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Chapter 421: The Doomsday Plan, Zod's Realization
That's right, the Decepticons were getting restless again. Or perhaps, they were never at rest to begin with. The moment the Kryptonians arrived on Earth, they had already begun actively preparing for war.
From the forty-one bases under their command, a full twenty thousand warriors were awakened for battle.
Aside from the five thousand warriors continuing to suppress the Atlanteans on the seabed, the Decepticons directly dispatched twenty thousand bots of varying combat power, watching the Kryptonians menacingly from the sky tens of thousands of meters away.
This number shocked the entire world.
No one would have thought that these low-key robots could have secretly amassed such numbers. Perhaps, in terms of sheer quantity, a mere twenty thousand couldn't compare to Tony. After all, to hunt the Hulk, Tony had mobilized several million units of cannon fodder for the battle.
But these guys all possessed intelligence; they were all independent silicon-based lifeforms.
After a brief period of unrest, people began to watch cautiously, with strange looks in their eyes.
Earth already had land-dwellers and sea-dwellers. On land, there were humans and mutants, as well as those superhumans with genetic mutations. Now, they were suddenly being told by aliens that another alien race had been among them all along... and that was just counting the ones they knew about.
It seemed like one more group of robots wasn't such a big deal...
With this thought, everyone's mood instantly relaxed. They even started looking at the Transformers with a sense of kinship.
At least these were powerful beings created by their own guardian, weren't they?
Megatron transformed into his combat state. His ten-meter-tall body gleamed with a silver metallic luster in the sunlight. The greatsword in his hand was slung over his shoulder. With his cold expression and blood-red eyes, he was incredibly intimidating.
He would have been even more intimidating if he weren't standing on Starscream in his vehicle form.
"My lord, my lord, I'm about to die of exhaustion! Can't you just fly yourself?!!"
Beneath his feet, Starscream, who had transformed into a fighter jet, shrieked, filled with overwhelming resentment.
It was happening again. The last time they attacked the Chitauri, Megatron had charged into battle standing on him just like this...
"Shut up, Starscream! You need to have the self-respect and pride of a Decepticon! We Decepticons never complain about being tired!"
Megatron said majestically, his eyes fixed on the giant warship opposite them.
Kryptonians... they get stronger just by basking in the sun. Their genes are of immense research value.
At this moment, hundreds of thousands of criminals of all shapes and sizes swarmed out from the Kryptonian warship. These were criminals from the Phantom Zone, all brought along by Zod to be used as cannon fodder.
The Phantom Zone was a giant prison established back when Krypton still existed. The entire dwarf galaxy was one massive prison, where the Kryptonians incarcerated all the enemies they had defeated and captured over the long ages.
These hundreds of thousands of beings came from countless cosmic races, but at this moment, they were all General Zod's slaves—the lowest of cannon fodder.
No one cared if they lived or died, especially with Zod on the verge of obtaining the Codex of Life.
Once he had the Codex of Life in hand, he could rapidly mass-produce powerful Kryptonian warriors. Why would he care about these criminals?
"These robots are not a native species of Earth. They are new lifeforms created by Earth's Sorcerer Supreme," Faora said coldly.
Earth's internet technology was far too primitive. The artificial intelligence on their warship could breach it in an instant and obtain any information they desired.
General Zod stood by the window, his arms outstretched, absorbing the yellow sun. Every pore in his body opened up. He could clearly feel the change in himself; the sensation of growing stronger so rapidly was intoxicating to one who pursued power.
His tightly shut eyes slowly opened, staring intently at the yellow sun. A flicker of deep desire and greed flashed through his dark pupils.
He was starting to change his mind. He didn't want to leave.
"Faora, have you located the Sorcerer Supreme?" Zod asked in a low voice, standing majestically with his back to his adjutant.
Faora's beautiful, yet stiff and cold, eyes flickered for a rare moment. She knew her leader was tempted.
"We have not located the Sorcerer Supreme. However, in the eastern part of Earth's largest continent, in a place the Earthlings call the Himalayan Mountains, Kamar-Taj is located in a pocket dimension in that area. According to the intelligence we've gathered, Kamar-Taj has a magical formation that monitors Earth. It is highly likely the Sorcerer Supreme is observing us from within Kamar-Taj right now."
Faora stated dispassionately.
Yet Zod could clearly detect a trace of anticipation and desire in her tone.
He knew his adjutant too well. Although Kryptonians had their "useless" emotions intentionally weakened, they weren't completely erased. Even Faora still possessed a sliver of emotion.
Zod knew what Faora wanted; it was what he wanted as well. He looked at the dazzling yellow sun. He truly wanted to embrace this beautiful, great ball of fire. Its fatal allure deeply captivated all Kryptonians, including himself.
