Chapter 474
Yuki took a sip of the drink that tasted like dishwater. This stuff had been dug out of the ruins; it was supposedly some kind of Fairy Race drink, probably expired thousands of years ago.
At that moment, alarms suddenly sounded in the bridge, and signals from the front lines disappeared one by one.
"The Divine Race have appeared, but we can hardly detect any trace of them."
"The third, fourth, and seventh scout teams have lost contact, and scouts from other races have also been attacked."
The Divine Race are resorting to such a low-level tactic as guerrilla warfare.
Yuki wasn't surprised at all; these were just cannon fodder sent out anyway, it would be strange if the Divine Race let them search for clues.
He also breathed a sigh of relief; the Divine Race were known for their rationality, and as long as one used logic, no one could escape their own predictions.
"It seems they don't want a direct confrontation with the fleet."
"Definitely. The Protoss have an innate advantage in terms of the number of strong Divine Race, but these war machines were carefully selected by the Great Game. As bystanders, they certainly don't have any technological advancements." Kong was equally unsurprised. War accelerates evolution, and every shell and every spell has been iterated countless times.
This kind of power, forged through countless trials, cannot be erased by any bloodline.
"Send out the second team to support the Machine Race. We'll explore together." Yuki waved his hand; his good relationship with the Machine Race was an open secret.
Based on the reputation of being 'like a god,' the human immediately complied. Even Kong didn't think much of it; he could guess who the Judge had come for. The person beside him was, after all, Miss Ikaros's savior and also had the title of 'Friend of the Machine Soul.'
But he didn't know that the two races had never secretly formed an alliance, and even Om had lost contact with them since the war between the elves and Dwarves.
Yuki showed no concern or attempt to search for him, instead acting like a devoted follower offering unconditional help, which was naturally seen as a threat by the Angels.
"Brother, we must intervene as well. Guess whose request it is?"
Mona's voice was shared, and the azure whale broke away from the fleet.
"The Angels, they've reached some kind of agreement with Mesodals." Yuki didn't even need to think; he could see 'Annihilation Seeker' Abdulas, like a waterfall meditating, immersed in the band of light, letting the data stream wash over him.
"Tsk, this is so boring. Do I have to do something mischievous to stop it?"
"No need. It's good to have an Epic Tier II monster scout ahead. Now I know what the Divine Race are up to. They're quite formidable; they even know how to use open tactics."
Yuki stroked the sparse beard on his chin, gradually coming to his senses.
[Hint 4: Each race has a different understanding of the Divine Torch, and the degree of proximity varies, but all are highly classified.]
The same warning applies: each race's progress in exploring the Divine Torch is uneven, and as time goes by, their mutual suspicion will intensify. If the Divine Race do not appear, this fragile alliance will crumble on its own.
Since it's highly confidential, there's no room for sharing. When there's no immediate threat, they'll inevitably scramble for the clues in each other's hands sooner or later.
"Oh right, this giant whale wouldn't object to swallowing a few mechanical soldiers or humans to check your progress. Brother, are you going to pursue this matter, or swallow your anger?" Mona said slowly, sounding at first glance like he was gloating.
"Choose neither. Their piecemeal warfare won't deplete their manpower too much, nor will it buy them much time. Don't forget, this same applies to the Divine Race; there are certain things they cannot let these races know."
Since there's obstruction, the underlying logic can't be hidden; Yuki just needs to grasp that point.
"Mona, please tell my senior to come with me."
"Hey, aren't you afraid of your relationship being exposed?"
"Nonsense, of course we'll have her activate her special ability to secretly follow us, and the timing will be controlled by the senior student."
Yuki cursed and exited the Shared Reading. "That brat might mess things up, but Shiina Hiyori is always reliable."
He exited the Reading Space, leaned back in his chair, and thought for a while. Dealing with this kind of avoidance of battle was not difficult. He refused to believe that such a large moon would not have a single clue.
You want to avoid war and give up space, but I want to use this time to find out a lot of inside information.
"Kong, bring the Insect Race with you and land here. Let's uncover that secret."
"You want to get things back on track and rearrange the order of the plans." Kong thought to himself that this person was quick to counter his moves. The Divine Race's idea was simple: to extricate themselves from the whole incident and confuse the primary and secondary contradictions.
This man saw through this and wouldn't be led by the nose.
"Yes."
"Alright, I'll take this mission. I have a few ideas I need to confirm." The boy turned around silently, and then his shoulder was pressed down.
"What are you thinking? Of course, we'll act together and leave no Insect Race."
Meeting the surprised gaze, Yuki smiled kindly.
Chapter Twenty-Five: Are You Sure, General? (9K)
Countless fireballs exploded on the moon's surface, as if draping it in a layer of pearls.
The two sides were engaged in fierce fighting. No one was a fool; even the Divine Race were unwilling to confront the war machines forged and perfected by the earthly races.
The noblest race does not live up to its reputation without effort; their chosen battle plan is simple and appropriate.
By utilizing the control of 'terrain,' the battlefield is divided into sections, as if the various races understand why they have formed an alliance. This has three layers of effect.
