649 Soaring Eagle

Just like what Wang Tong had told them, they picked only the best and didn't care about anyone's feelings. The other captains quickly raised the ante against Karl's drafting method. They claimed that the chaos it had stirred up would adversely affect the progress of the war. They presented their evidence, some of which was even legit. 

However, nothing would stop Wang Tong at this point, and he was confident that he would succeed.

Seeing that Karl had followed Wang Tong's instructions to the letter, Flash quickly followed suit. After so many years, these academy students didn't let the world round their edges; instead, they became more willing to fight for their dreams, even if that meant stepping on someone.

Wang Tong had disclosed the full details of the operation to him, and Flash was grateful for his trust. There had been rumors that Flash was actually a spy, and the goal of his operation was to see to the human's failure. However, Samantha and Wang Tong disregarded the rumors and assigned him a central role in this operation.

Flash knew they wouldn't believe the rumors because Wang Tong knew who what kind of person he was: he was a true friend. If Flash could get Wang Tong the success of this mission, he would pay anything for it, including his life.

While the fleet was formed slowly, Wang Tong continued to help the mastery warriors and the casters in getting used to space combat. This had continued for a month, and Wang Tong seemed to have done nothing but training. Even the relatively inactive armada had carried out a couple of harassments on the Zerg fleet, but the newly formed special force had done nothing. 

While Wang Tong trained the soldiers, Karl and Flash were busy cobbling together a perfect tram. They were excited by the rare chance to flex their leadership muscles. For the first time, they could make up the team and attack plans all by themselves, just like real fleet commanders would. 

Flash didn't expect to play such a key role in this operation when he first joined Wang Tong, and neither did he expect to have so much freedom to turn his dream team into realization. Although he and many other new graduates had been promoted to high ranks, the very few generals were still the ones that made the call.

Flash and Karl had very similar experiences, and therefore, they shared a lot of common grounds. They hit along every quickly and formulated plans of attack based on the information they had. 

On the eighth day of their preparation, a small ship landed on the ship, and the passenger was a handsome young man dressed in plain white.

He was the Divine Master of the Divine Mastery sect, Michaux.

He had come to Wang Tong's assistance as soon as he had finished the business within the sect. The arrival of such a renowned warrior had caught everyone's attention. 

Ever since Wang Tong started organizing his own fleet, Samantha had been bombarded with questions. Many leaders of the armada blamed her for her recklessness to give permission for a group of "children" to dismantle the status quo on the ships.

Samantha would be lying if she said that the situation was not stressful. However, she was ready to take on the challenge and support Wang Tong until the end. She was pleasantly surprised by Michaux's visit, and thought that he would provide the fleet officers some much-needed diversion.

However, Michaux had not seen anyone other than Wang Tong and his crew ever since he arrived, outrightly ignoring the invitations for all the networking events. 

"What took you so long, Michaux?" Wang Tong asked a smile. Wang Tong had met some roadblocks while helping the casters in overcoming their fear of the primordial forces, and he eagerly needed Michaux's help.

"I didn't know you would miss me. How is the confederation fleet? Have they given you enough grief yet?" 

"Are you here to just watch as they put me down?"

Michaux nodded and then smiled mischievously. "I would love to see it. Haha! What is it?"

"Guan Dongyang and the other casters can't overcome the fear for the primordial power. My help hasn't been very useful." Wang Tong went straight to the point. He and Michaux were the only two in the meeting room as Samantha had dismissed everyone else.

There had been too many people who wanted to visit Michaux. Ever since the death of Lie Jintian, the Sect had become the most influential faction on Mars. Therefore, from a political point of view, whoever befriended Michaux would have befriended the entire planet. However, Michaux was not interested in making friends; he was here for business.

Michaux nodded. "Hehe, see? Being too talented is not always good. You must not have had to deal with such a hurdle, since you had the soul essence. However, it is one of the most difficult lessons for ordinary mastery casters. It is much more difficult than getting used to the zero gravity. The universe is boundless, and so is the primordial sea. So, the fear of getting lost in the sea is indeed real. You didn't have to worry about it because you were guided by your soul essence."

"Exactly! That's what I thought as well. But how do we solve the problem at hand? How do we help them?"

"Leave it to me…I will help them. "

"Perfect! The X-6 special force is nearly complete, and this is the last piece of the puzzle." Wang Tong smiled as he was relieved. 

Once Wang Tong finished talking with Michaux, he found Karl and Flash and listened to their plan of attack. Wang Tong had heard that they had shuffled people around and used only people whom they trusted. 

"Wang Tong, this is the plan Karl and I had formulated over the days. We have wagered that your intention is to lure the Zergs out of their hiding spot, so we went along that direction in our plan." Flash said excitedly. He was eager to see how this plan would fare when they put it to test. Although the special force was a small unit, its members were a closely knitted group. The more time they spent on the battlefield together, the more powerful the team would become. 

"Hehe, I don't have any specific goal, and I only expect one thing from you: make the Zergs hate you so much that they would chase after you on sight. As for your plan, I have only one question: how long does it take to execute your plan?"

Karl glanced at Flash and said, "If you just want the Zerg to hate us, I wager it would take less than ten days for us to piss them off. However, within those ten days, we need to focus on our plan, and cannot take any side quests. Name us the commanders of the fleet and I guarantee you that the Zergs would hate the X-6 special force to the bone." Flash and Karl looked to Wang Tong expectantly, enthusiasm burning in their eyes.

"You have fifteen days, and yes, I hereby give you two the full commanding power over the X-6 special force. Do whatever it takes, and you don't need my approval while you are out there." Wang Tong announced. 

Karl and Flash were convinced that their task would eventually lead up to the killing blow that Wang Tong had prepared for the Zergs. They felt honored for being trusted to lead such a meaningful task. 

"You can count on us! Flash and I had been studying the star charts every night to familiarize with the region, and with those tough SOBs we have picked, I promise we will hit the Zergs hard! I will make them grit their teeth and clench their fists at the mere mention of our names!" Karl announced forcefully and pounded his chest. 

"Very well! Stay focused on your task and know that Samantha and I are looking after the Armada. Call me if you need me, I am always here for you two. I believe in you!" Wang Tong said candidly.

The three of the linked their hands and pumped them vigorously.

…

On the ninth day, the X-6 fleet embarked on their journey to carry out the task that was still shrouded in mystery. The instigator of all recent upheavals and changes in the armada, Wang Tong, didn't join the X-6 fleet. Instead, he remained focused on training the Martians as if he had nothing to do with X-6's mission.

Wang Tong was the one who had insisted on the X-6 mission; however, he had left two soldiers with no commanding experiences in charge of the mission. Many generals felt it was not only reckless, but also insulting. 

Meanwhile in the Zerg fleet, Zhoudi was reveling in his life as the supreme commander in and around Mars' outer space. His lower rank counterparts showered him with respect and servitude, and his joy had strengthened his resolve to destroy the human fleet completely.