The bombing stopped, and the abandoned underground base was in complete disarray. Collapsed rubble blocked countless roads, making the already complex terrain even more complicated. From time to time, the crackling sound of falling rubble could be heard in the darkness.
Smoke and dust filled the bottom of the base, and large chunks of rubble and broken metal plates piled up into a small hill, burying Nero very completely.
Suddenly, a sound came from the darkness, like a sticky liquid flowing.
whoosh--
At the bottom of this pile of debris, an area about two meters in diameter gradually lit up with a red light, growing brighter and brighter. The metal and rock melted away, revealing a hollow hole.
With a hunched back, Nero limped out of the cave, his hands constantly unleashing molten heat rays that distorted the surrounding air due to the intense heat.
"Cough cough cough..."
A muffled cough came from inside the mecha's mask. Nero gasped for breath for a moment before bracing himself to let the mecha perform a health check.
"The left leg bone is slightly dislocated. Is it permissible for the mecha's structure to automatically adjust and correct this?"
"Yes."
The armor on his left leg tightened slightly, correcting the misaligned leg bone. Nero groaned, then relaxed. He'd just been hit by a mountain of debris; the mech itself was fine, but the recoil had left him with minor injuries—after all, he was just a fragile mechanic.
The radar showed the enemy was right overhead. There was no time to rest. Nero forced himself to calm down and hurriedly opened the communication channel to contact his teammates.
"Captain, this is Nero. Where are you? What's the situation?"
A jumble of noises and intermittent cries of pain came through the channel. It took Nero a while to receive the team's public message.
"The situation here is bad!" A teammate's face popped up on the tactical screen inside the mech's visor, his face covered in abrasions and bruises, his voice urgent, "I'm with the captain. When the base collapsed, the captain was hit by a beam of naval gun fire that pierced the ground. He's critically injured now. Many people have gotten separated. Whoever hears this message, immediately rescue him and bring everyone here to regroup. We must break out immediately."
Nero immediately opened the team's health monitoring app and was shocked to see the screen filled with red.
Everyone else was more seriously injured than him, including the captain and several others who were in critical condition... Because he fell into the bottom of the base and was buried, he happened to avoid the subsequent naval bombardment and was the least injured.
Without even thinking, Lucky Halo is shining brightly above their heads.
"Only I am in the most complete condition..." Nero suddenly felt a great increase in responsibility and pressure on his shoulders.
He gritted his teeth and immediately activated the teammate location tracking. The location of each teammate was marked on the tactical screen, and the mech's AI operated at high speed, quickly planning the fastest rescue route.
With its rear thrusters blasting out plumes of exhaust, Nero flew out of the large crater at the bottom of the base and began rescuing the scattered team members.
The terrain was complex and there was no time to detour. He kept firing his molten cannons from his palms, melting through all the obstacles in his way, rescuing his teammates one by one before the Kunde Race ground forces arrived, and finally reuniting with the captain.
Exploding through the metal plates blocking his path, Nero flew into the wrecked room, landing with a thud. He saw the captain and his team members there, all injured.
The captain was slumped on the ground, his upper body leaning against the wall. His armor was charred black, revealing large holes. He struggled to lift his head, forced a smile, and spoke weakly:
"Nero, you're here. Well done... cough cough, well done."
"Captain, please stop talking."
Seeing this, Nero slightly bent his five fingers, and a short injection needle flicked out from his fingertips, like a claw, and stuck into the captain's chest.
Aurora made life-saving potion was injected into the captain's body through the syringe, instantly healing his severe injuries.
The captain's condition improved at a visible speed. He let out a comfortable cry, his voice full of energy, and clicked his tongue, saying, "This is Aurora's special life-saving potion? It's truly a wonderful thing."
Aurora occasionally uses her powers to produce life potions, but the production is limited, and the life energy injected into the potions has a shelf life, so not every Black Star warrior is equipped with them. Ordinary people just use normal healing agents, but with Nero's wealth, he naturally has Aurora Potion.
"Those who are seriously injured, come here. There are still some medicines left. I'll help you restore your fighting strength," Nero said loudly.
Someone couldn't help but say, "Keep some for yourself. There's going to be a bloody battle later. What if you get injured?"
