An enormous aircraft carrier hovered in orbit above planet h5876.
“This was all your brilliant idea, thinking the insectoids were in decline. You lot are truly brave, raiding the insectoids. They are the insectoids! And now look, you’ve led them all the way back to our doorstep. Our decades of effort will be wiped out by the few insects you provoked,” roared Reyno, the pirate group’s second-in-command, slamming his fist on the table.
“We had no idea these insects were so powerful.”
“How could we possibly know they were so powerful?”
“Right, right.” Once one person spoke up, the others readily chimed in.
“Damn it, have you forgotten how the insectoids went quiet over a decade ago? And you’re still telling me this nonsense? Use your brains, for goodness sake!” Reyno’s anger, which had just begun to subside, reignited at their ignorance. These new recruits knew nothing of the world’s dangers. He swore he'd throw them out to the bugs one day.
The newcomers, chastised by Reyno, fell silent. They were not children anymore; they knew what had happened years ago. They just couldn't fathom how a mere handful of remaining insectoids could be so formidable. Had they known, they wouldn't have dared provoke them, even with a blade to their throats. Aware of their mistake, they lowered their heads, feigning innocence like frightened quails.
“Enough. This is not the time for arguing,” a deep voice boomed from behind.
Everyone turned and bowed towards the speaker, their leader, Puxi. He possessed a rugged appearance, a simple buzz cut, and every muscle exuded raw power. His nearly two-meter height commanded an imposing presence.
Just as Xier, watching the fireworks from inside the ship, seemed to glimpse something, she traversed space-time and appeared before Puxi.
“How do you wish to die?” her emotionless voice inquired.
Everyone present was taken aback by the woman who had suddenly materialized. She was breathtakingly beautiful, a vision of perfection. Her wine-red hair cascaded to her waist, framing an angelic face. Her simple combat suit accentuated her flawless, curvaceous figure, and her blue eyes radiated an air of authority.
“Xier, we meant no harm,” Puxi said, addressing the woman before him. He recognized her and was not swayed by her beauty. This woman was Admiral Xier of the Navy, a devil hiding behind a goddess’s façade.
The moment their leader uttered the name ‘Xier,’ everyone snapped back to reality. The infatuation in their eyes gradually gave way to fear. Xier, the Navy Admiral who had once single-handedly annihilated a hundred thousand enemies, possessed unfathomable power. It was rumored her combat prowess doubled at sea, though no one had ever verified it – those who witnessed it were all dead.
Xier slowly raised her hand, admiring it. Her wine-red nails made her already fair skin appear even more delicate. Her gaze, which had never once rested on the ants before her, suggested that even looking at them was an insult.
After a few moments, Xier’s lips parted slightly. “Do you think our insectoid race is depleted? Hmm?” Her unspoken message was clear: You dare raid us? Are you tired of living?
As she finished her last word, Xier lowered her hand and suddenly accelerated. Before Puxi could react, his neck was in Xier's grip. Her fair hand tightened, effortlessly lifting the two-meter giant off the ground.
“Answer my question. Don’t make me repeat myself.”
Puxi’s face turned a dusky purple from lack of oxygen. He tried to speak but could not.
“Let go of our leader!”
“Release him!”
“It was all our doing! It has nothing to do with our leader!”
“Release him!”
Hearing their pleas, Xier actually dropped Puxi to the ground. She then produced a handkerchief from her pocket and meticulously wiped her hand. Once satisfied, she tossed the handkerchief aside and looked down at the gasping Puxi.
Everyone rushed to Puxi’s side, inquiring if he was alright.
“Commander,” a petite figure appeared beside Xier, executing a kneeling salute. This was Xier’s副团长 Rila.
“Too slow,” Xier said, turning to Rila.
“Apologies, Commander. I will accept my punishment upon our return,” Rila replied calmly, kneeling on the ground as if the punishment were not her own.
“Hmm, rise. It’s time to go.”
“Understood. I will handle the remaining matters,” Rila stood up and slowly approached the huddled humans.
Everyone tensed, wary of the seemingly harmless and cute young woman.
Just as she neared them, a voice suddenly echoed in their minds. Rila’s every cell trembled with excitement. She then turned to look at Xier.
“Stop all the noise,” Xier, who had been walking forward, paused at the voice in her mind. She then said to Rila, “Let’s go.” With that, she used spatial distortion to leave. Rila, without a backward glance, quickly followed her commander’s footsteps.
