As the screen lit up, Yang Hui immediately received a simulation battle connection request.
"Hmm? Graham wants to get beaten again? Good, I almost forgot what it feels like to bully hi—a battle royale? This many people!? Whoa! They're looking for a reckoning!"
At first, Yang Hui thought Graham wanted to spar with him one-on-one. It had been quite a while since they last clashed, and he wanted to see how much Graham had improved—and perhaps help him remember what it felt like to be stepped on by him.
But when he clicked it open, the setting was the space-based Debris Zone, and the mode was a free-for-all. The invitees included Kira, Athrun, Yurin, Flit, Asemu, Woolf, Jehart, Gai Murakumo, Creuset, Lyle, Tieria... the absolute top-tier powerhouses of Prometheus Fortress were all present.
"Heh... haha... now this is interesting! Hahaha! Accept!"
In the next second, the screen revealed the view outside. Countless pieces of debris floated in the silent void. This was the Debris Zone, a region of space filled with rocks, meteorites, and asteroids. Moreover, all the debris contained a certain amount of energy, providing natural cover and interference that rendered energy and thermal detection useless.
Furthermore, mixed within this debris were extremely unstable Energy Ores. Getting hit by an attack carried the risk of an explosion, yet they looked no different from ordinary rocks. It was essentially a natural minefield.
"Energy, thermal, electromagnetic—even the heavy ion detection systems are offline. I have to rely on optical cameras and instinct?" Yang Hui checked all the detection systems carried by the Dawn Gundam, but they were all malfunctioning. Even so, an excited smile remained on his face in such an environment.
"Time to go find someone. Just staying here will—"
Beep, beep, beep, beep...
"Whoa!"
A beam pierced through a narrow gap between countless rocks, striking from behind the Dawn Gundam. The Dawn Gundam banked to the side, narrowly dodging the sniper shot, and hid behind an asteroid.
"Sniping... it's not Yurin, so it must be Lyle. Heh, found one!"
Having determined the direction of his target, the Dawn Gundam charged out from the giant rock it was hiding behind. A golden glow adhered to its wings as the sacred Judgment Angel descended once more. Wave after wave of bits pushed forward, swallowing countless rocks and clearing a clean, straight path.
"Wait, something's wrong!" After advancing a short distance, the Dawn Gundam abruptly stopped. The waves of bits were recalled, and its wings wrapped around its body.
In the next second, several beams struck the Dawn Gundam from completely different directions. Small ripples splashed across the golden wings before the beams were refracted away.
"The power isn't right... it's Yurin!"
Whether it was Yurin's Luna Gundam or Lyle's Gundam Cherudim, the power of their main weapon—the beam sniper rifle—couldn't be this low. Even the sniper-type or pistol-type Super GN Dragon Cavalry they carried wouldn't have so little power.
That meant... there was only one possibility: the Mirror Refraction Tactics, a special tactic invented by Yang Hui, taught to Yurin, and then perfected by her.
The reason the power was abnormally low, such that several hits couldn't even make the Dawn Gundam flinch, was because Yurin wasn't just using Mirror Refraction; she was also using Scatter Shot. She had fired a single shot, which was then split into several attacks through a special Mirror System and refracted to hit the Dawn Gundam.
"Using Scatter Shot too? I didn't expect you to be the first one to make a move on me." Yang Hui shook his head with a wry smile. In this free-for-all, he had guessed that everyone would unite to eliminate him first, but Yurin was the one person he expected to be an ally. Who would have thought...
His wife's backstab came so quickly and suddenly.
"Then I'll just have to ask you to retire first, Yurin." Immediately, Yang Hui's gaze hardened. A simulation battle was no different from a real one. Since Yurin was now his opponent, he wouldn't show her mercy because of their personal relationship outside the cockpit.
The Dawn Gundam changed its heading. Since his opponent was Yurin, the direction of the incoming attacks could no longer be used as a reliable indicator of her location. He used the rocks as cover while scouting the surrounding area, searching for the silhouette of the Luna Gundam.
On the other side, Yurin stowed her long-range sniper rifle and recalled all the sniper-type Super GN Dragon Cavalry. She kicked off the rock beneath her feet, using inertia to move and reduce the probability of being detected.
"I've been spotted. I need to relocate quickly." Yurin also wore a smile. This was a free-for-all; everyone was an opponent. As a veteran of a hundred battles, she wasn't so naive as to not attack Yang Hui. On the contrary, she would do so without hesitation because she wanted Yang Hui to see her growth and progress.
"I'll leave the rest to you all."
"No problem." (Multiple voices)
Yurin wasn't alone. No matter how much she wanted to prove her growth, she wouldn't be impulsive enough to wage war against Yang Hui by herself. Yang Hui's strength was universally acknowledged. To take him down, several top-tier experts had to strike together and utilize the environment to set a trap. Only then would they have a chance to take him out.
Note: a chance, not a certainty.
...
