Mission King

Foreword:

In the face of disaster, we often see the sincerity of true friends.

--Aesop

[Part 1: The Glory of Humanity]

"Hiss"

Qi Ji exhaled a breath of cold air and wiped the cold sweat from his face.

His eyes were bloodshot as he maintained a multi-tasking command posture, adjusting the communication and orders sent by various units, the scout groups on the terrain map, and the battle situation—this exhausted him, and his brain was on the verge of shutting down.

When the Summoning Bell rang, his nerves tightened, and every comrade fighting alongside him in the command post could feel the pressure. The soldiers fighting for their lives on the front lines believed in these young men, they believed in the gunsmith's students, and they believed in the hope for the future.

Along with the news of Gloria's capture, a thermonuclear warhead from over seventy years ago was also discovered. According to frontline scouts, it was a MK-28 series bomb. This modular bomb design led to many variants, such as the B28EX/B28IN/B28FI, and the MK-28MOD1, among other tactical nuclear fission bombs.

The tactical command of Fret Caesar in Huacheng Bay has been handed over to the command group led by the hybrid monster. The remaining ten people are tasked with dealing with this thermonuclear bomb, which will determine the fate of the 2.86 million people in East Horse Port.

This is too cruel and too unbearable for a child who is not yet twenty years old.

"Following the first principle of the hazardous materials handling procedures established by the instructor, and the fundamental element of racing against time," a colleague beside him timely reminded him, "Commander, you have one minute and forty-five seconds to make a decision. If you cannot make a decision, according to the regulations, I will take over your command authority as the deputy commander, begin the evacuation procedure, organize the evacuation plan, arrange evacuation engineering transportation, and issue the evacuation order."

Normally, the communication environment between the various command groups should be isolated from each other, so as not to affect each other as much as possible. However, the conditions did not allow it. Almost at the same time, the leaders of the other two command groups involuntarily looked at Qi Ji.

If we were to concede here, at least we could save the lives of the second-level reserve force, bring the battered Dragon Cavalry Corps back to Eureka, and leave behind seventy-two people, including important VIP units such as General of Tears, Wood Plark, and Jason Megan.

But what will be the price?

On the other side of the scales lies the fate of the more than two million indigenous people of Shambhala.

These natives, who lived hundreds of years ago, seemed to have no connection with the Nine Realms and were completely isolated from the civilized world. Even their local officials and lords would not care about the life and death of these lowly people—it was none of the business of outside monks reciting this sutra of compassion.

A colleague whispered, "Commander, you have one minute left."

Qi Ji pursed his lips and once again exchanged opinions with the frontline channel regarding the General of Tears.

Although the General of Tears has no power to influence the decision-making body's judgment, no matter what the Meteor says, everything still has to be decided by the Politburo.

Wood Plark handed over the decision-making power to Qi Ji, which meant that Mr. Wood believed that this little guy could create miracles.

He did indeed succeed; without the support of this surprise force, General of Tears and Wood would have remained in this perilous place forever.

Bu Liuxing's answer to Qi Ji was very clear, consisting of only one sentence.

"You've only just grown up."

A Xing, who never liked telling riddles, finally told one.

The meaning is also very clear: all personnel in the temporary command post should be withdrawn from the battlefield directly, and the battle should be handed over to the scout teams and the Lingyun Group. The enemy and the nuclear weapons should be handled by these front-line personnel.

In ten years, these young men and women will be the pillars of the Abyssal Railway in various administrative districts.

Even if the offensive operations in the Southeast Theater are not ideal, the torch will continue to be passed on from generation to generation.

Even if East Horse Port is truly destroyed, in five or ten years, they will still have the opportunity to return to this shattered ruin to find the soldiers' belongings and fulfill their last wishes.

Meteor's main mission has been accomplished: the gestational pregnancy in East Horse Port has been aborted, Gloria is about to be brought to justice. He can now deploy his forces nearby.

Jason Megan's hospital is very close to the port area, and with the help of the Huacheng Bay team, they can quickly evacuate. The killing efficiency of the second Horcrux is not a concern for cargo ships. As long as they escape a certain range from the Demon Pool, they can avoid the pursuit of the Gnu Rider.

The rest seemed to be left to the General of Tears. As always, the Nameless One would be the bravest person to stand up and protect the children who had not yet grown up.

