Chapter 660

Chapter 660: The Dignity of the Weak

"The weather conditions are good, Joan of Arc! You can take off!"

The voice from the ground tower came through the radio channel, and tears slid down Marina Ivanovna’s chin, dripping onto her pressure suit.

She took the platinum cross hanging around her neck and pressed it to her lips, kissing it firmly.

It was a gift from her father when she was five years old, adorned with a tiny ruby no bigger than a sesame seed. Though it wasn’t very valuable, it held immense significance for her as the first gift she ever received.

Wearing it allowed her to remember her family at any moment.

"Joan of Arc! Stop wasting time and take off right now! Let me give you a little heads-up; the boss has invested over a billion dollars this time. Think about your family—if you mess this up, no one will survive."

Vladimir’s irritating voice came through her helmet’s headset.

After a couple of sobs, she wiped her tears away and started the engines. The tailpipe lit up with a bright orange glow as the high-temperature exhaust twisted the light around it.

Moments later, the powerful reverse thrust began to move the aircraft, picking up speed steadily.

When she reached takeoff speed, the nose of the MiG-35 pitched up, and the aircraft shot into the blue sky.

Russian fighter jets are very skilled at high-angle takeoffs, and Marina Ivanovna fully harnessed its capabilities. During her time in the Ukrainian Air Force, she had flown the MiG-29, and now she piloted the MiG-35 in the "Abyss Nirvana," which felt familiar.

It was a difficult decision to fight fiercely or let herself be shot down.

Marina Ivanovna never considered the option of crashing the aircraft in a self-destructive attempt; that choice would bring disaster upon her family.

Whether it was through shady operations, using another identity for investments, or pressuring her fellow pilots to go easy, “Abyss Nirvana” only counted exterminations. If there were no duels with gunfire, the mission wouldn’t count.

Aerial warfare at the cost of death forced both pilots to give their all. Letting up? That would be joking with their lives.

Every attack in this death match lasted just a few seconds, with ferocious power. Even if she fled without a fight, she might not escape unscathed.

In this death match, the organizers did not prohibit attacks on ejected pilots. There had already been multiple instances of pilots being shot after ejecting.

Once combat began, no one could control what would happen in the next second.

Crashing without being shot down would not count as being defeated, and the boss who hired her to fight would still lose tens of millions of dollars, placing the burden squarely on Marina Ivanovna’s family. That meant her impulse could have devastating consequences.

Two voices seemed to argue within Marina Ivanovna’s heart. One urged her to be confident, self-reliant, and resilient against fate, to not give up easily. Since she had donned this pressure suit, she should face any challenge head-on—the glory of the aerial knights could not be tarnished.

The other voice persuaded her to accept her fate, to obey the orders of the boss behind her, exchanging her life for a hefty sum in compensation to resolve her family’s urgent needs. Sacrificing herself could ensure her family’s safety; otherwise, their already shaky home would completely collapse, plunging her parents and siblings into unmanageable despair.

Suddenly, the aircraft shook violently. Marina Ivanovna startled, thinking she had come under attack; she reflexively activated the lone short-range air-to-air missile and placed her finger over the cannon trigger.

The radar activated to maximum, and she quickly maneuvered the aircraft into a barrel roll, scanning her surroundings carefully. After a series of evasive tactical maneuvers, she realized it was just a scare—it was merely turbulence she had hit.

She had nearly zoned out on the battlefield, which was more terrifying than suicide; mindlessly heading to the afterlife, even God might not accept her.

No, she couldn’t continue like this; she had to focus and concentrate. This was a fight, and as long as there was breath in her lungs, she couldn’t afford to lose her composure.

After countless training sessions, she knew the severe consequences of losing her cool on the battlefield.

No more wandering thoughts; shaking her head, Marina Ivanovna decided that no matter the odds, she had to fight. She would hold on for as long as she could; leaving behind regrets would not let her rest in peace.

At an altitude of 4,000 meters.

This was a very suitable height for a duel.

Marina Ivanovna did not intend to climb any higher. The previous battles against the forward-swept wing fighter indicated that trying to out-climb her opponent was a foolish idea.

As the strongest in the MiG series, the MiG-35 was indeed an advanced fourth-generation fighter. Although it lacked munitions and fuel, its maneuverability remained uncompromised, boasting a thrust vectoring control system, and being in a light load condition meant its agility shouldn’t be at a significant disadvantage compared to the forward-swept wing fighter.

