The colonel at the military base did Huai Shan Branch School a big favor, specially instructing the mess hall staff to prepare a lavish lunch. Afterwards, the mess hall staff seemed to have discovered a new continent: it was all eaten!

Damn, that was enough food for an entire company!

Chen Gu remarked that he could still eat more. The military was great; their food was substantial, all high-calorie, none of that overly refined nonsense.

「In the afternoon」

After a brief rest, the group set out.

The convoy of heavy armored combat vehicles slowly departed the military base, accompanied by four elite reconnaissance squads from the base. They sat upright in the vehicles, cradling their weapons, their expressions cold, eyes fixed forward, emanating an undisguised disdain for these newcomers.

Yet these newcomers had already grasped the difficulty of this unfortunate "newcomer military training." Each one felt uneasy and, to a large extent, pinned their hopes on these battle-hardened elites. Naturally, their morale was diminished by more than a notch.

Even though they were all powerful professionals, most were like flowers raised in a greenhouse, possessing an innate fear of the battlefield.

As for Chen Gu... he, of course, felt nothing towards these elite scouts and certainly wouldn't be intimidated by them.

Every Mecha pilot he had fought alongside in past battles was far more elite than these soldiers.

At that moment, he began to ponder again, To start with such a military operation... what kind of talents does Huai Shan Branch School actually want to cultivate?

Half the time spent on-campus learning, half the time interning off-campus. Heh, all off-campus internships are probably like this, right?

PHEW— He let out a quiet breath, thinking back to his college days in his past life, and couldn't help but grumble internally, Damn it, for others, university meant sleeping in, occasionally failing a course, and maybe even getting a chance to date some female underclassmen. Why is Huai Shan Branch School so terrifying?

When it came to female underclassmen, he couldn't help but think of Shangguan Yuqing and that other one, shaking his head with some 'dread.' I certainly don't want to be another Zhao Ji.

Inside the heavy armored combat vehicles, the atmosphere gradually grew tense. Wang Chengqian observed coldly, knowing his students were already at a psychological disadvantage, which came as no surprise to him. However, the students' ultimate potential differed from that of these soldiers.

With repeated training, they were bound to soar to great heights eventually.

Meanwhile, most of these scouts could only be foot soldiers; very few would ever become Mecha pilots.

Yet, seeing how inept his students were, he couldn't help feeling somewhat peeved.

Qiao Shuangyi and Lin Xiaochen sat on either side of Chen Gu. Qiao Shuangyi was his usual carefree self, while Lin Xiaochen felt the pressure from the warriors opposite them. He also had the pride of a second-generation elite and stubbornly held on for a while but eventually yielded, lowering his head to stare at the tips of his shoes, no longer daring to meet their gazes.

Just then, Chen Gu's phone suddenly rang!

The leader of the reconnaissance squad turned sharply toward him, his gaze fierce, about to reprimand him, but suddenly his expression changed!

It was indeed inappropriate to even think of answering a phone before such a military operation. That was why the squad leader had wanted to berate him.

The reason the scouts immediately adopted the intimidating air of battle-hardened veterans to cow these arrogant newcomers was due to their own considerations: such missions were the least desirable. These individuals, despite their important status, were greenhorns on the battlefield. Ostensibly, their role was support, but in reality, it was protection, significantly increasing the risk to their own lives.

If they didn't establish their dominance from the outset, and if these novices, in their arrogance, refused to follow orders on the battlefield, they would undoubtedly be dragged down by them, potentially to their deaths.

And taking a phone call before a battle was undoubtedly a huge rookie mistake!

However, he swallowed the reprimand that was on the tip of his tongue because he remembered: this was a restricted military zone. Civilian signals couldn't get through!

Therefore, the caller at this moment had to have a military background.

The squad leader judged from this that the newcomer before him might be the child of a military family. It wouldn't be wise to make an example of him, lest he inadvertently offend one of their own, so he held himself back.

Chen Gu also knew it was inappropriate to answer a call at such a time. He glanced at the caller ID, intending to hang up, but the name displayed left him no choice but to reluctantly answer.

This phone number had been provided by the military and, like his regular private number, was linked to his personal account.

Anyone who knew this secure military phone number would undoubtedly be military personnel. The caller at this moment was Bai Yunpeng.

"Marshal Bai."

The ears of the reconnaissance troopers pricked up instantly. Marshal Bai? Could it be *the* Marshal Bai?

Bai Yunpeng's voice was booming, loud enough for everyone nearby to faintly hear, "Chen Gu, I just heard you're headed to Maoshi Star to deal with the Subterraneans?"

"Yes, I'm on my way to the mission location," Chen Gu replied, tactfully implying, If you have something to say, say it quickly. I'm busy here.

Marshal Bai grumbled, "The principal kept this under such tight wraps! I only got the news too late, leaving me with insufficient time to prepare."

He paused, then continued, "Let me tell you, the commander of Maoshi Star's garrison forces, General Ling Yitong, is an old subordinate of mine. And old subordinates, of course, need looking after. Since you're going, you have to protect this reconnaissance unit for me. They're Ling Yitong's elites; he'd be heartbroken to lose even one. I'm telling you, that old fellow is the most miserly when it comes to his soldiers..."

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