The morning sun streamed into the courtyard, casting a faint glow on the mecha's hull. Xiang Fan rubbed his aching shoulder, set down his last tool, and stood up. He gazed at the mecha he had modified with his own hands, and his tired expression was immediately replaced by a sense of satisfaction. His lips curled up, and he patted the mecha's armor, as if comforting an old friend who had just undergone major surgery: "Brother, we finally saved you."

He circled the mech, carefully examining every modified part. His fingers slid over the psionic wiring, feeling the steady flow of spiritual energy. The energy core glowed softly, a confident, "I can still do this." He pulled out the blueprints, nodding as he reviewed them, a look of satisfaction only a craftsman could muster. "The psionic energy flows smoothly, the sensors are sensitive, the armor is sturdy... Aside from the appearance of an armored gorilla, everything else is perfect."

Then, he connected the control panel and slowly injected spiritual energy into the core. The mecha emitted a low humming sound, and then, with its legs trembling slightly, it slowly stood up. Xiang Fan's eyes widened, and he almost jumped up in excitement. "It's standing up! My iron lump is alive!"

He climbed into the cockpit, trembling, his hand on the control stick, and pushed carefully. The mech took its first stiff step, its movements looking drunk, staggering, but somehow managing to stay in place. Xiang Fan couldn't help but grin. "Tsk, it might walk like an old spirit beast, but at least it's moving!" He tried increasing his spiritual power output, and the mech's movements gradually became smoother. Though still moving at a snail's pace, it could at least move in a straight line.

He pressed the test button, and a series of data popped up on the screen: "Psionic efficiency 60%, defense increased by 20%, speed..." He looked at the movement data that was comparable to the walk of a spirit turtle and couldn't help but sigh. "This speed is not as fast as if I could run by myself, but it's usable. I'll find a way to install thrusters later."

Jumping out of the cockpit, he looked up at the mech, reached out and patted its leg armor, his eyes full of pride: "Although you were a waste before, now you are my waste, the first mech I saved with my own hands."

Thinking back to the past few days, he'd nearly crippled himself by searching through scrap metal, carving spiritual patterns late into the night, and then repairing every last part. He rubbed his aching wrist, chuckling to himself, "Repairing a mecha is also about cultivating your mind. This piece of metal nearly broke me. But it was worth it. After all, some things are only truly precious when you risk your life for them."

He leaned against the mecha, looked up at the sky, and smiled: "Next, don't let me down, old friend."

Xiang Fan sat on a stone bench in the yard, looking up at the mech, already pondering his next steps. He pulled out his notebook and began scribbling carefully: "The sensors need further optimization, and it would be great if the armor could be made of a more reliable material... Maybe the performance could be improved, or at least the paint wouldn't peel off easily."

He glanced at the homemade Spirit Realm battlefield connection device in his hand, his eyes gleaming. "Hey, this is a custom-made plug-in for mechas. With it installed, my broken piece of metal will instantly increase in value tenfold! Who will dare to laugh at me if I can drive it around in the Spirit Realm?" He frantically snapped the device onto the mecha's console, searching for a long time before deciding where to connect the interface to the energy transmission line. As he soldered, he muttered, "Hold on, bro, don't blow it up! I'm giving you an upgrade."

A few hours later, the blue light of the Spirit Realm connection device lit up. Xiang Fan put on his helmet with a smug look on his face. "Okay, let's see how it works. I can finally drive my mecha into the Spirit Realm battlefield with dignity. Let's see who dares to accuse me of cheating!" The familiar data stream flashed across the screen, and the main interface of the Spirit Realm battlefield popped up. Xiang Fan was so excited that he almost shouted out loud, "It's really connected! My mecha is at least a top-tier player in the Bronze Zone!"

But reality quickly dampened his spirit. After logging off from the Spirit Realm battlefield, he checked his mech's status, his brow furrowed so sharply it could have pinched a mosquito to death. "The energy storage is insufficient. The core is like a drained spiritual fruit." He fiddled with the energy core for a long time and found that while the spiritual core was functional, the stored spiritual energy simply couldn't sustain the mech's extended operation.

Xiang Fan touched his chin and suddenly had an idea: "Hey, since this mecha consumes spiritual energy, can't I just feed it some spiritual power every day?" As he said, he took out the scattered spiritual energy conduction tubes in the locker, connected them to the core of the mecha, assumed a cross-legged training posture, pressed his hand on the interface, and began to slowly inject spiritual power.

After a while, the screen displayed a number that made him laugh and cry: "Charging progress: 1%." He was stunned for a moment, then patted the shell of the mech and said self-deprecatingly, "Well, my efficiency is a bit low, but at least I can see progress, right? 1% a day, and in three months I'll be back to full health!"

He lay in the cockpit, staring blankly at the overhead screen. He casually tapped a few times on the Spirit Realm connection device, switching it to standby mode. The afterglow of the setting sun streamed in through the cracks in the hatch, illuminating the cockpit with a warm orange hue. He touched the inner wall of the mecha and said, as if coaxing a child, "Take your time. One day, you'll be able to stand up again. Then, we can both proudly make our presence felt in the Spirit Realm!"

The courtyard outside the cabin was silent, the mecha standing silently like a sleeping giant. In the cockpit, Xiang Fan, with a face both comical and serious, looked forward to the future. His lips curled up, and as he dozed, he muttered, "When you start moving, don't forget to thank me, your dedicated poop-scooper..."