A few minutes later.
The teachers and students from both academies gazed with awe at the figure before them.
At his feet lay the corpses of Zerg scattered everywhere. The special metal pipe in his hand, originally used for constructing starships, had become deformed after being swung and smashed hundreds of times.
At that moment, the body of a Zerg was still impaled on it.
It was hard to believe what they had just witnessed.
That one man, facing dozens of Zerg, armed only with a metal pipe, moved like a human mecha, smashing the Zerg one by one, crushing their bodies with each swing of the pipe.
It was as if he were not killing Zerg, but slaughtering poultry!
Teacher Qin swallowed hard. She had noticed that at one point, the man faced nearly thirty Zerg lunging at him simultaneously, including several T2 Zerg Spiders!
Yet, all of them ended up as corpses beneath his feet.
It was terrifying!
"Is this the legendary Gene Warrior? Could he have undergone the Empire's genetic modification?" a student whispered cautiously.
A professor with a complicated expression said, "The Empire's research on Gene Warriors is still at the T2 stage. While they can fight Zerg alone...
that's only under certain conditions.
This man's combat capability... far surpasses the level of the Gene Warriors the Empire is researching!"
"Then why is he so strong?" someone asked in confusion.
A professor specializing in interstellar civilizations muttered, "The only possibility is that he is a hybrid, possessing the racial genes of an interstellar race known for exceptional individual combat prowess.
For example, the interstellar warriors of the beastmen have physical abilities far exceeding those of our Human Race. There are even rumors that some can shatter the starship armor of a T1 Interstellar Warship with a single punch!"
Regardless of their speculations, what filled their eyes at that moment was sheer astonishment.
Zhao Chen shook off the bits of flesh clinging to the pipe and glanced at the exoskeleton armor on his left hand, which now bore cracks.
During the fight, relying solely on the pipe hadn't been enough, so he had occasionally resorted to swinging his right fist.
It seemed that even the exoskeleton armor couldn't withstand the punishment inflicted by his fists!
[Ding, mission updated. You have successfully completed the requirement to eliminate one thousand Zerg.]
[Mission time limit has expired. Please claim your task reward.]
The mission requirement had finally been met—one thousand Zerg eliminated.
As for the ten-thousand Zerg level... Zhao Chen didn't even dare to think about it. Not because he couldn't achieve it,
but because by the time he reached that number, he would likely be completely exhausted.
For now, Zhao Chen had no time to claim the task reward and could only set it aside temporarily.
"Commander, the third batch of shuttles has arrived. Please evacuate immediately!"
Lilith's voice came through the communication channel.
Zhao Chen breathed a sigh of relief. They had finally made it this far smoothly. He looked at the six shuttles landing for the third time.
He immediately called out to the teachers and students from both academies behind him, who stood dumbfounded, not even noticing the shuttles had landed.
"Board the shuttles quickly and evacuate."
At Zhao Chen's urging, the teachers and students snapped out of their daze and hurriedly began boarding the shuttles to evacuate.
Zhao Chen, along with Senior Su Lan, Chu Xuan, and others, boarded one of the shuttles.
Once everyone was loaded, the shuttle immediately took off, returning to the hangar of the starship in orbit.
On the ground, the fourteen T2 Black Knight-class Light Interstellar Combat Mechs also received the order to retreat. They activated the rocket propulsion units on their backs and feet, leaping into the air.
They followed the shuttle back to the T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruiser.
As these T2 Black Knight-class Light Interstellar Combat Mechs withdrew, the starship wreckage on the ground was soon engulfed by a dark, swarming mass of Zerg.
Senior Su Lan looked out the window at the sea of Zerg below, feeling a chill run down her spine. If not for Zhao Chen's god-like rescue, they might have already been overrun and become food for those Zerg.
"You're Zhao Chen, right? Thank you so much for coming to rescue us!" Teacher Qin looked at Zhao Chen gratefully, initiating the conversation.
