Chapter 677: Optimus Prime vs. Megatron

Flames erupted into the sky as the shockwaves of explosions hurled cars into the air. Sam scrambled to his feet and ran for his life, sprinting like an antelope chased by a cheetah. The vile, arrogant Starscream dogged his heels in relentless pursuit. From behind, Ironhide leaped high into the air, executing a flawless flip before tackling the Decepticon to the ground.

Mechanical parts went flying, and the pavement shattered into a spiderweb of cracks. Starscream had barely shaken off Ironhide when Ratchet charged up and blasted him repeatedly. Left with no choice, Starscream transformed into an F-22 and fled in a panic.

Though Sam sprinted into the building, the chaos he left in his wake was attacking pedestrians in every direction.

The two newly emerged Transformers seemed to validate Optimus Prime's warning: if Megatron used the AllSpark to mass-produce an army, humanity would face certain extinction.

'If the Autobots fail, what would a world swarming with these Transformers look like?'

Right on the heels of that question, another notion popped into Luo Qinghua's head: 'That would definitely be a lot of fun.'

Wang Ziming already had his fists tightly clenched. Behind his 3D glasses, his eyes were glued to the massive screen. The fiercest battle of all had finally begun, and while he knew the Autobots were destined to defeat the Decepticons, the struggle would undoubtedly be brutal, grueling, and absolutely spectacular.

"The story is too simple."

From his seat in the front row, Jiang Xiaojun shook his head at Baldy Ge.

"The plot is clearly a step down from The Dark Knight."

"But it's much more of a crowd-pleaser," Baldy Ge noted, turning slightly toward the back.

Jiang Xiaojun followed his gaze. The general audience section was eerily quiet, as if no one were sitting there at all. This bizarre silence wasn't born of boredom, but rather the sheer magnetism of Transformers. The film was so captivating that the viewers had entirely lost the urge to chat or do anything else.

Back on the screen, the Transformers birthed by the AllSpark were in a frenzy, wantonly firing on street-level buildings and vehicles. In that moment, they seemed even more vicious than the Decepticons.

Unfortunately for them, these newly awakened Transformers swiftly met their demise. Optimus Prime arrived just in time. Following another earth-shattering transformation, the Autobot leader—now firmly committed to the slaughter—popped out his Flame Blades and effortlessly cleaved their heads to pieces.

Then Megatron spotted Optimus Prime, bringing the film to the direct showdown between the two faction leaders.

They smashed straight through buildings with ease, flattened cars like toys, and toppled streetlamps like rows of dominoes. The combat prowess of both leaders was truly staggering.

This was the exact spectacle the audience had been waiting for. This was the clash countless Transformers fans wanted to see. Inside the theater, the only sounds were the thunderous collisions, the crunch of shattering metal, and the musical score pumping through the speakers...

Everyone watched the screen with unblinking eyes, thoroughly absorbed by this IMAX 3D sequence that delivered a true visual baptism!

Though Megatron held the upper hand, Optimus Prime was no pushover. He wasn't defenseless against his nemesis; at one point, his blade even sliced through Megatron's shoulder armor. But his concern for the fleeing humans became his undoing. Seizing the opening, Megatron hurled Optimus like a sack, sending him crashing into the facade of a building.

Following their melee clash, the two leaders shifted to a test of firepower. Megatron held a clear advantage here. After taking a direct hit from Optimus Prime's cannon, he transformed his arms into a laser cannon and blasted the Autobot leader away.

By this point in the film, nearly the entirety of Las Vegas Boulevard had been reduced to ruins.

The battle raged on. Even if they were just the supporting cast, giving the female lead and the US Military a chance to show their mettle was a surefire crowd-pleaser. Mikaela—who didn't forget to strike a few sexy poses behind the wheel—drove a tow truck pulling the crippled Bumblebee. Together with Captain Lennox's squad, they successfully finished off Brawl.

Meanwhile, Sam had been driven into a corner by Megatron, who had managed to shake off Optimus Prime.

The movie naturally wasn't going to let the Transformers entirely steal the spotlight. Properly displaying humanity's determination and courage made the film more popular with viewers. Clutching the AllSpark against Megatron's threats and temptations, Sam bravely shouted his answer: "NO!"

Driven to the brink, the boy burst out with all his courage. An instant later, Megatron collapsed the building beneath him, sending Sam plummeting toward the ground like a fallen leaf—only to be saved by the timely arrival of Optimus Prime.

Optimus Prime vs. Megatron—a battle to the death!

"Sam, if I cannot kill Megatron, you must push the AllSpark into my chest! I will sacrifice my own life to destroy it!"

In a clash of this magnitude, an ordinary human like Sam had no choice but to obediently hide to the side.

Amidst the impassioned score, the action filled the massive screen once more as the two leaders clashed again. The battle reverted to the most common combat style among Transformers—close-quarters melee!

Radiating pure malice, Megatron transformed one hand into a massive, spiked curved blade. Aside from the Flame Blade extending from his left hand, Optimus Prime reached behind his back and drew a weapon he'd used countless times in the animated series—the Flame Axe!

This easily awakened the memories of countless 80s kids. Wang Ziming was so thrilled he almost stood up.

The fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron was simple, brutal, and direct. Under the slashes of the blade and swings of the axe, body parts sheared off and nearby street buildings were smashed to pieces.

