Chapter 187: Rebel Army Headquarters
Why did all the war zones of the rebel army explode with a wave of intelligent machines at the same time? And why are the goals of these intelligent machines so consistent?
Is it necessary to ask such a simple question?
Facing Xu Hongming's complicated eyes, Chen Fan, who was self-aware, raised his hand and touched the tip of his nose with embarrassment.
"Don't worry, I will get rid of [Source] as soon as possible."
Chen Fan's tone was very sincere: "This is my mission."
Xu Hongming waved his hands repeatedly after hearing this.
"There is no need to say that. Fighting against intelligent machines is also the highest action program of our rebel army."
At this point, Xu Hongming straightened his back and his expression became completely serious.
He stared into Chen Fan's eyes, as if warning, or perhaps declaring the insignificant sovereignty: "This planet is ours, and we naturally have to take it back with our own hands."
Chen Fan was speechless.
He was not a fool, and naturally heard the hidden meaning in Xu Hongming's words.
But...
in Chen Fan's view, Xu Hongming's behavior was a bit ridiculous.
It was as ridiculous as an insignificant ant opening its sharp mouthparts to declare its territory to the vast interstellar fleet in the universe. Although Chen Fan had not yet felt the vastness of the Human Alliance, in his opinion, the gap between the Varela civilization and the Human Alliance might be even greater than the gap between the ant and the fleet.
So, Chen Fan smiled and explained: "Don't worry, the Human Alliance won't..."
"Sounds funny, right?" Xu Hongming's straight back relaxed, and a bitter smile appeared on his slightly pale face. "For you, this is just a small, inconspicuous planet in the vast universe."
"But for us, this is the only and irreplaceable planet."
The smile on Chen Fan's face gradually solidified.
He thought of the performance of these rebels when he just left the starship.
At the moment of misunderstanding, Chen Fan had no doubt that the thin commander would pull the trigger of the electromagnetic pistol!
Even if it could not cause any harm to himself, it might even bring them a catastrophe!
As Xu Hongming said, this planet is their last hope of survival!
Even rabbits can fight eagles, and any life will burst out all its potential when it is on the verge of death.
The Varela people who survived under the hands of the intelligent machine and developed such a large-scale underground city and tunnels are naturally the same!
[This machine admires the actions of this rebel. ]
Yi's electronic synthesized voice sounded in Chen Fan's mind for the first time: [Territorial integrity is the bottom line that a civilization cannot compromise. ]
[The territory taken away by artificial intelligence should naturally be taken back by hand. ]
[If all the rebels are like this commander, then this machine will withdraw the previous potential value assessment of the Varela civilization. ]
[The Varela civilization will not perish. On the contrary, after experiencing this disaster, they may rise at an unprecedented speed and become the mainstay of the human alliance. ]
A trace of surprise flashed in Chen Fan's eyes that was difficult for outsiders to detect.
In his impression, this seemed to be the highest evaluation given by Yi.
Sensing Chen Fan's surprise, the electronic synthesized voice sounded again: [Disaster is always the touchstone of civilization. Any race that can stand up again from a disaster that is enough to overturn civilization has unprecedented powerful potential. 】
"Of course." Xu Hongming in front of him pursed his lips hard, with a faint smile on his pale face: "From your previous description, the Human Union behind you should not be interested in our small planet."
"That's natural." Chen Fan subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, "Although this universe has been included in the territory of the Human Union, you can rest assured that in most cases, the Human Union will not interfere in the internal affairs of civilization."
Xu Hongming turned around without comment and walked towards the depths of the forest.
"Come with me."
As he said, a gleam of light flashed in Xu Hongming's eyes:
"I have been holding it back for so long. Since [Source] has launched such a large-scale wave of intelligent machines, I think the headquarters must have made corresponding preparations."
...
Similar to the entrance to the underground city that Chen Fan had seen before, the entrance to the rebels' tunnel was also hidden under the thick layer of dead leaves inside the forest.
Before entering the tunnel, Chen Fan once thought that the tunnel mentioned by the rebels was a narrow and cramped underground passage that required people to hunch over to move forward.
But...
just after following Xu Hongming's footsteps and drilling into the ground, Chen Fan was completely shocked by the scene in front of him.
After a very short reaction time, he realized a problem.
Preconceived stereotypes are killing people!
This is not a tunnel, it is simply a super-large-scale underground tunnel cluster!
The tunnel is circular as a whole, with an average inner diameter of more than ten meters, even wider than some small subway tunnels!
The surface of the tunnel is sprayed with a layer of black-brown hard material that looks like concrete.
There are two rails in the tunnel, and there are several devices that look like mine cars parked on the rails. It is not difficult to judge that this is the means of transportation for the rebels underground.
