"The Seed Island is just ahead, but I know it must be empty by now," the captain said, according to their agreement, as he brought the support troops ashore.
"Thank you!"
The cruise ship dropped off the group and then left.
"Stay alert," the major said, glancing over the island, which indeed seemed deserted. "Two of you go to the highest point on the island. Keep an eye on the sky, I don't want to be bombed again."
"Understood!"
"Everyone else, take turns resting."
The major found Liu A'dou and decided it was necessary to ask the mysterious man about his skills, where he had learned them.
"I started training in martial arts when I was very young and have mastered many forms of boxing," Liu A'dou said with a smile.
The major still didn't believe him, but after sparring with him, he was forced to admit Liu A'dou's immense strength. He couldn't land a single blow. However, he still wondered how Liu A'dou had managed to control the mech so skillfully.
Liu A'dou answered with two words: "Realm. The mech is an extension of my body. To make the mech do what I want, this 'You Three' is specially modified. The skeleton is reinforced, the joints refined, and inside it, there is a system designed to replicate human muscle movements. So, even though this KG7 is heavier than usual, its movements are still swift."
The major thought it was a special mech made for Liu A'dou by the military, unaware that it was actually Liu A'dou who had stolen the parts and customized the mech on his own.
"This is the big crater left fifteen years ago, right?" The island was already small, and half of it had been destroyed. It was even smaller now, and you could see the end from anywhere.
"Most of the meteorites fell on the Americas, almost destroying every country. Even the world powers couldn't withstand it. The situation quickly shifted toward the Soviet Union. After that, Europe supported the Soviet Union, and the focus of the Joint Government also shifted to the Soviet Union."
Liu A'dou could see the broken moon every night, which always affected his mood. "Those Martians say we are foolish, but I think they are the true barbarians, turning the beautiful moon into this."
"The Martians are typical power addicts. The Emperor Weiss is just like the tyrants in our history, cruel and foolish. But it's not surprising; he was originally just a scientist who didn't understand how to govern a country," the major said. "However, since the Space Gate is entirely in the hands of the Martians, Earth forces are helpless."
"The Moon explosion didn't destroy the Space Gate?"
"After 1999, Mars spent three years repairing the Space Gate, but the Knights never returned to Mars. Instead, they stayed here. The Space Gate is still in Martian hands."
"Martian technology is far superior to Earth's," Liu A'dou sighed.
"It's just that we're taking advantage of the Martian's mistakes," the major scoffed. "Sooner or later, we'll drive Mars back to that barbaric land and let them fend for themselves. We're all Earthlings, but they really think they're superior just because they have technology? It's disgusting."
Liu A'dou felt the same. He was a proud Earthling, yet in this world, he was looked down upon by a bunch of Martian settlers. It was truly disgusting.
The major stood up. "One day, Earth will learn from the United States in World War II and deal a heavy blow to the Vers Empire, forcing them to surrender unconditionally. Alright, get some rest, we still have to be on guard later."
"Okay!" Liu A'dou, of course, didn't intend to sleep. He still had to visit the secret base on Seed Island. The Martian knights hadn't arrived yet, so he decided to venture out for some excitement.
Before the meteorites hit Seed Island, it had been the first landing point for Martian knights and the place where Earth's conventional military first encountered Martian mechs. The Martian mechs left an indelible trauma on the survivors. However, when the meteorites fell, they also killed the Martian knights. Their mechs were taken by the Joint Government for study, and the Aldnoah engines were removed and used to build a spacecraft, named the same as the Martian mechs, "Kallion." However, Earthlings couldn't activate Martian technology, so the spaceship was abandoned.
Liu A'dou feigned discovering it by accident and entered the base with the major.
The Martian mech had been abandoned in its shell, but it still startled the major. He didn't expect to find something like this beneath Seed Island. "A'dou, I'm starting to suspect you knew about this in advance, which is why you had us come to Seed Island."
Liu A'dou thought to himself, 'Well, I did know.' But he firmly denied it, "It's an accident."
The major didn't press the issue. For now, as long as the enemies of the Martians were friends to the Earth, that was enough.
"There's another spaceship, my goodness." But after entering, the major wasn't surprised anymore. "No wonder I never heard of Kallion, it's a Martian technology spaceship."
Liu A'dou was curious. The previous Alrei hadn't had the time to be disassembled, and now there was no rush to leave. He said, "How about we let everyone rest inside the base, hide the mechs inside, and just leave people outside to stand guard?"
The major agreed. The base was built under a mountain, so it should be very secure.
Liu A'dou immediately got to work and started dismantling the engine. The power room was a square chamber surrounded by metal blocks, with a spherical object in the center. The Martians would activate the sphere, which would then emit Aldnoah energy, spreading it to the golden blocks on the surrounding walls, powering the entire mechanism.
But what exactly this energy was, no one knew. Humans only gave it a name, but its essence remained a mystery, even to the Martians.
It required a specific bloodline to activate it, which was a joke. The first batch of Martians were Earthlings—how could they activate Martian technology? It was only after the first Earthlings experienced something on Mars that they gained the ability. That's when their bodies changed. Some people could activate all Martian technology, while others could only use it once the royal family activated it.
Changes and differences—those were the things that happened at the dawn of the Vers Empire.
The changes were definitely caused by the Martians, but the differences were due to the individuals. Earthlings hadn't even undergone the changes, so of course, they couldn't use Martian technology. But the real question was: what exactly on Mars caused the changes in humans?
Liu A'dou didn't know, but from various human perspectives, he wondered which part of the human body Mars had altered—blood type, genes, personality, zodiac, or astrology?
From the point of view of inheritance, it should have been the genes. Other things couldn't be passed down. That's why only the royal family could monopolize Martian technology through inheritance.
But having only Martian genes wasn't enough. It required living Martians to activate the technology. Liu A'dou suddenly came up with an idea. But first, he would need some Martian blood.
While everyone wasn't paying attention, Liu A'dou flew back to the previous battlefield and took a vial of blood from Brad's corpse. Then, he started working on crafting a small tool. It felt like doing extra credit in a homework assignment. If successful, there would be a sense of accomplishment. Liu A'dou was about to break the Martian rule that only Martians could control Martian technology. They really thought that Earthlings couldn't figure things out without the Martians? It was time to show them the imagination of Earthlings.