Rejecting Tsinghua and Peking Universities: I Will Lead Harbin Institute of Technology to World Lead

As human civilization continued its plundering, a message suddenly reached back into the solar system.

It was a peaceful afternoon. The outer defense platforms of the solar system were conducting routine patrols, the expeditionary fleet was conquering new galaxies in the depths of space, and the experts of the Technological Alliance were studying newly acquired technological data in their laboratories. Everything was proceeding smoothly, as if the disappearance of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force had become a distant memory.

A red alarm suddenly lit up on the holographic projection in the command center. It was an emergency communication signal from the Third Expeditionary Force. The signal strength was fluctuating constantly, indicating severe interference, clearly suggesting that the sender was in the midst of intense fighting.

The communications officer immediately established contact, and the anxious face of the Third Expeditionary Force commander appeared on the holographic projection. Behind him were flashes of fire from explosions and flickering energy shields, clearly indicating a fierce battle.

"Report to headquarters! We are under attack! The enemy is—the enemy is the 12th Expeditionary Force!"

The twelve expeditionary soldiers they thought were dead reappeared and a war broke out between them.

Everyone in the command center was stunned. The Twelfth Expeditionary Force? The fleet that mysteriously disappeared into the depths of space a year ago? The fleet that everyone believed had been completely annihilated, its existence erased by some unknown force? They're still alive? And they're attacking their own people?

"Identification Friend or Foe signal confirmed!" Old Zhou's voice boomed through the communication channel, filled with disbelief and shock. "Are you sure that's the Twelfth Expeditionary Force? Could it be a disguise from another civilization?"

"Confirmed! IFF signals match perfectly! Ship numbers, armor sequence, communication frequencies—all belong to the Twelfth Expeditionary Force!" The Third Expeditionary Force commander's voice was filled with pain and confusion. "They ignored all calls, refused all communications, and launched a direct attack! Their weapons are far more powerful than we remember, their tactics are completely different from before—but they are the Twelfth Expeditionary Force!"

On the holographic projection, the battle scene flickered incessantly. Silver-white death warships clashed in the starry sky, black beams of death shockwaves colliding and unleashing devastating energy storms. Black death armor grappled in the starry sky, eerie blue shields colliding and emitting blinding light.

That was a war between humans, a massacre of fellow citizens.

Ultimately, the twelve expeditionary forces were defeated and disappeared.

The battle lasted a full six hours. The Third Expeditionary Force held an overwhelming numerical advantage—50,000 warships against 10,000, and 200,000 armored vehicles against 100,000. However, the Twelfth Expeditionary Force's combat effectiveness far exceeded expectations. Their Death Shockwave was more powerful, their Death Armor offered superior protection, and their tactical coordination was flawless.

The Third Expeditionary Force paid a heavy price to gain the upper hand. Five thousand warships were destroyed, twenty thousand armored vehicles were damaged in the battle, and tens of thousands of soldiers perished in the firepower of their compatriots. When the Third Expeditionary Force finally surrounded the Twelfth Expeditionary Force, that unseen force reappeared.

Without any warning, without any light, without any energy fluctuations, the 10,000 warships and 100,000 armored vehicles of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force vanished in an instant. Just as they disappeared a year ago, silently and without a trace.

When this message came back, there were also images of battle.

On the holographic projection, the battle scene was played repeatedly. Every frame was magnified, analyzed, and studied by experts from the Technology Alliance. The warships' numbers were clearly visible—they were indeed warships of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force; the serial numbers of the armor matched the records in the database perfectly—they were indeed armor of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force.

Those were indeed the warships and weapons of the Twelve Expeditionary Forces.

But their ways of behaving were completely different. Wang Zhen, the commander of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force, was one of the most loyal, brave, and protective generals of human civilization. He would not attack his own people without cause, would not leave any room for maneuver in battle, and would not abandon his comrades and flee alone after defeat.

They were controlled. Their thoughts, actions, and souls were controlled by some force.

"Find the Twelve Expeditionary Forces immediately. I need to know what happened."

Lin Feng decisively issued the order, his voice echoing in the command center with an unprecedented sense of urgency. The 12th Expeditionary Force was still alive—this was both good news and bad news. The good news was that the soldiers hadn't died and there was a possibility of them being rescued. The bad news was that they were being controlled by some force and were now at odds with human civilization.

