Han Xiao rubbed his chin. The first round gives 20,000 EXP; the second round rewards 80,000 EXP. Based on this increment, the third round may yield me 320,000 EXP, and the fourth round would be more than a million EXP. Stop, I am just dreaming here.”
But honestly, the third round would at least reward him more than 150,000 EXP.
Han Xiao felt it was a waste of time to do the second round, which would last for three entire days, but he quickly changed his thought. He could stay there and earn some EXP by borrowing the facilities and workshops from the Mechanics there to repair the mercenaries’ equipment for free.
Han Xiao had always been a doer. Once he made up his mind, he immediately went to the logistics area to find the local mechanics. They were mostly pseudo-mechanics who had learned some repair skills for their secondary job. There were only two proper Superhuman Mechanics there.
“You want to help us repair equipment?” One repairman was startled. “You are a Mechanic?”
Han Xiao began proving himself directly through actions. He took a pistol on the worktable and disassembled in just a few movements before he assembled it rapidly, like he was performing magic. The whole process flowed smoothly, lasting less than two seconds. He was no longer the newbie in the Germinal Organization who took forty seconds to assemble a pistol. With the add-on effect of his various skills, his ability in making and assembling machinery had reached a level beyond that of an ordinary person.
The group of repairmen agreed to Han Xiao’s request without hesitation—they were even slightly eager to welcome him.
The repair jobs were dreary and tiring, and they did not even get extra pay for it. When someone unexpectedly wanted to take on this tough job, they were all too eager to throw all the work to this legitimate Mechanic that appeared out of nowhere.
…
Before dawn, Chen Li walked into the logistics area while carrying a spoilt machine gun. He was looking for a Mechanic that he was familiar with to repair his gun.
“Wang Xi, help me repair this machine gun.”
Wang Xi was a skinny middle-aged male. He wore a vest and was napping at the side. As he heard the voice, he opened his eyes and gave Chen Li a glance.
“Leave the gun there. I will repair it when I am free,” he said in a rather laid-back manner.
“Would you please hurry up with this? I may need to use it in the day.”
Wang Xi was getting impatient. “Alright. Alright. I will repair it for you later.”
Chen Li had no choice but to leave it to him. Although Wang Xi was ill-tempered, he was a legitimate Mechanic Superhuman with excellent skills. Only he could help him since he did not want the machine gun to malfunction again at a critical moment during the next battle.
After Chen Li left, Wang Xi shut his eyes again and returned to napping.
After five minutes, he heard footsteps approaching once more. He opened his eyes impatiently before he realized it was Chen Li again.
“What are you so anxious for? Once I have time, I will repair it for you, so stop bothering me.” Wang Xi was clearly irritated.
Surprisingly, Chen Li shook his head and said, “Return the machine gun to me. I will get someone else to repair it.”
Wang Xi frowned. Although he was annoyed by Chen Li’s repeated disturbances, he did not wish for the weapon to malfunction again. After all, he was also housed inside the manor.
“Other people’s skills are not good enough. Once the sun rises, I will repair it for you, okay?” he replied.
However, Chen Li was adamant in wanting to have his machine gun back. “It’s fine. The other guy’s skill is better than yours.”
Wang Xi was instantly infuriated by the comment. Everyone knew everyone else in a small logistics area like this. The other legitimate Mechanic was not even as good as him, let alone the bunch of repairmen.
Who are you trying to bluff?
But Chen Li was very insistent. Wang Xi had no choice but to return his gun. When he saw that Chen Li was walking to the other side of the logistics area, he deliberated for a moment before he decided to follow behind. He wanted to see who this Mechanic, who was supposedly better than him, was.
As he arrived at the scene, Wang Xi was shocked by what he saw—the bunch of low-class repairmen were crowding around a man in black, and they stared at him attentively with looks of amazement, jealousy, and curiosity.
Wang Xi was dumbfounded after he took a proper look at the man.
The man in black moved his hands at lightning speed, like a phantom, to operate all sorts of equipment rapidly. By doing so, he was repairing several weapons simultaneously in a natural and flowing style. It was so smooth that he did not even need to pause and think. Wang Xi had never seen any technique like this—he was definitely a higher-class Mechanic!
Originally, the repairmen had only the mindset of pushing their repair jobs to Han Xiao so that they could relax. But when Han Xiao started his repairing process, his technique, which was extremely speedy, quickly grabbed all their attention. They were intoxicated just by looking at it and wanted to note down his every single step. Many details of the technique were massively inspirational for them.
If they possessed an interface, the follow message would have appeared.
_____________________
You gained insights from observing Han Xiao (LV 34) repair machinery. Repair skill proficiency increased.
——————————————————————
The other Mechanic, who was of a similar standard as Wang Xi, was also observing Han Xiao with a look of obsession.
To Wang Xi, Han Xiao’s technique was flawless; to be exact, his standard was not high enough to perceive any flaws in Han Xiao’s technique. He felt somewhat dispirited and wanted to walk away, but he could not make himself do it. He could not resist the desire to stay there and continue watch Han Xiao’s repair work. He was deeply conflicted.
