“I sincerely apologize; it was my own petulance. The moment I realized this team was essentially a ‘farming’ squad, I couldn’t contain the fire in my heart, the desire to utterly destroy those vermin. Every time I recall what happened to my clone in the Demon Reincarnation Squad… In short, I was too reckless. We are already at an absolute disadvantage in terms of ‘momentum’ for this horror movie, and by flatly refusing them, I’m afraid this situation might become extremely perilous for everyone.”

After Zheng Zha finished speaking with Reinhardt, this exchange between a human and an alien inside a saucer, conducted as if they were old acquaintances, didn't just stun the surrounding populace; it sent a jolt of shock through the government officials inside the White House. These officials moved with extreme haste to ‘invite’ Zheng Zha into the building. Unfortunately, after Zheng Zha effortlessly felled more than a dozen federal guards and ignored handgun fire, the officials shifted their approach to a genuine request, while simultaneously placing all the surrounding clamoring citizens under surveillance.

According to these officials, during such an extraordinary time, any situation could lead to drastic societal upheaval, and if the source of that change couldn't be controlled, then at least its spread had to be contained.

“Uh, that’s how I ended up in the White House. I wasn't sure what to tell those government officials; I worried it might clash with your plans. So, I kept quiet. I just told them my companions would be arriving soon, and then I focused entirely on waiting for you all.” Zheng Zha said with a wry smile.

The others nodded with murmured acknowledgments, except for Chu Xuan, who appeared entirely unfazed, focused solely on tinkering with the laptop before him. Beside him, Yang Xuelin watched with keen interest. The two of them seemed like outsiders, completely engrossed in the laptop screen.

Seeing this, Zheng Zha coughed heavily, but when Chu Xuan and the girl remained motionless, still staring at the screen, visible lines of tension began to form on his forehead. He finally roared, “Please! Can you say something? Was I performing a comedy routine just now?” (Although it wasn't comedy, it certainly sounded like it had the potential for it…) Cheng Xiao and Zhang Heng, among others, maliciously thought to themselves, only then did Chu Xuan slowly lift his head.

The man spoke faintly, “What tier of Genetic Lock has the captain of the West Sea Squad activated? Can you sense it?” Zheng Zha blinked, genuinely surprised that Chu Xuan had replied. After a few seconds of silence, he began to ponder.

“The Genetic Lock… only his image appeared, so it’s impossible to gauge his lock status. But he’s the captain of a Reincarnation Squad, which means he must have at least reached the second tier. Furthermore, he was copied into the Demon Reincarnation Squad, so his potential has been acknowledged by the ‘Main God.’ I’d guess he’s somewhere between the third and fourth tiers. The most probable strength level is between the third and fourth tiers; he likely hasn't entered the fourth tier yet.”

Chu Xuan nodded. “If there’s a high probability of third-tier strength, that implies he has some level of thought pattern simulation. How far that simulation goes depends on his innate aptitude. You mentioned before that he met, fought, and became familiar with the God Squad, right? Then he must have encountered Adam…”

“That’s right!” Zheng Zha interrupted excitedly. “That explains why he was waiting for us at the White House. If he’s using Adam’s intellect, even simulating just twenty or thirty percent of it would give him considerable strategy. I see… But did I ask about his intelligence? I thought I was mostly talking about my own mistakes—because of my temper tantrum, this team battle that could have been resolved peacefully will now inevitably turn violent. Is that alright?”

Chu Xuan finally pushed the laptop away, a cold smile gracing his lips. “Resolving it peacefully with Qing? Do you believe a world exists with absolute good and absolute evil? Moreover, that presupposes the opponent is an upright gentleman, entirely trustworthy… Can someone who is a 'farmer,' whose sole purpose is the benefit of his farming team members, be trusted? And you heard him: even if the West Sea Squad could join the Angel Alliance, it would only be after the battle, provided the God Squad failed to wipe them out. Otherwise, the West Sea Squad would have been annihilated long ago; there’d be no alliance to join! He absolutely cannot have good intentions. Even under the pressure of your clone, he is only aiming to boost his individual power. If he could surpass your clone in personal strength, what need would there be for an Angel Alliance? Why would he need to fear anything?”

“Even ignoring all of that, simply for the sake of reviving his team members, we must completely wipe them out in this team battle, or at the very least, capture the controller of their psychic power. Remember this: while we are at an absolute disadvantage in terms of ‘momentum,’ in terms of overall strength… our Central Continent Squad is very powerful!”

