Chapter 8#

The Beta Lieutenant Colonel Who Died for His Country#

After his long conversation with Carlo, Andrew returned to his quarters, and the smile that had been hanging at the corner of his lips suddenly vanished. He sniffed his left hand, the corners of his mouth curling up coldly. “Well, I’ve just learned something extraordinary.”

He then rapidly operated on his communicator, connecting to an encrypted channel. A holographic projection of a gray-haired man materialized in midair. Anyone present would have recognized this man—the Fifth Corps Commander, Admiral Wayne.

Wayne was a legendary figure. Years ago, he had stunned everyone with a battle against the Zerg that was won against overwhelming odds. Unfortunately, he had fallen quiet in recent times. The Fifth Corps he led had achieved little for quite a while, and his prestige among the public had declined considerably. In the current special period, with the Grand Marshal gravely ill, this was hardly a favorable situation for Wayne.

On the contrary, his greatest rival—Admiral Reese of the Second Corps—had seen his public approval rating climb steadily in recent years, thanks to the extraordinary military achievements of the special operations unit, Galeforce, formed by his son, Colonel Schuyler.

To compete for the highest position in the military hierarchy, Wayne had made numerous moves behind the scenes, but with little effect.

“Sir.” Andrew saluted.

Wayne frowned, his face showing displeasure. “Contacting me directly from the Galeforce—that’s too risky.”

“Sir, I’ve just learned some very important intelligence. Carlo Meg—the new recruit that Schuyler holds in such high regard—is actually an Omega. And it seems Schuyler and Leonard have come to a disagreement over this matter.”

“That is indeed good news. Good work.” Wayne nodded thoughtfully.

By the time they reached the combat command center, Lu Heng’s anger had yet to subside. Carlo’s behavior just now had crossed his bottom line—a person in military uniform kneeling down with such utter lack of dignity.

“Leonard, what happened?” Schuyler couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Leonard this emotionally agitated, and something stirred faintly inside him. He felt oddly displeased. In the past, the only person who could make Leonard lose his composure was himself.

“It’s nothing important. Let’s focus on business first.”

Though his insides itched with countless unanswered questions, Schuyler set aside his curiosity and activated the holographic projection.

“This is the star map we recovered last time. Look at this coordinate.” Schuyler zoomed in on a certain point.

“Is this… a wormhole?”

“Yes. According to the footage relayed back by the reconnaissance drone, this wormhole appears to connect to Zerg territory—and right in the heart of it.”

“What? The other side of this wormhole is behind the Marakhi defense line. If the Zerg discover this wormhole, the consequences would be unthinkable,” Lu Heng said.

Although for humans, only those with 3S-level constitution could traverse a wormhole without being crushed by its immense spatial pressure, the Zerg faced no such strict limitation. Higher-level Zerg essentially all possessed constitutions equivalent to 3S level.

Schuyler nodded. “The mission the Military Commission has issued is to use high-magnetic-energy Charge R-1 to induce the wormhole to collapse. But I have an idea.”

Lu Heng naturally finished the thought: “You want to go to the other side of the wormhole and take a look.”

Schuyler had always made the annihilation of the Zerg his greatest goal. However, as long as the Zerg Queen existed, there would be an endless stream of Zerg harassing human territory. But the Queen had always hidden in the center of the heavily guarded Zerg territory, leaving no trace to follow. Now, with such a fine opportunity, it was hardly surprising that Schuyler wanted to go investigate.

“You understand me best.” Schuyler grinned, preparing to flash Lu Heng his brightest smile.

“That doesn’t comply with regulations.”

At those words, the corner of Schuyler’s mouth, already halfway up, collapsed downward. He looked thoroughly dejected. In the original timeline, Leonard ultimately hadn’t agreed to go with Schuyler to the other side of the wormhole. The person who went with him had been Carlo, and after going through life-and-death experiences together, Schuyler had become even more determined to keep Carlo with Galeforce. The subsequent conflicts with Leonard had grown ever more intense. How could Lu Heng allow this to happen? After all, the Chosen One was destined to fall in love—a few small details changed here and there wouldn’t matter.

“However, if we go exploring on a private basis…” Lu Heng hadn’t finished speaking before Schuyler tackled him.

“Little Nana, you really are my sweet little angel—I absolutely adore you!”

Caught off guard and squashed by a hug, Lu Heng coldly pushed away the tail-wagging Schuyler. “Now, let’s talk about Carlo.”

Over this period, Schuyler, once blinded by hot-blooded passion, had cooled down and given the matter serious thought. As Lu Heng had said, Carlo’s presence could at any moment lead to the complete annihilation of Galeforce. Placing the entire team in such a dangerous position was not what a competent leader should do. But whenever he thought of the fact that Carlo was Sergeant Meg’s child, he couldn’t bring himself to coldly hand Carlo over to the disciplinary team for processing.

Schuyler glanced at Lu Heng. His expression was serene, his brows furrowed slightly as always, his pale lips pressed together gently. This appearance, which others might find somewhat cold and aloof, nevertheless put Schuyler’s mind at ease.

