Gu Lin’s real identity was enough that not only could he take Li Shu to see the competition mechas, but even showing him the military’s mechas wouldn’t be an issue.
Li Shu followed behind the man and entered the storage area for the mechas. Originally, a staff member was supposed to accompany them, but after Gu Lin said something, the staff handed him something similar to a pass and left.
The mecha storage area resembled a laboratory, with cold, white, metallic walls. The lights poured down from above, and the shadows on the ground intertwined, blending into one another.
In this body, Li Shu was an Omega, which made him naturally smaller compared to Alphas and Betas. Standing next to the powerful Alpha Gu Lin, he was a full head shorter.
He had to slightly tilt his head up to see the man’s face.
Gu Lin had come under a disguised identity, wearing a realistic mask that gave him an ordinary face—nothing outstanding, the kind that would easily blend into a crowd. The only thing that couldn’t be concealed were his eyes. They were a pair of eyes Li Shu was extremely familiar with.
“We’re here.”
Li Shu was lost in thought, and only now did he realize that they had reached their destination. Gu Lin stood in front of a door and waved the card in front of a sensor. The door opened automatically, revealing the place where the mechas were stored.
The mechas were neatly lined up in the vast room. It was Li Shu’s first time being this close to a mecha in this world. Each one stood dozens of meters tall, and standing in front of them, Li Shu felt incredibly small.
“These are B-level mechas, there are also a few A-level ones as well. Look over there on the left…”
Seeing how interested Li Shu was in the mechas, Gu Lin began explaining them in detail. He wasn’t familiar with what Omega liked, but when it came to mechas and warfare, he knew everything.
Before they knew it, most of the lunch break had passed. No matter how much Gu Lin didn’t want to part, he had to take Li Shu back.
After finishing his own tasks, Lu Yao went looking for Li Shu. After searching for a while without finding him, he became worried. Li Shu was an Omega, and with so many people coming and going on campus, it didn’t feel safe.
“What are you doing here?” This area was far from the main campus road and was very remote. Normally, Lu Yao had no reason to come here.
Just after saying goodbye to Gu Lin, Li Shu saw Lu Yao. Lu Yao was standing alone by the roadside, talking to someone on the light brain and looking a bit anxious.
As soon as Li Shu spoke, Lu Yao reacted, hurriedly said a few words to the person on the other end, and hung up the call.
He walked over to Li Shu, asking as he approached, “Where have you been?”
“Just wandering around. Were you looking for me?” Li Shu wasn’t stupid; after a little thought, he quickly pieced together why Lu Yao was here. Seeing the anxious look on his face earlier, it wasn’t hard to guess what he was worried about.
“Yes,” Lu Yao nodded straightforwardly. “I came to find you as soon as I finished my work. It’s not safe for you to be out alone right now.”
The chaotic environment was one factor; the other was Li Shu himself. After what happened with Li Luo, many people in the school had grievances against Li Shu.
Some people enjoyed putting on airs, using the guise of justice to carry out their own malicious intentions.
Lu Yao knew about Li Shu’s past, but he wasn’t the kind of person who believed whatever he heard from others. He judged people based on his own observations. Still, there were always those who refused to seek the truth for themselves, choosing instead to believe in the so-called truth from others.
Li Shu’s life before wasn’t exactly great. Before the incident, he could at least be considered a marginal figure in the school. Few people paid attention to him, and even fewer went out of their way to bully him. Regardless of everything, he was still the eldest son of the Li family. But now it was different. He had done something wrong, and what they were doing couldn’t be considered bullying, could it?
They simply didn’t like Li Shu’s actions and were “upholding justice”.
Seeing the concern in Lu Yao’s eyes, Li Shu smiled slightly. “I’m fine.”
—–
The Li family.
Seeing Li Shu getting more and more out of control, Li Luo and his mother began to panic. They couldn’t understand why, when everything had been going according to plan, things suddenly took a turn. How had Li Shu, who had never known how to resist, suddenly become so tough?
Because Li Shu had always been under control, they never expected such a change midway.
“What should we do now?” Li Luo asked.
“Don’t worry, I know Li Shu’s temperament well. I heard he’s been getting close to that kid from the Lu family recently?”
“More than close! I don’t know what kind of drug he gave Lu Yao to make him protect Li Shu like that?” Li Luo was furious just thinking about it. He had always tried to befriend Lu Yao, but that Omega had always treated him coldly. Who could have imagined that Li Shu would not only be lucky enough to share the same dorm, but had also managed to gain his protection?
Anyone else would have been wary of approaching Li Shu after hearing all those rumors.
“So what if he has the Lu family’s protection? He’s just an Omega, what can he do? General Helian is returning soon. You just focus on not causing any trouble during this time.”
“I know, I’ll be careful.”
After a pause, Li Luo remembered what happened that day and said, “There’s one more thing.”
