Lord of Xumi

"Let's retreat; there's no point in continuing this fight."

Damon gave orders to his men.

After all, this was the first engagement in the battle, and once they learned about the enemy's Undying Legion, the fight was indeed not very meaningful.

Even if we can suppress the opponent, the cost to our side will be higher.

Rhein, standing beside him, nodded in agreement. This outer star field was insignificant, and the other side couldn't occupy it for long, so giving it up for now was fine.

The Crystal Wall in the Gamma-331 Star Region finally showed cracks during the players' seventh assault.

When the "War God of Jiangling Prefecture" severed the last supporting pillar with his blade, the entire crystal structure collapsed like a shattered mirror, refracting countless Twist rays of light and shadow.

"Third War Zone breakthrough! Repeat, Third War Zone has been broken through!"

Within Sariel's tactical network, the green dots representing the Undying Legion are rapidly devouring the red areas.

Those Void Warriors who had inflicted heavy losses on the right flank of the Seventh Army Group were now being shredded into crystal fragments by the Mechanical Civilization's phase cannons and the puppet legion's threads.

However, after the Great Wall of Crystals collapsed, it gradually melted and disappeared along with the crystal fragments.

At the same time, the remaining Void Warriors also began to disappear.

[Battlefield Announcement: The first line of defense in N7 Galaxy has been breached; contribution value leaderboard now open]

A scarlet warning popped up on the players' interface at the same time.

The name "War God of Jiangling Prefecture" was at the top of the list.

Following closely behind were veteran pro players such as "Blood Rose," "Quantum Ghost," and "Does Not Eat Cilantro."

This is a ranking system specifically designed by Lister.

He understood the players' psychology perfectly; ranking was essential for winning in war.

Rankings are often the best incentive, and in some cases, they are even more enticing than the resources provided.

After all, for players, this is just a game, nothing more.

As expected, the moment the contribution rankings were released, the discussion erupted in the players' chat.

"Who dares to say that our martial arts department can only fight one-on-one? So what about the battlefield? What about those 'mages'? Why aren't they called that anymore?"

"Three of the top ten are magic-based Class Holder, while you martial arts practitioners only have three! What are you calling them!?"

"So you guys still look at the leaderboards! I thought you were going to go to the forums to argue again!"

"Now you know that our martial arts department is number one, right?"

"This is only the first line of battle, and it's 'Count Merrick,' a favored character in the game, with his swordsmanship skills. It's not like your martial arts style is strong!"

The debate between the departments has begun again.

The main points of contention lie between the martial arts system and the magic system.

After all, he was someone who was once rejected even when trying to team up, not even as good as a shield warrior.

The current result is that even the French system has been completely crushed.

On the contrary, the mechanical type, although weak in the past, was not at its worst. Now that it has suddenly gained a slight advantage over the magic type, there is less arguing between the players on both sides.

One month later.

Lister's fleet has been temporarily stationed in this outer area.

At the same time, warships were dispatched to gather intelligence on the Void Corridor forces at close range.

Just as he had expected.

There were many local wars, not just his, but also the forces of the Crimson Covenant and the Emerald Royal Court fighting on this battlefield.

The intensity of the fighting wasn't that high; it was more of a basic, localized operation.

At most, it's at the level of Quasi-Hegemon combat strength, not even reaching the Overlord Tier.

In addition, many forces have inexplicably begun to converge.

As if they had received some kind of information, they deliberately stayed in the N7 Galaxy, which was originally ignored by everyone.

Most of them were small units or a small fleet.

They weren't there to fight; they were more likely there to observe.

Lister's recent activities in the Void Corridor have likely attracted the attention of other forces in the universe.

Warning! Extremely large-scale spatial fluctuations detected!

Sariel's tactical network was instantly stained a glaring deep purple.

On the holographic star map, countless golden gates suddenly appeared around the area where their fleet was stationed.

Countless members of the Void Clan emerged from it.

Lister was immediately alerted in the control room, and at the same time, Killing Intent Wave had already spread throughout the entire battlefield.

Based solely on the aura he sensed, he was certain that this was the true main force of the Void Corridor forces.

This time, the Void Corridor didn't launch a probing attack; instead, it sent a massive army charging in!

"All units, attack!"

The military orders, fueled by the Killing Intent Wave, were rapidly transmitted to all of their own ships.

