From Titan Corporation to the Empire of Man

Chapter 617 "Ha! This is a good joke"

Under the dim light, suspended dust drifted slowly in the air, and smoke from cheap tobacco lingered under the low ceiling.

The bartender suddenly stopped wiping the glasses, the conversation of a few drunks in the corner came to an abrupt end, and everyone's eyes were focused on the two strange visitors.

Although Leon and Mike were wearing casual clothes, their innate temperament could not be concealed without entering the "actor" mode and starting to infiltrate.

The straight posture, sharp eyes, and the calmness that comes from being in a high position for a long time revealed in his every move.

These details were particularly eye-catching in the eyes of the drunkards in the slums, and they were almost immediately labeled as "Terran Empire agents."

"Two whiskeys on the rocks."

Leon said calmly, and he and Mike sat on the high stools next to the burly man.

The bartender didn't move, tapping his calloused fingers on the bar.

The drunks in the corner quietly reached their hands to their waists, and the subtle sound of metal collision was particularly clear in the silent bar.

Click.

The bartender suddenly pulled out an old-fashioned pump-action shotgun from under the bar and pointed the black muzzle directly at Leon's chest.

At the same time, the drinkers around all showed their weapons -

Rusty revolvers, modified submachine guns, and even a few homemade laser cutters, all with deadly muzzles locked on the two agents.

"Phew~ calm down, man."

Mike raised his hands exaggeratedly, but a calm smile hung on the corners of his mouth, "Be careful not to fire accidentally, this thing will hurt a lot if it hits you."

Leon remained silent, but raised his hands slightly to indicate that he had no hostility.

"The Empire's lackeys are not welcome here." The bartender's low voice sounded like sandpaper rubbing, "If you don't want to die, get out of here."

Before he finished speaking, Leon's left hand suddenly turned into a shadow.

His palm was precisely against the barrel of the shotgun, and before the bartender could react and pull the trigger, his five fingers gripped the gun like a pair of pliers, twisting and pulling it. The whole set of movements was smooth, as if he had practiced it thousands of times.

The bartender felt a numbness in his palm and realized that the weapon had changed hands.

Almost at the same moment, Mike's body flipped backwards like a spring.

His body drew an arc in the air, and two custom-made pistols were already in his hands.

When the heel of his boot touched the ground again, the muzzle of his gun was already locked on the nearest armed drinker.

Click.

Leon loaded the shotgun with one hand, with the butt of the gun firmly against his shoulder and the muzzle pointing motionlessly at the bartender's forehead.

The time in the entire bar seemed to freeze, and everyone was frozen in place.

No one could see clearly what had just happened. The speed of these two "agents" was so fast that it was beyond human limits, and there was no way for them to react or defend themselves.

The bartender's Adam's apple rolled up and down and cold sweat slid down his temple.

This time, it was the bartender who slowly raised his hands, realizing that he had made a fatal mistake.

The drinkers around were also afraid to act rashly. Their fingers holding the guns trembled slightly, and no one dared to pull the trigger that might trigger a massacre of "killing one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of their own."

At this tense moment——

Boom!Boom!
Heavy footsteps came from outside the door, and even the floor shook.

The glasses hanging on the wall collided with each other, making crisp sounds.

Bang-!
The wooden door of the bar was smashed open by brute force, and the hinges of the door frame made a sound of being unable to bear the weight.

A huge figure bent down, and the dark green armor almost filled the entire door frame.

I saw a Flame Lizard Warrior hunched over and squeezed into the bar, and the muzzle of the .75cal caliber bolter slowly swept over every drinker present.

"Everyone." A deep metallic voice came from the speaker of his helmet, "Leave here."

! ! ! !
The drinkers' faces turned pale instantly.

On this remote planet, has anyone ever seen such a fully armed giant?

The finely crafted armor was still stained with fresh blood, and the red light from the eyepiece was like the gaze of death in the dim bar.

Without any hesitation, the drinkers dropped their weapons and rushed to the door, and some even jumped out of the window.

The bartender looked at Leon, and after getting the latter's eye permission, he staggered out of the bar.

