In the five years, w.a.n.g Tong didn"t just improve his combat prowess, but also his ability to think strategically. Li Feng had to learn that ability as well, although his situation was much better than that of the former. Li Feng had used the influence as the Blade Warrior and become friends with all the leaders of the five houses. Unlike his ill.u.s.trative predecessor, w.a.n.g Tong not only had to deal with the enemy of the human world, but also enemies within. Even his real enemy, Patroclus, was much more difficult to deal with than that of Li Feng: the Zergs.
Without proper preparation, w.a.n.g Tong would find taking any step difficult while the enemies on many fronts tried dismantling his plan. However, he was ready after the five years of learning. His skills in statecraft were evident in his dealings with Thunder Fire and the other factions on Mars, big and small.
If he had failed to nurture the relations.h.i.+p with any one of the parties, the situation on Mars would have been entirely different. w.a.n.g Tong might still be able to gain control over the planet, but at a huge cost of the Martians" strength. The more factions w.a.n.g Tong destroyed in order to claim the dominance, the less power he would have at his disposal to help Earth.
The key was to draw a clear line between enemies and compet.i.tors. If one faction was deemed as an enemy, w.a.n.g Tong would not let it exist on Mars.
Karl, Apache, and w.a.n.g Tong talked throughout the entire night. Karl and Apache had introduced the general state of affairs to him, including the conditions of the fleets and his old friends. Even when they realized that the sun had risen, they felt that they could still keep going for another day.
Ye Zi walked into the room and smiled, "Breakfast time! w.a.n.g Tong, have you decided who will go with you?"
"Wow! Hey hot stuff, do you have a boyfriend?" Karl smiled like an idiot.
"Captain Karl, are all earthlings idiots like you?"
"You know my name?"
"Of course! Karl the s.p.a.ce Wolf, everyone knows you here." Ye Zi smiled politely.
"Haha! I knew I would be popular one day!" Karl said as he shot Apache a smug glance which the latter shrugged off.
"This is the field medic Ye Zi." w.a.n.g Tong introduced the girl to the two.
The word field medic made Karl turn down a notch. He had heard of these mastery users from the sect, and rumors had it that they could light a man on fire—literately—with a snap of the finger.
However desperate Karl was, he would never flirt with a girl he couldn"t handle.
"Let"s go and grab some breakfast. I will introduce my new friends to you. Karl had said that the Dark ones still have a large fleet around Mars. We shouldn"t use too many s.h.i.+ps at one time, and we should focus on fleet combat for now."
"You have to bring me with you." Ye Zi insisted.
"Fine, fine!" w.a.n.g Tong knew that he wouldn"t win the argument, so he agreed. Plus, Ye Zi was a legendary level medic, and her skills were needed regardless of whether she was on a s.h.i.+p or on the ground.
Ye Zi cracked a smile and followed w.a.n.g Tong to the breakfast station.
Apache and Karl had received ardent welcoming from everyone at the camp. The two earthling warriors were shocked by these Martian warrior"s levels. Apache had just reached level twenty-one, and he was considered one of the best fighters on the s.h.i.+p. However, here on Mars, the Legendary level warriors alone could fill a few tables.
Karl was also shocked by the number of beautiful girls around the camp. He even saw his idol, the prettiest and the most gorgeous girl of all: Heidi.
Heidi cast a courteous smile at Karl, and nearly making his heart skip a beat.
As everyone enjoyed their breakfast with w.a.n.g Tong, they wondered who would be picked by w.a.n.g Tong to join him.
"w.a.n.g Tong, we have just built a new stealth s.h.i.+p of X-335 series. Despite its moderate size, it can accommodate thirty pa.s.sengers. I can pilot the s.h.i.+p and travel to earth with you." Heidi said.
"Oh? Do we have enough time?"
"It is already here." Heidi cracked a smile. She had started preparing for this journey a while ago.
"Boss, you have to take me with you!"
"Buzz off! I am more useful than you."
The crowd suddenly boiled over as everyone nominated themselves. It was difficult to tell who was talking what to whom. w.a.n.g Tong waved a hand, willing everyone to be quiet. "Everyone, be quiet. I will prepare a list of names and post it this afternoon."
After the breakfast, w.a.n.g Tong picked up a pen and paper but couldn"t write a single name for an hour. The X-335 was the best stealth s.h.i.+p he could ever shop for. It was reserved only for the royalties of the Kaedeians.
Heidi couldn"t operate the s.h.i.+p all by herself, so she would need at least another three co-pilots; that left only twenty-six spots on the s.h.i.+p. w.a.n.g Tong wanted to take Deep Blue with him, but it would take up at least ten persons" s.p.a.ce. After mauling over the matter for a while, he decided to take Deep Blue with him anyway. The beast was too useful to be left on Mars. With Deep Blue, Karl, and Apache on board, there were only thirteen spots available.
