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Chapter 5: Dancing with Wolves
Three days ago, after returning to base with Malovich’s squad and reporting to the company commander, Tang Fang was taken to the infirmary to treat his leg injury.
As for Wei Haitao, he was nothing short of a despicable scoundrel—a villain through and through. Combining the photos from Thomas’s imaging device, Malovich’s report, and the findings from the special operations team that had been dispatched to deal with the bug remains, he actually managed to find discrepancies in Tang Fang’s report.
The photos from Thomas’s imaging device proved that the squad was attacked by the new bug species after finding Tang Fang. And from the special ops team’s report, it was clear that the new bug species killed by the fragmentation grenade was not the same one that killed Conda.
Comparing the images of Tang Fang "unconscious" from the recorder, with Sharov's testimony of where he was found, as well as the battlefield’s scattered evidence, it was certain that Tang Fang had already regained consciousness by then.
Thomas and Conda were both dead, yet Tang Fang hid behind a rock and survived. As a squad member, what he did wasn’t just abandoning his comrades—it was practically watching them die.
Once the report, filled with accusations, landed on the commander’s desk, Tang Fang was moved from his quarters to a prison cell.
Today, he had just received the final verdict from his superiors, which led to this very moment.
Operation Butcher? Why not call it Operation Suicide? He thought sarcastically.
The corpse of the new bug species was brought back to the base by the special ops team. After a thorough and meticulous examination by biological experts, and an analysis of various data, a horrifying conclusion was reached: If encountered in dark caverns, one of the new bug species had the combat ability of an entire five-man combat squad. Even in the open wilderness, a one-on-two fight would still be a fifty-fifty chance.
There were 240 people in the entire company. Excluding those in roles like cooking, maintenance, medical care, and research, the actual number of combatants was only 120. Two dozen of the new bug species could easily turn these soldiers into piles of bones.
Planet 5 was vast. Who knew how many of the new species were lurking underground? Someone had to go down and scout, bringing back detailed intelligence. Based on the data collected from the research ship, this was merely a Class 7 resource planet. If the number of the native species underground was high and their individual combat abilities strong, there was no point in continuing to waste time here. The universe was vast, and resource planets were as numerous as the stars.
But who would go scouting? No matter how tough the men in command might be, they were still human. Who would willingly become the main course on the new bug species’s dinner plates?
As the mission was passed from one person to another, Wei Haitao turned his attention to the warden of the Abyss One Space Station, located on the nearby Planet Randuin. Thus, "Operation Butchers" was born. Of course, the term "butchers" was relative to normal people. As for three days later, when they ventured into Planet 5's underground caverns and encountered the terrifying new bug species, who would be the real butchers and who would be the cattle to be slaughtered was still an unknown.
Three days later, the Scorpion armed transport helicopter slowly lifted off, its vibrations passing through the seats to everyone on board, like a shiver after relieving oneself.
Tang Fang said nothing, staring coldly at the row of people seated across from him. Muscular, skinny, scarred, or unscarred—all of them bald-headed brutes, their shining scalps glowing under the light.
Tang Fang never thought he’d one day be rubbing shoulders with convicted murderers. And so many of them at once, no less. Wei Haitao had assigned him as the mission commander, leading this task? Obviously, Wei Haitao had nothing good in mind. These people, who had been through hell and back, would they really follow his command? Ridiculous. The moment the Scorpion touched the ground, they’d probably tear him apart.
"Heh heh." The man directly across from him, a nasty grin etched across his face, had a cross-shaped scar on his forehead, baring a mouthful of uneven, yellow teeth that resembled kernels of corn.
Tang Fang took a deep breath, ignoring him. He refocused on the thoughts swirling in his mind. During his time in confinement, he had managed to sort through his recent experiences and roughly figure out the functions of the StarCraft II system.
Any time a living creature died before his eyes, he could collect their life energy, which would then be converted into in-game crystals, allowing him to produce combat units and summon them into the real world through a battle command interface.
However, advanced technological buildings weren’t automatically unlocked as they were in the game after constructing basic structures. For example, while a Zerg base and a spawning pool had been built, the Infestation Pit, Roach Warren, and Evolution Chamber were still greyed out and unusable. It seemed that upgrading technology wasn’t as simple as just amassing enough crystals and gas like in the game.
And what was even more frustrating was that the spawning pool could indeed upgrade the Zerglings' movement speed and attack speed, but the cost was enough to make Tang Fang want to smash his keyboard. What originally cost only 100 minerals and 100 gas for Metabolic Boost in the game now required 1,000 minerals and 1,000 gas. As for the Adrenal Glands upgrade? Even more absurd—it required 2,000 minerals and 2,000 gas. To gather 1,000 life energy from human deaths, he would need 200 people. And if he relied on Rock Bugs, it would take 500 of them. Not to mention, upgrading tech also required gas, and as of now, Tang Fang had no idea where he could even find any.
His thoughts returned to the present. The imperial emblem—a sacred sword embroidered on his sleeve—felt like a blade hanging over his head, ready to drop at any moment. Tang Fang didn’t like this feeling. In fact, he despised it.
Over the years, the Empire had become increasingly war-hungry, expanding its territory aggressively. When it came to military matters, the leadership was both ruthless and merciless. Every man over the age of 18 was required to serve eight years of mandatory military service. The number of young soldiers dying on the battlefield every year exceeded a million. Soldiers like Tang Fang, mere grunts at the bottom, had no power to resist. At any moment, they could be sacrificed as cannon fodder. Just like three days ago when he was judged, they didn’t even give him a chance to defend himself.
When Tang Yan was still alive, he had often thought about escaping this country. But with younger siblings to care for, he couldn’t leave, as doing so would doom them to lifelong slavery or worse—public execution.
Deep in his heart, Tang Yan harbored an extraordinarily wild dream. If possible, he wished to overthrow this tyrannical regime, drag that old bastard off the Emperor's throne, and crush his carefully pampered face with a thick army boot. He wanted the old man to taste dirt and hear the cries of the people, the wails of the masses, and the accusations and curses of the countless young soldiers who had died in vain.
Tang Fang had inherited everything from Tang Yan, including his hatred for this nation. In the past, such a wish was nothing more than a daydream. But now, things were different. He had the StarCraft system to rely on. Once he grew strong enough, when he amassed enough power, he wouldn’t hesitate to make that old man tremble. He would make the Empire’s nobles live in fear.
One day, the Zerg swarm would flood his castles, the Protoss Motherships would obliterate his palaces, and the flag of freedom would wave proudly in the wind.
With the sound of gas being vented, the Scorpion armed transport helicopter touched down. The rear hatch slowly opened, and a beam of dim yellow light fell on Tang Fang's slightly pale face.
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