Lightless Prison
The dark purple beam of light swept across the planet's surface like a cleaning machine.
For a mid-level cruiser, the highest strength of its neutron cannon is level 17.
However, due to Oni's own strength level, even though he recently advanced to the 14th tier after exchanging resources through the last Federation recruitment, the neutron cannon can still only be used at the 16th tier level.
There's no way around it; the cruiser itself is just an "amplifier."
Civilization Army talent is hard to come by, especially local talent; upgrading them is not as easy as it was for Lister, who simply "harvested" them.
Growth and advancement are achieved through gradual accumulation; there are no shortcuts.
After neutron cannons and various ray projectiles bombarded the planet, Lister finally landed with a small squad of three hundred men.
Since they weren't drafted by the Federation, there were requirements regarding the mortality rate, and the sergeants were still considered a valuable asset.
"Lister, coordinates XX, XX, 1.4 km to the left and forward."
Truman's calls to action kept ringing in my ears.
After a few Flashes, Lister appeared behind the offspring of the Soul-Devouring Spider.
Those that have survived to this day are all level 16 Soul-Devouring Spiders.
He had a robust upper body, the face of a middle-aged man, and eyes full of determination.
Once its lower body is fully upright, with its eight enormous segmented limbs and massive spider abdomen, its height instantly reaches seven or eight meters.
At that moment, two of the enormous arthropods lunged at Lister.
Unfortunately, this level of attack naturally failed to achieve its intended purpose.
Close-quarters combat is a strength of martial arts practitioners, especially those in the comfort zone of sword techniques.
The energy blade of the Shadowless Blade only becomes truly painful to the closest one gets to it.
With a swift, diagonal slash, the approaching limb was instantly severed.
The blade's momentum didn't diminish; it slashed into the junction between the Soul-Devouring Spider's body and abdomen.
It was cut in two, and large swathes of dark black liquid oozed from the spider's abdomen.
The liquid turned dark green after flowing onto the ground, and thick, brownish smoke rose from the soil and rocks it passed over, eventually decomposing completely.
Unlike the previous Evil Shadow Eye Monsters, the Soul-Devouring Spiders primarily prefer to operate on the planet's surface.
The soldiers mostly served a diversionary role, either waiting for the warships to clear the area with fire or for Lister to come and finish them off.
With the overwhelming firepower of the Ship A73, the clearing of these sub-entities from the planets was easier than expected.
When Lister returned to the ship's control room, he had just opened the door when he heard Captain Boren's exclamation.
"What did you say? Roland and his men moved so quickly?"
"Have all three planets been wiped out?"
"Yes, they're already heading in our direction, saying they're preparing to reinforce us."
Cohen reported this to Captain Boren with some surprise.
He knew the strength of his own ship; after all, it had participated in the last Federation conscription, and the entire fleet was already incredibly well-coordinated.
Moreover, with Lister, a Quasi-Hegemon, around, even the Central Army's warships might not be as efficient as theirs.
The attack was also quite fast. Including long-range firepower strikes and close-range landings for clearing out the enemy, the planet was cleared out in just four hours, which was exceptionally efficient.
However, compared to CR-01, which has already cleared out three planets, the difference is still quite obvious.
"How is this possible? Doesn't the other planet still have warriors from the Chaotic Star Region?"
"Was it the result of a joint operation by both sides? Or was it because those three small ships were quite powerful?"
Captain Boren still found it hard to accept this outcome.
Although they knew the other side was a colonel and a high-ranking Quasi-Hegemon, their side was not weak either.
The final combat gap was so large that he, who was now in a class of his own in the Arcane Army Group and even somewhat complacent, suddenly felt the pressure.
"Captain..., according to our Radar Department observations, there appears to be no joint operation to eliminate them."
Although Truman had been assisting Lister in bringing the offensive to a close, he continued to keep an eye on the seven planets occupied by the Zerg.
The explanation was then given to Major Cohen.
"According to our department's detection and observation, CR-01 did not negotiate with the other side at all; it launched an indiscriminate attack along with the crowd in the Chaotic Star Region."
Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Although the Chaotic Star Region is exactly as its name suggests, it is a chaotic and disorderly region that is a loophole under the jurisdiction of the Galactic Federation.
However, unless there is a mission involved, they rarely take the initiative to engage in conflict or eliminate the forces in these Chaotic Star Region.
After all, no one knows how powerful the other party's backing is, and no one wants to cause trouble for themselves.
Who knew Roland would be so reckless, completely disregarding the consequences and launching indiscriminate attacks?
However, considering that the Glimmer Civilization borders this Chaotic Star Region, and there may have been conflicts between them before, this is the most common guess in everyone's mind right now.
Only Lister, who was seated, knew the truth.
Since these people went to these planets, they became nourishment for the Soul-Devouring Spiders; how could they possibly be allowed to leave?
Indiscriminate attacks are inevitable, and they might even allow these warriors to be attacked and killed by the Soul-Devouring Spiders.
A few minutes later, CR-01's fleet arrived.
The warship itself looked somewhat old, lacking the pristine shine of the newly manufactured A73.
As they launched their attack together, the two warships exchanged no further pleasantries.
Starting with the electromagnetic cannon, which is the easiest and most common control skill on warships, everyone makes roughly the same choice.
The subsequent attacks were different; A73 had previously opted for a neutron cannon for a large-scale firepower strike.
With CR-01, Colonel Roland personally led the landing operation.
The figure flashed across the planet's surface like a yellow streak.
Along the path of the light, countless Soul-Devouring Spiders fell to the ground and died.
Then, a pitch-black barrier slowly advanced outward in a ring shape, originating from Roland's coordinates.
Wherever it passed, all light was swallowed up, creating an absolute realm of darkness.
The advance was not fast, and many Soul-Devouring Spiders, seeing this, attempted to escape the barrier's range and leave the planet.
However, they were ultimately covered by the firepower network woven by the electromagnetic guns of the CR-01 fleet and swept back into the barrier.
Eventually, the barrier of darkness enveloped the entire planet, and with all light absorbed, it became impossible to observe the planet with the naked eye.
Inside the barrier, the real battle has only just begun.
The endless, intense light scorched all life forms inside, Soul-Devouring Spider was inevitably roasted.
In particular, some of the Soul-Devouring Spiders that flew upwards in an attempt to break through the barrier experienced rapid carbonization and peeling off of their limbs and abdominal carapaces upon contact with the barrier.
Roland himself transformed his body into photons, becoming a streak of yellow light that traversed the barrier.
Accurately locate all 16th-order sub-units and deliver the final blow.
Outside the barrier, no one could see anything at all.
The internal situation can only be sensed through energy fluctuations.
About fifteen minutes later, the energy fluctuations seemed to reach their peak.
The dark barrier suddenly contracted inward, as if undergoing a massive compression.
Finally, the barrier reopened, and all the Soul-Devouring Spiders inside were wiped out, leaving not a trace.
At the same time, the entire planet's surface became much smoother, and several peaks were compressed together.
The Quasi-Hegemon in the supernatural ability category made his first impression on Lister.
Indeed, there are no weak professional systems, only weak people.
Colonel Roland, this Quasi-Hegemon in the light element, was far stronger than he had anticipated.
Especially in group attacks, it is more efficient than his swordsmanship, and even the Quasi-Hegemon magic-based classes dare not say they can rival Roland.
No wonder the enemy's clearing speed was so astonishing.