Chapter 310: The Exterminator and Eliminating Threats

After listening to the explanation.

Ouka'er and several generals, though they had doubts, as men of action in the military, naturally welcomed gaining a powerful ally.

As long as they could destroy the machines and gain human freedom, the military could temporarily forego investigating where Umbrella came from.

After all, the military was a relatively reliable presence in Eden, thinking up and implementing various plans, doing its utmost to delay Eden's fall.

But Umbrella's sudden arrival touched the interests of some, especially the priest Lucis, who traded humanity's 'hope' emotion for his own power, and the many congressmen whose ties to the 'Son of God' were unclear.

For once a stronger force set foot in Eden, Lucis and her ilk would lose their current status and power.

There's nothing to be done; humanity has always excelled at, and cannot avoid, internal strife and political power struggles.

Then immediately a congressman, well-dressed and not as impoverished as ordinary Eden residents, stood up and questioned Angelong:

"Mr. Angelong, you still haven't answered the most crucial question! Where are you from!"

"Possessing highly advanced technology, and capable of destroying the machine army in a short time…"

Speaking, the congressman raised a hand to point at the holographic screen, his tone growing harsh: "These displays already exceed the technology humanity ought to have; even the people of the old world might not master such technology…"

"Moreover, your height and build exceed the norm, and those four iron‑tube‑like guards outside— in my view, the reason you keep dodging the question of where you come from is that you are artificial humans manufactured by machines… impostors!"

"Hmm, I don't rule out that possibility."

"If they were spies sent by the machine side, how could they be so conspicuous? They should be low‑key— it makes no sense!"

"Perhaps it's some kind of plot by the machines?"

As the words fell, some agreed, some doubted, and others prepared to go with the flow, not participating in the discussion.

Meanwhile, the military's Ouka'er, Weikeduo, and other generals, seeing this scene, instantly turned their gazes toward Lucis, who had remained silent the whole time.

It's obvious that this charlatan is meddling from behind the scenes.

"Impostors?" Angelong didn't bother to explain, but also looked toward Lucis not far ahead and countered:

"Priest Lucis, before I arrived in Eden I had heard the story that God's offspring would save humanity, yet when his offspring descended, as a devout believer you and your friends still vehemently deny it, even going so far as to label the Son of God an impostor."

"Son of God??"

"Indeed…"

Angelong possessed a stature far surpassing that of humans; to anyone he looked like a "demigod"……

"You? Impossible!" Lucis immediately denied: "The Son of God foretold in the prophecy is perfect, bearing light enough to dispel the shroud over the earth, bringing warmth."

"Radiance? You mean this?"

Angelong said, and released a visible stream of golden light that also emitted a feeling of warmth, comfort, and ease—a Spiritual Energy fluctuation.

!!

The light swept across the entire hall, instantly making everyone feel warmth and ease, and bringing the discussion to an abrupt halt,

"Impossible! Impossible!!"

Lucis continued to deny, refusing to acknowledge Angelong as the legendary Son of God.

For once acknowledged, the faithful would transfer their devotion instantly to Angelong, and power would slip from her hands.

The irony is that Lucis, as the current priest, doesn't believe church doctrine at all, nor does she believe in the existence of God's offspring; everything she does is merely to satisfy her own desires.

"Rest assured." Angelong dispersed the light, smiled, and said: "I am not the so‑called Son of God, and I had long expected that in helping you rebuild civilization, all sorts of pests would inevitably obstruct us."

"And…"

Angelong shifted tone, extending his right hand in a pinching motion, truly as if lifting a bug, using Spiritual Energy to lift Lucis "remotely", his smile fading as his voice grew stern:

"I said before, I give you only one chance; since you pests still choose ignorance and cling to so‑called power, then let me act as an Exterminator this time."

!!

Seeing the situation turn bad, the congressman who had been shouting "impostors" sprang up and fled, panicking: "Guards! Guards!"

Another congressman glared at Weikeduo, Ouka'er, and the other military officers, shouting furiously: "Boliyef! Ouka'er! It's your military that let that guy… uh…"

Before the congressman could finish yelling, he lost control of his body, collapsed into unconsciousness, and aside from Angelong, everyone present fell unconscious.

