At the Black Soul Tower's base, inside the command center.
The command center was spacious enough to hold five thousand people, but at that moment, it was utterly silent.
Standing before the projected tactical map was Faga, the Black Soul Tower's supreme commander. He stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm, as if the destruction of the second echelon hadn't shaken him.
The battle had yet to begin. He had to face everything calmly, unflinching even as disaster loomed.
Faga raised a hand. "Let's continue, everyone. The third echelon will arrive soon."
The command center immediately sprang to life.
"We'll need to revise our strategy." Faga's eyes darkened. This major setback had undone years of planning and operations for him and his organization.
Under normal circumstances, the Black Soul Tower would have been a prime target for other organizations to recruit, both for its strategic position and its personnel.
The destruction of its second echelon had sent its standing plummeting, but it hadn't yet lost all chance of claiming the treasure. It simply had to be far more wary of the other organizations.
When you were strong, they tried to recruit you. When you were weak, they either pushed you aside or absorbed you into their forces.
"Attack nearby and ally with those farther away?"
"Or win over the organizations like Hengtie Star, then wipe out Kesmier first?"
Faga pondered the options.
Kesmier was the Black Soul Tower's public ally, but their alliance was fragile.
"Let's wait and see what the Luote Family says."
A sudden explosion snapped Faga out of his thoughts.
"Enemy attack!" The words flashed through Faga's mind and those of everyone in the command center.
"Damn it!" Faga swore, then ordered, "Loutong, Li Gang! Organize a counterattack!"
"Yes!"
The two rushed out almost simultaneously, but as they reached the doorway, a flash of white light swept past. They were instantly vaporized!
Seeing this, Faga willed it, and countless black metal plates, each no larger than a fingernail, sprang from his body. They instantly covered him, forming a black suit of armor.
Click!
Two wrist blades shot from Faga's arms. They were shaped like curved blades, but their edges and backs were reversed.
Whoosh!
Faga became a streak of flowing light and shot out, rising above the Black Soul Tower's command center.
"Faga!"
The voice hadn't arrived before its owner. A streak of black light hurtled toward Faga.
Faga shifted aside, and once the black streak had passed, he finally saw who it was: Oute, one of the personal guards of Tejiafu, Kesmier's commander.
Faga crossed his arms into an X, pointed his wrist blades at Oute's head, and swept them outward.
Whoosh!
The strike should have landed, but Oute seemed to reverse time, reappearing where he had started.
Oute stared at Faga. Two clear bloody gashes marked either side of his neck.
"That hurt, didn't it?" Faga said, his back still turned to him.
"Heh. The Black Soul Tower's undisputed strongest Universe Level fighter really is impressive!" Oute chuckled. He touched the bloody hole that had appeared in his abdomen at some point. Blood was gushing from it.
An intense burning sensation spread through Oute's abdomen. Wisps of white smoke rose from the wound, as if white phosphorus were burning.
Oute endured the pain and tried to speak, but Faga beat him to it, still facing away. "You have good footwork!"
Faga turned around as the wrist blades on his arms swiftly retracted.
Oute reached for his neck. The two bloody gashes quickly widened until they formed a ring.
He wiped some blood onto his hand and stared at it blankly. His eyes gradually dimmed, and his body began to fall.
Thud. Thud.
After two thumps, Oute hit the ground, a headless corpse.
Faga looked up. One spaceship after another flew overhead at great speed.
"Heh." Faga gave a cold laugh, then turned into a streak of flowing light and shot skyward.
He used the most direct form of attack: ramming.
Faga streaked across the sky like a rainbow, leaving a long white line in his wake.
Several clusters of red flames hung along the line. They were the spaceships.
Boom! Boom!
Explosions rang across the sky.
By then, the heavens were blanketed in red light, like the end of the world.
"Quick! Retreat!"
"Quick! Ah!"
The people of Kesmier shouted, desperately trying to escape.
"Where do you think you're going?" Faga's voice boomed across the sky.
A white rain fell from above, like the blast of white phosphorus bombs. It looked like stars descending—beautiful and deadly.
White streaks of light came hurtling down like comets, yet seemed to have minds of their own as they targeted the people of Kesmier.
There were few screams. A single spark was enough to turn a person to ash.
"Tejiafu, are you too afraid to come face me?!" Faga halted and shouted toward the west. The white light shining on him made him look terrifying.
At the Luote Family's base.
"We've finally arrived!" Chen Beixun exclaimed, gazing at the life base half-buried underground.
"We've been walking for four days," Moluo called out.
Chen Beixun was struck by the thought, but for some reason, Luo Feng came to mind.
"If we were from the same era, Luo Feng would already be a Domain Lord."
"A city lord, no less!"
At first, Chen Beixun had thought he and Luo Feng were from the same era. It wasn't until the Genius Tournament that he realized they weren't.
Perhaps even Nuolanshan hadn't been born yet. The Black Dragon Mountain Empire might not even exist.
Those thoughts lasted only a few seconds. The four of them turned into streaks of flowing light and flew toward the Luote Family's base.
Their arrival caused no stir, though a few people turned to look.
Given their special status, the Luote Family gave them excellent accommodations.
They were assigned a large private room and twelve guards.
At the Luote Family's base, inside the command center.
"He's arrived."
"Mm. You may go."
The young man in black armor bowed to Luote Tejier, then quickly withdrew.
The World Castle had yet to open, and Chen Beixun's importance was self-evident. Although the Luote Family had traded intelligence with other forces, it never hurt to be cautious.
Honesty?
Reputation?
Did either matter when it came to treasure?
A cold glint flickered in Luote Tejier's eyes. "Kesmier has already attacked the Black Soul Tower!"
"Pass on my order!"
"Attack the Black Soul Tower!"
The people in the command center all wore fierce expressions.
They straightened in unison and shouted, "Yes!"
Outside Life Base Seven, at the Luote Family's base.
"So the fighting's started?" Chen Beixun gazed at the spaceships in the sky, looking surprised. "It starts as soon as I arrive? Is this a signal?"
"Your Highness, we..." He Ke began.
Chen Beixun waved a hand. "The Luote Family has treated us well."
"So..."
"Let's go have some fun!"
"Huh?" The three guards had thought, from the first part of Chen Beixun's reply, that he planned to join the fight. But when they heard the rest, they froze, then grinned.
"What?"
"You want to go?" Chen Beixun asked with a smile.
"No, no!"
"Your Highness, we'll do whatever you ask!" Vido hurriedly replied.
Chen Beixun fell silent for a moment.
"Maybe we should take a look?"
"Better to be cautious."
"Forget it. Let's take a chance!"
"Let's go!" Chen Beixun called, then turned into a streak of flowing light and shot into the sky, with the three guards close behind.
If you didn't take risks, how could you call yourself a Universe Adventurer? If you didn't join the war, how could you call yourself a Universe Mercenary?