Chapter 340

As the holder of the designated profession in the Tongliao Universe, Engineer Zhang is obviously a hardcore tough guy, but compared to peers who can just move in and paint other buildings on the spot, his strength mainly lies in mechs, or rather military exoskeletons and AI.

So when Ji Ming guessed this, having braced himself to observe the nation's most cutting-edge armaments, what he saw obviously did not match that expectation……

In the upper left corner of the whiteboard was a figure with a human upper body equipped with a shoulder cannon, but a lower body of heavy tracks; although it looked like something, it definitely wasn't some unknown land-based mech of a steel tank.

Beside it was a figure with a human upper body having a single eye, but a lower body with three nozzles; although it looked like something, it definitely wasn't some unknown airborne mech of a Zeon.

Ji Ming went over them one by one stuck on the board and found that although these concept drawings weren't all carrying private agendas, each had its own features, but one thing was universal—they all lacked legs.

Seeing Wai Shu examining it seriously, Zhang the engineer, realizing he had met a like-minded person, also became interested and began boasting while slapping the whiteboard.

"Brother, mechs should be like this—legs are just decoration; the big shots above won't understand!"

Ji Ming was about to retort, "Brother Zhang, you're really trendy, even knowing this meme," but then he thought, Gundam is also a somewhat old IP, so of course he'd know it!

So……

"How could legs possibly not be important!"

"Legs are so long, so handsome, and can have explosive armor and linkage mechanisms, allowing all kinds of cool to superb poses; without them, how much aesthetic would be lost! Moreover, in Transformers, if legs were gone, how many exquisite transformation structures and designs would be lost—so they're extremely important!"

However, the argument was just an argument, there was no real contradiction, and in the end both calmed down.

This mech's appearance looks much more conservative; its main body should be AdaiEr's first-generation battle armor, but many new regulations and optimizations have been made on that basis, and weapons and components have been modularized, so there are indeed many Easter eggs and satellites hidden inside.

"Objection!"

Just looking at the names, they're all utter nonsense; if it weren't for personally seeing it, with Fei Ying's callsign signature in the corner, who would think this is real?

"Nothing much to say; it's all about firepower suppression!"

One can only say it's no surprise it's a Huaxia project—they know full well that food and warmth are combat power, so the cafeteria's construction completion is second only to the research center, with magical light strings draped across the entire hall, as if they feared people would shove food up their noses.

"Objection! Track and hover designs aren't necessarily simpler than a double‑leg structure; the leg portion of the initial magic‑active mech isn't at all complex—in fact, it's far simpler and more reliable than developing a magic anti‑gravity engine from scratch!"

"Objection! Humans relied on legs to climb Earth's highest peaks; their potential certainly goes beyond that, and legs aren't just for walking—they can also serve as excellent weapon storage devices or even as weapons themselves when needed!"

"I don't know."

"Chief Zhao, do you know what they're arguing about?"

As a senior iron enthusiast, Ji Ming absolutely cannot tolerate this neglectful behavior.

LaoZhao and Cang Lang beside them: ……

After LaoZhao brought Ji Ming up to speed on the bureau's recent developments, it was already late at night; seeing everyone had forgotten dinner, they formed a group and went to the cafeteria for a late‑night snack.

"Given current technology, this design is likely achievable and has already been approved by superiors as the Number‑One Land‑Mech Project, codename Land‑1."

"Mechs aren't toys! They're meant to cross mountains and rivers, accomplish all kinds of extremely difficult strategic goals; while being excellent, we should reduce complexity, lower logistical pressure, maintenance difficulty, and failure rate—that's what we designers ought to do!"

"Objection! Regarding traversal of complex terrain, heavy tracks and low‑altitude hover are definitely more reliable choices; obsessively pursuing bionic leg design is just splitting hairs, and a closed mindset can't produce reliable equipment!"

QBZ192 specialized large‑caliber short assault rifle, QBU10 modified for mech sniper rifle, LG‑5 improved rapid‑fire sniper cannon……

The two argued ever more heatedly; those in the know said they were debating how the mech's mobility module should be designed, while outsiders thought they were two drunks babbling in a bar, mouths full of talk about legs and drums, whether they look good or not.

