In the apocalypse, I hoarded goods and handed over my storage space to the government.

"Let's try replacing the entire cockpit interior with corrosion-resistant bioceramics first!"

Wei Jianguo paused for a moment, then continued speaking.

"There's also the issue of Bai Lu's mental energy penetration. Let's try having the Sky Shield project team create a signal amplification matrix to amplify and transmit her mental energy through the mecha's antenna!"

The scientists' stubbornness was on full display at this moment.

Since awakened individuals can be pilots, then we should make personalized modifications based on their characteristics.

The passageway gate opened.

Su Ran walked steadily into the testing area.

The passageway gate opened. Su Ran strode steadily into the testing area.

"Brother Su!" Zhu Jingye greeted him quickly.

Su Ran waved her hand and walked to the control panel.

Data scrolled down the screen like a waterfall.

"How's the progress?" Su Ran cut straight to the point.

"Commander Su, Commissioner Ye's neural interaction is perfect. Cheng Ying's mechanical performance can achieve full power release."

Lu Yuan stared at the screen, rapidly typing on the keyboard without looking up.

Su Ran looked at the mech in the center of the arena that had just finished its tactical maneuvers and pressed the communicator:

"Ye Xiao, have you mastered the feel of handling the mecha?"

"Brother Su!"

Ye Xiao's excited voice made the loudspeaker crackle.

"This metal shell is amazing! The power is endless; I feel like I could punch through a mountain right now!"

"Then let's not raid the mountain."

Su Ran spoke solemnly, "The General Staff just sent a battle report. Something has happened on the northeastern border."

Upon hearing this, Bai Lu and Mo Yun both tensed up and stepped forward.

Su Ran pulled up the satellite cloud image on the tactical tablet and projected it onto the main screen.

On the cloud map, north of the Greater Khingan Mountains, countless red dots converge into scarlet patches, surging wildly from the territory of the Russian Bear Kingdom towards the border of the Great Xia.

"A mutated wolf pack in Siberia."

Su Ran tapped the screen with her fingertip, her tone icy.

"Their bodies are covered with high-density ice armor, making them extremely resistant to damage. Conventional artillery has very little effect on them."

He turned his head and looked at Bai Lu and Mo Yun, whose brows were furrowed.

"Twelve hours later, they will collide with the 112th Division stationed on the Greater Khingan Mountains defense line."

The atmosphere inside the test chamber dropped to freezing point.

"Zhao Tiejun, commander of the 112th Division, has just requested reinforcements from Kunlun, asking for the dispatch of the Crystal Core Special Forces."

Su Ran turned her gaze to Ye Xiao on the screen, "I've captured the mission."

Ye Xiao was taken aback at first, then his eyes lit up. "Let me go?"

"Now that Chengying has been created, it shouldn't be left to gather dust in the laboratory."

Su Ran looked intently at Wei Jianguo.

"Old Wei, you can't get the ultimate data by working behind closed doors. You can't cultivate a killing machine in a greenhouse. Real combat is the best testing ground."

Wei Jianguo immediately became agitated, his beard twitching.

"Xiao Su! This is the only prototype; mass production hasn't even started yet. If the core module gets damaged on the front lines, who am I supposed to complain to?"

"Old Wei. The mutated monsters won't wait for us to test all the data perfectly before they come."

Su Ran stood firm, her voice resolute.

"Great Xia needs the most direct, real-world combat data to advance the mass production of second-generation mechs. Moreover, the pilot is Ye Xiao. He knows the importance of this."

Wei Jianguo opened his mouth, but ultimately couldn't utter a rebuttal.

He knew that the battlefield was the only true test of a weapon.

"OK!"

Wei Jianguo snatched the communicator and started typing away at the screen.

"Listen up, you brat! This mech is yours to borrow! You'd better bring it back intact after you're done!"

"No problem, Elder Wei!" Ye Xiao patted his chest and assured him.

"Don't just think about how fun you're killing people!"

Wei Jianguo spoke with spittle flying, relentlessly giving his instructions.

"Tactical slide, overload back throw, continuous output of high-frequency vibration blade..."

The set of tactical maneuvers I just gave you must be tested one by one in actual combat!

The research team needs to collect combat data across the entire frequency band!

"If you lose even one data point, you can forget about ever touching 'Chengying' again!"

"I know, I know! I promise I'll complete the task!"

Ye Xiao readily agreed, but the murderous intent in his voice was barely concealed.

Su Ran nodded slightly.

"Ready to board."

……

Three hours later.

10,000 meters above the ground.

A Y-20 heavy military transport plane tore through the clouds and headed straight for the Northeast Theater Command.

Ye Xiao sat in his seat, holding two specially made Tang swords in his arms, and closed his eyes to rest.

Not far away, the six-meter-tall "Cheng Ying" was firmly fixed to the bottom of the cabin by thick titanium alloy chains.

Several researchers in white lab coats were working around the mech, performing final de-icing and pipeline calibration.

The fellow researcher walked up to Ye Xiao with a data terminal and handed him a bottle of high-energy nutrient solution.

"Commissioner Ye."

His tone was serious but tinged with tension. "Don't forget the data collection task that Elder Wei assigned you."

"I can't forget it."

Ye Xiao bit into the nutrient solution and drank it all in one gulp, then grinned.

"I guarantee I'll provide you with a set of textbook-level real-world statistics."

……

Northeast border, the foothills of the Greater Khingan Mountains.

The forward positions of the 112th Division.

In the crisscrossing trenches, soldiers are building defensive fortifications.

The barrel of the rapid-fire machine gun gleamed with a cold metallic sheen.

Boxes of bright yellow armor-piercing rounds have been opened and neatly stacked next to the firing positions.

The air was thick with the pungent smell of gunpowder and a suffocating sense of impending doom.

No one spoke.

"Buzz!"

A deep engine roar came from above the clouds.

Inside the semi-underground command post in the center of the position, Zhao Tiejun, commander of the 112th Division, suddenly pushed open the blast door and raised his tactical binoculars to look at the sky.

A massive Y-20 pierced through the leaden-gray clouds, its huge cargo door on the belly of the aircraft suddenly bursting open.

There was no parachute.

A massive, metallic black shadow plummeted straight down from a height of hundreds of meters.

"boom!"

The earth trembled violently.

The soldiers at the front line all poked their heads out, staring in disbelief at the enormous thing that had crashed down in front of their positions.

The smoke and dust cleared.

At the very center of the crater, the imposing six-meter-tall steel body of "Cheng Ying" slowly straightened up.

The crystal energy engine on its back suddenly spewed out a dark blue tail flame, displaying an extremely imposing war god posture.

"laugh!"

The mech's chest armor opens.

Ye Xiao jumped out of the cockpit and strode towards the command post.

Several accompanying researchers followed closely behind and landed. Without pausing, they immediately grabbed their instruments and rushed around the mech to set up a temporary tactical data link.

Ye Xiao strode up to Zhao Tiejun, stood at attention, and saluted.

"Greetings, Commander! Ye Xiao, Specialist from the Awakened Headquarters, reporting for duty!"