On the second floor of the villa, in a spacious training room, 1200 blue-purple fish-scale-shaped metal plates swam rapidly in mid-air, changing shapes like agile fish.
Lancelot stretched out his hand, and a scale the size of a thumb flew over and landed on his fingertip. He took out a piece of high-strength alloy, threw it into the air, and with a flash of lightning, the metal scale disappeared. In mid-air, centered on the alloy block, dozens of blue rays of light appeared almost simultaneously within a second.
Ding ding ding!!
A crisp metallic clang rang out from the ground. The original fist-sized piece of alloy had now been split into hundreds of pieces, evenly distributed across the ground, forming a large "kill" character.
"The sharpness is at least three times better than before, and the toughness is also much stronger."
Lancelot happily played with the thin scales in his hand. It was worth spending more than 20,000 credits and a precious favor. With the Steel Feather Cloak, his combat power level, which was originally a maximum of 888, had been raised to more than 940 points. His combat power was comparable to the Peak Tier Nine of Transcendent, a significant increase.
Beep beep beep!!
The communicator rang; it was a call from Beaufort.
A few minutes later, Lancelot hung up the phone, gathered his gear, and left the villa.
In the sky northeast of the Holy Sword Academy, a twenty-meter-long mechanical shuttle floats, inside which Transcendent individuals are busy with their own affairs.
Some were maintaining their weapons, some were reading, and others were enjoying a hearty meal.
"Captain, are you sure your junior is alright? Although he's the champion of the Joint Entrance Examination, he's only been in school for less than two years. A first-year student, at most a Tier Seven combat power, isn't he just dragging us down?" A cute girl wearing black-rimmed glasses, camouflage, and a bun hairstyle muttered.
Her words were immediately echoed by several team members.
Seeing this, Beaufort simply smiled. "You guys underestimate him. My junior brother here single-handedly killed an Tier Eight knight from the Chosen Ones' faction a few months ago. While his combat strength may not be up to the level of our team's main fighters, he's definitely good enough as a sniper!"
"Snipers are the key, okay? In our kind of action team, snipers have to take on a large part of the fire support. I checked Lancelot's information, isn't he Ability Energy? And a melee type at that? Is his sniping ability really sufficient for the job?" The bespectacled girl continued to express her doubts.
Upon hearing this, Beaufort frowned slightly. It wasn't directed at the girl with glasses; her words were from the team's perspective and were quite responsible. He wasn't that petty, and getting angry over it would be beneath him.
Beaufort wondered if it would be too hasty to invite Lancelot to participate in the operation without ever having truly witnessed his abilities.
The failure of the operation is secondary; if this prodigy junior makes any mistakes under my watch, wouldn't the academy tear him apart alive?
Thinking of Director Steel Tiger's fierce and menacing face, Beaufort's smile became forced.
It seems that things were indeed a bit hasty.
But refusing Lancelot's offer to join the team at this point wouldn't be good either; wouldn't that be a blatant slap in his face?
"Alright, everyone just need to be careful then, and try to take care of my junior as much as possible. Just consider it making friends. You all know his talent, right? He's a sure thing to become Epic powerhouse in the future. Building a good relationship now will benefit us immensely in the future!"
Unable to fool anyone, Beaufort chose to lay his cards on the table.
The team members remained silent for a moment, saying nothing more, even the girl with glasses. After all, opportunities to befriend such a prodigy are rare.
"It's just an operation, nothing serious, yeah, it'll definitely be fine," the girl with glasses muttered to herself.
A few minutes later.
Beaufort raised his wrist, and the watch screen lit up.
"He's here!"
As the shuttle sped by, a streak of lightning flashed towards them.
Lancelot has arrived.
At Beaufort's command, an entrance opened at the bottom of the shuttle, and with a flash of lightning, it disappeared into it.
Upon entering the cabin, one is greeted by a group of highly capable Transcendent. They all appear to be quite young, with the oldest member only in his early thirties. Although one cannot judge the age of Transcendent by their appearance, it is impossible for Beaufort to form a team without considering future development. His team members are likely all young geniuses who can grow together. Many well-known combat teams in the Alliance were originally formed in this way.
"Lancelot, long time no see!" Beaufort opened his arms, and after the two embraced, Beaufort began to introduce each of the team members.