"Decision time." Before his colleague could finish announcing the time.

"Gloria will lead the way." Qi Ji regained his composure. "Knowing the exact location of the thermonuclear bomb, I want to see it with my own eyes."

His colleague perked up. "Commander, I need clearer, simpler, and more concise instructions."

Qi Ji immediately began taking attendance. Six people remained in the temporary command post, making a total of ten exhausted psionicists, including himself, to rush to the Queshan Ruins, enter the underground palace, and confront MK-28, the Death God, the messenger of hell with flames and light.

Qi Ji didn't have time to explain what he was going to do. Unlike the programming language taught by the gunsmith, he spent too much time and resources making decisions and could only speak short sentences to his partners.

"I want to give it a try."

The crow-man retorted, "Based on luck??"

Qi Ji offered no explanation, nor did he need to.

"I want to try. I have a way. I always have a way!"

"Icarus had wings made of wax," the bear-man muttered to himself. "He overestimated himself and tried to fly, but he flew too high, and his wings melted, causing him to fall into the sea."

"The MK-28's deceleration parachute requires at least Mach 1 to activate." Qi Ji called to his companions to prepare their equipment, while instructing, "It's not in the mountains, but overhead, in the sky. I just realized this— Gloria lied to the General of Tears; she did know the location of the hydrogen bomb, but only the Immortals can fly up there, only these monsters with the eagle-bird spirits possess that power."

"From the perspective of Earth's latitude and longitude, Great Xia is located deep in the East Asian strata. Mr. Luo Ping'an came to Shambhala from the snowy area. Geographic coordinates show that if you fly more than 20,000 meters directly above our heads, you will return to Shuanghe Cave in southwest China. This is the most beautiful scar on Earth."

"It stretches for over 400 kilometers and is also a karst landform, with geological strata highly similar to those of East Malaysia."

"So I think the MK-28 isn't on Magpie Mountain, it's in the sky, and it'll fall from the sky—we can figure out a way to intercept it."

[Part ② The Emperor's New Clothes]

When faced with the lie detector test administered by the General of Tears, Gloria did not lie—she knew the location of the thermonuclear bomb, which would eventually fall into the Pearl Peak of the Magpie Mountains, into the funnel-shaped opening of an extinct volcano, and finally explode in the core area of the underground water vein.

However, it is almost impossible for them to fly up to the dome more than 4,000 meters high using a spirit body.

Moreover, the prerequisite is that in order to defuse the bomb, one must have the ability to fly, restore Gloria's strength, get her out of her hungry state, regain her psionic powers, and transform her from a wretched prisoner lying on the ground back into the omnipotent god of wine.

After traversing winding and complex underground passageways and passing through one strangely shaped pot-shaped cave after another, and repeatedly passing through the refuges and tomb tunnels built by the early inhabitants of East Malaysia, Meteor carried Gloria through water and climbed mountains, finally reaching the inner mountain path of Mount Everest, arriving at the prehistoric ruins in the East Horse Port, and arriving at a complex residential area that resembled one built by primitive people to escape disaster.

The dormant volcano's funnel-shaped rock walls are lined with countless caves, and there are also many bird's nests.

Rotten coffins lined the mountainside, creating a small, well-lit courtyard that spanned over 600 meters in depth and had a diameter of about 40 meters, thus forming a settlement that encompassed the entire human life from birth to death.

At its deepest point lies a deep blue spring. This groundwater, rich in blue-green algae, was the freshwater resource upon which the early inhabitants of East Malaysia depended for their livelihood. When the primitive tribes faced famine, or when wild animals or mad butterflies were rampant, they would hide in the hills of Mount Everest and retreat into this deep well.

The complex underground water system converges deep beneath Mount Everest through hundreds of natural caves. If MK-28 successfully enters the water, the consequences will be unimaginable.

Shock waves rapidly dissipate energy in the air, and water, as an energy carrier, can multiply the destructive power of thermonuclear bombs several times over. Although hydrogen and chlorine in water absorb neutrons to produce deuterium and oxygen, both of which are stable isotopes and do not cause pollution.

However, after the mountain is destroyed, the continuously flowing seawater will absorb neutrons, and sodium chloride will generate radioactive elements sodium-24 and chlorine-36. With a half-life of 300,000 years, the radiation will change this land.

