Chapter 204

Surrounded by people, and knowing that only the front had eyes, Qin Su decided to treat everyone equally, ignoring the stares around him. He stopped the Warship at the same height as the waiting teams around him and looked down at McCarthy, who was lying on his back in front of him.

McCarthy's outburst of fear had ceased; his vocal cords had returned to normal, and he was breathing rapidly when, in the blink of an eye, he realized the sky above him had changed.

"..."

' Qin Su really did bring him out because he knew a lot about the Ossotalia Empire. Even with the Spaceship destroyed and the outermost layer of defense gone, and even if it was just for communication between troops sent by the Federation, and only the soldiers closest to the Spaceship were affected by the explosion, Qin Su wouldn't block the Optical Brain signal. He quickly issued the order for mass injection, and he could still...'

Before the thought could even settle in his mind, McCarthy heard Qin Su's voice coming from above.

"Aren't you going to sit up and take a look?" Qin Su stared at McCarthy and noticed that he was only moving his eyes and didn't seem to be moving at all, so he urged him on.

Everyone was staring at him, and he just sat there silently waiting for McCarthy to say nothing; it was kind of awkward.

The Federation soldiers, holding their breath and waiting for Qin Su to give them orders, said, "..."

As a result, everyone noticed that the person lying on Qin Su's Warship was McCarthy, a notorious warmonger of the Ossotalia Empire. The most recent thing about him was that ten years ago, he forcibly Hyperspace Jump and released countless giant insects that he had bred and modified to the Ketuersi Planet, causing a total of 70,000 deaths on Kturs in just three days.

Unexpectedly, after years of absence, he returned with the Living Dead Virus and attacked the Leichakan Planet. Everyone looked at McCarthy with hatred.

But... did Qin Su let McCarthy see it?

'What are you looking at?'

Puzzled, everyone's eyes fell upon the Ossotalia Empire Garrison.

Aside from the Garrison below, they couldn't think of anyone else connected to McCarthy.

Upon closer inspection, with the outermost colored Defensive Light Screen gone, everyone could finally see what was underneath and realized that the source of the previous bursts of red light was the 'Level 1 Alert' markings flashing on each Warship.

The stark reality before them showed that not only were McCarthy's layers of defense easily breached by Qin Su alone, but even the Chief Commander McCarthy himself, who was stationed on the Spaceship in the command center, was easily brought before them by Qin Su.

Even without Qin Su pointing a weapon at McCarthy's head, McCarthy was so frightened that his legs went weak and he couldn't stand up.

In this situation, the hatred in everyone's eyes as they looked at McCarthy was tinged with a sense of satisfaction.

With his worries still unresolved, McCarthy reluctantly obeyed Qin Su's instructions and stood up from the Warship.

As soon as he stood up, McCarthy noticed stares coming from all directions, the kind of look that made people grit their teeth in hatred yet felt helpless against him—he was all too familiar with it.

The long-lost feeling made McCarthy excited, and a slight flush appeared on his face.

'What good is hating him? Qin Su knows his own worth better than they do. Without extracting more valuable information from him, Qin Su will absolutely not allow these lackeys, who would never deserve to see him without Qin Su...'

"What are you standing there for?" McCarthy had already stood up. Qin Su had no patience and saw through McCarthy's thoughts. "Do what you're supposed to do."

McCarthy had been feeling smug for less than a second, was startled when Qin Su interrupted him. He turned to Qin Su, feigning fear and confusion, and asked, "W-what is it?"

Qin Su: "..."

Qin Su, who had been holding back, grew angrier the more he thought about it. Unable to contain himself, he quickly drew his weapon with his right hand (which hadn't been injected with the drug) and aimed it at McCarthy's left hand.

'We're all on the same Warship, it doesn't make sense that his left hand is useless now while McCarthy's is still perfectly fine.' He seriously suspected that the reason McCarthy was still playing dumb with him, and not being as straightforward as him, was because his left hand hadn't been crippled.

"Wait..."

Bang!

Bang!