The fluorescent lamps emit bright light at the top of the tunnel, and the light shines on the rails, reflecting a little cold light.
Next to the fluorescent lamps, thin and long ventilation ducts are continuously blowing fresh air into the tunnel.
The thick and straight cables extend infinitely at the top of the tunnel, providing the necessary energy for the entire tunnel.
At the end of the sight, the tunnel came to an abrupt end, and a large amount of soil poured in from the broken tunnel wall, blocking the entire tunnel.
The bright white scanning beam flashed through the tunnel, and a lot of detailed information quickly emerged in front of Chen Fan's eyes.
The transmission cable is made of room-temperature superconducting material, and the black-brown material sprayed on the surface of the tunnel has a strength far exceeding that of concrete...
If the tunnels in the underground city are just the product of the early industrial age, then the tunnels in front of us are truly modern creations!
There is no doubt that compared with those underground city residents who have fallen into depravity and curled up underground, the rebels are the true heirs of the Varela civilization!
If all the tunnels of the rebels are like this, then...
there is no doubt that the tunnels that the rebels have spent a hundred years to build will be the most magnificent man-made buildings on this planet!
What kind of underground city is just a small thing in front of this large tunnel cluster that runs through the surface of Varela!
It's just that...
Chen Fan glanced at the rifles in the hands of the rebels and hesitated to speak.
Room-temperature superconducting materials have been made. Not to mention various high-end weapons, some basic electromagnetic weapons can always be taken out, right?
How could they fall to the point of using gunpowder weapons?
"You can build tunnels of this scale, why are your weapons still..."
So lame?
Chen Fan swallowed the sharp comments that were about to come to his mouth.
Xu Hongming sighed and gave the answer: "In the prosperous era, everyone's attention was focused on the land under their feet, so they had very advanced technology in this area."
"At first, there were quite a lot of high-end engineering talents in the rebels, but... the continuous war caused a gap in the inheritance of knowledge."
Xu Hongming smiled bitterly: "So far, the cutting-edge technology in the hands of the rebels is basically related to digging tunnels."
"At present, the rebels' industrial system is still complete, but the cutting-edge technology has basically been lost."
"The lack of scientific research talents and the lack of scientific research environment have also caused research work to stagnate."
Hearing this, Chen Fan suddenly realized.
As described in the diary left by Station Master Mo Wenxing in the Hai'an Deep Space Observatory, after losing the hope of moving forward, everyone's eyes were on the ground.
It is for this reason that the Varela civilization was able to build such a grand underground city and tunnel cluster under the crisis of the intelligent machinery.
"We are here."
Xu Hongming stopped and pointed to a heavy steel door next to the tunnel.
He took a half step forward and reached out to press the bright red button next to the steel door.
The sound of hydraulic system and gears operating rang out in the quiet tunnel, and the heavy steel door slowly slid open along the guide rail at the bottom.
...
"Commander Xu!"
"Commander..."
As soon as the door opened, Chen Fan heard respectful shouts coming from inside the door.
It seems that Xu Hongming has a good reputation in this area.
Chen Fan followed Xu Hongming's footsteps and entered the door.
This is a fairly spacious underground space. From the internal structure and appearance, it looks a bit like a large basement that served as an air defense in the previous life.
One by one, the rebels sat on the ground in this basement with tired looks.
They were wearing somewhat tattered uniforms, and gunpowder, blood stains, and dirt and dust mixed together, forming dirty black marks on the bodies of these rebels.
Although there is a fairly good fresh air system in the basement, Chen Fan can still smell a faint smell of blood in the air.
Looking around, almost everyone has wounds on their bodies.
Deep in the basement, a small number of seriously injured rebels were lying quietly on the ground.
If their chests had not been slightly heaving, Chen Fan would have even thought they were corpses.
The atmosphere in the basement was quite depressing - apart from the serious war damage, the news from the headquarters also dealt a heavy blow to the rebels.
"Let me briefly introduce you."
Xu Hongming clapped his hands, and after attracting everyone's attention, his expression became serious: "This is Chen Fan, our rebel ally." "
It was he who provided support when we attacked the Hai'an Intelligent Machinery Production Base."
"In the next war, Chen Fan will provide support throughout the entire process."
Xu Hongming paused and added again: "Don't worry, there are enough nuclear bombs."
The moment the words fell, a glimmer of hope suddenly rose in the eyes of the rebels who looked ashen.
In the previous war, the "nuclear bomb" that seemed to have fallen from the sky like a divine soldier left a very deep impression on them.
If there are enough nuclear bombs...
then the intelligent machinery tide doesn't seem to be so scary?
At most, it's just a nuclear bomb to clean up the place!
After realizing this, the members of the rebels who were not seriously injured stood up one after another and expressed their respect and gratitude to Chen Fan.
