Elizabeth kept her head down as she ran into the room the director had told her about.
The two soldiers assigned to escort her watched her enter Room 103 with their own eyes. After telling her firmly not to come out, they left to support the others.
After taking in the room’s layout, Elizabeth finally understood why the two directors had sent her here to hide.
The room appeared to be specially designed for pharmaceutical experiments and development. The walls and door had been reinforced with special metal, while the shelves and carts were covered with all kinds of medicines—some she recognized and some she had never seen before.
The desk was piled high with manuscript paper covered in chemical formulas and scattered notes. There was a private bathroom, as well as a fold-out military cot.
The room had no windows at all, only two ventilation ducts. Even though she hadn’t turned anything on, the air circulation never seemed to stop.
It was practically the perfect place for emergency shelter… So why hadn’t the directors arrived yet!?
On the way here, she had seen far too much. Those insectoids were even more destructive than the military academy had taught them to be!
The eyes of the people they had infested could be either gold or black.
No, she couldn’t just sit here and wait. The directors had already contacted the military—who else could she reach? Or at least warn?
The moment she activated her comm terminal, she saw the emergency alert pinned at the very top. So they weren’t attacking just one isolation and quarantine center…
Planets across the entire star system had been invaded. Several hospitals had already fallen, and just moments ago, the military academy had also become one of their targets!
Insectoids discovered in Santorini… What about Mika and the others!? With trembling hands, she called her teammates.
“It’s Elizabeth! Are you all right?”
Lian Sheng was the first to answer. He was in his dorm room, with a portable mecha workstation beside him and an unfinished component still resting on it.
Elizabeth let out a relieved breath.
“I’m fine… What about you? How’s the school?”
Lian Sheng pushed up his protective goggles, his expression grim.
“There are insectoids here. They’re difficult to fight. The teachers won’t let us go outside, and I haven’t finished modifying my mecha yet… I saw the live broadcast from the isolation and quarantine center. Can you hold out?”
Elizabeth gritted her teeth.
“We have to. You need to be careful too. Those things can imitate humans—you can barely tell the difference from the outside.
“Lock all the doors and windows. Don’t open them for anyone, no matter who calls.”
“Understood.”
“What about Mika and Maxim?”
“We’re here.”
The other two finally connected to the video call as well. Mika’s hair was still dripping wet, clearly because she had just finished showering.
What had happened during those ten-odd minutes? Why did everyone look even more solemn than they had yesterday?
Maxim’s face was ashen.
“My home was attacked by the insectoids… My parents are still there.”
“Insectoids!?”
“Maxim, hold on! You absolutely mustn’t go out recklessly right now. The military has already begun taking action!”
The short-haired young man clutched his head with both hands.
“I know, but…”
“There are insectoids at the school too. The teachers…”
“Support from the military district is on its way! Everyone, we have to hold on!”
After finishing her warnings to her teammates, the next incoming video call was from her father.
“Elizabeth!”
“Dad!!”
Seeing that her daughter was still alive and unharmed, General Paige finally felt some of the tension leave his body. He was currently aboard a starship headed for the quarantine control center on Tianshu Star.
“What exactly happened at the center?”
“Someone was found to be infected today, and then a large number of Zerg suddenly appeared. The soldiers who had been parasitized earlier escaped as well… The director told me to stay in my room, Dad…”
General Paige’s expression turned solemn.
“Then stay there. The director is right. Wiping out the Zerg is something every soldier can do, but you’re the one responsible for the follow-up cleanup and screening.
Elizabeth, remember your identity and your mission.”
“…Yes!”
“I’ll arrive in about twenty minutes. There are fifty people here, all of them with S-rank mental power. Tell everyone to hold on a little longer. Reinforcements are on the way.”
“Understood!”
Before Meng Chongyun had even reached Bliza Star, he received news that the Zerg were launching a massive attack!
And this time, they weren’t attacking just the quarantine control center. Other planets and various military academies had come under attack as well.
That wasn’t the only thing troubling him. Among the soldiers who had gone to explore the New Star last time, one had already been infected by the Alpha Gold Crown for quite some time. After watching the livestream just now, Meng Chongyun estimated that Li Qin had already done quite a lot…
More than a hundred commanders had been unable to kill the Alpha Gold Crown. Shi Zhixin had also sent word. It seemed that their objective this time was to rescue their leader.
The livestream was merely one part of their plan. The more chaotic the Federation became, the easier it would be for them to exploit the confusion.
Meng Chongyun went to the cockpit and glanced at the distance traveled before letting out a long breath. It looked like the children on Bliza Star would have to wait a little longer…
“Return to Tianshu Star.”
“Yes!”
They couldn’t let the Alpha Gold Crown escape.
“Director-General, an unidentified starship is approaching.”
“Civilian starship approaching from fifteen degrees to starboard!”
“Large commercial starship approaching from thirty degrees to port!”
“The other side has opened fire!”
“Director-General, they’ve started a livestream. There appear to be ordinary civilians aboard the starship!”
Meng Chongyun clenched both fists tightly. Just how far had the Alpha Zerg’s intelligence evolved for them to make such precise predictions in advance—and even know to use civilians to threaten him?
“Open the hatch. I’ll go myself.”
“Director-General, we’ll go with you!”
“Have all soldiers release their mental power. Everyone, listen to my commands!”
“Yes!”
Xue Jie had sent Todd to accompany the Director-General and the others to Bliza Star. Todd sat aboard the starship, staring at the livestream while nervously bouncing his leg.
Huang Yan and those other kids had better be all right… And Classmate Wang absolutely had to wait until Todd arrived before proceeding with the mental-power upgrade!
But immediately afterward, he received a push notification about a full-scale Zerg invasion. The first outbreak had actually occurred at the quarantine control center? And then the Academy of Sciences?
Before he could process any of this, a broadcast sounded throughout the starship:
“All combat personnel, prepare for battle and assemble at the starship’s hatch. All other personnel, return to your rooms and keep the doors tightly shut.”
“All combat personnel, prepare for battle…”
Todd remained completely dumbfounded as he was shoved into a room.
From the starship’s windows, he could see the armored fighters had already deployed. The one leading them looked like… the Commander-in-Chief!?
The man, who had previously been focused solely on the military academy league livestream, finally opened the split screen. One quick glance revealed more than a dozen explosive headlines—even the academy had discovered Zerg!?
After seeing the horrific state of the quarantine control center, Todd could no longer sit still.
He had originally planned to contact the dean directly by video, but worried she might be busy at the moment. After a moment’s thought, he typed out a message and sent it. Then, on Li Qin’s livestream, he caught sight of his senior’s and Wen Nanfeng’s mechs.
“No… Don’t!!”