Zhao Chen glanced at the teacher before him, not recognizing her.
"This is Teacher Qin, the lead instructor from North Star Starship Military Academy for this dual-academy interstellar mission. If it weren't for Teacher Qin organizing our desperate resistance these past few days, we might not have held out long enough for your rescue," Senior Su Lan explained from the side.
Hearing that this female teacher had organized the defense, Zhao Chen nodded in acknowledgment. To have the courage to fight under such circumstances was truly admirable.
"How many starships did our Academy send? Are they all outside the planet?" an elderly professor nearby inquired.
"The Academy? No, I'm the only one who came to support," Zhao Chen stated bluntly.
His words left everyone in the cabin stunned.
"Just one? How is that possible? The area outside is swarming with Zerg and hive starships. How could a single starship possibly break through!" the old professor questioned.
"But I did break through," Zhao Chen replied, not bothering to explain further.
Chu Xuan added from the side, "It really is just Zhao Chen's starship… The Academy did consider sending reinforcements… but… it would have taken some time."
Hearing Chu Xuan's words, everyone present understood the implication.
They had essentially been abandoned by the Academy.
A sense of disappointment flickered in their eyes.
"Zhao Chen, thank you so much," Teacher Qin expressed her gratitude again, this time with even more sincerity.
Though she didn't know how Zhao Chen had managed to break through the Zerg Swarm alone with just one starship to rescue them, at least he had succeeded!
Zhao Chen remained silent. Truthfully, if it weren't for his sister and the System Task, he wouldn't have cared about the fate of these students and teachers from the two academies.
If they wanted to thank anyone, they should be thanking the system for its "life-saving grace."
Soon, the shuttle entered the hangar, and its doors opened.
Outside were the two earlier groups of students and teachers from the two academies, all either standing or sitting in corners, their faces bearing expressions of relief after surviving the ordeal.
Zhao Wan'er had been watching the shuttle's return closely, scanning each door for a familiar figure.
Finally, upon spotting him, she waved her arms joyfully.
"Brother!"
Zhao Chen waved back at Zhao Wan'er. Just as he was about to head over, a message from the bridge came through the communication channel.
"Commander, please come to the bridge immediately! There's a very important message to report!" Zhao Chen heard Charlotte's voice over the channel, sounding serious.
Without a word, Zhao Chen quickly stripped off his powered exoskeleton combat armor, which was practically beyond repair.
He strode briskly toward the exit.
"Student Zhao Chen..." Teacher Qin had originally intended to discuss evacuation plans with him.
After all, upon learning that only one starship had come to their rescue, the subsequent evacuation posed a significant challenge.
But just as she reached the cabin doorway, two female crew members armed with laser rifles blocked her path.
"Sorry, your movement is restricted to this cabin only!" the female crew members stated sternly.
Teacher Qin looked somewhat embarrassed and retreated.
After all, this was their starship, and they made the rules.
Fortunately, the cabin was a hangar for shuttles, offering ample space.
It was more than enough to accommodate the students and teachers from both academies.
"Look! What's that outside!" a student near the edge of the cabin, who had been peering through a small hatch window a few square meters in size to catch a glimpse of the planet they had just left, suddenly exclaimed.
Teacher Qin and the others immediately rushed over.
By now, the starship they were on had already begun departing from the planet, leaving its atmosphere.
Outside, apart from the familiar interstellar space, there were some dark, shadowy objects in the distance.
"It's... a T3 Hive Mothership! And there are three of them!" a sharp-eyed teacher cried out in alarm.
Three T3 Hive Motherships!
Upon hearing this news, panic once again swept through the students and teachers of both academies.
Were they jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire?
Were they destined to die in the Water Lily Star System?
They had witnessed the terror of the T3 Hive Mothership before—their Two-Academy Fleet had been attacked by a Zerg fleet led by a T3 Hive Mothership, suffering heavy losses!