#608Chapter 608 An unexpected gift from the Gates FoundationAI Model: gemini-2.5-flash
Chapter 608: An Unexpected Gift from the Gates Conglomerate
Ralph and Clark, who were originally supposed to appear in Metal Slug 6 & 7, and Leona, who was only officially introduced in Metal Slug XX, all appeared early in this Metal Slug 3 instance due to Cheng Tian's interference with the King of Fighters save file.
It also seemed they were hired by the Government Army, otherwise they wouldn't be at this Government Army headquarters.
Compared to their fighter status in the King of Fighters world, the Ikari Warriors' mercenary identity was clearly more prominent here.
"How's your body holding up?"
Cheng Tian greeted Leona with a familiar tone.
Hearing this question, Leona's expression immediately became serious, and she replied very sternly, "Still capable of handling all duties on the battlefield!"
She had indeed been seriously injured by Highnic, even to her core. Although she now appeared to be moving freely, only she herself knew her true internal condition.
It must be said, purely from the perspective of Metal Slug's selectable character performance, Leona from Metal Slug XX was indeed the strongest overall among the seven selectable characters.
Her pistol damage was 1.5 times, vehicle health and firepower were both 1.2 times, all ammunition acquisition was 1.2 times, and even her specialized martial arts skill, "Moonlight Saw," could directly cut down small and medium-sized cannon shells and bullets.
Cheng Tian didn't respond but subtly glanced at the two older male comrades behind her.
His gaze met Ralph's, who wasn't wearing sunglasses, and then he saw the man purse his lips and shake his head slightly.
This indicated that Leona was putting on a brave front.
However, Cheng Tian's appearance also brought an unexpected surprise to the Ikari Warriors, as they had participated in the entire King of Fighters '97 tournament and had personally witnessed how Cheng Tian "killed a god."
Although the crucial details were very vague and confusing, Cheng Tian's power was beyond doubt.
With such a powerful person successfully returning from vacation and rejoining the Government Army's combat ranks, these mercenaries, who worked for money, were naturally very happy. After all, who would complain about their allies being powerful?
Facing the early intervention of this Ikari Warriors team, which in terms of original setting could be on par with the Peregrine Falcon and Sparrow teams, and even superior in some combat aspects, Cheng Tian's mind wondered: if a balance of power were to be achieved, where would the Rebel Army be strengthened?
Personnel? Unit types? Or new forces?
Too much knowledge of Metal Slug only amplified Cheng Tian's speculation about possibilities, and his knowledge reserves also influenced the triggering of missions.
Cheng Tian's own Holy Grail mission branches both involved stages encountered during the final decisive battle with the Martians. In his view, this probably also meant that no matter what operations were performed on Earth, it would not affect the arrival of the Martian Revengeance.
The Government Regular Army and the Rebel Army would eventually choose to fight side-by-side due to a specific critical juncture.
And here lay a trap that players could easily step into, and one that was difficult to avoid.
That was the early-stage mission where the player groups of the Government Army and the Rebel Army fought each other, which ironically reduced the number of future comrades who would fight alongside them.
However, after a moment's thought, Cheng Tian decided to only spread this information within his familiar circle.
Those who had cooperated with Cheng Tian would likely trust his judgment on future developments. As for those he had never cooperated with, Cheng Tian believed it was best not to interfere with their judgment at critical moments with some so-called greater good.
For example, Cheng Tian's "certainty" could not be normally disseminated to the Rebel Army faction. This meant that this certainty would only affect his own allied players. If these people, due to the impression that "this enemy might be a teammate in the future," consequently didn't give their all in battles against the opposing faction, and then accidentally got counter-killed, it would be very much not worth it.
Moreover, returning to himself, he would not leave any survivors from opposing faction players he clashed with, because he didn't want to be backstabbed at some crucial moment in the future.
After a brief exchange, Cheng Tian confirmed that the Ikari Warriors' mission chain was the same as his team's: to head to the Rebel Army's "Rocket Launch Base" to intercept and destroy their military facilities.
However, while the missions were the same, the assigned positions were not, and even the Peregrine Falcon 004 team, which had been re-integrated, had different responsibilities within itself.
In the original Metal Slug 3 final stage, the Government Army would provide 1P and 2P players with a single-person fighter jet each to ambush the Rebel Army's air forces from the sky, then proceed to destroy ground transport vehicles.
But now, the Government Army's players were not just the Peregrine Falcon 004 team; there were other player teams, plus the original Peregrine Falcon and Sparrow teams. The corrupt Government Army couldn't provide so many single-person flying vehicles for all the player groups to use.
So the overall mission was split into two instances.
There were still only two free single-person flying vehicles, so the number of people assigned to the aerial interception mission was limited to two. Based on past mission completion records and considering individual soldiers' comprehensive abilities, Cheng Tian, who already possessed extremely excellent vehicle piloting skills, was selected.
The other executor of the aerial interception mission was Tarma of the Peregrine Falcon team.
All past protagonists of Metal Slug had the ability to pilot all conventional vehicles within the scene, but Tarma was a vehicle-specialized mechanic.
Vehicles piloted by him would gain 2 times health, 1.5 times firepower output, 2 times ammunition replenishment, and the ability to adjust the Vulcan cannon muzzle at will.
Tarma and Cheng Tian were the most suitable candidates to perform this mission.
As for the others, they would be air-transported to designated locations in advance, then board troop carriers, armored vehicles, and other vehicles to pursue the Rebel Army's supply lines by land.
Of course, getting a free single-person vehicle also meant facing higher danger head-on. Moreover, getting it was one thing; being able to keep it was another.
And there was a high probability of facing players from the enemy faction.
"A rare guest! Welcome!"
While Cheng Tian was exchanging information with the Ikari Warriors, Billy Gates, whose hair was still meticulously combed, approached with a smiling face, having received news of the VIP client's arrival.
For him, an arms dealer who profited from war, the mass-produced Bat-Tank, with its Metal Slug-like mobility, was sought after by various forces as soon as it hit the market.
It earned him a lot of lovely small money, both openly and covertly, and even influenced the outcome of many local conflicts.
His bulging pockets naturally made him very welcoming of Cheng, the source of it all.
"You've come at just the right time! We've just developed a brand new upgraded version!"
Immediately after, Cheng Tian was pulled away by President Gates under the gaze of the Ikari Warriors members, directly to the conglomerate's internal vehicle experimental base, where he showcased the upgraded Batmobile he spoke of to Cheng Tian.
But when Cheng Tian saw the finished product, he was stunned, even hallucinating a familiar melody in his ears—
Batman~~~~ Batman~~~~~~
It was actually a 1966 TV series version of the Batmobile!?
]
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