Starscream's Mission

Seeing Sun Cheng clutch the [Scout Template] he had bestowed upon him, unable to contain his excitement, Starscream's lips curled in a faint, intermittent sneer.

Once Sun Cheng put away the [Scout Template], Starscream concealed the mockery in his eyes and plastered a smile back onto his face. "Well? Little one from the [Cassette Corps], are you satisfied with my gift?"

"Satisfied, very satisfied!"

How could Sun Cheng possibly say no? Those words of satisfaction came straight from the bottom of his heart.

Evolution was the instinct of every living creature, and mechanical lifeforms were no exception.

Unfortunately, after completely absorbing Frenzy's memory data, Sun Cheng's consciousness seemed to have been affected as well.

For a low-ranking Decepticon to evolve into a higher tier was unimaginably difficult—far more difficult than for humans to escape poverty and become rich through hard work.

The Decepticons were a strange race. Having digested all of Frenzy's memory data, Sun Cheng had been thoroughly shaken by the information he absorbed.

These mechanical lifeforms seemed incapable of reproducing naturally. At least, in Frenzy's memories, low-ranking Decepticons were more like products rolling off an assembly line. With sufficient resources and energy, along with a kind of life-source power that could not be explained in words and was even harder to obtain, a Decepticon could be born.

Thus, compared to investing more resources into cultivating a low-ranking Decepticon until it advanced, it was more cost-effective to use fewer resources to directly create a high-ranking Decepticon.

That was why, from the era of the [Cybertronian Civil War] until now, few low-ranking Decepticons had managed to advance before reaching the end of their lifespans.

Though he had no idea what Starscream's purpose was in bestowing upon him a higher-level [Scout Template] filled with life-source power, with it, Sun Cheng only needed to gather enough resources to modify his body and he could advance into a higher-ranked Decepticon.

After taking a benefit from Starscream, Sun Cheng naturally softened. He immediately tossed Soundwave's instructions to the back of his mind, and even the look he gave Starscream became fervent.

"Lord Starscream, please give me whatever orders you have."

Though he still did not know what Starscream wanted him to do, the thought that he might receive a [Spark] even more advanced than the [Scout Template] after completing the task made Sun Cheng increasingly excited.

"Work for me, and you won't lack benefits!"

Starscream grinned down at him, the red glow in his eyes intensifying. Without further delay, he directly explained what he wanted Sun Cheng to do.

"I want you to do two things for me. First, immediately send an interstellar transmission to Soundwave and tell him truthfully about my presence on Earth and this base..."

"An interstellar transmission..."

Sun Cheng froze for a moment, then his expression changed dramatically.

He knew what an interstellar transmission was. It was one of Cybertron's highest technologies, a super technology used to transmit information over vast distances between planets. It was said that high-ranking Decepticons could even use it to send messages across star systems.

However, although every Decepticon possessed the ability to send interstellar transmissions, no one used it casually.

That was because every interstellar transmission consumed a massive amount of energy in an instant and inflicted enormous damage upon the [Core].

Sun Cheng made a conservative estimate. Sending a transmission from Earth directly to Soundwave at the lunar base would consume four or five hundred energy points at minimum, severely draining him at once.

What was more, Starscream wanted him to send a transmission to Soundwave and reveal that he was on Earth.

After considering it for a moment, Sun Cheng realized that the first thing Starscream wanted him to do was far too strange. He could only brace himself and ask, "My lord, you want me to send Soundwave an interstellar transmission? And expose this base as well?"

Though Starscream's base in the mountain mines outside Tucson was nothing special, the area was rich in geothermal resources. Once the engineers set up geothermal power equipment, it would inevitably become an energy base capable of supplying Starscream's forces with energy continuously. It was still fairly valuable.

Besides, even Sun Cheng did not believe this base had been built solely for energy.

So, the moment he heard Starscream mention having him tip off Soundwave—and even expose this base—Sun Cheng quickly realized that Starscream's ambitions were likely enormous.

"Yes. In a moment, I'll have someone take you around the base so you can familiarize yourself with it. I want you to honestly report everything you see to Soundwave. What? Can't do it?" By the end, Starscream was still smiling, but his face was filled with savagery and coldness.

Feeling those blood-red electronic eyes lock onto him, Sun Cheng's heart tightened. He quickly nodded in agreement. "I can do it, Lord Starscream!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he felt his entire body loosen. He could not help secretly letting out a breath, and even the blue glow in his eyes dimmed.

I just walked the edge of death again!

Sun Cheng gave a bitter smile. He had felt it just now—if he dared utter even half a word of refusal, Starscream would absolutely slap him down and turn him into history!

"Very good!" Starscream nodded at him, his eyes full of satisfaction.

As expected of someone with the bearing of a ruthless overlord, after intimidating him with both threats and pressure, he did not forget to offer him a reward. "Don't worry about the energy consumption. Barricade will take you to the supply room afterward and replenish the energy you use!"

Those words put Sun Cheng somewhat at ease. He knew full well that he had no ability to resist before this Decepticon big shot. Aside from his secret being exposed, what he feared most was being discarded once he had been used—or even crushed to pieces.

Starscream's reassurance might only have been a tactic, but at least it proved that Sun Cheng still had value in his eyes. At the very least, he did not need to worry about his safety for the time being.

Letting out a breath, Sun Cheng braced himself and asked again, "My lord, what is the other thing you want me to do?"

"I want you to go with Barricade and the others to a human military base and help me retrieve something!"

Starscream answered calmly. As soon as he finished speaking, he turned to look at Barricade. The Decepticon warrior who had acted so imposing before Sun Cheng now seemed to have lost all presence in front of Starscream, silently waiting to one side without saying a word.

Seemingly noticing that Starscream was looking at him, Barricade nodded and assured him, "Attack has already infiltrated in advance. With me and Lord Starscream added in, it'll be enough!"

This looked like the prelude to something major!

Sun Cheng could only smile bitterly. Seeing that neither of these big shots intended to explain the matter in detail, they had clearly anticipated that he would report to Soundwave. So they merely mentioned that they needed his help, without saying what the specific mission was or which human military base was the target.

What could he do?

He could only agree immediately, but his heart rose into his throat again. He had a feeling that these two tasks were probably a massive trap!