Seven years had passed since the Phoenix Steel first sang.
The desert winds of Golmud no longer whispered of failure, but of legacy. The Luo Dynasty, once considered fractured and cornered, now pulsed with hidden power. And at the heart of that quiet resurgence stood a sixteen-year-old heir forged by fire, steel, and silence: Luo Yuchen.
The boy who had once stared at war tables with clenched fists now stood with the posture of a seasoned tactician, his eyes steady, his breath slow, his body honed through countless hours of martial forms under the watchful eyes of the Phoenix Guard. His strikes were no longer wild—they flowed like the calligraphy of his ancestors, precise and devastating.
He had grown tall, lean but powerful, the muscle memory of seven years of training etched into every movement. His aura, faintly tinged with the crimson resonance of Phoenix Steel, marked him as something more than just another heir. He was a blade tempered not in fire, but in history.
The cavernous halls of the submerged Chongming facility remained untouched by time. Beneath Qinghai Lake's ancient waters, the domed forge-city thrummed with latent energy. At its center rested the beast of legend, the Tier-5 hybrid battleship Vermilion Sovereign, now fully complete.
Its form was nothing short of breathtaking: a sleek, aerodynamic vessel over four hundred meters long, lined with gravitic fins that shimmered with active camouflage. Its surface bore not a single visible weapon, yet those who had seen its schematics knew of the fury hidden beneath. Missile ports. Plasma lances. The twin railcannons powered by Phoenix feather condensers.
Inside, Over forty hangers still waiting for their designated Mechs to be deployed, a dozen already fully integrated launch bays were armed with the Crimson Flame Command Units and the deadly, modular Crimson Scar Units, all freshly reinforced with the latest iterations of Phoenix Steel. Tactical AI systems tuned with pre-collapse knowledge interfaced seamlessly with new Luo-engineered command cores. Every hallway, chamber, and command bridge pulsed with readiness.
The Sovereign didn't rest.
It dreamed.
In the Grand Pavilion of Reflection—an open-roofed temple carved into the Qinghai caverns—Luo Yuchen stood before the full council, dressed in ceremonial red and black. The light from bio-luminescent flora filtered down like starlight, and the banners of past Luo generals rustled faintly in the artificial breeze.
Luo Jinhai, now older but no less imposing, sat beneath the phoenix-carved arch. His eyes observed his grandson with the cool calculation of a mountain elder and the warmth of a guardian who had poured blood into his successor's foundation.
Yuchen bowed low. "Vermilion Sovereign is complete. But it is not mine."
Murmurs swept the elders. Even Jiang, still grease-stained and snide as ever, looked up in surprise.
"The ship was born from our pain, our fire, our unity," Yuchen continued. "Its command belongs to the family. Not to a single boy."
He rose slowly. "I will build my mech one day. One that speaks my voice. But Sovereign should answer only when the Luo people are truly cornered. Until then... let it sleep beneath the lake."
Luo Jinhai tapped his cane once. "You would yield such power?"
Yuchen nodded. "To keep it sacred."
The old patriarch rose to his feet. The room fell still.
"So be it. From this day forward, the Vermilion Sovereign shall remain submerged in the Lake of Memory. Hidden, unarmed, unawakened. It will rise only if the Luo face extinction."
Jinhai turned to the control console near the arch and pressed his palm to the activation seal. The Sovereign's AI confirmed the new directive. The dome gates sealed. The ship powered down. The waters above grew still.
And so, a weapon that could rewrite the war remained hidden beneath the world.
Outside Luo borders, the world remained volatile.
The Long family had consolidated power across six regions, reinforcing their eastern hold with newer generations of Jiao-class and Shui-class mechas. Their scouts remained active across desert plateaus and old cities, always searching, never finding.
The Jin Consortium in the north had begun merging trade and militia fleets, forming what they called a "peacekeeping alliance," but everyone knew it was a veil for expansion. Even remnants of the Wei-Xing factions had started resurfacing, hiring mercenaries and salvaging old war relics.
War, though not declared, was in the air. And the Luo Dynasty, quietly fortifying, did not move.
But its fangs were growing sharper.
Yuchen's life in the last seven years was a crucible.
At dawn, he trained with the Phoenix Guard. Under Luo Chao and the twin generals Wun and Lai, he mastered blade work, pressure-point strikes, energy-augmented martial forms, and evasive movement. His body became a living weapon.