With Leonard there, things could always be handled properly. At what point had Leonard become the one who took the lead among them? Back in childhood, Leonard had been the shy little boy who followed right behind him, circling around. At some unknown point, Leonard had suddenly grown up, becoming mature and composed—nothing could so much as make him raise an eyebrow.

This Leonard was so dependable. And yet, it had been a long time since Schuyler had seen him smile happily. Schuyler suddenly felt an uncomfortable ache in his chest, something like the feeling of heartache.

“Commander. Commander? Schuyler!”

Pulled from his wandering thoughts by Lu Heng’s voice, Schuyler sat up straight. “Speaking of which, you were so angry just now—was that because of Carlo?”

Lu Heng nodded. “From my personal perspective, I don’t believe Carlo Meg is suited to be a soldier. However, considering Sergeant Meg, I think we can give him a chance. Do you know General Dylan Shaw?”

Dylan Shaw was a legend—the only Omega general in human history. Born into a military family, he had received iron-blooded education from a young age and was unwilling to be married off and bear children, trapped within narrow walls. He chose to have his gland removed, surrendering every privilege belonging to an Omega, and became a soldier. He then shone brilliantly, leaving an indelible mark on history.

Without waiting for Lu Heng to finish, Schuyler understood what he meant. “I’ll talk to Carlo. If he’s unwilling, I’ll ask him to submit a discharge report.”

The Military Commission required Galeforce to complete the mission of collapsing the wormhole within one month. Time was pressing, so after confirming all the details, Schuyler and Lu Heng set out toward the wormhole.

Even with a 3S-level constitution, traversing the wormhole still left Lu Heng feeling dizzy and nauseous. He took several deep breaths, barely managing to suppress the discomfort. Then he and Schuyler began to cooperatively explore the surrounding area.

The two experienced soldiers soon discovered a planet toward the northern section of the wormhole. It was at a moderate distance from its star with a stable orbit—highly likely to harbor lifeforms. So the two selected that planet as their first landing point.

This planet was in an extremely primitive state. Towering trees blanketed the sky, and wildly growing vines had woven a massive network across the ground. However, it was far too quiet—no sounds of any living creature. This was not normal. On a planet so well-suited for life, combined with the sticky sensation underfoot and the sweet, bloody scent carried on the air—this was Zerg territory. Only battle-hardened veterans could identify this distinctive smell. Lu Heng and Schuyler exchanged a glance, their expressions grave.

Lu Heng crouched down, scooped up a handful of the white substance on the ground, and examined it closely. “It’s Zerg eggshell tissue. It seems this planet is very likely the Queen’s hiding place…”

“Not likely—certainly.” No sooner had the words left Schuyler’s mouth than his figure blurred and he lunged forward like a leopard, his right leg sweeping out like a heavy whip that struck squarely in the abdomen of a Zerg launching a sneak attack.

The Zerg was sent crashing hard against the rock face, sending shards of stone raining down. Yet the creature merely shook its head and lunged forward again, completely unharmed.

The attacking Zerg was covered head to toe in golden scale armor, bore a pair of transparent membranous wings on its back, and sported antennae on its head that were nearly twice the length of its body. This was precisely the high-level Zerg that only appeared at the Queen’s side—the Guard Zerg.

As the Queen’s elite force, Guard Zerg were extremely rare. It took nearly a million eggs to hatch a single Guard Zerg. In return, the Guard Zerg possessed immense combat power—their golden scale armor could not be breached by virtually any weapon. Mecha could damage them, however. But the Queen’s psychic network surely covered the entire planet; the moment mecha were retrieved from their spatial storage, the energy fluctuation would inevitably be detected by the Queen. If more Guard Zerg arrived, the two of them wouldn’t be able to escape even with wings.

Lu Heng gripped his dagger and moved to the side of the Guard Zerg, attempting to strike the seemingly vulnerable areas beneath its wings. But the moment his blade pierced in, he realized it was some kind of jelly-like tissue fluid that inflicted no meaningful damage on the Guard Zerg.

In the midst of the stalemate, Lu Heng saw Schuyler make a hand signal, indicating that he would draw the Guard Zerg’s attention. Without hesitation, Lu Heng thrust his dagger straight into the creature’s oncoming mouthparts. His speed was extraordinary—he withdrew in the instant before the Guard Zerg’s mouthparts snapped shut, the dagger carving a long gash inside its unprotected oral cavity.

The Guard Zerg let out a piercing shriek of agony, and in fury directed all of its attacks at Lu Heng. Lu Heng pulled his hand back swiftly, but still caught a drop of the Guard Zerg’s corrosive saliva on his skin, which sizzled with a burning hiss. His expression remained unchanged, and he continued to dodge the creature’s strikes with nimble agility. Still, fighting a Guard Zerg without the aid of a mecha was proving strenuous for a single person.

The high-intensity exertion quickly fatigued his muscles. Lu Heng’s movements slowed for just an instant, and the Zerg’s razor-sharp mouthparts bore down toward his shoulder. If this attack landed, half his arm would surely be torn away.