Zhou Qianlin was afraid, but it wasn't because of the space-time turbulence!
The violent tremors lasted for several minutes. When the two battleships finally got rid of the spreading cosmic turbulence with their super high speed, the spaceships began to stabilize.
Only then did everyone's suspenseful hearts gradually calm down.
Inside Zeus -1, everyone's clothes were soaked with sweat. They could feel how close death had come.
If they'd been any slower, they'd be nothing more than cosmic dust by now.
The Accountant was the most fearful of them all. He'd been dissatisfied with Lan Jue's orders, but he understood the importance of strict obedience. He'd obeyed without hesitation.
Now that he thought about it, if he'd delayed just a moment, everyone on this ship would have been trapped in the Shattered Starfields forever!
It was the first time they'd been so close to death, it was impossible not to be afraid.
Lan Jue was just as afraid, but his fear wasn't as strong. He was angry.
There was only one weapon in all of humanity capable of such an attack – the main cannon of a Bastion ship.
In this place, in this position, there was no question who could do such a thing.
The Northern Alliance. The Northern Alliance!
Far off in space.
An enormous object floated in the depths of space. It looked like a giant spider crawling in space.
It was more than ten kilometers in diameter, and weighed in the billions of tons.
Out in space.
It was a colossus.
It was also the epitome of invincibility.
Arachnid.
One of the seven major bastions of the Northern Alliance, responsible for guarding the borders of the Shattered Starfields.
It also served as a defense against any possible attack from the Eastern Alliance.
It was home to the Northern Alliance's Seventh Fleet, a Prince-class mothership, four commander-class battleships, and a host of other ships.
This bastion alone made up more than a seventh of the Northern Alliance's military strength.
It was a pivotal military position.
Back in Arachnid's control room.
A silver-haired old man put down the blood-red button in front of him.
This old man was dressed in a well-ironed white military uniform. He was tall and burly, and his blue eyes were filled with an intimidating light. He had an aquiline nose and thin lips, which made him look like a vulture.
On each of his shoulders, there were three golden stars, each of which was shining brightly.
He was the admiral of the Northern Alliance, commander of Arachnid and Seventh Fleet, Admiral Holmen.
He was also the representative of the Northern Alliance's Hawk Faction.
He had always advocated taking a tough stance against the Eastern Alliance and the Western League.
He was also a legend in the Northern Alliance military.
General Holmen was 76 years old this year.
He started learning mecha piloting at the age of 8 and officially became a mecha operator at the age of 14. At the age of 18, he transferred to the Battleship Commanding School and joined the military at the age of 22. Without any background, he accumulated military merits and used 40 years to become a general.
He'd been a hero in the Northern Alliance's pioneering efforts to colonize the stars.
The Seventh Fleet he commanded was known as the Northern Alliance's ace fleet.
He was a force to be reckoned with.
Eight years ago he'd been promoted to a member of the Northern Alliance's National Defense Council. That gave him the right to command Arachnid.
He was now one of the top brass in the military.
As the representative of the Hawk Faction, he was a warmonger. Whenever he found any natives on a planet, he'd kill them with lightning speed.
He'd been impeached by the doves.
That was why he'd been sent here to guard the Northern Alliance's borders. It was also to intimidate the Eastern Alliance.
Ten years ago, General Holmen had proposed a military strategy against An Lun, but the Northern Alliance's doves had slandered it.
Over the last few years, the North's hawks had gained the upper hand in politics. Especially after the Expeditionary Force had suffered a few setbacks, the hawks' voice had grown louder.
Not long ago, the Northern Alliance's parliament had approved a request from the Ministry of Defense to increase military spending. The Northern Alliance's eighth Bastion was officially under construction, along with three fleets.
"General!" One of the colonels rose to his feet and saluted Holmen.
Whether in Arachnid or in the Seventh Fleet, Holmen was the ultimate authority.
"Speak." Holmen's voice was deep and thick, but there was a hint of coldness in it.
"According to remote satellite monitoring, Crimson Planet has been completely destroyed. The asteroid belt near the planet was destroyed by the cosmic shockwave.
