Extreme light and heat formed a perfect sphere of energy around the Big Boss's Justice Enforcer, expanding rapidly outward. Beneath that radiance, there were no screams, no struggles, not even ashes. All matter, whether the Orks' tough green muscles, the Tyranids' exoskeletons, or the T'au Empire's cold alloy armor, was utterly and cleanly broken down into its most fundamental particles the instant it touched the light.
Then came silence. An absolute silence that seemed capable of hollowing out even the soul.
Only then did the world-shattering shock wave arrive.
"BOOOOM!!!"
It was as though an invisible giant hand had slammed into the entire planet. The shock wave swept across the battlefield like a tsunami, hurling countless corpses, wreckage, bugs, and Orks into the air before tearing them to pieces. An enormous crater nearly a kilometer across appeared at the center of the battlefield, its edges as smooth as glass, still radiating a heart-stopping residual heat.
That lone, valiant mech, along with the tens of thousands of enemies around it and the hundreds of T'au Fire Warriors who had failed to withdraw in time, had been completely erased from the world.
On the bridge of the Dawn Messenger, time seemed to freeze.
The Holographic Battle Map flickered under the intense energy interference, then went completely dark with a crackle. Nothing remained on the main screen but blinding white light; every reconnaissance drone had been destroyed at the instant of the explosion. All the screams, hisses, and roars vanished from the communications channels, leaving only deathly static that made their ears ring.
Qingliu, the Water Caste diplomat, stood rooted to the spot. His face, which always wore a gentle smile, was now filled with shock and grief. His lips trembled slightly, yet he could not utter a word. That golden sun had