Admiral Brown's hand trembled. The Bastion shuddered violently. He knew it was all over.
But now that his life was at stake, his heart was filled with an indescribable bitterness.
Bang! He slammed his hand down on the red button in front of him.
The shrill blare of an alarm filled every corner of Terminator.
All the Space Combat Jets swarmed out in an instant to search for that small crack that was impossible to exist.
The sturdy shield collapsed inward, allowing the alien planets' tentacles to lash at the bastion's hull. Thunderous booms filled the skies.
The entire human world seemed to be shaking at this moment.
A strange red light shone from within Terminator.
The alien planets stopped in their tracks. Their shields darkened, and the tentacles no longer lashed out. Instead they stuck to Terminator's hull.
Surprisingly, the home worlds didn't try to stop the Black Jackets. Instead, they allowed them to flee at full speed.
In the blink of an eye, the alien planets swelled in size. The vortex at their cores shrank and the three planets shot upward like cannonballs, propelling Terminator into the sky.
The Terminator became redder and redder, and a terrifying aura burst forth from within.
But in that moment, the home worlds came to an abrupt halt. Terminator's inertia sent it hurtling through the air. All the tentacles let go and Terminator was flung away from the planet's grasp.
At the same time, the vortex in the planet's core reappeared, but this time it was propelling them forward. They sped away in the opposite direction as they fled.
Terminator flew off into the distance. Finally, it stopped at a certain point.
In that moment, it was as if time froze in the universe. Terminator, the most powerful bastion ship in human history, slowly turned from red to dark red, then to orange.
An abnormal and strange light suddenly burst out with it as the center.
The terrifying shockwave seemed to sweep across the entire universe in an instant.
Far off in the distance, most of the fleeing fighters were engulfed by the explosion. There was no roar, only a blinding light.
The home worlds regrouped and were propelled away by the shockwaves of the explosion.
The power of a Bastion's self-destruction was terrifying, especially since Terminator was the strongest Bastion humanity had ever known. Its core was filled with compressed energy, and the resulting explosion was no less powerful than an entire planet. It was many times more powerful than Arachnid's Bastion.
Terminator's location was where four of the Northern Alliance's most important planets were located. The Northern Alliance controlled the largest number of planets, and the largest population.
Terminator's mission was to protect this part of the Starfield.
From the Northern Alliance's point of view, even if the aliens invaded, Terminator was strong enough to hold the line and wait for reinforcements. Terminator's main cannons were terrifying, capable of tearing apart an ordinary planet.
But at this moment, what the four nearby administrative planets could see was that the sky had instantly turned into a dazzling incandescent color, and the atmosphere of the planet they were on was violently fluctuating.
The huge explosion lasted for more than ten minutes before it gradually calmed down. The roar shook the entire human world in an instant.
… …
Planet Skyfire, Skyfire Avenue.
"What?!" The Wine Master slapped the table in front of him, his face ashen.
He'd been in a good mood after breaking through to Reflection of Heaven and Earth.
Lan Jue's departure had irritated him, but Roxanne had already notified Jueti to go with her. As long as they could make it in time, there shouldn't be any problems.
Now he stared at the screen in front of him and the urgent message in red. He couldn't help but stare in shock.
The alien planets had teleported and surrounded Terminator, destroying it and taking over the four nearby planets.
They had sealed off all communications from the four planets.
The sudden teleportation meant Lan Jue was safe, but it also meant the war between humanity and the aliens was about to begin.
Up until now, the aliens had only been baring their fangs. This time, however, they had appeared in the human world for real.
The four planets were home to more than a billion Northern Alliance citizens.
And that was after the Northern Alliance had begun to relocate their people to Luo.
At the rate the aliens were devouring, a billion people …
The Wine Master closed his eyes in anguish. His deep voice echoed through the Avenue, echoing through the Avenue.
"Emergency meeting. All Skyfire Avenue Committee members, please come to the Gothic Winery immediately."
… …
Panic spread through the human world in a single day. The Northern Alliance, Western Alliance, and Eastern Alliance all called for emergency meetings. All Bastions and fleets were mobilized.
Four planets had fallen, and billions of people had perished. This was a disaster the likes of which humanity had never seen before.
Although he didn't know the exact situation of the four planets, he could tell from the alien invasion that they weren't in good shape.
This was the moment of life and death for humanity.
Lan Jue was piloting Zeus -1 back to the Starfields.
The Shattered Starfields were vast, and no matter how anxious Lan Jue was, there was no way he could get Zeus-1 out of the asteroid belt in one go.
Zeus -1 was as fast as it could go. As Lan Jue piloted the ship, she displayed a map of all of humanity's planets.
This map was brand new, and it recorded the administrative planets that humans were currently migrating to.
The Major Alliance had been in the process of relocating in order to better defend against the aliens.
What Lan Jue wanted to know now was the distribution of these planets. He wanted to know where the alien home worlds were most likely to be.
He knew it was pointless, but he wanted to make a decision first. Once he got back, he'd be able to figure out the enemy's pattern of movement.
Based on their many encounters with the aliens, it was clear that the aliens knew far more about humans than humans did about them.
These aliens even had a certain level of understanding of Bastion ships.
Their strategy against Tyrannosaurus, Heron, and Arachnid had been very specific.
Although Lan Jue hadn't seen the alien home worlds in action, he was certain humanity was stronger than the home worlds.
After all, the alien home worlds were only as strong as three Bastion ships. Humanity had plenty of Bastion ships, fleets, and resource rich planets to back them up.
If they faced the aliens head on, humanity's chances of victory were much higher.
But could they really face them head on?
As it turned out, this was almost impossible.
The home worlds' cunning tactics and understanding of the human world had allowed them to devise a strategy to deal with the humans. In terms of strategy alone, the Three Alliances had suffered a crushing defeat.
Without a doubt, the Violet Prince and Princess were being used by the alien planets to infiltrate the human world. For those who had reached the level of the Infinite and were adept at manipulating psychic energy, this was not a difficult task.
But humanity had no way of penetrating deep into the alien world. What Lan Jue and the others could do was the best they could.
The key was to find out what the aliens' goal was.
Did they invade humans just to plunder life energy, or did they have other motives, or both? This was very important.
"What are you thinking?
There's no point in panicking.
Safety first. Be careful. "
A familiar voice called from behind. Lan Jue turned his head to find the Pharmacist behind him. Even with his keen senses, he hadn't noticed her.
It was clear how strong a Paragon like her was.
Her expression was calm and collected. She seemed much calmer than before, as if her grief had passed. Deep in her eyes, there was a spark of fire.
Lan Jue, who knew her better, could sense that it was a desire to fight, a fierce desire to do so.
Finally, the most painful period of her life was over.
"Sister, are you alright?"
Lan Jue asked with a smile. "Don't worry, I'll take control of the ship. We've been in the Shattered Starfields many times, and Zeus -1's AI is familiar with the area. There won't be any problems."
The Pharmacist nodded. "That's perfect. I'll tell you what I just learned. It should be of great help."
Lan Jue's eyes lit up. "Brother-in-law?"
Sadness flashed through the Pharmacist's eyes. She nodded.
Lan Jue didn't speak again. He chose to listen.
He knew this story was tragic for the Pharmacist. No matter what, the brother-in-law he'd never met would never come back.
The Pharmacist went on. "He told me many things through the sword intent and the runes.
Just now, I calmed my heart to cultivate so that I could comprehend the contents of the rune imprint he left behind. "
"The alien home worlds are a bit different from what we suspected.
From what my husband told me, I can guess at some of the more important details. "