Tank, Phoebe, a burly man standing 2.5 meters tall, Quebec People, an S-class potential Ability Energy, a hybrid type with energy control and mystery abilities, and Middle Tier Nine strength.
In melee combat, Gwendolyn a rare female warrior. She is agile, not tall, and gives off a wild, beast-like vibe. She is Middle Tier Nine warrior.
Control, Diliya, spellcaster, School of Evocation, skilled in physical control, also excellent in firepower suppression, mid-to-lower Tier Nine strength.
Mid-range, Maxin, Ability Energy energy control abilities, S+ potential, incredibly destructive power, skilled in wide-range attacks, but lacking in accuracy, Upper Tier Nine strength.
Perception, Caroline, a telekinetic, possesses extremely powerful Divine Power, especially adept at wide-area detection and acting as a human radar. She has Tier Nine -order strength, but her role in the team is undeniable. She is the bespectacled girl who just questioned Lancelot.
Healer, Sara, white-haired woman, Innovation School Ability Energy, wearing a goat horn-shaped hair ornament, a broad-minded mature woman with ample breast milk, and lower-middle level strength of the Tier Nine.
Information technology, Mandi, bald programmer, Lancelot suspects he went bald first and then shaved his head, especially skilled in information network intrusion, a top hacker, his strength is average, around the Tier Seven, but he has a three-star Rare quality mech, after wearing the mech, his combat power can meet the squad requirements.
Logistics support is handled by Nevis, a mechanical Transcendent who excels in manufacturing and repair. He is responsible for the team's vehicles, technological weapons, and equipment, and his combat strength barely reaches the Tier Nine.
Finally, there's Beaufort.
Innovation School Ability Energy, nicknamed "The Hand of the Abyss," is a space-based and dark-based assassin, a top-tier master assassin whose overall combat strength has reached the peak of the Tier Nine. If it were an assassination attempt, he could easily kill Ninth-Rank Transcendent. His direct combat strength is relatively weak, but he is still the strongest in the team, living up to his status as the vice president of the Student Council.
"How about it? Our team is pretty good, isn't it?" After introducing all the members, Beaufort said with no small amount of pride.
Lancelot nodded. To be fair, this squad's configuration was absolutely elite among elites, capable of handling almost any situation and environment.
"Lancelot, Innovation School Ability Energy, specializing in electric and life-related skills. He excels in infiltration, reconnaissance, disguise, assassination, long-range sniping, and energy control. His mid-range attack capabilities are also decent, but his greatest strength lies in close-quarters combat. In terms of overall combat ability..."
Lancelot hesitated, wondering what level of combat strength he should reveal, and whether it would scare his teammates.
Before he could finish speaking, the girl with glasses interrupted him with a laugh, "The captain has already told us your information, you're a well-rounded warrior!"
Upon hearing this, the team members reacted in various ways. They all felt that Lancelot's self-introduction was somewhat exaggerated. If it were really as he said, wouldn't he have no weaknesses? But how could that be possible?
It's not that there are no well-rounded individuals in this world, but rather that this type of strong person is usually a late bloomer. After all, mastering one aspect already requires a lot of time and matching talent, let alone developing in all aspects.
The boy's unbelievably youthful face and his resume both indicated that what he had just said was an exaggeration.
Lancelot could also sense the attitude of the crowd.
It was a kind of goodwill tinged with disdain, but without a trace of malice.
In short, they treated Lancelot like a child.
A child with exceptional talent, yet who needs to grow.
Lancelot was prepared for this, since he himself had refrained from attempting the Holy Sword Stairway; otherwise, he wouldn't have had any doubts.
However, there are always gains and losses. While being looked down upon by one's own people, so too by one's enemies. In many situations, this information gap can be life-saving.
Therefore, Lancelot did not explain, but just smiled shyly, giving people the feeling that he was easy to get along with.
Seeing this, the team members breathed a sigh of relief. Judging from the situation, this Alliance genius was not the arrogant and reckless type. As long as he obeyed orders, based on past experience, there shouldn't be any major problems.
After introductions, Beaufort instructed Nevis to start the shuttle and fly towards the southern border of the Alliance, while simultaneously briefing Lancelot on the details of the operation.
The Crimson Alliance is located on the Crimson Continent of the Planet Oklo.
This is a long, narrow piece of land, resembling a ship, with a vast area and abundant resources.