The first level involves fully leveraging one's individual combat strength, spatial control, and understanding of the terrain.
The second layer is that the enemies gathered together will unite as one, and when they discover that the Divine Race are not so formidable, they will become complacent.
On the third level, the five races are scattered and cannot keep track of each other's progress. Since there is only one Divine Torch, they will be suspicious of each other. When a certain point is reached, allies will turn into enemies.
"He understands tactics very well, is good at understanding psychology, and is also very skilled in political maneuvering."
Yuki stroked the dog-headed human statue on the pillar. He had seen the race modeled after the statue in the ruins; they were dog-headed people who had gone extinct almost two thousand years ago.
Several corpses lay around, their cracked bodies flowing with golden blood; they were all Divine Race.
Even in Mahjong, there are Limit. No matter how familiar one is with space, it's impossible to escape from Yuki's grasp.
"Even ordinary Divine Race are at the level of Monster II, just like the setting, their overall strength exceeds the upper limit of the Judge." Yuki broke off a piece of the statue and tossed it up and down in his hand.
The surface of this moon is strange. It has air, and the gravity is about one-fifth that of Earth. Apart from the desolate ruins everywhere, it is a rather habitable place.
"Actually, there's another layer of meaning." Kong squatted down beside him, examining the sculpture. The Insect Race had already been dispersed by him, digging holes in all directions.
"Yes, by dividing the battlefield and creating mutual suspicion, they have the opportunity to defeat us one by one. The reason they haven't made a move yet is because they haven't figured out our strengths and weaknesses," Yuki replied casually, the implication being obvious.
"I never expected the Divine Race to charge into battle head-on, but their response was hardly brilliant."
"So how do we break this deadlock?" the boy asked, his tone inquiring.
"No need to break it. Find the secret as soon as possible, and they will naturally appear. Whoever poses the greatest threat is the first target."
"You want to be bait? Aren't you afraid others will just stand by and watch?"
Yuki was naturally unafraid. In terms of strength, he was better than his seniors as bait. Now that they understood that the Second Cataclysm was a war of unification for the Divine Race, the solution was actually quite simple.
He wanted to know which lineage had emerged victorious. If that leader didn't kill him instantly, his senior, Mona, and Frieren would try to incite all the races to attack him and do everything in their power to create a major battle.
If it were a major battle, it would be the home ground for each tribe, and they should rightfully play a leading role.
"You're really cunning. The Divine Race's Boss must be an Epic Rank III or higher powerhouse. No wonder you keep me by your side. I've told you so many times, I'm not good at fighting." Kong started complaining. The entire Insect Race had landed on the moon, and there was nowhere to run.
He can run, but if the Insect Race suffers more than 90% losses, they will still be wiped out.
That's what Yuki so amazing. Future Diary and the like are just icing on the cake; he never writes scripts to direct others.
He simply cut off most of the choices others had, leaving only a few that were easier to control and predict.
"You're an epic-level player too, I won't sell you out. And Miss Ikaros, the three of us together, the Divine Race won't be able to devour us so easily." Yuki listened to the echo of the explosion, that was his senior's Transcendental Grade skill. The Angels and the Monster Race were fighting on the other side of the moon.
"The key is to force the Divine Race to appear. We must be the bait. Don't look at us like that. They're too weak. A bait that gets eaten has no value."
Yuki didn't want to keep explaining, so he simply looked at Lucy beside him and said, "Have the third, fourth, and fifth groups land. Bring all four warships over. You all follow Mr. Sora's orders. Dig three feet into the ground and you'd better find out the secret!"
The strategy continues; the 'Godlike' reputation has been used in the right way.
Every instance has a master-servant relationship, but only the humans and Insect Race are completely under the player's control, allowing them to complete objectives at any cost.
This is something neither my senior nor Ikaros could do. The Machine Race flew in the air, deploying a defensive formation. Yuki had already made arrangements with them, promising to share any gains with them.
After calculating for a long time, Netway Will felt that he would not suffer any loss no matter what, so he agreed.
It only sent out two groups of scouts, but the Insect Race and humans were fighting with their lives on the line. If the Divine Race really set their sights on them, they wouldn't even have a place to run.
The Divine Race didn't rush out to stop him, but Yuki could sense that they were observing him, confirming that he had found a loophole.
Time.
From the founding of the Angel Alliance to the elimination of the elves and Dwarves, and finally the march towards the Crimson Moon, the time was too short to destroy the evidence. Countless ruins represent countless destroyed lineages, and countless years have left too many traces.
A statue, a temple, a diary buried under ruins—everything leaves a trace, and even God cannot erase the past in a moment of haste.
This takes a lot of time, but Yuki happens to have humans who are best at scavenging and insects who are best at searching for relics.
This requires keen observation skills, but Yuki is not only good at it, but the young man beside him is also an expert in this field.
There was no coincidence; when deciding who would receive the last ticket, Yuki had already planned how to use it.
"Small groups are completely ineffective. Unfortunately, their souls are strange; even Soul Corruption and erosion cannot extract their memories."
Yuki stepped out of the Eternal Night, and a few more Divine Race were found because they got too close, and then nothing more happened.
