Chapter 127: All-Nighter

Chapter 127: Chapter 127: All-Nighter

It was already very late, and the four legions had all turned in for the night. The comment section was practically deserted.

But the commanders of each legion were gathered in the viewing room, watching the livestream from Lin Jingjing’s team. Even Yun Yiyou was still there.

He wore a white service uniform, legs crossed, hands clasped together.

Yun Yiyou watched the people in the video. After days of observation, he had discovered that this group could do just about anything.

Their captain, Lin Jingjing, was particularly impressive; she seemed to know everything.

Moreover, their individual skills were exceptionally high. Even when they split up to deliver meals, they could navigate any danger and come through safely.

Even Shi Feng, who looked so frail, possessed strength that couldn’t be underestimated.

His weakness, however, was just as obvious: he was terrified of snakes. He would completely freeze up if he encountered one, losing all combat capability.

As long as it wasn’t a snake, he could hold his own in a fight. It might take him a while, but any beast foolish enough to provoke him would end up dead at the end of his laser gun.

Yun Yiyou estimated that their abilities surpassed those of the other contestants. Moreover, they struck a perfect balance—neither arrogant about their strength nor overly modest.

Now, he had discovered yet another one of their strengths. He found himself looking forward to their performance in the coming days more and more.

Shi Feng worked nonstop until three in the morning.

He pulled a green chip from his Star Ring and inserted it into the engine.

With the chip in place, Shi Feng admired the engine he had scrubbed spotless before pressing a nearby button.

Once it activated, Shi Feng rummaged for the nearby cables. He plugged them in one by one until the engine was a mess of wires.

It looked like a chaotic mess. Shi Feng carried the engine over to the Mecha’s frame, secured it in place, and began connecting the cables.

Shi Feng quickly wrangled the chaotic tangle of cables into place. Lin Jingjing, who was sharing the late-night watch with him, saw him installing the engine and came over to take a look.

"Almost done?" Lin Jingjing asked.

Shi Feng finished with the wiring and started on the finer details.

Lin Jingjing watched, occasionally passing him a tool when he needed one.

"Not sleeping tonight?" Lin Jingjing asked.

"I’m not," Shi Feng said. "I’ll just get Gu Kaiwen to carry me tomorrow morning."

Hearing this, Lin Jingjing pursed her lips. ’He really has it all figured out, doesn’t he?’

"He’d be willing?" Lin Jingjing asked, handing him a screwdriver.

"He will," Shi Feng said confidently.

’Gu Kaiwen will complain and curse the whole time, but he’ll actually carry me.’

"I guess only your Brother Gu would treat you so well," Lin Jingjing said with a laugh.

"That’s not true. All of you treat me this well," Shi Feng replied.

Lin Jingjing just smiled without saying anything, her hands never stopping as she helped him.

As dawn approached, Lin Jingjing got busy. They still had plenty of water stored, so she decided to make some porridge for the four squads.

A thin rice congee. ’It wouldn’t be very filling, but it would help everyone rehydrate.’

Ever since they arrived in the desert, Lin Jingjing’s team had been extremely frugal with water. To clean the pot, they would first scrub it with sand, then wipe it with a damp towel.

After the towel, they’d wipe it again with a paper towel until it was completely free of sand.

"Ugh, washing the pot is such a waste of water," Lin Jingjing lamented.

’The more she thought about it, the more it pained her. Less than half a cup of water, gone just like that.’

"Well, from now on we can just stick to barbecue," Shi Feng said.

Barbecue?

"Isn’t that a bit much? Eating like that every day can’t be good for you," Lin Jingjing asked.

"Ha, you’re worried about that? We should just be glad we have anything to eat at all," Shi Feng said, exasperated.

"Do you think this is the forest? Once our supplies run out, I’m planning on catching scorpions to feed them."

Hearing that, Lin Jingjing nodded. ’Right, I was overthinking it.’

The congee started to cook, but this time it was a thick version with more rice and less water.

Lin Jingjing also tossed some corn and sweet potatoes into the embers to roast. Shi Feng glanced at the time; it was already seven.

’There’s no way I can finish this Mecha today.’ Shi Feng looked at the frame before him. ’Still so much to do.’

"Sister Lin, you can pack it up now," Shi Feng said as he walked over and sat down.

"Giving up for now?" Lin Jingjing asked, though she was already on her feet, walking over to put the tools he’d tidied up into her Space Ring.

Once she was done, she grumbled to Shi Feng, "It would be so much better if we each had a Space Ring."

"Then we wouldn’t have all this hassle."

"They’re too expensive. We’d better forget it," Shi Feng replied with a yawn. As soon as he relaxed, exhaustion and sleepiness began to wash over him.

The sweet aroma of roasted sweet potatoes filled the air, but it wasn’t enough to tempt Shi Feng.

Lin Jingjing turned the corn on the fire, and when she looked up, she saw that Shi Feng had already closed his eyes and drifted off.

The delicious smell woke the other three inside the tent, who crawled out one by one.

"When did we start roasting sweet potatoes?" Feng He asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Breakfast," Lin Jingjing replied.

After washing up, they returned and sat by the fire. The bonfire had been burning all night, leaving a deep bed of hot embers. The corn and sweet potatoes only needed about ten minutes to cook through.

Mo Xuan and Gu Kaiwen sat on either side of Shi Feng. He was fast asleep, his head tilted back, eyes closed, and mouth slightly agape.

"He just fell asleep a moment ago," Lin Jingjing said, looking at him.

"He pulled an all-nighter?" Feng He was shocked.

’That guy is unbelievable, pulling an all-nighter in the middle of the desert.’

"Why didn’t you talk him out of it?" Gu Kaiwen asked, looking at the sleeping Shi Feng.

"There was no stopping him."

After breakfast, the group packed up their things, and Lin Jingjing summoned a camel from her Spiritual World.

They placed the dead-to-the-world Shi Feng onto the camel’s back. Mo Xuan fashioned a lead rope around the camel’s head and began to lead it.

The camel, unaccustomed to the rope, complained directly to Lin Jingjing.

[Master, I don’t like this rope.]

[Can you take it off?]

[I won’t wander off, and I won’t lose him either.]

Hearing this, Lin Jingjing reached out to stroke the camel. "Alright," she said, then told Mo Xuan to remove the rope.

After a moment’s thought, Lin Jingjing summoned four more camels, and everyone mounted up.

Riding was much faster than walking. As the weather grew hotter, the group put on their headscarves, goggles, and masks.

It was only nine in the morning, but the heat was already unbearable.

Despite the sweltering heat, Shi Feng remained fast asleep. He must have been truly exhausted.

After delivering breakfast, they set off toward their destination. They decided to skip the lunch delivery to avoid any accidents during the noon peak, which was the hottest part of the day.

They found a spot to rest, planning to wait out the two hottest hours of the day before moving on.

They laid Shi Feng down on a spot padded with clothes. He just rolled over in his sleep and didn’t stir.

"That guy can really sleep," the others said, unable to keep from laughing as they looked at him.

Lin Jingjing’s attention was drawn to a large, arch-like rock formation. She ran her hands over its surface, her eyes tracing its contours.

They were surrounded by nothing but desert, yet this arch-like rock stood out abruptly. Lin Jingjing’s curiosity was piqued.