As the white light slowly carved across the dark expanse of the sky, those massive warships vanished one by one in an instant. Such a breathtaking scene was nearly unbearable even for the soul. The Galactic Empire’s thousands of warships, powerful enough to cross countless star systems and conquer every race, now floated in the air like toys, being annihilated one after another by their own ultimate weapon.
It felt like half a century, though merely a few minutes had passed. Finally, after obliterating a large portion of the fleet, the energy of the Light-Hunting weapon dissipated. The blinding white light and the gaseous remnants of vaporized ships gradually faded away. Deprived of the Light-Hunting weapon’s energy, the gas quickly solidified into interstellar dust in the immense cold of space, turning into countless tiny, silver particles. Though minute and delicate, these particles could still refract the light of distant stars several light-years away, transforming the entire cosmic backdrop into a dazzling, shimmering spectacle.
This is beautiful, yet cruel.
No matter how breathtaking the scene before him might be, Luo Dongjie had no heart to appreciate it. As the current legion’s highest commander, Luo Dongjie had witnessed everything that had just occurred. However, unlike others who felt shock and disbelief, Luo Dongjie merely sensed the beginning of a tragedy. He had already lost all hope and was certain that today marked the end of his days.
Today was truly a disastrous day, not just for Wang Mu, but even more so for Luo Dongjie. If Wang Mu only lost his life, yet still maintained the dignity of a soldier and the foundation of his family’s legacy, then Luo Dongjie’s defeat was far more devastating. He lost everything—his entire future and all his political capital—everything was completely wiped out in this single battle.
Before today, Luo Dongjie commanded a powerful main fleet with tens of thousands of subordinates and a glorious record of victories. Yet in the blink of an eye, more than half of the Sunset Fleet had been lost, with nearly two thousand warships completely vaporized. Such a devastating defeat was extremely rare in the empire’s history. Even more extraordinary was that this catastrophe had been caused by the empire’s ultimate weapon, the “Light Hunter,” used for the first time in actual combat. What left Luo Dongjie utterly heartbroken was the fact that he himself had pressed the button to launch the Light Hunter weapon.
In other words, such a tragic situation and heavy losses were entirely caused by Luo Dongjie himself. He could hardly imagine what kind of punishment he would face upon returning to the empire. Every time he thought of the emperor’s piercing, hawk-like gaze, a chill ran down his spine.
He’s as good as dead.
“What… should we do now?” Luo Dongjie’s adjutant asked timidly, probably the only person still conscious on the Titan-class battleship Sunset.
What else could be done now? Luo Dongjie looked out of the porthole at the shimmering silver light of the interstellar dust, a bitter smile on his face. Tens of thousands of lives, thousands of warships—gone up in smoke. What else could be done?
“Retreat, withdraw from the battlefield completely,” Luo Dongjie ordered weakly. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the strange spacecraft responsible for all this chaos. This uninvited vessel, bearing the insignia of the Protoss, was floating half a light-year away, like a small boat chased by waves. Perhaps one shot from the Titan ship could completely destroy it. Yet, for reasons unknown, Luo Dongjie simply could not muster the courage to issue such an order.
He was merely humiliated, enduring his pain with great restraint, and fled like a defeated male dog with his tail tucked between his legs.
The fleeting moments slipped away. The sight of warships filling the skies with overwhelming might was gone, and the once bustling Saint Bear Star System returned to silence. Only the dust scattered across the heavens remained, as if narrating the story of the most magnificent battle in history. The power of clans, the strength of empires—all were merely passing clouds. Within the cold and lonely void of space, what truly remained worth remembering?
Twenty-four hours later, when Yang Hao returned to the battered planet of Saint Bear, he stood on the rooftop of the Great Leader’s council hall, gazing at the sky, feeling waves of sorrow rising within his heart.
“There’s no blood,” Yang Hao said, his hands in his pockets, head held high. The sky was pitch black, and the planet Saint Bear seemed as if it would never see daylight again. “No matter how many people die, there will be no blood in the sky. Is this the age of the universe?”
“This is a time of war,” said Hurd, standing behind Yang Hao along with Long Yun, Kevin, and the other surviving leaders of the Saint Bear Star. “You’ve done well.”
“Great?” Yang Hao actually didn’t see how it was great. “Really? I never imagined so many people would die.”
Although Yang Hao was still just a student by age, and it had been less than a year since he began studying at the advanced academy on the planet Leimeng, his destiny had already undergone many twists and turns. Yet he had never anticipated that so many lives would become connected to his own. Through his hands and his power, thousands of people would find life or death determined by his actions.
Hector leaned in closer and spoke in his distinctive deep voice, “Since the Galactic Empire began ruling the universe, it has rarely suffered such a devastating defeat. This battle alone cost them five percent of their warships, over ten thousand elite soldiers, and dealt a severe blow to the Wang family.”
Look, they’re all great victories.”
