The atmosphere in Kerna City at Present isn't quite right. Ai Ru was certain of it.
Although he didn't know exactly what was wrong, he just had that feeling, and it was becoming increasingly obvious. He always felt that the sturdy space fortress he was in was like a steamer being simmered over a low fire, getting hotter, heavier, and more oppressive, so much so that he could barely breathe.
As an experienced spiritual energy user, he naturally knew that such an intuition was not groundless and had to be taken seriously, otherwise, by the time he was truly steamed, it would be too late for anything. Of course, as a "lawyer" with extensive connections, he also didn't lack the executive ability and channels to gather information, so he quickly took action.
Ai Ru simply grabbed a passing Imperial... um, a Kerna Fortress security officer, chatted and laughed, and the other party answered him truthfully.
The Minlan immediately stopped smiling, dropped the still-confused Imperial Army officer, and quickened his pace through the crowded streets, soon finding Flores Wanda still sitting in the corner of the commercial district intersection observing the world.
This guy's state was exactly the same as before, even his sitting posture hadn't changed, only the iced cola in his hand had been replaced by iced sour plum soup.
Ai Ru was a Minlan, with a sensitive sense of smell, and what he couldn't stand the most was sourness. He immediately closed his nasal passages with his racial talent, then said in a muffled voice, "There's something I need to tell you. Don't be afraid."
Wanda looked at him calmly, "Ai Ru, don't you see that this old man's heart is now like still water, letting nature take its course? Of course, I won't be afraid."
...The Earthlings really did attack. Their fleet has already warped into this star system."
Wanda let out an "Oh," his expression finally showing some change. "The Commonwealth Army truly is brave and decisive. But what does it matter to me if they stir up a pool of spring water?"
The last sentence, translated into the common language of the Alliance they were using, sounded a bit awkward. It took Ai Ru almost half a minute to react, nearly hyperventilating. He sneered, "Didn't you say before that you didn't leak the star map? Then how do you explain it now? The star map coordinates of Kerna City are so secret. If the Earthlings had known about them from other channels earlier, they would have made a move long ago. There's no reason for them to suddenly show up at this time. After much thought, there's no other reason except that you were raided and exposed!"
...Ai Ru, I have already explained. I truly know very little about the star map of the Far Shore Nebula, let alone the route to get here. As the saying goes, 'Those who know me say I am worried, those who don't know me ask what I seek...' If you insist on believing that, I truly have nothing more to say and can only accept it. Alas! Origins and endings, indeed, all are natural!
Don't tell me this; tell it to the bigwigs in the organization. You'd better prepare your lines now. They aren't as easy to talk to as I am, and they won't be so patient listening to your mystical nonsense.
You are mistaken. Now that I think about it carefully, the seniors are all broad-minded and generous people; they will definitely understand my state of mind.
Seeing the other party completely enlightened, which basically meant he was like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water, Ai Ru couldn't even get angry this time. He immediately pulled the other party up without a word, and by the way, kicked the can of iced sour plum soup into a distant trash heap.
Anyway, let's go!
Wanda looked at his sour plum soup with regret, shaking his head. "Where are we going? If you're worried about the Commonwealth fleet, there's no need. They can't break in, probably..."
By the end of his sentence, his tone was no longer so natural.
Judging by common sense, the Earthlings' fleet certainly couldn't break into Kerna City, but during this time, the former cult leader had been slapped in the face by extraordinary events too many times, so he naturally didn't dare to speak too confidently.
"We can't take the risk. The high-tech on board must not fall into the hands of the Earthlings, and even less into the hands of the Empire. I must go to the shipyard... If things change, we'll grab the energy pack and leave immediately!" Ai Ru said.
Wanda did not object this time. Although his face was still calm and unruffled, his steps followed decisively. However, just a few steps away, he suddenly stopped again, looking confused for a moment, then showed a thoughtful expression.
"What's wrong now?" Ai Ru was truly a little anxious. He began to seriously consider for the first time the feasibility of killing this guy on the spot and escaping alone.
"Nokelsahnvisabalt," Wanda whispered.
"Huh?"
"Didn't I tell you before? This is what that young friend Yu Lian heard from me. It is said to be the spirit-word of the Serami Giants. I don't know why, but I seemed to hear that sound again just now... Hmm, it's calm, dignified, majestic, grand, like a sonata cutting through the sky in the universe, as if it contains the supreme truth of the universe's laws. This is the guidance of the universe spirit to me!" He let out a satisfied sigh.
Ai Ru thought, I didn't hear any sonata cutting through the sky, nor did I feel any truth of the universe's laws; I just heard a "boom" that particularly impacted my hearing!
Wait! Boom?
At this moment, both their hearings were clearly dominated by the huge explosion coming from the direction of the shipyard. Immediately after, the violent vibration of the metal floor was directly felt in their legs.
Ai Ru and Wanda looked at each other, speechless for a moment, then utterly horrified.
At this time, the pirates, who had also heard the explosion, after a moment of stunned silence, immediately scattered like a group of rats into which a firecracker had been thrown.
"Warning! Warning! Warning! Hull damage in B3, D8, and D9 zones. Emergency rescue procedures initiating immediately. Warning! Warning! Warning! Disturbance in the plaza area. Everyone please remain calm, do not move around, await rescue. Do not move around, await rescue." A mechanical voice echoed beneath the metal dome.
Several hovering security robots appeared from the narrow passage, flying over the heads of the crowd. They were fast and flew low, causing a chorus of wails from the crowd.
