Chapter 101: Nuclear Strike Detected En Route
Less than half a day after the blueprints were made public, Lu Yuan received an enthusiastic self-recommendation from a community user.
The user's community ID was "Feng Qi Lou Lan", registered just an hour ago, claiming to be extremely interested in space combat and eager to experience it.
Moreover, he was absolutely certain he could accelerate the game's progress.
There was a significant reason for his confidence.
"Haha, I'm a civil aviation pilot, I flew fighter jets before retiring. I've seen the blueprints for your space fighters; the cockpit seems similar to real-world aircraft. I think I'll pick it up very quickly."
Lu Yuan immediately checked his profile and found that Feng Qi Lou Lan had not lied about his identity.
He was indeed a former Air Force fighter pilot, retired for two years. He would play fantasy RPGs on holidays but mostly played mobile games on weekdays.
What truly interested Lu Yuan was the phone call Feng Qi Lou Lan received before registering the community account.
Tracing it showed that the number had a significant background, involving a certain unspeakable department!
It wasn't strange; this was exactly right.
Making the blueprints public was precisely for this!
Any professional could see at a glance that the blueprints were not simple, far from just random game art settings.
Accordingly, they would further realize that the development company of "Star Sea" had a significant background, and it was only natural for a few people to conduct covert follow-up investigations.
Active personnel were not suitable for this kind of work, because if exposed, this identity representing the will of the state would be extremely sensitive and quite troublesome.
The Navigator: "That's not impossible, but you have to agree to one condition."
Feng Qi Lou Lan: "What condition?"
The Navigator: "Can you bring in more fighter pilots to play? At least two, because if real former Air Force personnel participate in the internal test, it will also be a help for our game's publicity and momentum~"
Feng Qi Lou Lan: "This... you'll have to let me think about it for a bit."
The Navigator: "Okay, I'll wait."
Lu Yuan knew that no matter what reason he used to explain, the other party would definitely agree.
This guy had a mission!
As expected, as soon as Feng Qi Lou Lan finished typing, he immediately started calling the previous number.
A moment later.
Feng Qi Lou Lan: "No problem, I can bring in three fighter pilots! So, does that mean I'm selected?"
The Navigator: "Yes, you are selected. You can log in and play in approximately 48 hours. I wish you a pleasant gaming experience in advance!"
Plan successful!
New players were added in batches weekly, but Lu Yuan was very willing to make an exception for these four pilots.
If they were fighter pilots, they could seamlessly integrate into the upcoming mission.
The mission window was 13 days away, which allowed 10 days to manufacture the fighter jets and 2 days for adaptive training.
Hmm...
Although it sounded fine, Lu Yuan had a faint feeling that Apollo wouldn't let his plan proceed so smoothly.
Indeed, on the sixth day of production, trouble occurred.
On this day, Lu Yuan was woken up by the Butler from the luxurious bed in the captain's cabin.
"Your Excellency, there's a post in the player community that you should probably take a look at."
"What's wrong?"
Lu Yuan groggily took the pad.
Ranqilaile: "Heavens! I was attacked!"
Fang Xue Hou Tian Tai Jian: "Calm down, send your coordinates, someone will come to help."
Ranqilaile: "No need, I'm already dead... utterly defenseless."
Caoyuan a Caoyuan: "What exactly happened? Who did it?"
Ranqilaile: "It was Apollo! Their plane fired missiles at me as soon as they saw me. Damn it—my new car I just bought with a loan!"
Huh!?
Lu Yuan's sleepiness vanished completely, and he instantly became alert.
Such blatant provocation could stem from two possible mindsets.
First, they felt they could bear the consequences.
But Apollo's "hummingbird" reconnaissance plane had been shot down by Cangyuan, and not just once.
Therefore, from the individual pilot's perspective, he should be very clear that he likely couldn't bear the consequences; if Cangyuan retaliated and hunted him down, he wouldn't be able to protect himself.
The second mindset was more terrifying.
Apollo believed that from now on, they would no longer need to bear any risks or consequences.
This is bad!
Lu Yuan immediately contacted Salty Fish, who was staying on the ground, and had him transport as many 3D printers as possible into the underground cave, hiding them as deep as possible.
At the same time, he strengthened security.
As the sun set, Cheng Lei drove with her friends, singing all the way to the bar.
She did this almost every night.
In the eyes of Oasis City residents, the daughter of the big boss Cheng Yun was just a spoiled young lady who often drank late into the night.
When everyone thought this way, carousing was the perfect disguise for moving around and gathering intelligence late at night.
Cheng Lei walked into the "Lakeside" bar and quickly noticed something different from usual.
"Why aren't any of Apollo's people here?"
She walked up to the bartender and whispered the question.
"They were here half an hour ago, but they were called away."
"Called away? Back to the old police station?"
"No—" The bartender covered his mouth, "According to our informants, they are lining up at the landing field."
"How many people are lining up at the landing field?"
"At least 10 power armor suits, and 10... judging by the helmet style, they should be pilots."
10 pilots!?
There was no reason for Apollo to deploy so many planes at once; no force in the Desert was worth them doing so.
Except for Cangyuan. Just then, two Oasis City security officers walked into the bar. "Alright, everyone quiet! There's an important announcement! The city is about to implement... martial law! Ah, it will last at least two days! Everyone hurry home! If you really don't want to go home, absolutely do not leave the city. Those who leave the city will be shot dead on the spot by guards without prior warning! This is all at Apollo's request, don't take it out on us."
The bar erupted in curses.
"Why? On what grounds!?"
"Are you crazy? Apollo tells you to shoot, and you shoot? Are you still Oasis City security officers?"
"Today's security officers are just a bunch of dogs."
Martial law...
This was information control led by Apollo to prevent leaks. Cheng Lei felt increasingly uneasy about the situation, and while other customers were still cursing, she squeezed out through the crowd.
She had to tell Cangyuan as soon as possible!
"It's been confirmed from Cheng Lei."
Inside the industrial ship's bridge, Caoyuan came over to Lu Yuan.
"Apollo's pilots and security team are lining up; it's 100% a military operation."
"Yes."
Lu Yuan looked at Li Star outside the window and nodded.
"If it were you, how would you arrange the tactics?"
Caoyuan was silent for a second or two.
"First, saturate the area with nuclear weapons, then send in ground troops to clear everything on the scorched earth, leaving no survivors."
As a trained professional soldier, he would not assume the enemy was dumber, weaker, or more merciful than himself.
Always assume the worst of the enemy.
"Yes."
Lu Yuan clenched his fist.
Cangyuan was about to face its first major test.
Caoyuan: "Executive Officer, should we send reinforcements?"
Currently, the total number of players is 85, with thirty to forty on the industrial ship. There are a total of 8 power armor suits, 5 of which are basic models.
This combat strength, frankly, didn't sound very stable, but who could guarantee that in every battle, they would just happen to be slightly stronger than the enemy?
There weren't that many good things.
"Reinforce. But pay attention to tactics; the aerospace plane cannot be lost."