"Ah--" The excruciating pain in his arm made McCarthy's eyes widen in horror.

McCarthy's voice of obstruction, Qin Su's firing sound, and the sound of McCarthy's arm exploding after being hit by Particle Bullet all occurred almost within a second, followed by McCarthy's high-pitched scream.

Splat...

No one present except Qin Su had anticipated Qin Su's sudden attack on McCarthy. By the time they reacted, their pupils reflected the scene of McCarthy's left arm falling onto the deck with a thud, the spot where he was hit exploding and spraying blood mist.

"..."

The Federation soldiers swallowed hard, suppressing the urge to back away.

The fact that Qin Su was able to bring McCarthy here proves that Qin Su, like them, recognizes McCarthy's importance to the Federation. If the Federation can learn from McCarthy about the next, and the next, and the next... steps of the Ossotalia Empire, there is a high probability that a tragedy like the one that happened on the Leichakan Planet can be avoided.

As a prisoner, McCarthy was even able to spew out bits and pieces of information from time to time, which allowed him to live a decent life in the Federation prison.

Who would have thought that even with McCarthy as valuable to the Federation as McCarthy, whom Qin Su had brought along and acknowledged his worth, he would resort to violence at the slightest disagreement because McCarthy's answer did not satisfy him?

Although the bleeding from such an explosive wound will stop due to the burns caused by the Particle Bullet explosion and there will be no immediate danger to life, it will still be life-threatening if left untreated for a long time.

For the various Military District, the unfortunate events of Leichakan have already occurred and cannot be changed. If they could learn about the future actions of the Ossotalia Empire from McCarthy, it would be a great achievement for the Federation. Theoretically, even for the sake of the future, some of them should step forward to dissuade Qin Su from taking action.

The truth is...

The members of the various Military District who came to "gild their resumes" looked at each other, their eyes clearly saying things like, "You go first," "Why should I go first," and "What? If you guys don't go, then I won't go either."

They were all busy passing the buck, and no one dared to stand up for Qin Su in front of him for any potential future credit.

"..."

The students of Class 6, who had never seen Qin Su so capricious before, were shocked and once again deeply understood how precious Qin Su's patience with them was.

Amidst differing thoughts and a sea of people all around, after Qin Su's gunshot, apart from McCarthy's scream, an eerie silence descended.

Qin Su lowered his right hand, which was gripping the weapon, and asked McCarthy calmly, "Now do you understand what you should do?"

Having personally experienced the consequences of Qin Su's sudden outbursts of temper, McCarthy, his lips pale, hurriedly offered some information to appease Qin Su and demonstrate his value. "Next March, the Empire will target Tuobiwuer Planet..."

"It seems," Qin Su interrupted McCarthy, hearing the information he had gleaned from numerous copies of data, and made his judgment amidst McCarthy's alarmed voice, "You're still not clear-headed."

Bang!

As Qin Su's voice fell, another shot was fired at McCarthy's right arm.

Since the Optical Brain is controlled by the brain, hands are a burden to Optical Brain, so it doesn't matter if they're gone.

"Ah!" The familiar pain made McCarthy frown and let out another scream.

'?'

'They didn't even torture him, and he's already starting to reveal valuable information. Is that what you call not being clear-headed? What exactly is the clarity that Qin Su wants?!'

He was fine a moment ago, but now, in just one minute, he has lost both arms. Next time, it might be his legs. McCarthy is driven almost crazy by Qin Su's unfathomable thoughts.

Those around McCarthy saw his right hand repeat the mistake of his left, their necks hunched back, and expressions of surprise and doubt appeared on their faces.

McCarthy demonstrated his value by informing Qin Su of the Empire's actions in front of so many people, yet this still didn't satisfy Qin Su?

'Clearly, judging from the current situation, Qin Su didn't bring McCarthy out to learn about the Ossotalia Empire's movements. So what exactly does Qin Su want to get from McCarthy?'

The crowd began to doubt their own judgment, breathing even more quietly than before, afraid of being seen by Qin Su, who was now blinded by rage.