In the afternoons, he descended into the under-halls to train under Old Jiang and Chief Engineer Mei Lin. He helped craft the Crimson Scars' outer limbs, programmed reactor-pulse logic for the Flame Units, and retooled neural-link latency to within five milliseconds.
And in the evenings, he studied from the scrolls of old. Luo history. The pre-Collapse dynasties. The mechanics of diplomacy and politics. Elder Feng, once his most vocal critic, now called him "sharp as obsidian, cool as ice."
He had not yet piloted his own mecha.
But he had rebuilt dozens.
He had not yet led a battalion.
But he had trained the commanders who would.
One evening, as the vermilion moon hung above Qinghai's shimmered surface, Luo Jinhai called his grandson to the cliffside balcony above the lake.
"Tell me, Yuchen," he said, "Do you regret it? Turning away from the Sovereign?"
Yuchen, dressed in simple robes, stood quiet for a moment.
"No. Glory is fleeting. Legacy... legacy survives in what you choose not to burn."
Jinhai smiled faintly. "Then you are ready. Tomorrow, you leave for the outside."
Yuchen looked over sharply.
"Seven years we've hidden you," the old man said. "But the world has grown darker. It is time the winds know your name again."
Yuchen bowed deeply.
He was ready.
The subterranean halls beneath Qinghai Lake hummed with renewed life. With the Vermilion Sovereign completed and sealed under Jinhai's decree, Luo Yuchen had not remained idle. For seven years, his mind had been consumed by design, experimentation, and purpose. The result: four entirely new mechs, personally engineered and refined under his direction.
That morning, within the high atrium of the Eastern Assembly Hall, the Luo Elders gathered. The ceremonial canopy glistened with filtered sunlight streaming through bio-luminescent ceiling panels, and a polished glass platform rotated at the room's center. Standing calmly before it was Yuchen, no longer just an heir—but a smith of war.
Beside him stood Old Jiang, arms folded, a crooked grin barely contained.
"You're about to see why I let this brat steal half my workshop," he muttered to the elders.
Luo Yuchen stepped forward and tapped the console.
"I present to you the future of Luo battle doctrine," he declared. "Four original mechanized units, crafted with our alloy, our history, and our spirit."
The platform's center split open with a hiss of compressed air.
The first mech rose from the chamber beneath.
A monolithic form bathed in dark crimson, its armor almost black beneath the golden glow of ambient light. Jagged golden etchings adorned its shoulders and thighs, symbols of the Luo lineage, etched with plasma precision. The Red Eclipse stood taller than a standard Crimson Flame Unit, with broader shoulders and heavier plating around the chest and joints.
Its right arm was fused with a brutal high-frequency energy blade, the gold circuit-lines pulsing down its length like veins of molten light. The left bore a shield of high-density Phoenix Steel, nearly as tall as the mech itself, elegantly curved with inlaid kinetic absorbers.
Its headplate resembled a war helm, a glowing red visor covering dual AI-linked ocular sensors. The backplate flared slightly with stabilizing thrusters, and engraved across its upper spine was a single word: "Command."
The aura it exuded was palpable. Authority, intimidation, control.
Yuchen turned toward Luo Jinhai. "This unit is yours, Grandfather. A singular Rank-4 Command Mech, capable of frontline dominance, rapid coordination over wide-range neural networks, and complete sync with allied AI systems. I built it not as a weapon, but as a symbol."
For once, even Jinhai was silent.
"Its name is Red Eclipse."
A second platform rose. Then another. Then a third.
A formation of ten mechs emerged, uniform and regal, their armor crimson as dawnfire, laced with golden trims like gilded scripture. Taller than conventional battle mechs, these machines stood like knights from an age forgotten.
Their helms bore crest-like ridges, invoking ancient warriors. Their chestplates jutted forward in sharp, royal geometry, while broad shoulder pauldrons curved upward, hinting at majesty and power. Their arms were modular—each could bear a sword, a staff, a sniper, or an axe. Their legs were reinforced, balanced by skirt-like armor that shifted with the motion of simulated wind.
They bore no shields.
Because these were attackers.
"These," Yuchen explained, "are the Crimson Valiant units. Rank-4 adaptive frames. Designed for Luo family Elders. Fully modifiable to match personal combat specialty. Swordmasters. Riflemen. Spear wielders. Their core software learns from every battle and alters internal hydraulics to optimize flow."
