Chapter Thirty-Four: To Fight or to Retreat

Chen Nian turned his gaze toward Wang Yinlong.

Judging by the look on Wang Yinlong’s face, it was clear he had yet to grasp the gravity of the situation.

Chen Nian chose not to warn him. Whatever was happening near the Mechanical City would become clear soon enough as they advanced. On the vast grasslands, there was little chance of an ambush.

Once Wang Yinlong saw what lay ahead, he could decide whether to advance or retreat without hindrance.

…

The rest of the Space Force vanguard also caught sight of the majestic Mechanical City in the distance, and their pace quickened instinctively.

After about another hour’s march, figures began to appear on the endless prairie. These people emerged only to quickly retreat, running at astonishing speed.

They were clearly scouts.

Wang Yinlong frowned deeply and said to those beside him, “Help me up, I want to see what’s going on.”

At his command, Ye Qiang and several Space Force soldiers swiftly formed a human ladder and hoisted Wang Yinlong up.

“Damn!” he couldn’t help but curse when he saw the scene beneath the Mechanical City in the distance.

A vast sea of people stretched as far as the eye could see—there was no telling how many there were. Perhaps two hundred thousand, maybe five hundred thousand, or even a million. But certainly, it was more than a hundred thousand.

What’s more, there were two trailing lines of people still converging on either side of the mass, as if reinforcements were continually arriving.

…

“All units, rest in place!” Wang Yinlong shouted after jumping down from the human ladder.

By now, the other legion commanders had also glimpsed the distant scene and each wore a grave expression.

It was true that many foreigners had entered the Virtual Realm, but most belonged to private groups, not regular armies, for they still faced military pressures outside. Scattered private groups, divided by coordinate points and unable to communicate, could never amass such a crowd in so short a time.

The only possibility was that before entering, many countries had already coordinated, exchanging base coordinates, so that upon a major discovery within the Virtual Realm, they could rapidly assemble a coalition force.

“They’re really going all out… Yinlong, what do we do?” The others turned to Wang Yinlong, leaving the decision to him.

With his back to everyone, Wang Yinlong felt the urge to light a cigarette.

In his twenty years of service, he had never imagined he’d face a situation like this.

Should they simply fight?

He turned to look behind him.

Behind him were countless young faces.

As the elite of Huaxia’s Space Force, these young men were paragons in every respect.

They were vigorous, deadly accurate marksmen, masters of military equipment, and each possessed at least one specialized skill.

Most crucially, their faith was ironclad.

This was the core force Huaxia had painstakingly built up over the years, the mainstay of the nation’s Virtual Realm campaign.

In a real-world war, it would take an enemy five to ten times their number to defeat such a force.

But here, in the Virtual Realm…

Looking at the determined expressions on those young faces, Wang Yinlong hesitated.

He knew these men were mentally prepared for what might come.

Yet, the more prepared they seemed, the harder it was for him to make a decision.

A dangerous thought crept into his mind: Perhaps… not to fight this time? Wait until next time, when more people could be assembled…

Then, let the new recruits go first.

If, in the future, they could enter the Mechanical City and obtain advanced mechanical technology, the preserved core of the Space Force would quickly regain its strength.

As for the new recruits…

What could they possibly do?

“Damn!”

Wang Yinlong drove his stone spear into the ground in frustration.

Ye Qiang stepped forward to persuade him, “Commander, we have to seize this opportunity to take the Mechanical City! If we hold back now, by the next entry, the whole world will know the city’s coordinates. They could amass millions here—maybe more! For us, gathering such numbers in a short time would be nearly impossible. But if we defeat them now, even if they try to mobilize millions next time, it would take time. We’d have enough to build fortifications. Then, with defenses in place, a few million might be enough to hold the city.”

Wang Yinlong shot Ye Qiang an angry glare. “Ye Qiang, you make it sound so easy—millions, tens of millions! So clever, aren’t you?”

“I…” Ye Qiang fell silent, abashed.

Wang Yinlong looked again toward the Mechanical City.

He saw the same situation as Ye Qiang did.

If they didn’t fight now, the next opening of the Virtual Realm would bring a battle of tens of millions.

And if they didn’t hold the advantage then, would they even dare to fight?

If they hesitated again, would the Mechanical City not fall into someone else’s hands?

Strike while the iron is hot; after the first surge, morale wanes, and after the third, it’s gone.

As commander of the Silver Dragon Legion, Wang Yinlong understood this truth well.

If they faltered now, and even greater numbers became entangled the next time, would they still have the courage to fight?

The enemy had just begun, and already they had formed a coalition. If their momentum wasn’t curbed now, they would become unstoppable in the future.

He took a deep breath, his expression turning fierce.

“Comrades, the whole world knows how many men our Space Force has! If the enemy doesn’t dare to meet us head-on, it means they’re uncertain. Besides, they haven’t even taken control of the teleportation array—they don’t want a real fight! They’re only trying to intimidate us, to make us back down! But the words ‘back down’ don’t exist in the Space Force’s dictionary! The more they hesitate, the more we advance! We are the elite of Huaxia—if we don’t dare move forward, who will? Forward, everyone! Let’s see if they retreat!”

With that, he marched at the head of his troops toward the Mechanical City.

The eleven legions followed, a grand army of hundreds of thousands advancing in force.

The gap between the two massive crowds narrowed with every passing moment.

…

Meanwhile, outside.

Ye Guangyu silently watched the giant projection hovering above the plaza.

Half of the allotted three hours had passed, and so far, there had been no casualties—a welcome relief.

But just then, the hundreds of thousands of green dots on the projection suddenly began to flicker violently.

Ye Guangyu’s expression darkened.

“What’s happening?”

A technician hurried over to report, “Everyone’s heart rate is spiking; their adrenaline levels are soaring…”

“Everyone?”

“All but two thousand.”

Ye Guangyu’s fist clenched involuntarily.

He knew exactly what such a surge in adrenaline meant.

So many people’s adrenaline rising all at once…

Wang Yinlong, just what are you doing in there?