But whom to fill the thirteen spots with?
Yin Tianzong would have to stay on Mars since the Court would still need him to manage the branch here. Although the Earth and the moon were in a dire situation, w.a.n.g Tong could not ignore the importance of Mars. It was the last bastion of human civilization, and worth spending resources to strengthen its power.
Xiao Yuyu, Ye Zi, Wu Ling, and Linda, the four field medics would be useful…check.
Guan Dongyang was a mastery caster, so his power was limited in a s.p.a.ce battle. However, w.a.n.g Tong doubted that he would be able to persuade him to stay on Mars…check.
One name after another, w.a.n.g Tong finally finished the list. It included Vorenus, Tan Bu, Duo Lun, Lie Xuan, and some other warriors that w.a.n.g Tong had deemed worthy.
Bu Zhihuo was not on the list. Although he was a powerful warrior, his band members would need his guidance. Xiao Libie was a renowned warrior on Mars, and a.s.signing him to Mars would help the battle of driving out the remaining Zergs.
w.a.n.g Tong had thought about Michaux as well. Although he was an integral part of the forbidden power spell, the environment in outer s.p.a.ce would not allow mastery spells to be cast easily due to the lack of natural forces. In addition, Michaux was tied up with matters in his sect, and therefore, he wouldn"t be able to accompany w.a.n.g Tong even if the latter had requested it. That being said, w.a.n.g Tong had enjoyed working with Michaux, and looked forward to fighting alongside him again. The feeling was mutual for Michaux as well. Michaux had made up his mind to transfer his authority to the Martian war council and join w.a.n.g Tong as soon as possible. He never liked to be the sect leader anyway.
The situation didn"t allow much delay, so w.a.n.g Tong and his chosen warriors took off on the X-355 the next day morning. In order to provide cover for their take-off, Samantha had waged a small attack to divert the Zergs" attention.
Karl sat right beside Deep Blue was he was fascinated by this majestic beast.
"Boss, can I pat him?"
"You can try if you want to get eaten." w.a.n.g Tong cracked a smile.
The s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p ascended quietly through the atmosphere of Mars and arrived in the outer s.p.a.ce. It glided quietly like a phantom closer to the human fleet. Fearing the risk of being bitten, Karl let the beast alone and set his attention on the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p. In less than ten minutes, he had understood how the s.h.i.+p worked and remembered the locations of its key components.
Suddenly, the siren went off. Although the x-355 was a stealth jet, it didn"t mean that it would guarantee to slip under the Zergs" radar, particularly if they were prepared. A group of Zerg s.h.i.+ps appeared in front of x-355, blocking its way.
"Can we make it?"
"You bet!" Heidi nodded and spoke through the intercom. "Hold on to something, everyone! It might get b.u.mpy!"
w.a.n.g Tong turned and gave Deep Blue a nod, who lowered himself to the ground and spread on all fours.
"Let me help you," Karl said excitedly.
"Sure!"
Heidi initiated the turbo charge function of the X-355 as the s.h.i.+p lunged through an opening in the Zergs" fleet. The Zerg s.h.i.+ps hurried to turn around and chased after x-355. Soon, some Zerg s.h.i.+ps were close enough to lock onto X-355, and they started firing.
"Level one evasion!" Heidi announced calmly. The s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p started to spin and swirl to dodge the incoming missiles while not losing any of its speed.
The three co-pilots were handpicked by Heidi, and were all-star pilots from the Kaedeian force. Therefore, they had pulled off the evasion moves with ease and confidence.
Samantha"s attack had diverted the attention of the Zergs" main fleet; however, there were still hundreds of scout parties scattered around Mars, and w.a.n.g Tong happened to run into one of them.
"Hold onto your seat!"
With a sudden boom of the powerful thrusters, the s.h.i.+p jerked forward in an abrupt acceleration and gained significant distance from its pursuers before they could form an encirclement.
Everyone"s face paled as their stomach roiled and churned from the sudden and jerky moves.
"Are you getting motion thickness?"
"No, NO! " Duo Lun gritted his teeth and denied despite his urge to puke.
Karl checked the radar and realized that the Zergs were still hot on their heels.
"Let"s shoot them down before they broadcast our location," Karl said.
"No problem. Do you have s.p.a.ce METAL?"
"You bet!"
"I will go with you." Tan Bu volunteered.
"Hold your horses. You have never fought in the s.p.a.ce before; it takes time to get used to."