With the opening of the two highest-level dungeons, the
Elyne, who was listening to Liu Shu warn their subordinates, was curious. "Are the Boss Monsters that strong?"
Liu Shu was communicating through a wooden avatar in one of the Eternal Church's amphitheaters. Once she heard her question, she nodded very seriously. "Yes! Even I wouldn't dare to face them confidently. Unless you have the courage or confidence to defeat or not be killed by the current me, then you can try challenging the bosses. Otherwise, forget about it."
The listeners became serious when they heard her evaluation. Even if they respected Liu Shu, they were also very confident in themselves, especially so after fighting the Nexus army and dominating them with ease.
Most of them understood that it was only possible thanks to Liu Shu's endless buffs. However, understanding it in the head didn't really lower the conceit and arrogance imprinted in the bones by the rather overwhelming victory.
Liu Shu deeply understood their mentality, as she had heard them brag endlessly about it with their close people. So, she was giving a warning to prevent as many deaths as possible. After all, while the Earth Dragon would hold himself with prodigies, he was a Boss Monster at the end of the day.
Forgiving some was not a problem, but most would end up dying under its claws if they dared to attack it arrogantly. 'As a dragon, he has his own pride. It is one thing to be challenged by strong people and win against them, and another to be challenged by arrogant weaklings.'
Observing the gazes of those gathered, she knew that some showed obedience, but their eyes were clearly full of ambition. Sighing, Liu Shu shook her head and glanced at Elyne. "Anyway, that's all I wanted to say."
Elyne smiled and immediately shooed everyone away. "Go, go. Liu Shu has already finished her warnings. Now you are able to do as you please."
After everyone left, only Liu Shu and the five main envoys remained in the room. Looking at them, Liu Shu asked worriedly. "The Covenant won't blame me for their deaths, right?"
Elyne approached and smiled, sitting right by her side. "Don't worry, Liu Shu. A few words from us, and any misunderstanding can be easily resolved."
"Are you sure?" Liu Shu asked, her wooden face showing a worried expression. "What if the familiar of some big shot is among them incognito and dies? I don't want another Altherion coming, much less from those I currently consider allies."
Cael spoke calmly. "Do not worry. Nothing like that will happen."
Veyra blinked her purple-colored eyes and asked, curious. "When are you going to Level Up, Liu Shu? You can't take too long, or you might get caught off-guard by the returning Nexus."
Liu Shu hummed and nodded. She looked at Cael and asked. "How long do you think they will take to send another batch?"
Cael shook his head. "I can't tell exactly. But the timeframe should be between forty and one hundred years."
"Wow." Liu Shu exclaimed flatly. "You are so specific."
Cael smiled faintly. "Specific enough. Forty years for them is longer for us, isn't it?"
Liu Shu didn't answer, neither denying nor affirming that she understood the meaning of his words. Honestly, the mere fact that he mentioned it surprised Liu Shu quite a bit. She had not expected these people to notice that she was modifying the time flow of the area.
"Since we have so long, I will first deal with whatever those ships outside are planning. It has been two years already, so they should begin their movements." Her gaze landed on Cael as she asked. "This time, I can make them disappear, right?"
Cael nodded. "No problem. Entire groups dying in remote places is a normal occurrence for the Explorer Association, unlike the planned expeditions of the Nexus."
Liu Shu nodded. After so many years had passed, her boiling anger had simmered down. It had not disappeared, remaining like embers ready to erupt into flames with the right chance and fuel.
Nevertheless, she understood that Cael's choice back then was the correct option. Were Altherion and the others to perish in her solar system together with the World-Types, a fleet made out of them would come to understand what happened.
While she would've received much more experience, probably helping her reach Level 150, she was not confident in protecting the worlds under her as she fought with top powerhouses. She was also not really sure how strong she would be at Level 150, or if she would be able to fight Level 200 people.
'Anyway, once I have the chance, I can take my revenge.'
In the void of space, near the edge of the solar system, the mercenary ships started moving toward the center of the Ceperet Solar System.
