Fatty Fish continued to ascend in altitude when a communication came through.
Demiken answered the call, and Jiela's image appeared.
"I'm very sorry." Although Demiken didn't understand how Jiela found out so quickly, it truly reflected his current feelings.
Jiela's expression was grave; she was momentarily taken aback by Demiken's words before quickly regaining her composure.
"Are your casualties severe?"
"Thirteen Harvester have returned," Demiken replied.
Jiela fell silent for a few seconds before saying, "There's a problem with the water resource collection; we need to temporarily dispatch Harvester."
"Is it serious?" Demiken sensed something was off.
"It's very dangerous and serious, but there's no choice. The higher-ups have decided to enforce the dispatch. All dispatched Harvester will receive a threefold task Points bonus this time," Jiela replied heavily.
Demiken's expression shifted slightly as he said, "I understand."
In the hangar, Jones patted Qianlong on the shoulder. "Come on, go rest. Don't think too much; coming back alive is the best outcome."
Qianlong nodded and had just taken a few steps with Jones when the broadcast sounded.
"Urgent notice: Due to unforeseen circumstances in the water resource collection task, Fatty Fish will change its course to provide support. All Harvester are to enter rest standby mode, and mechanics will service all Harvester."
Jones stopped in his tracks, his face showing shock.
"What's wrong?" Qianlong asked.
Jones glanced at Qianlong and said, "I don't know whether to say you're lucky or unlucky; you managed to run into something like this."
After hearing this, Qianlong roughly understood. "If we run into it, there's nothing we can do."
Aina, standing nearby, also looked grim, seemingly aware of what had happened.
"Go back and rest; try to adjust your state."
Qianlong looked around at the other Harvester; their faces were all exceptionally grim.
In the end, everyone dispersed silently. With no choice, they could only accept it reluctantly.
The Fatty Fish flew high in the sky towards the mission destination.
The temperature continued to drop, and various electronic alerts rang out incessantly.
In the control room, Quake looked at the information displayed on the screen, feeling a headache coming on. The glacier area was embroiled in a bloody battle, with Hiberian reinforcing with over 800 Guardian units, 50 medium-sized frigates, and 100 light frigates.
That area had turned into a meat grinder battlefield; no one had expected a Zerg nest to appear there.
The reason for dispatching Harvester was simple: the last giant iceberg's collection operation encountered problems, and several alloy chains that were originally fixed to the iceberg had been severed.
This caused the three Giant Marauder Ships supporting the iceberg to tilt.
The consequence of the tilt was that the three Giant Marauder Ships were directly pulled down.
Fortunately, one Harvester after another charged up to hold it steady, stabilizing the situation.
Although the situation was stabilized for now, the number of bugs pouring out of the Bug Nest was increasing, and a collapse of the situation was only a matter of time.
Currently, there were only two options: the first was to abandon the iceberg.
The second was to send Harvester up to re-fix the alloy chains.
It was clear that the Hiberian commander chose the second option.
"How far are we from the destination?" Demiken approached and asked hoarsely.
Quake looked up, clearly seeing the bloodshot eyes of Demiken, indicating he hadn't rested well.
"Estimated to reach the designated coordinates in three hours; the rest depends on them."
"I understand."
"Is this resource extraction really that important?" Quake hesitated to ask.
"Water resources are the most heavily consumed among all resources; we need a significant replenishment. This supply is crucial; otherwise, we will be very passive in the future."
"Isn't Hiberian supposed to have backup resources?"
"Those are only used in dire situations," Demiken explained.
"Well, I can only wish them good luck," Quake replied helplessly.
On the other side, the captain of the Mushroom had already received the latest information; plunder ships from other areas were about to arrive.
"Let their Harvester cut in from the designated route; specialized Guardians will protect their safety."
"They've already been informed, but..."
"But what?"
"They're down to less than a hundred Harvester remaining for support."
"What happened?"
"They've encountered various problems. If we count this trip, the final result will likely be even worse."
Kela replied seriously, "Even so, this mission must be completed."
At this moment, Qianlong had already boarded his Harvester. Fatty Fish had entered the designated area and was hovering; it was still a bit far from the battlefield, and getting closer would be very dangerous, so Fatty Fish did not approach any further. This stretch of road required the Harvester to proceed on their own.
The fuel and other supplies on the Harvester were fully replenished, and one by one, the Harvester detached from Fatty Fish, heading towards the designated route.
Not long into the flight, they encountered fifteen Guardian mechs.
These were there to escort them.
Seeing these Guardians, the Harvester pilots felt a bit relieved.
Phantom provided a warning, "A large number of Zerg detected ahead; the danger level is extremely high."
"I know."
"Recommendation: avoid."
"Some things can't be avoided," Qianlong explained.
"I'm not quite sure I understand," Phantom replied with a puzzled tone.
"You still need to grow," Qianlong answered.
The communication from the Guardians came through.
"We are about to enter the battlefield; please make sure to stay close behind us. Even if you encounter monsters, do not panic and flee; we will ensure your safety."
"Understood," Qianlong replied.
As they approached the battlefield, they began to see bugs with thin wings and curved bodies, soft-stinging flying insects, three meters long, with very hard tentacles that could secrete a highly acidic dissolving fluid, in large numbers.
"Form a cone formation centered on me and charge in," the lead Guardian mech commanded.
"Yes, Captain."
"All Harvester stay in the middle and keep up; do not fall behind."
After that, the lead Guardian began to forcefully attack, launching explosive projectiles.
Boom! The bugs fell like rain.
Even so, the advance was still quite arduous.
At this moment, Phantom simulated a clear enemy holographic distribution map in Qianlong's mind, making his scalp tingle.
"You need to pay attention to threats that can harm you and make predictions, like this," Phantom provided a prompt.
Suddenly, a guiding line in his mind pointed from one bug to a Harvester.
Just as Qianlong reacted, chaos erupted outside.
"Help!"
A soft-stinging flying bug broke through the defensive circle and crashed into a Harvester.
"Don't! Save me!"
"Don't panic! Steady the machine!"
The soft-stinging flying bug relentlessly slammed its tentacles against the Harvester, occasionally secreting liquid to dissolve the armor, making a sizzling sound. In fact, the Harvester's armor was quite
thick; after all, it wasn't easy for the metallic tail of the stinger to break through.
However, the Harvester inside made a fatal mistake.
(End of Chapter)