Engineer Zhang pushed aside the piles of design drafts on the whiteboard and pulled out from underground a drawing that was the most detailed and thorough, almost a blueprint‑level plan.

Engineer Zhang immediately furrowed his brow.

"Actually, these are just drafts, so of course we need to let our imaginations run wild to have fun, and besides, this is a magical world—who knows if these things could ever become reality?"

Moreover, the people busy in the back kitchen were clearly the old cooks of the mess squad—people who can flip a big wok with one hand and stir‑fry sugar color in the wild, tough as nails; thus although the food isn't very refined, it's absolutely tasty and filling.

If it weren't for the abstract dish names on the serving window—things like "braised long‑haired sheep," "stir‑fried magic‑beast pork," "clear broth land‑beast palm," and other oddities—Ji Ming would have dazedly thought he was back in reality eating a meal.

And while Ji Ming was preparing to stay overnight here, planning to pretend to set out early tomorrow and hurriedly teleport home, he again ran into Engineer Zhang, who was out for a stroll on the road.

"What kind of Engineer Zhang? Between us there's no superior‑subordinate hierarchy, so why be so formal? We're just fellow fans of big mechs; I'm Zhang Hai—just call me Brother in private."

Although middle age and high‑intensity desk work inevitably add a bit of girth, Zhang Hai didn't have that greasy "I'm done, I'll just coast through life and later act as a senior lecturing newcomers" vibe; instead he still retained some youthful enterprise and vigor.

So facing this down‑to‑earth goodwill, Ji Ming naturally ought to receive it well.

"Sure, Brother Lao, chatting about this with you is indeed pleasant; we can keep in touch from now on, and I like it too—when I gather any related tech or intel within permissible limits, I'll first give you a heads‑up!"

"Sure, Brother Lao, speaking and acting straightforwardly is refreshing; I'll also put this out there: military use probably has little chance, but there is already a civilian project—you rack up merits, I'll lobby hard, and later we'll see if we can possibly get you a unit first."

"Civilian? For engineering work?"

"Of course! Impact drills, big buckets, pile drivers… definitely still this modular design; we can try them one by one!"

Ji Ming felt his smile about to break, because as a child his dream job wasn't scientist or astronaut, but to drive an excavator on a construction site, then find a wife who could operate a dump truck, the couple daily doing high‑intensity plaster work, shaking the lever every day to drive their "mech."

"Still, Brother Lao's steady—this week I'll try to dig up some more hardcore stuff to bring back."

"Good, I'll also hurry to optimize the blueprints, striving to get the equipment in the plan onto the ground soon—let's work toward each other!"

After chatting a couple more sentences, Ji Ming took his leave and returned to the guest room arranged for him, while Zhang Hai felt all his pockets, finally taking out a stick of incense‑wood, lighting it, and waving it under his nose in resignation.

But before that stick, made to look like a traditional cigarette wood, had burned out, he heard footsteps beside him, turned his head, and saw Chief Zhao also holding a stick of incense‑wood.

"What a coincidence, you're here too?"

"When you get older you sleep less; if you can't sleep, you go out for a stroll,"

LaoZhao smiled, then lifted his chin.

"How's it? What's your impression of Wai Shu now?"

"Impression…… heh heh, if your liaison people here were all at this level it'd be terrible; we idiots would have to be coaxed all the way to 007 and still be willing."

After making a slight joke, Zhang Hai's expression turned serious.

"Actually, now that I think about it, I don't know why, but chatting with him is especially comfortable; clearly it's the same words, yet when they come from his mouth they sound particularly pleasant……"

"You mean, like a gentle spring breeze?"

"Uh…… yes! That's exactly the word, it describes it perfectly—how did you know what I wanted to express?"

LaoZhao stubbed out the "cigarette butt," grimacing as if he had a toothache.

"Because you're already the fifteenth person to say that to me……"

Although he said he'd stay overnight, in fact Ji Ming left the Foreign Affairs Bureau's lodging before dawn the next day on the pretext of having business, shaking off four or five groups of unknown followers, and finally returned to being alone.

This place is still some distance from Yangguang City; with no alternative, the hurried Ji Ming could only shift the teleportation array beneath his feet, first returning to the Underground World, then following the exit back to the surface before heading south and taking a detour back to Yangguang City.

