Country Bumpkin

(Second update delivered! Three updates guaranteed today, whether I can add more depends on everyone's enthusiasm!)

Mu Fan saw two mechs fly past him at high speed.

It is about four meters tall, with a huge metal skateboard under its feet, and the engine on its back constantly spews out flames as the mecha performs balancing movements.

After passing the taxi Mu Fan was in, one of the white mechs with a circular logo painted on its back turned and waved to the driver.

"Those Mecha Skateboarders!"

After honking the horn twice, the driver watched the mecha drive further and further away and complained. Then he remembered the question Mu Fan had just asked him.

"Landu Star does not have regulations for mechs below the Warrior Grade, but every mech that appears in the city must be registered and cannot be equipped with lethal weapons."

Mu Fan nodded knowingly. He couldn't see them on Luoqie Star. The regulations on mechas on Zicui Star were unexpectedly strict, so much so that Mu Fan rarely saw them in reality.

But I didn't expect to see two of them so easily here.

"By the way, sir, what is the Mecha Skateboarders'?"

"These young people have nothing better to do. I don't know who came up with this competition. You can't use your feet to run or the engine to jump; you have to rely on the engine's horizontal propulsion and your own stability to compete on a skateboard. This has become popular on Landu Star recently. Sigh, to be honest, I'd like to play too, but I can't afford it. Even the cheapest E-class Travel Grade mech costs over 500,000. I can afford an F-class one, but I could only use it to help move heavy loads in the mines."

So expensive...

Mu Fan now felt that his money was just a drop in the ocean... He estimated that even if he included it, he might not be able to buy an engine.

I'm so poor!

Build your own mecha?

Looking back now, the idea of using black as a guise seems completely unreliable!

However, Lord Black doesn't know Mu Fan's thoughts yet; if he did, he would probably vote in favor.

Even now, I can't understand what kind of junk can be made from this primitive material.

Seeing how much the old man valued it, I still had to train Mu Fan in mechanical engineering.

This is practically killing the Lord Black!

"This sounds really interesting." Mu Fan thought it was intriguing and wondered what it would feel like to drive the Shura on a skateboard.

"Yes, I agree with that. Zhongjing City has a mecha amateur Exchange Meeting with all sorts of competitions and high prize money. If you're really good at it, you can earn back the money you spent on the mecha by winning a few times."

As they were talking, two more mechs flew by, but this time they were flying at a very low altitude.

"What kind of organization is this?" Mu Fan asked, carefully choosing his words.

"Haha, this isn't some organization. Just look at the lily logo on the back; you can tell it's Deep Blue Mecha Company's star product, the Florence series— Adventure Grade civilian mech with a built-in weapon interface, ready to be transformed into a killing machine at any time. Even the cheapest of these mechs starts at ten million!"

The driver talked on and on, rattling off all sorts of stories about Zhongjing City. "So the pilots of these two mechs must be the sons of wealthy people in Zhongjing City. They're just showing off."

Ten million...

Mu Fan's face darkened when he heard those three words, and the more he listened, the more hopeless he felt about life.

He used to have a Asura Mecha, but it couldn't be exposed to the light of day, let alone now it's completely invisible.

Since Shura disappeared after stepping into that Boundary Breaking Gate, he had tried to communicate with the metal plaque through his mind, but it was just a Bing Bing metal plaque that did not respond at all.

Having driven, heard, and seen them, Mu Fan, sitting in the car, suddenly felt a strong urge to own a mecha.

It's not a means of transportation.

It was only when the mecha was by his side that Mu Fan felt his world was truly fulfilling.

If Fatty and White Hair see this, they'll definitely give him a good talking-to.

A world with women is a fulfilling world!

Although the fat guy's level was several times lower than the White Hair's...

"We've arrived! The entrance to D21 Street. There are too many people inside, we can't drive in."

As Mu Fan was pondering, the middle-aged man steadily parked the car on the side of the road and turned around to say something.

"Oh."