Main cannon test fire complete. "
"Ah, good!
Recharge the cosmic rays. "Holmen rose to his feet and placed his cap on his head. He turned and left the control room.
The red button that he had pressed earlier quickly shrank and disappeared in the blink of an eye.
To fire a Bastion's main cannon required the authority of a admiral.
Holmen's lips curled into a cold smile. Zeus?
Even a Paragon would be reduced to ash by a Bastion's main cannon.
It was worth it to trade a small pirate clan for the life of one of the Eastern Alliance's strongest Adepts.
Arachnid was the one Feng Ling had requested help from. Of course, he wasn't as powerful as Holmen.
What he didn't know, however, was that the moment he'd reported to Zeus, he'd been abandoned.
Evidence of the Northern Alliance's connections to the pirate clans had been left on Crimson Planet. Holmen couldn't allow that to exist.
He was a representative of the hawks, but that didn't mean he didn't have to be wary of anything.
The military was still under the supervision of the parliament.
However, no matter what, he needed evidence.
After erasing all the evidence and the guy named Zeus, what else could the council have to doubt him?
As for the pirates in the Shattered Starfields, given Arachnid's power, it would be a piece of cake to nurture another group of pirates.
…
Most of Zeus -1's crew had been transferred to the battleship. The Accountant had become the ship's operator.
He was more familiar with the ship's data collection and usage.
On Zeus -1, Mika and Xiu Xiu operated the ship.
Lan Jue was in a foul mood. It wasn't just because of the near-death experience, but also because of the destruction of Crimson Planet.
As he sat in Zeus -1's captain's seat, memories of three years ago flashed through his mind.
…
"Run, Jinyu, run!"
"It's too late, Ah Jue.
It's too late.
Farewell, I love you. Forget me.
Farewell. "
"Boom--!"
…
Lan Jue closed his eyes, but his hands were clenched into fists.
The pain of the past had left a deep scar in his heart.
That time it had been a planet that had been destroyed!
What was different was that it was a star that had been destroyed that time. With the range of the explosion, no matter what, it was impossible to survive.
This time it was just a planet, but the cannon fire from afar had ignited the deepest pain in his heart.
Was everything that happened back then really just a coincidence?
Although all the signs indicated that it was just an accident, why did the accident come so suddenly?
What if it wasn't an accident?
After Hera's death, he'd been in a daze for a long time. When he'd woken up and tried to search for clues, they'd all been obliterated. It was impossible to find anything.
Then he'd gone to Skyfire Avenue, where he'd spent the rest of his life in depression.
For half a year, he'd dreamt of that terrible explosion every night.
And just now, everything seemed to have been replicated.
Although the population of the Crimson Star wasn't large, at least the families of the thousands of dead pirates were still on the planet.
Of course, pirates deserved to die, but at least their families were innocent.
In the past, when Lan Jue had exterminated the pirates, he'd never implicated his family. He'd never looted.
There was no point in taking back what the pirates had stolen. Their families needed a living, so they'd be left with them.
However, just now, after that terrifying light flashed, everything was gone.
Tens of thousands of lives had been lost on the Crimson Star.
The pirates were cruel, but wasn't the man who'd fired the cosmic ray cruel?
He was far crueler than the pirates.
Lives were lost!
"Jewelry Master, Jewelry Master, are you there?" Lan Jue's communicator buzzed.
Lan Jue connected to his communicator, isolating it from sound.
"What is it?"
The Accountant's voice came from the other end. "Guess what I found?
Hahaha, these pirates are too cunning. They hid all their treasures on this battleship. This is a treasure trove!
It's the first time I've seen a treasure trove this big.
It's not just mechas, there's a lot of power gems.
It looks like the pirates exchanged all their wealth for power gems for convenience!
This time, we're rich. Ahahaha, these gems are enough to equip a mecha operator. "
"Shut up." Lan Jue's voice was cold and hard, and he hung up.
To him, wealth had never been something he cared about.
If he could get those lives back, he'd be willing to pay even more.
(To be continued, please search, the better the novel, the faster the update!