Trump Card

On the Antarctic Peninsula, Azure had massed 1.8 million troops. Its vanguard elites were prepared to push west, cutting layer by layer toward the Great Spike tractor field at the South Pole. Meanwhile, the seven thousand fighters of Stream Vanguard were determined to head east, advancing into the Mount Erebus region. Such a decision was undoubtedly fraught with immense danger. Had any of Azure's own front armies intended to do the same, headquarters would never have accepted it. However, according to their pre-war agreement, Azure headquarters could not directly oversee or command Stream Vanguard's operations in Antarctica. After a brief silence, neither God Lü nor Commander Hua tried to dissuade them. Because this was actually advantageous to the entire Antarctic battlefield. At the same time, they truly possessed the backing and confidence to pull it off. Even if Han Qingyu was, to a certain degree, "crippled," the seven thousand Stream Vanguard troops on this expedition remained the fiercest battle group in the human world—boasting the highest average combat capability and the greatest proportion of top-tier fighters. Normally, their proportion of super-tier fighters would have been the highest as well. As luck would have it, however, a front army called Suriname had sent only four people in total—and one of them was a super-tier combatant. Beyond that, a stockpile of over a hundred thousand source energy bullets was more than enough for the two Endless sniper rifles in Stream Vanguard's hands to transform into scythes of the Grim Reaper at any moment, reaping swathes of the battlefield. For a combat unit like this, whether in its ability to charge through battlefields or break out of desperate straits, its strength could not be simply measured in numbers. In fact, a smaller headcount worked to their advantage, provided their route of advance remained close to the coastline. Furthermore, Wen Jifei had stated in advance that if things went south, Stream Vanguard would be the first to run. This message was meant to be passed on to Azure through God Lü and Commander Hua. The underlying meaning was clear: *We have no intention of answering to anyone, nor do we need commendations or encouragement. So whatever operational plans you make, please do not place us at any critical junction. When drawing up strategies, it's best if you simply don't factor our existence in at all.* Stream Vanguard walking its own path would naturally have a positive impact on the battlefield. "Looking at it right now, it's not entirely out of the question. The only things in Antarctica that could pose a real threat to you are Red Shoulders." God Lü took off his hat as he spoke, glancing at He Tangtang with an envious look in his eyes. He didn't envy anyone else because the rest were not in the same world as him, leaving him with nothing to envy; He Tangtang, on the other hand, had to be considered a "wealthy man" in their world right now. "And it would have to be a fair number of Red Shoulders," Commander Hua added, following God Lü's train of thought. As he spoke, his gaze swept past Theodore, lingered over the heavyweights of Stream Vanguard, and finally settled on Wu Xu. Without question, the current Wu Xu was already someone capable of soloing a Red Shoulder in a short span of time. Furthermore, according to rumors, Stream Vanguard's hidden, newly ascended super-tier combatant was most likely stronger than Theodore. Even if his raw strength wasn't, his special trait had to be utterly terrifying. "That makes a lineup led by a peak super-tier with three—no, four—super-tiers and dual Endless rifles, plus Second Lieutenant Shen Yixiu, the number one combatant beneath the super-tier, whose true combat power might even surpass an ordinary super-tier." Commander Hua's tally had nearly overlooked Han Qingyu. But when he remembered and factored him in as well... he suddenly realized: *This man is actually still Stream Vanguard's greatest confidence and trump card. As long as he lives and stands within their ranks, he always will be.* Just as Little Prince Zhu Jiaming had said outside the canyon: even if Han Qingyu were paralyzed and lying in bed right now, who could guarantee they dared to cross him? That was simply the reality. Even if paralyzed, as long as he was carried onto Antarctica, he would still be humanity's most anticipated, greatest trump card in this expedition. "You truly haven't recovered?!" Commander Hua turned his head and couldn't resist asking once more, speaking rapidly in an attempt to catch him off guard. "...No." After answering the same way as before, Han Qingyu gave a helpless smile, held up three fingers, and said, "That's three times now, Commander Hua." Commander Hua hesitated. "Fine. I just still can't understand how on earth you blocked that strike from Pinkhead." "Yeah, I can't understand it either." At this moment, it wasn't just Commander Hua and Han Qingyu; nearly everyone present shared the exact same bewilderment. Because none of them knew that, in truth, Pegmont was the biggest bug in this world. Will bending reality; conviction warping power—this was almost certainly the most unreasonable, heaven-defying trait possible among the six billion humans on this planet. ... "Do you think he's really recovered or not?" In a corner of a warehouse at the Mitli Front's encampment, Pegmont finally spoke, his voice filled with grievance and helplessness. For a man who spent ninety percent of his life in self-inflation, it was rare for him to be so dejected. "Don't know. But from the looks of it, doesn't seem like it." As the sole confidant by Pegmont's side right now, Makarov seemed somewhat absentminded, chambering a source energy bullet and ejecting it, then chambering and ejecting it again. Not long ago, a magazine in the ordinary world had ranked him third among human Great Spike snipers... In truth, however, Makarov had never directly sniped a single Great Spike to death to this day. In fact, with source energy firearms, he had only ever fired a single shot at a Great Spike so far—at a Red Shoulder, and that shot had been fired purely to support Pegmont. "Whatever happens, I'm definitely going to draw first blood this time." The reason Makarov was so confident was that strapped to his back right now