"Think carefully," Qin Su reminded him grimly, "What do you want to do?"

He'd been feigning innocence towards McCarthy the whole time, just waiting for him to remove the signal jamming. He'd done everything McCarthy wanted, so why wasn't McCarthy grateful?

Amidst the excruciating pain, McCarthy's already pale and distorted face, contorted by excessive blood loss, flashed with astonishment upon hearing this. He looked up at Qin Su with disbelief in his eyes.

'Could it be that what Qin Su wants... coincides with what he's thinking?'

'No, why? If I'm not mistaken, he and Qin Su are enemies now, right? Qin Su is from the Federation, right? How come he's... helping the Empire? Is he hallucinating from the pain, or has Qin Su gone mad?'

Because his thoughts were so outrageous, McCarthy's voice involuntarily trembled. "You... you mean, I should issue a Collective Injection Command?"

Theater Forces, ears perked up in all directions, exclaimed, "???"

'How is this possible!'

McCarthy's guess was too outrageous, and no one believed it. They began to silently bet on whether Qin Su, who still hadn't received a satisfactory answer, would attack McCarthy's left or right leg.

Having paid the price of two Particle Bullets with great difficulty, Qin Su finally heard the answer he wanted. He felt all the wrinkles in his brain unfold in that instant, and he became calm and composed. His patience returned, and he said to McCarthy, "So what are you waiting for?"

"...?"

McCarthy's mind went blank for a moment when his most unlikely guess was confirmed. All his previous calculations became a joke after hearing Qin Su's words.

"???"

The surrounding crowd was stunned, not daring to question Qin Su's decision, or even ask Qin Su why. Many members of the War Zone teams subconsciously looked for the students from Class 6) assigned to their respective teams, both to get the reason for Qin Su's decision and to urge them to stand up and stop Qin Su, after all...

'What's the difference between Qin Su helping the Empire and betraying the Federation in front of so many of them?'

Despite the abundance of weapons on the Warship, the teams from various Federation Theater Forces all understood that they bore the mark of their respective planets and were somewhat hesitant to trust Qin Su.

(Class 6) No matter which War Zone they were assigned to, although they were no less shocked than others when they heard Qin Su's words, they remained calm and did not intend to stop Qin Su.

'Whatever Qin Su does, he must have his reasons.'

'As for the betrayal that soldiers in other War Zones perceive, it's absolutely impossible. Besides, Qin Su never does anything meaningless; the weapons he gave them will definitely come in handy.'

Seeing that Qin Su's long, slender fingers had barely moved, McCarthy hurriedly exclaimed, "No, no, no! I'll do it, I'll do it!"

Qin Su withdrew his weapon and instantly activated the top-level defensive shields of all the Warships of the Osotaria Garrison below, saying to McCarthy, "Go ahead."

The Osotaria soldiers, trapped for so long and believing they would never escape the defensive barrier until their deaths, stared in terror and confusion at the massive Federation Army above and Qin Su in the center. They dared not make a move, their hearts pounding in their throats, completely bewildered by what was happening above.

'Was it their commander-in-chief who tricked Qin Su? No wonder he's the commander-in-chief; he's got real skills. His previous disarray was all an act, even Qin Su was deceived. So, is it time for their commander-in-chief to turn on Qin Su, tear up the newly negotiated agreement, and order them all to be injected with the superhuman strength of the Living Dead, and then rampage through Leichakan with impunity?'

The Ossotalia Empire soldiers, positioned below and unable to see how many weapons were packed into the Warships above, had similar thoughts. They looked at each other silently, gripped the Doom473 Virus they carried, and their lost fighting spirit gradually rekindled.

[When it comes to being a gentleman, our King Su handles it with ease.]

[McCarthy: Is this the time to say 'please'?]

Given Qin Su's unpredictable nature, isn't anyone afraid that Qin Su might actually ruin the Federation?

[Use your brain! Didn't you see that the Boss 1 gathered all the weapons hidden in all the War Zones right from the start? It's obvious he's thinking, "Since things have come to this, let everything that was going to happen happen, and then use overwhelming force to show the Empire that their actions, though fierce as tigers, will ultimately prove to be utterly incompetent under his wrath."]

