Interstellar Survival: Invasion

Chapter 204: New 7th Armored Division

During the hour of wait, everyone headed toward the combat command center one after another. Naturally, people started casually chatting with each other while on the way. Zhang Xingxing and I were walking together. At that time, my heart had calmed somewhat. I was able to recall something that I had discovered but Zhang Bao'er was unaware about.

"Xingxing, Li Yizhi once told me one thing. She said that I was her priority target for protection. Furthermore, she was manufactured in 2122. Who do you think will manufacture her just to be my protector?" I asked.

"Since she is from the future, this will be hard to guess. But the manufacturer is definitely someone close to you," said Zhang Xingxing.

"Close to me. But the people in this crew are the only ones I know. Is that person someone from the crew?" I wondered in confusion.

"Canyue, you're being silly. We're still 30 years from 2122. That's a long time for you to come to know even more people. Perhaps by then, you would have long forgotten us," said Zhang Xingxing.

"Absolutely not. No matter what happens in the future, you guys will forever be my best friends. This, I swear," I said solemnly with my right hand raised.

"Alright. I believe you," said Zhang Xingxing with a firm nod and a unique look in her eyes.

As we chatted, we arrived at the combat command center in the middle of the base. Lin Feixue, Kelly, and some others were already there waiting for us. I was met with a bunch of faces that I hadn't seen for quite a while. Domo, in particular, immediately walked over when he saw me.

"Canyue, I knew you would live a long life. Every time you encounter danger, you can escape unscathed. So, did you find any treasure this time?" asked Domo shamelessly.

I was speechless. "You must be joking. I almost lost my life. How can I get anything good?"

"Is this fellow still hibernating?" Domo changed the topic and pointed at my backpack. I understood he was referring to Bulu.

"It woke up once while we were facing a terrifying monster and saved all of us. But when we were trying to protect an important person, I tried waking it up, but it did not react. It has been sleeping all this while," I said helplessly.

"What important person? Who? Does he have any important items on him?" asked Domo.

"No. It's a long story. Just go ask Zhang Bao'er. He knows more than me," I said, redirecting Domo's attention to Zhang Bao'er so that he would stop bothering me.

Although Domo had never gotten along well with Zhang Bao'er, his curiosity was so strong that he actually went looking for Zhang Bao'er. Shortly after, all the core members and military officials arrived. Looking at the full command center, I couldn't help but be proud of how much the 7th Armored Division had grown. This was the very first time we had ever gotten the chance to organize an army this large.

"Everyone, we are about to begin an extremely important military operation. The operation will begin in 39 hours. This tactical meeting will be very important. Be ready to carry out your orders. I'll first invite the combat advisor, Lin Feixue, to elaborate on the plan," said Zhang Xingxing, officially starting the meeting.

She then nodded at Lin Feixue. The latter immediately walked up the stage.

"Warriors, the main goal of our operation is to enter the dark region of the Horsehead Nebula in the Orion Constellation. There, we will search for and destroy the empire's beast production base. To accomplish that, we need to break through the Midstar Army's defensive perimeter," said Lin Feixue.

Sounds of discussion broke out in the room. Everyone knew that the Midstar Army was the Divine Empire's most elite army. Under their protection, the Horsehead Nebula had always been the empire's forbidden zone. Everyone knew that there must be something important there, but nobody had ever found out what. Surprisingly, it was actually a beast production base.

For us in the 7th Armored Division, the Wargod soldiers were a sight for the sore eye. Even after hearing about the difficult opponent they were going to face, they showed no fear. Meanwhile, a small number of the Akkon soldiers with us appeared nervous. That was understandable, as during the battle on Akko, the Divine Empire had nearly annihilated the entire Akkon army.

"Everyone, do not be too nervous. The target of our mission isn't the Midstar Army. We will split our army into two. Fearless and Spacetime will work with the group in charge of launching a feint. A part of the Interstellar League soldiers will be in charge of this mission. The main army will be aboard Skyhawk. We will utilize the ship's invisible mode to penetrate their defensive perimeter during the chaos and then enter the dark region," said Lin Feixue.

"Will we be able to find the beast production facility after entering the dark region?" asked a Wargod official.

I stood up and clarified, "It was said that there is an area with three stars in the dark region. The beast production base is within that area. Our goal is the destruction of this base and the prevention of the empire's further production of these beasts. We will not allow the empire to use these beasts to destroy our homelands."