"It's alright, I have other medicines." Nero didn't seem to care.
The group exchanged glances, shrugged, and realized it was really nice to have a rich guy in the team. With such a powerful figure on their side, they figured they might as well take advantage of it.
Nero treated his teammates' injuries one by one, and in the process, the group urgently discussed tactics.
The captain's tone was serious. "Gentlemen, the situation is very unfavorable for us. We've fallen into a trap. The entire fleet has been ambushed by the enemy. The others are too busy to help us, and we're now isolated. We can only break through on our own. There are three Kunde Race warships on board, and we have no vehicles. It's extremely dangerous..."
"If the enemy continues their fleet bombardment, it will be a dead end for us. But instead of attacking, they've stopped and are sending ground troops to approach us." The vice-captain's eyes flashed. "This means the enemy might intend to capture us alive, which could be our only chance to escape."
"That's right!" The captain nodded emphatically. "To escape, we must gain air superiority. The fleet can't come to our aid. We can only seize a spaceship ourselves. The chances are slim, but at least there's hope."
This ruin is our shield. If we rush out, enemy ships can bomb us at will. We can only wait for enemy soldiers to enter the underground base and engage us. To avoid friendly fire, the enemy ships will not fire indiscriminately. Therefore, we must split into two groups: one group will maneuver around this ruin with the enemy soldiers, and the other group will go and seize the spaceship...
At this point, the captain paused, and everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.
This is a crucial mission concerning the lives of everyone involved. There may only be one chance; it is extremely dangerous, with a slim chance of survival.
So the question is, who should go and steal the spaceship? Logically, the strongest person should be chosen for this mission, and the strongest person in the team is none other than Nero, who has a powerful background.
Asking a young, inexperienced person with a prestigious background to shoulder such a heavy responsibility and risk their life... everyone hesitated.
Seeing this, Nero, who was standing to the side, also realized what was happening. He gritted his teeth, made up his mind, and volunteered:
"I'll go. No one is more suitable than me."
The captain glanced at him, didn't feign reluctance, and slowly nodded, his tone serious and earnest, "Alright, we're counting on you. We'll hold off the enemy and buy you time... Remember, the lives of all of us are in your hands."
"... Understood."
Nero took a deep breath to calm his heavy heart, controlled the mecha into high Stealth mode, took one last deep look at everyone, and then parted ways with them, disappearing into the darkness.
The captain exhaled, looked at the group, and his eyes turned stern. "I don't need to tell you what to do, do I? No matter what, keep the enemy tied down here."
"We understand." The vice-captain nodded, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
Everyone present, except for Nero, knew the captain's unspoken message. In reality, there were two battle plans: they were holding off the enemy while Nero seized the spaceship—this was only the first plan.
And if this plan fails, they will not hesitate to execute the hidden backup plan... which is to change from delaying to fighting to the death to cover their retreat, so that the unsuspecting Nero will abandon them and escape alone.
It wasn't just because of Nero's relationship with the legion commander, but also because they knew this young man's future achievements would far exceed their imagination. Only by letting a young man with great potential escape could they avenge themselves.
After sneaking around in the darkness for a while, news finally came through the communication channel that his teammates had engaged in a battle with the Kunde Race soldiers.
Nero was no longer on the battlefield. He arrived at a collapsed opening leading to the ground, concealed himself, and used radar to lock onto the nearest spaceship in the air.
Nero's palms were sweaty as he carefully released a unique floating guardian. Its black and gold coloring gave it a texture completely different from all of Nero's other equipment, exuding an unparalleled sense of luxury. Once released, the guardian gracefully hovered above Nero's head.
"It's up to you now, brother." Nero patted the floating guardian, feeling reassured.
"Don't worry, kid, with your big brother here, no one can hurt you," the floating guard suddenly spoke.
This was Nero's last trump card; this floating guardian was a gift that Han Xiao had given him when they first met.
This high-level orange-grade mechanical device, crafted to Beyond Grade A, is powered by dark energy and imbued with [Emperor's Gift] and [Mechanical Fusion·Granting]. After Han Xiao obtained the Mechanical Life Spark, he transformed it into a mechanical life form with independent consciousness and self-growth capabilities, calling itself "Sky Guard."
