Moving with lightning speed, it emerged from behind the wall formed by Genes and CGUEs, six Wired Dragoons swirling around its body.
Creuset's Gouf Ignited exuded the overwhelming aura of an ultimate boss, radiating immense pressure.
It charged head-on toward the black Qilin piloted by Zhang Hong!
"I'm done for, I'm done for," Zhang Hong cursed and shouted inside the black Qilin.
The Zhang Hong who had initially left a favorable impression on Murrue and the others had completely lost his earlier composure.
Amid the dense barrage from the wall-like formation of Genes and CGUEs, he had gritted his teeth and managed to hold his own against thirty Mobile Suits, only slightly at a disadvantage.
But facing ZAFT's top-tier ace Creuset, no matter how stubborn Zhang Hong was,
he understood that he stood no chance of coming out unscathed.
In truth, holding his own against thirty opponents was already an incredible feat.
And now, with Creuset finally joining the fray...
That was a challenge Wang Hu should face, definitely not something Zhang Hong should handle!
So, when confronted by the menacing and aggressive Creuset charging toward him, Zhang Hong wasted no time and initiated a strategic retreat.
It had to be said, this guy had some skill to be able to pilot the Qilin.
Combined with the blip representing Wang Hu's arrival already appearing on the edge of the screen, Zhang Hong had a rough idea of Creuset's intentions.
"Is he trying to kill me right in front of the captain?"
Muttering under his breath, Zhang Hong relied on the Qilin's speed and flew straight toward Wang Hu's position.
As long as Wang Hu arrived, wouldn't the enemy's ace Creuset stop chasing him?
"Trying to run? But do you think you can escape?"
With a single glance, the shrewd Creuset guessed Zhang Hong's plan.
The six Dragoons locked onto the rapidly fleeing Qilin, unleashing a volley of beams in its direction.
At the same time, someone like Creuset would never foolishly chase after an opponent whose intentions were so obvious, only to let them have their way.
Hadn't he noticed the four Allied Forces battleships nearby?
Earlier, the priority had been to eliminate the East Asian ace, which was why the Allied vanguard had been temporarily set aside.
But since you're running away, I'll just capture your battleships first.
After all, the monk may run away, but the temple remains!
Let's see if you dare not come back and face the beating!
"Attack the enemy vanguard fleet."
After firing a few Beam Rifle shots at the Qilin with little effect,
Creuset turned and flew toward the Allied vanguard, simultaneously issuing new orders to his subordinates over the comms.
Speaking of which...
Creuset stared at the blip representing Wang Hu on the screen, pursed his lips, and murmured,
"This is something I learned from you, Wang Hu—besiege the enemy to rescue allies, strike where they must defend."
"The ancient strategies of the East never go out of style."
"I'm finished," Zhang Hong despaired as he watched Creuset completely ignore him and the MS forces turn to attack the vanguard fleet.
His cunning plan had failed; the opponent hadn't taken the bait. It seemed the only option now was to go back and face the beating.
With no other choice, Zhang Hong steeled himself and returned, only to be predictably pummeled by Creuset, who resumed pounding him the moment he came back.
Bound by the necessity of covering four allied battleships, Zhang Hong found his movements increasingly constrained.
His maneuvering space grew ever narrower, yet the four battleships were successfully protected.
But as he faced six Dragoons poised to snatch away his life at any moment...
"Ah..." Zhang Hong sighed deeply in the Qilin's cockpit, watching the Dragoons that resembled tentacles extending from the Gouf Ignited's back. "Indeed, tentacles are the ultimate truth of this world. Tentacles are truly magnificent!"
"What nonsense are you spouting!"
Just as Creuset's Dragoons' beam blasts destroyed Zhang Hong's Beam Pods, and the next move would have taken Zhang Hong's life, dozens of beams suddenly streaked across the sky.
At this critical moment, Wang Hu presented Creuset with a dilemma: take Zhang Hong's life or preserve those six Dragoons.
If you want Zhang Hong's life, then your Dragoons must stay with me! Spare Zhang Hong, and your Dragoons can remain intact!
"An attack from such distance can actually predict my Dragoons' trajectories?"
Faced with this either-or choice, Creuset didn't waste even a second contemplating. He immediately recalled his Dragoons and spared Zhang Hong.
Then, staring at a small dot on his cockpit screen, he marveled at how Wang Hu could launch such precise attacks from such a great distance.
"Indeed, you are the greatest obstacle on my path forward, Wang Hu!"
Countless times had Creuset lamented this rivalry, and now facing Wang Hu's imminent arrival on the battlefield, he stood ready!
"Finally here, Captain Wang Hu!"
Zhang Hong breathed a huge sigh of relief, looking at his battered Qilin, feeling as if he had lost ten years of his lifespan.
"You can pilot the Qilin too? How do you operate the Beam Cannon Pods?"
Important characters always make such dramatic entrances. While receiving Creuset's welcoming party, Wang Hu still found time to ask Zhang Hong about this.
Wasn't it said that piloting a mobile suit like Qilin required excellent spatial awareness?
But Zhang Hong's spatial awareness was about on par with Li Chengzhi's - capable of piloting but not particularly skilled.
"Don't underestimate East Asian technological development. When human brains aren't enough, computers make up the difference."
Zhang Hong turned to fly back toward their Drake-class battleship while explaining.