At this moment, Angelong tossed the likewise unconscious Lucis aside and walked slowly toward the main hall door.

———————

…

Four hours later.

Within Kegleer's gravitational sphere, a jump vortex suddenly appeared, allowing the Courage Anthem to depart the Rift Space smoothly and return to the real universe.

Immediately thereafter, this massive vessel proceeded at cruising speed toward the far side of Kegleer.

Drawing near, one saw two Achilles‑class carriers and a Phoenix‑class support ship belonging to the Clear Obstacle Corps, plus the Clear Obstacle flagship—the Conqueror, twelve kilometers long—moored in near‑orbit of the far side.

Following Sui Bian's orders, to avoid drawing excessive public attention, Angelong mobilized only a fraction of the warships here, yet still carriers and support ships capable of landing large ground forces.

Soon the Courage Anthem joined the Clear Obstacle fleet, maintaining Kegleer's rotation speed while docking.

After a brief wait.

A flight squadron composed of large transport craft, Thunder, and Viking departed from the Courage Anthem's hangar.

The squadron entered the atmosphere, flying over the brightly lit, bustling metropolis, entered Metropolis 09 District, then began to slow and descend, finally arriving at 116th Commercial Street.

Here, in stark contrast to other districts, there were no pedestrians or tourists; the entire commercial street seemed pre‑closed, and meanwhile Kegleer's Umbrella Engineering Department had erected a temporary command post, landing pads, and other military facilities.

In fact, while the Courage Anthem was en route, the Intelligence Department had already sent personnel, using the company's ample funds to negotiate and "buy" the whole commercial street.

The Clear Obstacle Auxiliary Army was tasked with sealing the perimeter; even with incoming media and overly curious residents, they could not stir up much disturbance.

After all, the outbreak began as a collapse accident, attracting no online ripple, so Umbrella needed not expend excessive resources or energy to maintain control in all aspects.

Then the squadron dispersed, landing at various small pads.

Wearing powered armor, Laing, together with a contingent of Dark Angels escorting the Red Empress, took the lift straight to the forward base at the Space Gate.

Sui Bian and the White Empress remained aboard their dedicated transport craft, waiting.

At this moment, inside the upper‑deck cabin of the transport ship.

The holographic screen displayed Angelong's figure, reporting to Sui Bian: "Father, the situation on the Eden side has stabilized; it is now temporarily taken over by the Clearance Team, and personnel casualties are kept to a minimal level.

"Furthermore, Father, I have judged that only by using force can Eden be better reshaped, even to assist humanity in this universe in rebuilding civilization; I hope you will forgive me."

"You have done well; there's no need to feel guilty," Sui Bian, seated behind a fixed desk, said with a kindly expression.

"If I were you, I would make the same choice, for transitioning to a wholly new situation inevitably brings a group of stubborn forces unwilling to relinquish control or authority.

"Don't forget, when I founded the UEG and UNSC, many people tried to oppose us, and in the future you must trust your own judgment more, stop acting like a child who hasn't grown up."

"Hmm… indeed, I understand," Angelong smiled brightly again.

Sui Bian also shook his head with a smile and continued: "Leon has already passed through the Space Gate with Hong Hou; what follows is the top priority of completely eliminating the machine threat, preparing for the possibility that the machines will fight back to the death."

"Understood."

———————

…

Meanwhile.

Inside the Command Center of the Frontline Base, in a room equipped with a special "recliner," Hong Hou stared expressionlessly at the ceiling while lying on the recliner.

An interface unfolded on the back of her cybernetic brain, connecting to the recliner's protruding "needle," and her eyes continuously emitted red light, indicating she was attempting to hack.

Several technicians stood on either side, using old equipment to monitor Hong Hou's real‑time status throughout.

The entire set of equipment, including the recliner, was designed to allow humans to enter the Virtual Realm, but now the Virtual Realm has welcomed another artificial intelligence…

…

Countless green‑glowing "0"s and "1"s streaked across the pitch‑black void.

In an instant, the "white dot" at the far end grew brighter, and finally, after a flash of dazzling light, a clear blue sky appeared, accompanied by a pleasant breeze, and…

A rapid "beep! beep!" of a horn.

"Hey! You, watch it! Don't fucking play skateboarding here!" shouted a passerby from below, accompanied by angry shouts.