McCarthy was speechless, his heart aching. "..."

"At a time like this, can you please stop being so polite?"

Qin Su could never be an Imperial citizen. To do this in front of the Federation Army... how arrogant! Doesn't he fear they'll suspect something?

Whatever Qin Su's purpose was, McCarthy saw it as beneficial to himself, so he had no reason to hesitate any longer and turned on his personal Optical Brain in front of Qin Su.

As he had imagined, once outside, his Optical Brain could be used again, but the process... was not exactly the same as what he had envisioned; it was completely different.

When the moment finally arrived, McCarthy felt as heavy-hearted as ever, realizing he felt no excitement whatsoever.

The order for the mass injection had been lingering in his Optical Brain for a long time, but faced with the uncertain situation before him, McCarthy found himself having second thoughts.

Click!

The moment the familiar sound of Qin Su activating the weapon rang out, McCarthy's hesitation vanished, and he immediately sent the pre-edited instructions.

Seeing the message "Command sent successfully," McCarthy slumped to the ground. He had lost his hand and could no longer inject the Doom473 Virus he carried into his body.

However, given the current situation, he has no Combat Suit, has lost both hands, and most importantly, he is facing Qin Su. Whether or not he is injected with the Virus is meaningless to him.

'Our only hope lies with the soldiers who have been injected with the Virus...'

None of the Theater Forces of the Federation dared to stop him; they could only watch helplessly as Qin Su did as he pleased, gripping their weapons tightly in tension.

When the Ossotalia Empire's Garrison received the order they had expected, they became even more convinced of their earlier suspicions.

Amidst countless open Warships gleaming with red light, soldiers who had come prepared to die obeyed orders and injected the Doom473 Virus into their bodies.

Soldiers are physically stronger and more resilient than Prisoners. When used on well-trained soldiers, both the concentration and dosage are much higher than when used on Prisoners in order to achieve the best effect in the short term.

Naturally, the process of turning them into the Living Dead will be faster than that of the Prisoners previously released.

Shortly after the injection, they experienced a more severe reaction, enduring more physical changes and pain than the Prisoners.

Noticing that some Federation soldiers had looked away, Qin Su sternly ordered over the Full-Band Communication: "Keep a close eye on everything."

Since we can't let everyone personally experience the horror of the Doom473 Virus, we hope that this situation will make the soldiers who witnessed it feel a genuine aversion to it from now on.

Various Military District, and even Military Academies, have conducted experiments on Body Modification. As someone who has become stronger using a drug derived from the Zombie Virus obtained from his Parents, Qin Su is very afraid that they will continue to delve deeper into the study of the Living Dead.

Amidst a chorus of Qin Su screams from below, the soldiers, who had averted their gazes, were forced to turn their attention back to the Osotaria Garrison below, who were in a state of 'disease'.

The soldiers varied in physical fitness; some could endure the injection with their strong willpower, while others couldn't bear it afterward, taking off their helmets and tearing half of their faces off. Some even lost their minds and consciousness, pulling out their own eyeballs without stopping.

"Ugh... It's painful to watch. Why did the Commander-in-Chief make us watch? It's making my whole body ache. But the thought of the Commander-in-Chief attacking McCarthy makes me afraid to disobey."

Previously, they had mostly faced people who had already Living Dead. Some soldiers and civilians who had been scratched and infected but had not yet Living Dead were also quickly taken away. This was the first time they had seen countless soldiers of the same status as them injected with the Virus and gradually transformed from humans into Living Dead.

This hellish scene disgusted many people, filling them with revulsion.

"More than that, it's one thing to just watch, but what I really find puzzling is why they won't let us take action before they completely become Living Dead."

"Do you think Qin Su doesn't understand the simple principle of taking advantage of someone's illness to kill them? I suspect Qin Su's real purpose is to give Class 6) more experience in observing and dealing with the Living Dead."

