Binding the Mecha

Close-quarters combat? Forget it. Zhang Hao couldn't fight to save his life. Long-range sneak attacks were more his style. Staying away from danger was the typical choice for a shut-in. "Then long-range attacks it is," he said.

The robot engineer replied, "Alright, we'll equip it with a long-range electromagnetic cannon, the latest model."

Immediately, two robot engineers mounted a six-meter-long sniper electromagnetic cannon onto the mech's back. A two-meter-long sword was also sheathed on its right thigh. For a mech over eight meters tall, this sword was barely a dagger.

A small, circular shield was attached to its left arm. Once activated, it could form a semicircular defensive energy barrier. If the mech curled up, it could block incoming attacks.

The robot engineer added, "The weapons can be swapped freely. This mech is very powerful in close combat, but it's safer with ranged weapons."

Zhang Hao asked curiously, "What's your name?" He found this robot's speech to be clear and logical, suggesting a very powerful soul.

The robot engineer replied, "I am Intelligent Creation Robot Number Nine. Serving my master is my honor."

"Intelligent Creation" referred to intelligent creation, the most advanced intelligent mechanical and electronic engineers. The Bridgehead possessed only a few bases with such robots, not exceeding five hundred. The top fifty Intelligent Creation engineers, each a master-level expert, had priority protection within the base.

Their souls resided in soul crystals, growing stronger with time.

These five hundred Intelligent Creation engineers were the pinnacle of master-level engineers.

Mi Feng said, "Just call him Old Nine."

Zhang Hao knew the value of these Intelligent Creation Engineering Masters. He quickly found relevant information and understood their preciousness. They were the best batch of engineers with souls and intelligence perfectly fused. Not only were they incredibly skilled with engineering machinery, but they could also fight at a master level. Within the major bases, they were the top tier.

However, they rarely engaged in combat unless the base was attacked. Without Mi Feng and Zhang Hao's command, they wouldn't leave the base.

Zhang Yihu, Zhang Erhu, and Zhang Shanhhu each selected a mech. Their mechs weren't from this compartment but were displayed in the main hall. While not custom-made, they were still top-tier, humanoid mechs, all designed for close combat.

They were nine meters tall.

"Let me try," Zhang Hao said.

A slit opened on the mech's back, and Zhang Hao jumped in.

Stabilizing himself, Zhang Hao felt suspended in mid-air, surrounded by darkness. A mechanical voice sounded, "Mech detected. Bind?"

"Bind!"

Instantly, Zhang Hao saw his surroundings in a peculiar way. His vision was somewhat startling as his soul and the mech's intelligence rapidly merged. He gained complete control of the mech, and everything about it appeared in his soul. He then realized his soul and the mech were one, as if integrated with his own body.

Just by looking, there were several modes: one like normal vision, a colorful world; another was infrared vision, ultraviolet vision; a third was microwave detection, capable of seeing underground; and a fourth was ultrasonic reflection detection. The most impressive was that these detection methods could be synthesized into a single, comprehensive detection.

There were also many communication methods, and communication had permissions. With Zhang Hao's status, he had the authority to mobilize all mechs and robots within the base.

Whether it was sight or hearing, Zhang Hao felt it was incredibly powerful. His physical body couldn't match the mech's agility. Looking up with comprehensive detection, he could even see the robots on the level above moving, all while standing still and calibrating.

Because Zhang Hao mastered mech control skills, and the best ones at that, combined with his reasonably strong soul, he wasn't quite a master mech operator, but his mech was incredibly powerful.

Mi Feng also boarded a humanoid mech, a heavy-duty model, a colossal fifteen-meter-tall behemoth wielding two nine-meter-long giant light swords.

Zhang Hao was speechless. Standing beside it, he looked like he was half its size. The mech had a suspension system, so even on the ground, it wasn't too heavy, but jumping required immense power.

Mi Feng's heavy-duty humanoid mech was one he had custom-ordered long ago. It looked incredibly imposing, a black mech that moved with utter silence.

This type of heavy-duty humanoid mech usually required two to three robots to operate, but Mi Feng, with his incredibly powerful soul, could control it alone. At this moment, Zhang Hao suddenly understood why Mi Feng rarely showed emotion in his speech. He had asked Mi Feng before if he was human, and Mi Feng had said he wasn't.

No wonder the guy spoke so little; it was because of this.

Mi Feng said, "Dispatch a squadron of elite mechs to the fortress gate."

"We're going out!"

"Alright!"

There was an underground passage, eighty meters wide and about thirty meters high, leading outside the fortress.

Rows of mechs were lined up in this passage, all sorts of them. Only Mi Feng, Zhang Hao, and the three they brought—Zhang Yihu—walked through the middle of the path, five mechs in total.

Mi Feng explained, "Outsiders cannot enter. All stored mechs are automatically transported. Of course, we can go anywhere within our own base freely."

Not far ahead were many elevators. Zhang Yihu was the first to enter one. Zhang Hao knew they were going up to act as guards. Zhang Erhu followed.

Then came Mi Feng and Zhang Hao, and finally, Zhang Shanhhu's mech ascended.

This was outside the fortress. Zhang Hao used his normal detection, the visual effect. Outside the fortress, there were many mechs. In Zhang Hao's eyes, these mechs had an enemy-ally identification function. Regardless of distance, mechs had a green indicator on their arms. If it were red, it was an enemy mech.

The sky was red, as if covered with patches of red, some deep, some light. The red was flowing, looking very strange. A strong wind raged on the ground, and occasionally, rocks the size of fists or even basketballs were hurled by the wind.

This kind of wind was considered quite gentle on the slaughter planet. The entire fortress was built within a massive mountain peak.

A huge gap was carved into the mountain, and the base fortress was built within the gap. The entire fortress was enclosed within the mountain. The gate opened to two massive cliff faces, which could protect mechs that had just emerged. The entire exterior of the fortress formed a U-shape, with the fortress opening at the bottom of the U.

The cliffs were part of the fortress. The alloy steel structures on the cliff faces were covered with densely packed gun muzzles. At the base of the cliffs, there were many closed gates. Once these gates opened, large numbers of mechs hidden inside would charge out.