"Computers?" Watching Zhang Hong's retreat, Wang Hu smiled, roughly understanding the situation.
It was likely similar to the super Dragoon system controlled by computers that Lacus gave Kira during the Second War in his memories - the Strike Freedom?
It could be operated either through the pilot's spatial awareness or simplified through computer control.
The difference probably lay in human-selected trajectories being more flexible, while computer control would be somewhat more rigid.
After all, the SEED world didn't have a super quantum computer like the 00 world.
"Wang Hu, we meet again."
The directional communication came through, Creuset's confident and magnetic voice drawing Wang Hu's attention.
"Greetings, I hope you're keeping well, Captain Creuset."
Raising his hand to accept the communication, Wang Hu watched with interest as the ZAFT Forces formed into the improved box formation they had used to beat Zhang Hong earlier.
And most importantly, Creuset's new mobile suit, the Gouf Ignited, which was fundamentally similar to the Destiny Gundam.
"Is this your confidence to face me again?"
"Looking back at our encounters, Captain Creuset, you've lost more often than drawn, and you've never won once."
Listening to Wang Hu's teasing trash talk, Creuset showed no signs of anger.
For no apparent reason, as he watched the purple-coated Qilin piloted by Wang Hu, Creuset felt an unusual sense of calm.
The seriousness he had felt before Wang Hu's arrival was completely gone. Perhaps it was because he was certain of victory this time?
Staring at Wang Hu, who seemed eager to engage in a war of words, Creuset even felt a twinge of pity.
Well, today would be his final farewell to this guy. Let him have his verbal victories.
The confidence born from absolute preparedness had evolved into effortless ease.
Quietly issuing commands to his subordinates over the internal comms, Creuset calmly offered Wang Hu a beautiful farewell.
As Creuset's orders were relayed, the entire piloting team demonstrated their unparalleled elite skills.
The MS unit shifted from a box formation to a wall formation.
Once again, their attacks came like a thick, impenetrable wall, bearing down on Wang Hu with overwhelming force.
"For me, any move I've seen once becomes ineffective the second time."
Abruptly uttering these words, Wang Hu had utilized the data exchange system between fighters during his approach.
He had a decent understanding of the tactics Creuset had prepared for him—not complete mastery, but enough to grasp the basics.
Only a fool would stand still and take the enemy head-on.
Pulling the control stick and stepping on the accelerator, if the Qilin were flying like this within the atmosphere,
its nose would have already broken the sound barrier, entering supersonic speed and generating sonic booms at the forefront of the aircraft.
With a swift, simple maneuver, Wang Hu broke through the barrage of fire from the Genes and CGUEs.
A smooth dodge through the bullet hell? Not happening!
Once his mobile suit was clear of the enemy's attacks, Wang Hu tilted the nose downward and leveled off, maintaining a safe distance while flying parallel to the enemy MS unit.
Under Wang Hu's control, the four Wire-guided Beam Pods changed positions with every shot.
Thanks to Wang Hu's skillful handling and the speed and agility of the Beam Pods,
the four pods seemed to multiply into more than a dozen.
The web woven by the beam shots was impenetrable!
"Disperse." Creuset wasn't naive enough to think one trick would work forever.
The tactics effective against that black Qilin were less effective against Wang Hu.
This had been within his expectations; this combination was merely a precaution against ambushes!
In fact, Creuset didn't even need to give the order.
Before Wang Hu's highly threatening attack could reach them, the Genes and CGUEs scattered like stars across the sky.
But don't think they were simply fleeing or evading!
As each Gene and CGUE maneuvered, their gun barrels remained steadily aimed at Wang Hu's Qilin or the four Wired Control Pods.
Thanks to Creuset's specialized training and repeated instructions, they were thoroughly familiar with the Qilin's Beam Cannon Pod activity radius
and basic movement patterns, so they felt little tension.
In addition to the journey from the homeland to this location, each of them had undergone no less than a hundred simulated battles.
Now was the moment to validate the results of their hard work—bullets fired from their gun barrels either struck the enemy's Beam Cannon Pods or targeted the enemy Qilin's main body.
Some willingly played the role of green leaves to accentuate the flowers, launching attacks to restrict Wang Hu's movement space, further constraining and delaying his actions.
"This is troublesome." Wang Hu frowned for the first time. As someone who possessed the undisputed top-tier template in the history of Mobile Suit combat, even he found the current predicament challenging.
The tricky situation before him made it difficult to act decisively, like a tiger trying to bite a hedgehog. Individually, none of the opponents—including Creuset—were a match for him one-on-one.
Even Creuset, piloting the Gouf Ignited, would only require a bit more effort to handle.
But with this group gathered together, the situation Wang Hu faced was far from favorable.
There was no other way—if the Qilin's main body took even a single hit from the enemy's bullets, it would mean certain destruction and death.
But what about the enemy? Unless a Beam Cannon Pod struck a vital point, the damage would be negligible to them.
Staring at the enemy's shields, which were undoubtedly coated with anti-Beam protection, Wang Hu silently searched for an opportunity.
Unfortunately, the opportunity did not come to Wang Hu first. Instead, the goddess of victory lifted her skirt for Creuset and his allies.
It must be noted that the battlefield was not limited to the 30 Mobile Suits led by Creuset—there were also three Gundams seized from the Allied Forces!
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