Chapter 554: Another Contest with Bleem

The two returned to Base One and found that Polina did not care about other matters at all; she was fiddling with her own things as if no one else were around. As for everything around her, or even death, she simply did not care. The ease and smile on her face were not a disguise. That Polina... she could hardly be considered a normal person.

"Li Ge, is it possible not to kill her..." Romero said upon seeing Polina, his gaze softening involuntarily whenever he looked at her.

"What are you saying? The war is already over, and your plan of enduring humiliation to carry out your mission was a great success," Li Wu smiled. "The great Mars Warrior Romero sacrificed his own interests, went undercover on Kepler, used me as bait at the critical moment, defeated Nangong Yuhang, and saved humanity. Isn't this ending quite good?"

Romero was dumbfounded. Could he really spin it like that???

Li Hao patted Romero. He had intended to pat his shoulder, but given the current height difference, he could only reach his waist. "Brother, you are the true hero!"

Romero's body trembled slightly, and his eyes reddened. He had been seen through; he had no secrets left. The reason he had cooperated so much with Nangong Yuhang was never for any revenge. He was a Mars Warrior. Nangong Yuhang wanted to destroy humanity and destroy Mars, so he was his enemy. In fact, there was no need for any reason at all, but a true Warrior simply could not say so many high-sounding words. People like them just did things silently.

Romero looked up and sighed, conceding. "Li Ge, I am not a hero. The true heroes are already buried on Kepler."

Li Hao fell silent. That was true; what did they count for? This was the greatness of humanity. Every tiny Spirit was a real existence. If one abandoned everything and ultimately gained eternal life and infinite power, what would be left of living? Only boundless, endless loneliness. Sometimes he also did not understand why Nangong Yuhang was so crazy. Wasn't it good to just be a Human?

"What do you plan to do from now on?" Li Wu asked, looking at Romero's condition. "I wonder if there is a way to reverse it?"

"I don't know. Actually, it doesn't matter. Isn't this quite cool now? Besides, I have never cared about the eyes of others. My mission is complete; living is living, no matter how."

Li Hao smiled. "Everyone has their own way of living. The key is to live happily; why care about the eyes of others? The process might be a bit painful, but sooner or later we have to learn to coexist with other civilizations."

Romero looked at the sky. "Except for you, I fear no one. But don't worry, I was also a Human once. If they cannot tolerate me, I will hide. If that fails, I will just leave."

In the air, Giant Insects began to fall one by one, and the Giant Insects that were hunting the five squads on the ground suddenly lost their targets and scattered in an instant. The Insectoids, sensing Romero's consciousness, quickly gathered toward him. Most were clones; after being fast-tracked, they became Insectoids. Their only meaning for living was to execute orders. After Theseus and Nangong Yuhang fell, Romero, the only Second-Turn Insect God General, became the Supreme Leader.

Depuya and Perkins, this pair of brothers-in-arms, were responsible for covering the retreat and had already been surrounded. Their Mecha were damaged, and Perkins had just blocked a claw for Depuya. "Damn it, I didn't need you to block that!"

"Just shut up, at a time like this! I'll charge, you see if you can break out. If one of us lives, that counts." Perkins was truly annoyed by this guy whose mouth never closed; it would probably stay that way until he breathed his last.

"Bullshit, if we die, we die together! I always thought I'd die with a beauty, never expected it to be you!" As he spoke, Depuya took out a Giant Insect.

"Make do with it. I don't want to be with a loudmouth like you either, not even in death."

Looking at the endless stream of Giant Insects rushing over, Depuya knew he was done for. "Brother, see you in the next life."

"Haha, good! Let's fight these bastards to the end!"

Just as the two were about to risk their lives in a final struggle, the Giant Insects suddenly scattered and fled, leaving Depuya and Perkins staring at each other in confusion...

Dita's side was a bit better; her Precognition Ability really played a huge role, helping them avoid the main forces. Zuo Xiaotang's Mimicry Ability was even more terrifying; he directly revealed his Second Personality and unleashed Range Mimicry, dodging wave after wave of Giant Insect sweeps. Just like that, he actually led the team close to Base One, then watched from afar as Base One exploded, followed by the collapse of the Giant Insects.

Chao Qinglong's side was in a fierce battle; their entire team had been pinned down. Chao Qinglong took the lead. In this life-or-death battle, Nine-Headed Dragon displayed terrifying combat power, holding off the Giant Insects and Insectoids in an entire direction single-handedly; almost no one was a match for him. Chao Qinglong did not like to talk, but he was a giant of action. You can always trust Chao Qinglong.

The situation for Maxis and Basta was much the same. Those from Tianqi did not fear death; death was a release, and living was for the Warriors. They had to fight because they believed that person would definitely succeed!

This was the Faith of every Tianqi Human.