When Nero was a child, even without the Mechanical Force enhancements, the Sky Guard could deal with Grade C superhumans.
Now that Nero has become a C+ superhuman and possesses Perfect Mechanical Sense, the power that Sky Guard can unleash is obvious. Even by Grade B combat standards, Nero is not weak.
Most of the time, Nero would not use this trump card, especially during daily sparring within the academy. Even if a martial artist suddenly attacked him and beat him black and blue, he never used this powerful weapon.
Even his closest friend Mia was unaware of his true fighting ability.
At the academy, Mia had sparred with him countless times, but in fact, Mia never knew how strong he was when he went all out.
Looking at the target marked on the radar, Nero took a deep breath, adjusted his mindset, and gradually let his energy boil.
"Phew, I can do it..."
With his mind focused, Nero didn't hesitate any longer, activating the thrusters and unleashing a deafening burst of exhaust flames.
Boom!
He suddenly launched himself forward, crashing through the rocks at the cave entrance with a bang, and soared into the sky!
The three warships in the sky immediately opened fire with their cannons, focusing their fire on Nero.
The power of a salvo from the naval guns would be fatal to Grade C enemy, but the next moment, the Sky Guard following Nero trembled slightly, and beams of light outlined a polygonal golden shield, protecting Nero in the center.
Bang bang bang!
All the ship's guns bombarded the shield, creating bursts of light like fireworks, but the shield only showed slight cracks and continued to repair itself, withstanding a round of concentrated fire.
At the same time, several Kunde Race warships in the sky realized Nero's intentions and immediately deployed their shields to prevent outsiders from boarding.
"Get me a passage!"
With a thought from Nero, the Sky Guard flashed with a burst of Mechanical Force lightning, quickly transforming to reveal a hexagonal cannon muzzle in the center. Dense dark energy burst forth, firing a series of highly penetrating black-red dark energy rays.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh--
That rate of fire was incredible, giving off a feeling of frequent and urgent urination.
A gap was blasted open in the target ship's shield, and Nero seized the opportunity, rushing headlong into the opening.
With a series of snaps, he flicked several compressed balls out of the air. Midway through their flight, they transformed into several laser cutting drills with electromagnetic bases, attaching themselves to the spaceship and quickly cutting through the outer armor to create an opening leading to the interior of the spaceship.
Nero rolled over and crashed into the spaceship. Without a word, he threw out a large group of mechanical soldiers and began a rampage inside the spaceship, cutting down waves of crew members under his firepower.
Because this ship sent some soldiers to deal with Nero's other team members, the ship's manpower was not sufficient, which actually created an opportunity for Nero.
Nero, unleashing his full firepower without holding back, stormed into the main control room in no time, took out the Legion-standard intrusion chip, and inserted it into the ship's intelligent core—he wasn't a virtual mechanic, but the Legion had such automated intrusion equipment.
Just then, Nero suddenly staggered and realized that the spaceship was shaking violently!
Rumble rumble--
Looking out the porthole, he saw the other two spaceships turn around and focus fire on the warship he had landed on, disregarding the casualties among their comrades.
"They actually attacked their own teammate's ship, that's ruthless." Nero clicked his tongue in amazement, but his actions were swift; he stormed into the command room and successfully seized control of the ship.
He channeled most of his energy into the ship's shields and steered the warship to ram into the nearest enemy vessel.
Bang!!
The two spaceships' shields rubbed together, sending up large shards of light. The enemy ship temporarily lost its balance and flew off to the side in a spiral.
Unfortunately, the ship flew directly towards another enemy vessel. The two enemy ships collided and simultaneously lost control. As they scrambled to stabilize their ships, a brief gap appeared in their concentrated fire.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Nero piloted his spaceship and executed a powerful tail sweep, positioning the ship between the two enemy ships and the ground forces.
"Get out here! I've got the spaceship! Charge to the ground from the coordinates I specify, and I'll use the traction beam to pull you up!" Nero shouted into the channel immediately.
"Pretty!"
