Chapter 404: Thorn Beasts

High above a crimson land, a dozen humanoid mechs lined up in a row, facing dozens of black beasts charging toward them.

All these mechs were pure white, each with a thick gun barrel mounted on one shoulder and holding various cold weapons like axes and greatswords, while a pair of silver mechanical wings stretched from their backs, resembling white angels.

The black beasts were covered in dark, glinting spines along their backs, with six thick claws beneath their bellies, curling themselves into massive spiked balls as they charged at the mechs.

Amid thick beams of light and dense volleys of fire, these hedgehog-like beasts lost only seven or eight of their number before breaking into the mech formation, instantly unleashing a rain of spines that pierced through four or five mechs, causing them to explode into fiery balls.

The remaining mechs were individually surrounded and battered by the beasts, now transformed into giant spiked balls that slammed into them, leaving the mechs flailing helplessly.

Several more mechs instantly burst into flames and plummeted from the sky.

…

"It's over—failed again. No normal person could pass this formal mech pilot exam."

"Exactly. Those 'Thorn Beasts' are insane. How could anyone possibly pass this test?"

"Don't mention it. I heard that encountering Thorn Beasts in the formal mech pilot exam isn't even the worst—worse still is facing the legendary Undying Beast, a creature said to be immortal; only a single strike that completely destroys its core can truly kill it."

"Sigh, I wonder how any formal mech pilot ever passes this exam."

Inside the Mars Base, an arched door flickering with white light suddenly spat out a dozen mech pilots, staggered and cursing.

Each was charred and battered, some missing arms or legs, barely standing thanks to the support of their comrades.

All these mech pilots wore blue provisional mech pilot badges on their chests.

At that moment, a team of medical staff rushed over with white stretchers, carefully lifting the mech pilots onto them and hauling them toward the nearby medical hall.

"Another failed formal mech pilot exam? How many waves has this been today?"

"Seventh, I think. They're unlucky—apparently today's formal mech pilot exams are all conducted in squad form."

"Heh, they're really unlucky. Squad exams can't be passed by just one person—every member must be exceptional to have even a sliver of hope."

"Heh, I just checked—the base's medical pods are nearly full. Those who fail later will have to wait half a day just to recover."

"Sigh, Star Galaxy Game is great in every way, but it's too serious. It's just a game, yet every time your mech is destroyed, you must simulate severe injuries and stay in a medical pod for half a day before you can pilot again—and the number of pods is limited by base size."

"Stop complaining. Our Mars Base is already decent—not the largest, but still top ten globally. I heard some small bases have only two or three hundred pods; players fight over them daily. I even heard there are scalpers specializing in this."

Nearby players with the "Player" glyph above their heads also murmured among themselves, some even smirking with schadenfreude.

"Wait—I remember fifteen of us entered this exam. Why are only fourteen out? Where's the missing one?"

A young man with curly black skin, already on a stretcher, suddenly sat up and cried out in thick British English:

"One missing? Let me check—there are truly only fourteen. Could someone still be trapped in the exam dungeon?" Another white-haired youth scanned the stretchers and gasped in alarm.

"Who was the last one out?" someone shouted directly.

All the provisional mech pilots stared at each other, but none answered immediately.

After a long pause, one hesitantly replied:

"I got out late. At the moment my mech was destroyed, I saw another mech still fighting."

At this, the provisional mech pilots exchanged glances.

…

On the crimson ground, a roar echoed.

A white shadow flashed between two Thorn Beasts, slicing both into four pieces, spraying thick green fluid.

Only then did the white shadow reveal its true form: a humanoid mech wielding a great blade, its silver mechanical wings blurred and humming with strain.

"Chit-chit"

Several other Thorn Beasts arched their backs, launching a dense rain of black spines toward the white shadow.

An astonishing sight appeared.

The white mech simply raised one arm, spreading its fingers and pressing downward into empty air.

The straight-flying black spines trembled mid-flight and froze, as if held by an invisible force.

Then the white mech clenched its fist.

The suspended spines, as if swept by an invisible wave, tumbled chaotically from the sky.

Seizing the moment, the humanoid mech swung its great blade horizontally before its body, its mechanical wings roaring louder as it became a white blur, dashing into the midst of several Thorn Beasts.

A flash of cold light, like a full moon, erupted suddenly.

Several Thorn Beasts shattered into pieces, drenching the ground in green fluid.

At that moment, only a dozen Thorn Beasts remained in the air. The largest among them let out a piercing screech—then all turned and fled backward, as if possessing intelligence.

The humanoid mech stood motionless, but its shoulder-mounted gun barrel trembled, then spewed a string of fire, launching a fan-shaped volley of over a dozen silver-white bullets, each the size of a watermelon.

"Plop." "Plop." …

The heads of the retreating Thorn Beasts exploded simultaneously; over a dozen carcasses tumbled from the sky.

At the same time, a graceful female voice echoed from within the white mech:

"Ding Yu, provisional mech pilot: All Thorn Beasts eliminated. You have passed the formal mech pilot exam. Please report to the base hall tomorrow to complete procedures and receive the title of formal mech pilot. You may now customize your personal mech at any Star Alliance base and enjoy the following privileges…"

"Crack"

A mechanical sound rang out—the white mech's chest suddenly split open, revealing a young man clad in a silver-white mech pilot uniform, countless light threads connecting to various ports on his suit.

The young man was Wang Yu, who had entered the Star Galaxy game and had just passed the formal mech pilot exam.

Now, gazing at the scattered beast corpses on the crimson ground, his expression turned thoughtful.

Are these Star Cloud Beasts truly the great disaster that awaits the future Blue Star?