39: Chapter 39 Choosing a Faction

【Countdown to the Heavens War instance: 12 hours】

The Hive City dock was bustling with activity, the dense sound of footsteps serving as the background music here.

Servitors trotted, soldiers sprinted, and everyone wore a tense expression; a heavy, murderous aura permeated the entire dock.

Ronan trotted along, straining under the weight of a heavy equipment crate, a fire of unwillingness burning in his eyes.

There were not a few people like him, forced into a dead end by the nobles and left with no choice but to gamble.

Yesterday's explosion shattered Ronan's illusions.

He thought life would get better, but he was wrong; that group of vermin-like nobles could not tolerate them.

To protect those moments of happiness, he could only bet everything on the Governor.

He quickened his pace and ducked into the ship's cabin.

...

Wade held a data pad and trotted up to Fu Haoran:

"My lord, 20,000 troops, 12 Leman Russ Tank units, 28 Chimera armored vehicles, 15 Bison troop carriers, 60 artillery pieces of various models, 6 valkyries, as well as various ammunition and batteries have all been loaded."

Wade paused: "It's just... the ship's capacity is only 15,000. Is it appropriate to cram so many people in?"

Fu Haoran did not even raise his head, his tone calm yet filled with unquestionable determination: "Make do. Clear out my room to store supplies, throw away all the furniture; there is no need to consider my living arrangements."

"My lord, this is all we have. We're taking it all?"

"Take it all."

"But what if..."

"There are no 'what ifs'." Fu Haoran interrupted directly, "If we lose, we have no way back in the Hive City; the nobles won't show us the slightest sympathy."

"Only by winning the coming war will we have the confidence to flip the table."

"The upcoming operation must be a victory; we cannot afford to lose."

Although Fu Haoran did not reveal information about the Reincarnator world, Wade, having been to the 2K World several times, had guessed a little and knew his Governor possessed special abilities.

After all, being able to conjure mobile space capsules and large amounts of food out of thin air... he couldn't think of any other explanation.

Wade was silent for two seconds, then suddenly stood at attention and performed the Aquila salute: "Yes! My lord!"

...

To Fu Haoran's surprise, Lucifer also boarded the ship, taking her seat as first officer on the bridge as a matter of course.

Fu Haoran asked solemnly: "Are you sure you want to come with me? I am going to war. If you die, you die for real; even you cannot be resurrected."

Lucifer lifted her chin, her expression calm: "Why do you think I would be afraid? My existence is for war, to fight against barbarism and disorder."

"Let's go quickly, my lover; I don't want to miss any game."

Well, this Necrons is quite sick; she's too deep into character.

As the countdown ended, the system voice came again.

【Ding! Heavens War matched successfully!】

【Faction: Independent Conqueror (Exclusive to Lord class)】

【Forced transmission initiated! Lord exclusive authority activated; select the units you need to transmit.】

Fu Haoran chose to transmit the entire ship without hesitation.

【Selection complete, consumed 10,453 Universal Points】

Looking at the Universal Points that had almost exhausted all his savings, Fu Haoran had the feeling of returning to square one overnight.

Although he felt a pang of heartache, Fu Haoran did not hesitate at all.

【Transmission is about to begin, war points are being calculated in real-time!】

The hull shook violently, the engines emitted a sharp shriek that tore through space, and white light wrapped around the steel behemoth as it smashed through the dimensional barrier.

Fu Haoran gripped the armrests of his command throne, feeling his internal organs being lifted upward.

Three seconds later, the vibration stopped abruptly.

The white light dissipated.

Outside the window was not the starry sky of the Hive City, but an endless, azure ocean.

The piercing alarm stopped abruptly. A Technician Monk stepped forward quickly, his mechanical fingers dancing across the console: "Governor, transmission complete! No damage to the hull, all personnel status normal!"