This was the yellow sun, a yellow sun within their grasp!
If only... if only they could crush Earth, they could completely transform it into the next Krypton!
They would use Earth as a starting point, dispatching countless super-warriors who had absorbed the yellow sun's radiation to conquer the universe!
After a long silence, General Zod finally turned around slowly. A terrifying light shone from his iceberg-like face.
"Have the Phantom Zone criminals make their move. Observe Kamar-Taj's reaction! Even if the sorcerers from Kamar-Taj show up, they absolutely cannot withstand a single punch from us!"
General Zod raised his arm, clenched his fist, and looked at the glint in the eyes of his dozen or so remaining kinsmen.
They had become incredibly powerful, and as time passed, they would only grow stronger! As for lifeforms like sorcerers, there was always a time lag when using magic.
They could easily seize that gap and kill a sorcerer with a single punch!
As long as they aren't hit head-on by magic, as long as the magical armor they wear isn't shattered! Those physically weak sorcerers can't even withstand a sonic boom. A single punch is all it takes to kill them!
Greed, ambition, desire—emotions Zod had considered negative and unnecessary—erupted like a volcano at this moment, with unprecedented intensity.
The yellow sun was like a magnet, drawing him in and making him unwilling to give it up.
The only stumbling block was a group of fragile sorcerers, the kind that could be killed with a single punch.
If... if he could quickly kill the Sorcerer Supreme, then no one would be able to stop the arrival of the Kryptonians! They would be reborn!
Taking a deep breath, a fierce light appeared in Zod's eyes. He said in a cold voice, "You will remain on the warship and stand guard against Kamar-Taj! At the same time, find Kal-El as quickly as possible. You must press him for the whereabouts of the Codex of Life."
"Faora, change the warship's settings and open the Genesis Chamber. I am making the Doomsday Plan the top priority!"
A ruthless look flashed across Zod's face. This was his last resort. If it really came to that... it would mean they had lost all hope.
He was a born leader; his leadership abilities had been manifested in his genes long before his birth. He first had to ensure his own survival to better lead his people forward.
But if the situation truly deteriorated to that point, he would not hesitate to sacrifice himself.
Because he was Krypton's only remaining possessor of high-level genes, and a high-level gene was the minimum requirement to be compatible with Krypton's forbidden biochemical experiment—the Doomsday Plan.
(end of chapter)
That's right, the Decepticons were getting restless again. Or perhaps, they were never at rest to begin with. The moment the Kryptonians arrived on Earth, they had already begun actively preparing for war.
From the forty-one bases under their command, a full twenty thousand warriors were awakened for battle.
Aside from the five thousand warriors continuing to suppress the Atlanteans on the seabed, the Decepticons directly dispatched twenty thousand bots of varying combat power, watching the Kryptonians menacingly from the sky tens of thousands of meters away.
This number shocked the entire world.
No one would have thought that these low-key robots could have secretly amassed such numbers. Perhaps, in terms of sheer quantity, a mere twenty thousand couldn't compare to Tony. After all, to hunt the Hulk, Tony had mobilized several million units of cannon fodder for the battle.
But these guys all possessed intelligence; they were all independent silicon-based lifeforms.
After a brief period of unrest, people began to watch cautiously, with strange looks in their eyes.
Earth already had land-dwellers and sea-dwellers. On land, there were humans and mutants, as well as those superhumans with genetic mutations. Now, they were suddenly being told by aliens that another alien race had been among them all along... and that was just counting the ones they knew about.
It seemed like one more group of robots wasn't such a big deal...
With this thought, everyone's mood instantly relaxed. They even started looking at the Transformers with a sense of kinship.
At least these were powerful beings created by their own guardian, weren't they?
Megatron transformed into his combat state. His ten-meter-tall body gleamed with a silver metallic luster in the sunlight. The greatsword in his hand was slung over his shoulder. With his cold expression and blood-red eyes, he was incredibly intimidating.
He would have been even more intimidating if he weren't standing on Starscream in his vehicle form.
"My lord, my lord, I'm about to die of exhaustion! Can't you just fly yourself?!!"
Beneath his feet, Starscream, who had transformed into a fighter jet, shrieked, filled with overwhelming resentment.
It was happening again. The last time they attacked the Chitauri, Megatron had charged into battle standing on him just like this...
"Shut up, Starscream! You need to have the self-respect and pride of a Decepticon! We Decepticons never complain about being tired!"
Megatron said majestically, his eyes fixed on the giant warship opposite them.
Kryptonians... they get stronger just by basking in the sun. Their genes are of immense research value.
