The blue mecha's swift grab instantly shattered Bai Hao's hopes.
Bai Hao's heart sank like a stone. Although the blue mecha's Overdrive Mode had ended, he could no longer shake it off—its mechanical hand was now firmly clamped onto the silver mecha's leg.
The silver mecha dragged the blue mecha along for just over a second of overdrive flight.
The moment Overdrive Mode vanished, the blue mecha immediately seized the initiative to attack. Its other mechanical hand also grabbed the silver mecha's leg. Then, with a violent pull and a swing of its arms, it flung the silver mecha backward.
On the screen, the view became chaotic. It must be said the simulation pod's realism was commendable. The perspective on Bai Hao's screen resembled the visual effect of a person tumbling head over heels after being thrown to the ground. Fortunately, his head didn't feel the disorienting sensation of being tossed about.
After hurling the silver mecha away, the blue mecha didn't pause for a moment. It accelerated fiercely, closing the distance again in an instant. Its right mechanical hand clenched into a fist, smashing toward the silver mecha's head.
As the view on the screen stabilized somewhat, Bai Hao saw a mechanical fist rapidly approaching. His mind remained calm; the manual control system in the simulation pod had been engaged long ago, so operating it shouldn't be a problem. Close-quarters mecha combat was essentially like two men fighting: whoever had better skills and greater strength had the higher chance of winning. However, both mechas were simulated, with equal basic conditions like strength and speed. Victory depended on whose movements were more precise and whose strikes were more ruthless.
Bai Hao took a light breath and swiftly manipulated the controls. The silver mecha's two mechanical arms instantly crossed in front of its torso in a protective stance.
Boom!
The blue mecha's mechanical fist struck the silver mecha's crossed arms in an instant, producing a loud metallic crash.
"Warning: System under attack. System integrity remaining: 98%!"
A prompt dialog box immediately popped up on the screen.
Bai Hao's expression shifted slightly. He hadn't expected that successfully blocking the opponent's punch would still cause 2% damage. If he were hit like this fifty times consecutively, his simulated mech would probably be finished.
"Not a bad reaction, junior brother. Seems you already had the manual control system engaged earlier. Otherwise, you wouldn't have reacted so quickly."
Inside Pod Nine, Yan Yifei showed a hint of surprise. She had thought her punch would directly blast the silver mecha's head, but it was blocked.
Bai Hao's face remained calm. In a real hand-to-hand fight between people, he might have some confidence, but with mechas, he couldn't be sure. Although he had practiced a few times with Nana before, and there were similarities to real combat, this was ultimately simulated machinery, not a fight between humans.
After blocking the punch, Bai Hao immediately controlled the silver mecha to retreat rapidly.
Yan Yifei, however, had anticipated this. The blue mecha closed in again instantly. Her earlier decision to unload all the blue mecha's weapons and backup fuel tanks was precisely to defeat Bai Hao through close-quarters combat. As a former eight-star pilot, she had trained melee combat to a masterful level. Dealing with Bai Hao, who had only been exposed to simulated combat for a little over three months, she was extremely confident.
The silver mecha had only retreated a few steps when a mechanical foot came stomping down.
Bai Hao was slightly startled but immediately controlled a mechanical hand to form a fist and meet it.
Boom!
The mechanical fist and foot collided in an instant, producing a thunderous crash.
"Warning: System under attack. System integrity remaining: 90%!"
A system prompt immediately popped up on the screen.
Bai Hao's mouth twitched. He hadn't expected a direct clash to cause 8% damage all at once. That was rather exaggerated. If he took a direct hit from a kick, wouldn't that be 10%? Or even 20%?
Inside Pod Nine, however, a flicker of astonishment crossed Yan Yifei's face. She hadn't expected Bai Hao to block her attacks twice. If the first time was an accident, the second time certainly wasn't. It could only mean Bai Hao already had some experience with close-quarters mecha combat; otherwise, his reactions wouldn't be this fast.
The blue mecha wasn't unscathed from the two attacks either. The first punch had caused 1% damage to itself, and the second kick had resulted in 4% damage. After two attacks, its system integrity remained at 95%.
Yan Yifei stared at the silver mecha on her screen, not rushing to launch a third attack. Instead, she asked in a gentle tone, "Junior brother, have you trained in close-quarters mecha combat before?"
"You could say that."
Bai Hao didn't hide anything. After all, he had indeed practiced a few times with Nana before. Without those attempts, he really wouldn't have been able to block the blue mecha's consecutive attacks.
A look of understanding appeared on Yan Yifei's face. She smiled. "I see. Alright, senior sister is going to attack now. Be careful."
As soon as Yan Yifei's voice faded, the blue mecha sprang into action. In a flash, it was in front of Bai Hao's simulated mech, throwing a punch.
Bai Hao was slightly startled. Watching the rapidly approaching fist, he refused to back down. His right mechanical hand immediately clenched into a fist and met the blow.
But in the next moment, he realized he had been tricked.
The blue mecha's punch was a feint. Midway, the fist suddenly stopped. Then, its torso slightly hunched, and a mechanical leg swept toward him like a gust of wind.
Thud!
The mechanical foot struck the silver mecha's abdomen with pinpoint accuracy, emitting a dull thud.
Under the tremendous impact, the silver mecha was instantly sent flying.
"Not good!"
Bai Hao's heart sank heavily. He hadn't expected the blue mecha to start with such a powerful move. The force of that kick was considerable.
"Warning: System under attack. System integrity remaining: 60%!"
Soon, a system prompt dialog box popped up.
A full 30% gone in one hit. Bai Hao felt a chill. Two more kicks like that, and the silver mecha would be pretty much finished.
The blue mecha, having landed a successful hit, didn't pause for a moment. Instantly, it charged forward again at high speed. Both mechanical arms joined together into a double-fisted hammer, smashing down directly from above onto the silver mecha.
Bai Hao was somewhat stunned. The opponent's attack was too ferocious, giving him little time to react. In that moment, he could only protect the silver mecha's head as quickly as possible.
Boom!
The fist slammed viciously into the silver mecha.
"Warning: System under attack. System integrity remaining: 50%!"
The system prompt appeared on the screen once more.