The information Ironedge Marquis had provided was cold and concise.
The Void Spirit Clan was a strange life-form born from the tides of cosmic dark energy. Their kind had no fixed shape, usually existing as masses of energy or spiritual bodies. Their core was a crystal known as a "Spirit Core." They excelled at mental infiltration, energy parasitism, and consciousness alteration. They especially enjoyed corrupting life-forms with powerful mental strength, transforming them into controlled "Parasitic Puppets."
Those parasitized showed no abnormalities at first. Their strength might even temporarily increase due to the influx of energy, but they would gradually lose their sense of self and ultimately become extensions of the Void Spirit Clan's tentacles. More troublesome still, the Void Spirit Clan seemed to possess some form of deep consciousness link. Once an individual was discovered or eliminated, the related information would rapidly spread through the clan network, making their movements even more hidden and unpredictable.
Over the past three months, their activity in the starfields surrounding Mother Star had noticeably increased. Their targets had escalated from lone explorers to organized patrol units and resource outposts. Their purpose was unknown, but their aggression and threat could no longer be ignored.
The Vanguard Scout Team's mission was to infiltrate the active Shadow Starfield, locate at least one major Nest or critical node, and gather as much information as possible on their clan structure, operational patterns, and weaknesses, providing guidance for the main force's subsequent purge.
The risk was extremely high.
After returning to Amaterasu Palace, Neji did not immediately gather his personnel. He dismissed everyone around him and entered the secret chamber alone.
His Divine Eye opened as he carefully examined the star map and the documents.
The Shadow Starfield lay at the boundary between Mother Star's sphere of influence and an