were eight source energy sniper rifles. Counting the one in his hands, nine in total. Meaning opportunities for at least twenty-seven shots. Azure had truly become wealthy after the Zenith War. For this Antarctic expedition, the scientific research division had spent over a year manufacturing as many as 1,200 source energy sniper rifles. It was just that the durability and self-shattering issues of these firearms still hadn't been solved. They remained rapid consumables, good for three shots at most. "Stop playing around." Pegmont reached out, snatched the bullet from Makarov's hand, stuffed it into his pocket, and gestured for him to focus on the conversation. "Then why still couldn't I beat him?" "You didn't fail to beat him. Wasn't it a draw?" Makarov countered. "Huh? A draw!" At those two simple words, Pegmont's entire body and heart jolted, nearly perking up... but a second later, he sank back into despondence. "What damn good is a draw? He hasn't even recovered!" "What if he actually did recover?" "..." "Can't you just pretend he already recovered?" Makarov paused, then subtly emphasized each word: "You fought him to a draw, Peg." "...That's true!" Pegmont jumped to his feet, the gloom rolling off him instantly. Yet inwardly, he still carried a trace of self-doubt, not quite fully convinced. ... Around the same time, at the perimeter of the Thailand Front's encampment. When the companion who had enlisted with her finally found Nisha, the girl was sitting alone between two slabs of glacial rock, stuffing bits of roasted fish into her mouth one pinch after another with an aggrieved look in her eyes. "What's wrong, Nisha? Why is the fish..." "He said he hates eating fish," Nisha said, her grievances showing. "All right, then next time we'll bring him something else." Her friend chuckled lightheartedly, thinking that it was just a distaste for fish. Hadn't today been plenty already? What incredible fate that was! In the past, when they were still ordinary civilians and later in the training camp, they, like so many people in this world, were always eager to discuss the mighty and dazzling figures of the source energy world—figures like Stream Vanguard. Stream Vanguard had too many dazzling names: Major Qing, Wu Xu, Wen Jifei, Shen Yixiu, Yang Qingbai... Almost every one of them possessed countless stories and immense charm. And yet, among such a group, the one Nisha liked the most and wanted to meet above all happened to be He Tangtang—legendarily the weakest existence in Stream Vanguard's core team, and the most lackluster one. When everyone asked her why, she said, "Maybe because he has so many nicknames, and every single one is so fun. Rumor has it he gave all those nicknames to himself. Just think about it—what an adorable person he must be." No one was convinced by that explanation, so Nisha added: "He's really interesting! And as the weaker individual in the team, standing in an environment where he never quite fit in, he always stayed optimistic, strong, and hardworking. How could anyone not like him?" After the assassination incident in the Maple Leaf Nation, Nisha came to like He Tangtang even more. She had said, "See? He really doesn't care about the judgment of others at all. He doesn't care whether the world views him as a freak. He only does what he believes is right, protecting the people he wants to protect. He Tangtang actually has an inner strength that none of us possess." So Nisha was probably genuinely fond of He Tangtang. And by such a coincidence, today it was He Tangtang himself who stepped forward to express his appreciation, befriending her and inviting her to visit Stream Vanguard after the war. The implications seemed clear enough. "Say, Nisha, you wouldn't actually go to Stream Vanguard one day, would you?" her friend asked, still oblivious. Nisha turned to look at her, her cheeks puffed full of fish and her eyes sorrowful as she mumbled, "What I mean is... he doesn't just hate fish. He seems to hate me, too." "..." Her friend stared blankly, then seemed to understand, saying with some indignation, "If that's really why, it's truly disappointing. And after all your talk about how he has a fearless spirit and immense inner strength!" "No, that's not it," Nisha insisted. "He just doesn't like it. Just like how some people don't like eating fish. It's merely a preference; it doesn't mean anything else." The girl still firmly believed that He Tangtang possessed an incomparably strong heart. In truth, even He Tangtang didn't know whether he simply couldn't accept it subjectively, or was merely terrified of his brothers whispering behind his back and casting strange looks his way. Right now, he didn't want to think about this question at all. He only wanted to set out immediately and get away from here. ... At the base of the Azure direct-command forces in Antarctica. Bearing heavy packs, the figures of Ashleia and Ian passed the soldiers' sentry post through the wind and snow, vanishing into the vast, boundless icefield. The sentries naturally recognized the two of them, even though the sentries were recruits... One of the recruits looked puzzled on the spot and asked, "Them?" "Going to Stream Vanguard. The two of them will be moving with Stream Vanguard this time. Listen to this—latest news is that Stream Vanguard is taking on the entire eastern front all on their own this time! Well? Isn't that cool?!" the other sentry replied excitedly. "Sure, cool. But what about us? I mean, with them gone, who's going to report on our battles? You know, I was still dreaming about appearing in Miss Ashleia's camera lens! That was one of the three wishes I made on my birthday back in training camp." "Don't know, maybe another batch of war correspondents. Don't worry, history will record everything. In the end, we'll all become heroes." His comrade clenched his fist as he finished speaking, his eyes brimming with excitement and anticipation. The smooth progress on the Antarctic Peninsula made the recruits somewhat relaxed and optimistic—that was a fact. And that fact wasn't limited to the recruits. Due to the unprecedented frequency and timeliness of news coverage concerning this expedition, the entire world was currently swept up in optimism, buoyed by the light, smooth progress at the front lines.