Chapter 588: Hynix (Part 1) (Patreon)
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In the vicinity of Diego Garcia Island, Forerunner extended his hand, and a small metal insect, no larger than a child's fingernail, swiftly flew into his palm.
"Mission accomplished, Master. I'm ready to withdraw," it reported.
"Understood. You don't need to return to North Harbor. Head to the Mediterranean Sea and assume control of the submarine," Forerunner commanded.
In North Dovinsk's military port, after receiving a message from Forerunner transmitted from Diego Garcia Island, Sun Cheng responded with satisfaction.
The stage had been set, and now they waited for the grand performance to begin.
Thunder and Excavator had been left in Africa by Sun Cheng to monitor the Decepticons within Egypt.
As for Sun Cheng and Forerunner, they had split up, with one heading north to North Dovinsk and the other going to Diego Garcia Island.
In just one day, they had traveled nearly ten thousand kilometers, and the results were more than satisfactory.
Sun Cheng had been in control of North Dovinsk's military port for over a year. Humans had continued to live within North Harbor, but most ordinary civilians had been relocated by the authorities, leaving behind either Russian soldiers or workers servicing the military port's facilities.
Among these people were not only numerous Russian special agents but also some spies from Europe and even the United States.
Their identities had been known to Sun Cheng for a long time, but he had refrained from taking action.
This time, he had used a CIA spy he had identified and turned to transmit a piece of "false intelligence" to the CIA.
Originally, Sun Cheng had never thought he could deceive the United States Government into joining the fray. He had merely wanted to test the Decepticon faction that had infiltrated the United States earlier and create an excuse to send "intelligence" to Colonel Williams.
According to Sun Cheng's plan, he would arrange for a deep cover operative on the United States side to send a fake "secret mission" to Colonel Williams in the name of the Department of Defense.
However, he had clearly underestimated the greed and ambition of those in power in the United States. When the CIA transmitted the message back to the United States, the information that the "Leadership Module" was a more powerful and harmless energy source than the "All Spark" had caused a commotion in both political and business circles within the United States within a matter of hours.
There was no need for Sun Cheng to utilize his deep cover operatives. The authorities acted as if they had received his playbook and, within less than a day, made decisions that aligned with his plan, implementing them step by step.
This had actually saved Sun Cheng a lot of effort. After Forerunner, who had been lurking on Diego Garcia Island, had dispatched a mini Decepticon to infiltrate the original Sound Nest base and find Colonel Williams' private cellphone, a copy of it had been sent to Michaela's phone in Colonel Williams' name after they arrived in Qatar.
As for what might happen to him afterward if he were to be tracked down, that was not a concern for Sun Cheng.
On Starscream's side, with Lord Fallen and Soundwave's distractions, they hadn't rushed to the Nameless Temple right after obtaining the coordinates for the Leadership Module.
Taking advantage of the last-minute preparations before the final battle, Sun Cheng was preparing to add another chip to his chances of winning.
In North Dovinsk's military port, there was a heavily guarded indoor shipyard.
Sun Cheng stood silently in the shipyard, looking at a military vessel undergoing modifications. His expression was extremely solemn.
Anyone familiar with Russian military vessels or military enthusiasts would likely recognize it at first glance.
This ship, which appeared to have been completed and was now being modified in the indoor shipyard, bore a strong resemblance to the 22350-class frigate, which had been finalized a few years earlier and was still under construction in northern shipyards.
However, it was an improved version of the 22350-class frigate. The reason for its presence here was quite apparent.
There was another world's influence behind it. Sun Cheng paid close attention to the military developments in the Transformers Universe world.
Since he had started cooperating with the Russians, the Russians working with him had spared no effort in trying to obtain more valuable assets from him.
Similarly, Sun Cheng had been doing his best to acquire every piece of military hardware from this superpower.
Missiles, cannons, rocket launchers, fighter jets, bombers, drones, submarines, warships, and more. Except for the nuclear weapons zealously guarded by the Russians and some intercontinental missile technology, Sun Cheng had made little progress.
However, everything else that the Russians had was being cataloged in Base Two's technical repository through a combination of advanced devices, the designs and manufacturing of advanced equipment he had "sold," and the backdoor records of industrial software he had designed for the Russians.
Submarines were suitable as a deterrent and strategic weapon, given their specific operational environment. However, using them as conventional weapons had its disadvantages.
So, since the beginning of the year, Sun Cheng had ordered his engineers to fully upgrade these vessels based on the 22350-class frigate after obtaining their data from the Northern Shipyard, where they were still under construction.
At first, Sun Cheng had only hoped to design and manufacture a few of these warships, considering Base Two's needs to protect North Harbor and expand its sea access.
Now, he had some new ideas.
The modification had taken several hours, and it was only after that when the Robots, Decepticon laborers, and engineers on the ship began to evacuate one by one.
"Master, the modifications are complete. As per your orders, we removed the ship's original nuclear power system, installed a new auxiliary power system, and transplanted the Spark and Core sent by Base Two into the ship. However, can this giant really be converted into a Decepticon?" Hephaestus, an engineer and Sun Cheng's expert in shipbuilding, spoke to Sun Cheng.
Ever since Sun Cheng had ordered the retrofitting and pilfering of the retired Typhoon-class strategic nuclear submarine from the former Soviet Union, Hephaestus had developed a strong affinity for submarines and ships.
In the past year, Hephaestus had personally overseen and participated in the two retrofitting processes of the Typhoon-class strategic nuclear submarine, the design and manufacture of cargo submarines, the design and manufacture of unmanned deep-sea probes, the retrofitting and manufacture of the Yasen-class nuclear submarine, and even served as an external expert for Russian shipyards for some time.
Leveraging Cybertron Planet's advanced technology along with the technical reserves of the Skytiger Legion, Hephaestus had now become a top-notch ship design and manufacturing expert.
However, even with his level of expertise, he was still taken aback by Sun Cheng's idea.
Because his master intended to use a fragment of the All Spark to directly transform this modified warship into a Decepticon.
"Let's take a chance." With three fingers of his right hand holding a fragment of the All Spark, Sun Cheng calmly looked at the shimmering blue arcs of electricity around the fragment. His face was even calmer than Hephaestus's.
Transforming a Decepticon using a piece of the All Spark had been his idea for a long time. Due to the unique properties of the All Spark and their previous successful experiments in awakening new Decepticons using fragments as critical awakening devices, this concept had been proven feasible.
However, Sun Cheng had hesitated in the past because he had only seven fragments in total, including the one he had recently obtained from Rewind. Using one would mean having one less.
Now, with the situation deteriorating and his limited available forces, Sun Cheng had to resort to manipulation and intrigue, even using Autobots to gain some influence. However, it was becoming increasingly difficult.
To turn the tide, it was time to make a decision.
With these thoughts in mind, he walked toward the fully modified warship not far away, holding the fragment of the All Spark in his hand.
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Next Chapter >>Chapter 589: Hynix (Part 2) - A Transformative Awakening