301: The Earth Federation celebrates the triumphant return of its heroes!

If sound could travel in a vacuum, the cheers erupting from Earth right now would absolutely shatter the Moon's cratered face.

This was undoubtedly the craziest day in human history.

There was no other.

Just half an hour ago, the federal government officially lifted the highest level of "Doomsday Combat Alert." In its place was a "Victory Announcement" that covered the entire Solar System.

That Fourth-level civilization, "the cleaners," which had hung over humanity's head for countless days and nights and kept countless strategists awake at night, was gone.

Not driven back, but completely erased.

At this very moment, the "Jiuzhou Port" space city in low Earth orbit was packed to the brim. Tens of thousands of private shuttles, like bees smelling nectar, swarmed the periphery of the military port.

Everyone wanted to see with their own eyes what kind of miraculous fleet it was, and what kind of invincible commander led it.

A massive holographic projection spread out in space; it was the live broadcast feed that the federal government had spent a fortune on. On the screen, a pitch-black spatial rift was slowly healing, and that black and gold fleet was slowly entering the port, covered in the smoke of battle.

The massive hull of the flagship "Xuanyuan" obscured the starlight.

Its armor still bore scorch marks from high-energy particle bombardment; to the people watching, those mottled traces were more dazzling than any medal.

"It's here! That's God Lu's personal ship!"

"My god, is that the Dragon Bone Alloy that can withstand the rule-based attacks of a Fourth-level civilization? So cool!"

"God Lu! God Lu! I want to have your babies!!"

On the ground, in Beijing, New York, London, New Tokyo... crowds surged like the ocean in front of the giant screens in every super-city. Champagne sprayed, ribbons filled the sky, people roared and embraced, and some were even so excited they fainted on the spot.

This was a wild joy of surviving a catastrophe, and even more, a supreme pride in being Earthlings.

On the port's docking bridge.

The red carpet stretched to the horizon, flanked by the elite of the Dragon Shield Bureau, standing tall with loaded weapons.

The hatch opened slowly, and with the hissing sound of the hydraulic system, white mist billowed out.

Lu Chen walked out first.

He wasn't wearing the Marshal's uniform that symbolized supreme power, just a simple black windbreaker, the collar slightly open, looking casual and lazy. But the moment he walked out, the roaring port fell into a brief, vacuum-like silence.

Aura.

It was a terrifying aura, the kind that had just slaughtered a higher civilization and still carried lingering killing intent.

Behind him, Su Qingying held his arm, cold as snow; Ye Qingcang was beaming, practically lifting his chin to the sky; Wang Peng was walking while frantically tapping his calculator, muttering to himself.

"Click, click, click—"

Countless flashes froze this moment into eternity.

A bold ace reporter from the Federation tremblingly held the microphone out to Lu Chen.

"Com-… Commander Lu! First of all, congratulations on your triumphant return! All of humanity is cheering for you!" The reporter's voice was wavering. "May I ask, how did you feel while commanding the battle against the Fourth-level civilization, "the cleaners"? Did you feel any pressure?"

Everyone held their breath.

Everyone was expecting a passionate speech, something like "For the future of humanity" or "It was a difficult decision."

Lu Chen stopped, lowered his head slightly to look at the microphone, then raised his head to look at the camera.

He blinked, and a trace of confusion appeared in his heterochromatic eyes—one gold, one white.

"Pressure?"

Lu Chen scratched his head, his tone so sincere it made people want to hit him: "Actually, there wasn't any pressure. It's just like going out to take out the trash and stepping on a cockroach that's blocking your way. Would you feel pressure?"

The whole place fell into dead silence.

One second later.

"Holy crap!!!!"

"Badass!!! God, "taking out the trash"! That's a Fourth-level civilization!"

"Versailles! This is absolutely cosmic-level Versailles!"

The crowd completely exploded. This was the Lu Chen they were familiar with, the man who always had "arrogance" carved on his forehead but could always deliver on his boasts.

Lu Chen waved his hand, not wanting to waste any more words, and pulled Su Qingying to walk inside.

Wang Peng's chubby body squeezed over nimbly, lowering his voice to wail in Lu Chen's ear:

"Brother Chen! My dear brother! Say a few more words! That "taking out the trash" line was cool, but it's not commercial enough! You should have mentioned our upcoming limited edition "the cleaners" remains figurines and the "Xuanyuan" co-branded mecha!"

Lu Chen glanced at him sideways: "Fatty, are you obsessed with money? You've already emptied the tech tree of a Fourth-level civilization, isn't that enough for you to make money?"