On another side of the battlefield, a fight had also broken out, with two people ganging up on one.
"Asemu, make sure you stick to Graham!"
"Understood!"
The Flag Gundam wove through the meteorite cluster at high speeds, its movements ethereal and illusory. One second it was on the left, the next it was on the right. But no matter how it moved or hid, a constant stream of attacks trailed closely behind its tail.
"Tch, this environment is absolute hell for me," Graham mocked himself, though the excitement and heat on his face were overflowing.
"Didn't you choose this environment yourself, Uncle Graham?" Asemu teased while maintaining his fierce pursuit.
"Of course! How else can I achieve a breakthrough?" Graham replied with a smile. He knew full well that the Flag Gundam was not suited for combat in such a dense meteorite environment. Its ultra-high mobility in MA Form was completely sealed off, but that was exactly what he wanted.
Only by stepping out of his comfort zone and fighting to the death in the most disadvantageous environment could he once again stimulate his potential.
Besides, giving himself an advantage in such a manner wasn't his style at all!
"Then please retire first, Graham!"
The Gundam Legilis suddenly lunged from behind a giant rock behind the Flag Gundam. Its top, bottom, left, and right sides were surrounded by a wave of golden bits, and its Beam Cannon was locked onto the Flag Gundam's back.
"Naive!"
The Flag Gundam suddenly began to rotate in an extremely contorted posture. Its armaments poured out firepower in all directions as if they cost nothing, knocking back all the closing bits. And then...
Vwoom—
A thick Destruction Beam shot past, but it only grazed the Flag Gundam's armor without making a direct hit. The weirdly contorted posture had just barely allowed it to pass through.
"What!?"
"You should be the one to retire first! Jehart!"
Having dodged the fatal blow, and seeing the surrounding bits momentary stall, the Flag Gundam immediately stopped its rotation. Its cold, sharp blade was unsheathed, and its thrusters roared. It launched a lethal charge toward the Gundam Legilis at incredible speed.
"Don't even think about it!"
Just as the high-frequency vibrating blade was about to cleave the Gundam Legilis in two, the Gundam AGE-2 suddenly intercepted, blocking the Flag Gundam with its own High-Frequency Vibration Sword.
Asemu and Jehart's coordination was not inferior to Yang Hui and Graham's. The Gundam Legilis darted out from beside the Gundam AGE-2, its Beam Cannon already fully charged.
"...Heh, well done." Graham knew he couldn't dodge this hit, and even if he could, he wouldn't be able to escape the follow-up from the Gundam AGE-2.
"Got you!"
Beep beep beep...
Alarms blared. The Gundam Legilis turned its muzzle toward the direction indicated by the warning and pulled the trigger without hesitation. The beam shot out, clashing mid-air with another pink beam. The collision erupted in brilliant light and an explosion.
But the Gundam Legilis didn't stop. It moved upward, and just then, the Gundam AGE-1 burst through the flash, its sword severing the Gundam Legilis's left leg.
"What!?"
"Are you alright, Jehart?" Taking advantage of the Gundam AGE-1's entrance, the Gundam AGE-2 and the Flag Gundam both pulled back and retreated. The Gundam AGE-2 lined up with the Gundam Legilis, while the Gundam AGE-1 stood side-by-side with the Flag Gundam, the two sides facing off.
"I'm fine. I just didn't expect Mr. Flit to show up now, and to help Graham of all people," Jehart said with lingering fear. His upward movement just now had been a subconscious action driven purely by experience and combat intuition. If he hadn't moved, that sword strike would have been enough to eliminate him directly.
"Heh, Dad is being sneaky. People who play at tactics have dirty hearts!" Asemu criticized his father without hesitation.
"I heard that, Asemu."
"So what? Uncle Yang Hui taught me from a young age to be an honest and straightforward person." Asemu wasn't the least bit intimidated by Flit's threat.
"Hmph! Graham, you're looking quite pathetic."
"Can't be helped. The juniors are growing too fast. Fighting two at once is still a bit much." Graham was a straightforward man as well; there was no embarrassment or avoidance, he simply admitted it.
"Let's eliminate them together, then go deal with Yang Hui," Flit suggested. He had wanted to teach Asemu a lesson for a long time, but he had tragically discovered that because he was too busy with other affairs, he hadn't focused on MS pilot training, and Asemu had already surpassed him. To avoid losing face, he had been holding back.
But this free-for-all organized by Graham happened to give him an opportunity. He could join forces with others to educate his "filial son," Asemu, and let him understand just how deep a father's love could be!
"Sure." In this kind of setting, Graham would normally never team up with anyone. He wanted to see where his limit was and then break through it.
But now, he had already seen his limit. He was nearly killed by Asemu and Jehart working together just now, and he didn't plan on retiring this early. So, he accepted Flit's suggestion. After all, a two-on-two fight didn't violate his bushido spirit.
As for Yang Hui... he was never part of any normal calculation!
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