"Surrender or Die"

BOOM!!!

A deafening explosion resounded throughout the entire war zone. A powerful shockwave erupted from the epicenter, expanding at supersonic speeds and uprooting everything in its path, hurling it high into the air.

The target of the Valkyrie's bombardment was the Na'vi Sanctuary, where the Tree of Souls stood.

"Na... Na... (No... No...!)"

"Vitraya Ramunong (Tree of Souls)!!"

"Fwaì, oel ngati kameie (It's over, everything is over)!"

The Na'vi outside the blast radius, upon discovering their Sanctuary had been destroyed, fell to their knees clutching their heads. However, the expressions on their faces suggested that pain outweighed their grief.

It seemed that the destruction of the Tree of Souls by the RDA and the subsequent severing of their "connection" to Eywa not only caused them sorrow but also inflicted agonizing headaches.

This was akin to the withdrawal symptoms experienced when someone suddenly stops using something they have become dependent or addicted to.

The ARS infantry, having already swept into this area, took in the Na'vi's display. While observing, they used their helmet displays to record the scene and transmit it to the forward base over a hundred kilometers away.

The ARS infantry at the vanguard had already aimed the rifles mounted on their mechanical arms at the Na'vi. A sergeant with red paint on his shoulder armor used his helmet's external speakers to issue a loud warning:

"All Na'vi, pay attention. Drop to the ground and surrender immediately, or we will take lethal measures. You have three seconds to decide. Three... two... fire!"

"Rat-tat-tat!!!"

As the words fell, the hundred ARS soldiers responsible for the first wave of the assault immediately opened fire in a coordinated volley.

!!!

Setting aside whether these Na'vi could even understand human language, three seconds was simply not enough time for them to make a choice.

Splat! Thud!

No matter how dense or tough their skin, muscle, and bone were, it was futile against 62mm, .50 caliber, and 20mm rounds. Bits of flesh and clots of blood were splattered everywhere.

"Damn..."

"These guys are even more efficient than us."

"Where on earth did they come from?"

Witnessing the decisive and cold-blooded nature of the ARS, the RDA mercenaries on the left flank were filled with astonishment and let out exclamations.

One mercenary was bold enough to take a few extra steps toward the ARS line and asked the nearest ARS soldier:

"Buddy, you guys really don't leave any survivors, huh?"

Hearing this, the ARS soldier glanced at the mercenary, then returned his gaze to the front and said, "Our orders were to give the Na'vi three seconds to think—surrender or die. There is no such thing as 'not leaving survivors.' What you see before you is the choice they made themselves. What does that have to do with us?"

"Holy crap?"

The RDA mercenary was clearly stunned by the ARS soldier's logic. But upon closer reflection, it seemed... perhaps that was indeed the case. He nodded repeatedly and said:

"That's true. By the way, you guys arrived just in time. If you had been half a minute later, we might have been swallowed by the wave of beasts. It's just... where exactly did you come from?"

""

This time, the ARS soldier did not provide a reply.

However, in their mission briefing, their superiors encouraged them to interact and build rapport with the RDA mercenaries. Yet, until the threat of the alien race was completely resolved, they were strictly forbidden from revealing even a shred of information regarding the main universe or the space gate to the RDA.

As for why their equipment and vehicles were so "UDF-like," the truth was that in the year since the Atlas branch was established, their procurement of military hardware had never ceased.

In Earth-01, the United Nations and the United Defense Force had unanimously decided to implement immediate disarmament. After all, the threat of the Mimics had been neutralized, so there was no need to waste funds maintaining such a massive military.

The discharged UDF soldiers either took their severance pay back home to start a new life, or, unable to accept the cruelty of reality, chose the profession of a mercenary to continue working on the edge of a blade.

It was precisely this transitional period from war to peace that made Earth-01 chaotic in every aspect, but it also allowed the investigators who had integrated into society early on to establish the Atlas branch with minimal obstruction.

Coupled with the "money and supplies" provided by headquarters, the branch took the opportunity to purchase a large amount of military hardware through the black market in the most chaotic parts of Europe, especially Eastern Europe.

With no enemies left, the UDF naturally did not want to keep too many vehicles and weapons. Sealing them away required additional storage and maintenance costs, and even the cost of scrapping them was quite high; it was better to sell them off.

Consequently, a massive amount of military hardware flowed into the black market, facilitating the Atlas branch's purchases and stockpiling, whether for the ARS's daily training or for emergencies.

The main reason the ARS did not adopt UDF mechanical exoskeletons on a large scale was that the mechanical exoskeletons independently produced by Atlas possessed greater mobility, were more streamlined, and were more convenient for operators to perform infiltration and reconnaissance missions.

The Hunter squads, who excelled in raids and assassinations, would rather wait in line for their own custom-made exoskeletons than use the older UDF models.

However, to cope with the dangerous environment of Pandora, the ARS squads had temporarily adopted UDF exoskeletons and joined the battle using UDF aerial vehicles, which were also purchased by the branch.

At this moment.

As the ARS infantry and RDA mercenaries cooperated and slowly advanced, in a dense forest a hundred meters away.

"No! No! Tia... Oparah... they're dead... they're all dead!"

Seeing her kin either shot dead or captured and detained, a female Na'vi wailed, shouting with a hoarse voice.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Just as she was at a loss for what to do, a powerful gust of wind surged from behind her.

It turned out that Jake Sully had landed his Leonopteryx in this forest. He jumped off the beast's back, sprinted toward the female Na'vi, pulled her into his arms, and said urgently:

"Hey! Hey! Neytiri, pull yourself together! Now is not the time for grief. Our line has collapsed; we must retreat!"

The Na'vi known as Neytiri had actually been arranged by Eywa to encounter and fall in love with Jake Sully, serving as one of the primary factors in successfully bewitching him.

However, the current Neytiri was clearly terrified, knowing only how to embrace Jake and weep loudly.

Equally panicked, Jake had no choice but to pick her up, preparing to board the Leonopteryx and flee the battlefield.

Defending the Tree of Souls, defending the Sanctuary—the current situation had long since exceeded Jake's expectations. Besides fleeing for his life, he had no other thoughts; the only reason he had betrayed humanity was to be with Neytiri.

But just as they were about to climb onto the back of the Leonopteryx...

Whoosh—!!

A metal spear, accompanied by the sound of tearing air, carved a silver afterimage through the sky and instantly pierced through the Leonopteryx from above.

"ROAR!!!" The excruciating pain forced the Leonopteryx to tilt its head back and howl uncontrollably.

?!

Seeing this, Jake Sully had no time to think; he immediately threw Neytiri to the ground and prepared to grab the machine gun slung across his back.

"Bang! Bang!"

But the unique, continuous thunderous reports of a .500 Magnum interrupted all of Jake Sully's movements.