Although it was a bit abrupt, seeing the mushroom clouds blooming everywhere, Yi Tianxing didn't say anything to the Green Emperor. Since today was a day of joy, he let it be happy too. He would deal with it once they returned.
"Damn it!!"
"It's over. Why did this happen?"
"So ruthless, truly ruthless. Da Yi is so cruel and vicious—this is to completely destroy our Starry World. This devastation is even harsher than when we invaded other realms. These people of Da Yi—are they demons?"
The powerful beings of the Zerg raised their eyes toward the void, toward the star, staring at the countless mushroom clouds rising one after another. A surge of anger and fear welled in their hearts. They saw with their own eyes as vast numbers of Zerg were utterly shattered, crushed, and blasted into clouds of blood mist within the mushroom clouds. Throughout the process, they had no chance to resist. No matter how strong their defenses were, under the relentless explosions—
Everything was in vain.
Fireworks!
This was destined to be a magnificent, unparalleled display of fireworks.
Under the terrifying explosions, if one could observe from afar, they would see the entire planet erupt in seven-colored divine radiance. In the Eternal Night World, the scenery was always shrouded in dim hues, its only light source being the thirteen blood moons. Yet at this moment, the radiance shining from the star lit up Eternal Night, dazzling and eerily beautiful, standing out with incomparable brilliance.
In an instant, the entire Eternal Night World was shaken.
Countless stars, even the Eternal Night Continent itself, were alerted. From the thirteen blood moons above, countless gazes instantly fell upon this particular star.
"Not good—that's the Zerg's Hive Star World, an extremely important resource star. That shining starlight is abnormal. There's no way the Zerg themselves would produce such a phenomenon."
"Damn it, a message has just come from the Zerg—it's the Well of Gods and Demons. The Well has been opened, right above the Hive Star. Why? Why didn't the Hydra report anything? If Da Yi truly mobilized their army, it would be impossible to hide it from Hydra's eyes. Did they betray us?"
"Hurry, rush to Hive Star! This is not a drill—I repeat, this is not a drill. This is war! Damn it, they actually managed to strike into Eternal Night itself. The humiliation of the previous era must never be repeated!"
"Attack! Slaughter those Eternal natives, storm into the Well of Gods and Demons, and invade the Eternal World!"
In that instant, Eternal Night's countless races and powerhouses exploded in rage.
This change came far too suddenly, completely beyond all expectations.
There had been no warning signs, no intelligence reports. Yet here it was—appearing abruptly, and upon appearing, gifting Eternal Night with such a "present": one of their most important resource stars had been dealt a devastating blow.
Undeniably, the light blazing on Hive Star was abnormal, proof that it had suffered unimaginable destruction. The strike's force was unprecedented, enough to shatter heaven and earth.
Swish, swish, swish!!
Countless streaks of light shot through the void, rushing frantically toward Hive Star. Many even leaped directly through space itself. Great demonic fortresses barreled through the starry skies.
The myriad races of Eternal Night were on the move.
They fully realized it now.
This was no drill.
This was a true invasion.
Worst of all—they hadn't even discovered it beforehand, nor mounted any effective interception. They could only passively suffer the assault.
Though furious, though bitterly disappointed in Hydra, what enraged them even more was that Da Yi had toyed with them as if they were fools. This could not be tolerated. If they didn't retaliate, their reputation across the realms would be utterly trampled underfoot.
It would be an indelible humiliation.
Among those rushing to Hive Star was a massive war fortress—one of Eternal Night's top war engines: the Demon God Battlefortresses, also called the Eternal Night Fortress, or the Abyss Fortress. It was a supreme weapon of war, on par with the Eternal Heaven Ark.
Within this Abyss Fortress, many powerful Eternal Night beings gathered—numerous mighty experts of the great Dao realm.
At the very center sat a figure with an oversized head, belonging to the race of Brain Demons. This was a high-ranking Brain Demon, known as Zhi Thirteen.
The Brain Demons had a unique hierarchy: their names were based on wisdom ranking. Zhi Thirteen meant that within the entire race, his wisdom ranked thirteenth—an elite position.
Thus, in Eternal Night, he was called the Thirteenth Elder of Wisdom, a title of utmost respect.
Within Eternal Night, the Brain Demon clan held extraordinary status.
No race dared show them disrespect.
