Chapter 895: Preparing for War (Patreon)

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Optimus Prime didn't remain silent for too long; perhaps he had already made up his mind deep within his heart. He just needed a reason or someone to convince himself.

"Lord Frenzy!"

As he locked eyes with Sun Cheng once again, the struggle that had been evident on Optimus Prime's face had now been replaced by determination.

"The Autobots will never stand idly by while war rages on Earth. We will do everything in our power to prevent another war from happening!"

Sun Cheng and he exchanged a steady gaze for a while before Sun Cheng nodded slowly.

"Your Excellency, we are willing to believe in your commitment. At the same time, we will honor our promise that no Decepticon from our side will enter the territory of Africa without your consent. This land will be within the Autobot's sphere of influence."

He tapped on his own chest armor and instantly, it opened up, revealing two extended metal joints that ejected a metallic disk.

Sun Cheng picked it up and handed it to Optimus Prime.

"This contains information about some of the mines we established in Africa previously. The equipment inside has not been removed. Autobots can easily modify them for direct use, consider it a gesture of goodwill."

Just a few small mines, hardly worth binding Optimus Prime as an ally. Sun Cheng had become increasingly accustomed to his role as a politician or, one could say, a leader of power. He knew when to give up and when to hold on firmly.

Optimus Prime furrowed his brows slightly. As the former leader of the Autobots who had led the group through the Civil War and helped rebuild their home on Satellite, he was perhaps lacking in the ruthlessness and politics that his mentor, Sentinel Prime, had. But that didn't mean he didn't understand the significance of accepting this disk!

His mentor, Sentinel Prime, was currently preparing for war, planning to take over all of Africa and even Earth. At this point, Africa had no room for Decepticons, and the Autobots were still in the process of clearing them out. Once he accepted this disk, it would mean that he immediately stood against his own mentor.

The conflict between teacher and student would be irreconcilable!

Sun Cheng maintained his posture, handing over the disk without impatience. He knew that even though Optimus Prime had decided to interfere with Sentinel Prime's war plans, persuasion would be the primary approach. And this was clearly not what Sun Cheng needed; he had to ensure the division among the Autobots, or at least prevent Sentinel Prime from bringing the next wave of conflict to his territory.

Time passed in Optimus Prime's hesitation, second by second.

Sun Cheng was not in a hurry, and Optimus Prime was considering the pros and cons repeatedly.

The leaders of the two opposing factions engaged in a silent battle in the shadows, but they had clearly forgotten that there were not only the two of them here but also more than a dozen Autobots.

Ironhide, with his quick temper, pushed away his girlfriend, Claudia, who was trying to hold his hand. Claudia, a clever female Autobot, knew his temperament well and grabbed him before he could react.

Unfortunately, while Ironhide had not yet realized the silent confrontation between Sun Cheng and Optimus Prime, he understood that Optimus Prime needed to build a new force, and a new force required resources.

So, to Sun Cheng's surprise, Ironhide stepped forward and took the metallic disk.

"Thank you for your gift. We Autobots will never forget your friendship and will never betray our friends!"

It was Optimus Prime who spoke. In fact, when Ironhide took the disk voluntarily, he had already made up his mind.

Sun Cheng smiled and nodded, then bowed slightly.

"Well, we look forward to your good news. Farewell, Autobot friends."

With that, Sun Cheng leaped into the air and quickly transformed into a small spaceship, unlike any Autobot they had seen before, and flew towards the distant sea.

As he left, Ironhide's girlfriend, Claudia, immediately began to scold him.

"Ironhide, you're too reckless!"

Ironhide, however, was unapologetic. "We need resources!"

Two beams of bright blue light shot from his eyes as he quickly scanned the information stored on the metallic disk. Afterward, he handed it to Optimus Prime. "Leader, the information should be reliable. It contains data on seven mines, and we've already taken control of them."

He added, somewhat admiringly, "Frenzy and his group are quite forward-thinking. At least here on Earth, they have integrated into the environment even better and faster than our Skytiger Legion!"

His apprentice, Shake, didn't agree and muttered under his breath, "That's because they used force and conspiracies to seize Earth's land and resources!"

Claudia glared at him, and Shake fell silent immediately.

Optimus Prime frowned as he looked at the disk in his hand. After a while, he sighed and accepted it. "Ironhide, you shouldn't have taken this."

He still held on to a glimmer of hope for his mentor.

Leaving the meeting with Optimus Prime behind, Sun Cheng flew to a point about two hundred kilometers above the West African sea surface and gently descended onto a massive warship drifting on the ocean.

