148: Shocking the world, Lu Zhifei learned the news

Steel Bone City, this underground fortress standing stubbornly in the yellow sands of the apocalypse, was now immersed in a boiling frenzy.

Every alloy corridor, every metal-welded residential area, echoed with the same name—no, two names—Lin Fei! Lin Mengzi!

This pair of siblings who had suddenly appeared illuminated the residents of Steel Bone City like a comet.

"Have you heard? Captain Lin Fei of the Third Squad, all by himself! Just one person! He wiped out that Zerg stronghold a few hundred miles to the east!" A guard soldier who had just finished his shift, holding a bowl of hot synthetic protein paste, was so excited his face turned red, gesturing wildly to his companion.

"More than just wiped out! It was completely flattened! Not a single hair was left! And Deputy Captain Lin Mengzi, she was actually able to summon a legendary Bone Dragon! That scene, tsk tsk, just thinking about it makes one's scalp tingle!" Another soldier chimed in, eyes flashing with worship.

Similar conversations were playing out in every corner of Steel Bone City.

Citizens ran to tell each other, passing on this heart-stirring news like the most precious honey.

The brows that had been tightly locked due to the Zerg threat were now smoothed out, replaced by long-lost smiles and longing for the future.

Even the usually stern City Lord Taku, after listening to High Commander's vivid report, excitedly smashed his beloved reading glasses, shouting repeatedly: "Heaven bless Steel Bone! Heaven bless Steel Bone!"

And this ecstasy was not limited to Steel Bone City.

In this apocalypse with relatively isolated information, invisible ties still existed between the various survivor strongholds of humanity—encrypted military communication networks left over from the Interstellar Alliance era, news passed by word of mouth through trade caravans traveling between underground cities, and messengers responsible for delivering important intelligence.

The glorious victory of Steel Bone City in annihilating the Zerg stronghold spread like it had grown wings, moving at an unimaginable speed toward other giant cities controlled by the Saka Star Human Alliance, as well as the sporadic survivor camps scattered across the wastelands.

"Extra! Extra! A great victory for Steel Bone City! Two mysterious super-powered individuals destroyed a large Zerg stronghold with their own strength! The horn for humanity's counterattack has been blown!"

—This was the front-page headline of the 'Wasteland Morning Post', an underground newspaper circulating among several major giant cities, printed in the largest font.

"According to reliable intelligence, the newly promoted super-powered captain of Steel Bone City, Lin Fei, is suspected of mastering the legendary Thunder Divine Power, and his sister, Lin Mengzi, is even capable of summoning an undead calamity..."

For a time, the entire human society of Saka Star was shocked by these two names that had suddenly appeared.

After the shock came disbelief.

When more details, such as the roar of the bone dragon, the majesty of the Thunder Golem, and the world-destroying attacks that looked like divine punishment, were gradually confirmed through various channels, including footage captured by military satellites, that disbelief turned into a prairie fire, igniting countless Souls struggling in despair.

Humanity, it turns out, can be this strong!

The Zerg are not invincible!

Hope sprouted and grew in everyone's hearts once again.

In order to make this hope concrete, and to ensure all of humanity could remember this hard-won victory, the Propaganda Department of the Saka Star Human Alliance worked through the night to produce hero posters.

The design of the posters was simple and powerful.

In the center of the image were two young figures, a man and a woman.

The man wore black, surrounded by a phantom of a snarling dark gold Lightning Dragon. His gaze was disdainful and arrogant, as if everything in heaven and earth would be reduced to powder under his thunderous rage.

Below the poster, written in forceful characters, was— "Thunder Dominator · Lin Fei!"

The woman wore a dark dress, and behind her was a hideous bone dragon burning with ghostly blue Soul fire, its bone wings covering the sky.

Her face was cold, yet her eyes carried compassion and determination, as if the whispers of the dead were also the prelude to a new life.

The signature below— "Undead Goddess · Lin Mengzi!"

These two posters, like the most potent adrenaline shot, were quickly posted in major human cities, from heavily guarded military fortresses to bustling underground markets, from brightly lit research centers to refugee camps that could barely survive.

People stopped to stare, their eyes filled with reverence and yearning.

Children kept Lin Fei and Lin Mengzi's names on their lips, fantasizing that one day they too could possess such powerful strength to open up new territories for humanity.

"It really is those two!"

"Amazing! If it's them, then everything makes sense!"