Qi Ji believed they could withstand the nuclear bomb because he judged that Judas would definitely let the MK-28 fall deep into the mountainside of Mount Everest. The leader of the Immortals Alliance would not choose an airburst nuclear bomb; modifying the barometer readings to change the mechanical procedure from an airburst to a waterburst was actually very simple.

The vicious, cruel, and bloodthirsty eagle only knows how to devise schemes to wipe out its own kind.

--There is such a large underground palace in East Malaysia, which is a natural air-raid shelter and a refuge from nuclear bombing.

To completely destroy the city, MK-28 must enter the waterways, and Judas must be written into the Book of Life and Death. It must not detonate prematurely before the nuclear bomb hits the water.

Having learned this information and understood this data, Qi Ji finally dared to say that he would definitely come up with a solution.

Even though Gloria still held onto a sliver of hope. As agreed, she led everyone to Mount Everest, hoping to escape through the complex caves beneath the mountain—to discuss the final terms.

She said to the General of Tears, "Now, I want a piece of your flesh."

Bu Liuxing stood still, carrying the prisoners on his back, and looked up at the only source of light in the mountain; the sky had become a round hole.

He casually replied, "You mean, if I don't give you meat to eat, you can't take me flying to the sky?"

The scouts and command group received orders and followed General of Tears to Zhuguang Peak. They arrived at the inverted funnel-shaped loop walkway and then heard Qi Ji's command. They began to climb the slope repeatedly, reaching a height of 340 meters above the rock face, where they would secure themselves with grappling hooks and ropes.

A total of 37 people participated in this operation, including wounded soldiers who had just been evacuated from the front lines.

"Otherwise what? You expect these useless trash with no soul power to help you out?" Gloria threatened, "Ever since your foolish lapis lazuli companion awakened the golden face, whenever a celestial fetus miscarries—this angel will awaken; it is fire and pure light. There have been similar incidents before; it's just a matter of me personally flying up to reactivate the psionic safety mechanism on the control panel—it's very simple."

Meteor and Gloria are located on the platform of the fire pit in the settlement, more than 60 meters down, where they can directly see the groundwater covered with blue-green algae.

Looking further up, a group of tiny ants were gradually climbing to the summit. They possessed astonishing mobility, extraordinary willpower, and an execution ability completely different from that of Gloria's followers.

They can't fly, nor can they possess the superpower that Gloria casually mentioned. "Fly up and then put the safety back on."

Qi Ji had already climbed to the top of the cave, hanging between the rocks. The light at the edge of the cave was within reach. Just as the rain and snow gradually dissipated, a dazzling rainbow light came from the opening of the cave.

"How much longer?!"

He shouted at the top of his lungs toward the center of the cave.

"Gloria Sebastian!"

"Six hours." Gloria confidently, her expression relaxed. As she looked at the struggling ants, she felt an indescribable sense of superiority—something she could easily handle, these people had to be so cautious and go to such lengths to make a second safety net.

The Golden Face serves as the nurturing pool for the celestial embryo and also as the detonation switch for East Horse Port.

When the enemy breaches the Church of Dionysus and the celestial embryo falls into enemy hands, the Dark Face will automatically evolve into Flash Butterfly, a BOW (biological weapon) – at the same time, the thermonuclear warhead above the dome will begin its countdown to destroy this industrial city.

Judas gave Gloria six hours to evacuate, and the chain reaction caused by the miscarriage of the fairy fetus, as well as the time to shut down the nuclear missile take-off and landing procedures, also took six hours.

Time ticked by, but the General of Tears showed no sign of cutting flesh or bleeding, which panicked Gloria.

"Could it be..."

Gloria's voice was weak.

"Are you really going to catch it?!"

Bu Liuxing had reverted to human form, using his gun and Berloberg to keep an eye on the defeated general, without uttering a word.

He wasn't sure either. The soldiers who were climbing and building nets were already exchanging opinions at the summit and had come up with several different bomb disposal plans.

Qi Ji repeatedly told his companions about these things.

"Its warhead should weigh between 1,700 and 2,300 pounds, about a ton. Our survival lines and paragliding ropes are sufficient to catch it. In four minutes, it will naturally fall into this cave—after more than seventy years of maintenance and repair."

Before he could finish speaking, another group of scouts chimed in.

"Can it accurately hit this cave?"

