Chapter 2: The Appearance of a Gentleman, Section 3

The excavation task at the ruins ended quickly. Not even OldOld Buick could have imagined that the culprit behind the destruction of his thirty subordinates was merely an old, broken machine—one that wasn’t even complete.
Through the crystal image transmission device carried by the scavengers, OldOld Buick witnessed the entire incident and thus learned clearly about the results of the excavation.
In that vast ruin, no valuables could be found even after thorough searching. There were no large mechanical parts typical of such excavations, let alone anything intact and still functional. The inscription that Black Hair had previously drawn his attention to turned out to be nothing but an empty shell. It seemed there was nothing left to loot except for those mechanical guardians that had caused him such huge losses.
And the parts of those mechanical guardians were demanded by Black Hair.
Failure—complete failure.
After suffering massive resource losses and the death of nearly forty scavengers, OldOld Buick had to admit this fact. The subsequent huge compensation demands also weighed heavily on him as the boss.
The lives of forty scavengers might not be particularly valuable in the town of Kukare, but for him, a not-so-wealthy boss, it was enough to cause great distress. On the way back, he even considered selling off some of his businesses.
Meanwhile, Black Hair discovered something that piqued his interest: the Mental Network.
This was a network that existed in all human societies today, similar to the global computer network he had known before. Its purpose was also to facilitate communication among people. However, instead of fast-typing fingers and sharp eyes, what was required was everyone’s mental activity. In this world, the significance of the Mental Network was so great that it could even influence a nation. Many important information exchanges and activities took place within it, eliminating factors such as space, distance, and class. The Mental Network was welcomed and trusted by everyone.
With just a simple mental detachment crystal, any human could enter this magical network at any time and in any place. The various nodes on the network, just like websites in the past, gathered traffic from everyone. The high level of development in the magic civilization made this virtual world as real as the physical one.

A new world naturally has new rules. This is an unchanging truth. Therefore, the most urgent need for Black Hair was a place where he could understand these rules. Clearly, the existence of the spiritual network met his need.

It took three days for Black Hair to explore “Starlight,” the largest gathering place on Xieke Planet, and at the same time, he gained a preliminary understanding of this world.

Just as he had thought, wherever humans were, conflict would always be the constant theme. In those three days, he witnessed firsthand the survival principles of Xieke Planet and experienced them personally.

Much like humans’ obsession with weapons in modern society, in this spiritual network, mecha-related themes were also a trend. Aside from institutions researching mecha weapons, there were also numerous mecha virtual testing grounds, combat arenas, and practical evaluation agencies. In the spiritual network, these rooms symbolizing strength could be seen almost anywhere, and they were often the most popular places.

Take the largest mecha exhibition hall in “Starlight,” where Black Hair currently was. Aside from finished mechas developed by various groups on Xieke Planet, there were also many prototypes displayed by private groups—over a thousand in total. All were displayed in the vast hall via virtual imaging for visitors to test drive, attracting a large crowd.

The value of a mecha varied greatly, from extremely low to extremely high. The cheapest ones could even be afforded by the lowest-class scavengers on Xieke Planet, while the most advanced ones were worth as much as a medium-sized city. Thus, in reality, it was difficult to see high-end mechas. But here, such restrictions did not exist. As long as visitors had sufficient driving proficiency, they could test drive various types of mechas, including those officially produced by Xieke Planet.

Having gained a certain understanding of the overall situation, Black Hair naturally understood what this driving proficiency meant.

In simple terms, it was similar to a driver’s license on Earth. Here, mecha pilots also needed such a certification, with different levels assigned based on their performance—ranging from the lowest level, F, to the highest, A. The range between these levels indicated the pilot’s strength.

A scavenger who only underwent basic training usually had a driving proficiency level of F. A mercenary might have E or higher. As for a pure warrior, it was harder to estimate, but they would at least be above level C.

Although Black Hair was considered a warrior byOld Man Buick, he never denied it. Yet his actual driving rank remained blank—a clear oversight. To survive on Planet Sheikh, Black Hair felt it necessary to obtain a driving rank. The easiest way was to conduct a visual assessment at the gathering points in the mental network. Killing ten opponents of the same rank in the arena would grant this rank, a rule applicable across all planets. Of course, this was also what Black Hair liked best. In reality, mechs were not as agile and human-like as readers might imagine; rather, they were slow and cumbersome, plagued by mechanical flaws—delay and error. The larger the mech, the slower its movements and the lower its sensitivity in power transmission. As far as Black Hair knew, even those with an A-grade driving rank couldn’t operate a mech without any errors. Errors became even more apparent during consecutive actions, sometimes causing the movements to distort. This applied even to the magitech mechs renowned for their agility and sensitivity. Of course, pure mechanical mechs focused on power and defense had even more noticeable errors and delays. “Let’s see. Guys, I hope you won’t disappoint me,” he murmured. Black Hair activated the mech exhibition hall and, surrounded by a blue glow, rushed toward the nearest official arena. Passersby along the way seemed to hear a faint, chuckling sound emanating from the network.