Chapter 156
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Chapter 156: Teammate, Useful!
“Disaster Core? What is that, or rather, who is that?”
Wang Xiao repeated the name in his mind, confirming he had never heard of it before.
Fresnel stared at him for a moment, then let out a sigh of relief.
“It’s nothing, just a bit surprising that a second-tier team like ours could actually get help from a core member of the first team.”
Seeing the questioning expression on Wang Xiao’s face, Fresnel eagerly explained,
“That stamped ring-shaped indentation indicates that this energy storage device was produced with the assistance of Mr. Disaster Core, which means that the technology of Hope City alone couldn’t create something like this.
“Such an indentation allows for quick identification during maintenance and repairs, preventing issues during disassembly and other procedures.
“Given Mr. Disaster Core’s capabilities, recklessly disassembling this could lead to problems—either with the energy storage device itself or even with the person attempting to disassemble it…”
Fresnel glanced at his teammate, who had been a superpowered individual for less than a year, and patiently explained the existence of the first superhero team and its members: Holy Shield, Mr. Disaster Core, Infinite Scroll, Starfall, and Fortress.
Wang Xiao nodded thoughtfully, feeling a sense of gratitude for Ji Yongxing’s consideration toward him.
Meanwhile, Fresnel noticed something unusual.
“There should be something that connects here, right?”
The Captain pointed to the distinct indentations on the back of the armor, just above the waist, where two attachments could be hung. However, they were currently empty.
According to the usual practices of the weapons research department, the first shipment should have been the final version, complete with all necessary accessories.
But the area was empty now. Could something have gone wrong at the weapons department?
Drawn by Fresnel’s question, both Wang Xiao and Beacon turned to look. When they realized what he was pointing at, they couldn’t help but smile.
“Captain, look behind you.”
Fresnel turned around and saw only a long, horizontally placed metal barrel on the ground.
When he first saw it, he had assumed it was a container for holding the armor in its compressed state. But now, upon closer inspection, he noticed something unusual—a viewing window?
“Whoosh~”
Just as Wang Xiao was about to take a closer look, a hissing sound accompanied the automatic opening of the tightly sealed metal barrel by two hydraulic rods.
The Puppet Master, looking rather lifeless, sat up from inside.
“Ah?”
Fresnel let out a surprised exclamation.
The Puppet Master gave Fresnel a look that could only be described as incredulous and began explaining,
“What I requested was a container to protect my unconscious body after using my abilities. I never expected the so-called geniuses at the weapons department to make me an iron coffin…”
“Well, does this thing meet your needs?”
Fresnel asked.
The Puppet Master shrugged,
“It does. The internal shock absorption is excellent, and the air filtration system and basic life support are fully functional. I could lie in here for a week without issue, and extraordinary beasts below the Third Level wouldn’t be able to break it with physical attacks.
“It’s just so perfectly suited to my needs that I can’t even file a complaint.”
“Such a good design, and you still want to complain? What problems are there besides the fact that it’s a bit ugly?”
As Fresnel asked, Puppet Master emerged from the metal barrel and pointed to the two bulges on the side of the container, then gestured towards the two indentations Fresnel had previously inquired about.
Fresnel’s eyes darted between the two buckles, recalling the sub-munitions that Hope City reserved for large-scale beast tides.
He asked for confirmation,
“This iron coffin—ah, I mean, this life pod is supposed to be fixed on Wang Xiao, right?”
Puppet Master nodded.
“According to the instructions, during combat, this can be placed aside, but when it’s time to retreat or move, it will be installed on him.”
“This…”
Fresnel was momentarily at a loss for words; the designs from the weapons research department always had a way of leaving one speechless, but upon reflection, it did seem to have a good deal of versatility.
“So what else are you not satisfied with? If this thing is fixed on Wang Xiao’s back, it might look a bit awkward, but extraordinary beasts don’t care about aesthetics…”
“Captain.”
Beacon explained helplessly,
“Wang Xiao has been practicing with blunt weapons and throwing recently.”
“…”
—
While writing a report, Ji Yongxing felt a chill run down his spine, as if someone was talking about him.
He didn’t dwell on it and continued writing swiftly.
This morning, the weapons research department had finally completed the design and production of the equipment for the three second batch superhero teams.
Glancing at the time, those items should have already been delivered to the headquarters of the superpowered individuals…
After much brainstorming, Ji Yongxing and a group of researchers had finally devised a method to release energy from objects powered by Mr. Disaster Core, and they had created an effective device based on that theory.
The condition Mr. Disaster Core set for this assistance was that Ji Yongxing needed to write a separate report.
Like most researchers, Mr. Disaster Core was a rather meticulous person. He believed that since superpowers possess unique properties, every type of superpower should be studied as thoroughly as possible.
Although he had been a superpowered individual in the first batch for decades, this aging hero still felt he did not fully understand his abilities and hoped Ji Yongxing could propose some aspects of development he hadn’t considered.
As a young researcher with a request, Ji Yongxing saw no issue with this, especially since writing reports was one of his strengths.
The only problem arose when Ji Yongxing involved too many outsiders in the process to solve Wang Xiao’s armor energy supply issue, compromising the confidentiality of his research.
As a result, the original plan to implant [Skydome] was temporarily shelved.
After all, the energy issue was the primary concern, and Ji Yongxing was well aware of that.
But he wasn’t without solutions; on the waist of the armor, unnoticed by Fresnel, Ji Yongxing had integrated a camera and a signal transmission device using his own technology, and connected the necessary circuits inside the helmet.
Although this meant missing out on [Skydome] to help Wang Xiao analyze real-time situations, he could still contact him when necessary.
At the same time, he could also back up images that were meant to be transmitted to Hope City’s officials.
After all, once doubts were raised, they were not easily dispelled…
And thinking about the easily frightened artificial intelligence that was [Skydome]…
Ji Yongxing sighed helplessly.
The timid thing would likely only suggest retreating over and over again…
Clearing his mind, Ji Yongxing focused his attention back on his report.
As a grantor of the [Artifact] pathway, he had quietly used his powers to observe Mr. Disaster Core during a recent meeting.
But the other’s abilities didn’t seem as obvious as he had thought.
In Ji Yongxing’s imagination, a superpower that could inject energy into objects should have a significant impact on the user’s everyday life.
However, that was not the case; Mr. Disaster Core behaved like a normal person in a high position, hardly using his superpowers to bring him any convenience in daily life.
In addition, Mr. Disaster Core also refused to let others observe when he charged objects.
Ji Yongxing found that to be somewhat suspicious.
He quietly noted these questions in his mind and wrote down some of his thoughts on ability development in his report.