"Now that we have the 'Dark Lineage' and the 'Phantom Lineage,' the number of unknown enemies is decreasing."
He looked at the several strange corpses on the ground. One was completely black, like a nightmare, and its ability was to create environments. Another looked like a salted fish that had died of thirst, but it could transform into any shape, and it was a master of infiltration.
Encounters are a process of getting to know each other. Yuki already knows that the Divine Race can move stealthily in the warp, much like a kind of data-driven movement. Each lineage has different abilities, and information about these two infiltration attempts has been shared with all races, who are on high alert.
As for reciprocal exposure, that doesn't matter.
He may not have many other skills, but he has a lot of tricks up his sleeve. He can even make the insectoids adapt to the power of various genera, laying the groundwork for the future Boss.
In front of him was a huge construction site.
Within the crater, various debris was piled up everywhere, and four warships hovered in the air, occasionally shooting out brilliant lights. Several skirmishes broke out within hundreds of kilometers.
The two races dug deep, unearthing countless documents, statues, and murals. Of course, they also suffered losses, as they could not withstand the unpredictable assassinations of the Divine Race.
But it's no use. For every team that dies, Yuki will send out a second team. It's hard to get rid of Yuki's hand with this piecemeal approach, not to mention that the power of human 'I Guess' has already used the ruins to create even more strange and wonderful things.
Space alarms and warp detectors were not as useful as the Divine Race had imagined in delaying the enemy.
The entire lunar surface was a battleground. During the cooldown period of 'Shared Reading', Yuki didn't even know the situation of his senior and the others, but he wasn't flustered.
'Most of the fighting is concentrated on our side; the Divine Race don't seem to care about the angels' threat, even though they are clearly the most powerful race.'
Yuki sat on the cracked steps, gazing up at the Divine Torch in the sky; he had just tried it.
As far as the eye can see, yet the world seems so close.
There is a spatial barrier between the Divine Torch and the moon's surface, which cannot be overcome by brute force alone.
Is a condition required? You know the condition, but there's no way to meet it.
Yuki lowered his head and looked into the 'crater,' where dozens of clones were rummaging through piles of materials. Waves of light surged through the area, and countless pieces of knowledge and information were being summarized and organized.
An Epic Metamorphosis akin to 'Reality Reading': the boy is coerced, he is aware of his position, but he enjoys it nonetheless.
This is a guessing game, searching for clues from thousands of years of history. It's a realm that pure destructive power can't reach. Yuki doesn't have this ability, but he knows how to use it.
Unfortunately, players cannot read the information in those light bands. But that doesn't matter; the Angels can understand them. Hiyori is also exploring similar secrets, though not as efficiently as Sora, but she is gradually making progress.
Yuki's willingness to share information with the Machine Race created a sense of urgency, prompting the Angels to deploy more troops to help Hiyori catch up and also involve her in core projects.
Here comes some bad news: according to Hiyori, the Angels is becoming increasingly agitated, and the Skywing Chieftain feels that the Divine Race is too weak and is already preparing for the next step of the plan.
Why the anxiety? Did you not see any signs of brain-degrading effects on the moon?
Yuki sat quietly. He couldn't influence the Angels, nor would he fret. All he had to do now was reveal a Truth:
Time is on my side; let's see who can outlast whom in a prolonged standoff.
So he adopted a more Zen-like attitude, only occasionally performing rituals to help nearby Divine Race pass on. The rest of the time he would stand by the 'crater' in a daze, admiring the incomplete gray walls while listening to the reports from Hiyori and the others.
Hiyori progress was a bit slow, but it could be used for cross-verification to see if Sora had lied to him. Fortunately, this smart man knew that now was not the time to play tricks. He neither smuggled in any personal agenda nor laid any traps. Gradually, he pieced together some useful intelligence.
It turns out that towards the end of the Agent War, the Divine Race did indeed engage in a civil war, with multiple epic forces involved that shattered the lunar surface.
The defeated fell, their divine bodies disintegrated, and their corpses rotted, forming the red cloud we had seen before. This thing isolated the inside from the outside, depriving the Divine Race of their ability to directly interfere with the earth, and making it impossible for them to return to the Crimson Moon once they went to the earth.
This is a prerequisite for war. The Divine Race fought back without any honor because of their infighting. Otherwise, with absolute power, why would they play hide-and-seek?
Everyone here is intelligent. The Protoss Divine Race war is clearly an important clue. From it, we can find out who the victor is, as well as the reason for the infighting. They have studied the Divine Race. These creatures can draw energy from the void, and it is definitely not as crude as fighting for survival resources.
"We've got a lead! The final victors are the War God Lineage, and their leader is Marcus, who became the supreme ruler." The boy was excited; he loved the feeling of this puzzle game, having found a clue in a fragmented mural.
Marcus the God of War?
Yuki's eyes lit up. Once he figured out who it was, things would be much easier. Because of the lineage of the Divine Race, the lower-ranking soldiers and the leaders above all belonged to the same combat system.
The War God Lineage is a group of warriors skilled in melee combat; in short, they are numerically superior.