Pluto Mech

Following Li Yi, Zhong Xiufa also jumped up.

She was quite agile, her jumping posture smooth and natural.

Combined with her graceful figure and slender limbs, she was a pleasing sight.

After she came up, the Crimson Gourd AI was in front, and the two behind stood facing each other.

At this moment, Zhong Xiufa was the first to greet Li Yi:

"Hello, Brother Yi. I'm Zhong Xiufa from Base No. 33, from the Wen tribe. I've wanted to thank you for a while now, and I finally have the chance. Thank you so much."

As she spoke, Zhong Xiufa kept her head bowed, appearing somewhat reserved.

"Thank me?"

Li Yi asked, surprised.

"Yes, if Brother Yi hadn't eliminated so many seed players from the top ten and top twenty this time, I might not have ranked sixth."

"Alright, then you can only thank me for half. The other half goes to Liang Xing."

"Regardless of whether it's half or not, Brother Yi's kindness to me is undeniable. If you ever need my help in the future, please don't hesitate to ask."

Li Yi turned his head and saw that Zhong Xiufa's expression was serious and earnest, clearly not joking.

"Are you the type with very strict upbringing?"

Zhong Xiufa was taken aback: "What does Brother Yi mean?"

"The way you speak, your expression, your tone – it all feels like you're imitating one of your elders."

She hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Does Brother Yi really think I'm imitating someone?"

Li Yi smiled slightly: "Don't you feel it yourself?"

Zhong Xiufa fell silent.

Meanwhile, the two were being carried by the large gourd, continuously ascending, arriving at the rear of the Pluto Mech's head.

Behind the Pluto Mech's head, there was a large mechanical suspension with a semi-enclosed small platform about a meter wide.

"Li Yi, go up to that platform and wait. I'll activate the Insertion Pod for you."

The Crimson Gourd AI pointed at the platform and gestured with its mouth towards Li Yi.

Li Yi nodded and stepped onto the small platform.

"Insertion Pods are single-use items with high manufacturing costs. Don't waste the opportunity. If you're not sure about resonance, you can choose to switch to another one."

"Single-use items?"

"That's right. The Insertion Pod has a built-in small auxiliary AI that can assist you in activating the divine mech with maximum efficiency. Once you successfully activate it, you won't need the Insertion Pod anymore. You can directly enter it using the mark granted by the divine mech."

Li Yi understood. No wonder they limited the selection attempts.

"I'm sure. Sister Gourd, you can proceed."

"Okay, I've activated the Insertion Pod. The countdown begins!"

"10, 9... 3, 2, 1."

"Insert!"

Boom!!!

The small platform door instantly closed, and a pale red fluid substance surged in.

Following that, the entire Insertion Pod plunged into the connection port at the rear of the Pluto Mech's brain.

After Li Yi entered the Pluto Mech.

Zhong Xiufa also entered the Green Dragonfly Mech.

About three minutes passed, and everyone heard a loud sound of metal friction.

Then, the thirty-meter-tall Green Dragonfly Mech, adorned with emerald green and possessing six arms and six wings, slowly opened its eyes, its compound eyes lighting up with scarlet beams.

"Such fast activation speed!"

"It's actually three minutes faster than Liang Shaocong, who was the fastest!"

"The faster the activation speed, the higher the matching rate! It seems Zhong Xiufa has incredible potential for future development."

The crowd below began to buzz with discussion.

It's worth mentioning that.

During the one hour Li Yi rested, a total of four people successfully activated their mechs.

Lin Qi, who ranked fifth, failed to activate and was directly eliminated from the second round of the finals.

"Very good. Since you've successfully activated, remember to familiarize yourself with it and see if you can transmit your body's reactions to the mech's interior at one hundred percent. Remember, if you feel overloaded, stop immediately and eject the cockpit, understand?"

The Crimson Gourd AI, like a bird, circled around the Green Dragonfly Mech and reminded it loudly.

In the blink of an eye, another five minutes passed. The Green Dragonfly Mech slowly stopped moving. The Insertion Pod was ejected from the back of the Green Dragonfly Mech's head, falling to the ground and bouncing a few times like a ball to absorb the impact.

"I didn't expect Zhong Xiufa's combat skills to only be second-rate, but she managed to pilot a divine mech for over five minutes on her first try. It seems her willpower and physique aren't too bad."

"Zhong Xiufa might be a formidable opponent!"

Many people looked at Zhong Xiufa with a hint of wariness.

Time passed.

Another half hour went by.

Until the last person completed their startup, Li Yi remained inside the Pluto Mech, completely still.

If the startup failed, the Insertion Pod would be ejected directly.

But in this current state, everyone was baffled. Could Li Yi actually do it or not?

The Crimson Gourd AI, bored, doodled on the screen in front of it, murmuring softly.

"This year's fastest startup record is Zhong Xiufa at 3 minutes, and the longest operational time is Liang Shaocong at 11 minutes. Long Guanshan is decent overall, with a 7-minute startup and 6 minutes of operation. Following him is Lin Hua, with an 8-minute startup and 6 minutes of operation."

"Hmm, the others are just average."

"It's a shame that all those who successfully started up this year are E-class."

"The only two who challenged D-class mechs, one has already failed, and the other hasn't succeeded yet."

"Oh no, the results are worrying."

Just then.

A muffled, heavy thud suddenly echoed.

Everyone quickly looked up.

They saw.

The 43-meter-tall, streamlined, all-black, towering mech slowly opened its icy, hellish eyes.

A dark gleam flashed in its eyes and vanished.

Witnessing this moment, everyone felt as if they had fallen into an ice cellar, their thoughts nearly frozen.

Even some of the more sensitive individuals felt as if an endless, brutal hell was unfolding before their eyes.

Fortunately, these sensations didn't last long.

In just an instant, the strange feelings ceased.

"Is this the divine mech of the D-class sequence? Just opening its eyes carries such immense power."

Beside them, Liang Shaocong's eyes flickered as he murmured softly.

Zhong Xiufa said, "Did Brother Yi break another record?"

Everyone was stunned and looked at Zhong Xiufa.

Zhong Xiufa felt a little embarrassed by their stares and quickly said:

"Isn't it said that although D-class divine mechs can theoretically be piloted by non-evolvers, there are actually very few non-evolvers who can actually pilot them?"

"You are correct."

Long Guanshan said in a low voice, "As far as I know, it's been over twenty years since anyone on the Jade Pool No. 7 has been able to pilot a D-class divine mech at the non-evolver stage."

"But Li Yi took nearly an hour and a half to successfully start it up. Such a delay, could this be the Jade Pool No. 7's slowest record?"

Lin Hua asked.

She had been silent until now, and this was her first time joining the discussion.

"Regardless, being able to start up a D-class mech is already a success."

Long Guanshan said calmly, "A slow startup can be improved with practice later. His combat skills are so formidable, he'll likely have more practice time than others, and he'll eventually be able to improve his startup speed."

"That's for the future, but with such a slow startup time now, he'll likely be eliminated in the second round of the finals."

Lin Hua said softly, a hint of complexity flashing in her eyes.