"This is called IP monetization! You don't understand!" Wang Peng said heartbrokenly, "Do you know how many people were watching the livestream just now? Twenty billion! The whole Milky Way Galaxy was watching! If you'd advertised then, the effect would have been…"

"Get lost."

Lu Chen scolded him with a laugh and kicked him: "You're paying for the victory banquet tonight. If you dare to use low-quality liquor to fool me, I'll send you to a mining star to dig coal."

Wang Peng immediately put on a fawning smile: "How could I! I've already prepared '82 Moutai… I mean, '82 Lafite, and the Hundred-Flower Brew I got from the Elves, enough for everyone!"

The group chatted and laughed as they pushed through the crazy crowd and boarded the special train to the surface.

As the elevator descended rapidly, the brilliant galaxy in space gradually moved away, replaced by the blue atmosphere and the familiar sea of clouds.

Inside the private compartment of the special train, the noise outside was cut off.

As the excitement faded, the atmosphere gradually became quiet.

Ye Qingcang looked at the clouds flying past the window, the excitement on his face slowly fading, replaced by a gravity typical of a veteran.

"Commander Lu."

Ye Qingcang hesitated, then spoke, "Although I spoke lightly in front of those reporters, my heart… still feels a bit uneasy."

Lu Chen leaned on the sofa, fiddling with a core crystal he had taken from the flagship of "the cleaners." The crystal turned between his fingertips, emitting a faint blue light.

"Are you worried about the forces behind "the cleaners"?" Lu Chen didn't even lift his head.

"Yes." Ye Qingcang nodded. "The signal sent by that liquid commander before it died was intercepted by heavenly craft, but no one can guarantee if it leaked out. And… above the Fourth-level civilization, there are Fifth-level, or even the legendary God-level civilizations."

"Especially that "Supervisor"." Long Weiguo also added in a deep voice. "Our active strike this time, while it hurt them, also completely exposed our location and strength. The nail that sticks out gets hammered down."

Su Qingying sat on the side, peeling an orange for Lu Chen. Hearing this, her hand paused slightly, but she quickly resumed.

She knew Lu Chen too well.

This man never gambled without a backup plan.

Lu Chen suddenly clenched the crystal in his hand.

"Crack."

The incredibly hard Higher Dimensions crystal shattered directly into powder, slipping through his fingers.

He raised his head, the smile in his eyes completely disappeared, replaced by a cold, murderous intent.

"Old Ye, Uncle Long."

Lu Chen's voice was very soft, but it exploded like thunder in the enclosed carriage.

"Do you think if we hide in the Milky Way Galaxy and play the coward, that "Supervisor" will let us go?"

The two were silent.

"No." Lu Chen answered himself. "In their eyes, we are just bacteria in a petri dish. If the bacteria grow too strong, they spray some insecticide. That is their logic."

"So whether it's the nail that sticks out gets hammered down, or playing the pig to eat the tiger, the result is the same."

Lu Chen stood up and walked to the window, looking at the increasingly clear outline of the Earth below.

It was a vibrant planet, and also their only home.

"Since we can't hide, then let's flip the table."

Lu Chen turned around, a crazy arc curling the corner of his mouth. "heavenly craft is already parsing the data in that crystal. If I'm not mistaken, it's not just a radar, but a… map."

"A map?" Wang Peng was stunned, forgetting to gnaw on his chicken leg. "What map?"

Lu Chen pointed to the sky.

"A map to the outside of the "cage"."

"The Supervisor doesn't want us to go out, but I insist on going out."

"And…"

Lu Chen's voice lowered further, carrying a hint of mysterious temptation.

"Aren't you curious? Outside this cosmic bubble, in the places where those so-called higher-dimensional beings live, what secrets are hidden? Perhaps…"

"That is the true "reality"."

Just then, the compartment door was knocked.

heavenly craft's voice came over the broadcast, with a rare hint of urgency:

"Father, officers."

"In the data just parsed, a deeply hidden message was found."

"It was not sent to the headquarters of "the cleaners", but to… Earth."

Everyone's faces changed instantly.

Lu Chen's eyes narrowed: "Read it."

heavenly craft's voice paused, as if confirming the accuracy of the information, and then a cold, mechanical, yet eerily familiar voice echoed in the carriage:

"**Congratulations, experimental subject No. 9832.**"

"**You have passed the preliminary screening.**"

"**The game, officially begins.**"