The Brain Demons were born with powerful spiritual force and unparalleled intellect. In matters of destiny, spiritual arts, battlefield command, and strategy, they possessed innate talents. Offending them often meant a death plotted in silence, one never even understanding how it came.
The reverence for Zhi Thirteen could be imagined.
Especially on the battlefield, countless races relied upon their intellect and followed their commands.
Those who disobeyed were long dead.
"Our clan long ago issued warnings to Eternal Night," Zhi Thirteen said gravely. "Based on our knowledge of Da Yi and Yi Tianxing, he would never act in vain. Their previous feints were merely a strategy to distract us, to numb our vigilance, to make us grow accustomed to Da Yi's deployments being mere false alarms. Unfortunately, our warnings were ignored.
"Not only did Hydra in the Eternal World grow complacent, even we of Eternal Night came to take it lightly. This was their goal—to instill the habit of thinking every Da Yi mobilization was just a feint. And now, Da Yi has succeeded. They deceived not only Hydra but also us. Hive Star has already suffered devastating damage. The Zerg army stationed there is likely annihilated."
The faces of the surrounding Eternal Night mighty ones turned ugly.
Clearly, Da Yi had played them.
Their faces burned with humiliation.
A great expert of the Blood Demon Clan bared a bloodthirsty grin: "Thirteenth Elder of Wisdom, what do we do now? The Blood Demon Clan will follow your command. Capture those Da Yi natives—I shall drink their hot blood fresh from their hearts!"
"Indeed! That was our Zerg resource star. Now it's ruined, and most of the insect soldiers there must be dead. The reports say Da Yi used some great weapon called a Mushroom House. That weapon is terrifying. Once it latches on, it parasitizes, mushrooms sprout across the host's body, then they explode—explosions of immense power, impossible to guard against."
A Zerg powerhouse spoke coldly, sharpening his nails with an insect-blade as he spoke.
Based on calculations, the insect casualties this time numbered no less than thirty trillion. And this was just from a single exchange—an unimaginable massacre. This was war—cruel and bloody.
There was no hesitation.
Once the opportunity arose, it was always a killing strike.
Any and all weapons could be unleashed.
"The Mushroom House is indeed dreadful, both a weapon and a peculiar lifeform. Yet though it is frightening, it is not truly without countermeasures. Our race has researched it carefully and discovered three possible methods of suppression," Zhi Thirteen said calmly.
"The first: use time-based divine arts to freeze the Mushroom House, preventing detonation. Naturally, it can then be neutralized.
"The second: use great darkness arts to smother its divine radiance. Those mushrooms are nurtured by divine light; if all light is devoured by darkness, the Mushroom House cannot manifest.
"The third: use death laws. Mushrooms are a form of life; by drowning them in death's power, their vitality can be extinguished, halting their growth. This too could avert their apocalyptic detonation.
"These methods remain untested. Success is probable—ninety percent—but still uncertain. There is always a margin of unpredictability."
They had never stopped studying Da Yi, treating it as their foremost imagined enemy. One could never overprepare.
"Hmph, in that case, as long as we're prepared, the Mushroom House is not insurmountable."
A great expert of the Shadow Demons nodded, his pressure easing.
"What should we do now? The Well of Gods and Demons must be on Hive Star. Should we simply turn the entire star into a battlefield and bury Da Yi's army here?"
A great expert of the Dark Demons suggested.
"Since Da Yi dares to come, we must properly welcome them. I have three proposed strategies.
"First: Hive Star has no further value. Destroy it outright, expose the Well of Gods and Demons to Eternal Night's starry sky, and crush the Eternal natives with overwhelming force.
"Second: keep Hive Star as the battlefield. Continuously lure Da Yi's forces into it, tying them down, letting it become their graveyard, slowly bleeding them dry.
"Third: lure the enemy deeper. Abandon Hive Star, even the hundred stars surrounding it. Draw Da Yi and the Eternal World's forces further in. Then dispatch our elites with thunderous strikes to sever their connection to the Well of Gods and Demons, cutting off retreat entirely. Once intoxicated by victory and spoils, they will inevitably fall into our trap."
Zhi Thirteen spoke slowly.
Three battle plans, three responses.
Different choices, different results.
The decision now lay in the hands of Eternal Night's gathered mighty ones.
Clearly, Zhi Thirteen did not choose alone, instead leaving the choice to them.
(End of chapter)