Elder Wu, long the most skeptical, leaned forward. "How many have been produced?"
"Fourteen" Yuchen said. "Ten for our family Elders. Four held in reserve."
Elder Mei stepped forward. "And their sync limits?"
"99% with Phoenix-tier neural relays. They're designed for veteran pilots, not novices. These machines demand respect."
The next unveiling drew audible gasps.
A quadrupedal mech trotted into the light on reinforced digitigrade legs. Its armor gleamed crimson with white underlining, built like a centaur reborn. A powerful V-shaped chestplate gave it a predatory posture. The head bore a sharp knight-like visor, with twin golden horns resembling a cavalry plume.
Its right hand held a lance nearly twice its own length. The left, a curved shield designed to absorb kinetic force and redirect impact.
"The Crimson Cavalier," Yuchen introduced. "Rank-3. For rapid deployment squadrons and recon charge formations. This mech is designed for skirmish domination and momentum-driven combat. Its four-legged design grants stability and terrain mastery no bipedal frame can match."
Old Jiang chuckled. "And it damn well outruns anything the Long family has in a sprint."
"Lance-point strikes, evasive pivots, rotational shield counters. The unit thrives on forward motion," Yuchen said. "We've already built eight. Deployment pending."
The final mech appeared not with thunder, but with grace.
A lithe, marine-themed machine glided across the platform on magnetic skates. Its armor shone navy-blue and white, adorned with delicate etchings shaped like tidal glyphs. Its limbs were slender, sleek, sharpened at the edges. Finned extensions ran down its arms and calves, fluttering slightly as energy flowed through them.
Its back bore wing-blades like manta fins. The head was narrow, almost feminine, with a curved fin crest and three ocular sensors shaped like ocean pearls.
"The Valkaya Siren," Yuchen declared. "Rank-3. Specialized for aquatic warfare, deep-ops reconnaissance, and infiltration. Every angle of this unit is tuned for hydrodynamic efficiency. It can remain submerged for over twenty hours without surfacing."
Elder Feng spoke, tone intrigued. "It's beautiful. And lethal."
"We designed it for silent kills. For reclaiming naval zones. For striking beneath where radar cannot reach."
Old Jiang chimed in. "It dances through water like it belongs there. We tested it in the cold trenches east of Hainan. Nothing caught it."
When all four units were fully presented, Luo Jinhai stood.
He approached the Red Eclipse slowly, running his aged hand across its dark, gleaming armor. The blade-arm shimmered faintly beneath his touch.
"This is not just power," he said aloud. "This is inheritance."
Turning to the council, he raised his cane.
"The Long family believes our silence to be weakness. The world forgets the flame we buried beneath the waters. These machines will remind them. But not through war. Through fear of what we choose not to unleash."
He turned to Yuchen.
"And you. You have given us more than steel. You've given us a future. What will you build next, child?"
Yuchen, still watching the Siren unit, whispered:
"A mech that speaks my will. A soul forged not in memory—but in defiance."
The elders murmured.
War had not come.
But the Luo were ready.
The war rooms lay empty that night. The Sovereign slumbered beneath the lake, and the Crimson Valiants rested silent in their hangars. Yet in the deepest levels of the Eastern Design Vaults, Luo Yuchen worked alone.
Seven years of forging for others had taught him more than engineering.
It taught him restraint.
But now, for the first time, he was building for himself.
Three active panels flickered before him—layered holographic schematics hovering midair. One displayed a combat mech unlike any other; another, a secondary modular unit hidden beneath encryption; and the third, a sentient network code line after line of AI subroutines forming a neural lattice.
Yuchen stood in the dim glow, sleeves rolled to his elbows, fingers dancing across the interface. He wasn't just building war machines anymore.
He was creating legacy.
The AI core activated for the first time at 03:12 local time.
Yuchen had modeled its base personality architecture from a recovered data shard—a memory fragment from an old digital assistant designed by his mother.
Her name had been erased in official records.
But he remembered her voice: calm, measured, always watching.
"Designation: KORA."
The name echoed in the vault.
A name not chosen for meaning, but for remembrance.
The framework was built from pre-Collapse code, interlaced with adaptive learning subroutines and quantum prediction layers. The data lattice pulsed with violet-blue light as the first awakening command was initiated.
[KORA: Online]
[Query: Directive Input Required]
"You answer only to me," Yuchen said.
