Two days passed in the blink of an eye. By dawn, East Blade Military Academy and the surrounding area were already charged with a grim, battle-ready atmosphere.
On the vast Landing Pad, the rotors of more than a dozen armed helicopters whipped up fierce winds as they thundered deafeningly.
Farther away, a steel column of tanks and armored vehicles advanced slowly along a road that had been hastily cleared, heading toward the outskirts of Helu City and the place marked "No. 7 Small Nest."
The rumble of diesel engines mingled with the grinding of metal treads, playing the prelude to war.
Besides these conventional forces, the figures on the military academy's training grounds drew even more attention.
All the cadets of East Blade Military Academy had assembled in formation.
Most of these ordinary cadets had Source Energy levels of between 20 and 40 points. They had only just begun their training, and their individual strength was limited.
But today, they would not be mere spectators.
According to the operational plan, they would be assigned under the command of cadets from the Special Training Class who had successfully reached Stardust Rank. They would form combat units centered around Stardust Rank fighters, with ordinary cadets as the backbone and a number of elite regular soldiers attached.
This was the first time the ordinary cadets would take part in a proactive assault on a Nest in any real sense. It was also a crucial step in putting what they had learned in the classroom into practice.
Nie Chang stood on a makeshift command platform, dressed in a crisp military uniform. The stars on his shoulders glimmered faintly in the morning light.
As commander-in-chief of the operation to eliminate the Nest, he was giving the final pre-battle address.
"Comrades, our target is No. 7