Left behind were seven bewildered individuals, staring at each other blankly. If not for the heavy losses at their base, the Bloody Marshes, they might have believed it was all a dream.
Xier rapidly reached her warship, anxiety burning in her eyes. The King had finally returned. She longed to see him. Xier paced back and forth in the command center, impatient.
“Ten minutes. If he’s not here, I’m going myself,” Xier communicated mentally to her soldiers.
The soldiers, who had been rampaging on the battlefield, yearned to finish quickly and see him. However, they also feared the Commander’s punishment. Now, hearing her voice, they immediately abandoned their enemies, grabbed their weapons, and sprinted towards their warship.
A feeling they had never experienced before surged within them. They yearned to see him soon.
For over a decade, the King had not abandoned them.
He had finally returned.
Indeed, Xier launched the warship within ten minutes. She knew the King’s approximate location, but nothing more.
“Where is he?” a cold message appeared in the group chat. No one replied.
Because the group members were not worthy of a response.
Elfa, in a cave, heard the mental message. Looking at the young man before him, he instinctively hesitated to reveal his location. However, considering that an extra person meant an extra layer of safety on this primitive planet, he replied, “Lekkan System 5876.”
Upon hearing this, Xier stated, “Lekkan 5876, at most half a month.” She then turned and walked towards her quarters.
In the corridor, she eyed the warship, crawling along like a snail, and felt an urge to set it ablaze. It was agonizingly slow.
If the old guard of the Empire or the Federation knew Xier’s opinion of the universe’s fastest ‘Thunder’ series, they would surely weep themselves to death.
Lin Hao slowly awoke from his slumber. Looking at the white, shattered eggshell, he accepted the fact that he had come back to life and was now an enemy of all humanity. Last night must have been a severe mental exhaustion. He realized he hadn’t experienced that in a long time and felt a strange sense of nostalgia.
“King, are you awake?” Elfa’s voice echoed from above the eggshell, interrupting Lin Hao’s reverie.
Lin Hao slowly poked his head out of the eggshell, his gaze meeting a pair of beautiful blue eyes. Was this Air Force Commander Elfa? His silver-white hair was reminiscent of someone. He wore a simple combat suit and, by Lin Hao’s estimation, stood at least two meters tall, even taller than Lin Hao’s former height. “Yes, hello, Elfa.”
“Greetings to you as well, my King,” Elfa said, before kneeling before Lin Hao. Immediately, all the insectoids nearby offered Lin Hao a curtsy.
Seeing this, Lin Hao felt as if his lifespan had been shortened.
Somewhere in the Empire, a person hurled all the documents on his desk to the floor. Who was the source of that mental fluctuation last night? Why couldn’t he recall it, despite it feeling so familiar?
Those outside the office held their breath. The secretary, fearing an incident, made a brief call before hanging up. Shortly thereafter, a doll-like woman rushed into the room.
Upon entering, she saw the man hunched in the corner, his once handsome face now gaunt and haggard. The woman walked over, knelt, and cradled his head in her arms, slowly channeling her mental energy to soothe him.
She whispered softly, “Mo Han, I am here. Do not be afraid.”
The man, sensing the familiar mental energy, gradually calmed down.
However, after a few minutes, the now-calm young man suddenly threw the woman holding him to the ground. He said coldly, “Scram.”
The woman was flung far away. She slowly rose, her exquisite dress now soiled. Without a cry of pain, she slowly released her mental energy, attempting to comfort the man again.
“I said, scram,” the man stated, his face grim.
He unleashed his mental energy, a tidal wave that surged towards the woman.
Finally unable to bear the pressure of his mental energy, the woman, her face pale, walked out, blood trickling from her lips.
It wasn’t her. That mental energy wasn’t hers. But if not her, then who? Why couldn’t he remember? The man clutched his head, repeatedly banging it against the wall. The dark color of the wall gradually deepened. Blood from his forehead flowed down to his throat, yet the man seemed oblivious to the pain, continuing to strike his head against the wall. It was as if he had forgotten something important, a person or an event.
Finally, fearing he would injure himself further, people forcibly restrained the man and administered a sedative. The man eventually fell into a deep sleep, his brow still furrowed, as observed by those treating him.