At this moment, Yangguang City was already morning; several carriages were parked in front of Sheng Guang Jiao Tang. Ji Ming glanced over and noticed that besides a few old acquaintances, there were also many sharp‑minded players who had come to gather information and casually show their faces, now surrounding a priest he knew and firing questions at him.

'So it's the Archbishop lady who's preparing to return to the Holy Light See to report on what's recently happened in our Yangguang City, right? Do we need to send our 【Spear Blade】 lot to escort them? … Oh, arrangements have already been made, that's good… So, what's the current stance of the Holy Light See?'

'Archbishop Tenisi, Father Elinor, and Ji Ming the Divine Chosen are all leaving… Wouldn't that empty the church's manpower? Sorry to be bold, sir, but this arrangement really isn't appropriate.'

'You said the Archbishop will have a friend coming here, and he might very well be a survivor of the Holy Tree from five hundred years ago, possibly a big figure of the Holy Nine Surnames… Ah, that's good, that's good. Actually I was just worried about what to do if your church ended up with no one to handle danger, but hearing that puts my mind at ease.'

After beating around the bush for a while, we finally dug up some hot intel from Stirling—the Legendary player—and quickly sent the message to the guild's high‑level chat, thinking that the officials were probably about to launch a new quest chain by having NPCs exchange water, so we'd better get ready!

Seeing players scramble to gather first‑hand intel, almost everyone was acting like spies, so Ji Ming also sent out the copy he'd prepared earlier; consequently, in the next second, players saw a text box pop up in the lower‑right corner of their view.

【Congratulations to the Legendary Guild for being the first to trigger the next game version's Easter egg, earning the reward—Purple Lightning Holy Hammer—and having the achievement recorded in the Yangyue Hall of Fame】

Since many top players play for fame rather than profit, Ji Ming also took a cue from rival businesses and came up with something that would let them gain renown—something everyone dreams of—such as the Yangyue Hall of Fame, which records all kinds of unique important achievements.

Although its persuasiveness still can't win over everyone, as an official release that truly lets players 'leave their mark in history,' the Super Merit Ledger easily surpasses all third‑party leaderboards made by players and organizations.

Even the well‑known commentator of Double Moon Struggle, the creator of the 'Red Card List' 【Red Card Spectator】, directly declared on social media that players who can't get into the Hall of Fame don't deserve to be called star players—only internet‑celebrity chasers; and guilds that can't get into the Hall of Fame don't deserve to be called Haomeng Guild—only petty landlords!

Accompanying this announcement was the players' guess that a new version event preview would appear in the coming days.

【Seizing Yangyue, sweeping the Lower Barbarian Plains, radiating to the surrounding hundred villages and towns—before they knew it, the Pioneers' footsteps had already covered the entire Black Forest Territory】

【The thick clouds seemed boundless; even after finally setting foot on the ground, they still couldn't see any sunlight】

【The wilderness ahead seemed endless; even fighting with all their might, they still couldn't break through to civilization's dawn】

【Just how splendid is the starry sky of Yangyue World, and what exactly are the northern kingdoms like?】

【Now, the brave ones have decided to set out on a journey, to witness it with their own eyes!】

'Holy crap, we're finally going to unlock the air walls in the other three directions?'

The players quickly scrolled down the announcement and found that, aside from the Black Forest Territory, the map was indeed opened—but not fully.

【To ensure a good gameplay experience when players interact with multiple NPCs in towns, the Hui Guang Kingdom map is limited to players of level twenty and above, and will also be divided into zones, restricting the number of players that can be present in the same area at once】

【Note: This limit will be gradually relaxed in the future as players' exploration and influence increase】

【To prevent players from suffering irreversible diplomatic losses due to inexperience, the individual zone maps will not unlock all at once; instead, they will unlock one by one according to progress, allowing players to gradually delve into and learn about the Hui Guang Kingdom】

【Note: The unlock progress is tied to the advance of the Holy Light See's convoy, so please protect these friendly NPCs】

Yeah, to make it easier for myself to later mess around in the Hui Guang Kingdom, Ji Ming decided to be generous and bring the players along.