Cruelty

"Warn!"

"Warn!"

"The machine has been invaded by an unknown intrusion. Please eliminate it immediately!"

"The machine has been invaded by an unknown intrusion. Please eliminate it immediately!"

Inside the driver's cab, alarms blared.

Wang Lei frantically started the rejection system.

Instantly, bursts of ultra-high-temperature gas erupted from inside the machine, blowing out the strands of hair that had seeped into the gaps in the mech, and simultaneously curling and charring them.

Wang Lei breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, the lights in the cockpit flickered, and in the alternation of light and shadow, he could vaguely see a shadowy area below the mech.

Countless figures appeared out of nowhere, densely packed together, shoulder to shoulder.

I passed by the mech's feet.

At this moment, the environment was dim.

Wang Lei had already turned on the mecha's external lights.

Looking out through the panoramic window, the figures can be clearly seen with the help of the lights.

They appear to be original residents of the city.

The figures were dressed in Eight Gates outfits, including white-collar workers, students, factory workers, and children.

But without exception, they were all very blurry, as if shrouded in an invisible mist.

At this moment, they all stopped.

We will stop here.

Then in the next instant.

All the figures turned to look at the mecha.

View through the panoramic window.

Wang Lei eyes met.

Wang Lei suddenly felt a chill down his back.

A Cold Qi instantly shot from my heels to the back of my head.

The hairs on his entire body stood on end.

"What's this?"

Wang Lei instinctively tried to leave.

But the mech did not respond to his movements.

At this point, the ' Empathy System ' issues an alarm.

"An abnormal login signal has been detected!"

"An abnormal login signal has been detected!"

Abnormal signal??

Wang Lei looked at the system; the screen showed that another unknown signal was vying for system resources.

It looks like they're trying to knock Wang Lei's brainwave signals offline.

Wang Lei's mind went blank.

At school.

The teachers didn't mention this situation.

He had absolutely no idea how to handle it.

Fortunately, Wang Lei remembered that his teacher had said that if the ' Empathy System ' malfunctioned, the 'emergency restart procedure' could be used.

He immediately reached out to start the program.

But then, his hand froze in mid-air.

It was on his wrist.

There was a pitch-black hand.

Hold him tightly.

Wang Lei immediately let out a scream.

I turned my head to look.

All I could see was beside me.

A figure appeared out of nowhere.

The figure was wearing Mech Master's Combat Suit and a helmet.

The figure was blurry, as if shrouded in mist.

When Wang Lei looked at it.

It also looked towards Wang Lei.

Inside the helmet, Wang Lei saw a familiar face.

His face!

The lights in the driver's cab were still flickering.

Wang Lei didn't notice.

His shadow had vanished without a trace!

High-speed rail station.

Inside the waiting hall.

Zeng Shan could see from afar that Luo Yan was sitting alone in a corner.

Sunlight fell on him, casting a lonely shadow on the ground.

He held a piece of bread in his hand, but hesitated to take a bite.

Luo Yan, who had lost his appetite and couldn't eat or drink.

I haven't met Zeng Shan yet.

He was about to go over there.

Suddenly someone grabbed me.

Turning around, I saw it was Li Bohang.

Li Bohang shook his head, smiled, and said, "It's best not to disturb him now."

"He just suffered a huge blow."

Zeng Shan was taken aback. "He'll be hurt too?"

"What kind of blow?"

"I just told him a harsh reality."

Li Bohang adjusted his glasses. "The mecha and Energy Core he stole this morning, Team B probably doesn't have the money to redeem them."

Zeng Shan: "..."

Just then...

In the camp, which served as the Command Center, a student ran out and called out, "Luo Yan, Li Bohang, Zeng Shan!"

"Come in quickly, the judging panel has something important to announce."

The student shouted it several times.

Luo Yan then turned around.

A moment later.

On the large screen in the Command Center, Wei Fenghua said with a solemn expression, "Just now, we lost contact with Wang Lei from Year Two B Group."

"These are images we captured using a drone. Take a look."

The scene changes.

Scenes set in the city appeared.

In that scene.

Eerie, long black hair was growing wildly outwards from the depths of the city.

They surged forth in an overwhelming torrent, engulfing skyscrapers, highways, streetlights, cars, and trees.

Among them, the mech piloted by Wang Lei was first entangled in some hair, and then struggled and resisted.

But in the end, the mecha gradually wrapped itself around the black hair and was dragged away by it.

Dragging into the depths of the city.

Playback has ended.

The entire Command Center was silent.

The students still couldn't understand why Wang Lei's mecha was pulled away by those strange hairs.

Luo Yan's eyes flickered, as if he had thought of something, but he didn't speak.

Li Bohang sighed softly, "Senior Wang Lei has left the Safe Zone."

Wei Fenghua's image has reappeared.

"Yes, Wang Lei ignored warnings and left the Safe Zone."

"A strange incident occurred outside the Safe Zone."

"Our initial suspicion is that this is related to the activities of ' Danghu, ' but as before, we have no concrete evidence."

But one thing is certain.

"Once you cross the Safe Zone, you may encounter unpredictable dangers."

"Wang Lei is a case in point."

"I hope everyone will take this as a warning."

"That concludes the important information the judging panel wants to share with you."

Communication ended.

A collective sigh rippled through the Command Center.

Although almost no one here knows Wang Lei.

But a vibrant life was suddenly lost.

It still evokes a sense of awe.

Zeng Shan frowned and asked, "Isn't the teacher planning to organize a rescue?"

Luo Yan did not respond to the question, and walked out of the tent with his gaze lowered.

Li Bohang sighed softly, "Right now, we've only lost one mech and one student."

"If a rescue operation were organized, there's a high possibility of many casualties."

"It may sound cruel, but the truth is, Wang Lei wasn't worth rescuing."

Zeng Shan was startled.

This simple young man, who had not experienced the cruelty of disaster, still retains the value of 'life is priceless'.

Now.

Li Bohang's words, "There's no value in rescuing him," made him deeply aware of the cruelty of the Earth's surface.

At this point, they also need to leave the Command Center.

The communicator rang.

Is Luo Yan there?

We want to talk to him.

A moment later.

A communicator was handed to Luo Yan.

Luo Yan raised his head and looked at Li Bohang.

"They're from Year B Group. They probably want to discuss redeeming the mecha and Energy Core with you."

Upon hearing this...

Luo Yan's eyes lit up at first, but then he lost interest.

Finally, speaking into the Walkie-talkie, he said, "Energy Core: 700,000; mech: 5 million."

"Take it all together, 5.5 million."

Without waiting for a response, he returned the communicator to Li Bohang.

Then he asked seriously.

"Which students in the other three groups come from wealthy families?"

When Luo Yan uttered those words.

Back in the camp of Year Two A Group, Yang Lixie suddenly felt a chill for no reason.