Since this pilot called "Number 13" enjoys close-quarters combat, taking down opponents with the cannon, let’s engage in a close fight.

Shaking her head to cast aside distracting thoughts, Marina Ivanovna embraced the endless blue sky and the powerful thrust of the fighter jet. She quickly calmed herself, disregarding the strength of the enemy and her own ammunition shortage, as well as her boss’s order to sacrifice herself. Regardless of advantages or disadvantages, everything had nothing to do with the sky.

She would merge with the sky and fight boldly.

With the full power of the Zhuk-MAE active phased array radar, her aircraft’s nose scanned the sky thoroughly, and the touch screen in the cockpit displayed her position.

"Joan of Arc" Marina Ivanovna did not dare to let her guard down; the opponent was a stealth fighter and wouldn’t easily appear on her radar screen. Even with the radar at full power, she could barely take precautions. Most importantly, she relied on her own eyes. The MiG-35 she piloted was not just any fighter; the configurations modded by MiG were very advanced, and the aircraft’s surface was coated with special radar-absorbing paint.

Marina Ivanovna maneuvered the MiG-35 with a large-scale snake maneuver, testing the waters toward Damascus—not knowing if she might encounter fierce combat in the next second.

"Snake maneuver?"

Lin Mo watched the MiG-35’s large S-shaped reconnaissance maneuver on the Light Mirror Technique display. The opponent seemed overly cautious.

Had he been scared by my combat records?

That was quite amusing!

His previous opponent, "Mora," had been careless and dismissed Lin Mo entirely, but this opponent, "Joan of Arc," operated with great caution, as if walking on thin ice.

The contrast was striking.

Lin Mo pressed the throttle, and the tail flame of the X-1 forward-swept wing fighter flared up, suddenly unleashing a stronger thrust. The Flowing Wave Heavenly Transformation Magic Circle opened up the air around the aircraft, and its speed shot up to Mach 3.

Thanks to the magic circle, the aircraft’s surface no longer produced thermal barriers, leading to a qualitative leap in the performance of the X-1.

"I see it!"

The Dragon Knight’s eyes were sharp, even more so than an average pilot’s. The two fighter jets rushed towards each other at high speed. Soon after Lin Mo spotted the opposing aircraft, they reciprocally noticed him as well.

Marina Ivanovna’s caution proved to be wise.

Like a startled deer, the MiG-35 abruptly stopped its snake maneuver, quickly climbing at an angle to seize the 3 o’clock position, gathering energy before diving down to attack the X-1 from its 6 o’clock position.

A high-altitude tactic!

This was a combat skill developed by the Chinese Air Force, and unexpected that "Joan of Arc" had learned it.

The X-1 forward-swept wing fighter didn’t take it lightly and executed a sharp turn, narrowly avoiding the MiG-35, which failed to gain the most advantageous attack position.

The pilots of both fighter jets caught a glimpse of each other in their respective cockpits.

Marina Ivanovna felt a tightness in her chest again; such fine equipment! Even her pressure suit had a fantastic look, and the technological sophistication was astonishing. It seemed equipped with a helmet-mounted target sight. Could the sponsor behind him be a super corporation or even the Chinese Government?

Although she had guessed a large part of Lin Mo’s backing, she still underestimated his equipment. There were probably very few pilots worldwide who possessed such a multifunctional tactical armor like Lin Mo’s. Whoever had a set of "Dragon General" could fight in the sky and on the ground.

Facing the gap for the MiG-35, Lin Mo acted like a lion attacking a rabbit, giving it his all. Though he didn’t unleash a series of powerful moves, he applied the most suitable tactics in response.

The 30mm GSh-30-1 cannon was not to be underestimated. If he got hit even a few times, it could damage the Flowing Wave Heavenly Transformation Magic Circle on the surface of the X-1, revealing vulnerabilities during battle.

In a duel, any hint of weakness cannot be allowed to appear, and Lin Mo wouldn’t easily provide any opponent with such an opportunity.

At this stage, his techniques must have already been recognized by everyone. It would be nearly impossible to play the fool. Both government and anti-government forces were aware that a fierce individual called "Number 13" had emerged in the competition.

As Marina Ivanovna had anticipated, upon engagement, this “Number 13” indeed turned out to be a typical close combat-fighting pilot, the most difficult kind.

The two air-to-air combat missiles under his wings showed no signs of being launched, as if he planned to economically resolve the fight with his cannon, preserving valuable competition points.