The Flame Lizard seemed very satisfied with the effect of clearing the area. It nodded to Leon and Mike, then left the bar.

As the heavy footsteps faded away, the entire space finally returned to peace.
If you ignore the smashed door.

Now, only Mike, Leon, and the mysterious strong man who remained calm were left in the bar.

"You two," the sturdy man suddenly spoke, his voice hoarse but with a hint of amusement, "You are not Mengsk's lackeys, are you?"

The other party still did not look up at Leon and Mike on his left and right, but just reached out and picked up the remote control on the bar and pressed the switch.

The old-fashioned TV hanging on the side of the bar flickered a few times and suddenly lit up.

"This is a live report from UNN, I'm the host, Vermirian."

On the TV, a man with slicked hair and in uniform sat upright, "We will now interrupt with a breaking news story. Let's connect with Kate, a special correspondent on the marginal planet Ma Sara."

The scene changed and a black-haired female reporter appeared on the screen.

Tick. Tick!

Boom.Boom!

She was standing on the street of a city. As soon as the scene changed, gunshots rang out in the background, and the flames of the explosion illuminated her pale face from time to time.

"This is Kate!"

Her voice trembled slightly with fear.

Bang—bang—!
The roar of bolters can be clearly heard in the background.

The picture shook violently, and civilians could be seen fleeing in all directions, while soldiers of the Terran Empire were organizing defenses behind barricades.

A medic was dragging the wounded back, and there were already several bodies lying on the ground.

"Ma Sara was attacked by an unknown human force!"

Kate almost shouted, "The enemy's firepower, scale and equipment are obviously stronger than the defense of Ma Sara! We will soon be unable to hold on here! The local commander said that 80% of the entire planet has fallen!" The picture suddenly shook violently, and the cameraman seemed to be staggered by the blast.

When the camera stabilized again, several siege tanks of the Terran Empire could be seen burning in the distance, and in the sky, several aircraft that had never appeared in the StarCraft universe were hovering.

"They even interfered with all kinds of military communications," Kate continued, her voice full of despair, "but only retained civilian communications. It's obvious that they intended to let the Empire know what happened here!"

In the studio, Vermillion's expression turned into shock: "Aren't these the Rangers led by the infamous Jim Raynor?"

"Absolutely not!" Kate denied categorically, "The opponent's overall strength is obviously much stronger than Jim Raynor!"

At this moment, a Terran Empire soldier suddenly rushed in front of the camera: "Reporter Miss Rockwell, we must evacuate! If we don't leave now, it will be too late!"

The picture spun around and finally stopped on several Thunderhawk gunships in the sky.

The TV automatically switched back to the studio scene, where Wormian was wiping the sweat from his forehead and trying to smooth things over with incoherent words.

".Please don't panic, viewers!"

Then, he forced himself to remain calm and gave the camera a professional fake smile, "The Terran Empire is still strong! The strength displayed by these attackers is just bluffing! When our main fleet arrives at Mar Sara, we will be able to catch these criminals in one fell swoop!"

He spoke louder and louder, as if this would make him believe what he said.

The director cut into the footage of the Terran Empire fleet at the right moment. The majestic sight of dozens of battlecruisers lined up in the starry sea was indeed quite intimidating.

"Now I have an important message." Vermillion's expression suddenly became friendly. "Have your children used enhancers? The latest generation of neural enhancers has been certified by the Imperial Ministry of Health."

Click, click.

The burly man turned down the volume of the TV, and the bar suddenly became much quieter.

He turned the stool and looked at the two uninvited guests for the first time.

"So," the rough voice was filled with a hint of amusement, "the army that beat the shit out of Mengsk's army on TV, are your people?"

His eyes moved back and forth between Leon and Mike.

"Jim Raynor." And, the sturdy man smiled self-deprecatingly and held out his calloused hand, "Just like that idiot on TV said, a notorious terrorist."

"Mike Monadi." Mike held the hand and smiled as well. He looked at Leon and said, "The one with a serious face is Leon S. Kennedy, and we are just ordinary employees."

