168: Take on the starship's main gun with bare hands!

That dark gap was like a hideous scar torn across the sky, from which 'Darkness' seeped out.

The pressure was like a mountain, like a sea, like a collapsed star.

It poured its weight unreservedly onto this Gobi Desert.

The air solidified.

Light was twisted.

Sound was swallowed.

On the battlefield, the previously noisy gunfire and shouts of killing were forcibly silenced at this moment.

Whether it was the Alliance soldiers or the Dark Star Empire troops, everyone stopped their movements.

Their bodies stiffened uncontrollably, as if an invisible giant hand had gripped their throats.

Weaker soldiers even bled from all seven orifices, collapsed to the ground, and instantly lost their vital signs.

The psionic light net woven by the 'Guiyuan Sword Domain' hummed under this pressure, unable to bear the weight, and its light dimmed at an extremely fast rate.

"Steady your minds! Form up!" Pupil's voice exploded in the hearts of all Ling Shu Sword Guards.

His face was ashen, but his eyes radiated determination.

He forcefully resisted the pressure, and the spiritual power in his body surged out without reservation.

The hundred Ling Shu Sword Guards grunted in unison at the command, blood spilling from the corners of their mouths.

They straightened their backs, forcing themselves, and plunged their longswords into the ground.

Using their bodies as stakes and their swords as roots, they firmly anchored themselves to the Guiyuan Sword Domain.

The Guiyuan Sword Domain's light flared again, and a stubborn silver glow opened up a 'pure land', resisting the world-destroying pressure.

A figure slowly emerged from that dark gap.

He was dressed in a simple black robe, with an ordinary face that had nothing remarkable about it; he looked like an average middle-aged scholar.

But the moment he appeared, the entire world seemed to lose its color; only he was the sole reality.

After his appearance, he merely observed the struggling 'Guiyuan Sword Domain' beneath his feet with interest, as if appreciating an interesting work of art.

"An interesting domain, using spiritual resonance to leverage reality's laws, and it can even suppress those below Legend... Unfortunately, it's merely 'a bit interesting'." His voice clearly reached the ears of every survivor on the battlefield.

As his voice fell, he lifted his foot and gently stepped.

Dong...

A soft sound, like the heartbeat of a giant.

"Pfft—"

With Pupil at the lead, the hundred Ling Shu Sword Guards were struck as if by heavy hammers, all spitting out a large mouthful of blood, and the Guiyuan Sword Domain's light net instantly shattered into countless light particles.

All the Ling Shu Sword Guards' bodies flew backward, crashing heavily to the ground, their aura extremely weak.

With just one step, he broke the battle formation jointly set up by a hundred elite Gold-rank cultivators.

This was Legend!

Inside the Dawn Star's bridge.

Chen Shanhe stared at the figure strolling leisurely on the screen, his teeth clenching audibly.

The pressure, which he could feel even through the screen, sent shivers down his spine.

"Commander, it's a Legend from the Dark Star Empire, 'Erosion of Darkness'…" The adjutant's voice was dry, carrying an undisguised sense of loss.

"Intelligence shows that he became famous three hundred years ago, one of the veteran Legend powerhouses of the Dark Star Empire, known for his bizarre domain and corrosive abilities… We…"

"How much energy is left in the energy core?" Chen Shanhe interrupted him.

The radar officer immediately reported.

"Reporting, Commander! The backup energy array has restarted 90%, but the core energy has only recovered to 42%. If we force the main cannon to fire, there's a 70% chance the energy circuits will overload and burn out!"

"Then there's a 30% chance they won't," Chen Shanhe's gaze was firm.

"Lock onto him, and pour all energy into the main cannon! Immediately! Now!"

"Commander!" The adjutant exclaimed in shock, "This will destroy the Dawn Star!"

"We have no other choice." Chen Shanhe's hand slammed down on the launch button.

"Either die meaninglessly, or, before dying, take a fierce bite out of him! Execute the order!"

"Yes!" The piercing alarm sounded again throughout the bridge.

The entire hull of the Dawn Star warship began to tremble violently, and arcs of electricity wildly leaped across its metal shell.

At the huge main cannon muzzle at the bow, a flash of white light, more brilliant than the sun, was rapidly condensing in a destructive manner.

On the battlefield.

Erosion of Darkness finally shifted his gaze from the white-robed swordsmen and looked up at the massive steel construct.

He sensed the energy fluctuation powerful enough to threaten an ordinary Legend.

But his face still maintained that calm expression, even with a hint of curiosity.

"Oh? A desperate counterattack? Commendable courage."

The next second, a colossal beam of light tore through the sky, carrying the will to turn everything to dust.

It instantly crossed several kilometers and blasted towards Erosion of Darkness.

This strike concentrated all the remaining energy of the Star Beacon-class battleship, the strongest roar of technological civilization against individual might.

Its power had already reached the peak of the fourteenth tier!

Facing this earth-shattering strike, Erosion of Darkness raised his right hand.

A profound darkness, like ink dripping into clear water, rapidly spread in his palm, forming a continuously rotating miniature black hole.

The terrifying main cannon light beam, powerful enough to easily evaporate a mountain range, instantly made contact with that patch of darkness.

It was like a mud ox entering the sea, not stirring the slightest ripple, being silently and completely swallowed.

The light dissipated.

Erosion of Darkness was unharmed.

He lowered his hand, shaking his head with a hint of disinterest.

"Turns out, it's only this much."

He looked up at the cloud-shrouded sky, seemingly sensing something.

A moment later, he looked down.

"I need to hurry, or those guys might discover the problem."

Inside the Dawn Star's bridge, there was dead silence.

The adjutant slumped to the ground, his lips trembling, unable to utter a single word.

Chen Shanhe's tall and straight figure also swayed uncontrollably at this moment; he leaned on the command console to barely stand firm.

The last shred of hope in his eyes was completely extinguished, leaving only endless despair.

A peak fourteenth-tier strike… blocked so easily…

The opponent was not an ordinary Legend at all!

"Alliance… will prevail…" His bloodshot eyes stared at the self-destruct button on the control panel, muttering to himself.

However, while everyone's attention was drawn by the earth-shattering cannon shot.

In the shadows of the battlefield.

Shadow One knelt on one knee, one hand pressed to the ground, the other to the communicator by his ear.

His aura was restrained to the extreme, like a lifeless stone.

The moment Erosion of Darkness swallowed the main cannon beam, the laws of the entire space experienced a momentary, violent distortion.

Now!

A subtle, special fluctuation, carrying the fresh scent of plants.

Through Shadow One's hand pressed to the ground, and via the Sky-Peering Vine he carried.

It was instantly transmitted in a way that surpassed conventional communication.

The content of the signal was only a coordinate, and a brief message representing the highest threat level….