's Star.
However, after taking Barnard's Star, Saunders had returned to Lunar Headquarters upon being promoted to commander-in-chief of the Federal Fleet.