Chapter 217: Unexpected Encounter

"Three!"

Su Sheng shouted excitedly.

Dragon Claw squad, San Zhao, Wang Shan!

"Team leader?!"

Wang Shan looked at Su Sheng with some surprise, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

"Team leader!"

Then Wang Shan came over excitedly.

The two grown men gave each other a bear hug.

Qu Xiang Tian and the man in black beside them saw the scene, exchanged a smile, and understood the comrades' bond that only they could grasp, especially since they were not an ordinary unit; the word "comrade" carried weight, meaning brothers who could entrust each other's lives.

Feeling Wang Shan's empty sleeve, Su Sheng's face grew a bit gloomy, and he let go of Wang Shan, examining the sleeve: "Hand…"

"Team leader, it's fine, I've gotten used to it."

"As long as the life is saved, that's good enough; actually One, Two…" Wang Shan fell silent. In his last mission he lost a shoulder, but One and Two remained forever on that border.

Su Sheng also fell silent, reaching out to pat Wang Shan's other intact shoulder.

"Four is still in the unit; I heard he was reassigned," Su Sheng said with a smile.

"Then, team leader, you…" Wang Shan looked at Su Sheng, hesitating.

"I've retired," Su Sheng said calmly, smiling.

"How could that be? The fault isn't yours…" Wang Shan said with some resentment, "I'll call the chief right now…"

"No…" Su Sheng hadn't finished speaking.

A voice came from outside.

"Why are you calling me?"

The familiar voice made Su Sheng and Wang Shan both pause.

Impossible!

He turned his head abruptly.

That familiar figure.

"Chief Azure Dragon!?"

The two instinctively saluted.

Yet, how could this be possible?

"At ease, chief!" Qu Xiang Tian and the other man, though they didn't know Azure Dragon personally, recognized his military uniform.

Azure Dragon raised his hand, returned a salute, then said lightly, "Alright, you've all retired; no need for such formality."

"San Zhao, you're okay?" Looking at San Zhao's empty sleeve, Azure Dragon's expression was also complicated.

"Report, chief! Very good!" Wang Shan answered loudly.

"You two, you aren't still resenting me, are you?" Azure Dragon examined Su Sheng and Wang Shan.

"No, I obey the arrangement," Su Sheng replied seriously.

Wang Shan opened his mouth slightly, but said nothing.

"This is the Central Military Commission's unanimous decision, and Five, your hostility is indeed too strong," Azure Dragon said, his expression complex as he looked at Five.

Su Sheng said nothing; under those circumstances, his strong hostility was understandable.

Qu Xiang Tian and the man in black beside him remained silent; anyone who could reach Yin Long had a story.

"Alright, I'm here this time for a matter as well, and I didn't expect to run into you unexpectedly; Five, you're here because of the thing you mentioned last time, right?" Azure Dragon looked at Su Sheng.

Su Sheng nodded slightly, "Hmm, the club is almost ready; I was thinking of coming over first to look for people."

"However… I have another idea now," Su Sheng continued.

"Oh? Tell me," Azure Dragon asked curiously.

"I want to invite everyone from Yin Long back…" Su Sheng said seriously.

The people present were stunned.

Including Qu Xiang Tian and the man in black, who exchanged a bewildered glance.

"That club of Brother Su's, can it really be that big?"

"Can it feed over three thousand people?"

"But Yin Long Security isn't ordinary; three thousand people…"

"If placed in ancient times, armored and sword‑bearing, those three thousand could each carve out a territory."

"That was Su Sheng's spur‑of‑the‑moment idea, but after thinking, it didn't seem impossible."

"Yin Long Security's own business is relatively weak…"

"Moreover, Yanhuang has just gotten started."

"The core group has just over a thousand Assassin Alliance players."

"If we could pull Yin Long's three thousand into the game as the core group…"

"Yanhuang, after all, has its own base."

"In itself, calling the three thousand Yin Long Security members 'Soldier King' might not fit, but at the very least they're elite."

"In the virtual‑real game, with their combat awareness, they'd certainly not be weak."

"Indeed, each could be at the level of a Hall of Fame player."

"Once they mature, a core group of three thousand Hall‑of‑Fame players—ask yourself, are you scared?"

"Yin Long Security members were still bewildered."

"But Azure Dragon looked at Su Sheng, smiled faintly, 'Haha, very good, worthy of the former Soldier King under my command, and our ideas align perfectly.'"

"Five Claw, I don't know if you're still willing to serve the country," Cang Long said, looking at Su Sheng.

Snap~

Su Sheng immediately stood at attention and saluted.

"Always ready!"

"No need to be so serious; this time's 'battlefield' is Zhu Lu."

Cang Long waved his hand.

"However, the matter is serious; you must first sign a confidentiality agreement."

Cang Long called his guards outside, and the pre‑prepared confidentiality agreements—over three thousand copies—were brought in.

…

…

After the confidentiality agreements were signed, Cang Long finally explained the background.

Su Sheng finally understood why the head of the Qinglong war zone was so concerned about a game.

In the Pacific international waters, a New Energy "oil field" was discovered. (It's not petroleum; the exact type of New Energy is irrelevant, that's not the point.)

Because it's in international waters, all nations are competing.

The five great benefactors are all at stake.

Open combat is definitely prohibited; if a real fight broke out and the five great benefactors fell, the Earth's ecosystem would have to be reshuffled.

Nevertheless, this New Energy oil field must be contested.

Coincidentally, at this moment Teng Long Company's leading forces were targeted—virtual reality games, you see.

So the nations discussed: if real combat is impossible, move it into the virtual realm.

All the countries cooperated, improving upon Teng Long Company's technology, and ultimately, under Teng Long Company's name, launched Zhu Lu.

The New Energy oil field is mined globally in unison, but the extracted New Energy is allocated according to a quota.

The quota percentages are determined by the National War results in Zhu Lu.

However, to ensure fairness, nations monitor each other, and combat troops are prohibited from participating.

In this situation, Cang Long's intense focus on the game Zhu Lu makes sense, because he is in charge of the related missions.

Cang Long was initially troubled: he can handle real weapons and combat, but a video game…

Cang Long was truly vexed.

Then, at this moment, retired Su Sheng came into Cang Long's view.

Furthermore, since active soldiers cannot take part, Cang Long turned his attention to Yin Long Security.

Although they are all retirees for various reasons, their abilities are certainly not lacking.

So when Su Sheng requested all three thousand personnel from Yin Long Security, Cang Long roughly grasped Su Sheng's intention.

After hearing Cang Long's statement, Su Sheng blinked in surprise.

New Energy, oil field.

And the allocation ratio is blocked by Zhu Lu?

Why does it feel…

Is this a joke?

Indeed, the world is a huge makeshift troupe, such an important allocation, even...