Chapter 44: Counterattack, Section 10

The long corridor seemed to have no end. After flying for half an hour, Hei Fa finally reached his destination—the entire Death Star, and even the technological core of the 31st Star Region. It was the stronghold of the Black Prison Gang.

Back then, when the Black Prison Gang first arrived at Death Star, they didn’t have a proper base at all. Although Hei Fa provided them with necessary facilities like research labs, Death Star’s size was limited. Small mecha-related research was feasible, but anything involving warships posed problems. This was also the fundamental reason why Hei Fa focused on developing small warships rather than large ones.

Of course, Thor’s Fortress was an exception. Those weapons, created by transforming entire planets, couldn’t be classified as warships at all. They were essentially planets that could move freely and were armed to the teeth.

But now everything was different. Su Lei had allocated a dedicated research planet for the Black Prison Gang. This planet was enormous, allowing them to conduct any kind of research they desired. With sufficient resources and space, they could do whatever they wanted.

Under such circumstances, Hei Fa was very curious about what Madaro could bring him.

After getting off the flying vehicle, they took another long elevator. By the time Hei Fa grew impatient, they arrived in a vast workshop. In the distance, a huge shadow lay quietly there. Under the dim lighting, it appeared blurry yet imposing.

It was an object with a sharp head and a streamlined body. Though enormous, Hei Fa could estimate its length to be at least a thousand meters. Its placement underground showed just how important it was to the Black Prison Gang. To accommodate it, the surrounding space had been reinforced, with specially designed steel beams supporting this massive structure.

No one spoke when Hei Fa entered. Madaro spoke cheerfully, “Strange, right? Why would I put such a huge thing underground? But you’ll find out soon.”

“I’ll wait and see,” Hei Fa replied indifferently.

“Bang!” The lights in the workshop were turned on.

In an instant, countless tiny suns appeared on the ceiling. Their bright light illuminated the entire workshop in sharp detail. The huge object in the center was now clearly visible to everyone.

“This is…” Black Hair narrowed his eyes, first adjusting to the intense light before taking in the object clearly and gasping in shock.
Judging by its size, he had initially thought the Black Prison faction would show him a new type of warship or shuttle. But it clearly wasn’t the case at all.
That object wasn’t a warship at all—nor even a part of one. It was clearly a massive body!!
Indeed, although it had a sharp head and an aerodynamically streamlined shape throughout, its smooth surface was so smooth that even flies would slip off and mosquitoes would struggle to land (I like Soldier Assault). From the outside, it resembled a small ship with a large belly. Yet Black Hair immediately noticed the interfaces on the object designed specifically for mechanical components like arms. In other words, it was a torso designed specifically for mechs.
But how could a mech’s torso be so huge!?
For a moment, Black Hair could hardly believe his own judgment. His subconscious kept reminding him that maybe it was just similar—perhaps the object was actually a part of a warship? Those interfaces might be meant for assembling other warships. Could this object, like the Leech Warship he had just received, be a prototype of a combined warship?
The confusion lasted only a moment before Madaro spoke again.
But this time, he wasn’t smiling; instead, he was extremely serious.
“Mr. Black Hair. No, I should say, Lord. I’m sure you’ve already seen the appearance of this thing. Then allow me, the leader of the Black Prison faction, to formally introduce to you this mech, created with the participation of all the best designers from Black Prison and contributed by all our elites—the Snake Fang Zero Model.”
“Snake Fang Zero Model…” Black Hair murmured, repeating after Madaro, his gaze never leaving the object in the workshop.
From his perspective, the object was truly enormous. Its length of nearly a thousand meters was already astonishing—humans standing in front of it seemed as tiny as ants.
Of course, Black Hair, who was used to the giant warships of the Moor race, shouldn’t have reacted so wildly. But as Madaro had said earlier, this wasn’t a warship—it was a mech!!
It really was a mech’s torso, just as he had guessed!!
If just the torso alone was so massive, how huge would it be once arms, legs, and essential components like backpack weapons were added? Could a mech really be this large?

