Chapter 831 - Hope

Chapter 831: Hope

Soon, the warships began to slow down as they approached a sprawling mass of land.

Merlin knew that this was not real land but a starship, just like everywhere else in the Atlan Dimension.

“Actually, this is also the headquarters of the Rebellion Army.”

Bellio explained to Merlin.

“Headquarters? The First Battalion’s station is situated at the headquarters?”

Merlin’s heart flickered upon seeing Bellio nod. He was beginning to understand the situation now. Although the Rebellion Army was divided into three battalions, in reality, the Leader still trusted the First Battalion the most. Otherwise, he would not allow the First Battalion to be stationed so close-by, almost to the point of guarding the headquarters, whereas the Second and Third Battalion were dispatched far away.

“Boom”.

The hatch opened and a ray of sunshine shone into the warship. Merlin squinted his eyes. Immediately, he realized that this was not natural sunshine.

The sunshine was gentler in comparison. It was not at all irritating. Despite its warmth, there was no ‘hot’ sensation. It was distinct from all the sunshine he had encountered in numerous dimensions.

With Merlin’s Mind Power, he began to investigate the source of this sunshine. Soon, he solved the mystery. High in the sky above, there was a gigantic star. Despite the light that radiated from this star, it was not natural, but a glowing energy source. Merlin could even see the metallic components of this artificial star clearly.

“Constructing a star… I wonder if this was done by the Vestigial Tribe or the Atlan civilization.”

Merlin was not too bothered. In the Void Zone, as long as one became an ultimate existence, it was possible to construct an entire dimension, so this was not a great deal.

“Captain Merlin, welcome to the Rebellion Army and the First Battalion!”

A familiar figure approached Merlin. It was Commander Keno from the First Battalion. His gaze was extremely penetrative, characteristic of a man who had occupied a high position for a long time.

However, to an esteemed Lord like Merlin, this aura was inconsequential. Merlin’s expression was unperturbed as he replied calmly, “I’m yet to thank Your Excellency Commander for the timely assistance.”

Commander Keno shook his head. “We’ve truly embarrassed ourselves earlier. There is indeed some conflict between the First Battalion and the Second Battalion, but the Leader knows what to do. He’ll make a fair adjudication.”

With that, he made arrangements for Merlin to rest.

Merlin did not object. He was not worried about the other party trying to enter his warship, because his empire-level warship was controlled by the Matrix. Without his command, no one would be able to enter the warship.

As soon as Merlin left, Commander Keno’s face turned stern. He questioned Bellio gruffly, “Bellio, what happened actually?”

Bellio took a deep breath and reported. “Your Majesty Commander, we accidentally ran into a siege by the Federation’s city-level warships. Fortunately, we met Captain Merlin, who steered his empire-level warship to save us. Moreover, Your Excellency Commander, I’m sure you haven’t been informed about the peculiarity of this warship? This warship was part of the Federation Army’s fleet that is currently at war against the foreign tribe civilizations in the Void Zone. However due to some reason, Merlin was dissatisfied with the Army, so he commandeered this brand-new warship back to the Federation. Moreover, the warship is equipped with the military’s secret research, a full-intelligence system. As you may already have guessed, the reason we were able to destroy the Second Battalion’s No. 8 Fortress was thanks to the speedy response of this full-intelligence system.”

“Full-intelligence system? Bellio, tell me in detail!”

Keno’s eyes glinted. As a soldier, he knew for certain the benefits of having a full-intelligence system. The response speed alone outstripped any person.

Subsequently, Bellio explained the details with Commander Keno. After a long while, Commander Keno closed his eyes gently. He discovered some inconsistencies.

“He returned from the Void Zone battlefield without being discovered by the Federation Army? What more, an advanced empire-level warship equipped with the full-intelligence system? Something is fishy. Nevertheless, the warship has arrived at our dock, so we must decrypt this full-intelligence system as much as possible. I’m going to report to the Leader.”

Commander Keno realized the severity of the matter. He had to report to the Leader immediately.

…

In a spacious room with white walls, everything was automatic. The surroundings were breathtakingly beautiful as if an imaginary paradise.

However, Merlin knew that this was not paradise, but the Atlan Dimension. He was now nestled deep within the Rebellion Army of the Atlan Dimension.

“My so-called intelligence system might not be able to fool them for a long time. Surely, they will request to decrypt the intelligence system.”

Merlin did not know whether the Atlan civilization could decrypt the Matrix, but he would not allow them to try.

Right now, Merlin had learned the basic structure of the Atlan civilization. First, there was the Atlan Federation, which was a united body. Then, there was the Rebellion, which was not recognized and only had one dimension-level warship. If the Atlan Federation truly desired, they could easily exterminate the Rebellion Army.