“This can actually be considered a great victory?!” Yang Hao suddenly became excited. “The planet Bearstar was hit with a devastating barrage, half the planet was destroyed, millions of Bearians died, and the entire planet has since entered a nuclear winter. Can this really be called a victory?”
Hurd stopped speaking, for he had nothing more to say. As the spiritual leader of the Bear Star, he was probably even more grief-stricken than Yang Hao.
Although the empire’s fleet was completely destroyed by the indiscriminate bombardment of the light-hunting weapons, at least twenty percent of the ships had already fired their final salvo before their destruction. The energy from these salvos poured into the planet Saint Bear, plunging this once-thriving world into complete silence. Preliminary statistics indicated that more than three million bears died instantly. The planet Saint Bear, renowned for its vitality, was enveloped in nuclear clouds, its ecosystem entirely devastated. It would be extremely difficult for the tens of millions of bears who barely survived to continue living there.
In other words, although Yang Hao and his companions repelled the empire’s attack, the Renxiong tribe still could not escape their tragic fate of destruction, making it inevitable for Yang Hao and the others to feel such profound sorrow.
And it gets worse. Long Yun had even more bad news for Yang Hao: “Right around the time you started the battle, something happened aboard the battleship too. After Shi Ming’ai woke up, for reasons unknown, she didn’t recognize anyone. She hijacked an unmanned ship, broke through the Empire’s encirclement, and headed toward the direction of Angel Star.”
Yang Hao was clearly shaken, his face turning even paler, but he did not let it show in his tone. Instead, he sounded even more dejected: “Her power increased dramatically after she woke up. It’s normal that you couldn’t stop her. It’s better she left. Who knows what other terrible things might happen if she continues following me, a bringer of misfortune.”
It was obvious that Yang Hao was feeling quite down. Shi Mingyuan was the woman he loved the most, and it was precisely to save her life that Yang Hao had come to the planet Saint Bear. However, now that Shi Mingyuan had awakened with complete memory loss, Yang Hao didn’t feel it was necessarily a bad thing.
“As long as we go to Angel Star, we will surely find her,” Long Yun whispered. Shi Ming was born on Angel Star; even if she temporarily lost her memory, as long as they could reach Angel Star, they would definitely bring her back.
“She’ll be fine. Right now, saving the people here is the top priority.” Yang Hao waved his hand, trying to pull himself together, then turned to Hud and asked, “Do you really think they can save this planet?”
“Of course we can!” Henderson emphasized firmly. “Besides the gods, there’s no one else who can save us now.”
That’s indeed the case.
The current situation on Saint Bear Planet has reached an absolutely catastrophic state. After enduring the Final Barrage, half of the planet has been completely devastated, with countless casualties among its people. The previously ever-growing plants and animals are now gradually dying off. According to predictions, under the shadow of this nuclear winter, the entire Bear Clan will face extinction within half a year, and Saint Bear Planet will become a truly lifeless, dead world.
Moreover, the trouble that Harte and others were keeping secret was that the Holy Bear, who had just been revived by Yang Hao, had blocked Wang Mu on the small satellite once but then vanished without a trace. Since then, there had been no further signs of the human-bear race’s god coming to save their people.
Under these circumstances, it is no longer something that human effort can change. The Renzu (Werebear) Clan has never been a people skilled in technology, and they are especially helpless when faced with crises brought about by high-tech threats. Therefore, both Elder Hude and Yang Hao have placed their hopes of saving the sacred planet of the Werebears on the divine race that has just created a miracle.
The spaceship bearing the mark of the gods was actually capable of destroying the Empire’s vast legions all by itself. Therefore, the power it contained must also be able to extend the vitality of the Sheng Xiong Star once again.
Hearing Elder Hades’ firm conviction, Yang Hao took a deep breath, casting away all his sadness and disappointment, and vigorously rallied his spirits: “Alright, alright! Since that’s the case, let me, your great leader, have a serious negotiation with the Divine Clan.”
“Do you think the Divine Race is some kind of mafia? Negotiation? Should you also invite them for tea and massage?” Hun Yuanzi never spoke kindly, always acting superior because he had encountered the Divine Race before.
“You said it yourself, the God Clan isn’t much different from us, just a tiny bit more talented.” Yang Hao was unconvinced. “Who knows, maybe they’re just greedy and lustful guys too. When the time comes, I’ll slip them some aphrodisiac, and it’ll be settled!”
“Their talents aren’t just a bit higher than yours—they could crush you with just a flick of their little finger,” He Yuanyi said menacingly with a chuckle. “If you keep talking nonsense, be careful they might kidnap you for human experiments.”
“Human experiments?” Yang Hao immediately recalled the skeletons of the sacred bears he had seen in the ice palace. “Who knows who’s experimenting on whom. Sooner or later, I’ll catch a few divine beings, feed them some aphrodisiacs, and see how different they really are from me.”
“Capture the gods?” Hun Yuanzi ground his teeth. “Then go ahead and capture them. They’re right above your head.”
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