For a moment, Kurokami almost doubted he was dreaming. He stood there completely stunned, hearing only Madaro’s incessant chatter in his ears.
“The Snake Fang Zero isn’t actually a pure mecha; in certain aspects, it utilizes the latest technology from Death Star-class warships. Unlike ordinary mechs, its most crucial part is the torso. That’s why we took that into consideration during design. The Snake Fang Zero’s torso features as many as 172 engine nozzles, and without any additional support, it functions as a high-speed warship on its own! Moreover, thanks to its well-designed nozzles, its agility can even compare to that of a shuttle.”
“In other words, it can be used as a warship,” Kurokami replied blankly.
“That’s right,” Madaro nodded affirmatively, a hint of pride on his face. “That’s also the greatest strength of the Snake Fang Zero. Its mobility far exceeds that of ordinary warships, reaching the level of shuttles. But compared to the most agile mechs, this level of mobility is clearly not sufficient for battlefield needs.”
“So what other solutions do you have?”
“Of course,” Madaro replied seriously. “When it’s fully equipped and becomes a true mecha, it will, like other mechs, have impact module sets, anti-gravity fields, and auxiliary engines. By then, although it still won’t be as agile as the compact and nimble Blood Moon and Sunset, the gap won’t be huge. For a bulky warship, that’s already quite impressive.”
“Yes. Even the heaviest mechs are more agile than the most agile warships. There’s no need to argue about that,” Kurokami nodded slowly, his expression finally improving. It was clear he had recovered from the shock caused by the Snake Fang Zero.
By this point, he finally accepted the reality before him. The Black Prison faction had indeed created a giant-class mecha for him.
“What about the other design specifications?”
“The rest…” Madaro thought for a moment. “They’re pretty much the same as those of the Blood Moon and Sunset. The Snake Fang Zero also uses a hybrid technology from three sources. In key areas, there are Wanderer Group biological cells, outer regenerative armor, and middle-layer mirror armor. Thanks to its ample volume, it even has many protective measures typically found only on warships.”
“That’s it? So what’s the difference between it and a warship? Is it just more agile?” Kurokami frowned, seemingly unprepared for it to be that simple.

“Of course not!” Madaro became excited immediately. The robotic arm of the life support device waved a few times. “Black Hair, do you still remember what I told you back then? We Black Prisoners aim to create magical machines! The strongest magical machines in the universe!! We can be replicated, but we will never be surpassed!! That’s our design philosophy as Black Prisoners! The Snake Fang is no different!”
“Oh? Why!?”
“The Snake Fang has all the agility and combat capabilities that a mecha should have. Once fully equipped, it can carry out tasks that only mechas can perform. If equipped with combat weapons, it becomes a combat mecha; if fitted with guns, it becomes a shooting mecha!”
“How huge must those combat weapons and guns be?” Black Hair couldn’t help but laugh. “Did you manage all of this too?”
“Yes. Everything. We’ve achieved it all. Including the most challenging arm joints and leg sensors. And everything has been tested. Facts have proven that even with its massive size, it can do everything a mecha can do!”
In the empty workshop, Madaro’s excited voice rang out like thunder, causing the surroundings to vibrate. But in contrast to his excitement, Black Hair simply raised one finger.
“Then how do you guarantee its operation?”
“What?” Madaro was stunned, seemingly not understanding.
“A warship, even a miniature one, requires at least a hundred crew members to operate properly. And in the rapidly changing battles, no matter how skilled the commander is, he can’t control the entire warship as if it were an extension of his own arm. This is actually the biggest weakness of warships. Compared to a mecha that can be easily controlled by just one person, the gap is enormous. Since the Snake Fang Zero is designed as a mecha, have you considered this? A mecha operated by nearly a hundred people is probably less practical than even a warship. And the more complex the operating system, the greater its impact on combat.”
“Haha, so that’s what you’re referring to.” Hearing Black Hair’s question, Madaro suddenly laughed. He laughed very happily. Not only him, but the designers behind him also laughed.
After a long while, these leaders of Black Prisoner stopped laughing and held their heads high in triumph.
“The Snake Fang Zero doesn’t have any operator!! 99% of that huge body is made up of components!!”
“What? Then who operates it? An intelligent system?” Black Hair’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“No!! No matter how intelligent the system is, it can’t adapt to complex battles—something we certainly know. I say it has no control system because…” Madaro waved his arm and replied proudly. “It’s actually just a coat!! Like any other clothing, it can be worn on all Blood Moons and Dying Suns, as well as on your Killing Emperor!!! The controllers are you guys!!”