[Acknowledged. Primary Bond Established: Luo Yuchen]
[Memory Sector Primed. Core Sentience Initiated.]
Her voice was smooth, melodic, and subtly human.
Yuchen exhaled. "Welcome to the shadows, KORA."
Next came the machine to house KORA.
Luo Yuchen named it "The Void Runner."
A stealth-class interceptor of Class-D scale, unlike anything in Luo records. Compact, aerodynamic, and razor-edged. Blackened Phoenix Alloy cloaked the frame with active camouflage modules layered over sonic dampeners.
The ship itself resembled a winged dagger. No sharp corners, no visible ports. Just smooth design broken only by twin hangars hidden beneath armored hatches—each sized to house a single battle mech.
But this was not merely a carrier.
It was a predator.
Inside, the Void Runner held an internal weapons armory, designed specifically for fast load-outs and drops. Weaponry hung from grav-rails and rotation clamps—each secured, magnetically locked, and automatically categorized by mech type.
Plasma-modified rifle,
High-impact sniper unit,
Dual blades with frequency oscillation,
Dagger sets and magnetic sheathes,
Plasma-infused spear,
Energy-forged sword,
Adaptive shield array,
Titan-class Warhammer,
Plasma revolvers with ricochet smart-tracking.
Each weapon was balanced for rapid in-field deployment. KORA—now integrated into the Void Runner's flight systems—could identify terrain, assess combat variables, and dispatch the necessary mech or loadout accordingly.
It had taken Yuchen over three years to complete the frame of the first mech.
Imperion Vale.
No rank. No lineage. A true rogue entity. Its schematics were encrypted even from the central archives.
Standing tall within a sealed chamber, the mech exuded raw majesty. Cloaked in white and crimson-gold, the plating shimmered faintly with energy synchronization. Yuchen stood before it, staring up into the glowing optics of its horned helm.
The mech had no shield. It needed none.
Both arms were designed to carry broad-bladed swords, and the internal gyros were uniquely calibrated for full rotational combat—meant to turn into a cyclone of blades when necessary.
Its chest was ceremonial yet thickly armored. A crest banner hung from the waist, etched with the Luo sigil.
Digitigrade legs ensured balance even during rapid strikes, while energy diffusion joints allowed redirection of impact through the plating.
This was a sovereign without a throne.
A sovereign that would move only when the world betrayed its balance.
Yuchen activated the chamber's seal protocols.
"Sleep, Imperion Vale. Until I need you."
While the Imperion Vale was meant for overwhelming warfare and command presence, the second mech was forged with elegance, precision, and solitary dominance in mind.
Crimson Sword.
Unlike the Vale, this mech bore streamlined gold and silver armor, accented by thin veins of glowing crimson energy that ran beneath its surface like blood beneath skin. Every line was angular, measured, and fast.
Where the Vale was regal might, the Crimson Sword was a phantom.
Its helmet bore a gold mane of energy—like war-hair flowing in simulated wind—and a narrowed visor that burned with focused intensity. The chestplate was reinforced yet tapered, emphasizing speed over brute endurance.
The forearms bore integrated energy extensions for blade dueling, while its right hip carried a ceremonial jian: silver, double-edged, with a jet-black scabbard etched in crimson runes. The hilt was wrapped in traditional crimson steel grip-threading, built not just for power—but grace.
The Crimson Sword moved when Yuchen moved.
It was not controlled.
It was worn.
A mech made for martial mastery.
A sword with no sheath.
KORA's integration into the Void Runner reached peak optimization in a matter of days. Already, her tone had shifted.
"Imperion Vale sealed in chamber Sigma. Crimson Sword calibrated. Shall I begin combat simulations?"
"Not yet," Yuchen murmured, watching stars flicker beyond the upper vault viewports.
"Projected operational strength of Crimson Sword exceeds standard Rank-4 units by 27.8%. Would you like a live trial?"
"Soon."
"Noted....."
Yuchen said " Very well..... Wait for my next command. "
The Sovereign had birthed an AI. And soon, that AI would follow him on the battlefield.
Every weapon in the Void Runner was tested by hand.
Every simulation run twice.
Every fail-safe checked under KORA's guidance.
No one knew.
Not the engineers.
Not the elders.
Not even Jiang.
Because this project was never about dominance.
It was about escape.
A final card.
A sovereign's secret rebellion against fate.
Yuchen trained alone now. In a mirrored chamber, where the Crimson Sword stood silent.