"The weather conditions are sufficient. It's Still Wind Point right after the rain. Axue also needs to ensure it explodes on Mount Everest; she wants to return to the Alliance, Gloria must be dead."

"At this altitude, I could only find thirty-three sets of pitons to anchor – and I can't guarantee those pitons could hold a ton! This mountain is too fragile!"

"If it descends to the right height, it'll be doomed once it reaches the water."

The last sentence was choked with sobs; some soldiers, mentally broken and emotionally devastated, reluctantly climbed the mountain.

Gloria didn't quite understand what these words were saying.

--But the general meaning is clear: these ants really have no intention of kneeling before the goddess, no intention of asking her, the goddess of wine, for help.

"What are they saying? Hey?"

For a moment, her mind went blank. She then looked up and stared incredulously at the General of Tears's broad chin, at the complex look in his golden wolf eyes.

"Bu Liuxing! What are these guys saying?!"

At this very moment, more than 4,700 meters above the scorching earth of Shambhala, the dark Death God departed from the mechanical platform on the rock wall, plummeting vertically towards the earth.

--The stabilizer maintained its descent, Judas added four more sets of micro-rockets to adjust its orientation, ensuring a precise hit on the dormant crater of Mount Everest, allowing it to penetrate the underground water veins and completely destroy the city.

Six layers of parachute ropes and survival lines were laid out to intercept Death God as it descended to a height of 400 meters in the cave. It was a high-stakes gamble, a gamble with everyone's lives at stake.

But the god of wine, who loved setting up gambling dens, was completely desperate. What was originally just a matter of a word, a piece of meat—

--It was just a prayer, a offering that could bring blessings.

After filling her stomach, she flies into the sky to deactivate the bombs that destroy everything for these humble and insignificant ants.

But reality is so surreal; these foolish "civilized people" chose the most insane way to deal with the disaster.

Bu Liuxing: "I can see now."

After twelve seconds of freefall acceleration, the menacing MK-28, with its deceleration parachute, crashed into the mouth of the Pearl Peak Valley. Almost everyone held their breath, waiting for the first piercing scream.

"The rate of decline is too high!" someone exclaimed.

"How many knots?!" someone asked, not even knowing how to categorize the aircraft's speed.

The observers, suspended on the cliff face to monitor the missile's attitude, were on tenterhooks.

After its deceleration parachute deploys, it maintains a descent speed of approximately sixty meters per second.

--This is different from the missile's attitude and velocity as calculated by the command team, and it is far beyond expectations.

Four sets of micro-motion rockets became the answer. These power sources, used to adjust the attitude of the nuclear bomb, required a set of gyroscopes and electronic programs for control. The extra weight became a deadly gravitational force.

The crisp, cold cracking sounds pierced almost everyone's heart—including Gloria's.

Rock spikes exploded and flew through the air, while parachute lines gradually snapped.

The first net tore apart instantly, and the second net followed suit.

By the third rope net, the deceleration parachute lost most of its functionality and began to obstruct visibility.

"--Don't rush! Stay calm! Stay calm!" Qi Ji said.

No one dared to utter a single unnecessary word. Its descent speed was gradually decreasing, but it still remained at about thirty-five meters per second. Breaking through the six layers of rope netting seemed to be no difficult task.

"The parachute still weighs over 200 kilograms!" Finally, someone broke down, crying out in despair.

Qi Ji: "Prepare to catch it with your spirit."

Almost simultaneously, the last thirty-six people present, in the ruins where the ancestors of East Malaysia had survived and relied on for their livelihood, called upon their own spiritual thoughts, called upon the brilliance of humanity—so that their fragile spirits intertwined and surrounded each other, weaving a final great net around the hearth platform.

That's something a meteor can't participate in, something it can't accomplish.

His spirit might become a warrior, or a weapon. But it could never return to the delicate threads in his hand, to the tangled web of fate.

The MK-28 breached the last line of defense, hanging in front of Gloria like a hooded devil interrogating this prisoner of fate; the barometer reading was just one step away from the final red line.

The weight of 2,300 pounds was contained by a grid of faint rays of light.

Its detonator code and bright yellow warhead markings remain shiny and clear, but it can no longer advance any further.

"O Dionysus!"

Meteor lowered his head, looking at Gloria face was blank and filled with terror.

How we choose to live is up to us.