The Search

General Masai has been having a bit of a headache these past few days. The plan to rescue the missing patrols at various bases has been a great success. Over a thousand missing team members have been rescued across eleven battlefields, and the Zerg have been dealt a heavy blow.

But none of this made him happy, because one of the Riken Race's bases had been captured by the Zerg. Although the base was quickly recaptured by reinforcements, the problem was that the base commander had gone missing.

Moreover, the missing person was the young captain with a powerful background.

If the other party dies here, it will be a considerable problem even for someone in his high position and power.

"Your Excellency, this is Rear Admiral Porter." Masai, who was rubbing his head in thought, suddenly heard the mechanical voice of the ship's artificial intelligence. Upon hearing the content of the voice, his head throbbed even more, and he rubbed his head even faster.

"Don't answer. Tell him I'm resting."

"Received, replied. Your Excellency, I should remind you that you have rested for 32 hours, but according to the instrument tests, your physical data has not recovered. Therefore, your rest quality is not good. I suggest you see a doctor. Would you like me to make an appointment for you?"

"Shut up!"

"Received. Begin the 'shut up' procedure."

"..."

Half an hour later, a meeting was convened.

"Haven't you found it yet?" General Masai asked bluntly.

Several officers in charge of the matter shook their heads.

"The Gunboat crashed far from the base, and we had no reconnaissance or deployment there at the time."

"We retrieved satellite images, but because it was nighttime at the time, the footage was not clear."

"..."

General Masai was a little angry. These guys were usually so capable, but they let him down at crucial moments.

"So, is the person still alive?"

The officers exchanged glances, and one of them whispered, "Based on the airship's records, and analyzing data such as its altitude at the time of crash, the force of the impact, and the angle of the fall, it's highly likely that the people on board are alive."

Seeing the general's displeasure, another person added, "The Gunboat didn't completely lose power when it crashed, and the pilot handled the situation fairly well. The Gunboat didn't suffer too much impact when it crashed, and most of the crew members will probably only be temporarily unconscious and are not in mortal danger."

"I asked if the people are still alive now, not if they were alive back then!" General Masai finally couldn't hold back and cursed, finally venting some of the anger he had been holding in for the past two days.

"That felt good!" After venting his frustration, he felt much better. General Masai also understood that they had no more information. That guy Porter had sent out a large number of people to search the area, and since he was still bothering him, the person must not have been found.

Looking at his several subordinates who remained silent with their heads bowed, General Masai sighed and changed the subject, "How exactly was the base breached? Have the investigation results been released?"

Compared to Chloe's fate, he was actually more concerned about how the Zerg had managed to breach the entire base in just twenty minutes, forcing the base commander to flee.

"We have a result on this. After comparing all the surveillance footage inside and outside the base, and with the descriptions from the survivors, we have roughly reconstructed what happened." Several officers exchanged quick glances, and finally selected one representative to step forward and report the events to the general.

This is no easy task when the general is in a bad mood.

"The Zerg first climbed to the top of a giant tree five kilometers away from the base, and then glided past most of the base's perimeter security. Their gliding distance far exceeded our expectations. We captured some video footage of individual Raider gliding in the surveillance system and found that they rhythmically flapped their outstretched limbs like wings to increase their upward momentum, which may be why they were able to glide for five kilometers."

General Masai frowned and said, "I don't care about those things. What I care about is how they know to evade external security measures?"

The reporting officer glanced at the general and whispered, "The specific reason is still unclear." Seeing the general's anger meter starting to rise, he quickly added, "However, we discovered some new small insectoids within the base. After Dr. Bart dissected them, he found that they possess the ability to emit and receive ultrasonic waves. The doctor speculates that these are Zerg reconnaissance units. They are able to detect outer perimeter defenses and, during subsequent attacks, pinpoint Chloe's location using these insectoids."

"Then why are they attacking Chloe? Are they trying to kidnap her?" General Masai asked.

"We've consulted several experts on this. The fact that they killed all the base members they encountered without taking any away suggests this wasn't a hunting operation, but rather a blatant act of revenge. That's why they chose to attack the areas with the most personnel. There were too few people in the base that day; many were gathered in the command center, so the Zerg chose to attack there. When Colonel Chloe and her team began their relocation, the Zerg had already locked onto them and therefore changed their route."

"Furthermore, the Zerg have not yet demonstrated any intelligence capable of communication. Without communication, Colonel Chloe's identity would be meaningless. Therefore, this matter is truly just a coincidence."

Is it really a coincidence? But if it is, it's too much of a coincidence. Masai finds it hard to believe such a coincidence exists. But if it's not a coincidence, what exactly is the Zerg trying to do?

He couldn't figure it out. Everything has a corresponding purpose. Just like kidnappers kidnap hostages, it's either for safety or for money. But suppose the Zerg kidnapped Chloe, yet they didn't make any demands. From this perspective, it doesn't seem like a kidnapping.

Is it really just a coincidence?

Half an hour later, the captains' meeting began. General Masai relayed the information he had obtained to the other captains and then said, "Although it seems like a coincidence, we must strengthen our defenses. There must be no trees taller than 100 meters within a ten-kilometer radius of any base. At the same time, the bases themselves need to be more secure. We need to add more surveillance equipment and sentries to the outside. I don't want any more blind spots in the base's surveillance."

"But that would require at least ten times more monitoring equipment and several times more personnel," a captain said.

"Equipment is not a problem; we brought plenty, more than enough. And once the ground factory is established, these things can be replenished. As for personnel, you can handle that yourselves. What's the point of keeping everyone on the ships? Send them all to the ground base!"

Planet T853 has not yet been completely eliminated from the threat, so captains from all factions hope that forces from other factions will go down to test the waters, minimizing their own losses and making them more competitive when it comes to dividing the spoils later.

Therefore, in the early stages, the surface combat forces, apart from a few factions that obtained the position of base commander, were mostly General Masai's men.

This now seems to have angered the fleet commander. It's probably impossible for them to continue coasting along.

General Masai issued the order, then suddenly noticed Porter General Porter's image on the screen, his resentful eyes fixed on him. Remembering his more than thirty hours of "rest," his earlier arrogance vanished considerably. He coughed lightly and said slowly, "Porter, don't worry. According to the experts, although we have a deep-seated grudge against the Zerg around Chloe Base, the Zerg at the location where she fell is likely from a different race. Chloe is most likely still alive."

Thank you to Eternal Insect Mother for the 200 Qidian Coins reward, and thank you to Book Guest Good Brother, Book Friend 20180629123057445, and Abyss Order for the 100 Qidian Coins rewards.