In the camp broadcast room on Planet Tianshu, the teachers from the four academies fixed their eyes collectively on Shen Jie, the chairman of the organizing committee.
There were only a few competition venues in total, and they featured either sandstorms or typhoons. And this time, they directly encountered a tsunami? Was this really not calculated on purpose?
The host, Xiao Liu, was still immersed in the absolutely brilliant battle that the four military academies had just fought, maintaining a relatively optimistic attitude toward the tsunami.
After all, with the rescue aircraft and so many safety instructor teachers present, they would not let anything truly bad happen to the students.
Shen Jie crossed his hands and rested them against his chin. He looked as steady as a mountain on the outside, but in reality, he was also feeling somewhat uncertain.
It was not as if they had not gone to even more remote planets in previous military academy leagues, but there had never been this many incidents before.
Was the opening date they chose not auspicious enough? Or was there a problem with the camp's feng shui?
It was true that tsunamis frequently erupted on Planet Eshuinuo, but had the season not just ended a month ago?
Why did the cycles everywhere become inaccurate the moment the competition started? With things like this, should they still release the hidden missions later or not?
After staring for a long time, the teachers also felt that they might be overthinking it. How could they blame the organizing committee for this kind of natural disaster? It would be truly outrageous if they could even predict tsunamis in advance.
Their gazes shifted back to the live broadcast screen, hoping that the remaining students could adapt flexibly...
There were still two days left. If they survived this, they could advance to the finals.
They just did not know if their energy reserves were enough to last for two days, considering that the entirety of Planet Eshuinuo did not even have a place to land right now.
Unsurprisingly, the mountain peak beneath them was submerged. The mechas of the twelve contestants hovered in mid-air, looking extremely lost.
The three captains looked at that simple nautical chart over and over. It would take several hours by boat to reach the nearest island, and they did not even know if those islands had been swallowed up as well...
Wang Tianwei kept her attention on the sea surface and actually discovered something unusual. She fiddled with her communication components a couple of times.
Uh... teachers?
???
When Wang Tianwei's voice rang out inside the rescue aircraft, the safety instructors were all shocked.
...Student Wang!?
Although it was indeed very satisfying to watch her hack into the communication systems of other academies, when exactly did she hack into the rescue aircraft's communications as well?
Did this child have any sense of boundaries at all!?
The moment he heard the safety instructor's voice ring out inside the mecha, Fu Xingyuan also closed his mouth.
Since that was the case... he really had nothing left to say.
Hi, teachers. I just wanted to ask...
Wang Tianwei's third mecha arm pointed straight at the sea surface.
Those hairy red tubes in the sea down there, the ones wrapping around the star beasts and dancing about... are they the giant tube worms popularized on the Star Network?
The Zerg!?
The teachers from the various academies and the audience in front of the screens instantly sat up straight.
Chairman Shen, why are there Zerg on Planet Eshuinuo?
After seeing the creatures on the live broadcast clearly, Fu Manli was the first to stand up and ask sternly.
Shen Jie placed his hands back on the table.
Everyone, there is no need to worry too much. Planet Eshuinuo only has this one type of Zerg, the giant tube worm. They usually live in the deep sea, and their form is exactly as we see it. They are much less dangerous than other Zerg, and there is no possibility of parasitism.
They are still Zerg! Aside from common attack methods, they also possess spiritual power! Not to mention their numbers are so massive!?
Fu Manli was practically exploding with anger! How could the organizing committee be so utterly disregardful of the students' safety?
Teacher Fu, this trial was approved by the military.
Extreme natural environments are a test, and everyone can accept that.
But the more dangerous Zerg are now pervasive. How much longer are you going to let these children live in an ivory tower?
But!
Li Xiao, the Chief of Staff of the Sixth Military Region sitting beside Shen Jie, cast a faint glance at the live broadcast camera. The camera crew immediately and tactfully switched the feed elsewhere and muted the audio.
Almost every soldier in the Federation has encountered a Zerg attack while completely off guard. I mean every single one.
Shen Jie slowly laid out the considerations of the military and the organizing committee.
Giant tube worms live on the seabed all year round. If it were not for this tsunami, they would generally just gather around underwater craters and would not come out easily. Furthermore, they do not possess the parasitic traits towards humans that other Zerg have. They were originally meant to be part of the test on Planet Eshuinuo.
Teachers, do you know how many planets in the Federation were found to have zero instances of Zerg parasitizing humans this month?
The teachers of the four academies remained silent. Li Xiao opened his mouth to state the real number.
Zero.
...
I believe everyone sitting here is very clear on what zero means. The Zerg are going all out to breach every single planet in the Federation!
Although those carrying Zerg eggs or who had been parasitized were quickly sent to secure locations for quarantine.
The academicians of the Federation Academy of Sciences are also working around the clock to research a cure for Zerg parasitism, but in reality, there is no longer any such thing as a pure land right now.
The military's stance is that not only soldiers and military academy students, but also us and the general public need to adapt, get used to this, and heighten our vigilance as soon as possible. Only then can we properly guard against and deal with the Zerg.
With things laid out so bluntly, the expressions of everyone present looked terrible. Every planet had been infiltrated...
No one knew just to what extent the Zerg had evolved. Were there already Zerg that had evaded the scans and infiltrated the Federation?
If that were the case, there really was not much time left for the military...
The host, Xiao Liu, had his heart in his throat, his right hand tightly gripping the chair beneath him.
Chairman... was this kind of classified information something a normal person like him should be hearing?
They could have at least let him step out before saying it! What should he do now? He was scared to death!
Only after Shen Jie finished speaking did he stand up and scan the room.
These words originally should not have been told to you all, but the Chief and I fully understand everyone's concerns regarding the students' safety.
Please trust us. Currently, everyone in the military, including logistics, has already begun specialized training against the Zerg.
The more difficult things are, the more we must prepare in advance!
Do you really hope that when the Zerg truly arrive, our students and soldiers will not have even seen or dealt with the Zerg with their own eyes?
The personnel from the Ministry of Education on the other side also spoke up.
We are already planning to incorporate studies and drills against the Zerg into the daily curriculum of every academy, just like we did with the star beasts back in the day.
Selena's heart skipped a beat. The people from these two departments never spoke unnecessary nonsense.
The fact that Chairman Shen could be so open and honest today meant that the Federation was already preparing for a war against the Zerg...
Xiao Liu, meanwhile, shrank back into the host's chair, not even daring to breathe loudly. When Shen Jie looked over, he immediately stood up at attention.
Sir! I swear I will absolutely not leak a single word of what you said today!
The staff members beside him also hurriedly nodded along.
Yes, yes, yes! We did not record anything. You can check later!
Shen Jie gave a slight nod. He was not worried about this point; anyone with a brain would know what to do.
If this media outlet had no tact, the military would not have sought to cooperate with them in the first place.
