Chapter 495: Slave Driver
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
The subject of the morning training focused on the application of what they had learned over the days. Guan Dongyang led the exercises as soldiers struggled to balance their old and new GN circulations while stabilizing their GN force.
Around noon, Ye Zi arrived at the mechanic room to invite Wang Tong over for lunch. Wang Tong’s all-encompassing skills had impressed her. She had never heard of anyone who was not only a mastery caster, but also a METAL fighter. On top of that, he was an incredible mechanic.
Ye Zi wondered if there was anything that Wang Tong could not do: perhaps having babies? It was a fleeting thought, but Ye Zi then immediately scolded herself for having such a foolish idea.
“Captain, time for lunch.” Ye Zi shouted at Wang Tong. But, there was no reply, as he was absorbed in his work.
‘Disassemble, repair, and reassemble’… Wang Tong finished the job in one go, breathing a new life into each and every METAL suit that had been damaged.
He wiped the sweat off his forehead and smiled satisfyingly. He really enjoyed being a mechanic, particularly the satisfaction and sense of accomplishment. To him, it was the best form of taking a rest, to be away from his troubles.
Looking at the last METAL suit that he had finished repairing, Wang Tong smiled. It was the first time for Ye Zi to see such a child-like, innocent smile on his face.
“Ye Zi, come look at this piece of METAL. Didn’t I do a good job? Haha.” Wang Tong turned to face Ye Zi and then asked.
Ye Zi blushed as she replied, “Time for lunch. If you starve to death, everyone is going to blame me for not taking good care of you.”
“Lunch already? Ah-ha, that is why my belly feels so weird! Do we have roast today?”
“Yes, only for you. “
Wang Tong smiled joyfully. In addition to repairing METAL, he also loved to eat.
“Ye Zi, after the mastery training in the afternoon, can I ask you a few questions about the usage of mastery in the medic field?” Wang Tong asked on their way to the dining room.
“You know about that?”
“Just a little. I also wanted to get a better idea of the development of the Divine Mastery Sect. You are the only medic in Battle Wolf, so it must be a lot of work for you. I am planning to train a few soldiers and let them become your assistants.”
“Thank you for the thought, but it is easier said than done. Not every soldier is fit for being a field medic. Even in the Divine Mastery Sect, the chance that a sect member would be up to the scratch for being a medic was very small. Oh! One more thing… The creator of the medic occupation was not the young master, but the head medic, Susu.”
“Susu? Isn’t she one of the three beauties on Mars?”
“Yeah, yeah. Looks are always the only thing that guys are interested in. Susu is our young master’s sister. Although she is not very famous outside of Mars, she is one of the most influential people in the sect. If she were a man, she might have already become the heir apparent of the sect. “
“Good to know. So, is the medic a type of non-combat mastery?”
“No. It can be deadly when it needs to. Our young master made sure it is that way himself.” Ye Zi said with a smug look on her face.
Sensing Ye Zi’s admiration toward Michaux, Wang Tong shook his head and lamented that Michaux’s cult of personality was a bit over the top. However, he quickly realized that a cult of personality could be a very effective tool for uniting people together during such a tumultuous time. Perhaps, he should try it at some time.
The mastery casters sat around Wang Tong at the dining table. They patiently waited until Wang Tong had picked the last grain of rice from his plate, then started to bombard him with questions. Wagering that the soldiers’ questions might get out of control, Wang Tong decided only to answer ten questions. Any more questions would have to wait until tomorrow.
It was a strategy he had learned from Zhou Sisi. She always talked about the smart usage of unavailability in social interactions.
There were so many things that Wang Tong could have learned from her if she were still alive.
How was Xiaoru and what exactly happened to Zhou Sisi? Where were Karl and Hu Yangxuan?
Wang Tong halted his train of thoughts. He knew that it was a rabbit hole with no return. He then heard Guan Dongyang start speaking.
“You all know that Mastery is a ‘young’ profession; it is only six years old. However, within the six years, we have established ourselves as the most effective method of eliminating Zergs. Therefore, we have seen rapid growth in the number of mastery casters within the recent years. Although the mastery casters excel at damage output, it is plagued by weak defense. As a response to that weakness, I plan to build a new mastery unit here in Battle Wolf that excels at both offense and defense. I can guarantee you that, in time, our mastery team would be even more powerful than that of the Divine Mastery Sect.”
After Guan Dongyang finished his speech, he turned the focus onto Wang Tong. Wang Tong nodded. “I fully agree with Guan Dongyang, except for one thing.” Wang Tong looked around and found out that everyone’s face held an incredulous expression as they heard his disagreement with their captain.
“In order to surpass the mastery unit of the Divine Mastery sect, we would have to be willing to make some sacrifices in the training room.”
The soldier’s face crumpled as Wang Tong’s words sent a chill down their spines.
“Mastery is a very broad topic, and what we have discovered so far is less than the tip of an iceberg,” Wang Tong said as he snapped his fingers and a dancing flame appeared at his fingertips. Wang Tong snatched up the little flame and hurled it across the room. The flame turned into a fireball, a dragon, and lastly a spear, before it landed on the ground.
“This is only a small trick. It might have been a marvelous spell years ago when Mastery was first invented, but as the Mastery advanced, so did its power. Starting today, I will teach you more than a dozen different mastery spells, and I hope you can find the one that suits your the best.”
The mastery casters stared at Wang Tong in disbelief. They had never heard of anyone who knew over ten different kinds of mastery spells.
“In order to master the spells, you will first need to build a solid foundation. I will make it mandatory for all mastery casters to pass the “Instant Cast” test.”
Some soldiers winced at the difficulties ahead. The warriors they knew who could use Instant Cast were at a much higher level than them. But, despite the seemingly impossible task, no one protested since they knew Wang Tong would not care anyway. If he wanted it, then they had to deliver.
Wang Tong then started to explain the Instant Cast step by step. The core concept of the “Instant Cast” was to increase the speed at which one drew out the natural force. Any other mastery teacher would warn the students about the danger in doing so. Therefore, in the eyes of some soldiers, Wang Tong’s instructions were the perfect recipe for derangement.
However, Wang Tong knew that they would be safe because he had just taught them how to double GN circulation. Although the double GN circulation had little effect in improving a high-level METAL warrior’s combat ability, it was crucial in protecting the mastery casters from the harm of rogue natural energy.
Nevertheless, such practice was not 100% safe, and it would have been outright banned during the peaceful times. However, humans had little to no choice other than taking the risk under such reduced circumstances.
Despite the protection of the double GN circulation, the soldiers still suffered an excruciating pain from the invasion of rogue natural energies.
Hamir pleaded, “Wang Tong, is there any other way? I am afraid that it is too painful for most of us.”
Wang Tong cracked a smile and then said,, “Do you think the Zergs on the battlefield would listen to your pleading? I have already said it… there is no other way.”
The Mastery casters looked at each other with despair; they knew that Wang Tong would not listen to their pleading. Some soldiers even started to whimper.
Sensing the morale wavering, Guan Dongyang stood up and announced, “We are all veterans, and have lived through many battles. This is nothing! You can do it!”
“Yes, captain! Be a man. Do the right thing!” Someone chimed in.
Under Guan Dongyang’s encouragement, the soldiers gathered strength and fought back the pain. Everyone was wet from their sweat, but no one complained ever again.
Ye Zi gritted her teeth as she battled with the rogue energy that sent waves of paralyzing pain through her system.