The colossal behemoth at sea resembled the Kirov-class nuclear-powered cruiser of a Polar Bear, but the bridge, which looked like a giant tumor, was two-thirds smaller, replaced by more missile launch silos, close-range defensive weapons, and a massive naval artillery.

As he landed, a warship that looked like a frigate next to the massive warship underwent a series of transformations.

Not long after, towering mechanical giants, even taller than Sun Cheng's body, climbed onto the warship from one side, bowing respectfully.

"Commander-in-chief!"

"Hmm!"

Sun Cheng glanced at Hynix and nodded with a smile.

His gaze soon shifted from Hynix to the massive ship beneath his feet.

A Decepticon warrior quickly emerged from the bridge and saluted him. "Commander-in-chief, should we lower our alert level?"

"Lower it."

Sun Cheng calmly issued the order, still looking at the enormous warship beneath his feet, a faint smile playing on his lips.

This ship's exterior resembled the Kirov-class nuclear-powered cruiser of a Polar Bear, but it had been transformed by several Decepticon engineers based on Hynix's exceptional performance in previous battles. This behemoth had undergone a significant transformation.

Upgraded radar systems ensured precise scanning without blind spots, strong anti-interference capabilities, and the ability to track over 500 target units simultaneously, with a maximum detection range of up to 1300 kilometers. It could be considered a mobile naval radar station.

The increasingly mature small nuclear power systems within the base allowed this warship to reach speeds of up to 55 knots.

However, due to the ocean's conditions, it usually cruised at 35 knots under normal circumstances.

Additionally, it was a massive arsenal ship.

With 64 missile launch silos at the front and rear, two launch systems that could launch 128 missiles into the air to counter threats within 4.77 seconds, it could intercept attacks from the sky and oceans while also unleashing a massive number of missiles on target areas.

The ship's bow featured a 52-caliber 203mm naval artillery capable of firing specialized armor-piercing shells, electromagnetic pulse bombs, and temperature differential shells at a rate of up to 12 rounds per minute. It could destroy any permanent structures on islands and coastlines.

Thanks to optimized upgrades to the gun barrel, the naval artillery's maximum firing range reached 70 kilometers, and with extended-range shells, it could reach around 110 kilometers.

Although it couldn't match Hynix, this vessel had its fair share of advantages.

Its enormous tonnage meant it could store more ammunition inside the ship.

The cruiser had three large and six small storage compartments, a total of nine, which could hold over 1900 various types of missiles and shells, supplying ammunition for the naval artillery, two missile launch systems, and six close-range defense systems.

Moreover, it was relatively cost-effective.

With a large number of robots working around the clock in construction, the average construction time for each cruiser was approximately 22 days, with a unit cost of less than 700 million dollars.

The relatively low cost meant it could be mass-produced.

Sun Cheng had currently approved the construction of 12 cruisers of this model.

If the value of this warship continued to prove itself in the future, more vessels would be manufactured. Even improved versions could be put on the agenda.

At present, two had already been completed at Base Two, one was being outfitted, and nine cruisers of this model were in full production at several shipyards controlled by the base near South America.

Its greatest advantage was that it only required three to five ordinary Decepticon warriors to operate.

Their powerful computing power was sufficient for the ship's maintenance and combat.

With a command from Sun Cheng, the three red warning lights that had been flashing on the ship's bridge quickly extinguished.

The cruiser adjusted its firing angle towards the West African coastline, and the controlled systems retracted the missiles from their launch silos, transferring them back to the ammunition storage compartment. The small and medium-sized close-range defense missile launch ports closed once again.

Underwater, the four nuclear submarines also lowered their alert levels.

Sun Cheng gazed towards the West African coastline, standing silently on the ship's deck.

Just as the Autobots were wary of him, he, lacking a sense of security, couldn't have gone to meet Optimus Prime without any preparation.

Within Sun Cheng's Spherical Space, a Legion of battle robots, which had accumulated to over a thousand units, was ready for deployment at any time.

On the sea surface, Hynix and the improved Kirov-class nuclear-powered cruiser beneath him, along with the four nuclear submarines, had been dispatched to the South Atlantic Ocean as soon as Sun Cheng had decided to meet Optimus Prime.

As he looked out at the sea surface, Sun Cheng remained silent for a long time before murmuring to himself, "You can never rely on others for safety. We should accelerate our preparations for war!"

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Next Chapter >>Chapter 896: Waiting for War (Second Update)