Ziye silently logged the coordinates of Skeleton Mountain, then picked up a small bone, tucked it into a small pouch, and hurried away from the area.

Bent couldn't hear her reply and called out anxiously, "Yezi, are you alright?"

Ziye ran for several hundred meters, putting distance between herself and Skeleton Mountain, before answering, "I'm fine, just used the washroom. Where are you? I'll come find you."

Bent’s heart, which had been suspended in mid-air, finally settled. "It's good that you're okay. Head back to the rendezvous point first. We need to discuss the main mission for the afternoon, and maybe take care of Philarus while we're at it."

Ziye curled her lips into a smile. "That sounds like exactly what I had in mind."

Back at the rendezvous point, everyone had finished lunch, saving a portion for Ziye. She ate while listening.

Li Chunyu listed all the necessary components they needed, signaling a few people to focus their search, especially noting that the most crucial engine had still not been found.

Lingyin once again utilized her superior information-gathering ability and returned with the Philarus team’s current progress report—and they had already seized an engine from another group!

Speaking of Philarus, Bobo became furious. "Philarus has been constantly causing trouble for us. They just snatched two of my components! It infuriates me! I don't think we should keep tolerating it; we must strike proactively."

Lingyin chimed in, "I agree. We've completed most of this morning's tasks. For the afternoon, while ensuring the safety of our mechs, I suggest we finish off Philarus!"

She finished speaking and nudged Ziye with her elbow. "What do you think?"

Ziye, who was taking a bite of a steamed bun, nearly choked when she was nudged. She nodded quickly, then looked at Bent. Bent raised his hand in agreement, and Ace had no objections. It was only Li Chunyu who asked timidly, "Isn't that... a bit much?"

Everyone rolled their eyes in unison.

Chun'er, where was the ferocity you showed just moments ago? How did you turn back into a little sheep? It's not the godlike opponents you should fear, but the sheep-like teammates! Chun'er, everyone is going to cry!

Under everyone's gaze, Li Chunyu sheepishly wiped his mouth. "Did I get rice grain on my face?"

The group was floored.

Ace poked his forehead, feeling that iron could not be forged into steel. "Don't you understand? How did you get that injury on your leg? Look at my scarred face—who did that? Are you just going to let others walk all over you?"

Li Chunyu stayed quiet, looking sheepish.

He understood everything, really. His ankle still felt like it was being pierced by needles, and anger simmered within him, yet he weakly offered, "The competition must follow the competition rules, right? If they don't follow the rules, and we don't follow the rules, then what's the difference between us and them?"

Bent suddenly had an overwhelming urge to smash this steamed bun against something. "Did you hear anyone mention any rules for the competition? As long as we are in this valley, as long as we can assemble one mech before five o'clock. Did the officials say robbing was not allowed? Did they say fighting was prohibited? Even if they did, if Philarus hits us and we can't hit back, what kind of competition is that?"

Li Chunyu was left speechless by the retort.

The Twins stood up. "Leave the beating to us; you handle the rest."

Ziye drew her knife. "Need someone to chop? You can take this."

Li Chunyu quickly stopped Ziye. "Don't be impulsive; absolutely do not cause a death!"

The Twins burst out laughing and waved as they left the rendezvous area.

Ziye glanced at the list of missing components. "Leave the parts to me." With that, she prepared to leave.

Lingyin stood up. "Ziye, I'll go with you."

Ziye turned back with a smile. "No need. You and Bobo are the best partnership for external liaison. Don't waste your energy looking for parts. Aren't some teams ganging up to target us? Why don't you two form an alliance, win over the other teams to our side? Our chances of winning the PK against Philarus will be much higher."

Lingyin realized that made perfect sense, and she pulled Bobo away to start planning their grand strategy.

The sheep-like teammate, Senior Brother Chun'er, remained sitting in the shadow of his mech, dutifully playing the role of warehouse manager.

After walking with Bobo for a while, Lingyin suddenly said, "Little Bo-zai, do you remember that besides our team, there was another highly anticipated divine team that unfortunately also ended up in the elimination round?"

Bobo pondered for a moment. "You mean Team Qitian? The one supported by Ling Si, the ace pilot?"

Lingyin snapped her fingers happily. "Exactly! Quite a few people were backing that team. If we manage to recruit them first, things will get much easier."

Speaking of Team Qitian, they were one of the most surprising turnarounds of this competition. Besides ace pilot Li Wei, most of the designers and armor smiths were outstanding third-year students, almost every one of them a recognized name at school. But who would have thought that because they had too many wealthy backers whose finances weren't strictly controlled, they blew through their budget, spending a whole half a million to build a single mech... Although the resulting mech was quite impressive, they were still stuck in the elimination round.

The two set their sights on the same goal and strode forward purposefully.

Neither of them expected that Ziye, who had gone out alone to search for components, would run into both the team they were looking for and Philarus, whom they hadn't even managed to locate deliberately.

