Pretending to be a genius starts with the civilization advancement assessment.

Chapter 169 The Mercenary Group of the Future
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, but by early morning, the Dongfeng Military Academy and its surrounding area were already shrouded in a somber atmosphere.

On the huge take-off and landing pad, the rotors of more than a dozen armed helicopters whipped up a fierce wind and emitted a deafening roar.

Further away, a long steel dragon composed of tanks and armored vehicles was slowly advancing along a temporarily cleared road towards the "small nest No. 7" on the outskirts of Helu City.

The low growl of the diesel engine and the crushing sound of the metal tracks intertwined, heralding the prelude to war.

Besides these regular forces, what's even more eye-catching are the figures on the military academy's parade ground.

All cadets of Dongfeng Military Academy have lined up.

These ordinary students mostly have a source energy level between 20 and 40 points. They are just starting out and their individual strength is limited.

But today, they are not bystanders.

According to the operational plan, they will be assigned to the students who have successfully advanced to the Stardust level in this special training course, forming combat teams with the Stardust level as the core, ordinary students as the backbone, and some elite ordinary soldiers attached.

This was the first time that ordinary trainees had truly participated in an active attack on the nest, and it was also a crucial step in combining classroom learning with practice.

Nie Chang stood on the makeshift command platform, dressed in a crisp military uniform, the star on his shoulder gleaming faintly in the morning light.

As the commander-in-chief of this operation, he was conducting the final pre-battle mobilization.

"Comrades, target, small nest number 7! Our mission is to destroy it completely."

"Remember your training, trust your comrades, obey orders, and fight together!"

"For our homeland, let's set off!"

Nie Chang didn't offer much sentimentality; after a few simple words, he directly gave the order to depart.

Led by trainees from the special training class, each combat team quickly boarded the armored vehicles that came to pick them up and merged into the steel torrent.

In an instant, engines roared and wheels rolled, and the massive combat force, like a giant beast awakened, pounced towards the target area.

At the same time, a streak of dark blue light quietly rose up.

Lin Yi, aboard the "Starburst" fighter jet, moved at a speed far exceeding that of ground troops, silently piercing the sky and arriving first above the No. 7 small nest.

The fighter jet hovered thousands of meters in the air, its optical camouflage making it blend perfectly into the blue sky.

Lin Yi looked down at the purplish-red vortex of the small nest below through the panoramic image.

Unlike before, this time he doesn't plan to neutralize the source energy himself.

Lin Yi silently covered the entire area with his soul power. This time, in addition to acting as a safety net, he also planned to carefully observe these students. Besides selecting those who could stand alone and were suitable to be the principals of the Dongfeng branch school, he also planned to prepare for the establishment of the training brigade.

He took this selection process very seriously.

In his plan, the Training Corps was not only the core force for the subsequent suppression of the Abyss Tide, but also an important seed and backbone for the future establishment of a mercenary group belonging to Blue Star, allowing them to adapt to the battlefield in advance.

While Lin Yi was pondering the follow-up plan, it wasn't long before the ground troops had swept through the enemy lines, advanced to the small nest, and completed the encirclement, establishing a defensive position.

After all, in the last battle to wipe out the miniature nest, the abyssal beasts in this small nest had been almost completely wiped out. Although they have recovered somewhat in the past few days, their numbers are not particularly large.

The core threat in this operation was actually the reinforcements from the adjacent medium-sized nest.

After the defensive position was established, ten military academy instructors who had also been promoted to the Stardust level stood scattered in front of the vortex of the Abyss Nest, and beams of various colored source energy burst from their hands, while simultaneously beginning to neutralize the source energy.

Beyond the Stardust level, depending on the main cultivation method, the arrangement of the finest source energy particles will also be different. Therefore, visually, the color of the source energy will vary.

However, most people still primarily used the most neutral and balanced azure blue source energy, because although this type of cultivation source energy didn't offer any special amplification, it was compatible with any martial arts technique. Almost the instant the source energy neutralization began, the abyssal beasts within the entire small nest territory suddenly erupted into a frenzy.

Soon, the black "tide" surged in.

This wave of abyssal beasts far surpasses the previous battles to exterminate miniature nests, both in terms of quantity and quality.

A large number of low-level abyssal beasts spread out like a gray carpet, mixed with a considerable number of elite individuals. Behind the first wave of the tide were dozens of powerful figures emanating obvious stardust-level fluctuations.

They come in various shapes and sizes; some resemble enlarged giant lizards, others are multi-legged, blade-like worms, and still others are bizarre beings that float off the ground and are wrapped in energy tentacles.

"Proceed according to plan, engage the enemy!"

Nie Chang's calm voice rang out on the command channels at all levels.

Instantly, artillery fire roared!
The tank's main gun roared, its shells exploding into bursts of flame and shockwaves amidst the beast horde. Dense machine gun fire, like the scythe of death, swept down swarms of low-level abyssal beasts.

Armed helicopters circled at the edge of the battlefield, raining down rockets.

The steel torrent collided violently with the black tide, instantly turning the battlefield into a meat grinder.

Meanwhile, combat teams centered around Stardust-level trainees from the special training program stood like reefs at the forefront of the defense line.

Chen Yu felt his heart pounding wildly in his chest. The area he was responsible for was a relatively open flat area, which was exactly the abyss beast's favorite charging route.

In their field of vision, the gray-black beast tide surged in like a flood bursting its banks, roaring and causing the ground to tremble slightly.

If it were half a month ago, he probably would have been fired up and leaped out with his sword to wreak havoc.

But at this moment, the painful memories of being killed by low-level abyssal beasts countless times in the virtual space due to premature exhaustion of source energy instantly extinguished his impulse.

"Hold on!" he growled to his tense crew members behind him, his voice drowning out the roar of the artillery. "Platoon Leader Zhang, once those Abyss Wolves are within range, immediately cover them with fire. Don't let them gain speed."

"Xiao Wang! Your group, prepare for Source Energy Impact. Target the 'Shielded Beast' swarm directly ahead. On my command, fire in unison!"

While issuing commands rapidly, Chen Yu remained firmly rooted to the front of the line, his battle blade emitting source energy light.

He didn't pursue flashy moves; every swing of his sword was simple and effective, specifically targeting elite abyssal beasts that had broken through the firepower net.

With a flash of light, a "Swift Shadow Wolf" attempting to charge forward by its speed had its forelimbs precisely severed, collapsing to the ground with a mournful howl.

Taking advantage of a moment when he was swinging his knife, an elite "Scorpion" stabbed his ribs with its venomous stinger like lightning.

Chen Yu's pupils contracted. Instead of confronting the attack head-on or dodging in a disheveled manner, he shifted his feet and turned his body to the side at a subtle angle. At the same time, he pressed down with the blade, precisely striking the side of the poison stinger with the blade's flat surface, deflecting it.

"laugh!"

Almost simultaneously, an ordinary student behind him seized the opportunity and fired a solid burst of energy, accurately hitting the weak spot on the abdomen of the "Scorpion" that had been exposed during the attack.

Chen Yu turned around, exchanged a glance with the student, nodded slightly, and then immediately turned his attention back to the front.

His breathing was slightly rapid, but his eyes were bright.

He felt as if he were in a virtual space, not fighting alone, but as the brain and strongest fist of this defensive node.

During a lull in the beast tide, he even took out a source energy crystal from the fortifications and raced against time to restore source energy, disregarding any potential waste.

(End of this chapter)