There's no need to even think about defense; given that this attack was launched without any prior notice, is there any possibility of defense?

The attack on the Void Corridor was swift and deadly.

The Void Race powerhouses surging out of the golden gate swept across the battlefield like a tidal wave.

Countless rhomboid crystals condensed in the void into a sharp spear array, instantly piercing through the energy shield of the outer defensive fleet.

Inside the flagship command center, the red alarm lights and the shattered images projected on the hologram flickered and intertwined.

Lister's fleet's tactical network was torn to shreds of data at the same moment.

Countless special purple Void Crystals have pierced through the bridge armor, pinning some of the mechanical officers who were repairing the ship to their control panels.

The surface of these crystals revealed vein-like patterns as they greedily absorbed the energy from the officers and the dissipating energy from the collapsing warship.

"Phase jump failed!"

"Main engine overload!"

Amidst the cacophony of collapse reports, Lister crushed the clusters of crystals spreading across the floor with a single footstep.

The instant the Shadowless Blade was drawn, the entire warship was cleaved in two by the crimson blade's light.

Amidst the shattered metal debris, he saw countless warships repeating the same fate: some were hollowed out from the inside by crystalline creatures, while others were detonated by void mages who suddenly appeared in the reactor compartment.

The players' warships were not spared either.

The ship, led by the "War God of Jiangling Prefecture," also disintegrated due to crystal erosion.

Players are constantly activating the emergency escape pods on warships.

Of course, everyone hopes to stay alive, since losing experience points each time you die is quite significant.

Ultimately, all the warships were completely corroded.

The Undying Legion and other officers, including the mechanical and puppet troops, have disembarked from the warships to fight against the Void Clan.

It was ultimately a counterattack from a powerful force like the Void Corridor.

Lister had planned to launch another attack in the next few days, but the enemy moved even faster than he had anticipated.

This coordinated action demonstrates an impeccable grasp of the battlefield.

A single surprise attack destroyed all of their warships.

Due to the contribution ranking system.

In addition, the warships they had finally acquired were destroyed.

The players were all holding their breath in frustration.

They immediately formed their own teams, cooperating seamlessly and employing a multitude of tactics.

Unfortunately, this large-scale collective attack was directly blocked by the enemy's assembled shields, and could not harm the enemy in the slightest.

Instead, it was the Void Race on the other side who launched a coordinated attack.

Countless Void Mages, Void Lords, and even powerful figures of various classes raised their hands, condensing crimson Void Crystals, which they then hurled directly at the players.

The crystal shattered upon contact, unleashing terrifying void energy that instantly cleared an area!

Players simply couldn't resist, not even the top players on the leaderboard.

Where the void crystal exploded, everyone except the mechanical troops sent by Kavin and Hoffman's puppet troops was instantly killed.

The body was submerged in the explosion of energy, leaving no trace.

"Holy crap! How can the damage be so high?!"

"This is so different from the last time, it's too strong!"

"I used all my skills as a shield warrior, and I was instantly killed?"

The players who had just respawned were all in disbelief.

The enemy was far stronger than they had anticipated. Taking advantage of this brief respite, they quickly used the system to investigate the enemy's situation.

[Target: Vals (Void Clan)]

[Level: LV???]

[Class: Void Master (Magic)]

[Attribute: Strength:???,...]

[Skill:???]

[Overall Rating: Grade A]

[Target: Lichi (Void Clan)]

[Level: LV???]

[Class: Phantom Mage (Magic)]

[Overall Rating: C]

It would have been better if they hadn't investigated; once they did, the players immediately started to lose their composure.

"What the hell is this? The intensity is way too high!"

"All of them??? Who's farming whom in this dungeon?!"

"Could it be that the background transition was too fast?! What's with the egg cracking?!"

Lister naturally noticed the players' complaints immediately.

He also scanned the situation of the soldiers the other side brought this time, and they were indeed different from the last time.

This time, the Void Corridor has dispatched not cannon fodder Void warriors, but the true elite of the Void Clan.

They are few in number, but all of them are of rank 18 or higher, with the highest reaching rank 22.

The players' ranks are only between 15 and 16, and this rank difference cannot be made up for by mere combat power.

It seems the Void Corridor isn't going to continue playing games with him; they're serious now!

Suddenly, a powerful aura emanated from the entire battlefield where Lister was located.

