The Mech Touch novel Chapter 5168

"To be honest, this wouldn't be necessary if our faction leaders formed a consensus by themselves." Jovy quietly admitted to Ves.

"You mean if two out of three of them agreed on the same plan, the last holdout would have no choice but to play along?"

"That is correct. If the Xenotechnician and the Polymath both united around a single plan, then it is not beneficial for the Fist of Defiance to express any further opposition. His resistance at that point will no longer serve a productive use, but will instead lead to costly delays and a drastic reduction in our chances of success. Even a god pilot who is famed for his stubbornness and defiance as him understands that he must prioritize the greater interests of red humanity over his own feelings."

Ves finally understood the true significance of this conference. To think that he originally thought it was just a professional gathering where mech designers could meet with their peers and present their ideas to each other.

"Since you guys have resorted to these appeals, I take it that each faction leader insists on implementing their own specific plans."

"A three-way split has occurred that is paralyzing our faction." Jovy confirmed. "Each of the leaders have spent weeks trying to resolve it, to no avail. None of us wants this impasse to persist any further, so our Master Mech Designers and other high officials have been invested with the power to solve this problem."

This was an unlikely turn of events. Effective power passed from the most eminent leaders to the cadre who ranked lower in the hierarchy.

A situation like this not only tested the appeal of every faction leader's unique plan, but also tested the strength of their network within the cadre.

He was sure that the Survivalists who were not committed to any particular side would become the focus of a lot of appeals in the coming days.

In addition to that, the faction leaders also had to ensure that their existing supporters did not change their minds and side with another camp.

All of this sounded more and more contentious to Ves. He felt glad that he was a non-entity in this all-important power struggle. He was more than happy to remain a bystander and become a witness to a vital turning point of red humanity's early history.

The intermission slowly passed. Everyone tactfully ended their conversations and refrain from speaking any further.

The next speaker appeared on the central podium. Though Ves and a lot of people were disappointed that the Fist of Defiance was too indisposed to present his plan in person, the man he chose to speak in his place was a pretty good substitute.

The Mace of Retaliation had shown up in order to present the god pilot's vision!

Just as his name suggested, the Mace was a direct descendant of the Fist. The former was the most successful protege of the latter and made it all the way up to senior ace pilot!

There were rumors that the Mace of Retaliation had reached his current limit a long time ago and could undergo the Mech Body Merger Process anytime he wanted.

However, many years went by without any further developments. A lot of bold and reckless ace pilots would have taken the plunge a long time ago even if they intuitively knew that their chances of success were too slim.

The Mace of Retaliation was not one of them. He chose to stand in front of the same juncture and settle for inaction.

This was the most prudent choice, but not the most courageous one.

Perhaps the Mace had waited too long and lost much of the momentum that originally propelled him to his current height.

The conditions to become a god pilot were too brutal. Any flaw would drastically be magnified and used to ruin a hopeful ace pilot's chances of surviving the profound transformation process!

The Mace of Retaliation's personal history was not a subject of debate at this time.

Right now, he spoke on behalf of the only god pilot of the Survivalist Faction present in the Red Ocean.

No matter what, the Fist of Defiance's right to speak remained strong. Even the Star Designers had to respect their only top combatant's opinion.

"Ladies and gentlemen." The Mace began to address the gathered Survivalists. "My grandfather understands the dire situation that red humanity just as well as anyone. He cannot bring himself to agree with the Xenotechnician's approach. How can our race possibly throw away all of our pride and much of the reasons that have made our people strong in the face of adversity? To consort with the duplicitous and traitorous cosmopolitans is nothing less than drinking poison to quench your thirst. Our enemies remain enemies no matter how much we meet their demands!"

Clearly, the Fist of Defiance had a lot to say about the Xenotechnician's proposal to resort to diplomacy to solve the current crisis.

Unlike the old geezer that came before, the 250-year old ace pilot boldly raised his voice and channeled all of his aggressive emotions into a domain field that everyone could perceive!

"Do you think that the aliens will truly forgive us for attempting to commit genocide on all of them? No! Our enemies have no credibility at all! They will only seek to take advantage of us. Kneeling and begging for their protection will only cause us to give up all of our initiative. Do you feel comfortable with handing over so much power to our oh so reliable 'allies'? I certainly do not think so! This does not sound like a compromise to me. This is nothing less than a complete surrender as far as we are concerned! No longer will we be able to make our own choices and decide our own future. The traitors and aliens will effectively control our fragile society at that time. IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT?!"

Ves did not believe that anyone in the audience actually wanted to say yes to this question. Cooperating with the aliens did not solve the fundamental inadequacies between humanity and the other races. The allies of today could easily turn into the enemies of tomorrow.

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