Sky-cracking Rider

"Locked on!"

As Chen Fei's voice trailed off, the aircraft shuddered and two combat bombs detached from the left and right wing pylons, trailing thick smoke as they charged toward the two enemy planes.

The distance between the sides had just closed to 5 kilometers, with the gap shrinking at a speed of at least 200 meters per second.

One of the advantages of playing defense for a counterattack is that the enemy was in pursuit; a simple turn would put us face-to-face with the adversary, the speeds adding up in a head-on bayonet clash.

Strike first for strength, delay and incur misfortune.

The initiative was mine, as was the advantage; an all-out blitz assault was the right move.

For missiles, enemy aircraft meant targets delivering themselves, with head-on launch probabilities being higher than from the rear.

The A-39B "Big Mouth Monster" light turboprop attack aircraft had only seven hardpoints; the veterans had loaded Chen Fei's aircraft No. 211 with four programmable combat bombs. With two auxiliary fuel tanks attached, only the centerline hardpoint remained empty.

Thus, unlike the two enemy planes, the luxury of launching four combat bombs at once wasn't attainable; the available ammunition for aircraft No. 211 was limited to two combat bombs and 500 rounds for the wing-mounted machine gun.

With a slight adjustment to the heads-up display (HUD), he lightly squeezed the machine gun trigger, and a stream of tracer bullets greeted the enemy.

Chen Fei didn't take deliberate aim at the two planes; hence, the bullets covered the space around the enemy aircraft.

With missiles in front and machine gun bullets from behind, it was a dire situation for them; dodge or don't dodge, any action would only allow for a choice of two, making it inescapable.

The opposing sides were like knights on a battlefield, initiating a head-on death charge to decide the outcome; in the end, only one could survive.

Of course, the enemy planes were not without life; when Chen Fei launched his attack, they naturally began their counterstrike. Flames erupted ceaselessly from their left and right wings, and a dense stream of machine gun bullets trailing tracer pathways whirled out, followed by immediate evasive maneuvers.

Compared to taking a hit from one or two 12.7mm caliber bullets, the threat from a combat bomb was far more lethal.

Shooting down missiles with machine guns was nothing but wishful thinking.

If they had such a skill, Aircrew Base 911's "Big Mouth Monsters" would have already been downed by them.

"They're... Careful!"

Spotting a series of crimson bullet paths coming head-on, Executive Manager Hanna Gagar shouted out.

In the midst of her screaming, aircraft No. 211 didn't make a single move, not even attempting to dodge.

The death barrage enveloped the turboprop craft the two were in; dense as hail, bullets streaked past the rear of the aircraft with the nearest tracer path coming dangerously close to scorching the edge of the cockpit canopy, narrowly missing, accompanied by the whistling sound of bullets tearing through the air.

Hanna Gagar never imagined she would come so close to death.

But in Chen Fei's eyes, a series of predictive tracer lines nearly grazed the fuselage of No. 211; as long as they didn't strike the body, the oncoming 12.7mm caliber machine gun bullet rain was no threat.

Dodging could actually increase the chance of being hit; better not to dodge at all.

It all looked like a Western cowboy showdown, yet with an entirely opposite outcome.

One side appeared to be under the protection of the Goddess of Fortune, completely unscathed.

The other side shot wild, paying a heavy price.

A blast of blood mist erupted inside the cockpit of one "Big Mouth Monster," covering the front half of the canopy. The lead pilot in the front seat appeared to have his head blown off. A 12.7mm caliber bullet hitting the human body would shred it to pieces, and hitting the head, probably not much of the upper body would remain.

The combat bombs were swift to follow... A giant fireball engulfed the turboprop, and the disintegrating aircraft plummeted like a fiery meteor shower toward the Xingdu Kush Mountain Area below.

The other enemy plane, hit by several rounds, made a desperate attempt to power through the bullet storm, dodging the combat bombs that pursued it closely.

But smoke began to billow from the aircraft, growing thicker by the second, a clear sign of dire straits. The cockpit canopy blasted off, the rear pilot ejected first, followed by the front pilots.

The two pilots were decisive; realizing the situation was dire, they immediately abandoned the aircraft, prioritizing their lives.

With the missile chasing too closely, no sooner had they ejected than their spinning aircraft was destroyed.

The flames fiercely lapped at one of the just-opened parachutes...

Hopefully, this pilot's reserve chute wasn't faulty.

Chen Fei piloted his No. 211 closer for a look; the opponent, head lowered, began accelerating toward the ground, looking grim.

"Where are the enemy planes?"

The still unsettled Executive Manager finally came to her senses.

It was one thing for her to command a battle from the ground, but quite another to be involved in such an aerial duel firsthand; it was no surprise she was panicked and disorganized.

"Direction 215 and direction 47!"

Chen Fei gave her two bearings, pulling back on the throttle just enough for Manager Hanna to get a clear view.