The space of the entire star field suddenly froze, and a gray-white rift spanning tens of thousands of kilometers tore open out of thin air.

Countless rhomboid crystals gushed out from the cracks and condensed in the vacuum to form a stairway to the heavens.

At the end of the stairs, a blurry figure slowly emerged.

Lister Merrick.

The deep sound pierced through the frozen space, causing all the players on the battlefield to freeze in their tracks.

With each step the figure took, the crystal beneath its feet collapsed into a black hole-like vortex, swallowing up even the starlight.

Lister's Shadowless Blade trembled suddenly, Killing Intent Wave automatically condensed into a scarlet barrier.

He squinted and looked into the void—where stood an old man draped in a gray crystal robe.

Three rhomboid cores, constantly annihilating and regenerating, float between the withered fingers.

Its very existence Twist the surrounding space, as if even the rules of space are making way for it.

[Target: Curtis (one of the three world -Lord of World Annihilation of the Void Corridor)]

[Level: LV???]

[Class: Lord of Xumi (Magic)]

[Health Points: 33251209/33251209]

[Stamina:11513417/11513417]

[Attributes: Strength:???, Stamina:???, Intelligence:???, Agility:???]

[Skill: Void Assimilation (SSS):???]

Planar Projection (SSS)???,...]

[Overall Rating: SS]

Seeing such an extravagant entrance, the players stopped complaining.

They all attributed the recent battle to the pre-battle cutscene.

Meanwhile, their own Count Merrick was already at the forefront of the main battlefield.

The two sides looked like they were facing off against each other, which excited the players.

"Just dialogue? Or will a fight actually break out?"

"It's been so long since we've seen Count Merrick in action! I really want to see his swordsmanship again!"

"Let's fight! The editor's got some more footage!"

"Isn't this one of the perks from the game's official team?"

Compared to the players' excitement, Lister himself was not so relaxed.

As expected of World-Ending Level powerhouse from a major force, the oppressive aura he exudes is indeed completely different from that of those Overlord Tier.

Coupled with his advantage in rank, he had no intention of defeating this opponent.

I thought he could train his troops for a while longer before the Overlord Tier, or even the World-Ending Level leader behind the Void Corridor, appeared.

Who knew it would only be this long?

It was just a probing attack, and the opposing leader had already appeared.

"We didn't pursue Morris's death like you would in your Milky Way Galaxy."

"Now that you've come to us of your own accord, do you truly want to start a war with the Void Corridor?"

Curtis's voice was initially ethereal, but the echo reverberated in my ears like Thunder.

At the same time, his aura and imposing presence were fully revealed without any restraint.

The space was completely frozen at this moment, forming a closed rhomboid space.

Lister was no longer intimidated!

His entire aura was also displayed without reservation.

An intense killing intent surged through the space, and even Curtis couldn't help but furrow his brow under the corrosive influence of this tangible killing intent.

This was the first time he had experienced the power of Lister, the newly World-Ending Level expert.

This level of murderous intent was unprecedented in the universe and even in other planes of existence.

The same was true of Lister's aura; that subtle sharpness penetrated deep into his soul, making him feel an inexplicable pressure.

From this point of view alone, Lister was stronger than he had expected.

This is a World-Ending Level powerhouse, born for battle.

Fortunately, he hasn't fully matured yet. If he were to become equal to his opponent, he probably wouldn't be a match for them at all.

"Morris is interfering in the affairs of my Milky Way Galaxy, and your people are constantly spying on our galaxy."

"This is the battle you Void Corridor wanted; I've simply given you what you wanted."

Lister's Killing Intent Wave as he stared intently at Curtis, while also extending outwards.

Outside the battlefield, countless cosmic forces that had been lying in wait were constantly sending out messages.

At the same time, two more unfamiliar and powerful auras were already hovering in the far distance of this space.

Only then did Lister truly relax.

Needless to say... these two auras could not possibly belong to any of the other World Annihilation powerhouses in the Void Corridor.

Instead, they are World Annihilation powerhouses from hostile forces, currently lurking on the outside, and the number of approaching figures is still increasing.

At this moment, everyone is waiting to see how things develop. If he and the other side really start fighting, no one can predict the final outcome of the battle.

Sure enough, Curtis was already frowning deeply.

His eyes silently darted tentatively in several directions.

After a long while, he finally looked at Lister again.