Speech Is an Art! (A 4,000-Word Chapter)

The earth-shattering barrage lasted for a full half hour, with hundreds of thousands of shells raining down like a torrential downpour, almost completely engulfing the canyon!

The black smoke from the ignited Gunpowder roared like an evil dragon!

As far as the eye could see, there were raging flames, and the scorching heat waves accompanied the tremors of the ground. The atmosphere and the sky seemed to be illuminated by the terrifying firepower, making it look like a Purgatory!

This scene was like the end of the world!

Gazing at the utterly destroyed ancient city, Megatron's face broke into a smile, as if he were deeply engrossed in the scene, and he took a deep breath.

The acrid smoke and the scene of destruction before its eyes pleased it greatly. "Excellent, this is what I wanted to see. Now... it's our turn."

Immediately, it ordered a halt to the barrage.

Of course, he didn't forget to offer a compliment. "Well done... Charlie, you are an excellent lieutenant. After I take control of this planet, I will designate a special living zone for humanity, and you will have supreme administrative power."

Inside the warship, Charlie listened to the praise from the Decepticons, but his expression remained unchanged. "It is my honor to serve you, Megatron."

Then, after the communication frequency ended, Charlie, expressionless, issued the order, "Notify the fleet to cease fire."

After the shelling stopped, the Decepticons, led by Megatron, charged into the ruins.

"Found the Matrix of Leadership." Megatron ordered his men to scatter, but suddenly, a deafening noise came from the burning flames!

That's the sound of a chainsaw drive, vibrating!

In an instant, Megatron, living up to his reputation as the leader of the Decepticons, immediately transformed his arm blades and turned to block!

When!

Intense sparks exploded right before my eyes!

A deep blue figure came into Megatron's view; it was none other than the Autobots "Nightblade".

"As expected, I knew you guys would show up."

After deflecting the Chainsword's strike, Megatron's gaze darkened. Although surprised by the weapon's overly exaggerated design, he remained dismissive, sneering, "Like annoying insects, you can never get rid of them completely no matter how you try!"

"This is the moment I've been waiting for!" Nightblade seized the only opportunity, attempting to take Megatron away in one fell swoop.

Unable to wait for orders and unwilling to stand by and watch the Decepticons steal the Matrix of Leadership, they had no choice but to ambush.

The plan was well-thought-out, but Megatron was no pushover either. After all, he was a veteran of countless battles on Cybertron, far superior to the mass-produced Bonecrusher.

Nightblade's Chainsword roared, its heavy blade relentlessly pressuring Megatron, forcing him into a retreat.

Even so, it is clearly impossible to kill Megatron in a short period of time.

"Shockwave, Soundwave!" Megatron tried to call for help, but in the blink of an eye he saw that his two lieutenants were also entangled by the Autobots.

It turned out to be Ironhide, Ratchet, and Bumblebee, leading a large group of mass-produced Autobots, who desperately blocked the two lieutenants.

Need support?

Obviously, that's impossible!

The situation suddenly seemed to shift, becoming even more unfavorable to the Decepticons.

"Don't even think about running, you damned heretic!" The moment Nightblade saw "heretic," he seemed to unleash an unbridled brute force. His already extremely violent Chainsword became even more ferocious in his hands.

Megatron was momentarily shocked, but he remained completely calm.

"Heh, that's exactly what we've been waiting for—you guys to jump out on your own!" It grinned maliciously, and a device that Nightblade was extremely familiar with appeared in its right hand.

"That's Teleportation Beacon?!"

Nightblade's pupils contracted sharply, instantly guessing its intention.

But it was too late to stop him. Megatron slammed down the Teleportation Beacon: "You're finished, Autobots!"

Boom!!!

Intense spatial energy erupted like a geyser!

A dazzling beam of energy shattered the clouds and plummeted from the sky!

Amidst the surging and turbulent energy, countless flying sand and stones spread outwards, accompanied by shockwaves.

"Not good." Nightblade's heart sank. Gazing at the pillar of light that had almost ripped through the sky, carrying terrifying energy, and crashing down before it, it made a decisive judgment. "Autobots, retreat!!!"

In this situation, combat strength is extremely disadvantageous for them!

