The majority in the audience assumed the Sky-High team was guaranteed victory, with their only hope for the Feifei team resting on a one-in-ten-thousand chance for a desperate comeback.

Now, Peizhe’s all-out fighting style immediately piqued the spectators' interest.

Lingyin, beside Ziye with all of Peizhe’s profile data in hand, noticed his fighting style was completely different from what she had on record. Sensing something was wrong, she quietly nudged Ziye’s elbow and whispered, “Don’t you think this pilot from the Feifei team feels like a different person?”

Ziye wasn't overly concerned with the pilots; her focus was on the mechas and the armor smiths. She just thought Peizhe was pushing himself hard. “What do you think is off?”

Lingyin frowned, thinking for a moment. “When a steady, methodical pilot suddenly turns aggressive, what could be the reason?”

Ziye immediately understood what she meant and mused, “Either he’s suddenly supremely confident, or he’s certain he’s lost and is fighting with everything he has. Knowing Ilya’s personality, would she feel she’s already doomed?”

Meaning, Peizhe had suddenly become overwhelmingly sure of victory!

The two exchanged a look, both feeling that something was amiss.

Lingyin closed her light screen. “I’m going out for a bit.”

Ziye stopped her. “Where are you going?”

Lingyin leaned close to her ear and whispered, “I’m going to investigate what’s really going on. If she wins, we win too. The championship match will very likely pit us against her, so we must scout the enemy.”

Ziye spoke sincerely, “With you on our team, our mentor won't have to worry about our mecha battles anymore.”

Lingyin giggled and slipped away quietly from behind.

After reaching the finals, the mechas were mostly set in stone; most teams lacked the capacity for significant modifications. Thus, hope was pinned entirely on the pilots, making the pilot’s role critically important at this stage.

However, those truly powerful understood that the pilot was just the visible fraction shown to outsiders; the real contest was the strength of the team, specifically the team's ability to acquire information.

Having Lingyin in charge of this aspect was absolutely the right call.

After Lingyin and Bobo left, Ziye sat down with Li Chunyu. While recording the battle footage of the two teams, Ziye pondered the relationship between the pilot’s movements and the mecha’s requirements, as well as the performance and primary resistance of both mechas.

Peizhe really was going berserk!

His desperate style had managed to fight Li Wei to a standstill. Ziye watched the clock; at the absolute limit for a human, he should have lasted ten minutes at most. But after ten minutes, not only did he show no signs of weakening, he became even fiercer. The dual laser cannons on his mecha’s arms were more brutal than a meat grinder.

Li Wei began to show signs of defeat.

Now, Ziye also felt that something was seriously wrong.

She subtly touched the back of Li Chunyu’s hand and whispered quietly, “What method could possibly turn a lamb into a lion overnight?”

Though the analogy wasn't perfect, she couldn’t think of a better way to put it. It felt as if Li Chunyu had suddenly transformed into Du Shuangyu with murderous intent.

Li Chunyu stared at the two pilots locked in a frenzied PK and guessed, “Could it be a different pilot taking the stage?”

Ziye shook her head, pulling up Peizhe’s past combat videos for comparison. “It shouldn’t be. Peizhe is still following his previous combat patterns, just his speed has accelerated—by more than double.”

Speed was always the key in mecha combat. With unmatched speed, almost every flaw and weakness could be masked.

Li Chunyu was confused. “Perhaps they are from the same school? Disguising themselves as him to fight in his place?”

The two exchanged a look; they didn't need to speak to know the possibility was slim. During the first half-hour before the match, the mechas and pilots were inspected separately and in a completely transparent manner. If there were someone hidden inside the mecha, they surely would have been discovered.

Even if someone were made to look exactly like Peizhe, they wouldn't escape today's increasingly advanced detection machinery. A simple scan could reveal DNA.

Who could fake DNA?

Ziye’s eyes lit up. “Are you talking about a clone?”

She recalled the fake A’Piao they’d infiltrated the Mengya Group with. After the Pervert gruesomely dismembered him, he used the DNA to reconstruct a fake A’Piao, stripping his memories and injecting him with enhancers, though they altered his appearance so he could cause trouble for the Interstellar Federation. Meanwhile, the real A’Piao was injected with some of the fake’s memories and remained an undercover agent in the Federation.

Li Chunyu instinctively rubbed his fingers. “If it’s a clone, they should be very similar to Peizhe, unless they were injected with another pilot’s combat skills. But look, since he doesn’t display any other pilot’s techniques, that method isn't being used.”

If they were injected with enhancers, that might be detectable.

Ziye also couldn't figure out the problem. “Perhaps... he underwent cellular modification surgery?”

In an age rife with clones, cellular modification surgery was commonplace, and as long as it wasn't excessive, there were virtually no serious aftereffects.

However, mecha competitions were strict and solemn events. Physical examinations were conducted before the match, prohibiting students from enhancing their strength through bodily modification.

Unless, unless...

Ziye’s fingertip twitched, and a wave of cold sweat instantly broke out on her back.

Stop! She commanded herself internally, I can’t dig any deeper, or it will be dangerous!

But the thoughts raced uncontrollably.

Peizhe must have used the enhancer developed by the Fia lineage—XX5! The Pervert even gave it a common name: Poison Needle.

XX5 Poison Needle was the fifth generation of the needle developed by Fia. Its enhancement capabilities had broken interstellar records, but the horrifying aftereffects made her afraid to even consider them.

The liquid Ilya forced into her back then was XX1, the first generation. It took Dudu and the Pervert nearly two years to cure her from even the first generation. She dared not imagine the horror of the fifth generation!

Li Chunyu noticed Ziye was covered in cold sweat and worried, “What’s wrong?”

Ziye gripped Li Chunyu’s hand. “I need you to do me a favor later, okay?”

Seeing her solemn expression, Li Chunyu replied, “Tell me. If I can do it.”

Ziye whispered into his ear, “Go to the pilot exit later, congratulate Peizhe, and while you’re at it, snap a picture of his expression at that moment. If possible, help me snag a bit of his flesh or hair.”

Li Chunyu looked bewildered. “Why? Getting flesh sounds difficult, doesn’t it?”

But hair wouldn't be very useful, as hair grows over a long period; no matter how potent the enhancer, it couldn't strengthen the hair itself. If getting flesh was impossible, then she had only one option...

Ziye paused, clapping her palms together once. “Get the tissue he used to wipe his sweat. No matter what, you must obtain it. It's extremely important!”

—If he really was enhanced by the Poison Needle agent, his sweat must contain high concentrations of the enhancer’s elements!

~RS