"But the so-called beasts are merely myths. Nobody has actually seen them before. Are we going to risk our lives entering such a dangerous place, chasing myths?" the same official questioned me.

Anxashe said, "The beasts are real. I've seen them myself. The lion-faced beasts are real. They are strong and can use weapons. If these beasts are produced en masse, we will not be able to protect the Kingdom of Kenante and the other planets in the Milky Way Galaxy."

With Anxashe's assurance that the beast army truly existed, the official sat back down with a convinced look.

Lin Feixue nodded gratefully at Anxashe. He continued, "Fearless will be led by Deputy Commander Li Canyue and Zhang Bao'er. Both of you will lead 20 league soldiers and participate in the feint. Technician Wuzhou will assist in all repair and maintenance work. Spacetime will be led by Kelly and Old Du. Both of you will lead 30 league soldiers and participate in the feint. Dodo and Technician Jack will assist in all repair and maintenance works."

I felt somewhat helpless upon hearing the plan. Jack had only recently joined us, yet he was already being appointed a technician of Spacetime and was made to participate in a battle. It was obvious we were rather lacking in terms of specialized experts.

Lin Feixue had barely finished speaking when someone volunteered, "Permission to join the feint!"

"Permission to join as well!" came a second voice.

Everyone looked over and saw that the two were Baron Sisse and Anxashe. I knew very well that the feint would be extremely dangerous. Our main goal would be to keep the Midstar Army occupied and create an opportunity for Skyhawk to sneak through.

The defensive forces had no less than 700,000 soldiers. Even if we were only going to focus on attacking one part of their perimeter, we would still be facing at least 10,000 people and dozens of battleships with only dozens of people and two battleships. Whichever part of the defensive perimeter we decided to attack, we would still be absolutely inferior. It was an extremely dangerous mission.

Despite the danger, Anxashe and Baron Sisse had volunteered to join. It was touching how loyal they were to their comrades. Lin Feixue looked at Zhang Xingxing. She nodded, agreeing to their request.

"Skyhawk will be led by Commander Zhang Xingxing. Everyone else will board Skyhawk and participate in the mission to sneak through the defensive perimeter. After the battleship is through, it will wait at the border of the dark region for an hour. After regrouping with the two ships in charge of the feint, we will enter the dark region together. If the two ships do not show up after an hour, Skyhawk will proceed alone," said Lin Feixue.

Those who heard that they would only be participating in the sneaking part of the operation reacted differently. Some rejoiced, with Domo being the clearest example of them. However, even more Wargod soldiers showed disappointment. After all, they had the blood of the war god in their veins. They all longed for battle.

However, there was no changing the given orders. In accordance with the decided action plan, Lin Feixue asked for the opinions of the various leaders present. Surprisingly, nobody objected or suggested any alteration to the plan. After a short discussion, everyone stood up to leave and prepare their respective subordinates for the operation.

Zhang Xingxing said, "Warriors, this is an extremely important mission. All of you might become the guardians of peace for this system or even the entire universe. We are tired of war, but we do not fear it. We will never fear any threat to our homeland. I have decided to take the initiative to eliminate the threat, to ensure our homeland and families can continue living peacefully. In this operation, we are a family. All of you are now part of the 7th Armored Division. I hereby thank you for helping the 7th Armored Division reach such a level of strength. I also believe that there is no mission this new 7th Armored Division can't complete!"

A look of trust filled everyone's eyes when everyone heard Zhang Xingxing's short speech. Even those who were still hesitant were encouraged. I looked at her with respect. Although we had only known each other for a short while, she had grown tremendously as a leader, to the point it was astonishing for me to see.

At that point, we were 38 hours away from the start of the operation.

Baron Sisse suddenly approached me and asked, "Canyue, can you do me a favor before the operation?"

"What do you need? So long as I can do it, I will not refuse," I agreed unhesitatingly.

"I hope you can take a trip with me to Kenante's royal library. I want to see if we can find a way to reproduce Li Yizhi's body and cells. I am not willing to give up on any chance we might get to resurrect her," said Baron Sisse.

"No problem. We're short of time, so let's not delay," I said.

The baron nodded at me. We thus headed toward the flight area, intending to look for a flying vehicle to take us to Gero City. Suddenly, a palm landed on my right shoulder.