The Last Sentinel

Lao Qi swore that the "airplane" they were talking about was not an airplane at all!

This thing has a large ship-like shape, almost like a fat-bellied fish. Its entire design is completely aerodynamic, yet it can fly, and at a very high speed!

Looking out the porthole at the sea, the blue waves surged, and dolphins and killer whales could be seen leaping out of the water from time to time!

"This is definitely not an airplane!"

"It's impossible for an aircraft to cruise at such a low altitude, skimming close to the sea!"

"This must be the legendary spaceship!"

A middle-aged voice came from beside Lao Qi.

The man speaking was around forty years old, dressed in a bespoke Armani suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, looking every bit the domineering CEO of a successful listed company.

The seventh brother politely asked, "Are you also an invited player?"

The domineering CEO chuckled and said, "Who here isn't an invited player?"

The seventh brother said, "Judging by eldest brother's taste in clothes, he probably doesn't lack that million!"

The domineering CEO laughed, "Of course, I don't lack that million, or even a hundred million. I'm here purely to prove my abilities!"

At that moment, a lazy male voice came from the front row: "Prove what my ass! Do you think we don't know your level?"

The domineering CEO addressed the players in the front row, asking, "Who are you?"

A young male voice said from the other end, "SLG, [Land of Glory] Strategy, Hua Xiaobai."

The domineering CEO's face instantly flushed red. "It's you, you little brat! You've caused our league to lose the Player of the Year award for two consecutive years!"

The young man calmly stood up and waved to everyone in the vast spaceship cabin, saying, "Everyone, everyone! Please look at me! I have something to announce!"

Everyone looked at the young man named Hua Xiaobai.

Hua Xiaobai pointed at the CEO and said, "Let me introduce you to a celebrity in the gaming world. He's the guild leader of the SLG game 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms,' specifically the 'Support the Han Dynasty' guild. He's also the mastermind behind the scenes, the powerful 'Flowing Light.' You all know his nickname: the famous 'Brother 80' from 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms'!"

These words caused an uproar in the room.

"Holy crap! Brother 80? You mean that guy who owed the road paving crew eighty dollars?"

"Didn't they say that Brother 80 went bankrupt and retired from the entertainment industry?"

"I heard that Brother 80's younger brother usurped the family fortune! It seems it's true! That's why he's working with me for a million!"

"Brother 80! I've heard so much about you! Although your reputation is tarnished, there's no denying that your fame is truly immense!"

"Brother 80, will you ever start a guild again? We brothers can be your high-ranking members. We'll never be as greedy as your previous underlings. We'll only take 50 out of a million!"

"..."

Immediately, boos erupted, and Brother 80's domineering CEO face was utterly humiliated.

Fortunately, at that moment, a voice came from the spaceship: "Attention all super players, please fasten your seatbelts, we are about to arrive at the [Kunpeng] space carrier."

Before the words were even finished, the spaceship suddenly pulled up and shot vertically into the sky like a rainbow. Under the immense gravity, the cabin was completely silent, and everyone's heart was pounding.

A scream rang out, "Look out the window! What a huge ship! A giant steel warship flying in the sky!"

Everyone looked out the window. In the clouds, the steel behemoth [Kunpeng] slowly revealed its majestic appearance. Huge watchtowers and soaring sanitation sentry robots surrounded it. On the huge mecha dock, two colossal mechas were parked, one light blue and the other white gold. Their massive bodies radiated dazzling flames.

"It's a mech! My God! What am I seeing! A mech!"

"This Jaeger is way cooler than the ones in Pacific Rim!"

"Can someone tell me, am I still on Earth? This feels more like science fiction!"

"Look! There are people on the ship's side! Those people are wearing futuristic combat suits, so cool!"

Old Seven clung tightly to the window, staring at the steel behemoth in the clouds, completely dumbfounded.

The domineering CEO, 80, beside him remained calm. "This is the new world I've always dreamed of. This is the truth of this world. I've always firmly believed that our civilization is not just a world for ordinary people. There must be a deeper world, a more advanced human circle. And it's just as I imagined. This kind of technology, these kinds of warships, are what make it a deeper world!"

The spaceship's AI voice boomed, "The spaceship is preparing to land. All players, please prepare to disembark. Staff will escort you for a rest period. Please abide by the battlefield rules of the space carrier base: do not make loud noises, do not record videos, and do not whisper to each other..."

The spaceship slowly landed on the dock.

Inside the command center of the space carrier base.

Zhao Donglai and the deputy commander watched through the window of the command room as the spaceship landed, the hatch opened, and players walked out one by one, their faces full of shock and curiosity. They walked around, stopping and starting, finding everything new and interesting.

Zhao Donglai crossed his arms and said, "Looking at them reminds me of how I looked when I first came to the Human Alliance."

The vice-captain chuckled, "Sir, you've now become a pillar of the Human Alliance, the supreme commander leading a war! But sir, I still have serious doubts. What can these game-playing slackers possibly do? This is the real world, not an online game; it's not something you can achieve with a flick of a finger! Many of them probably have very poor six-dimensional attributes, barely qualifying for a high rating! Even if they went to the Secondary Ancient Continent, they would only be a burden, dragging the Sentinels down!"

Zhao Donglai recited a line: "To accept what is inevitable as fate is the highest virtue."

"To understand that one can act freely and without restraint is the ultimate attainment of the Way."

The vice-captain paused for a moment, then said, "Knowing that some things cannot be changed and accepting them with equanimity is the highest level of being human."

"The highest level of doing things is to understand that you can make your own decisions and be able to do them freely."

"This is a sentence from the chapter 'Human World' in the Zhuangzi."

"What the commander means is that you are prepared for the failure of Perfect City, and can even accept failure with equanimity."

"The sentry can be completely autonomous; he can act freely, which is the highest level of a sentry's ability to do things."

Zhao Donglai said, "Prepare the latest version of Compound No. 5 and inject them."

The first mate frowned and said, "But, sir, Compound V is unstable. Although it can stimulate the genetic potential of humans or animals and give users superpowers, its effects vary from person to person and come with high risks, such as mental disorders, shortened lifespan, and the spread of cell mutations."

Zhao Donglai said, "Then let's use Compound No. 5, which has the defect of shortened lifespan."

The vice-captain said, "Then their lifespan may be less than ten years."

Zhao Donglai said, "Whether they can survive the upcoming battle of the secondary ancient continent is still uncertain. Their lifespan deficiency is not considered a deficiency by them."

The vice-captain nodded. "Sir, you're right. It would be good if eighty out of eight hundred survived."

Zhao Donglai said, "Even if eighty survive, the ten years following the Battle of Perfect City will be enough time for the Sentinels to develop a new Compound V. The defects of Compound V will be remedied by technology, and humanity will usher in a new era of full-scale evolution through the injection of Compound V!"

The vice-captain replied, "Understood, I'll take care of it right away."