The captain and his men, who were in the midst of a struggle, were overjoyed and launched a sudden offensive. Relying on their formidable individual combat strength, they forcefully broke through the encirclement of the Kunde Race soldiers.
Bang!
The next moment, a section of the ground in the ruins exploded open, and the squad members rushed to the surface, with the Kunde Race soldiers still in pursuit.
"Captain, don't stop!"
Nero's face lit up with joy, and he hurriedly shouted.
At this critical moment, every second counted. Nero didn't have time to worry about the two enemy ships that had moved in from behind and were firing at his rear, bombarding his stern shield. He immediately used his traction beam to pull in his squad members, while simultaneously releasing a large number of turrets to focus fire on the Pursuit Kunde Race soldiers, providing fire support for his teammates.
The tractor beam successfully sucked all the teammates into the ship's cabin. This incident also attracted the attention of the enemy forces engaged in battle with their fleet in the city, and more warships, far outnumbering their own, rushed towards the scene.
Nero dared not linger in the fight. After rescuing the team, he immediately launched himself into the sky and fled into space.
Soon, the other team members also arrived at the command room and all rushed over to frantically rub Nero's head.
"Well done, kid!"
"Haha, I'm saved! I thought I was going to die this time!"
"It went so smoothly! Looks like luck is on our side!"
Everyone beamed with joy and showered Nero with praise, which greatly excited Nero as well.
"Don't be so happy yet, we're still not out of danger." Although the captain said this, he also had a smile on his face, as if he had survived a disaster.
Although there are still a lot of spaceships Pursuit, the situation is much better than before, no longer a hopeless predicament.
After a brief moment of joy, everyone remembered their teammates who were in danger, their smiles faded, and their expressions returned to solemnity.
"We escaped, but what about the other team members who were besieged?" someone asked.
"There's nothing we can do to help. There are too many enemies. If we rush to help, we'll only get ourselves killed."
The captain shook his head. He was well aware of the current situation. Relying on their single ship would only result in sending people to their deaths and wasting their chance to escape.
The best course of action now is to split up and escape, not to linger in the fight. Besides, their current situation is worse than the others; they can only leave their teammates to fend for themselves.
Just then, Nero remembered something, and his heart jumped.
"By the way, I wonder how Mia's team is doing..."
Thinking of this, Nero couldn't sit still any longer. He handed the spaceship over to his teammates to take control and hurriedly took out his communicator to contact Mia.
The wait for the call to be answered (https://m. hetushu. com) is agonizing; time seems to stretch on endlessly.
Nero waited anxiously for a while, but the call still didn't go through. He could only send messages to Mia's teammates one by one, but no one answered. His expression became more and more tense.
Communication was finally established only after contacting the captain of Mia's squad. However, the sounds of battle coming from the other end instantly plunged Nero's heart into despair.
"Cough cough... Nero? You guys escaped?"
"It's me! You were attacked too? What's the situation? We have a spaceship that can come to our aid!" Nero asked urgently, firing off a barrage of questions.
"No... don't come any further! You all need to run! My entire squad has been captured, Mia has been captured alive, and I'm the only one left fighting. I won't be able to hold out much longer. The enemy has several warships; you can't save us. Go! Cough cough..."
After the other end finished speaking, the communication abruptly ended.
Nero's face twitched, he turned and walked away, striding towards the hatch.
The teammates around him had also heard the communication. Seeing Nero's actions, a group of people rushed over and held him down.
"Nero, don't do anything rash," the captain shouted.
I have to go save her!
Nero was held down by seven or eight burly men, struggling but unable to move, his expression resolute.
"Don't be silly, didn't I just tell you? Going to rescue them would be a waste of time!" the captain roared.
"I know, that's why I didn't plan to ask for your help!" Nero gritted his teeth, his voice spitting out, "This was my own choice. I didn't put you in danger. You can take this spaceship and leave. I'll go rescue people alone. Don't stop me!"
"You have even less chance if you go alone; it's just suicide. Don't be impulsive!" The captain held Nero down firmly.
Nero struggled for a while before gradually calming down. He sat on the ground, covered his face with his hands, and remained silent.
Seeing this, everyone released their grip, took a few steps back, and left him alone.