After quickly swiping his card to pay, Mu Fan got out of the car and stood at the entrance of D21 Street.

Neat and wide roads, various electronic screens full of science fiction and modern atmosphere, and retro fluorescent inkjet prints on the walls.

This is a gathering place for pioneers of technology and thought.

Looking at the densely packed, flowing crowd of pedestrians in front of him, Mu Fan was a little bewildered.

How many people are there in front of me?

Why are there small mechs walking around in the distance?

The flashy paint job effectively concealed the coldness of the mecha with vibrant colors.

The light screen emitted by the drone suspended high in the sky directly displayed the words "Federation and Xinqiluo Mecha Exhibition" above everyone's heads.

I know this is it, but how do I get in? All I see is people!

"Hey, let's go. I was right to come back to school early this time. Xinqiluo's high-end mecha made an appearance this time. I heard there's also a limited edition unrated new mecha."

"Unrated!? Could it be Warrior Grade!?"

"It's possible! Let's go check it out, I can't wait."

"I'm going to buy a deluxe mecha model! The latest one!"

"You can only afford a C-class at most."

Two teenagers walked quickly past, chatting and laughing.

"Hmph, poor people."

Another arrogant young man passed by, who clearly looked much wealthier than the two students.

"Excuse me, where do we enter the exhibition?" Mu Fan called out to the young man, as the two people ahead of him had already squeezed into the crowd.

The young man turned around in annoyance, wanting to see who was so blind as to pat him on the shoulder.

However, upon seeing Mu Fan's dark, bright eyes... and then his luxurious clothing, the young man exclaimed in surprise.

This guy is quite wealthy!

This outfit is definitely worth no less than 500,000 Star Coin.

On the wrist of his left hand, which had just been pulled back from his shoulder, was an exquisite wristwatch. Although he only caught a glimpse of it, the young man was certain that it was a limited edition watch.

These are at the same level, but should be treated differently.

The young man's expression softened, and he pointed to a spot ahead.

"See that holographic projection in the air? That small mecha image, in various colors. If you squeeze into that spot, you'll see the entrance."

Following the direction pointed out by the young man, Mu Fan finally saw the entrance. Mu Fan thanked him and squeezed into the crowd.

With superhuman power, Mu Fan directly carved out a path leading to the nearest holographic projection.

"I'll take the test, this is fine."

The dumbfounded youth watched as the previously refined Mu Fan instantly transformed into a violent foreman, pushing and shoving his way through.

So she straightened her collar and, before the crowd closed in, quickly and gracefully followed.

Finally, after squeezing through the crowd to the small red mecha image, I could see the semi-underground entrance, which was now completely packed with people.

After painfully spending 100 Star Coin, Mu Fan once again used superhuman strength to squeeze through the door.

The view dimmed and then brightened again, revealing a giant exhibition hall that covered an area no smaller than the base's special training grounds.

The endless array of colorful booths and the various sizes and shapes of mechs almost blinded Mu Fan instantly.

As for the alluring and beautiful mecha girls at each booth, Mu Fan selectively ignored them.

"So many mechs! They're so beautiful!"

"Country Bumpkin."

Seven or eight meters away from Mu Fan, in front of a bright red Fire Soul Insect mech, two strangely dressed people, one tall and one short, turned around and looked at him with a mocking reply.

***********

P. S.: Thanks to reader "Ran Jia" for the 2000AA500AA100 coins! (Congratulations to the newly promoted hall master!)

Thank you to reader "After Loving You" for 500 coins!

Thank you to the following readers for 100 coins, "Dengdai Xingluo", "Ren Xing Guai", "Blood Bath Gate", "Mutual Greetings", "Zhe c????", "Cloud Breaks", "Feng Ningye", "Poetic and Ren Xiaowei", "Tea Cultivates the Mind", "Moonlight Splendor", "Indulgent Fall", and "Qiu Ye Baihua".

Thank you to reader "Ping Ping) " for 20 coins!