Of course, perhaps due to various reasons, the Federation was not in a hurry to deal with the Rebellion Army. However, this did not mean that the Rebellion Army had the capacity to defy the Federation.

On the other hand, the Federation was controlled by the Senate, as well as the Army. Both factions were the real core powers of the Atlan civilization.

The Atlans lived on starships. It was generally peaceful in the dimension. Although the Army was currently involved in a large-scale war, news of defeat would never be transmitted back to the Atlan Dimension. Therefore, all the Atlans were under the impression that their warships were slowly winning one battle after another, completely unaware of any crisis.

At the same time, inside the Atlan Dimension, it was not merely the dimension-level warships that could threaten a Great Lord. There were also some fortress cannons that could possibly pose a risk. Not only could a single hit from the fortress cannon kill a Lord, but the number of fortress cannons also outnumbered the dimension-level warships.

Even if an ultimate existence were to enter the Atlan Dimension, he might be killed by the numerous fortresses. After all, an ultimate existence could not sense the power of natural order inside here, so they were only equivalent to a powerful Lord at most.

“Fortress cannons and starships. If there was an emergency, the entire Atlan civilization is prepared to be armed. It would be truly difficult to destroy them completely…”

Merlin’s mind was reeling as he explored his options. Forcibly destroying them was too challenging. Even if he had the Slothful Beast and the black cat Didimoss, the Atlan Dimension was simply too huge. The Slothful Beast would not be able to swallow such a huge dimension.

Furthermore, he did not know whether the void-level warship’s main cannon which was capable of killing an ultimate existence, also existed in the Atlan Dimension. Perhaps it existed, but merely could not be installed onto a fighting warship.

For example, the fortress cannon. Although it contained tremendous power, it could not be installed on a warship.

The more Merlin thought about it, the more likely such a possibility existed. Therefore, unless desperate times called for desperate measures, he should not act rashly. It would be best if he could pinpoint the secret location where the Atlan civilization built their void-level warship.

“The Rebellion Army is an ideal identity cover. However, trouble seems to be brewing. I guess I have to go meet the mysterious Leader of the Rebellion Army.”

Merlin pondered and hoped that he would be able to meet the leader of the Rebellion Army as soon as possible. If he could control the leader, then many of his plans would come to fruition. Moreover, it would not attract any suspicion from the Atlan Federation.

Thus, Merlin extended his Mind Power slowly and searched for the Rebellion Army’s headquarters…

…

At the Rebellion Army headquarters, a flurry of hurried steps resounded. Commander Keno was rushing towards a spacious great hall.

This was where the leader of the Rebellion Army usually held discussions.

“Clap”.

The guard outside the door saluted Keno. Commander Keno quickly stepped into the great hall. Before an oval glass table, there was already a middle-aged man clad in black who was waiting quietly.

“Leader!”

“Oh, it’s Keno. Come on in, Lombass will be here soon.”

This man dressed in black was the mysterious Rebellion Army leader, Medrick.

“Lombass? Hmph, Leader, is Lombass trying to cry foul again?”

Keno was very close to the Leader. It was not an ordinary subordinate relationship. After all, when the Rebellion Army was founded, Keno was one of its members, so he could be considered one of its founders.

Medrick waved his hand lightly. “Keno, I know how much you hate Lombass and his gang, but we really need them. We are too weak, even a bunch of villains, criminals, and human scums are useful to help us resist the Federation. Back then, there were eight of us when we founded the Rebellion Army, but how many of us survived to this day? Only you and I…”

These words had been uttered by Medrick more than once. He of course trusted and valued Keno the most. On the other hand, due to their shortage of men, Lombass was only useful as cannon fodder against the Federation Army.

Perhaps Lombass also knew that; hence his attempt to enhance his strength at all cost, to be at least as powerful as the First Battalion. This was to ensure that if the Rebellion Army grew stronger in the future, then the Second Battalion would also be safe.

Keno spoke firmly. “Leader, the Rebellion Army cannot continue like this anymore. Currently, the Federation is preoccupied with the war in the Void Zone, that’s why they tolerate our existence, but we cannot stay as we are right now. I’m sure Lombass has mentioned to you that a new empire-level warship has joined the First Battalion?”

Medrick nodded. For some unknown reason, Keno was extremely spirited, to the point of excitement. Keno had not been this enthusiastic for a very long time.

“Hope, that warship is the hope of the Rebellion Army!”

Commander Keno could no longer subdue his excitement as he spoke with a tremble.