"Don't you think it's a pity they died? We might have been able to extract useful information from them if we had captured them."

"The Commander has Vaccine for the Doom473 Virus. What I'm afraid of is that the Commander might go so far as to order us to capture people who haven't completely Living Dead zombies yet, so we can experience the feeling of being Vaccine again. Ugh... Help, I really don't want to get close to these monsters."

"Um... have you guys considered that the reason Qin Su had McCarthy issue the order for mass vaccinations was because he wanted to ensure that none of the Osotaria soldiers who instigated or participated in the war against Leichakan survived? And not for any of the nonsense you're thinking?"

The students in Class 6 were also confused. Hearing the speculations around them, they silently wrote them down, intending to use them as a reference when analyzing Qin Su's thoughts after the matter was over.

"Get up." Hearing the commotion below, Qin Su gestured to McCarthy to walk to the edge of the Warship.

The matter isn't over yet, and he hasn't even had a break. Why should McCarthy be treated better and get to rest earlier?

Although the process was a bit convoluted, the result was correct. McCarthy gave up, too lazy to keep up the act, and simply lay down on the ground, enduring the pain while sneering, "Go ahead and kill me now if you dare."

He died a worthy death.

Forced to keep their eyes fixed downwards by Qin Su's orders, but with their ears perked up, the crowd murmured, "..."

When death is imminent, arrogance reigns.

Qin Su: "..."

Dying is too easy; what truly torments the will is living a life worse than death.

There was still some time before the Osotaria soldiers were all turned into the Living Dead. Qin Su wasn't angry about McCarthy's slacking off and provocation. He calmly said in the communication channel reserved for a portion of Class 6), "Come here."

' McCarthy's already given up, we can't let him do it for nothing. We might as well use this opportunity, in front of so many soldiers from the planetary Military District, to establish our authority over some of the students in Class 6).'

Upon suddenly hearing Qin Su's familiar voice, He Muzhi and the others did not hesitate and quickly headed towards Qin Su's Warship.

The others didn't hear what Qin Su said, but they saw a group of people from Class 6 approaching Qin Su one after another, which aroused their suspicion.

The Class 6 members who were not summoned by Qin Su watched them leave silently.

He Muzhi and the others gathered around. Qin Su didn't look at McCarthy again. As he walked past McCarthy to the edge of the Warship, he coldly tossed out a sentence: "Take a piece of his flesh, any part, as long as they don't die."

McCarthy:? You seemed to enjoy it so much when you broke my arm!

[Faced with McCarthy's tanking tactics, Qin Su: Oh, beat him (in a truly physical sense)]

[They made sure to let Class 6 practice whenever they King Su. I'm so happy for them. Everyone who sees this will sigh at how lucky Class 6.]

[Other War Zones (in a horrified state): We dare not accept this blessing, we absolutely dare not accept it]

Soldiers from various War Zones, ears perked up. "!"

Holy crap, how arrogant! Is this something you should do in front of them? Should they tell anyone if they find out? Will they be silenced if they do? (Class 6... Yes, they're a group of the Military Academy students. This is a completely different feeling from shooting with long-range weapons. It's the chilling feeling of being torn apart by human flesh face to face. Can these Military Academy students really bring themselves to do this to McCarthy, who is also human?

With a mix of shock, curiosity, fear, and other emotions, the soldiers from various War Zones silently focused half their attention on the students in Class 6) on the Qin Su Warship.

"?"

Upon hearing this, McCarthy's previously defiant gaze turned to one of terror.

"Yes!"

The students of Class 6), who received the same order, disembarked from their respective Warships. Regardless of what they were thinking, they maintained a calm and dignified demeanor in front of Qin Su and so many people, not daring to show any fear. Each of them took a handy Dagger from their Combat Suit and approached McCarthy, who was lying on the ground.

Less than three minutes later, McCarthy, who had been giving up, cried and begged for mercy, crawling laboriously toward the edge of the Warship: "Qin Su, I was wrong, I'll do it, I'll do it right now, please, please make them stop..."