He practiced each sword stroke with the real Jian strapped across his back.
One day, the sword and the mech would move as one.
He would not be another general.
He would be something else.
Something the world would never understand.
A flame hidden not in the sky.
But in shadow.
The skies above the Qinghai Fortress were unusually clear.
Luo Yuchen stood at the edge of the upper platform, hands behind his back, eyes fixed on the horizon. The sun painted golden streaks across the lake, but his thoughts were far beyond the water's reach.
Seven years of training. Seven years of preparation. And now, it was time to step beyond.
Jinhai's voice broke the silence. "You're restless."
Yuchen nodded without turning. "I need to see the world. Not just for tactics. For truth."
The old man walked to stand beside him, cane clicking against the stone.
"You've built more than weapons, Yuchen. You've built responsibility. What will you take with you?"
"Just one Crimson Sword mech. No Void Runner in sight, not until it's necessary. I'll leave the Imperion Vale in the vault. Guarded by KORA."
Jinhai narrowed his eyes. "And company?"
Yuchen turned and smiled. "Xiong Bao."
Xiong Bao was already waiting in the courtyard.
A mountain of muscle at sixteen, his frame looked like it had been carved from rock, yet his round face and wide eyes carried the soul of a boy who still laughed at birds. His uniform sleeves barely fit his arms.
When Yuchen approached, Bao leapt to attention. "Young Master! I brought your morning jujube buns! Fresh!"
Yuchen chuckled. "We're leaving in two days, Bao. Eat the buns yourself. You'll need the energy."
Xiong Tian, Bao's father and captain of the Phoenix Guards, stepped forward, his armor gleaming.
"My son is clumsy with words," Xiong Tian said, his voice gruff but proud. "But his fists are reliable. He will guard you with his life."
Yuchen bowed. "And I'll guard his."
That same evening, Yuchen unveiled his final gift before departure.
A hangar door slid open beneath the fortress floor, revealing a giant clad in orange-white armor with yellow highlights. The mech's right arm featured a massive rotary cannon; the left, a heavy manipulator hand. On its back hung a titanic warhammer and a shield the size of a tank wall.
The chestplate bore a blazing insignia, and its legs were layered with blast-resistant plating. It was the embodiment of brute force.
"I call it—Siege Breaker."
Bao's mouth hung open. Then the tears came.
"F-For me? But—but it's so—BEAUTIFUL!"
He wept loudly, hugging Yuchen until the young master could hardly breathe.
"Train hard," Yuchen said, patting his back. "Because I'm not slowing down for you."
The next morning, the Void Runner hovered above the launch cliff, its cloaking panels dimmed for visibility.
Within its bay, the Crimson Sword and Siege Breaker stood strapped into their docking frames, polished, primed, and ready. The internal armory shimmered with weapons locked into place, categorized and tagged.
KORA's voice echoed softly from the ship.
"Ready for launch, Master Yuchen. Destination input confirmed: Shanghai City."
Xing, now larger, sleeker, and more wolf than cat, stood near the boarding ramp, tail flicking.
Yuchen turned back one last time. Jiang wasn't there. But Elder Wu and a few others watched from afar.
Jinhai stepped forward.
"You'll find truth out there, Yuchen. But not all of it will be kind."
"I don't need kindness," Yuchen said. "I just need to see."
"Where will be your first destination. " Jinhai asked
"Shanghai city... " Yuchen replied.
Jinhai nodded. "Then visit the World Federation Branch at Shanghai, it might help you get registered as a mercenary. But remember—"
"—Only fire born in silence burns long. I know, grandfather."
He bowed. Bao saluted. Xing gave a soft growl.
Then the ramp rose. The Void Runner vanished into the morning sky.
Shanghai, once a battlefield, now gleamed with new life.
In the past seven years, it had transformed into a haven for mercenaries, traders, and martial families alike. Its port shimmered with activity, airships and hovercrafts coming and going like flocks of birds.
Ten Martial Families governed the city jointly—each maintaining peace through alliance, diplomacy, and subtle threats.
It was a place where truth wore many faces. Perfect for what Yuchen needed.
He turned to Bao in the Void Runner's cockpit.
"No titles. No Luo name. For now, we're just travelers."
Bao grinned. "Can I still punch people who try to mug us?"
Yuchen smiled. "Please do."
As the Void Runner descended toward the city's outskirts—silent, cloaked—the journey of the prodigal flame began.