The Real Daughter Just Wants to Pilot Mechas - Chapter 96

[You don’t need internet trolls to advertise. If you need public opinion guidance, I can handle that myself.] Little Eight thought for a long moment before it spoke.

Jiang Momo blinked. “You never said you could do that before.”

[I’ve done it before.] Little Eight licked its paw. [Remember when Peng Ji slandered you on livestream the first time and it caused a protest? That was me stirring things up on the Star Network.]

Jiang Momo squinted and thought hard. “Now that you mention it, I do kind of remember.”

[Exactly. I’ve been managing your reputation online secretly this whole time. I just never mentioned it.] The Siamese cat raised its tail proudly.

“You’re amazing, Little Eight!” Jiang Momo praised immediately.

“Momo? What are you smiling about?” Yan Chang came back from his thoughts and saw Jiang Momo’s eyes sparkling across from him.

Jiang Momo quickly adjusted her expression, then looked up and smiled. “I’m just calculating how much the game might earn.”

“It’s probably a lot. The current combat simulation is already exploding on the academy forums since it can match with the military. If it connects with the public too, it’ll go even more viral,” Yan Chang said, leaning slightly forward, “Will it connect?”

If it really does, then the odds of matching with that god-level player will get even worse for him…

“It will.” Jiang Momo nodded and then silently said to Little Eight, “Little Eight, we found the selling point. Let’s advertise that.”

[Got it.]

Yan Chang sighed inwardly but didn’t show it on his face. “I met a super powerful player in my last match. Can you, as the creator, look up her info?”

Jiang Momo paused. “Do you want to learn from their combat tactics? I uploaded a highlight reel just before logging off. It has you in it, so it should be the match you’re talking about. You can download it and watch.”

She hadn’t planned on fighting when she heard Yan Chang’s voice in the game, so she warned him directly and then just stood still waiting for the next round. She had only enabled 10% pain feedback anyway.

But unexpectedly, he didn’t recognize her voice at all, which meant he clearly didn’t recognize her in-game identity either. So she decided to show off just a little.

As for why she kept it secret that she could pilot a mecha, Jiang Momo couldn’t really explain. It just felt like it’d be a hassle.

Yan Chang perked up and started searching the forums. “The video’s public? Damn, my image is ruined!”

After scrolling for a while, he peeked over helplessly.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Momo asked.

“No one’s talking about it,” Yan Chang said.

Jiang Momo didn’t care. “Maybe the time was just too short.”

Yan Chang was dissatisfied. “A god-tier mecha pilot like that deserves admiration from everyone! Why doesn’t anyone know about it? I’m going to promote it!”

Soon, a new post appeared on the academy forum titled, [Who can understand this? How does a student like this even exist in our academy? How could she do something like that in a simulation battle?!]

Jiang Momo had no idea what Yan Chang was doing. She only saw him looking very serious, as if dealing with a life-altering event. Curious, she followed the topic from their conversation and opened the academy forum.

Right at the top, the newly posted thread floated. Jiang Momo clicked in and it already had less than a dozen replies.

1F: What’s wrong with the OP? A title that dramatic and nothing in the main post? And then they just ran?

2F: Waiting for updates.

3F: Guys, this is insane. Go check the simulation battle highlights area. Someone just cleared the team battle mode, solo against over a hundred alien beasts, with no damage taken. Absolutely wild!

4F: Bro? Are you sure this is the right direction?

5F: Disperse. Another Mecha Piloting Department student has lost it. Did none of you see the other threads? They said the system this time is linked with the academy and military. And you’re still getting hyped over this? Tsk~ you clearly never seen the world.

11F: No way, I went to check. It turns out the one who cleared it is a student!

When Jiang Momo first clicked in, it showed only 11 replies. But by the time she finished reading the 11th post and refreshed, there were suddenly multiple pages. One more refresh and several more pages appeared.

She blinked and exited. On the main page, the ‘new’ tag after the title had turned into ‘hot.’

Jiang Momo looked up at Yan Chang who also happened to lift his head at that moment. He seemed visibly relieved, with a satisfied expression on his face like he had accomplished a mission.

“What did you do?” Jiang Momo took a sip of water. “The post suddenly blew up.”

“Oh, I sent it to my friends and had them help comment and share it,” Yan Chang said.

Although he didn’t know who that god-tier mecha pilot was, he was confident he’d catch her eventually. Just consider it an early, subtle public announcement. Yan Chang felt a little embarrassed at the thought.

“I really like that god-tier mecha pilot. Momo, you really can’t find any info on her?” Yan Chang asked again, still unwilling to give up. “I want to pursue her.”

Jiang Momo choked on her water and burst into a violent cough.

Yan Chang hurriedly handed her tissues. “What’s wrong?”

For a moment, his mind was filled with panicked chant, ‘No way no way no way.’ But the instant his eyes met Jiang Momo’s, he realized he was being way too narcissistic.