"To cause such a big stir as soon as they arrived, too brutal!" Some players who had descended into various cities, including those like Ryunosuke who had teamed up with Lin Fei, immediately recognized their identities.

After all, back then, Lin Fei and Lin Mengzi were the ones on the mission to save the wasteland star!

And at this moment, deep within the most core and mysterious giant city on Saka Star—Tianqu City.

Inside a giant research institute built entirely of special alloys and filled with precision instruments and energy pipelines.

Lu Zhifei, the former Genius scientist, was leaning somewhat wearily against the cold metal chair, rubbing her slightly sore temples.

In front of her was a huge holographic projection screen, covered in dense, dizzying data streams and complex energy structure diagrams.

That was the analysis diagram of the Star Core Divine Weapon — "Ten Thousand Transformation Divine Machine".

She had been working on this for nearly two years.

The Star Core Divine Weapon was the hope bestowed upon humanity by the Star Spirit race, but it was also like a Pandora's box, containing terrifying power and profound knowledge that humanity could not fully control.

The Empire's top brass in Tianqu City had "invited" her here, ostensibly to assist in research, but in reality, it was no different from imprisonment.

They craved total control over the power of the Star Core Divine Weapon and even harbored delusions of replicating more similar Divine Artifacts.

Indeed!

Even with a great enemy at the gates and the Zerg running rampant, human factions were still busy scheming against each other.

During the period when the Zerg Queen was dormant, small-scale wars even broke out between the major giant cities.

Internal strife and mutual conquest among compatriots is a theme that will never change in human history!

Life in the research institute was dull, oppressive, and endless.

Outside the huge floor-to-ceiling windows were heavily armed guards and a cold steel jungle, making her feel like a canary trapped in a cage at all times.

The only thing that kept her going was the longing for her family, and the obsession with one day being able to use the power of the Star Core Divine Weapon to find a path back to the real world.

Just as she was preparing to dive back into the vast sea of data analysis, the research institute's internal public information channel suddenly broadcast an "exciting" news brief.

"...Steel Bone City super-powered individuals Lin Fei and Lin Mengzi, the siblings, successfully destroyed a large Zerg stronghold outside the city yesterday. Their heroic deeds have been reported to the entire Alliance, and promotional posters have now been distributed to all units..."

Accompanied by the broadcaster's slightly excited voice, two familiar yet strange hero posters were clearly displayed in the corner of the holographic screen.

Lin Fei... Lin Mengzi...

These two names, like two thunderclaps, exploded in Lu Zhifei's mind!

She jerked her head up, and the moment she saw those two posters, her originally unfocused eyes suddenly contracted, erupting with a light of disbelief!

It's them!

It is definitely them!

The young man with a bit of unruliness in his brow and lightning flashing around him—apart from a slight change in hairstyle, that familiar domineering and flamboyant aura was exactly the same as her little brother Lin Fei in her memory!

And that woman, as cold as the moon yet filled with resilience, the bone dragon she summoned...

Although her temperament had become more mature and sharp, those delicate features and the expression in her eyes were clearly her sixth sister, Lin Mengzi!

They had actually come to this world too!

And in such a shocking way!

An indescribable ecstasy surged from the bottom of Lu Zhifei's heart like a volcanic eruption, instantly washing away all the exhaustion, oppression, and loneliness she had felt for the past two years.

Her eye sockets moistened without warning.

"Xiao Fei... Meng Zi..."

She reached out, her fingertips trembling as she wanted to touch the two familiar figures on the screen, but she only touched a cold virtual projection.

They had come to find her!

Crossing the barriers of worlds, experiencing all kinds of hardships, they had really come to find her!

This realization made her tremble with excitement, wishing she could immediately rush out of this cage and fly to their side.

However, after the excitement, a deep sense of powerlessness washed over her like a cold tide.

She glanced at the cameras with red monitoring lights surrounding her, and the expressionless alloy guards outside the door.

She knew that she could barely even leave this laboratory now, let alone reunite with her younger brother and sister far away in Steel Bone City.

The Empire viewed her as the key to analyzing the Star Core Divine Weapon and would never let her leave easily.

She couldn't even send any private messages to the outside world.

The contrast between the inner ecstasy and the reality of her predicament made her anxious, yet she was helpless.

She could only look at those two posters over and over again.

At this moment, a decision was made!

"Xiao Fei, Meng Zi, wait for me. I will definitely find a way to reunite with you!"