Han Xiao was engrossed in his repair work and did not care about what others around him thought. As a result, his EXP increased speedily. The effect of [Meticulous Repairs Lv.1] was considerably better than ordinary repair skills—they were not skills from the same class. The more basic weapons and machinery could be repaired quickly and easily. Han Xiao could even have been more efficient if not for the lack of better equipment.
For the next three days, other than taking some rests in between, Han Xiao was continuously involved in battles and repairs. Four waves of enemies attacked the manor in this period of time through variety of methods, including a speed boat attack, an armored vehicle attack, and a stealth raid. One group of enemies wore frog-suits and attempted to infiltrate the place by diving through the river on the west side. They were spotted and killed by the snipers.
The enemy’s attacks were gradually increasing in intensity. Han Xiao could sense, with his perspicacity, that the guards in the manor seemed to be getting too weak at defending against the enemy’s attacks. Numerous days of continuous high-intensity battle were taking a toll on their psyche, and the effect of their accumulated exhaustion was erupting. As a result, errors and casualties started appearing on the battlefield.
The mercenaries’ struggle did not have much of an impact on Han Xiao. He was feeling at ease with handling his small area by shooting down all the enemies that went into it. At the same time, he realized that there were more and more ‘fishes that escaped the net’ and entered his area. It seemed that the Hornet Brothers were slowly showing their incapability in handling attacks with such intensity.
Three days passed without any problems. When the first light appeared in the sky, a message was sent immediately to the Interface.
_____________________
Round 2 Complete. You received 80,000 EXP.
——————————————————————
Not bad, but the third round is probably going to get really tough.
Han Xiao was awakened from his nap.
He had received a grand t
otal of 180,000EXP from completing the quest, working on machinery, and killing enemies. He was rather satisfied with the efficiency.
_____________________
Change in Quest Requirement.
Third Round: Defend against the next wave of attack
Reward: 150,000 EXP
——————————————————————
Han Xiao cursed; he had a bad feeling about this round of the quest.
The next wave of enemy was most likely very powerful, and there was a ninety percent chance that the mercenaries would not be able to defend against them.
Chapter 109 - Turning the Tide
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Booooom!
It was a thundery shower. The dark sky was repeatedly torn apart by streaks and streaks of glaring lightning. Rain was pouring down in torrents.
The curtain of rain was limiting everyone’s field of vision, which in turn reduced their shooting accuracy. The mercenaries had to cover the weapons and equipment with waterproof covers against the violent storm as they were not waterproof, and they also sent their ammunition reserves to sheltered areas.
Heavy rain flooded the entire world, and its sound filled everyone’s ears. The fortresses were saturated with moisture. Han Xiao placed himself far away from the window to avoid getting soaked. He looked at the weather outside and frowned. Terrible weather like that is clearly generated by the system purposefully. I bet the next wave of heavy attack will come at this time, otherwise…
Han Xiao was only half way through his sentence before stopped that thought. How could he joke around like that and risk jinxing himself?
Ohmm!
A series of engine sounds were heard in the rain. The enemy was coming at them viciously this time. Hordes of armored vehicles were driving toward the manor in the storm. Countless rain droplets smashed onto the ice-cold metal armor.
“Fire!” The mercenaries in the manor yelled furiously, and the sounds of machine guns and grenade launchers followed.
The next moment, even greater firepower erupted from the enemy’s motorcade. More than a few small-scale missiles landed on the outer wall of the manor, which blew up the two machine guns and the gunner there.
Whilst Han Xiao was shooting his rifle, he heard Chen Li and the black dude yelling over the walkie-talkie.
“The enemy has rocket launchers; we must evade! Go and hit them hard with our machine guns and grenades!”
“Snipers hurry up and fire. Don’t make me prompt you! Hurry up and do something!”
“More than twenty speedboats just appeared on the river. Those stationed on the west side, quickly go and intercept them. Don’t let them get near the shore!”
“Shit. Helicopters!”
The sound of rotating wings was heard in the sky. Two Y5-Snake helicopter gunships were attacking from above. Flashing lightning in the dark sky highlighted the ferocious features of the helicopters. The gunner, wearing wind-shielding glasses, controlled a large-caliber six-barreled machine canon on the side of the helicopter and unleashed astonishing firepower.
The size of the canon rounds was almost like that of a small-scale missile. Their penetration capability and damage power were unmatched by the rounds of ordinary machine guns. They were even fired at a very high rate.
Da da da da da da.
The continuous canon rounds connected to form an orange line and swept the manor from above. The outer defensive walls of the manor were less than useless against enemies from the sky.
The mercenaries’ casualty number surged!
The sounds of swearing, yelling, crying, raining, guns firing, and engines roaring formed a symphony of battle—as grand as it was horrifying and as messy as it was fevered.
The helicopters were their biggest threat. Some machine gunners quickly aimed their guns at them.
However, by simply flying higher, Y5-Snake helicopters easily got out of the range of the machine guns. Those stray rounds that managed to touch the helicopters could not penetrate their armored exterior.