Ziye detected a relatively remote metal sensing point; the signal was extremely strong, looking like a major component. She rushed over excitedly and saw the two battling teams from a distance: Team Qitian VS Philarus.

Without a second thought, Ziye crept closer to the component. Heavens, it was an engine! Philarus already had an engine, so why were they still fighting for another one? Was Philarus's goal to prevent every other team from advancing? What benefit would that bring them?

Ziye couldn't figure it out. Taking advantage of the ongoing fight, if they joined the fray, Philarus would surely lose. Then, retrieving the engine would be effortless, and they could cooperate with Team Qitian. Team Qitian was composed entirely of male pilots; they should be quite formidable in a fight.

She notified Lingyin and the Twins via walkie-talkie, then quietly snuck behind the engine, preparing for a classic "when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman profits" scenario. However, the moment she saw the engine, her face darkened by half.

Damn it, who was so unethical as to sever the engine’s balancing rod! A disabled balancing rod wouldn't render the engine useless, but installing it in a mech would cause instability, making piloting hazardous.

She looked up; Philarus and Team Qitian were already locked in a chaotic brawl, impossible to distinguish friend from foe. Ziye couldn't decide whether to jump in or stay out, so she stopped to consider if there was any way to repair the broken rod.

The Twins arrived and, seeing the melee involving over a dozen people, charged in without a word. They flanked Arles, one on each side. Arles, who had only one opponent moments before, suddenly faced three and was immediately subdued. Just as he was about to call for backup, Bent’s reflexes were too quick, and he clamped his hand around Arles's neck.

The fighting parties, interrupted by the Twins’ intervention, all stopped their attacks.

Bent leaned close to Arles's ear and chuckled coldly, "How does it feel to have your throat squeezed?"

Arles's face turned bright red. "Who dares to touch me?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Ziye rushed forward and slammed a punch into his cheek, jerking his head to the side. "Did you destroy the engine's crossbar?"

Arles spat, his voice full of arrogance. "Yes, I did. Go ahead and hit me if you dare! Go ahead and try to qualify if you dare! There are only 20 engines in total, and we'll destroy them all!"

Forty teams had entered the elimination round, but there were only components for twenty complete mechs in the valley, meaning more than half the teams would be eliminated. Arles destroying all the engines was clearly a tactic to bog down every team here, ensuring none could qualify! A ruthless, absolute method!

Ziye was so furious she was smoking. "Beat him up! If he dies, it's on my account!"

Before Bent could move, Ace pulled Ziye away as he saw people charging from behind. Li Wei, the ace pilot of Team Qitian, directly slammed Arles to the ground and started beating him relentlessly.

In a short time, Arles was beaten until he was barely conscious.

Team Qitian members pulled Li Wei back, pleading, "Stop fighting; he'll die if you keep going."

Li Wei sat on the ground, radiating hatred. "If I don't beat him to death, I won't feel satisfied!"

Having reached this point, everyone, without the need for a rallying cry or a command, turned to search for ways to repair the engine's crossbar. They were all accustomed to using nano-repair units for every flaw and malfunction; a quick scan would fix anything.

Ziye pushed an abandoned engine nearby and began walking toward the Grey Forest, muttering as she went, "I'll go over there to see if there’s anything usable?"

The Twins said, "We’ll come with you."

Ziye considered it. "Just one of you is enough."

The Twins exchanged a look and played rock-paper-scissors. Ace won and walked alongside Ziye, pushing the engine. "Where are we going?"

Ziye replied, "Maybe there’s something in the forest."

She didn't immediately suggest using the mutated bones from Skeleton Mountain, as that was currently just a guess. The engine's crossbar required a specific degree of hardness, and she wasn't sure if she could find material with matching rigidity there. Furthermore, they would need an adhesive for bonding—it was complicated.

Entering the forest, Ziye once again headed toward the path leading to Skeleton Mountain.

Ace watched the surrounding forest deepen in color, then looked at her determined pace without the slightest hesitation, asking in confusion, "You've been here before?"

Ziye said, "This noon."

Ace frowned. "Little Yezi, you're too bold. You dare to wander around such a gloomy place?"

Ziye shot him a sideways glance. "Or what?"

Ace was about to say, A girl should sit tight and let others do the work, but the words caught in his throat. He suddenly remembered that she was his teammate, and always fiercely independent. If he said that, he would definitely be beaten by her without explanation.

He felt his emotions were complicated.

The girls in the Angel Domain were usually quite delicate. Even the most unconventional Yin Yin was a fragile girl needing protection. Of course, Ace tended to directly ignore girls like the Twins.

So, Ace often felt Ziye should act more feminine, but if she truly became like Chen Yin and needed their care, they would feel utterly helpless.

Ziye stopped when she reached the foot of Skeleton Mountain. "We're here."

Ace snapped out of his thoughts and recoiled several steps upon seeing the expanse of scattered bones. "Good heavens, Little Yezi, are you even a woman!"

-(To be continued.)