At this moment, hundreds of thousands of criminals of all shapes and sizes swarmed out from the Kryptonian warship. These were criminals from the Phantom Zone, all brought along by Zod to be used as cannon fodder.
The Phantom Zone was a giant prison established back when Krypton still existed. The entire dwarf galaxy was one massive prison, where the Kryptonians incarcerated all the enemies they had defeated and captured over the long ages.
These hundreds of thousands of beings came from countless cosmic races, but at this moment, they were all General Zod's slaves—the lowest of cannon fodder.
No one cared if they lived or died, especially with Zod on the verge of obtaining the Codex of Life.
Once he had the Codex of Life in hand, he could rapidly mass-produce powerful Kryptonian warriors. Why would he care about these criminals?
"These robots are not a native species of Earth. They are new lifeforms created by Earth's Sorcerer Supreme," Faora said coldly.
Earth's internet technology was far too primitive. The artificial intelligence on their warship could breach it in an instant and obtain any information they desired.
General Zod stood by the window, his arms outstretched, absorbing the yellow sun. Every pore in his body opened up. He could clearly feel the change in himself; the sensation of growing stronger so rapidly was intoxicating to one who pursued power.
His tightly shut eyes slowly opened, staring intently at the yellow sun. A flicker of deep desire and greed flashed through his dark pupils.
He was starting to change his mind. He didn't want to leave.
"Faora, have you located the Sorcerer Supreme?" Zod asked in a low voice, standing majestically with his back to his adjutant.
Faora's beautiful, yet stiff and cold, eyes flickered for a rare moment. She knew her leader was tempted.
"We have not located the Sorcerer Supreme. However, in the eastern part of Earth's largest continent, in a place the Earthlings call the Himalayan Mountains, Kamar-Taj is located in a pocket dimension in that area. According to the intelligence we've gathered, Kamar-Taj has a magical formation that monitors Earth. It is highly likely the Sorcerer Supreme is observing us from within Kamar-Taj right now."
Faora stated dispassionately.
Yet Zod could clearly detect a trace of anticipation and desire in her tone.
He knew his adjutant too well. Although Kryptonians had their "useless" emotions intentionally weakened, they weren't completely erased. Even Faora still possessed a sliver of emotion.
Zod knew what Faora wanted; it was what he wanted as well. He looked at the dazzling yellow sun. He truly wanted to embrace this beautiful, great ball of fire. Its fatal allure deeply captivated all Kryptonians, including himself.
This was the yellow sun, a yellow sun within their grasp!
If only... if only they could crush Earth, they could completely transform it into the next Krypton!
They would use Earth as a starting point, dispatching countless super-warriors who had absorbed the yellow sun's radiation to conquer the universe!
After a long silence, General Zod finally turned around slowly. A terrifying light shone from his iceberg-like face.
"Have the Phantom Zone criminals make their move. Observe Kamar-Taj's reaction! Even if the sorcerers from Kamar-Taj show up, they absolutely cannot withstand a single punch from us!"
General Zod raised his arm, clenched his fist, and looked at the glint in the eyes of his dozen or so remaining kinsmen.
They had become incredibly powerful, and as time passed, they would only grow stronger! As for lifeforms like sorcerers, there was always a time lag when using magic.
They could easily seize that gap and kill a sorcerer with a single punch!
As long as they aren't hit head-on by magic, as long as the magical armor they wear isn't shattered! Those physically weak sorcerers can't even withstand a sonic boom. A single punch is all it takes to kill them!
Greed, ambition, desire—emotions Zod had considered negative and unnecessary—erupted like a volcano at this moment, with unprecedented intensity.
The yellow sun was like a magnet, drawing him in and making him unwilling to give it up.
The only stumbling block was a group of fragile sorcerers, the kind that could be killed with a single punch.
If... if he could quickly kill the Sorcerer Supreme, then no one would be able to stop the arrival of the Kryptonians! They would be reborn!
Taking a deep breath, a fierce light appeared in Zod's eyes. He said in a cold voice, "You will remain on the warship and stand guard against Kamar-Taj! At the same time, find Kal-El as quickly as possible. You must press him for the whereabouts of the Codex of Life."
"Faora, change the warship's settings and open the Genesis Chamber. I am making the Doomsday Plan the top priority!"
A ruthless look flashed across Zod's face. This was his last resort. If it really came to that... it would mean they had lost all hope.
He was a born leader; his leadership abilities had been manifested in his genes long before his birth. He first had to ensure his own survival to better lead his people forward.
But if the situation truly deteriorated to that point, he would not hesitate to sacrifice himself.
Because he was Krypton's only remaining possessor of high-level genes, and a high-level gene was the minimum requirement to be compatible with Krypton's forbidden biochemical experiment—the Doomsday Plan.
(end of chapter)