The robots were performing initial suppression tasks according to their pre-programmed instructions. However, this was not a smart response.
One must know that every outlaw on the street had a gun in hand, and everyone's mental structure was unstable. Previously, they had maintained at least some restraint because this was a rare "safe zone" in the Far Shore Nebula, but once they realized this safe zone was no longer safe, the chaos sweeping through the entire space city would become unavoidable.
"We must go back to the ship!" Ai Ru shouted.
Wanda nodded with a heavy expression, finally no longer calm and unruffled.
At this moment, right at the explosion site, General Tadan and Marquis Odgar could no longer remain calm as they looked at the burning pirate ship.
Just a moment ago, this ship, the Dark Abomination, which had completed its modifications in the space city's shipyard, suddenly became the source of a fatal explosion. Its hard hull was like fragile paper, impacted from the inside out by an unknown force, then began to expand, deform, and finally split open into countless huge gaps.
Boiling flames, accompanied by a deadly shockwave, poured out from the horrifying cracks.
In just an instant, hundreds of elite assault team members were swallowed by the endless explosion. Burning ship fragments splattered and landed all around, hitting equipment, falling into the panicked crowd, and even breaking through fragile bulkheads.
Fatal high temperatures, accompanied by casualties, brewed into a scene of terrified chaos at Shipyard No. 1.
The General and the Marquis almost lost the ability to think for a moment. By the time they finally recovered from their initial shock, the scene had become a hellish battlefield of flames, explosions, and body remains.
Fortunately, the two important figures Present had not completely lost their ability to command and make decisions.
Marquis Odgar, relying on his status as a spiritual energy user, rushed to the scene without even a greeting.
The Old General was calmer, quickly connecting to the on-site communication: "What happened? What's the current situation? Report immediately! Colonel Salis, Lieutenant Colonel Carter, who is still alive? Report the situation immediately!"
A long half-minute passed, and still no answer. Lieutenant General Tadan put down the communicator, put on the airtight protective suit brought by a soldier, and quickly arrived at the scene.
By this time, Marquis Odgar had completed the preliminary survey of the scene.
"The ship's belly contained proton torpedoes, and the warheads were also filled with a considerable amount of explosive dust, so..." The Marquis said, and behind him, another explosion sounded, followed by a "crash" as an oversized mechanical crane fell from the ceiling, crashing onto an adjacent berth, instantly crushing an innocent pirate ship that happened to be there, flattening it by a significant amount.
...The explosive dust is still spreading. It's too dangerous here," Marquis Odgar said, then pulled the Angmang Lieutenant General without explanation and turned to walk towards the exit.
The Lieutenant General did not resist. He looked at the continuously exploding pirate ship, his scorched yellow fur seeming to become even more withered.
...I fell for it!" He said with a bitter smile to Marquis Odgar.
"The Earthlings saw through your plan?" The Marquis had just arrived, so he knew that Lieutenant General Tadan had made some arrangements, but he wasn't too familiar with the details.
"I only knew that Morda had taken his subordinates to confront the Earthlings' fleet head-on. I knew that guy didn't have much chance of winning, so I arranged for Ensign Asthon Beel to keep a trick up his sleeve."
"Ensign Beel's father is an Imperial citizen, and he himself is an informant I placed in Morda's pirate group. I told him that if Morda's situation was unfavorable, he could act expediently. That's why he executed Morda and pretended to surrender to the Earthlings. I speculated that if the Commonwealth wanted to attack our Kerna City, they could only use secret infiltration and inside-outside cooperation. This way, we could use their own scheme against them."
"So, you deliberately let Beel's ship dock?"
"Yes, if they wanted to cooperate from the inside out, the Earthlings would definitely send their most elite assault troops, led by their best spiritual energy users. At that time, I could capture them all effortlessly... If the Earthlings' fleet lost its spiritual energy users and elite assault troops, their morale would inevitably collapse, and they would have no choice but to retreat. If worst came to worst, I could also use those people's lives as leverage for negotiations with the Earthlings." At this point, Beel sighed.
His mission was to safely build this fortress without causing any extra trouble, and he was unwilling to engage in an all-out war with the Earthlings' fleet.
This was probably the reason he set up this little trick.
"That's right, even if Ensign Beel was discovered, there would be no loss. It's certainly worth a try." Marquis Odgar nodded.
Of course, whether the Earthlings fell for it or saw through it, Beel certainly wouldn't survive. However, he was originally Lieutenant General Tadan's dead agent, and it was naturally not a pity for a tool to die. At least, the two important figures Present considered this to be a matter of course.
"But they still saw through my plan, and even used it against me... But this doesn't make sense! With an explosion of that scale, wouldn't the Earthling assault team and spiritual energy users on board also not survive? They were indeed on the ship; Ensign Beel's signal to us clearly stated that." Lieutenant General Tadan was completely baffled.
Marquis Odgar also gave a bitter smile. "I also find it hard to understand. However, the Earthlings couldn't be so crazy as to use their elite assault team and spiritual energy users as cannon fodder. So now we can only assume that they boarded the ship using some means we can't imagine. Uh... so the question is, General, where are they now?"
The Angmang General's mouth twitched. Just as he was about to say something, he heard another explosion.
But this time, the direction of the explosion was very far, not in the port, but deep inside the city.
Had those Earthlings started causing destruction within the city? The thought had just flashed through their minds when they received intelligence from their subordinates.
"Your Excellency! The pirates in the city have rioted!"