“That’s right! Our Central Continent Squad is very powerful!” Zheng Zha grew increasingly animated as Chu Xuan spoke, clenching his fist and repeating the words once Chu Xuan finished. (It seems this bastard Chu Xuan has hyped me up again, now it’s time for the passionate hero’s frantic battle…) Cheng Xiao and Zhang Heng again thought maliciously…

“Besides… you are the captain of the Central Continent Squad.” Chu Xuan looked down at the laptop, speaking as he watched it. “Since you are the captain, you have the authority to decide your team’s future. Even if that direction is wrong, until that wrongness is definitively proven, this is our team's direction…”

Zheng Zha sat back with a sigh of relief. He looked deeply at Chu Xuan twice, then addressed the others, “Alright, everyone come up with a story to tell those American government officials. In this horror movie world, they are the source of our ‘momentum’…” (Is it just my illusion? I feel like Chu Xuan is hiding something. Is he delivering his last words? Then telling me how to be a more reasonable captain? It must be an illusion… I hope it is…)

Just as the rest of the Central Continent Squad arrived at the White House, at this very moment, in outer space not far from Earth, the alien's colossal spaceship—no, it could be called a space continent—hovered there, impossibly huge. All members of the West Sea Squad, including their captain Reinhardt von Rogrimms, had already returned from Earth to this space continent.

“It’s regrettable; the bait using Qing failed. That captain of the Central Continent Squad is simply an obstinate fool. Damn it, he only wants to fight us. Hell, I even have to deal with such idiocy. I wish I could just…” Reinhardt now displayed none of the elegance he showed Zheng Zha. On the contrary, he looked utterly enraged, his blood-red eyes wide, hair disheveled, and fingernails constantly elongating. While still handsome in appearance, he had nothing to do with the word 'cool' now; handsome only described his facade. At this moment, he looked like a beaten stray dog.

“Calm down, Captain Reinhardt, calm down… We are safe now; there’s no need for such agitated complaining. As long as we arrange the next steps properly, we still have a good chance of wiping out the Central Continent Squad… At least kill Zheng Zha before he transforms into that terrifying existence, his clone! Kill him in the cradle!”

Sitting beside Reinhardt were two other men. One looked refined and quiet, around Reinhardt’s age, with an ordinary appearance, but his perpetually closed eyes gave him an air of mystery. The other was a large, heavily muscled Caucasian man with brown hair, perhaps around thirty-seven or thirty-eight. Though nearing middle age, he wore a flashy leather jacket, his body covered in various tattoos—clearly giving off the vibe of a middle-aged hoodlum. This man was constantly gnawing on a large chicken leg, and it was the blue-eyed youth who had spoken.

Reinhardt took a deep breath and indeed calmed down. He casually straightened his hair, then turned and sat on the sofa next to the closed-eyed man. “Damn it, what are these ridiculous rules? No personal flight devices allowed, no attacking the Central Continent Squad before the bombardment, and the aliens won't give us a saucer until humans acquire the first one. What kind of idiotic restrictions are these? Damn it, isn't this just waiting for the Central Continent Squad to attack us?”

The closed-eyed man’s mouth twitched slightly, as if smiling, but he immediately became serious. “That’s not quite right. Those so-called restrictions are merely designed to level the gap in ‘momentum’ between our sides. This doesn't involve elimination. For instance, the restriction on personal flight devices—if you insist on standing on one, you won't be annihilated, you just won't be able to fly. And the prior inability to attack just meant the saucer couldn't land and couldn't use its weapon systems. Likewise, the aliens won't give us a saucer… Can’t we just take one ourselves?”

Reinhardt immediately brightened up. He lowered his head and thought for a long moment before letting out a cold, sinister chuckle. He then turned to the closed-eyed man and said, “Yurian, how does that A-rank ‘Shaka’ attribute you just exchanged feel? You look incredibly powerful with your eyes constantly closed…”

Yurian’s mouth twitched again. He said flatly, “The power hasn’t been demonstrated yet. This ‘Shaka’ attribute is a bit different from what I expected. Keeping my eyes closed is for energy storage. Both the Six Paths of Reincarnation and Heavenly Dance Wheel require energy, so I have virtually no offensive power until I open them. Once I open them, the battle must end quickly. So, it’s hard to say how strong my combat power truly is. It probably won't match your Vampire Prince bloodline, nor the many Vampire skills you’ve exchanged…”

Reinhardt nodded. He glanced at the unkempt middle-aged man who was still eating voraciously, shook his head without speaking, and after a long silence, he said coldly, “Keep those newcomers stationary at the alien main base. After this horror movie ends, exchange for two more Mind Control Devices, make them surrender all their reward points and sub-plots… Then, we’ll steal a small saucer! We’ll launch a sneak attack on the Central Continent Squad!”