186: Final Preparation

Without further ado, everyone headed to the armory.

After several major exchanges, Dawn Base now had a wide variety of weapons, a dazzling array.

Pan Han briefly reviewed the Trial rules: the first stage, Twelve Palaces provided weapons; the second stage was a Arena (arena battle); and the third stage was willpower training. Only the fourth stage required the use of one's own equipment.

He first decided to bring his mech, planning to put it on directly for the fourth stage.

Then, he took several pistols and shotguns, along with thousands of rounds of ammunition, packing them into a large bag. He would later store them in his spatial inventory for emergencies.

If an unexpected situation arose, he wouldn't mind exposing his spatial ability; after all, survival was paramount.

As for cold weapons, Pan Han had previously practiced several close-combat knife techniques, so he first took a few daggers and short knives.

These things might not be of much use, but it was like walking at night; if you had a small whistle, you'd feel more at ease.

"Commander, please take this sleeve arrow," Cheng Xiao said, producing a small black box and placing it before him.

Among all the people present, Cheng Xiao was the most attentive; how could she not be nervous when her man was going to battle!

Pan Han had never seen this item before. Opening the box, he found a half-arm-length loop, thicker at one end and thinner at the other, designed to fit over an arm.

The thinner end was covered with a circle of miniature arrows, their tips dark and bluish, gleaming with a chilling light.

Pan Han picked up the loop, weighing it in his hand. So light!

Cheng Xiao helped him put it on his right arm and adjusted the tightness.

"You only need to adjust it once; it has a memory function, so it will maintain this tightness from now on," Cheng Xiao explained to him.

"How do I use this thing?"

"Record your voice print in advance so it recognizes you. Then, just shout 'Fire!' and it will activate," Cheng Xiao had used it a few times before and found it very effective.

"Can I change the command?"

"Yes, as long as it's your voice."

"This thing is good; I'll take it." Pan Han was very satisfied; a full 24 arrows in one circle were enough for self-preservation.

"Commander, let's record your voice print now." Cheng Xiao pressed a spot under the loop, and a small red light appeared.

"Go!" Pan Han shouted the command.

The small red light on the loop turned into a small green light, indicating successful recording.

"That's it?"

"Yes! Before using it, press the switch. There's also a safety here; remember to open it." Cheng Xiao showed him the button's location.

"Got it. This thing is quite good. Any other good stuff?"

"Commander, how about some quicklime powder? If you don't like someone, just throw it in their eyes!" At this moment, Old Six had a flash of inspiration.

"Old Six, can't you be serious for once?" Pan Han chuckled, retorting.

"Oh! This stuff is a bit underhanded and indeed doesn't match our Commander's status." After being rebuked, Old Six immediately began self-reflection, truly impressive.

"Then what are you waiting for? Go find it for me!" Pan Han's mood quickly changed from cloudy to sunny, ordering Old Six to hurry.

"Yes, Commander!" Seeing Pan Han's approval, Old Six happily scampered away.

"That's about it. Everyone, go back to sleep and wait for tomorrow."

Pan Han gathered his equipment and returned to the second floor with Cheng Xiao.

After washing up, the two had a few brief, intimate exchanges and then fell asleep.

This time, Cheng Xiao slept very soundly. She could go with him tomorrow, which was very important.

Early the next morning, everyone at the base woke up early, clean and tidy, standing in perfect order.

Over three thousand people gathered at the base's main gate, lined up neatly.

Pan Han had not asked them to see him off.

But after such a long time, living together day and night, their bond was already strong; no command or mobilization was needed.

Pan Han was their Commander, their Boss, their Master.

After waking up, Mo Li found a rich breakfast already laid out downstairs. Mo Li instructed the other Twelve Palaces soldiers to eat quickly, while he picked up a tea egg.

"What is this? Dawn Base truly has all sorts of strange things." He sniffed it, and a refreshing tea aroma went straight to his nose.

After peeling it, he swallowed it in one bite, and Mo Li was instantly invigorated!

"This kid, he has so many tricks. I'll have to get him to make me some of these eggs later."

