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Chapter 872: Dilemma
🕑 Added 2023-12-03 13:42:14 +0000 UTCTransformers Begin : Table of Content/Chapter List
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The moment this idea emerged, even Sun Cheng himself was taken aback.
However, soon his spirit became unusually excited due to this sudden thought.
"Yes, why don't I try to win over Optimus Prime and his Autobot faction?"
The relationship between Autobots and Decepticons, strictly speaking, is not irreconcilable.
Only in the early stages of the Cybertron Civil War, when Megatron and Sentinel Prime issued ruthless orders, were enemy prisoners and deserters ruthlessly executed.
As the war prolonged and both factions suffered continuous manpower losses, both Decepticons and Autobots began to struggle.
Decepticons were the first to change, employing various conspiracies, threats, and inducements to sway Autobot soldiers surrounded by heavy forces or civilians in Autobot-controlled territories to join them.
Autobots, in turn, retaliated, using internal struggles within the Skytiger Legion and oppression of lower-ranking Decepticons to successfully persuade a group of peace-loving Decepticons to join their ranks.
Although most Decepticons and Autobots who switched sides didn't receive fair treatment in their new factions, there was no insurmountable barrier between the two Cybertronian factions.
Sun Cheng, with abundant resources and a force that had developed over nearly three years, now controlled the majority of newly discovered mines in South America, as well as mining corporations monopolized by some countries in the past—all under Base Two's control.
They had sufficient basic labor force, with new Decepticons continuously being created. Sun Cheng was confident that within the next year, he could triple the number of his Decepticons.
Unlike other Decepticons and Autobots with high arrogance, Base Two had been operating behind the scenes in South America for years. The mines controlled by them were still operated by locals, and they even slightly increased wages.
The mined ores were still initially smelted by local Human corporations. Through various means, Sun Cheng and his team had tied the economies of South American countries to their cause.
His intelligence chief, Mora, had become increasingly competent.
In the vast South America, there were many individuals influenced by European and American neoliberalism.
Mora's current tasks included monitoring the entry of Decepticons and Autobots, eliminating foreign intelligence personnel, and purging rebels.
With these methods, Sun Cheng, operating behind the scenes, could easily, if necessary, mobilize millions of workers in the name of South American governments, using policies, inducements, and even violence.
Currently, Sun Cheng had the resources and manpower. What he lacked were high-level and elite warriors, as well as top Cybertronian scientists like Optimus Prime.
Hence, Sun Cheng suddenly had this idea: to try to win over Optimus Prime, attempting to bring him and his Autobots into the same faction.
Although the hope was very slim, at least it wasn't completely absent.
Sentinal Prime's return made Optimus Prime's position within the Autobot faction increasingly awkward, especially given their ideological conflicts. If Optimus Prime chose to compromise, he would likely have to abandon the New Iron Fortress that he had painstakingly rebuilt along with his followers.
He faced two options: either embark on a new journey or brazenly continue staying in the New Iron Fortress, enduring the high probability of facing various challenges from Sentinal Prime and his staunch supporters.
"Perhaps I can offer a better alternative—Decepticon and Autobot united once again."
His core rapidly rotated as Sun Cheng began to seriously contemplate the feasibility of this idea.
He didn't entertain the thought of completely eliminating the rift between Decepticons and Autobots; it was neither realistic nor possible in the short term. Sun Cheng didn't have that intention either. He hoped to form an alliance with Optimus Prime resembling a federation, where their interests weren't entirely intertwined. They could govern their territories independently most of the time but engage in trade and technology exchange internally. In case of external threats, they would be forced to join hands against a common enemy.
However, achieving this goal wouldn't be simple.
Just in terms of identity, many Autobots would be unwilling. Could a Decepticon Cannon Fodder from the Cassette Legion sit on an equal footing with the young Autobot Leader? Even if the leader was in a sorry state, Optimus Prime's followers wouldn't accept it.
Pride, the original sin of Autobots!
Thinking about his Decepticon identity in this world, Sun Cheng couldn't help but feel ironic. A member of the Skytiger Legion, he had offended many high-ranking members. He had delved into Megatron's memories, learned many of the warlord's unknown secrets, and thus offended him. Starscream had plotted against him, and Sun Cheng had countered, making their relationship perhaps not as terrible as it seemed. Soundwave had tried to kill him but met his demise at Sun Cheng's hands. However, Cybertronians were unique, and even after countless reviews of Soundwave's memory chip, Sun Cheng couldn't be sure if there were any hidden traps.
His concerns weren't baseless. Soundwave's memory chip contained a lot of garbled code, discontinuities, and password-protected areas. The intelligence chief of the Skytiger Legion was well aware that he knew too much, so Soundwave had protected or hidden information deemed crucial, dangerous, or classified.
So, even with Soundwave's remains in his collection, Sun Cheng still couldn't confirm if there was a means of resurrection left by his opponent.
If there was one adversary that made Sun Cheng most uneasy, it was Shockwave, who was about to arrive in the Solar System. Shockwave might even surpass Megatron.
As the de facto Military Commander-in-chief of the Skytiger Legion, Shockwave's methods were less cruel than Megatron's but more ruthless and direct. He wouldn't revel in the joy of catching a mouse like Starscream. Even if he temporarily let Sun Cheng slip through his fingers, Starscream wouldn't pay it much mind.
However, based on the intelligence Sun Cheng had collected about Shockwave, he had no doubt that once Megatron issued the order to kill him, Shockwave would spare no effort to hunt him down.
Although Sun Cheng couldn't confirm the size of the Decepticon army led by Shockwave heading to the Solar System, given Shockwave's usual caution, that force would undoubtedly be more than enough to crush all opposing forces on Earth.
Now that he had completely severed ties with the attack, this large group of Decepticons was like the sword of Damocles hanging over Sun Cheng's head, causing him constant anxiety day and night.
Regardless of success or failure, Sun Cheng had decided to give it a try.
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Next Chapter >>Chapter 873: Plundering Fleet