Nightblade wouldn't be so arrogant as to think he could rival the "Supreme," so given the current situation, retreat is the best option!

The remaining Autobots, though unwilling, had already proven the correctness of Nightblade's orders through their actions.

Taking advantage of the smoke generated by the "energy beams," the Autobots instantly disengaged from the battlefield and retreated back into hiding.

Amidst the immense energy, the pitch-black the Fallen emerged like Daemon, its crimson eyes sweeping across the entire arena before finally letting out a sneer.

"Hmph, so they ran away?"

The Fallen sneered, too lazy to chase after the fleeing Autobots.

In its eyes, the Autobots are not important. The only things that matter to it are the lost Matrix of Leadership and the Star Harvester!

"My master, should we go after them?" Megatron lowered his head and asked.

"No, there's no need to chase after it." The Fallen stepped into the temple, instantly finding the Matrix of Leadership, which had been sealed away by his "comrades." He spread his fingers, and the crescent-shaped device flew into his hand. "That's right, this is what I've been looking for."

His gaze shifted and landed on the several long-dead metal bodies. The Fallen manipulated its force field to crush them!

The metal turned to dust and scattered, the Fallen felt a sense of relief. "My 'comrades' who betrayed me, alas. You will not see this. I will once again rule Cybertron!"

"Now, it's time to reclaim the 'power' I've lost!"

The Fallen, clutching the Matrix of Leadership, flew directly towards the Pyramid.

Megatron, Shockwave, and Soundwave followed closely behind, arriving at the Pyramid and gazing upon the godlike "Supreme One."

At the top of the Pyramid stands that Star Harvester, dormant for tens of thousands of years!

The Fallen gazed at the Star Harvester, his eyes filled with ecstatic joy. "Finally, finally, I can get rid of this rusty body!"

Even as a "supreme being," it had already weakened to the extreme after tens of thousands of years without replenishing its energy.

It must harvest the energy of the star to restore itself to its peak condition!

Rumble.

The Star Harvester was embedded into the Matrix of Leadership and suddenly began operating.

A terrifying force, accompanied by intense light, surged into the sky, its ever-expanding ripples surging with terrifying energy.

The clouds thinned, and the light in the sky seemed to dim, leaving only that terrifying energy! A scene resembling the end of the world fell into the eyes of humanity.

However, Charlie from the Pacific Fleet noticed it and gave him a barely perceptible glance.

His subordinates immediately understood the implication and quietly blocked the entrance to the command room.

Now!

This is the moment he's been waiting for, and it's finally here!

Charlie lowered his gaze slightly, remained silent, and took out a pen from inside his jacket, then pressed his thumb against the tip.

Sizzle!

A surge of electromagnetic waves erupted!

The falcon that had been sent by the Soundwave to monitor the area was instantly paralyzed, and the soldiers next to Charlie destroyed it without hesitation.

This sudden turn of events left everyone in the command room, including the captain, completely bewildered, unable to understand what had happened.

After dealing with the Transformers who were monitoring him, Charlie remained calm, as if he had only done a trivial task. He then turned his gaze to the captain. "Now, please aim the Electromagnetic Pulse cannon and fire at the coordinates, Captain."

"You, you're insane?" the captain exclaimed in horror, his eyes wide. "That coordinate... that's the Fallen!"

"I'm not crazy, I'm perfectly sober."

Charlie said calmly, "That's my order. Immediately switch the Electromagnetic Pulse cannons to the Fallen's coordinates and fire, Captain."

"No, I can't do that!"

The captain was nearly driven mad, his face pale. "If we shoot the Fallen, the Decepticons will kill us! I'm the captain, I can't allow you to do that!"

"Now, I am the highest-ranking officer."

Charlie's eyes turned icy cold. His previously somewhat gentle demeanor seemed to have undergone a complete transformation, transforming him into a ferocious beast ready to devour its prey, his pupils gleaming with a chilling killing intent. "I, Charlie Zedon, in the name of the highest military commander of the America, order you... to fire an Electromagnetic Pulse cannon at coordinates 752.345. I will not repeat myself a third time!"

"No, I can't do that!"

The captain's face contorted in terror, and he stumbled back several steps, his pupils contracting sharply, his voice becoming distorted. "You... you're dragging all of humanity into the abyss of war!"