Mo Li ate five tea eggs in one go before he was satisfied.

"Let's go! Prepare to depart."

Seeing that the other soldiers had mostly finished eating, Mo Li led his team to the main gate.

As soon as the door opened, they found Pan Han and Cheng Xiao waiting for him at the entrance. They each carried a large bag, and the mech followed behind Pan Han.

"Lord Pan, Miss Cheng Xiao. I've kept you waiting." Mo Li wiped the tea stains from his mouth, expressing a slight apology.

"Not at all, I just arrived myself. Shall we depart then?"

"Alright, let's go!"

"Mr. Mo, could you help me replenish the mech's ammunition? I used quite a bit last time," Pan Han asked on the way.

"No problem. I'll give you five more basic loads," Mo Li agreed generously.

"Then thank you very much, Mr. Mo. I won't let you help for free; I have some small gifts that will be loaded onto the plane as well."

"Oh? Then it would be rude to refuse. Thank you, Lord Pan." Mo Li was overjoyed; he knew that the "small gifts" Pan Han spoke of would certainly not be small.

When they reached the main gate, Qin Zhong, along with several battalion Commanders, came to greet them.

Qin Zhong ran over first and saluted.

"All personnel of Dawn Base respectfully send off the Commander, wishing the Commander a triumphant victory and a safe return."

Pan Han put down his bag and returned a salute to Qin Zhong.

Immediately after, Qin Zhong ran to Mo Li, performing the same gesture: "Mr. Mo, I hope you will take good care of Commander and Cheng Xiao."

"Qin Laoda, rest assured. I have high hopes for your Commander." Seeing such a formal scene, Mo Li also dropped his pretense and patted Qin Zhong's shoulder.

"These are the gifts the Commander prepared for you. Please take a look." Qin Zhong stepped aside, revealing several large boxes behind him.

"So many?" Although he knew Pan Han was generous, so many large boxes still surprised Mo Li.

"Mr. Mo, these are fresh vegetables, big fruit, and our homemade cured meat. Take them back for your family to try," Pan Han explained.

"Good, good, Lord Pan has gone to great lengths," Mo Li said, beaming.

"The other Twelve Palaces soldiers each have a separate gift, including one hundred boxes of canned meat, one hundred boxes of canned vegetables, one hundred boxes of canned fruit, and one hundred jars of rice."

Upon hearing this, Mo Li thought, this kid is truly a rich man! Even the gifts for the soldiers are so generous.

"Why aren't you thanking Lord Pan quickly!" Mo Li gestured for the soldiers behind him to show their gratitude.

"Thank you, Lord Pan!" All the soldiers sincerely thanked Pan Han. Although their salaries were enough for food and drink, who could refuse so many supplies?

Pan Han had not dealt with ordinary soldiers before and didn't know what was suitable to give. However, converting it to the purchasing power of his own world, one box of canned meat was roughly equivalent to a small yellow croaker.

Four hundred cans of various ingredients were equivalent to four hundred small yellow croakers in his world.

No matter the social niceties, upon seeing four hundred small yellow croakers, wouldn't anyone be thrilled!

After Qin Zhong finished his report, he waved his hand, and immediately over a hundred people came forward, carrying various supplies to load onto the plane.

Pan Han then led Mo Li and Cheng Xiao to the main gate's watchtower.

Looking at the neat formation ahead, Pan Han waved goodbye to everyone.

"Commander will win!"

"Commander will win!"

"Commander will win!"

Three thousand people shouted the slogan in unison, shaking the heavens and the earth!

Mo Li, standing by, was also greatly astonished.

Cheng Xiao's eyes welled up with tears; she finally saw what her dream base looked like.

"Lord Pan, is this prosperous era as you wished?" Mo Li asked meaningfully.

"Mr. Mo, this prosperous era is still far from arriving!" Pan Han thought to himself, this was just the beginning; his goal was not just these few thousand people.

"Alright, time's up, let's get on the plane." Mo Li grabbed Pan Han and Cheng Xiao's arms respectively, and with a leap, they directly crossed the crowd and landed in front of the plane door.

The Trial journey was about to begin!