The captain, Helgor, spoke with a confident expression. "Our scanners checked that there are two planets with life in this Solar System. Moreover, these two planets don't seem to be interconnected, making us believe that there is no True World Tree among them. Without a True World Tree, the number of high-level creatures will be limited. Even if they are a technological or crafting society, we can deal with them easily. Let's go and loot this place. We can perhaps even make it our Headquarters."
Azuremist, the strange floating existence, asked cautiously. "Helgor, do we leave one of our scout ships behind so that they can retreat if something goes wrong?"
"We could," Helgor muttered, tapping his chin. "Since the order was placed on the public board, there will be others coming here."
One humanoid creature on the side, with a body covered in lustrous black scales, asked, confused. "Boss, wasn't the coordinate posted on the Star Mercenary level?"
Helgor glanced at him and sighed. "Your strength is so great, but it seems that you are too fast, and intelligence seems unable to catch up to you, Blackscale."
Blackscale blinked, not understanding his words. "Boss, don't say things so strangely. I can't understand."
"Exactly." Helgor sighed once more.
The people around burst into laughter, leaving the scaly humanoid even more confused.
"Go ahead. Depart. We should arrive at the first planet with life in around two months."
Azuremist was curious. "So slow? Why not use close to light-speed travel?"
Helgor shrugged. "Are we in a rush? Moreover, you said that you feel uneasy, right? We can't really maneuver easily at those speeds. Hence, it's better to take our time. We've already waited one year; there is no problem adding a few months to that."
Liu Shu, meanwhile, received all the information they gathered from the group.
"The mercenary group has seven ships. None of the ships is as significant as the World-Type Spaceship of the Abyssal Void Nexus. Nevertheless, according to the intel provided by Lord Cael and their subordinates, the strength of the main ship is above a Moon-Type ship."
Liu Shu hummed. "What about the others?"
"They have two scout ships, one of which has been left behind. The other is leading the group and should enter Lady Heavenly Willow's domain shortly."
The human man speaking stopped for a second before continuing. He didn't want to mess up while reporting to the Heavenly Willow. "The remaining four ships have weaker fields than a Moon-Type. According to the standard, each of the small ships should have around 300
After listening, Liu Shu was surprised. "This lineup is not worse than the group led by Altherion. How can that be?"
The human man explained. "The Explorer Association is a hub of powerhouses that don't want to conform to any structured power. They are free and unrestrained, attracting the attention of many who want to explore the universe and gain ancient relics to increase either talent or strength."
The human man looked up and spoke, adding his opinion on the matter. "Lady Heavenly Willow, you should also remember that Altherion's group was nothing but an expedition-sized group. According to Lord Cael, Altherion should not have used more than 10% of his total army when approaching us. Perhaps even less."
No one bothered to use respectful titles for Altherion.
Liu Shu looked into the distant void with interest. Cael and the others were nearby. He asked about Liu Shu's intentions.
"What else is there besides annihilation?" Liu Shu spoke nonchalantly. "Every group that dares attack my domain will die without leaving survivors unless an external force prevents me from doing so. That has been my policy, and will continue to be in the future."
Hearing her words startled the Sixth Energy Cycles. They had never really heard her voice sound with no hint of her usual gentleness and softness. They had listened to her anger, but never her coldness.
Elyne was somewhat surprised and looked around, curious. 'No one is surprised other than us.'
Flor, Cinderielle, and the rest were present as well. Naturally, no one reacted to her words. Since Liu Shu had enough consciousness, they noticed that the second she marked someone as an "enemy," they would always be slaughtered down to the last person without a chance to struggle or repent.
Liu Shu would give second chances to creatures who made mistakes, not to creatures who sought her doom.
Cael asked the elegant mothkin standing at the side. "How is the fixing of the Moon-Types going?"
Mariane looked at him with a calm expression, her four arms crossing in front of her. "It won't be ready for a few decades. Reverse engineering such complicated technology is a challenge we can only tackle thanks to the
The technology behind those ships was not easy to encounter. Not even the envoys knew about it, since it was classified information known only to crafters under their powers. As fighters, they had no hand in knowing about the ships. Their arrival in the
Liu Shu spoke, her voice lacking any temperature. "They won't even see Nualis' silhouette."
It was time for the Eternal Universal Tree to unleash all her means for the first time without holding anything back.