635 Waiting For The Dark Lord

Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. Moye had raided the humans' command center, and in return, Wang Tong had captured his castle. This was the most severe response that the humans could ever give, and it had hit where it hurt the most. 

After such elating news, Zambrotta seized the opportunity and ordered his forces to march out and attack the Zerg cities. After his forces sacked a city, he would copy Wang Tong's method and raise the flag of the Martian front, and then upload the pictures to the skynet. These pictures had proven that the humans were not helpless before the Zergs, and they could defeat the dark ones as long as everyone united together. 

All factions followed Zambrotta's lead and attacked the Zergs with abandon, swiftly liberating many Zerg occupied cities. The Zergs were caught off guarded by humans' sudden comeback. 

Every soldier mustered their strength and charged at the Zergs as soon as they were given the order. The GN gun units had started to play an increasingly important role in the attacks. As they gained more experience, they became more resilient to the Zergs' attacks, particularly of the primitive Zergs. 

The addition of the GN gunners meant that the Zergs had suddenly lost their advantage in numbers. Therefore, the humans were able to push them back quickly. 

Despite the rosy situation, Zambrotta and his officers seemed troubled. They knew that the battle had just started, and sooner or later, the Zergs would adapt to the humans' new method of war and fight back more effectively.

Although Wang Tong's victory was good news, he didn't eliminate the dark lord. Once the dark lord returned to the castle and drove out the human soldiers, he would be able to establish himself in his old home quickly.

Meanwhile, Wang Tong had sent a message to Zambrotta and other leaders, reinstating his determination of killing the dark lord at the dark castle when he returned. 

In the streets, the public cheered for the end of the war; they raised their cups in Wang Tong's name. Inside Zambrotta's office, however, everyone held a grim look in their eyes as they calculated the odds of Wang Tong's victory. 

If Wang Tong succeeded, he would completely dismantle the Zergs' efforts of taking over Mars. After that, it would only be a matter of time before the Martian front drove the rest of the dark ones out of the red planet and re-established communication with the Earth and the moon. 

However, if Wang Tong failed, so would the rest of the Martian resistance. Wang Tong was the mastermind behind the humans' miraculous comeback, and despite Zambrotta's title, people had long since considered him the real leader of Mars.

"General! Admiral Samantha wishes to speak to you."

"Bring her live."

With that, Samantha's image flickered onto the giant monitor screen.

"Good day, General Zambrotta! On behalf of my fleet, I congratulate you on your success."

"Thank you, Admiral! This honor belongs to every human soldier. One of our heroes has just taken over the dark lord's home base, the dark castle!"

"I have already been briefed on that. This is elating news for all human soldiers, so I have transmitted the news back to the Earth and moon." Samantha said with a serious face. The news had taken her aback, as she had never thought that Wang Tong would be able to pull off his suicidal mission. Pride aside, Samantha also lamented on how little she knew about Wang Tong after having not seen him for five years. After she had received the news, the thought of Martian soldiers coming to the Earthlings and the Ivantians' rescue was no longer a dream.

"I am sure you know that Moye was not in the castle when Wang Tong attacked. I wager that he should be there any time now. Wang Tong had stated that he wanted to fight against the dark lord at the dark castle. In light of that information, I have ordered my soldiers to attack the Zergs from all fronts, trying to divert as much attention from Moye as possible." Concern flickered in Zambrotta's eyes. He knew that this was a life or death moment; one simple mistake could lead to the destruction of the human race. 

Samantha nodded. "I hope to have a copy of the recording after the battle. Please rest assured that as long as you have Wang Tong with you, you and your Martian warriors will achieve the final victory."

"Yes, Admiral. I have faith in him." Zambrotta nodded, but his trembling hands had betrayed his doubts. Without knowing Wang Tong's exact power, he could only assert his assumptions.

Moye had defeated even the most powerful Einherjar, so how could a fledgling like Wang Tong have any chance of surviving the fight? If Moye killed Wang Tong, his team members would die as well, many of whom were amazing talents in mastery. Without them, the dark lord would easily wipe out the remaining humans in a single broad stroke. Plus, he knew that the situation on Mars had attracted Patroclus' attention. Once the immortals sided with the dark ones, humans on Mars would never see the daylight ever again.

Wang Tong's folly would sacrifice all the young talents on Mars; the stakes were too high for the Martian resistance, and Zambrotta's assumptions simply couldn't allow him to keep his hope up. 

If he were Wang Tong, he would have retreated from the dark castle. What they had achieved was already a significant victory; without the queens, the Zergs' production abilities would take a toll. There was no need to butt heads against the dark lord and continue such a high stake game. 

Little did the young warriors know that they were not only the heroes of Mars, but also the beacon of hope for the entire humanity. 

Everyone could feel the final battle coming. 

…

On the spaceship, the officers gathered around and exchanged their opinions. They all agreed that the fight between Wang Tong and the dark lord would determine the course of history. Some officers were Wang Tong's close friends, while the others were strangers to him. However, even those who had never heard of his name had noticed that all the situations and new developments seemed to always revolve around this Earthling boy.

Someone was born to watch the events of the world unfold around them, and some were born to be always at the center of the changes.

Samantha shared Zambrotta's concerns to some degree. She knew that if it were anyone else under that situation, he or she would have already pulled out of the dark castle to safety. But knowing Wong Tong well, Samantha didn't expect any less from him. She knew that he would not back away from any form of danger if he had the nerve to flirt—very successfully while at it— with a principal.

Samantha thought that she could forget about Wang Tong by distancing herself away from him; however, as fate would have it, she found her heart fall victim to him once again after so many years. 

Knowing that she couldn't do anything for Wang Tong, she only prayed. 

"Reports have suggested that Moye has reached at least level thirty. When he was at his full strength, he had killed Einherjar Lie with ease."

"Fret not. There will be many legendary warriors and casters around Wang Tong. I bet Wang Tong has already laid a trap for the dark lord. "

"Very likely...Maybe a surprise attack using the forbidden power. Even if it would not outright kill Moye, it could at least injure him gravely."

"Are you thick? It took a long time to prepare the forbidden power. How would Moye walk into the trap without sensing it? Moye is way too much for Wang Tong to handle. This is a foolish move, and they should pull back right now!" Someone protested. 

"I agree! Their young minds are too easily swayed by the victories. Five years ago he was barely a legendary warrior, so how much more powerful do you think he could get in five short years? Level twenty-seven? Or eight? How does that measure up to Moye? Mind you, that the dark lord is not alone…He also has his purple guards, whose power needs no introduction. Wang Tong is going to doom us all!"

After much deliberation, the officers failed to reach a consensus on the issue. There were as many supporters as there were naysayers; those who didn't express their opinion looked gloomy and grim nonetheless. 

From a purely strategic point of view, retreat from the dark castle would be the safest, but not the wisest option. However, no one would be able to convince Wang Tong to take the safe route. After all, he was the savior of the world, not anyone else.

It was beyond doubt that Moye had been gathering forces around the dark castle. If the massive army were led by Moye himself, Wang Tong would not have a chance of releasing the deadly mass destruction spells.

Wang Tong sat in his room quietly while Deep Blue lay on its belly by his heel. Michaux and the others had just finished cleaning the battlefield. It didn't take them long since there was not much to clear to start with. He had also ordered the soldiers to plant a few nukes at the four corners of the castle. He would detonate these explosives should the battle go astray.

Lie Jian also sat in his room and started cultivating his tactics quietly. The thought of avenging his father made his blood boil. He tried to contain that rage using cultivation; it was not a good time to let his emotions get the better of him.