[A total of 2189 people, 1962 people were slightly injured, and 227 people were seriously injured. ]
The statistical results automatically popped up in front of Chen Fan in the form of a holographic projection.
"One, is there a treatment plan suitable for a large population?"
Chen Fan asked One directly in the surprised eyes of Xu Hongming.
The electronic synthesized voice echoed in the basement: "The slightly injured can be handed over to the basic medical robots equipped in the starship, and the seriously injured need to use the medical cabin."
Xu Hongming was stunned for a moment, and an incredible idea came to his mind: "Brother Fan, what you mean is..."
Chen Fan smiled and nodded.
"Take everyone to the starship, don't worry, the medical means of the Human Alliance are very strong."
Xu Hongming, who had always maintained a calm demeanor, showed excitement for the first time.
Having witnessed the power of the starship with his own eyes, he naturally would not doubt Chen Fan's words.
He coughed hard twice, and a strange blush instantly appeared on his pale face: "Everyone, take the seriously injured and incapable of action, and go to the surface for treatment immediately!"
Xu Hongming's voice was very urgent: "Quick! Send the seriously injured first!"
As he said that, he turned his head and whispered to several resistance soldiers who were stunned in the spot behind him: "Why are you still standing there?!"
"Hurry up and lead the way!"
After a short wait, accompanied by the noisy sound of the hustle and bustle, one by one, the resistance members who were wrapped in bandages and still able to move stood up, carrying the bloody and half-breathed wounded on stretchers and walked towards the open metal door.
When passing by Chen Fan, these resistance members expressed their gratitude to Chen Fan again.
Unlike before, this time the gratitude and respect came from their hearts.
After sending away all the wounded, Chen Fan followed Xu Hongming to the temporary command post set up deep in the basement.
Suddenly, he frowned at the holographic projection projected in front of him.
Lung cancer is in the late stage, and cancer cells have spread to important organs throughout the body.
Next to the diagnosis provided by Yi, Xu Hongming's virtual portrait is densely distributed with red dots of varying degrees of severity. Just now, he asked Yi to perform a simple scan of Xu Hongming's body, and each red dot on the projection is a cancer cell gathering area.
When seeing this diagnosis, Chen Fan couldn't even believe his eyes.
[Theoretically, cancer that has developed to this extent is enough to kill a person.]
Not to mention Chen Fan, even Yi was a little surprised: [I didn't expect that he could actually carry this degree of cancer and complete all the command work...]
Looking at the somewhat thin back in front, Chen Fan couldn't help but sigh in his heart: 'Perhaps, this is the last ray of hope that will appear when civilization is about to fall.'
"When the work here is completed, you should also lie down in the medical cabin for a while."
Chen Fan said in an irresistible firm tone.
"Me?" Xu Hongming regained his usual calm expression. He waved his hand, "I know my body. It's already..."
"It's just advanced lung cancer. It's not a serious disease."
Chen Fan smiled lightly, "Even if your whole body is full of cancer cells, the medical cabin can create a body suitable for you."
Xu Hongming was stunned.
His usually calm eyes fluctuated violently twice in just a few minutes.
If there is hope of survival, no life will choose death.
Xu Hongming is no exception.
"Thank... Thank you."
He lowered his eyelids slightly to hide the turbulent emotions in his heart, and whispered to thank Chen Fan.
"You're welcome." Chen Fan smiled with a relaxed look, "I am optimistic about you. If the resistance army is full of people like you, then the Varela civilization should continue to develop."
"... Varela?"
Looking at the confused look on Xu Hongming's face, Chen Fan briefly explained the origin of the name.
"I have seen the interpretation of this word in the library of Varela City. It symbolizes hope and dawn."
"Since I have not found the official name of your civilization, I just use this word."
Chen Fan looked a little embarrassed: "Currently, this name has been entered into the Human Union database, and it should not be changed in a short time."
"Varela..." Xu Hongming nodded gently, and the fire of hope rekindled in the depths of his eyes, "What a good name. After this crisis, we should indeed change to a new name."
...
Basement, temporary command post.
"Lin Hui, help me connect to the resistance headquarters."
Xu Hongming sat on a wooden chair with some fatigue, and issued an order to Lin Hui who was following him: "Use the highest priority wartime radio communication frequency band."
Lin Hui was stunned: "Radio?"
"This may expose our location and the headquarters..."
Before he finished speaking, Lin Hui suddenly came back to his senses.
In this situation, exposing the specific coordinates is not a big deal - after a while, the intelligent machines of the entire planet will rush to the Hai'an area. At that time, even the underground city hidden a hundred meters underground will be turned upside down!
He stepped forward quickly and connected several thin wires to a dusty radio device.