Sensing Nero's sorrow, the captain couldn't help but sigh. He crouched down and patted Nero's shoulder. After a moment's hesitation, unable to think of a way to comfort her, he could only mutter, "She's just been captured, she's not dead yet. Maybe there's still a chance. Let's try to rescue her later. Right now, we can only run away."
As soon as he finished speaking, Nero suddenly looked up, his eyes slightly red, and his voice low:
"You were right. I acted impulsively just now. Thank you for stopping me... I can't let Mia and the others fall into the enemy's hands. I don't know what kind of torture they would suffer. I still have one last hope."
With that, Nero stood up, took out his communicator, took a deep breath, and mustered up his courage to dial Han Xiao's number.
He had originally decided not to contact Han Xiao while serving in the military, precisely because he didn't want to disappoint his godfather. If he hadn't been forced into this situation, he wouldn't have wanted to trouble Han Xiao either...
The signal beeped three times while waiting for communication, which felt like an eternity to Nero. After exactly three beeps, the other end finally answered, and Nero's familiar calm voice came through.
"Nero, what brings you here?" Han Xiao asked with a subtle smile.
"Godfather, I'm sorry, I've let you down." Nero rubbed his eyes and said softly, "I've encountered a problem I can't solve, and I hope you can help me."
"Tell me," Han Xiao replied casually.
Nero quickly explained the situation, lowered his head, and waited for a reply.
Seeing his expression, Han Xiao stroked his chin and smiled slightly, "I refuse."
Nero looked up abruptly, his face filled with astonishment.
"Surprised?" Han Xiao's smile faded. "Your status is different now. You're not just my godson, but a regular legion soldier. I have indeed given you excellent treatment, but that doesn't mean I will always give you special treatment."
"But... but..." Nero's eyes reddened.
"It's not impossible for me to help you. Putting aside our relationship and looking at it purely from a business perspective, what can you offer me to hire me to help you?" Han Xiao said calmly.
"I... I don't know."
"Then why should you ask for my help?" Han Xiao blinked. "Our relationship is real, but I won't help you without a reason. That's the rule. If you want something, you always have to exchange it for something else. Stripped of this relationship, what do you have left to offer?"
Nero was in a state of confusion, muttering, "I... I didn't..."
Seeing Nero covering his head with his hands, remaining silent for a long time, his expression becoming dejected, Han Xiao finally relaxed his tone and smiled, "What's wrong, feeling despair? Think carefully, how long has it been since you thanked me?"
Upon hearing this, Nero shuddered violently, lowered his head, and muttered to himself:
"I'm sorry... please..."
"I'm asking you, have you felt despair?" Han Xiao narrowed his eyes and emphasized his tone.
Nero remained silent for a long time before raising his head again, his lip already bleeding, his eyes blurry with tears, and he nodded to Han Xiao.
"Despair is just right. Remember this feeling, and never experience it again." Han Xiao sat up straight and chuckled. "Don't worry, I promised you this time, I'll help you rescue your little girlfriend."
Nero's emotions were like a rollercoaster, first falling from the clouds to the abyss, and then soaring to the sky. He was stunned for a moment before he came to his senses, clutching the communicator with both hands in a state of disbelief, almost bursting into tears of joy.
"Thank you... thank you..."
"Don't get too excited yet, this isn't free." Han Xiao propped his cheek up with his hand and coaxed, "You don't know what you have to offer, but in fact, you're not useless. At the very least, you have a strong talent for mechanics. Why not use that as leverage?"
"What does this mean?" Nero didn't understand.
"If you really want an explanation, you can think of it as me not wanting you to waste your talent. Don't ask what it means specifically; just answer me, yes or no." Han Xiao said with a half-smile.
Nero still didn't understand, but he had no choice. He gritted his teeth and nodded emphatically.
"I promise, please help me!"
At the same time, Han Xiao, who was making a remote call at the Black Star Palace, noticed a movement on his control panel.
[You have triggered the special quest [Nero's Request]!]
[Mission Introduction: Nero has agreed to your deal, willing to exchange his talent and abilities for your help.]
[Mission Requirement: Rescue Mia Molotov]
[Reward: Learn one of Nero's skills or specialties]