Suicide Truck

Two hours later, on the ninety-ninth floor of the Dawn Building, in the conference hall.

Deep blue explosion-proof alloy walls, blindingly white lighting, a polished beast bone long table, and a holographic Watcher emblem floating in the center of the table—a blue circular base symbolizing the human survival planet, with a golden shield embedded within, encircled by twelve silver stars.

Seated at the head of the long table was Yuan Zhen, who greeted everyone who entered.

Centering on Yuan Zhen, those to her left were commanders of the major mecha legions, half of whom were participating via holographic projection.

To Yuan Zhen's right were officials from non-legion departments of the Alliance, seated in order from nearest to farthest: the Deputy Secretary-General of the Unified Command Center, the Chief Technology Officer of the War Factory, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Joint Theater, and heads of various sub-departments.

Ample empty seats remained on both sides.

However, whether they entered through the door or joined via holographic link, everyone's gaze, intentionally or unintentionally, drifted to the seat at the far end of the long table after taking their seats.

Because a special holographic image was seated there.

A mecha, compressed to the same scale as a human!

Yu Xiao had not chosen to appear in human form, but his movements were no different from a human's—back straight, hands clasped on the table, his single red eye fixed on the Watcher emblem floating in the center of the table.

Aside from Yuan Zhen and General Chen, who appeared holographically, no one greeted Yu Xiao.

"Is everyone here?" Yuan Zhen asked with a smile, her gaze casually sweeping over everyone present before finally resting on Yu Xiao. "Then I declare the meeting officially open."

"Normally, a meeting like this should be hosted by the Deputy Secretary-General, but since he has repeatedly declined, I will reluctantly take on the task."

Who dares act like the boss in front of you... Yu Xiao muttered inwardly.

"I'm not one for pleasantries, so let's get straight to the point," Yuan Zhen said, slowly rising and leaning her hands on the table. "There are three main items on today's agenda."

"First, there were several significant discoveries during this joint operation. We must thoroughly review the operation and finalize the next course of action.

"Second, while we were operating in the Silent Graveyard, the joint front line legions that encountered the beast tide and retreated inland have completely lost contact with headquarters. Furthermore, no mechs sent for support have responded. Satellite maps show the beast tide has already invaded the hinterland of the fourth defensive line islands. We must prevent the monsters from advancing further.

"Third, regarding the special invited member of this meeting, Xing Tian, we need to clarify their status and identity within the Watcher Alliance.

"Does anyone have any questions?"

Despite Yuan Zhen's casual tone, the content she presented felt like a mountain pressing down on everyone's chest.

Even though they had just achieved a glorious victory, the entire world was still sliding into a quagmire.

"Let's start by discussing the first item."

Yuan Zhen sat back down, waiting for the first person to voice their opinion.

But the heavy atmosphere made the meeting as silent as a funeral.

"I'll go first then," General Chen broke the silence. "I believe the origin of this matter should be traced back to me, as I ordered Bai Ying, the pilot of the Black Firmament Legion, to pilot Xing Tian for mecha upgrades in the Silent Graveyard."

At these words, all eyes in the room turned to General Chen.

"I didn't expect Bai Ying to clash with the members of the Silent Graveyard. In fact, before the beast tide appeared, Bai Ying and Xing Tian had already caused significant damage to the Silent Graveyard."

"Ahem, excuse me for interrupting…" Yuan Zhen coughed twice. "Actually, the primary responsibility for the conflict between the two sides should be borne by Dr. Chris from Omega. As for Gao Tianzhi and Scorpion, who were involved, they have already been detained. We will discuss this matter later. Let's start from the appearance of the monsters."

"Then let the person involved narrate," General Chen said, smoothly guiding the conversation back on track.

As soon as he finished speaking, Yu Xiao felt all eyes shift to him!

"I agree."

Xing Tian's response only made everyone more curious about him!

Just as everyone expected Xing Tian to recount the entire incident, a holographic communication window suddenly appeared above the long table!

"Hello?"

It was Bai Ying, looking bewildered.

"Bai Ying, you are a direct participant. We want to hear what you encountered before the True Reason arrived on the battlefield. Start from the part where the monsters appeared." Although Xing Tian initiated the communication, it was General Chen who explained the situation.

After hearing General Chen's words, Bai Ying realized he had been brought in by Xing Tian to explain.

"We first encountered a never-before-seen… creature. I don't know what to call it. It was something between a monster and a mecha." Bai Ying still got goosebumps recalling the scene. "Their movements were similar to monsters, but they could use mecha abilities."

Zzzzt!

To allow those present to understand Bai Ying's narration more intuitively, Yu Xiao directly projected the combat footage he had recorded.

As the Blue Eagle in the footage let out distorted roars while charging at Bai Ying's Xing Tian at an exaggerated speed, all viewers gasped.

"My scan data shows it possesses characteristics of both a second-generation Blue Eagle mecha and a Type-1 monster, the Demon Shark. Other enemy units also had multiple identification signals," Yu Xiao added, explaining the situation at the time.

"Monster mechs…" Yuan Zhen spoke this time, her expression turning extremely serious. "All the second-generation mechs that appeared in the footage were lost in the Boundless Sea. Due to the Leviathan, the Alliance has not been able to recover those mecha wreckage."

"If monsters can parasitize and control mechs, then regardless of the outcome of future battles, we cannot let our mechs fall into the hands of monsters!" the Chief Technology Officer of the War Factory stated firmly.

"Easy for you to say, 'regardless of the outcome.' If the monsters defeat the mechs, how are we supposed to recover them!" The commander of the Crimson Fortress, who had personally participated in this joint operation, was one of the few people physically present in the conference hall.

Although his tone was unpleasant, everyone was accustomed to it—the people of the Salis Federation were naturally hot-tempered and full of martial spirit. While others kept pets like cats and dogs, they preferred to raise grizzly bears!

"Preventing the monsters from obtaining the mechs is the ultimate goal. Recovery is not the only means."

Yuan Zhen's sky-blue eyes were as cold as ice and snow at this moment.

"If they cannot be recovered, then self-destruct."