"There is a radio signal relay antenna near the main tunnel, so we can use relatively efficient radio communication." Xu Hongming explained to Chen Fan in a low voice, "But the radio signal will be located by the [source]. Therefore, under normal circumstances, we will choose to use wired telegraph for information exchange."
"Although the efficiency is a little lower, it is safer."
Chen Fan suddenly realized.
"This is the Hai'an Division of the Southern Theater Command, calling the headquarters."
After completing a series of debugging work, Lin Hui's voice rang in the temporary command post.
After a short wait, accompanied by a burst of electric current, a steady voice came from the speaker of the radio device.
"This is the resistance army headquarters, Hai'an Division, report your situation immediately."
Xu Hongming took a deep breath, suppressed the fatigue in his eyes, and reached out to take the simple microphone handed over by Lin Hui.
"I am Xu Hongming, and I will start reporting to the headquarters now..."
A few minutes later.
"...Report completed."
Xu Hongming gently put down the microphone in his hand and leaned back in his chair again.
Seeing Xu Hongming's increasingly pale face, Chen Fan could not help but frown.
Something was wrong.
According to the movie routines he had seen in his previous life, such terminally ill patients are often held to their last breath by the obsession in their hearts.
Once this breath is gone, these patients will also die in a very short time.
'One, contact the starship and send down an idle medical robot.'
Chen Fan did not hesitate at all and directly gave an order to One in his mind: 'No matter what means, keep him alive for me first.'
[Received.]
"Shh..."
The noisy sound of electricity came from the radio device, and there was no response from the headquarters.
A full minute later.
A steady voice sounded again: "Comrade Xu Hongming, the Chen Fan you mentioned just now... Where is he now? Is it convenient to talk?"
Looking at the eyes that Xu Hongming and Lin Hui cast at him, Chen Fan stepped forward and reached out to take the microphone.
He pondered for a moment, and finally said an extremely short sentence: "I am Chen Fan."
This time, the response from the headquarters came particularly quickly.
A strange male voice came from the radio device: "I am Meng Zhixin."
"Comrade Chen Fan, on behalf of all the resistance forces, I am willing to form a strategic alliance with you... and the forces behind you."
"Yes, Chief." Xu Hongming's voice came from the side, introducing the identity of the speaker to Chen Fan, "He is the commander-in-chief of the resistance army."
Chen Fan thought for a moment, and finally gave a cautious answer: "I can only form a strategic alliance with the resistance army in my personal name."
"Moreover, this strategic alliance is only aimed at intelligent machines and [Source]."
"The strategic alliance relationship of the Human Union..." Chen Fan considered his words, "The requirements are quite demanding, do you understand what I mean?"
After a moment, Meng Zhixin's voice revealed a bit of helplessness: "I understand."
"Now share the battle situation with you."
"So far, in addition to intelligent machines, we have observed the presence of the Mechanic Sect in various places."
"Damn the Mechanic Sect!" Hearing this, Lin Hui couldn't help but curse, "I said at the time that those bastards of the Mechanic Sect cannot be trusted, and they will sooner or later mix with the intelligent machines!"
"Correction." Xu Hongming said calmly, "They should be extremely radical members of the Mechanicus." "
Those conservative cyborgs in the Hai'an underground city will not go along with the intelligent machines."
Chen Fan asked in a low voice: "Conservatives?"
"They are just a bunch of useless people who just want to eat and wait for death. They have only undergone minimal mechanized transformation and usually hang out in some large underground cities." Xu Hongming replied with a smile, "The two sides get along well."
Chen Fan couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. It seems that the Mechanicus is not as evil as he had previously thought.
"The eastern and western theaters of the resistance have begun to build a comprehensive defense line, and the northern theater is trying to pursue the tide of intelligent machines."
Meng Zhixin's voice came again: "Comrade Chen Fan, I promise you with the honor of the resistance that the resistance will do its best to stop the tide of intelligent machines and the mechanical sect." "
But..."
Meng Zhixin was silent for a moment: "We can't hold on for too long."
"If [Source] cannot be solved as soon as possible, the tide of intelligent machines will directly destroy the resistance's defense line and eventually flood the entire Hai'an area."
Chen Fan did not hesitate at all and answered directly: "Don't worry, leave this problem to me to solve."
"In addition... I need the coordinates of [Source]'s body." "
..."
After a short silence, Meng Zhixin's voice revealed a bit of weirdness: "You don't know the coordinates of [Source]'s body either?"
"Wait... what do you mean?"
Chen Fan suddenly had a bad premonition in his heart.
Meng Zhixin smiled bitterly: "In fact, we don't know where [Source]'s body is now."
ps: This chapter has 6,000 words.
(End of this chapter)
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