'Destruction' had been right about one thing: the Robert Galaxy civilization's large-scale advancement had taken place without the suppression of the Mechanical Overmind.
In other words, when Shrek was besieged back then, there had been legions of Tier-3 mechanical troops and a massive fleet of Tier-3 starships—but no Tier-3 civilization.
The true power of a civilization could only be experienced after it advanced.
Those who took the militaristic path—or, more precisely, those who became military hegemons—would certainly be the first to enjoy this benefit.
Subspace Tactic—Hive Mutation
From a higher-dimensional perspective, one could see that the space centered around Yuan, spanning at least an entire star system, resembled a "space hive." Every "hole" was a spatial rift, while countless spatial troop-transport channels crisscrossed one another. It was the product of a massive fusion of spatial, mechanical, and energy technologies.
Within these "hive tunnels," metallic rivers formed by combat starships surged through the hive's veins at the speed of light. Inside many of the "hive chambers" were mechanical repair factories and energy-refining centers.
Within the inner "worker-bee chambers," countless mechanical armies swarmed out. The buzzing of rubbing metal joints echoed through space. Humanoid mechs unfolded streamlined energy shields, while the particle cannons mounted on their shoulders flashed with dangerous red light. Spherical reconnaissance robots advanced in swarms, dragging long quantum trails behind them. Space-hovering combat vehicles loaded with heavy weapons spewed scorching plasma flames from their undersides, weaving a vast web of firepower around Yuan.
Yuan also unleashed his full firepower, recklessly using all his Tier-4 skills: "Dark Matter Storm No. 813," "Wildfire of Hongmao," and "Carbon-Based Wall."
The mechanical bodies twisted and shattered within the storm, like reflections in boiling mercury. The trajectories of the starships were tugged by invisible forces, drawn into bizarre whirlpools and vanishing.
Strange biological flames