Chapter 842: The Third Elite Warrior

Sun Cheng arrived at just the right time; four Decepticon engineers were conducting final adjustments on a Decepticon body located on a massive metal platform in the center of Base No. 4.

Sun Cheng was no stranger to the Decepticon lying on the metal platform.

His name was Thundercracker, a prisoner of war captured by Pioneer and the others when they invaded Trindade Island again a month ago.

After receiving news that the Black Market had been invaded again, he had even personally gone to Trindade Island to stay for a period of time.

Sun Cheng had originally thought that after that probe, the Decepticons would launch a series of more frequent attacks against Trindade Island in the time that followed.

But the result was that he had overthought it; he stayed for nearly a week without waiting for the Decepticons to strike again.

Although Sun Cheng felt regret at losing an opportunity to practice, he did not continue to stay on Trindade Island.

Pioneer had already done a great job at the Black Market, so he was now very at ease leaving this Black Market, which was still very important to Base No. 2, in his charge.

In the end, Sun Cheng returned to Base No. 2 with several prisoners.

Because he was the one who escorted Thundercracker back, and because he had digested a great deal of Decepticon Memory Data, he was not unfamiliar with this guy.

Like Dirge, Thundercracker was an ancient Decepticon who had been born during the era of the Council of Ancients.

When Megatron was supported by Sentinel Prime and had just obtained the qualifications to join the army from being a gladiator slave, Thundercracker, who came from a noble background, was already an officer in the Cybertronian Guerrilla Army alongside Dirge and the others.

In Soundwave's memory, this man, who would later become a general of the Decepticon Legion's air force, was undoubtedly a typical Decepticon.

He possessed a fickle personality, a point that made Thundercracker far less valued within the relatively pure Decepticon Legion than other air force generals.

Thundercracker could put away his weapons when facing Autobot civilians, and even sit by and watch as some Autobot warriors he found pleasing—such as Drift and Bumblebee—were able to retreat safely due to his leniency.

However, when the Task required it, this guy had participated in the slaughter of civilians plenty of times, and even attacked Autobot medical centers and civilian facilities.

Therefore, even after capturing this guy, Sun Cheng had never considered the issue of persuading him to surrender from the very beginning.

After Thundercracker was transported to Base No. 2, his Brain was separated shortly thereafter.

Subsequently, several Decepticon engineers began a series of surveys and modifications on his body, in the hope that it could better match its future new master.

Today was the day this body would finish its final adjustments and welcome its new master.

"Don't mind me, continue with your work!"

Sun Cheng had no intention of disturbing them; after nodding slightly as a response, he stood to the side, preparing to watch them replace Frenzy's New Body.

Therefore, Atlas and the others only delayed for a short while before quickly continuing their work.

Replacing Frenzy's New Body was a plan that had begun a long time ago.

Because of the special relationship Frenzy and Ramjet had with Sun Cheng, both of them were clearly his confidants, just like Pioneer, Thunder, and Hailishi.

Therefore, under the premise that Pioneer and Thunder, his two most important combat forces, had become Elite Warriors, and that the resources and time required for Hailishi's body replacement were too staggering, prioritizing the replacement of New Bodies for Frenzy and Ramjet had become a matter of urgency.

With his gaze fixed on Atlas and the others who were busy at work, countless thoughts were active beneath Sun Cheng's calm expression.

Cultivating an Elite Warrior cost far more than cultivating an Advanced Warrior.

The consumption of resources was one thing; Sun Cheng and his forces could now afford the cultivation of Elite Warriors.

But the constraint of time was actually what gave the most headache.

Whether it was an Autobot or a Decepticon, if one were to naturally gestate an Elite Warrior, the process would likely require hundreds or even thousands of years or more.

Cybertronians would accumulate experience bit by bit through constant combat.

During this period, they would continuously collect various resources and energy, constantly strengthening and modifying their bodies, until the time was ripe and they had accumulated enough to successfully advance one day.

Of course, the above Evolution route was only aimed at the vast majority of ordinary Cybertronians.

Commanders and bigwigs from the Decepticon Legion and Autobot factions, because they held the military and political power of the Decepticons and Autobots, could innately obtain far more resources than ordinary Decepticons and Autobots; therefore, their Evolution would be smoother, and the time required would be much shorter.

According to the memories of some Decepticons and Autobots that Sun Cheng had digested, because the Decepticon Legion had the upper hand during the civil war and gradually controlled the entire planet of Cybertron, many of their ordinary commanders were Elite Warriors.

Looking at the Autobot side, it was relatively worse; one only needed to look at Optimus Prime to know this.

Even among his initial four confidant lieutenants as the Autobot Leader, only Ironhide was an Elite Warrior, while the other three—Jazz, Ratchet, and Bumblebee—could not be considered very powerful even among Advanced Warriors.

The Evolution of Cybertronians required massive amounts of resources and had a very high demand for metal and energy; therefore, without a powerful force, relying solely on individuals to obtain advancement required far more time than those Decepticons who were attached to the Decepticon Legion.

However, even with the support of a force, time could not be shortened just because one wanted it to be.

Back then, in order to manufacture a body for himself, Sun Cheng had almost used the strength of his entire force, and it still took half a year to manufacture an Advanced Warrior body for himself.

It was only after experiencing more than a dozen subsequent enhancements and modifications that he successfully leaped into the ranks of Elite Warriors.

Later, as the forces under his command continued to grow, cultivating an Elite Warrior was still not an easy task.

Whether it was Pioneer or Thunder, their bodies were all manufactured by Base No. 2 concentrating its strength, and it still took half a year to successively manufacture two New Bodies under the premise of having ready-made technology.

This was also the reason why Sun Cheng chose to use the corpses of existing Elite Warriors, making slight adjustments and modifications, to reward his confidants.

As a main general of the Decepticon Legion's air force, Thundercracker's body had already been strengthened and modified by him many times.

Although it was still not as good as Astrotrain's body, it was definitely much stronger than the New Bodies that Base No. 2 had just built itself.

It was conservatively estimated that after Frenzy replaced his New Body, it would take longer than it did for Pioneer and the others, and require more rigorous training, to fully master it.

"In this way, I will have a third Elite Warrior under my command, and when Ramjet also finishes replacing his New Body, there will be four..."

Recalling the information he had seen from Thundercracker's memories not long ago, Sun Cheng narrowed his eyes slightly.

PS:

Today I was thinking about how to wrap up this book, so I looked over the previous chapters a bit, and I have a rough idea now.

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