Chapter Seventeen: New Armor, New Weapons

After a day of rest, Wang Jing escorted Liu Peiqiang, Wang Lei, and the others back to the Wandering Earth universe. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wang Jing visited the scientific research division there to meet with the chief scientist, Jiang Ning.

What surprised Wang Jing was how remarkably young Jiang Ning appeared, seemingly about the same age as himself.

Upon seeing Wang Jing, Jiang Ning put down the test tube in his hand. “You must be Wang Jing, the one who can travel between worlds.”

“That’s right. I heard the off-road vehicle used in this mission was your design, so I came out of curiosity to take a look,” Wang Jing replied with a smile.

“So, what do you think of my work? Are you satisfied?”

“Very much so. I even suspect that the vehicle was custom-built for me.”

“You’re absolutely right. That vehicle was developed specifically for you.”

“Why would you…” Wang Jing was so puzzled by Jiang Ning’s words that he struggled to find the right question.

“You’re wondering why we designed the vehicle ahead of time, aren’t you?” Jiang Ning seemed to read Wang Jing’s thoughts.

“Yes, that’s exactly it,” Wang Jing nodded.

“It’s actually quite simple: to keep you here.”

“From the beginning, we suspected you could travel to worlds beyond ours. Our technology will inevitably run its course, but as long as we maintain a good relationship with you, we can ensure a steady supply of resources, rather than merely trading technology for those few hundred million tons of grain.”

“So you’ve been prepared for this?”

“Absolutely.”

“Of course, it’s not solely for that reason. For sustained development, all we need is a solid relationship with your government. Our preparations were mainly to guarantee your safety.”

“If I’m not mistaken, your technology is at least a few decades behind ours, isn’t it?”

“There are indeed some technologies like that—heavy element reactors, for example—but that’s about it. As for powered exoskeletons, with enough effort, we’ll catch up soon,” Wang Jing said.

“That may be true, but you don’t have that much time to wait. But tell me, I’m curious—how does your government trust you, a golden goose, to roam freely? Aren’t they afraid you might accidentally die out there one day?” Jiang Ning asked, puzzled.

“Of course they worry, but I know how to protect myself. I value my life highly and wouldn’t expose myself to danger. Besides, I’m not alone—Li Xian can protect me, and if things get truly risky, I can just return directly,” Wang Jing shrugged.

“There will always be exceptions.”

“That’s why I need your help—to forge even stronger equipment for me and to decipher the technological items I bring back,” Wang Jing replied.

Jiang Ning’s lips curved into a smile. “Our goals align perfectly. Come, let me show you the powered armor we designed specifically for you!” With that, Jiang Ning beckoned Wang Jing, heading toward the door.

Wang Jing followed, curiosity piqued. They passed through several corridors, arriving at the weapons development department.

As soon as he entered, Wang Jing saw the exoskeleton armor hanging on a rack, distinctly different from all the others. Beside it were weapons with striking, futuristic designs.

“That’s my exoskeleton armor?” Wang Jing pointed at the angular, jet-black suit, asking expectantly.

“Yes, along with custom-made weapons and melee arms!” Jiang Ning said proudly as they walked forward.

“A shell-less heavy machine gun, with a maximum firing rate of 5,600 rounds per minute. Since there are no shell casings, the ammunition capacity reaches ten thousand rounds. The gun is equipped with fixed slots and a targeting system, allowing it to be controlled by the mechanical arm on the back of the armor, freeing your hands.” Jiang Ning gestured to the gun mounted on the back of the exoskeleton, nearly as long as the armor itself, its body entirely black.

Unlike other firearms with both an ejection port and a feed port, this shell-less heavy machine gun had only a single feed port on its side, the rest of the gun body smooth and seamless.

Wang Jing noticed that the ammunition belt for this gun was much smaller than that of the previous M134 heavy machine gun. Through the gaps in the belt, he glimpsed the cartridges encased in a black material, with no visible bullet tips.

While Wang Jing was examining the shell-less rounds, Jiang Ning continued, “This is the companion shell-less rifle. The ammunition is interchangeable with the heavy machine gun. Considering you don’t have a military background and will be wearing this armor, including a helmet, the rifle is also fitted with a targeting system.”

“It can project the rifle’s crosshair onto your helmet visor, just like the aim reticle in shooting games,” Jiang Ning explained, pointing to a rifle that closely resembled a P90 submachine gun.

Wang Jing, intrigued by how the rifle clung securely to the armor’s chest without any straps, reached out to detach it. He felt a strong magnetic pull as he did so.

“This shell-less rifle contains eight powered electromagnets. When you apply sufficient force to remove it, the magnets automatically deactivate, and will only reactivate once the weapon is returned to its slot.”

“Of course, the rifle can be mounted not just on the chest, but also on the back, arms, or calves.”

“What powers the magnets in this rifle?” Wang Jing asked, handling the weapon.

“There’s a graphene battery inside the gun. When not in use, it’s recharged wirelessly by a module on the armor,” Jiang Ning explained.

Wang Jing nodded, then detached and reattached the rifle’s magazine. Though his movements were a bit clumsy, the process was much more convenient and logical than with other weapons.

“Is it easy to reload the shell-less heavy machine gun? I don’t want to spend a minute or two swapping magazines during combat.” As he spoke, Wang Jing returned the rifle to the chest mount and looked at Jiang Ning.

Jiang Ning gave a confident smile. “We anticipated that concern. When your ammunition runs out, the exoskeleton applies force to assist your reload—it speeds up or slows down according to your pace. You can interrupt the process anytime to focus on other tasks. Its purpose is simply to ensure you slot the magazine in faster and more accurately.”

“In our practical tests, reloading the shell-less heavy machine gun takes as little as 3.9 seconds, and the rifle 3.7 seconds.”

“What if the gun jams?” Wang Jing asked.

“If a jam occurs, the belt automatically locks and extracts any dud rounds. If the linkage fails, you can use the exoskeleton’s auxiliary program for troubleshooting. Of course, jams are nearly impossible—the shell-less bullets go through 108 inspection steps during production to ensure there are no jams or dud rounds,” Jiang Ning said, gravely.

“There’s no such thing as absolute certainty. The more complex something is, the more likely it is to fail,” Wang Jing replied, his expression equally serious.

Meeting Wang Jing’s gaze, Jiang Ning looked away, his tone softening. “If you’re unlucky enough to hit that one percent, you can always switch to another weapon or return to replace it. It won’t take you much time, after all.”