Hanna Gagar discerned the directions, and sure enough, she spotted two fiery descents toward the ground, along with two parachutes, one descending unusually fast, its chute not fully unfurled, and nearing the ground, uh, it had landed.

The pilot whose main chute was singed did eventually open his reserve. However, judging by the descent rate, the odds of survival still seemed pretty slim.

The other ejecting pilot saw Chen Fei's No. 211 draw near and his face instantly turned pale, almost to the point of wetting himself.

At that moment, he was like fish on a chopping board, completely powerless, hurriedly bringing his hands together in mid-air in a plea for mercy.

"Rookie, don't mess around! Fly away!"

Hanna Gagel seriously reminded Chen Fei.

Even in corporate warfare, it is not permitted to fire at pilots who have ejected, which is the common practice.

Everyone might need to eject someday, and if you follow the rules, others will too.

Of course, it's a different story once the pilot lands.

It's an exception when pilots from both sides hang midair and grapple with each other.

"I know the rules."

Though he had never tasted pork, he had seen pigs run; even without professional training, Chen Fei knew from various movies and TV shows not to attack ejected pilots.

With a push on the control stick, he circled around, identified his direction and location, and continued flying toward the Aircrew Base 911.

Even though he had dropped the auxiliary fuel tank, the remaining fuel was enough for plane 211 to return.

This time, the warning system didn't sound again.

-

"Chirp!~"

The day after Chen Fei returned to Aircrew Base 911, the Pure Light Sparrow Xiao Jiu, which was in the middle of advancing in rank, finally woke up.

Before its feathers fully regrew, the little guy looked even uglier than the ugly duckling.

But the Little Bird didn't care about the stubs of new feathers sprouting all over, still happily flapping its tiny wings, wanting to jump onto daddy Chen Fei like always.

The little fellow was just that clingy.

The heap of feathers shed by Xiao Jiu wasn't thrown away; instead, Chef Abel pieced together another Pure Light Sparrow, with black quartz for eyes, red copper as claws, yellow jade as the beak, and plastic for the body. He carefully implanted each feather, recreating the look of Xiao Jiu with such precision it was nearly indistinguishable from the real one.

One could never have imagined that the chef had such a crafty skill.

Chen Fei couldn't possibly give Xiao Jiu to him, but having such a specimen with real feathers fulfilled Chef Abel's wish. Placed in his quarters, he was almost inseparable from it.

After successfully advancing in rank, Xiao Jiu's feathers grew back incredibly fast; in less than half a day, they fluffed out completely, turning it into a fuzzy little ball. Its size grew a bit, and holding it in the hand no longer felt weightless but instead had a slight heft to it.

The Pure Light Sparrow, previously at Human Order First Rank, had become Second Rank after advancing. Such rank was exceedingly rare among its species, almost the natural ceiling for their advancement.

To break through further, innate talent was no longer enough; external assistance was necessary.

Upon learning that Pure Light Sparrow Xiao Jiu had advanced in rank, executive manager Hanna Gagel specially arranged a video collection of Light-element Magical Beast casting spells, from First Rank to Ninth Rank, comprehensively covering all types of spells.

Magical Beasts have no written language, and casting spells relies solely on their innate abilities and comprehension; video learning is already a tremendous form of aid.

Now that Xiao Jiu had reached the Second Rank, it had access to more Light-based Spells and should rightfully take on more responsibility than being simply a pet that constantly seeks affection.

Manager Hanna hoped even more that this little fellow could break through to a historic Third Rank for the Pure Light Sparrow species. At that rank, this Little Band-Aid would transform into a lifesaving Big Band-Aid.

For Chen Fei, a Third-Rank Little Bird would no longer be a burden but rather a valuable "amulet."

Besides eating, drinking, frolicking, and winning hearts, Little Bird now had the additional task of watching videos.

Staring curiously at the "tutorial videos" playing on repeat on the tablet screen, Xiao Jiu seemed to barely understand; it seemed unlikely to gain any insight in a short period.

It's just like reading novels; even after reading a hundred thousand, you can't necessarily pick up a pen and write one to become a novelist.

Reading and using are fundamentally different after all.

-

Just as Chen Fei was estimating that the parcel sent from the public airport should have been out for delivery, he received a call from his younger sister, Chen Meng.

"Bro! We're rich now!"

Good heavens, what bold words!

Answering the call, Chen Fei responded with annoyance, "Sis, did you win the lottery? Is there 500,000 Star Yuan?"

"It's a package, the package! Big Bro, have you struck it rich? Sending gold and jewels to the house?"

Suddenly, his younger sister Chen Meng lowered her voice, whispering, "It's not from some shady source, is it?"

She was both excited and worried at that moment.

Several months ago, like everyone else in the family, the second brother was broke to the core, becoming a debtor with millions in debt.

But now, Chen Fei suddenly sent gold and gemstones to the house, which genuinely alarmed Chen Meng, who had just received the package and opened it herself.

Before she could even tell their parents, she hurriedly made the call, afraid that her second brother had done something terrible.

-