Chen Qiong had fallen. A veteran general who had fought for many years had not fallen under the enemy's hail of bullets, but under Li Zhi's stupidity.

Zhang Shoucheng's replacement of Chen Qiong as the commander of the front line had become the most helpless choice.

With almost no time to waste, Zhang Shoucheng boarded a prepped plane thirty seconds later. With the roar of the engines, he and the middle-aged officer who had come to deliver the message left the area.

…

On the plane, at Zhang Shoucheng's request, the staff used communication equipment to contact Li Tianran, who was currently in the Gobi Desert.

It only took three seconds for the connection to be established.

"I am Zhang Shoucheng, and I am on my way to the t-119 defense line!" Zhang Shoucheng said in a deep voice.

Li Tianran's voice came from the electronic screen, with a hint of pause, a hint of doubt: "Zhang Shoucheng?"

"Yes, General Chen Qiong's physical condition has developed some problems, and he is unable to take on the important task of commanding. I have a deep understanding of the Northern Military Region and can replace him in the battle!" Zhang Shoucheng's voice was very low.

After listening, Li Tianran did not deny Zhang Shoucheng's decision. In the current situation, this was already the best choice.

"In my capacity as the Supreme Commander of the Human Allied Forces, I announce that Zhang Shoucheng will temporarily take over the position of the head of the Northern Military Region and rush to the defense line battlefield immediately..." Li Tianran paused for a second, and then said, "My request to you is to do your best to defend the line for two hours!"

"I can!" Zhang Shoucheng said without any thought, very simply and neatly: "But I want the authority to mobilize troops!"

"From the Federal Capital to the defense line, all internal security forces of all countries will be mobilized by me!"

At this time, on the defense line battlefield, the Northern Military Region had suffered severe losses. If Zhang Shoucheng did not bring troops, relying on the remaining soldiers in the giant defense city, there was no way they could stop the raging beast tide for two hours!

Li Tianran thought for a moment and said, "Okay! I will notify the heads of the other countries and give you the highest authority to mobilize troops within the human world!"

In this war between the entire human world and the ancient civilization, in addition to the Allied Forces who followed Li Tianran to the desert and the guards stationed on the defense line, there were a certain number of garrison troops, city defense forces, military police, and other forces in the cities of various countries. These forces were used to maintain urban tranquility, respond to riots, and suppress thugs.

But at this time, Zhang Shoucheng had to take them all away.

Because he had no other available soldiers!

The task of these garrison regiments was to protect the safety of inland cities, but if the defense line was breached, the inland cities would soon turn into a hell. The task they were now performing was still to protect the cities, but they had simply changed the battlefield.

"Do you have any other requests?" Li Tianran asked again.

"Requests... no." Zhang Shoucheng said, "But I have something to say."

"..." Li Tianran raised his eyebrows.

"At the time, I ordered that Yuan Wen's Ancient Medicine-grade fruit be taken to save a foreign general, but even now, I still don't think I was wrong." Zhang Shoucheng's voice was very calm: "I said that when choosing between the safety of the country and the life and death of an individual, even if I had to choose a hundred times, I would choose the former."

"I said at the time that even if the injured person was not Yuan Wen, but my own son, I would still decisively choose the country!"

"Perhaps you sneered at my statement at the time, thinking that I was saying some nice official words!"

"But I'm telling you, everything I said is what I think in my heart! In times of national crisis, soldiers should repay the country with death!" Zhang Shoucheng's voice trembled slightly, "What I want to tell you is that both Yuan Wen and I are soldiers. When the country needs us to make sacrifices, we will make sacrifices."

"Regardless of whether it's an ordinary soldier or a general with outstanding achievements!"

"This spirit is not distinguished by the rank of the military!"

"Perhaps this statement was not credible to you in the past, but today, I can prove it to you!"

After Zhang Shoucheng finished his last sentence, he decisively hung up the communication with the Kunlun Giant Ship.

Zhang Shoucheng was very clear that, according to the report from the middle-aged officer, the situation on the t-119 defense line was already extremely tragic. There was a 99 percent chance that he would never return after this trip.

This was not his responsibility. He could have refused the letter of appointment on the grounds that he was "not familiar with the military situation"! Even Li Tianran could not find any fault!

But he didn't!

In Zhang Shoucheng's heart, there was a sense of responsibility as a federal soldier, and a strong desire to do his best to help Chen Qiong, his old friend, preserve the last of the Northern Military Region's foundation!

And the most important reason was...

The country needed him to stand up now.

So he stood up.

That's all.

Zhang Shoucheng didn't want to say these words to Li Tianran, because he had a hard temper, was very proud, and had the stubbornness of a soldier. He himself disdained explaining this matter to Li Tianran.

But Li Tianran was the leader of the entire Human Allied Forces, and because of Yuan Wen's matter in the past, he had always been somewhat prejudiced against the Federation. Even though the Federation risked the world's condemnation to reinforce Kuangxi Island later, it failed to make Li Tianran's attitude towards the Federation return to its former kindest attitude.

And if Zhang Shoucheng didn't untie this knot in Li Tianran's heart, it might explode on some matter in the future. At that time, the entire Federation would be in danger!

For the future of the Federation, Zhang Shoucheng finally lowered his proud head and had this conversation with Li Tianran.

After this conversation, he had no more worries or concerns. He immediately used communication satellites to connect to the city defense forces of various cities and countries in front, and asked them to immediately reorganize their troops and follow him to the t-119 defense line.

…

At the same time, in the shelters of various cities, Zhang Shoucheng's voice sounded.

"Compatriots, we have encountered an unprecedented disaster! Destruction has never been so close to us! The t-119 defense line is about to completely collapse. I now need all combat troops to rush to the battlefield with me! To turn the tide!"

"If we win this battle, humanity will survive! If we lose this battle, the entire human world will become a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood!"

"Now, I order all active soldiers to immediately reorganize and rush to the nearest military airport in the city immediately!"

"I order all city defense forces to immediately recall retired personnel and take over local security!"

Zhang Shoucheng's voice sounded in a large number of cities. The city defense forces of various cities had received instructions from their superiors early on and immediately responded positively. A large number of military transport aircraft took off, and a new force was rapidly gathering from all over the world, heading towards the t-119 defense line!