【Main war mission updated: 1. Kill enemy Faction Reincarnators/hostile NPCs to obtain war points; 2. Seize core plot nodes to increase World Line volatility; 3. Complete missions issued by your Faction to obtain Faction reputation】

【Current World Line volatility: 0%】

【Heavens War points: 0】

【World ranking: Not ranked】

【Note: The higher the World Line volatility and the higher the level of the killed unit, the more generous the final settlement reward.】

"Volatility... does that mean no high scores without causing trouble?" Fu Haoran twitched his lips, "This crappy system is as malicious as ever."

Fu Haoran raised his hand and tapped the console, issuing his first order: "Activate the large Auspex, full-power scan! Suppress all signals in the region, hack into all local information databases!"

The Technician Monk inserted his ten mechanical fingers into the console, and the ship-grade Auspex started instantly, the terrain outline of the entire planet rapidly unfolding on the holographic projection.

That familiar rooster shape on the east side of the Asian continent, the winding outline of the west coast of the Americas...

"Blue Star?" Fu Haoran leaned forward, "A parallel world's Blue Star?"

Fu Haoran's brows moved slightly, but he didn't dwell on it; whether he could go home or not wasn't important. What mattered was acquiring the capital to flip the table.

As the scan neared its end, a red dot suddenly popped up in the corner of the screen.

"Governor, an abnormal energy signal has been detected; the reaction pattern differs significantly from the surrounding area," the Technician Monk reported, "Coordinates: deep in the African continent, Kandahar mountainous region."

Fu Haoran stared at the red dot, understanding already dawning on him. This place likely hid the surprise he needed—either other Reincarnators or a special plot stronghold of this world.

"Mark it, continue hacking the local information databases."

The floating Servo-skull projected core news, filling the screen.

The headlines were eye-catching and familiar:

"Shocking! Stark Industries CEO Tony Stark announces: Comprehensive cessation of military business"

"Stark Industries stock price plummets! Obadiah Stane urgently calls a board meeting"

"Genius or madman? Tony Stark's personality changes drastically after returning from disappearance!"

"The military is furious! Multiple weapons contracts face default!"

The bridge was silent for two seconds.

"Marvel Universe, the timeline of 'iron man 1'."

Fu Haoran tapped the screen with his fingertips, his eyes brightening, "Tony just returned from Afghanistan, and Obadiah is anxious to seize power."

"Side with Tony?"

"Except for gaining friendship, the return on investment is not substantial."

"Moreover, blindly following the plot won't raise the World Line volatility, and the final reward will inevitably be pitifully small."

Fu Haoran rejected this plan, his gaze fixed on the words "Stark Industries" and "Arc Reactor".

"Side with the villain to win, and do something big?"

"The resistance will be huge, but I'm afraid this still isn't enough!"

"What other factions can be chosen?"

"S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, Ten Rings... wait, this faction is a good choice!" Fu Haoran noticed a faction that was extremely easy to overlook.

Although this faction appeared very few times, it was definitely a major organization in the Marvel world.

"Compared to the S.H.I.E.L.D. full of moles and deep roots, the crazy and paranoid Hydra that everyone shouts to beat up, the street gangs that can't be brought to the table, and Wakanda that is extremely xenophobic and does not communicate with the outside world, joining this organization gives me a natural advantage that others don't have."

"System, I want to choose this faction."

【Received, host is already bound to a faction, cannot modify】

"Since the faction has been selected, next is to prepare a welcome gift to farm favorability."

Fu Haoran immediately ordered: "Auspex, focus scanning on the Kandahar region of Afghanistan, filter conditions: small-scale armed gatherings, far from densely populated areas, with abnormal metal signals."

"Wade, take your most elite company and set off in a valkyrie. No need to leave any survivors in the target area; I only want the set of Powered Armor inside."

As soon as Fu Haoran finished speaking, the Auspex suddenly emitted a sharp alarm, and 3 high-speed moving red dots instantly popped up on the screen, speeding toward the Kandahar area.

Fu Haoran's eyes sharpened, and he immediately added: "Speed up, someone is stealing the food!"