Section 59: I'm Not an Illegal Resident
Ye Zhong was horrified and hastily changed the engine's direction. The F-58 abruptly plunged downward. Zzt! A beam of white light narrowly grazed the F-58's forehead and struck the ground, leaving a bottomless pit from which a few wisps of light smoke rose.
The immense force compelled the F-58 to land on all fours like a wild beast to cushion the pressure from the sudden change in direction. Not daring to delay, the crouched F-58 shot forward like a black panther, deliberately heading toward crowded areas.
Ye Zhong was all too familiar with the posture of a beast on the run and quickly grasped the technique, his movements becoming increasingly fluid, carrying a unique rhythm as he ran. Fortunately, the F-58's hydraulic buffer system was relatively advanced; otherwise, just this jolting alone would have left Ye Zhong dizzy and disoriented, with little combat effectiveness remaining, if any at all.
The white mecha clearly had some reservations and did not fire again, instead following Ye Zhong from a distance.
Ye Zhong had already adjusted his posture, flying extremely close to the ground with his legs bent in a very peculiar stance. This was actually a move of desperation for Ye Zhong. The F-58 had no long-range weapons, so his only hope was to lure the opponent lower. If it came to close combat, he still had a chance. Otherwise, Ye Zhong would have no choice but to flee! However, he was deeply puzzled as to why the opponent had refrained from firing. What were they afraid of? Causing collateral damage? Ye Zhong knew that he himself would never miss such an opportunity for that reason. Deeply ingrained in his mind were the most direct and brutal survival rules among the mutated creatures on the garbage planet where he had lived for over ten years. Although yesterday's events had made him realize that these rules might not be suitable for this society, there was no doubt that there were still many things about this society that Ye Zhong did not understand. In a state of uncertainty, people always revert to the methods they trust and know best. For Ye Zhong to truly change, it would likely take a considerable amount of time.
Although Ye Zhong's current posture looked extremely strange, it allowed him to change direction at any time through contact with the ground using his legs, enabling him to dodge any potential surprise attacks.
In an environment with so many obstacles, Ye Zhong didn't dare attempt any disordered waveform jumps—that would be no different from seeking death!
Ye Zhong could only try to constantly alter his flight path. Fortunately, the numerous obstacles provided both cover and effectively disrupted the opponent's line of sight.
The white mecha seemed to have no good countermeasures and could only follow Ye Zhong closely from high above. Ye Zhong, meanwhile, flew lower and lower, heading straight for areas dense with buildings. The white mecha was also greatly troubled; Ye Zhong was incredibly slippery, his figure appearing and disappearing. If it followed too closely, it might actually lose him more easily.
Suddenly, during a momentary lapse of concentration from the white mecha, the black mecha vanished!
Ye Zhong spotted a massive structure ahead—an extremely tall skyscraper. An idea struck him, and he immediately flew close to the building's base. The moment he was out of the white mecha's sight, Ye Zhong leaped out of the F-58 as if his life depended on it, moving at top speed. Before he even hit the ground, he had already stored the F-58 back into his subspace. Under the astonished gazes of the surrounding pedestrians, Ye Zhong plunged into the crowd and disappeared in an instant.
Ye Zhong moved forward with the flow of people, not forgetting to glance at the white mecha still hovering dumbly in mid-air.
牧 said, "It seems you've improved greatly!"
Ye Zhong replied indifferently, "This was the best solution I could come up with!"
牧 said, "The ID card collection point is in the central building 500 meters ahead."
The central building had 300 floors. The towering structure, with its blue-black glass, metallic exterior, and cold, massive framework, was full of modern technological style. Every three floors, there was a platform capable of accommodating mechas and small aircraft.
Ye Zhong walked in casually. The silver-gray walls, under soft lighting, appeared steady and unfrivolous. Countless transparent and semi-transparent acrylic panels divided the hall into numerous small spaces. In the center of the hall stood several holographic displays, continuously scrolling through various service procedures. There were also many computers available for guests to use.
Ye Zhong walked up to a self-service kiosk. After a series of palm print, iris, bone structure, and dual-proton analyses, his identity was confirmed without a doubt.
"Your ID card has been successfully reissued. Please keep it safe! If lost, please report it again!" A pleasant electronic female voice came from the self-service machine as a light green card, slightly smaller than a wrist, was ejected.
Ye Zhong curiously examined the ID card in his hand. 牧 explained, "叶子, this is your ID card. From now on, you're not an illegal resident. This cost me a lot of time. The population information center's security is really tight. I had to put in a great effort to hack in and almost got caught! Luckily, I escaped quickly!" 牧 laughed triumphantly.
The light green ID card bore Ye Zhong's name and other various details, along with the special emblem of the Farr Star Sector. The card could be snapped in half via fingerprint recognition, with the internal chip being its core component. The chip could be placed into a dedicated information reader to access more data, though this function was typically used only by specific departments.
Ye Zhong carefully stored the ID card.
After leaving the central building, Ye Zhong headed back to the shop. The first wave of customers would arrive soon, so he needed to hurry back! However, Ye Zhong didn't dare take out the F-58 again. That white mecha might still be lying in wait, and if he got targeted again, it wouldn't be so easy to shake off.
Why did that white mecha want to kill him? Ye Zhong pondered this to no avail.
As for 牧, Ye Zhong didn't even need to consider it—unless it was absolutely necessary, that guy would never let him ride. Ah, better to rely on his own two legs. Ye Zhong broke into a wild sprint, rushing back to the shop as fast as he could.
Pedestrians on the road stared in astonishment at Ye Zhong's frenzied run. "This guy is way too fast!" was the thought on everyone's mind.
Ye Zhong rushed back in a frantic hurry. The number of customers had increased dramatically these days, and most of them were repeat customers.
He finally made it back just before the first wave of customers arrived.
The customers were very conscientious. Grandpa Qian's shop had only thirty-two seats, so its capacity was quite limited. Because of this, each customer would leave immediately after finishing their meal, freeing up the seat for new arrivals. This also meant that Ye Zhong didn't get a moment's rest. While he usually didn't feel it, today his energy had been depleted from the morning's exertions, and for the first time, he showed signs of fatigue.
Grandpa Qian worriedly asked if he was feeling unwell, but Ye Zhong brushed it off with vague replies.
Finally, after the last person left, Ye Zhong and Grandpa Qian began their meal.
As they were eating, someone suddenly pushed the door open and entered.