"This medal is a symbol of honor, and even more so, the highest commendation for their hard work and loyalty..."
On the stage, Meng Chongyun was presenting the awards. Wang Tianwei stood among a group of solemn-faced soldiers, trying hard to suppress a massive grin.
Hahaha, her day had finally come!
Jian Jingyu glanced sideways and saw that everyone around was recording with their virtual screens. Excellent, everyone was filming his Sister Ma!
Wang Kaiyu was incredibly proud.
Not only had his own sister received a second-class merit, but all the students and safety instructors who participated in the star beast extermination on Planet Kashile were commended by the Chief!
What a tremendous honor this was! He would like to see who would dare look down on their family from now on!
Chao Hao and Fu Manli looked through the virtual screen at the student standing on the podium. In a daze, they remembered when she first enrolled, rolling and crawling through the Dread Ridge Mountains clutching nothing but a rifle...
She was short and timid; when spending the night alone, she was so afraid of being discovered that she did not even dare light a fire.
Just one year later, she had grown to the point of piloting a transforming mecha and going on a killing spree on Planet Kashile... It truly made them sigh with emotion.
Speaking of which, it was from that time on that the relationship between the few of them became incredibly good.
"Next, I will announce the top five teams of the second mecha match in the 5th Federal Military Academy League. They are:
First Military Academy's First Squad, Qilin Military Academy's Fourth Squad, Valk Military Academy's First Squad, Santorini's First Squad, and First Military Academy's Second Squad."
As soon as the results were announced, a tidal wave of applause erupted from the audience!
Meng Chongyun looked at every team standing below. This was already his third time meeting these kids.
The students looked different again; everyone's face was brimming with confidence and determination.
"...The Military Academy League will continue. Next, I will announce the venue for the upcoming mecha match—Planet Ershuinuo."
Meng Chongyun's firm and clear voice reached everyone's ears.
Throughout the entire process, he did not mention the reason for the match's postponement, nor did he mention how difficult their last battle had been.
It was as if everything was just as it should be. Encountered difficulties? Then solve the difficulties first.
Difficulties solved? Then continue with the competition and life!
The military would never fall, and the Federation would always have hope.
The students, however, knew very little about this obscure minor planet. They only knew that it seemed to belong to the Tenth Military Region's territory, and its location was as remote as could be... They would have to look it up to know the specific details.
But immediately following was the moment for the top three teams to select their supplies.
The first place in the last match was still He Siyu's squad from the First Military Academy.
Their luck was off the charts. From beginning to end, they never lacked energy, and they found the academy bonus point buttons very smoothly.
Even on the sixth day, they still had the spare energy to challenge a star beast swarm and earn points.
Qilin came in second, mainly because they spent too much time in the underground mine tunnels. Especially since the tunnels collapsed at the end, forcing them to make a deal with Valk...
Thinking of this, Wang Tianwei, who had returned to the middle of her team wearing her second-class merit medal, could not help but glance at the Valk team next to them.
At the time, they clearly despised her hovercar, but did they not all end up loving it later on?
Taylor and Barry noticed the gaze from Qilin and forced themselves to pretend not to see it. They were in third place.
Thanks to Qilin's blessing, although the process was indescribable, they eventually gained three hundred academy bonus points...
The squads of Elizabeth and Ye Yingxuan, ranked fourth and fifth, felt quite emotional.
Why had they not thought of going underground at the time? They had stood right at the tunnel entrance without even considering going inside!
It was still a lack of experience... If it were now, even if they did not see a mine tunnel, they would dig three feet into the ground.
However, since they had learned their lesson, they would not miss out so easily in the next match!
The first card He Siyu saw when she went on stage was Waterproof Shield?
Well... combining it with the name Planet Ershuinuo, one could roughly guess that, barring any surprises, this should be a planet with a lot of water.
The second card was a Military Low-Temperature Protection Module, and the third was a Corrosion-Resistant Armor Coating.
Strange, there were actually no options for nutrient solutions or energy this time? Why?
Shen Jie, the chairman of the organizing committee, spoke up at the right moment.
"We believe everyone must have gained a lot of inspiration from the last match, so we are not providing energy supplies this time.
As for food, we allow everyone to carry up to thirty tubes of nutrient solution per person, as well as simple condiments."
Saying this, he looked toward the Qilin side.
"Raw food ingredients, pre-packaged foods, finished meals, and snacks are not allowed to be brought into the competition venue."
After all, this was still a serious competition. He believed that if these conditions were not set, Qilin would absolutely turn the match into a picnic or a banquet.
"..."
Wang Tianwei's good mood, having just learned from Huang Yan that they could eat seafood, dropped significantly. Why are you looking at me while saying that!?
After hearing this, He Siyu also understood. It seemed they wanted them to use other kinetic auxiliary systems like Qilin did.
But how should she choose right now? She should have let Leola come up...
The conference staff were quite accommodating this time.
"The captain can discuss with the team members before making a decision."
He Siyu nodded gratefully to the conference staff and immediately stepped down to discuss with her team members what they should choose.
During this time, Fu Xingyuan had already searched for the environment of Planet Ershuinuo. Simply put, 85 percent of its surface was covered by seawater, and mutated beasts and star beasts existed both on land and on the seabed...
Whether for individuals or mechas, this was hellish difficulty. Wu Pingzhuo could not help but give the conference staff a deep look.
With so many normal planets in the Federation, managing to find a godforsaken desert planet and then a desolate ocean planet was really making things difficult for them...
The conference staff felt a prickling on their backs under the kids' accusing stares... They had no choice either!
To test the students' adaptability to different environments while providing a place where they could let loose and show their skills, how could there be that many options?
They could only search among those minor planets that had some resources and were guarded by military regions. Did they think it was easy for them?
Considering the current condition of her squad's mechas, Leola chose the most reliable Waterproof Shield.
There was no helping it. Previously, she had mostly researched the mechas' lethality and weapon capacity. After all, neither she personally nor the First Military Academy had ever lacked resources.
Their research on energy and protection was indeed inferior to other military academies... or rather, indeed inferior to Qilin.
Next, Wang Tianwei chose the Military Low-Temperature Module. She felt that since this item appeared, there must be a reason for it.
Valk, ranked third, was left with only the Corrosion-Resistant Armor Coating.
The remaining two teams did not look too good.
These accessories were military standard issues. If they wanted to purchase them, they needed to submit a report in advance, and the conference team definitely would not allow them to buy them at high prices.
There was no time to stick around... They had to hurry back and modify their mechas as soon as possible.
"The venue for this competition is rather unique, so we are giving each squad twenty-four hours to prepare. Tomorrow evening at 1800 hours, please assemble promptly at the camp's parade ground. We will be departing for Planet Eshuinuo."
"Yes, sir!"