The Alliance occupies more than 70% of the land area and is the most resource-rich region on the entire Crimson Continent.
Other regions are either resource-poor, have treacherous terrain, or are surrounded by hostile forces.
The most typical example is the Cantia Peninsula, located in the southern part of the Alliance, also known as the Cantia Subcontinent.
This region is vast, and its northern boundary with the Alliance is a towering mountain range that stretches for 100,000 kilometers.
This is why it is called the Cantia Subcontinent. The subcontinent occupies about 15% of the entire Crimson Continent. Its terrain is mainly mountainous, and it is home to a large number of magical beast races, as well as hundreds of kingdoms of varying sizes.
These countries are generally underdeveloped, some even at the level of medieval civilization, isolated from the world. Even if they unite, they are far from being able to contend with the Crimson Alliance. Their existence is to sharpen their swords and serve as a warning, preventing the Alliance from becoming complacent and keeping them vigilant in times of peace.
Moreover, destroying these countries is not easy. It's not that we lack strength; with the Alliance's military power, if we launch a full-scale attack, we could wipe out the entire subcontinent in at most half a month.
The main reason is that other major empires will intervene. As the youngest nation, the Crimson Alliance has developed at an unusually rapid pace, so it is only natural that it is feared by others.
The existence of these countries is largely the result of compromises between the Alliance and various forces.
However, the impact of the Cantia countries on the Alliance has been both positive and negative.
On the positive side, in addition to the above, these countries can also serve as a strategic buffer zone, preventing the war with the Sea Dragon Alliance from escalating to a fever pitch.
Proxy warfare is the cheapest insurance in the world, a famous saying of the Alliance, which has been steadfastly implemented ever since.
At the same time, there was also a tacit understanding among the major imperial powers.
Do not directly attack the enemy's homeland.
We must do everything in our power to avoid high-intensity warfare.
Try to avoid direct confrontations between their respective directly subordinate units on the battlefield, and resolve the battle through proxy forces whenever possible.
All of these factors allowed the kingdoms of the Cantia Peninsula to exist peacefully for over a thousand years after the establishment of the Crimson Alliance.
Besides the advantages, there are also disadvantages.
That's the chaos brought about by the Cantia Peninsula.
Driven by a yearning for a better life, the people living on the Crimson Continent all longed to immigrate to the Alliance, including the citizens of the Cantia kingdoms.
However, with far more monks than porridge, unofficial means have to be used, leading to rampant and persistent illegal immigration!
Over time, a large number of illegal immigrants gathered in the Cantia Mountains, on the border of the Crimson Alliance, and the black market trade flourished as a result.
Every year, when the Alliance is at war with the Sea Clan and the Dragon Clan, massive numbers of stowaways cross the border. The long border, the complex geographical environment, and the corruption of some officials have made the southern border extremely chaotic. Many spies take the opportunity to infiltrate the Alliance, posing a serious threat to the security of the entire country.
In light of this, the Alliance is determined to make a concerted effort to resolve the border issue.
However, after several strategic simulations, the Alliance found that the methods of warfare were too restrictive and difficult to solve the problem.
So the military think tank came up with a method.
They regularly send people to clear out immigrants, homeless people, and scavengers.
However, in order to maintain its image, and because the existence of the illegal immigrant gathering place did have some use, the Alliance did not mobilize regular troops, but instead used black gloves.
Such as bandit groups or mercenary groups kept outside.
In secret, he controlled the entire Cantia Mountains.
With its powerful national strength and a large number of Transcendent troops, it accomplished this with ease.
After that, the Alliance regularly controlled these bandit groups to raid settlements on schedule, reduce the population, and ensure that the strength of the settlements would not endanger border security.
At the same time, they sent people to collect information on people from all sides, selected the true geniuses in the gathering places, sent them to the Alliance, and used similar methods to collect Transcendent resources.
For centuries, this system has operated stably, playing a vital role in maintaining peace along the southern border.
However, with the dramatic changes in the domestic and international situation in recent years, the Alliance's leadership decided to change the original plan.
Beaufort didn't know the specifics; that was top secret.
He received two tasks.
First, we annihilated the White Shark Bandit Group. They were corrupt, withholding many resources that should have been handed over and repeatedly disobeying the Alliance's orders.
Second, send some gifts to the Grand Judge of the Duchy of Lexais.