106: The joint plan of the beacon nation

The moment the global announcement rang out, the entire world fell silent.

All viewers watching the live stream, regardless of their nationality, stared dumbfounded at the screen as the giant beast's corpse slowly sank into the abyss; their minds went completely blank.

Dead?

That prehistoric behemoth that seemed to have stepped out of myth, bringing endless pressure and terror to the world, just... died?

Insta-killed by a single shot?

"My god... what did I just see? What kind of weapon was that?!"

"One shot... just one shot! It went straight through the eye and into the brain! So... so precise!"

"Dragon Country... just how many trump cards do they have?!"

After a brief dead silence, the global network exploded instantly!

In the Dragon Country's live stream especially, countless comments of 'holy crap' and 'badass' surged like a tide, nearly paralyzing the servers.

"Wife Zi Han is so badass! That shot was too cool!"

"Hahaha! Let's show you all what a Dragon Country sniper is made of!"

"I declare that from this day forward, Zhao Zihan is my goddess! Who's with me, and who's against me?"

Meanwhile, within Dragon Country, countless people by rivers, streams, and the seaside suddenly felt something strange.

A young man swimming at the beach was shocked to find he could easily hold his breath underwater for over five minutes, and his swimming speed was more than double what it used to be.

An old man fishing accidentally fell into a river; he thought he was done for, but instead, he felt no panic at all in the water, feeling as comfortable as a fish in its element.

Water Proficiency (Basic)—this seemingly unremarkable reward was quietly changing the constitutions of 1.4 billion Dragon Country citizens in a subtle, pervasive way.

This meant that in future water-related activities, Dragon Country citizens would possess a natural advantage far exceeding other nations. The drowning rate would drop to an unprecedented low... National Destiny Operations Center.

"We won! We won! Hahahaha!"

Major General Li Guodong slapped his thigh in excitement, looking as thrilled as a child.

General Lin Zhan was also full of smiles, nodding repeatedly. "Good! Excellent! Wang Yi's battlefield control and Zhao Zihan's sniping coordinated perfectly! This is our Dragon Team!"

He turned to Su Yuan, his eyes filled with praise. "Little Su, this combination of moves you played was beautiful!"

Su Yuan smiled and said nothing.

His gaze fell upon the system panel.

【Dragon Country national fortune points: 15,000 points】

He had just spent 8,000 points to buy the heavy cannon, and in the blink of an eye, he gained 5,000 points from the first-kill reward. All in all, he only lost 3,000 points to eliminate a major threat; this deal was a massive profit.

More importantly, through this battle, Wang Yi successfully found his new role, and Zhao Zihan proved her indispensable value to the team. The entire team's confidence and cohesion had been greatly enhanced.

However, while all of Dragon Country was immersed in joy, a cold undercurrent was quietly surging elsewhere in the deep sea... Lighthouse Country, National Destiny Command Center.

The atmosphere was so oppressive it was suffocating.

The blonde President slumped in his chair, his face ashen, the expensive cigar in his hand having fallen to the floor unnoticed.

He looked at the calm demeanor of the Dragon Country contestants on the screen, then at his own contestants shivering in their base, afraid to even step out the door. A wave of immense shame and despair completely overwhelmed him.

Dragon Country again!

Another SSS-rank evaluation!

Another total crushing!

Ever since the national destiny arena arrived, their Lighthouse Country—the former world hegemon—had been repeatedly trampled underfoot and humiliated by Dragon Country.

The technology, military, and economy they took pride in seemed so laughable and fragile on the national destiny arena.

"General... what... what should we do?" an aide asked with a trembling voice.

General Davis's face was grim, his eyes bloodshot.

Continuous failures had brought him to the brink of being purged.

If he didn't find a solution soon, a military tribunal awaited him.

"What should we do?" Davis stood up abruptly, a morbid madness flickering in his eyes. "We can no longer win with the Lighthouse Country alone; we must go to extremes!"

He walked to an independent screen in the Command Center, which displayed a private communication channel.

"Get me the United Secretary!" he roared at the screen, enunciating every word.