Fighting the Decepticons?

Stop joking! The Decepticons have the upper hand in every aspect right now, and the Autobots are backed into a corner. If they turn against the Decepticons now and attack them, the consequences will be unimaginable!

In the captain's eyes, Charlie Zeton was simply insane. He had already been recognized by Megatron and promised a future status and honor, so why would he risk rebelling?!

What's the point of doing this?

However, Charlie clearly didn't want to waste words with him. He drew the pistol from his waist, raised his hand, and pulled the trigger in one swift motion.

Bang!

The bullet pierced the captain's skull, splattering a sticky red and white substance onto the warship's deck.

Blood splattered, staining Charlie's general's uniform crimson, but the gold stars on his shoulders seemed to shine even brighter. "Now, in the name of the Supreme Commander, I officially assume command of the Pacific Fleet. Does anyone still have any questions?"

The fleet command center fell silent instantly.

The last person to voice an opinion was shot in the head and became a living example. Who would dare to voice an opinion then?

"Very well, since no one is speaking, that means you all agree." Charlie nodded slightly, gave a look to the people around him, then turned to the people in the cabin and said slowly, "I know you don't understand why I took the risk."

"Whether you understand or not, I only have one thing to say to you." He took in all the fear in their eyes and on their faces, and said, "We are soldiers, and the idea of protecting the country might seem a bit hypocritical to you... But what I'm about to say is different from what those politicians say."

He paused for a few seconds, and in the right atmosphere, pauses and silences could actually make the audience more engaged. Charlie had read the politician's speeches during World War II, so he was very familiar with it.

Seeing that the people in the command room had recovered from their earlier fear and were now captivated by his words, Charlie continued, "I won't tell you about sacrificing your lives to protect a so-called nation. I just want to tell you one thing... The Decepticons are looking for a machine called the Star Harvester."

"Can you see the sun in the sky?"

Charlie pointed out the porthole to the bright sun, his voice suddenly becoming forceful, as if a thunderclap had spewed from his chest. "They're going to destroy the sun, our sun!"

"Perhaps many of you don't understand what destroying the sun means to us, but that's okay... I'll tell you!"

"If they destroy the sun, it means... we will all die!"

Charlie's voice suddenly boomed, veins bulging on his face, his clenched fists clenched as he roared like a madman, "Imagine your families, your friends, even your daughters, freezing to death! Their bones will be used as fuel by the Decepticons to set their homes ablaze! Do you... want to see that happen? Answer me!"

"No... I don't want to!"

The crowd's voices were faint, but Charlie didn't care. His eyes widened in fury, veins bulging on his neck, his vocal cords hoarse from strain. "I can't hear you! Answer me... Do you want to see your children, family, and friends become slaves to those damned machines?!"

"In no mood!"

This time, everyone's emotions were stirred up.

Everyone's face flushed red, and they roared at the top of their lungs!

"Very good."

Charlie let out a barely perceptible sigh of relief.

Before this, he wasn't really sure he could get a good grasp of the lower- and middle-ranking officers and soldiers under the surveillance of the Soundwave reconnaissance unit, so he had no choice but to take the risk!

But thankfully... he won his gamble!

Megatron's biggest mistake was ignoring human courage. Individually, they were very weak, far less powerful than the Transformers, but it was precisely because of this that they learned to unite!

Whenever humanity encounters disaster, there are always courageous people who, like shining stars, carve out a path on a desolate, dark plain covered with thorns!

This is humanity!

Charlie, his heart brimming with heroic spirit and his gaze sharp as a knife, took a deep breath, as if to unleash all his strength with each word. "Fire!!!"

"Yes, General Charlie!"

The soldiers, their courage fully ignited, began to operate the equipment.

Rumble.

On the ship's deck, the electromagnetic cannon, which looked like it was encased in a "turtle shell," immediately changed direction.

"Direction: Due East, enter coordinates!"

"Coordinates have been locked!"

"Fire!"

I'm shamelessly begging for votes until I've paid off all my debts. I currently owe two chapters in monthly votes, plus two from yesterday, for a total of four. I'll pay them off as soon as possible. Damn it, watching a game yesterday gave me a ruptured hemorrhoid! Seriously!