"Ordinary employees?" Renault raised his eyebrows. "Employees with such 'superhuman' skills and equipment?"

Leon ignored the teasing and said bluntly: "We are from the human empire in the main universe."

"what!"

Hearing this, Renault took a gulp of whiskey and said, "That's a good joke. Next, are you going to say that you came here on a magic carpet?"

Mike sighed, shook his head, and activated the mobile terminal on his wrist.

Following Mike's operation, a holographic projection quickly rose up, clearly showing a huge space gate spanning the sky. Starlight was flowing in the gate, and it was breathtakingly beautiful.

"This is a space gate connecting two universes." Mike's finger flicked, and the screen switched to a magnificent palace complex. "This is our imperial palace."

The next image made Renault's glass stop in mid-air——

The scene shows a group of tall Sangheili (elite) warriors with pale grey skin, training side by side with the "mortal" auxiliary troops.

Next came a group of elves with pointy ears, operating equipment they had never seen before in a laboratory.

"This..." Renault's Adam's apple rolled, "The special effects are well done."

"The one who broke in just now," Leon added calmly, "is our Emperor's descendant, an Astartes of the Flame Lizard Legion. Their average height after removing their armor is over two meters and five."

"Emperor?"

Renault's expression suddenly turned gloomy, and the glass in his hand creaked. "Another self-proclaimed emperor?"

The commander's voice was filled with obvious disgust. "Let me guess, does your 'Emperor' also like to hide in the palace and issue orders? And then send troops to encircle and suppress those who oppose him?!"

Leon and Mike noticed keenly that when they mentioned the word "Emperor", the veins on Renault's right hand bulged obviously, and his knuckles turned white due to the force, as if he would crush the glass in the next second.

And Lyon did not immediately refute.

He operated the terminal silently and called up a holographic image.

In the picture, Sui Yang, wearing black and gold armor, stood in the center of the battlefield with his hands raised. A dazzling psychic energy storm burst out from his body, turning large groups of enemies into ashes.

Then, the screen switches.

Athena, holding the Spear of Victory, was unstoppable in the hail of bullets, Hera cast a spell, chopping an entire armored formation into charcoal, and Astarte charged side by side with the Greek deities, invincible.

Jim Raynor's eyes widened.

Even though he had traveled extensively across the star regions and had witnessed the various "psychic powers" of the Protoss, the images that Leon played were too "fantastic."

The commander's lips trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but the words were choked in his throat.

"Cough cough."

Mike cleared his throat at the right time, "Our emperor is different from the ordinary man sitting on the throne of the Terran Empire."

Mike pointed at the golden figure in the image and said, "To put it simply, he is a god walking on earth - he has lived for at least a few hundred years, and he personally promoted the leap in human technology and opened the door to the multiverse."

Renault's expression changed from shock to complicated hesitation. He put down the cracked wine glass and took a deep breath.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Cooperation." Leon said bluntly, "The human empire is ready to unify this galaxy and even the entire universe."

Renault's brows immediately frowned, but before he could speak, Mike added: "Besides, we are a people-oriented civilization. The reason we beat up the Terran Empire is purely because we can't stand their atrocities against the civilians of Mar Sara."

As he spoke, Mike called up some real-time footage from the Space Gate frontline base—

On the desert plain near the space gate, a well-planned refugee camp has been built.

Hundreds of white temporary living cabins are neatly arranged, and each cabin is equipped with a constant temperature system and a private bathroom.

Medical robots moving around are examining the elderly and children, while automatic dining cars are distributing steaming hot nutritious meals along fixed routes.

Farther away, construction machinery is roaring at work.

Large-scale architectural 3D printers are "spitting out" building modules, and permanent residences are taking shape at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The plan shows that this will be built into a complete community equipped with schools, hospitals and sky farms.

"All rescued civilians have received genetic testing and medical care." Mike pointed to the children playing in the picture, "We rebuilt their identity files and ensured that every family can be allocated a new house and corresponding benefits."

Renault also saw a few children holding toy soldiers given by the Flame Lizard, which was completely different from the image of the army in his memory.
(End of this chapter)