The search fleet set off again, this time equipped with more advanced detection equipment and a more powerful combat force. Ten thousand Death Ships and one hundred thousand Death Armorers conducted a comprehensive search of the location where the Twelfth Expeditionary Force disappeared. Spatial fluctuation detectors were running at maximum power, time residue analyzers were operating continuously, and quantum trace trackers were not missing any suspicious signals.

But they never found the Twelve Expeditionary Forces; they seemed to have vanished into thin air once again.

Three days of searching, a week of searching, a month of searching. The result was exactly the same as a year ago—no trace, no residue, no clue. The Twelfth Expeditionary Force was as if it had been swallowed by the universe, completely evaporated from space and erased from time.

Lin Feng stood in front of the holographic projection in the command center, looking at the starry sky that had swallowed the Twelfth Expeditionary Force, his eyes flashing with complex light.

After this incident, Lin Feng and his group learned that the Twelve Expeditionary Forces were still alive, but they might be controlled by a mysterious force. This force should be extremely powerful and did not intend to be their enemy for the time being.

The appearance and disappearance of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force were both too bizarre. If they were truly controlled by some force, why didn't the entity controlling them simply use them to attack human civilization? Why send only one fleet? Why retreat immediately after suffering a defeat in battle?

It was a test. A test of the strength of human civilization. The being lurking in the shadows wanted to know how powerful human civilization was, how powerful the death shockwave was, and how high the defense of the Death Armor was. It sent the Twelfth Expeditionary Force as a pawn, a tool to test human civilization. Once it had obtained enough information, it took the pawn back.

This entity lurking in the shadows must be incredibly powerful. Powerful enough to easily control ten thousand warships and one hundred thousand armored vehicles; powerful enough to erase and recreate an entire fleet from the universe at will; powerful enough that even the most advanced detection technologies of human civilization cannot detect its presence.

But it doesn't intend to be an enemy of human civilization for the time being. Perhaps it's not ready yet, perhaps it's still observing, perhaps it's still waiting for something. But it will come sooner or later. When it feels the time is right, when it feels human civilization is powerful enough—it will strike and plunder everything human civilization has to offer.

Lin Feng had also guessed this scene and understood that the hidden force must be very powerful. Therefore, he could only research and develop stronger weapons as quickly as possible to protect humanity.

He stood at the porthole of the command center, looking at the sun two thousand times larger than the stars, at the fleets conquering the starry sky, and at the ever-increasing amount of origin energy on the holographic projection, his mind filled with countless thoughts.

The Twelfth Expeditionary Force is still alive, but they are under control. The entity lurking in the shadows possesses power beyond human comprehension. It doesn't attack proactively, but merely probes, observes, and waits. Human civilization must be faster than it, must possess the strength to confront it before it strikes.

"Pass down the order." Lin Feng's voice was deep and firm. "Accelerate the conquest plan. I need more cosmic essence, more technological data, and more powerful weapons. Restart the research on the Heavenly Emperor Weapon. This time, at all costs, we must complete the manufacture of the Heavenly Emperor Weapon in the shortest possible time."

"At the same time, we will focus all our efforts on developing the manufacturing technology of the universe's origin. If the Heavenly Emperor's weapon requires one hundred units of origin to fire once, then we will manufacture ten thousand, one hundred thousand, one million units of origin. When the Heavenly Emperor's weapon can fire infinitely, no matter what that hidden entity is, no matter how powerful it is—human civilization will be able to fight it."

"Also, continue tracking down the Twelfth Expeditionary Force. Those soldiers are our compatriots, our comrades, our families. They are being held captive, but it's not their fault. We must find them, we must rescue them, we must bring them home."

"Yes!" Everyone responded in unison, their voices echoing throughout the command center and the entire solar system.

In the starry sky, the sun, two thousand times larger than itself, radiated intense light. The light illuminated the conquering fleet, the research laboratories, and the resolute faces of every human warrior.

Brothers of the Twelfth Expeditionary Force, wait. Whatever controls you, no matter how powerful it is—human civilization will find you, rescue you, and bring you home. That day is not far off.