In the Supreme Combat Command Center.
Li Qiutao also felt the oppressive atmosphere, for the three giants of the Hua Nation Military Department sat opposite him.
They were Xu Hanchen, Li Buyan, and Qin Jianguo.
Qin Jianguo frowned and asked, "Xu Hanchen, what has happened again? Why have you summoned us two old men in such a hurry?"
Li Buyan also frowned as he looked at Xu Hanchen.
In the past, Xu Hanchen was the most composed person. Why was he acting so strangely today?
When he saw Li Qiutao, he suddenly realized something.
"Did something happen to Chen Jinzhao?" Li Buyan asked.
Upon hearing this, Qin Jianguo knitted his brows and looked at Xu Hanchen. Xu Hanchen said gravely, "That's right. Li Qiutao, recount everything that has happened these past few days, so that the two of them can grasp the details as much as possible."
Li Qiutao nodded, "Alright, here's what happened."
Qin Jianguo and Li Buyan listened patiently to Li Qiutao's account. Their brows furrowed deeply. It certainly did not sound like good news.
"However, we can no longer concern ourselves with Chen Jinzhao's life or death," Qin Jianguo said.
"Have you forgotten? Li Buyan has already stripped him of his military post. He doesn't even have a military rank now. Even if we wanted to help, there's no reason. Moreover, this time he knowingly walked into danger, clearly seeking his own demise."
Li Buyan sighed, "We don't even know Chen Jinzhao's whereabouts now. How can we save him?"
Xu Hanchen asked slowly, "Do you still remember that Metri is holding a tri-party military exercise in the East Sea these days? If I'm not mistaken, the place of their decisive battle is located in that sea area. Only then can it be considered a sure-kill scenario."
He reached out to adjust the giant electronic screen behind him, bringing up a satellite map of that sea area. Numerous warships could be seen gathering near the sea, and even a Metri super-warship. Fighter jets patrolled around an island in the sky.
"Before I arrived at the command center, I had already guessed this location. This is a satellite map from ten minutes ago."
Qin Jianguo and Li Buyan fell silent again.
Xu Hanchen continued, "The Metri military intends to kill Chen Jinzhao on an uninhabited island in the East Sea. If we turn a blind eye, what will become of Hua Nation's honor? Are we old fellows, as we age, no longer possess any passion in our blood?"
"He now represents not just himself, but also our Hua Nation!"
"Old Li, what do you think?" Qin Jianguo asked.
Li Buyan pondered for a moment and said, "Of course, we must prioritize Hua Nation's interests. If we completely fall out with the Metri military because of this, it will be extremely detrimental to Hua Nation's development. Therefore, I think our plan should be more conservative. For example, we could exchange hostages with the Metri military. We are also holding several important Metri figures."
Qin Jianguo suddenly sneered, "It's not guaranteed to succeed. The Metri are known for their ruthlessness. When they go all out, they don't spare even their own people. They have invested so much to set this up. If they don't kill Chen Jinzhao, how will they account to their own country?"
Li Buyan found some sense in his words and asked, "Then what do you think we should do?"
"Are we just going to ignore it?"
Xu Hanchen was also somewhat displeased and prepared to confront Qin Jianguo.
Qin Jianguo snorted, "Who says I'm ignoring it? What I mean is, there's no need to be timid like Li Buyan. Either don't act, or go all out! If the Metri don't hand him over, we'll strike their base in the East."
Xu Hanchen and Li Buyan were both startled by Qin Jianguo's extreme proposal.
If that were the case, wouldn't the Metri go mad?
Hua Nation was not yet prepared for a full-scale war with the Metri. Once it broke out, it would be a lose-lose situation.
Even Li Qiutao looked at Qin Jianguo in shock.
Xu Hanchen reacted first and said gravely, "Qin Jianguo, do you know what you're saying? I think you deliberately don't want to rescue Chen Jinzhao. If that's the case, you don't need to speak."
"Who says I'm not saving him?" Qin Jianguo sneered.
"On the contrary, you two, always talking about the bigger picture and interests, have you ever considered the great contributions Chen Jinzhao has made to us over the years?"
"When it's time to draw our swords, we must draw them! Only then will we not be underestimated by the enemy."
"Such a simple truth, you wouldn't possibly not understand it, would you?"
Xu Hanchen's eyes were a bit vacant.
He had also been on the battlefield before, but that was forty years ago. This ancient nation had not experienced the baptism of blood and tears for forty years. It had forgotten the smell of war smoke and even harbored an unknown fear of war.
But—
The world would not stop its march of war just because you feared it.
Looking through the thousands of years of human history, it was not difficult to find that war was the eternal theme, and peace was ultimately the minority.
After forty years of comfort, could this nation still win a war?
"But are we ready?" Li Buyan frowned.
Qin Jianguo retorted, "Then you have to ask if the Metri are ready! I can guarantee that they are not ready either!"
Xu Hanchen understood Qin Jianguo's meaning after a moment of thought. What surprised him was that Qin Jianguo cared so much about Chen Jinzhao. He tapped the table and said, "Since we've decided to draw our swords, in what way should we do it?"
Qin Jianguo pointed to the sea west of the East, "What we can do is to retaliate in kind. We'll hold a military exercise in this international water, and then find an opportunity to insert ourselves into the battle. When chaos is created, I guarantee the Metri won't dare to escalate, and this will be our opportunity."
"Understood," Li Buyan nodded.
"I'll call the Metri military department right now and inform them that we're going to hold a military exercise."
Li Qiutao, who had not been able to speak, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Regardless of anything else.
He finally saw a glimmer of hope.
At that time.
On an island west of the East, Chen Jinzhao and six people had already engaged in a life-and-death battle.
Ten minutes had passed since the battle began, and Chen Jinzhao was already covered in wounds. The only part of him not stained with blood was the Tai Sui in his hand.
Chen Jinzhao was seriously injured.
The six enemies were not faring much better.
Miyamoto Heiyang was the most severely injured. One of his arms had been severed by Chen Jinzhao, causing his combat power to drop drastically.
Even if he survived this time, he would certainly be unable to recover his S-class strength.
Joanna and Toscano had broken several fingers, and their faces and bodies bore Chen Jinzhao's marks. Miles and Copler were the strongest, only suffering some superficial wounds that did not affect their bones.
Seeing Chen Jinzhao approach Miyamoto Heiyang, Miyamoto Heiyang suddenly shouted, "Mr. Miles, quickly tell Su Xiao to stop him!"
"Otherwise, I'm going to die!"