At night, Xiang Fan stood in the courtyard, looking up at the shabby, barely stable basic mech, and sighed deeply. He reached out and touched the mech's hull, as if comforting something precious, muttering, "I work so hard every day to recharge you, but I don't know when I'll be able to get you back on your feet."

He activated the mecha's energy transmission port, placed his palm on the spiritual energy inlet, and began to slowly inject spiritual energy. Spiritual energy surged from his palm, and beads of sweat gradually seeped out of his forehead and slid down his cheeks. Xiang Fan couldn't help but complain in his heart: Why is it so strenuous lately? I didn't seem this tired before...

The mecha's psychic core began to glow faintly, and the energy bar slowly rose. He looked at the bar and suddenly noticed an extra bar. His eyes lit up. "Huh? It's only charged to 1.5% today? That's more than usual!"

He stood up straight, touched his chin, and muttered to himself thoughtfully: "Could it be that I have been eating well recently and have a big appetite, so my spiritual power has recovered quickly? It seems that eating well is really useful." The more he thought about it, the more he felt that his conclusion made sense. A satisfied smile appeared on his face. He stretched and turned to go into the house.

Under the dim light of the room, several old books on mecha construction lay spread out on the table. He flipped open one at random and looked down at the psychic circuit diagram inside. His brows furrowed. "This psychic circuit is too convoluted. All the energy is wasted. If I used a simplified circuit..."

He picked up a pen and sketched his ideas on the edge of the page, muttering to himself as he did so: "When I have money someday, I'll definitely try this plan. Then, hey, people will definitely call me a 'mecha genius'."

The next morning, Xiang Fan arrived at the sword training grounds and joined the other disciples in practicing the Lingxiao Sword Technique. After practicing a set of sword techniques, he was surprised to find that he wasn't feeling tired at all, and his spiritual energy consumption was ridiculously low. He paused, stunned. "Huh? After practicing a whole set of sword techniques, I only consumed this little spiritual energy? Could it be that... I've practiced so much that practice makes perfect?"

The more he thought about it, the happier he became, with a hint of joy in his eyes: "It seems that all this time of training has not been in vain. Have I finally gotten started?"

Chu Yang walked over from a distance and saw Xiang Fan in a daze. He couldn't help but pat his shoulder and smiled mischievously: "Hey, Xiaofan, why are you so serious today? It's rare to see you not slacking off."

Xiang Fan was frightened and trembled, stammering in defense: "I, I'm not being lazy... I'm just practicing more!"

Chu Yang laughed heartily, as if he had heard a huge joke. "Practice more? Tsk tsk, your little sword will eventually become a dragon-slaying sword."

Xiang Fan curled his lips and muttered softly, "I don't expect to become some kind of dragon-slaying sword... I just want to stop being scrap metal and just be a small sword."

Chu Yang didn't hear clearly, still shaking his head smugly as he walked away, leaving Xiang Fan staring at the sword in his hand. He looked up at his fellow disciples sweating profusely on the sword training ground in the distance, silently tightened his grip on the sword, regained his footing, and devoted himself to practice seriously: "Practice makes perfect. Practice every day, and you will become stronger."

In the Spirit Realm battlefield, Shadow Killer's voice lazily echoed through the team chat: "Boss, I've accepted a new mission to take down a few Spirit Beast AI mechas. It sounds trivial, but the rewards are quite good, enough to keep us entertained for a few days."

Ling Ruoxi's eyes lit up with excitement: "Spiritual beast AI? That sounds interesting! Boss, let's get going!"

Xiang Fan's Mech Zero stood quietly to the side, his tone as calm as ever: "You guys decide, I'll be responsible for finishing off the enemy."

When they arrived at the mission location, they realized things weren't quite as simple as they thought. The AI ​​mechas before them were towering and imposing, resembling ferocious beasts, covered in psychic armor. Every step they took made the ground vibrate. Shadow Killer glanced at the scan data and felt his scalp tingle. "Holy crap! These things have psychic energy levels approaching mid-level Jindan! Who designed this? Isn't this a clear attempt to bully players like us in the Iron Zone?"

Ling Ruoxi, manipulating the Sky Sword Armor, charged forward without hesitation. With a single swing of her lightsaber, she missed the target slightly, slashing against the edge of the Spirit Beast Mech's armor. Her recklessness drew an attack from three Spirit Beast Mechs. The Shadow Killer's voice on the communication channel suddenly rose an octave: "Xiao Xi! What the hell are you doing?! Stop running around! Do you think you're a Golden Core Heroine?"

Ling Ruoxi frantically dodged while explaining, "I was just testing the strength of their armor... I didn't expect them to be so flexible!"

The Black Tortoise Guard stood in front of her with a huge shield, complaining loudly: "Are you testing your sword or trying to attract aggro? This attack is more powerful than the Talisman Cannon. If you continue to mess around, we're all finished!"

At this moment, Zero's voice sounded as steady as a rock: "Hold still, focus your fire on the one on the far left. Its shield is about to collapse."

Upon hearing the boss's command, the protagonists immediately adjusted their formation. Shadow Killer stalked around to the flank, complaining, "This is exhausting! I need to pay more!" Ling Ruoxi retreated obediently to the distance, harassing the enemy with her flying sword. The Black Tortoise Guard stood at the forefront like an iron wall, withstanding the onslaught. From afar, Zero precisely operated his rune cannon, each shot striking the Spirit Beast mech's joints, slowing its movements.

Finally, under the combined siege of the protagonists, the first spirit beast AI mecha finally fell. The ground shook under its weight, and a pile of loot fell.

Ling Ruoxi's eyes lit up: "This time the reward must be very generous! Boss, how do we divide it?"

Shadow Killer couldn't help but roll his eyes. "Don't get your hopes up. These scraps can probably only be exchanged for a few spirit stones. As usual, the boss gets half, and we split the rest."

Ling Ruoxi said seriously, "We must give the boss more this time! The boss has such great skills and has worked so hard to guide us, we must give him more!"

Zero touched his helmet and said helplessly, "Whatever. Just give me a mouthful of soup."

Shadow Killer immediately teased: "You have more than us, but you are the boss!"

The few of them laughed heartily as they packed up their spoils. Shadow Killer clapped his hands, "Alright, this was a good mission today. If we can get a few more missions like this, we'll be rich!"

Ling Ruoxi jumped for joy: "Hurry up, hurry up, to the next location, I can't wait!"

The Xuanwu guard held up his giant shield and followed helplessly: "I beg you to take it easy and not bring another barrage of artillery fire upon me."

Amidst laughter, everyone embarked on the next adventure in the chaotic region.