The other end was silent for a few seconds before an electronically processed, raspy voice came through: "General, are you sure you want to drag us down with you at a time like this?"

"This is no longer just about the Lighthouse Country. You aren't blind; you've seen how many times Dragon Country has succeeded! The intervention in reality last time failed too. If this continues..."

"It won't just be the Lighthouse; none of you will escape the reckoning!"

The other end went silent, with only faint, rustling sounds as if they were discussing something.

After a long while, the voice spoke again.

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to initiate Sea Wolf Plan."

"Are you certain? The risks of Sea Wolf Plan are extremely high. Once started, there is no turning back. Those soldiers will no longer be human..."

"I don't care!" Davis roared frantically. "I only want victory! I only want to drag Dragon Country down! Even if I have to use the filthiest, most despicable means!"

"...Then it shall be as you wish, General."

The communication disconnected.

Davis turned around to face the shocked stares in the Command Center, a sinister smile creeping onto his face.

"Just you wait, Dragon Country people. You think you've won? Soon, I will show you the meaning of true terror!"

Deep sea, an unknown trench.

The United Center's deep-sea base was less a base and more a crude iron cage.

Contestants from over a dozen countries were squeezed into this narrow space, their faces etched with fear and despair.

Just then, the internal broadcast of the base suddenly rang out.

"Attention all soldiers, a supreme directive has been issued. You will now be injected with the Sea Wolf Gene Serum to cope with the harsh deep-sea environment."

As soon as the words fell, several staff members in white protective suits entered, carrying metal briefcases.

The cases were opened, revealing over a dozen syringes filled with a dark green liquid, neatly arranged.

"What is this?" a burly Black man asked warily.

"Obey the order," the staff member's voice was cold and devoid of emotion.

A young white contestant couldn't help but take a step back. "No... I don't want that! That thing looks wrong!"

Bang!

A gunshot rang out.

The retreating white contestant was shot through the forehead and collapsed instantly.

The one who fired was the Lighthouse Country's captain, a man with eyes as cold as ice.

"Either inject it, or die," he said coldly.

No one dared to speak again.

Under the threat of death, they could only line up and hold out their arms, allowing the cold needles to pierce their veins.

The moment the dark green liquid was injected into their bodies, an unspeakable, intense pain instantly surged through every part of them!

"Ah—!"

Shrill screams echoed one after another in the cramped base.

Their skin began to keratinize rapidly, growing patches of fine, black scales that shimmered with a metallic luster.

Webbed membranes grew between their fingers and toes.

On both sides of their necks, flesh tore open to reveal fish-like gills.

Their eyes turned into vertical pupils emitting an eerie green light, filled with beastly violence and bloodlust.

In less than a minute, these dozen or so people had completely lost their human forms, turning into a pack of half-human, half-fish monsters.

Their rationality was being rapidly devoured by primitive animal instincts.

"Very good," the Lighthouse Country captain nodded with satisfaction; he had also completed the mutation, though he appeared more stable than the others. "Now, our mission is to find the Dragon Country Base and use our new claws and teeth to tear that tin can to pieces!"

"Use biological strong acid to corrode their hull! Let them be crushed alive by the seawater!"

"Roar!"

The pack of Sea Wolves let out non-human roars as they smashed through the base's airlock and shot into the pitch-black deep sea like arrows from a bow.

Their speed was incredibly fast, leaving trails of afterimages in the water as they silently crept toward the location of the Dragon Country Base that Su Yuan had long since locked onto.

However, what they didn't know was that in the Dragon Country Operations Center, Su Yuan was watching the dozen or so non-human signals moving at high speed on the sonar map with great interest.

"Oh? Can't sit still anymore? Starting to play with biochemical modification?"

A cold smirk curled at the corner of Su Yuan's mouth.

He didn't immediately alert Wang Yi and the others; that would be too boring.

He extended his finger and lightly drew a circle around the Dragon Country Base on the virtual map.

"Since you like being beasts, I'll prepare an electric cage for you."

【Ding! Consumed 1,000 national fortune points. Deployed 'High-Voltage Electromagnetic Induction Trap' x10 in the designated area.】

"Enjoy yourselves, Sea Wolves."