Seeing the situation becoming increasingly critical, everyone's nerves were stretched to the limit. At the moment of life and death, the Giant Insects suddenly lost their fighting spirit and fled frantically, while some simply collapsed on the spot, losing all combat capability.

The moment the battle ended, everyone was exhausted. The breath they had been holding was suddenly released. They... had survived. This situation likely meant only one thing: they had won...

But just as everyone thought they were about to welcome victory, Li Wu suddenly looked toward the sky, his heart skipping a beat.

... It's over.

The battle in Space ended slower than on the ground. After Theseus disappeared, the Giant Insects continued to fight under the influence of the Brain Insect; this was a characteristic of the Giant Insect system. When the top-level control "disappears" or is "shielded," they continue to fight for a period of time. It was at this moment that Makemu activated the Janibekov Cannon. The Anti-matter Energy that humanity had accumulated for years was activated all at once, firing a shot toward the Kepler Planet. This was also the first time this Forbidden Weapon had been used in actual combat.

Every Human warship seemed to stand still at this moment. With the battle reaching this point, if this planetary Forbidden Weapon were not used, the Expeditionary Army would not escape the fate of total annihilation. The Janibekov Cannon was the only thing that could turn the tide of the war.

The Rolling Slaughter also successfully tore open a gap, providing space for the cannon to fire. The terrifying energy oscillation caused the Space Fortress's power to drop drastically, and the shockwaves brought by the energy caused surrounding warships to malfunction. The Giant Insects in Space also relied on instinct to sense destruction. If this shot hit, all life on the Kepler Planet would become history. Of course, those Warriors participating in the airdrop would also sacrifice themselves; under such a Forbidden Weapon, no life could survive.

Makemu and the others had grave expressions. Whether this shot succeeded or failed, they would have to bear a heavy psychological burden. Living was not necessarily easier than dying, but in this position, the fate of humanity was in their hands. He had to fire this shot.

Makemu took out his treasured revolver. Once the war ended, this would be his atonement for the sacrificed Warriors. Merit or blame would be left to history. As a Human commander, he had to do what he had to do.

The Giant Insect swarm abandoned the Human Warriors beside them and rushed frantically toward the Space Fortress, forming layers of barriers in an attempt to use their flesh to block the Janibekov Cannon. The Human Warriors also knew that this was a life-or-death moment; everyone was risking their lives to block the Giant Insects. In a clash of civilizations, there was no such thing as luck; only victory could grant the right to continue surviving.

In this life-or-death minute, the war entered its most tragic stage. And just at this moment,

The energy of the Janibekov Cannon successfully penetrated the Giant Insects' obstruction and shot into the near-Earth orbit of the Kepler Planet. Success!

The eyes of the Warriors on the Space Fortress were filled with complexity and tension. Coming to this war, every Warrior had been prepared. This was their last hope. They had finally succeeded, humanity!

Humanity has... survived...

？？？？？？

Just at this moment, a massive spaceship suddenly flashed into the near-Earth orbit of the Kepler Planet, a... never-before-seen Ring-shaped Spaceship. In an instant, the spaceship blocked the Magnetic Cannon of the Janibekov...?

Then, all the energy of the Janibekov Cannon was swallowed by the Ring-shaped Spaceship and disappeared without a trace.

At this moment, the entire Space Fortress was dumbfounded. Pang Pai's cigar even dangled to the ground. An unprecedented fear enveloped humanity. Everyone even suspected they were hallucinating, but how could the Janibekov Cannon just disappear?

Just at this moment, the Giant Insects in Space seemed to suddenly lose their command and fell into chaos. Part by part, they began to fall toward the Kepler Planet in large numbers. Some Giant Insects even lost their vitality on the spot and turned into space junk. This situation was spreading on a large scale, while the Insectoids were flying toward Kepler one after another, as if they had received some kind of order.

The entire change left the Human Warriors in Space stunned, having no idea what had happened. This kind of disorganized, aimless retreat was definitely something that only happened in a rout. Could it be that Li Hao and the others had really done it?

The war seemed to be over, but no one could be happy, because at this moment, the massive Ring-shaped Spaceship lying in front of the Human fleet displayed a level of technology that exceeded humanity... no, crushed humanity. The terror brought by this level of technology was far more intense than that of the Giant Insects.

This signaled that in humanity's interstellar Great Age of Discovery, they had finally encountered an Advanced alien civilization in the true sense for the first time.

Makemu remained calm. As the supreme commander, he also had to issue the most timely order: "All fleets, cease fire, cease fire, stand by. All Mobile Suits return to their respective combat units. Maintain the highest level of alert!"

The Ring-shaped Spaceship emitted a strong beam of energy light, seemingly digesting the energy of the Janibekov Cannon, and returned to calm, not assuming an attacking posture. But the next second, the command cabin of the Space Fortress was in chaos; two figures appeared out of thin air inside the command cabin.

Facing all the firearms, one of the aliens raised a hand, and all the firearms were instantly pressed onto the floor.