Even with Megatron holding a slight advantage, taking down Optimus Prime for the moment proved to be no easy feat...

Another Decepticon arrived belatedly. Blackout rolled down from the sky and threw himself into the fray. The balance of power on the field instantly shifted. Fighting two on one, Optimus Prime gradually lost ground and was knocked to the dirt time and time again.

Megatron had reinforcements, and Optimus Prime was no exception. The film once again entered US Military time.

Riding a motorcycle, Captain Lennox launched a death charge. The rest of his special squad provided laser guidance for the F-22 missiles. Blackout suffered a fierce bombardment from humanity's most advanced fighter jets, and the brave US military captain slid right beneath the Decepticon's legs, sending armor-piercing rounds directly into his body.

The severe explosions temporarily brought the fierce brawl to a halt. Blackout wasn't dead yet, staggering upright once more. The previously downed Optimus Prime drew the massive gun from his back and delivered the most fatal blow. His shot punched straight through the chest armor the F-22s had just blasted open, striking the Transformer's most vital spot—the Spark.

Meanwhile, Starscream once again shook off the entanglement of the two background characters, Ironhide and Ratchet. Taking to the sky, he rocketed straight toward the squadron of F-22 Raptors. Leveraging his disguise, he quickly picked off several in rapid succession.

Right at that moment, the F-22 squadron launched another volley of missiles. Their target was Megatron, who had just thrown Optimus Prime away!

The Decepticon leader was instantly engulfed in explosions and fire. The treacherous and cunning Starscream didn't hesitate to turn tail and flee.

Down on the streets, the continuous bombardment hadn't managed to deal Megatron a fatal wound, but it had blown his sturdy chest armor open, significantly weakening his combat power. When he lunged viciously at Optimus Prime again, the Autobot leader dropped him to the ground in just a few short rounds.

Captain Lennox's squad rushed up to surround him, landing armor-piercing rounds against Megatron one after another. Left without any backup, Megatron's gaze swept toward Sam, who was hiding behind a car.

If he had the AllSpark, he could manufacture a large batch of Transformers!

Gathering his energy, Megatron released a shockwave. Knocking all the humans and Optimus Prime to the ground, he dragged his injured body and lunged toward Sam. But at the critical moment, Optimus Prime stood up and tackled him, using a Flame Blade to sever one of Megatron's legs.

Megatron crashed to the ground right in front of Sam.

"I will kill you, you pitiful insect! The AllSpark is mine!"

"Humans aren't insects!"

Staring at the weakened Decepticon leader, Sam remembered Optimus Prime's words about destroying the AllSpark. Without hesitation, he lifted the AllSpark and shoved it into the cracked chest armor that had been blasted open on Megatron. The arrogant Decepticon leader struggled repeatedly, but in the end, he could not escape the fate of death.

"You left me no choice, my brother."

After the approaching Optimus Prime finished these words, the red light in Megatron's eyes completely disappeared.

The camera gave a deliberate close-up of Optimus Prime's hand as he picked up a shard of the AllSpark from Megatron's chest. Anyone familiar with Hollywood's filmmaking style could definitely guess that this—much like Megatron's corpse later being dumped into the sea—was laying the groundwork for a sequel.

The battle was over. Sector Seven was disbanded, Starscream had fled, and naturally, the male and female leads were going to be together.

Also, just like in his past life, the ending naturally couldn't go without Optimus Prime's speech.

"With the AllSpark destroyed, our planet cannot be restored to life, but destiny has given us the best compensation, letting us find a new home."

"We live together with humanity, hiding among them, yet silently watching over them, waiting and protecting them."

"I have witnessed their courage and fearlessness firsthand."

"Though we come from different worlds, we are much the same—far more than meets the eye."

"I am Optimus Prime, and I am here calling out to all the Autobots exiled in the universe."

"We are here, and we are waiting."

The 113-minute film brought its curtain down right here. Because many of the human scenes had been cut, the film's length wasn't dragged out too long, which was also related to the 3D format. With current 3D screens and 3D glasses, if a film was too long, it was highly likely to cause eye discomfort for a significant portion of the audience. Controlling the film's length wasn't just to keep the pacing more compact; it was also to accommodate the audience's viewing comfort.

Applause erupted without any warning, instantly evolving from a scattered mess into a surging, tidal wave of ovations. From the general audience seats in the back, cheers rang out one after another.

The film's total length of full IMAX 3D shots reached a staggering 50 minutes. In this day and age, this was absolutely an ultimate weapon.

"A very spectacular film."

"The visual effects were simply astonishing."

"If this wasn't a movie, I would honestly wonder if a bunch of Transformers were hiding right next to us."

Those Chinese filmmakers who had watched the film, whether acting out of sincerity or politeness, came over one after another to congratulate Duke and Tina Fey. Though a few film directors couldn't keep a faint hint of sourness out of their mouths, they also understood that special effects of this caliber were not something the Chinese film industry could surpass in the short term.

The premiere concluded, and many people gradually walked out of the theater.

"Any takeaways?" Baldy Ge asked Jiang Xiaojun.

"Old Ge, just look at them." Jiang Xiaojun gestured with his eyes toward the beaming general audience members surrounding them. "I think I finally understand what audiences want to see."

He gave Baldy Ge a heavy pat. "I'm going to make a commercial film too!"