The way Jiang Momo looked at him was clearly the same way she looked at any other close friend. No mistaking it. If there had ever been even a hint of something in her gaze, he would’ve already backed off and disappeared. No way would things have developed to the point where he was so worried over her health that he couldn’t sleep.

“It’s nothing.” Jiang Momo raised her hand and took the tissue, wiping the water from the corner of her mouth. Her mood dimmed slightly.

Crap. Looks like I’ll need to stay offline more from now on.

Yan Chang patted her back worriedly to help her breathe. “Don’t get too worked up lately. It’s bad for your health.”

Jiang Momo chuckled. “You’re the first one to ever think my body’s weak.”

Objectively speaking, she was stronger than some alien beasts.

Yan Chang hesitated and then sighed.

Soon, the spaceship stopped at the hospital entrance.

It was Jiang Momo’s third time at the hospital and the guidance robot was still trailing her with a scanner.

Yan Chang ‘tolerated’ its behavior this time and said nothing, leading Jiang Momo directly to the lift.

This time, the lift moved down instead of up. Soon, they arrived at the 20th basement level.

The door opened and revealed Yan Yunkui wearing a familiar white coat, leaning against a massive machine. The room wasn’t large and aside from the machine, only about six square meters of standing space remained. The floor and walls were all metallic, giving off a strong sense of advanced technology.

“Doctor Yan, we meet again,” Jiang Momo greeted him and then looked at Yan Chang. “Didn’t you say we were here to see small animals?”

Yan Yunkui slid his hand over the wall. “Right here.”

Where he touched, the wall automatically opened up.

Inside was a whole different world. Apart from a central path, the huge room was filled wall to wall with cages holding small animals.

The moment they sensed Jiang Momo’s presence, the animals began frantically scurrying around their cages, as if desperate to escape.

Yan Yunkui was startled. “They’re unusually lively today.”

After that, he gave Jiang Momo a light push from behind. “Just go right in. Stay for an hour and you can come back out.”

The animals were slamming into their cages with loud thuds as the door behind Jiang Momo shut automatically.

Yan Chang sat in front of the machine Yan Yunkui had been leaning on. Watching a new data entry suddenly appear among the numerous readings, he sighed worriedly. “Is this really reliable? No side effects?”

“It should be reliable,” Yan Yunkui said confidently, though after that scene just now, he felt less certain. “These little guys are usually quiet. They do absorb mental power but they never make a fuss. I don’t know what’s up today. Don’t worry. If the data’s off, I’ll release your precious one right away.”

Yan Chang corrected him, “Don’t call her that. I have someone else in mind for that title.”

Yan Yunkui: “?”

“You’re in love?” He was stunned. “Seriously?!”

This guy never cared about anything but mecha. Someone actually managed to stir his heart?! He used to suspect the only reason their master hadn’t tried to marry a mecha yet was because he hadn’t found a high-end one he liked enough.

While still watching the machine’s readings, Yan Chang recounted his experience of falling in love.

Yan Yunkui opened his mouth a few times but held back.

After hearing everything, he asked hesitantly, “So you still don’t know what she looks like?”

“That’s not important.” Yan Chang waved it off. Then he pointed excitedly at the screen. “The numbers changed. Look!”

Yan Yunkui immediately checked and then frowned deeply, inhaling through his teeth. “This isn’t right…”

Yan Chang’s heart jumped. “The treatment failed? Then get her out of there!”

“It didn’t fail.” Yan Yunkui rubbed his chin. “Actually, this might be the most successful outcome we could’ve hoped for.”

“What do you mean?” Yan Chang was confused.

Yan Yunkui pointed to the data. “Look at these two lines; one represents mental power while the other represents physical stats.

“According to our initial theory, her mental power would decrease after being partially absorbed, while her physical data would stabilize. But now, only the physical line has changed and it’s stabilizing.”

Yan Chang: “So that’s a good thing?”

“Very good. It means she didn’t lose any mental power. In fact, she might’ve absorbed the special energy supporting the small animals’ bodies. In other words, the result is the exact opposite of what we expected. The treatment is actually making her healthier.” Yan Yunkui joked, “If she could punch an alien beast to death before, then after this, she could probably take down one and a half.”

“But what’s the principle behind this?” Yan Yunkui buried himself in the data and documents, ignoring Yan Chang.

Yan Chang suddenly understood, clapping his hands. “No wonder Jiang Momo said the small animals always ran from her whenever they saw her and never got close to her. It’s because they were afraid she’d drain their energy!”

Yan Yunkui didn’t respond, too immersed in figuring out the theory.

“So could this be about power dynamics? You said the animals absorb others’ mental power to stay balanced. What if it’s because their combined mental and physical powers were higher than the students? That’s how they could absorb from them.”

Yan Chang kept thinking aloud, unusually excited and mentally active.

Yan Yunkui paused, surprised. “That’s very possible. But we’ll need more data to confirm. Time to recruit a new batch of volunteers.”