“Snipers! Kill the pilots!” Chen Li was yelling in exasperation.
“We will handle the helicopters. Other snipers, go and stop the ground troops from coming in!” The Hornet Brothers gave an order in the communication net from the central fortress. Thereafter, they started shooting at the helicopters.
Even with the dense curtains of rain, Han Xiao could see the sparks generated when the sniper rounds landed on the exterior armor of the helicopters. The pilot’s window was made high-grade bullet-proof glasses. It would require at least seven to eight rounds to penetrate.
Han Xiao suddenly felt something was wrong. He swiftly shouldered his gun and moved away from the sniping window.
“How dare you leave your post without authorization…” Big beard guy was infuriated by what he saw. However, he was only half way through his words when the sound of a violent explosion stopped him. The fortress wall exploded violently, and big beard guy was instantly struck flying by the shockwave and landed on the other wall. His arms were completely broken, and he cried in pain.
The two Y5-Snake helicopters were equipped with four airstrike missiles, which were used to directly blow up the three fortresses. The central fortress was hit the heaviest—it exploded into complete ruins, and as a result, the Hornet Brothers were killed instantly. Their flesh, together with dust and shattered bricks, was tossed out of the place by the shockwave.
The three fortresses had been blown up!
Without the threat of snipers, the helicopters became much more aggressive, like a horny wild dog. The massive firepower had the mercenaries hiding under cover, and they dared not even expose their heads.
Although Han Xiao successfully dodged the explosion, he was hit by the shockwave. He did not suffer much damage. However, the roof over his head was completely blown up, and the heavy rain poured directly into his area. As a result, he was directly exposed in the enemies’ field of vision. He was in a terrible situation.
The enemy had land, air, and sea superiority. The manor was being attacked in three different ways!
He turned around and glanced at the horrifying scene of the battle.
The mercenaries cannot hold on anymore.
His eyes were looking worried.
…
“The people outside cannot withstand the attack anymore.”
Two men were looking out the window at the battle from the living room of the mansion in the center of River Valley Manor. One of them had both of his hands pressing on the windowsill; he was a bald old man. He wore black-frame glasses, and his eyebrows and beard were complete white.
The other person stood behind the old man at an angle with folded arms. He appeared to be a middle age man. His short jet-black hair was slicked-back, and there was only a slight graying on the hair near his temples. The only unordinary thing about him was probably his disposition. He wore a gentle smile on his face, which made him look rather friendly.
The man with the gentle disposition chuckled. “Seems like it’s time for me to act.”
The bald old man nodded. “We have defended for so long. Xena should have eradicated all the traitors in the organization. My life depends on you now, my old friend.”
The gentle man nodded and prepared to walk out. Suddenly, he stopped his footsteps and noticed a sudden change in the battle situation.
“Seems like there is an interesting guy who just appeared. They don’t need me anymore.”
“Hmm?” The bald old man was startled and looked out the window.
…
Hiding inside the defense structure, Chen Li shouted loudly into his walkie talkie, “Is there any sniper who is still alive? Without taking down the two helicopters, we are all going to die here!”
Suddenly, a crimson bullet penetrated through the rain curtain and shot the ammunition belt on one of the helicopters’ machine canons with extreme accuracy. The crimson round then cracked, and a flame erupt
ed from within it in the heavy downpour.
High-explosive round!
Homm!
The orange high-explosive gas filled every single gap it touched, and it travelled through the split between the armored exterior and ignited the ammunition belt. The helicopter, which had been acting all triumphant a moment ago, exploded in that instant as all the canon rounds exploded at once. The high-explosive round was not powerful by itself, but it ignited the fatal large-caliber canon rounds, which were as powerful as land mines. Those in the helicopter were all killed. The flying ball-bearings pierced through the pilot’s neck, and the blood splashed onto the side window.
The helicopter span out of control before it dropped from the sky onto the ground. Both parties could feel the violent vibration on the ground.
In the half ruins of the left fortress, Han Xiao, who fired that shot, cocked his sniper rifle to unload the cartridge that was still smoking hot. His eyes were serious and calm. In that critical juncture, he had pumped a large amount of EXP into [Sniping] such that it rose to Lv.9! This was the reason he had managed to shoot a round with such accuracy. He had hit the canon rounds on the helicopter’s ammunition belt from an extremely obscure angle!
However, this shot had also caused several bad consequences. The other Y5-Snake helicopter aimed all its firepower at the left fortress. In addition, the enemy ground troops knew that the helicopters were their trump card; therefore, they all cooperated and fired at the fortress together. A terrifying number of rounds smashed the rain curtain and exploded on the left fortress!
Big beard guy’s face turned ghostly pale as he thought he was going to be blown up in pieces. How could he run faster than the canon rounds with his two short legs? Right in his moment of desperation, he suddenly felt a large hand picking him up by the scruff of his neck and a great force that dragged him along to run away at lightning speed. The next instant, the entire left fortress blew up into ruins.
The Legendary Mechanic c1-1385 Page 61