He told her about the man. Afterwards, he had investigated Li Shu’s recent activities but found nothing unusual. Apart from getting closer to that Omega from the Lu family, Li Shu still kept to himself like before.
Madam Li nodded. “I understand. I’ll have someone look into it. For now, stay away from him. The engagement is the priority.”
Whether Li Shu lived in the Li family or not didn’t matter much to Li Luo and his mother. Logically, Li Shu had never been favored by the patriarch of the Li family, so they didn’t understand why he was so angry this time and repeatedly urged him to return.
In the following days, Li Shu didn’t see Gu Lin again. The two had exchanged personal contact information, and Gu Lin sent a message telling Li Shu that he had to leave for a while.
The virtual mecha competition took place after the official match. After watching a few days of real mecha battles, Li Shu’s understanding of mechas deepened, and his virtual skills improved significantly.
The virtual competition allowed for anonymous registration online. Li Shu chose to remain anonymous. He didn’t mind being an Omega, but in this world, people treated different genders with very distinct attitudes.
If his Omega identity were exposed, it was uncertain whether he could even participate. In the eyes of some people in power, an Omega’s greatest value was to bear excellent offspring.
In the mecha combat on the virtual platform, in addition to various skills, mental strength was a crucial factor. Li Shu’s soul was strong, and he lacked nothing in terms of mental power.
Naturally, he advanced smoothly.
A few days later, everyone knew about the dark horse that emerged from the virtual competition. From the preliminary matches to the advanced rounds, this person hadn’t lost a single match.
During the preliminary rounds, people thought he was just lucky, facing weak opponents each time. At that point, not many focused on Li Shu. But by the intermediate round, he caught people’s attention.
The competition was divided into three levels: preliminary, intermediate, and advanced. Not everyone had to start from the preliminary round. There had already been a screening process before the competition started, dividing participants into different levels. It wasn’t unheard of for someone to challenge beyond their level, but someone like Li Shu, who won every match, was nearly unprecedented.
This person seemed tireless. No matter how strong the opponents were, he easily claimed victory. Besides his skillful operation, his powerful spiritual strength was evident.
It was at least S-level.
By the intermediate round, the buzz was already growing on the star network. When Li Shu advanced to the advanced round and won all the way through, some people couldn’t sit still anymore. Preliminary and intermediate rounds didn’t mean much, but the advanced round was different.
One open secret among the upper echelons was that military personnel always participated in the advanced round. Only those who performed outstandingly in the advanced round would be noticed by the major forces.
Some higher-ups also used the advanced round to build momentum for their new talents. Originally, this round had such arrangements in place. No one expected someone like Li Shu to appear halfway through.
If Li Shu hadn’t won every match and advanced from the preliminary round to the advanced round, he wouldn’t have drawn so much attention. He couldn’t be described as simply “strong” anymore. Yes, the virtual competition was slightly less difficult than the real one, but that was only relatively speaking. The advanced round was just as challenging as a real battle, and sometimes even more so because it included promising candidates heavily cultivated by the military.
Who exactly was this newcomer called “Lu Xi”?
This was the question on everyone’s mind.
Since he concealed his identity, his name was hidden as well. And with 1314’s help, no one could find out Li Shu’s true identity unless he chose to reveal it himself.
Yes, Li Shu had chosen the codename “Lu Xi.”
“Still nothing?” The man tapped the meeting table leisurely.
The subordinates bowed their heads, not daring to breathe loudly. “Reporting to the Marshal, we only managed to find out that the person’s name is ‘Lu Xi’. We couldn’t discover their gender or age.”
“Oh?” The man’s hand paused. “Are you telling me that after all this time, the only information you’ve found is a single name?”
“Marshal, we…” The subordinates had no excuse. They had tried everything, used all available methods, yet still found nothing. It was as if this person had appeared out of thin air, with no trace of their existence before the competition.
The man wasn’t the only one investigating. The four major military legions, the royal family, and various aristocratic forces were all searching for Li Shu. Like the man, they had found nothing.
Although this world’s technology was highly advanced, it was still possible to erase all traces on the star network.
[Host, another message has arrived.]
Since winning several matches in the advanced round, more and more people were trying to contact Li Shu. Some wanted to recruit him, while others felt he was in their way. Li Shu ignored them all, leaving the matter to 1314.
[Who is it this time?] After handing this off to 1314, Li Shu had enjoyed a few days of peace. If it were someone unimportant, 1314 wouldn’t have disturbed him.
As expected, 1314 answered: [It’s the male protagonist.]
[Let me see.]
1314 pulled up the message. It was brief, with just a few sentences, fitting the original plot’s description of the male protagonist.
It was a proposal for cooperation, offering generous terms and even helping him resolve his current troubles.
Li Shu raised an eyebrow. [Reply to him, tell him I’m willing to talk.]
