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Chapter 784: Vanguard Arrival
🕑 Added 2023-10-30 10:43:17 +0000 UTCTransformers Begin : Table of Content/Chapter List
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Without bringing any subordinates, once he left the base, Sun Cheng transformed into a fighter jet form. Guided by precise coordinates provided by the base, he sped towards the mountain wall that the reconnaissance team had previously discovered to be inscribed with Cybertronian script.
He flew swiftly and soon reached the canyon.
From about a kilometer away from the segment of the mountain wall with the Cybertronian inscription, Sun Cheng, with his extraordinary vision, recognized the text as identical to what Prometheus had shown him.
Instead of landing immediately, he activated his scanning capabilities at full power, emitting electromagnetic waves to survey the surroundings of the mountain wall.
It didn’t take long for Sun Cheng to notice something unusual.
Beneath the mountain wall, there was a concealed massive entrance leading to a deep cavern below.
It seemed the cavern had been coated with some substance that blocked or shielded against electromagnetic wave detection. Sun Cheng's emitted waves could only penetrate a mere dozen meters into the cavern, beyond which no signals could be detected.
"Troublesome!"
Landing in front of the canyon wall, Sun Cheng walked straight to the cavern entrance.
This entrance had been sealed off long ago by ancient Cybertronians fleeing from Emperor Liege Maximo, using a massive meteorite to block the passage. After enduring countless years of erosion and sedimentation, the meteorite had fused seamlessly with the mountain wall, appearing as one unified entity.
He had come this time to verify certain things; if he could gather some information about the interior lab, it would be a bonus.
However, since electromagnetic waves couldn't probe inside the cavern, Sun Cheng didn't linger. From his Spherical Space, he retrieved some materials and took a while to isolate a few hundred meters around the vicinity. He marked the area with a warning under his name, and then headed back to MarsBase One.
Upon returning, he input the warning information near the lab into the Central Main Control AI, instructing it to notify all Decepticons on Mars, ensuring none inadvertently trespassed or accidentally disturbed potential dangers within the lab.
Sun Cheng then stayed on Mars for another two days.
He single-handedly inspected all the underground mines and buildings within the MarsBase One area and documented essential supplies.
After spending half a day in a rest room, Sun Cheng returned to the Real World.
Taking advantage of the time discrepancy between the two worlds, he spent a month and a half in the Real World, acquiring 72,000 tons of coal, 340,000 barrels of oil, and other supplies.
With Sun Cheng's industries in the real world flourishing, and considering the vast distance between Earth and Mars in the [Transformers Universe], sourcing supplies directly from the Real World to replenish MarsBase had become his optimal choice.
Realizing this, Sun Cheng began to expand the energy capacity of the Spherical Space within him, allowing it to hold an increasing amount of materials.
The supplies he bought from the Real World would suffice for MarsBase's temporary use.
However, the consistent lack of fossil fuels like coal on Mars was indeed a significant issue!
Moreover, Mars had relatively scarce water resources. Though it could be synthesized through chemical means and Mars' temperature differences, the cost was undoubtedly much higher than freely obtaining it on Earth.
Fortunately, the Decepticons' Mars-exploring satellite had discovered ice caps in the polar regions of Mars and in other areas.
Although the nearest ice cap was more than seven hundred kilometers away from MarsBase One, and the area covered by the Satellite probe was only 1.52 square kilometers, the Decepticon engineers suspected that there might be an underground lake there. Thus, obtaining water on Mars was a problem that would inevitably be resolved locally.
After replenishing supplies for MarsBase from the Real World, Sun Cheng didn't stay long on Mars and quickly chose to return. What he didn't know was that almost immediately after his spaceship took off from Mars, near Pluto, a group of 'meteorites' used Pluto's orbit to escape. After gaining acceleration again and slightly adjusting their flight path, they were now rapidly approaching the center of the Solar System – toward the sun.
Around the same time, on the far side of the Moon near the Decepticon base, Onslaught looked at the returning Starscream with a hint of displeasure on his face. He didn't like dealing with Starscream. Despite considering himself to be highly intelligent, he couldn't help but acknowledge that Starscream was always scheming against everyone around him. Onslaught was always wary of falling into Starscream's schemes. He had previously agreed to cooperate with Starscream in developing the Fusion Leopard, but only because he had no choice after Starscream found and confronted him. After all, Onslaught's current strength was only at the quasi-Leader level. Even though he was close, he hadn't fully transformed yet. If Starscream decided to attack him with his Vehicons, there was a chance that Onslaught could fall.
After a lengthy standoff, Onslaught finally broke the tense silence. "I know why you're here. Apart from Noisy, I've cultivated two more Warbots: Explosion and Whirlwind. However, their mechanical bodies were reconstructed from the remains of the two Autobots you sent earlier. They'll need extensive modifications... conservatively, they'll require another month to awaken..."
He paused, "As for Swindle, since he is being cultivated from scratch, it will take at least another six months."
Starscream got the information he wanted, but he wasn't satisfied. "One month. I'll give you one more month at most!"
"That's impossible!" Onslaught interrupted angrily, "You think I'm cultivating your simple Vehicons? My Warbot Team is all elite!"
Starscream smirked and gestured in front of him. Instantly, an image appeared. In the vastness of the Universe, dozens of meteorites, aligned like a well-ordered troop, effortlessly shattered the smaller celestial bodies in their path. Onslaught instantly recognized these as traveling Cybertronians. The only thing he couldn't ascertain was whether they were Decepticons or Autobots.
Frowning, Onslaught asked, "Is this Shockwave's vanguard?"
Starscream gave a disdainful snort, confirming it.
Onslaught's brows furrowed even more, and after a moment's silence, he said, "Three months. I promise that the entire Warbot Team will assemble within three months."
Shockwave was the second-in-command of the Skytiger Legion, second only to the leader, Megatron. Loyal to Megatron, he had earned almost complete trust and had long been in charge of the military command of the Skytiger Legion. Due to torture he had once suffered during the Cybertron Council of Primes era, nearly all emotions were eradicated from Shockwave's character. He was always rational, a commander who would only consider matters from the perspectives of Megatron and the Skytiger Legion. Both Onslaught and Starscream felt an inevitable apprehension when facing him.
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Next Chapter >>Chapter 785: The New Warbot Team