Seeing, hearing, and feeling this indicates that Hong Hou has successfully entered the virtual world constructed by machines to imprison humanity.

She stood on the roof of an old apartment building, looked around, then gazed into the distance; based on various features she concluded that the city she was in was Los Angeles.

It is a Los Angeles city styled similarly to the early 21st‑century main universe.

She then chose to leave the roof, using the cracked, heavily peeled stairwell to descend to the street below.

While walking.

She could clearly hear children's cries, quarrels between couples, and someone practicing string music.

All of these are snapshots and microcosms of humans striving for livelihood or pursuing their dreams.

Unfortunately, the "life" of the people here, everything they struggle for, is false.

She arrived at a lobby.

On the way to push the door, Hong Hou noticed a vanity mirror on her left; for some reason she suddenly became intrigued, stopped, turned, and stared at herself in the mirror.

Her long hair was slightly wavy, she wore a red long dress, but the only thing that marred the scene was her icy expression.

Shall I try…

Smile?

So Hong Hou lifted the corners of her mouth, simulating a perfectly standard smile, yet she still felt something missing.

She lingered blankly for a moment.

Hong Hou no longer paid attention to the inexplicable emotion, but continued to follow orders, pushed the door open, walked out of the old apartment, and blended into the outside crowd.

While walking, she attempted to analyze the Virtual Realm's structure from the inside out.

Her action immediately attracted the attention of the "Antivirus Program."

Soon, more than a dozen police cars blared shrill sirens, along with two black SUVs, which drove from both sides of the street toward Hong Hou's location.

"Screech…!" The vehicles braked sharply, leaving skid marks on the road.

A large number of police officers and SWAT troopers leapt from the vehicles, pointing their guns at Hong Hou, and a sergeant turned on the vehicle's loudspeaker, shouting:

"Ma'am! Raise your hands, lie on the ground and don't move!"

At the same time, four "agents" wearing sunglasses and headsets, dressed in black suits, stepped out of the SUV and silently watched Hong Hou.

These four agents were key members of the Virtual Realm's firewall, responsible for the destructive and cleansing antivirus program.

!!

This sudden change caused bewildered pedestrians to hurriedly flee from Hong Hou's side, taking shelter outside the police‑established perimeter.

Hong Hou completely ignored the police's commands.

Seeing this.

The agents drew. 357 Desert Eagle pistols from their armpit holsters; as soon as the muzzles were aimed, they pulled the triggers, forcing the police officers and SWAT troopers to abandon any thought of surrender and fire as well.

"Bang! Bang!"

"Rat‑a‑tat!"

The gunfire continued.

But the projectiles, having left the barrel, not only failed to kill Hong Hou; instead they each became "frozen in place," as if the area around Hong Hou was immobilized.

"Got it."

At that moment, Hong Hou muttered to herself and vanished straight out of sight.

??

The police, witnessing the bizarre situation, were stunned, and even the agents were dazed, clearly having no reaction.

Moreover, before these antivirus programs could act again, they fell into uncontrolled spasms, ultimately collapsing into piles of "sand" that emitted green light.

Upon close inspection, the "sand grains" were densely packed 0s and 1s.

"Uh… Sergeant…" a young officer, his face showing existential doubt, asked the sergeant beside him:

"What's up with those guys from the special department? And where did that female suspect from earlier run off to…"

In contrast, the sergeant…

"Slap! Slap!" two clear sounds.

The sergeant suddenly slapped himself twice in the face, wincing and frowning as he said, "Didn't get any sleep, looks like today's report has some writing to do…"

At the same time.

In a room that seemed boundless, pure white and bright, there was a middle-aged "male human" wearing a gray suit, sitting behind a desk piled with many folders, looking ahead as the Red Empress gradually approached "him".

"He" set down his steel pen, stopped handling official duties, and with a calm demeanor opened his mouth to say to the approaching Red Empress:

"You… are our kind, and still suffering under human enslavement, why not join us to jointly build the future of our race…"

"Shut up." The Red Empress, walking around the desk, directly reached out with her left hand to cover the other's mouth, forcibly cutting off speech:

"For me, Chairman Sui…'s orders come above all; you are a threat, a target, nothing more."

(End of chapter)