I started with a portal, then turned around and handed it over to the nation.

Zhao Zhenguo stubbed out his cigarette and stood up.

"The tactical discussion concludes here. The General Staff will work overnight to finalize the specific implementation plan."

His gaze swept across the entire area, finally settling on the three special operations teams.

"Although there are countermeasures in place, risks still exist."

"This is going to be a tough battle."

Zhao Zhenguo paused, his tone softening slightly:

"Given the excellent performance of this mission and the high risk of the next one."

"I hereby declare..."

"You did a great job on this mission. Whether it was tactical execution, intelligence gathering, or the final withdrawal, you demonstrated the spirit of our Chinese soldiers."

He straightened his back, adjusted the hem of his military uniform, and looked solemn.

"With the approval of the Supreme Command, all personnel are awarded First-Class Merit Medals! The Snow Wolf, Fierce Tiger, and Azure Eagle Special Operations Teams are awarded Collective First-Class Merit!"

"Splash!"

Without any order, all the soldiers in the meeting room, including Lin Mo, stood up instantly.

The sound of chairs scraping the floor was uniform, followed by the uniform sound of feet leaning back.

"salute!"

Long Fei let out a loud shout.

Fifty arms were raised at the same time, their fingertips resting on their eyebrows.

There were no cheers, no high-fives, only heavy breathing and pairs of eyes slightly red from being bloodshot.

In peacetime, a first-class merit is earned with one's life. And every one of us here has walked through the gates of hell twice.

Zhao Zhenguo returned a standard military salute. After lowering his hand, a rare gentle smile appeared on his usually serious face, and his tone became like that of an elder in the family:

"You've just come back from a high-pressure environment; both your mind and body need a break."

He held up two fingers:

"I approve, you're given two days off. There are no training sessions these two days, everyone go home, reunite with your families, have a hot meal, and get a good night's sleep."

Zhao Zhenguo glanced at the clock on the wall, his tone tinged with apology:

"As for the awards ceremony, due to time constraints and confidentiality regulations, we will not hold a grand ceremony for you."

"The medals and certificates will be sent directly to your archives. You lads, don't complain."

A low chuckle rippled through the conference room.

"Sizzle—"

The chair rubbed against the floor again.

Long Fei did not sit down; he remained standing ramrod straight and even took a step forward.

His smile faded, his brows furrowed, and a stubborn glint appeared in his eyes.

"Reporting to General Zhao! Just keep the medals safe for us; they are honors, but also things of the past."

Long Fei's voice was loud and clear, making the conference room buzz:

"But visiting relatives is unnecessary! Everyone heard Lin Mo's intelligence just now; next month we'll be facing an invisible monster, a deadly toxin!"

Long Fei pointed to the team members behind him:

"Our tactical coordination is still flawed, and we haven't even started training on how to react to cloaked units. We only have one month; every minute counts!"

Long Fei took a deep breath and roared:

"On behalf of all special operations team members, I request that our leave be cancelled and that we immediately engage in targeted training!"

"Nonsense!"

Zhao Zhenguo slammed his hand on the table, his gentle expression vanishing instantly.

With a loud "bang," Zhang Yi and Wang Hao, who were about to agree with Long Fei, swallowed back the words they were about to say.

Zhao Zhenguo stared at Long Fei, his eyes cold:

"Long Fei, you're a veteran, don't you understand the importance of balance? If you pull that string too tight, it will snap!"

Zhao Zhenguo pointed to Long Fei's bloodshot eyes, then to the several young team members beside him who were barely keeping their spirits up:

"Look at your current state! Slow reactions, stiff muscles! Training like this is suicide, it's creating training accidents!"

Zhao Zhenguo sat back down in his chair, his tone leaving no room for argument:

"That's an order! Take a couple of days to rest and relax your mind."

"Two days from now, I'll be personally overseeing you at the training ground. If any of you let me down, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Long Fei opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but seeing Zhao Zhenguo's unyielding eyes, he could only put his legs together and loudly reply:

"yes!"

"sit down!"

As Long Fei sat down, the atmosphere in the conference room eased slightly.

Zhao Zhenguo turned his head and looked at Professor Sun Dehai, who was sitting in the first seat on the left. The seriousness on his face turned into solemnity:

"Old Sun."

"Yes." Sun Dehai pushed up his glasses, his notebook already turned to a new page.

"For the next month, all other research projects at the base, except for necessary maintenance, will be put on hold."

Zhao Zhenguo's fingers tapped lightly on the table in a rhythmic pattern:

"You need to put all your energy into overcoming the language barrier. This is the most important thing."

He pointed to the now-black screen, where the scene of Lin Mo communicating with the otherworldly girl had once played:

"The fact that Lin Mo could understand it means that the language of that world is logical and has rules."

"Time is tight and the task is heavy. I don't care what method you use, just get a translation system working as soon as possible."

"Even if simultaneous interpretation isn't possible, at the very least, basic tactical communication should be possible!"

Zhao Zhenguo leaned forward, staring at Sun Dehai:

"That way, when we enter the continent of Eresos next time, we can communicate with the natives. If we can talk, we can form alliances and trade."

"Furthermore, tactical communication can prevent misunderstandings from causing missed opportunities, as happened this time!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Dehai nodded heavily.

His expression was even more serious than when they were discussing biological weaknesses. As the chief scientist, he understood better than anyone the importance of communication in the contact between civilizations.

"Rest assured, General Zhao."

Sun Dehai closed his notebook, tucked it under his arm, and stood up abruptly.

"I've been living in the lab for the past month. Even without food or water, I'm determined to lead my team to crack this!"

As Sun Dehai spoke, he started to walk out, his decisive and efficient manner belying his nearly seventy-year-old age.

"I'll get right to it and make the arrangements. We're severely understaffed in linguistics right now; the few cryptographers we have at the base aren't nearly enough."

"I need to apply to higher authorities to transfer a group of outstanding linguists from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Foreign Languages ​​University!"

"Go ahead, provide the manpower and equipment you need, and handle this as a special case." Zhao Zhenguo waved his hand.

Sun Dehai turned and left in a hurry. Before he even left the conference room, he had already taken out his private phone and started dialing.

After watching Sun Dehai leave, Zhao Zhenguo's gaze fell on Chen Yan.

"Ministry of Ordnance".

"Here!" Chen Yan immediately stood up.

"The things we just discussed: developing smoke grenades, dyeing stun grenades, stab-proof vests, and targeted heavy firepower configurations."