156: Second meal served

Inside the Alliance command center of Tianshu City, the atmosphere was as stifling as the dead silence before a storm.

On the holographic screens, the enthusiastic award ceremony footage was gone, replaced by the chaotic playback of the battlefield and cold reports continuously flashing and analyzing loss data.

General Chris's face was grim, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the alloy tabletop, each tap feeling like a hammer blow to everyone present.

"Tactical analysis team, what is your conclusion?" he finally spoke, his voice hoarse, carrying suppressed anger.

A chief tactical analyst, wearing deep-sensing glasses and looking somewhat neurotic, pushed up his glasses and pulled up a new data model.

"Your Excellency, General, and representatives of the various Great Cities," his voice was transmitted synchronously to the command centers of the other six cities via encrypted communication, "Based on our analysis of battlefield energy residues, material losses, and the battlefield situation, we have reached a very pessimistic, or perhaps even catastrophic, conclusion."

He paused for a moment, as if organizing his language, or perhaps gathering courage.

"The target, Lu Zhifei, or rather, the Star Core Divine Weapon she has achieved Fusion with, 'Dawn Morningstar', possesses a capability we had not previously anticipated — high-efficiency material decomposition and energy absorption conversion!"

"In short, she seems to be able to directly devour destroyed mechanical units, weaponry, and even energy cores, and convert them into power to strengthen herself. We call this — Mecha-Energy Feedback!"

"What?!"

"Are you saying... we are just sending her equipment by attacking her?!"

"How is this possible? There is no such record in the Star Spirit technology!"

Voices of doubt and exclamation erupted simultaneously from the representatives of the various Great Cities.

"We cannot determine if this is original Star Spirit technology, or if Lu Zhifei herself has performed some kind of adaptive modification on it," the analyst added with a grave expression, "But the data does not lie."

"Every failed attack, every unit destroyed or captured by her, corresponds to a slight but definite increase in the energy level of the target area."

"This means that our previous attacks not only failed to weaken her, but may have, to some extent, accelerated her mastery of the Star Core Divine Weapon and her accumulation of power!"

This conclusion, like a basin of ice water, extinguished any remaining hope in everyone's hearts.

No wonder those elite special squads were defeated so thoroughly!

No wonder that abandoned base exuded an even more dangerous aura after withstanding such fierce attacks!

"In other words," the shrewd representative of Yuheng City asked in a dry voice, "we are now caught in a dilemma?"

"If we remain stationary, she will use the time to consolidate her power; if we continue to attack, and we cannot kill her in one blow, it is equivalent to aiding the enemy?"

"Exactly," the analyst nodded. "The only way to break the deadlock is to use overwhelming force that far exceeds her current processing limit to conduct a saturation-style, continuous, multi-dimensional strike!"

"We must completely destroy or paralyze her before she can finish digesting and absorbing!"

Swift victory!

These four words were branded into the hearts of every leader of the Great Cities.

Time had become the most precious strategic resource.

And just then, the report about Lin Fei remaining stationary was mentioned again.

"Are Lin Fei and his people still not moving?" the representative of Tianquan City, a female general known for her iron-fisted approach, frowned and asked, "Has he still not realized the severity of the problem?"

"Hmph, I don't think he hasn't realized it, but rather he is simply watching the fire from the other side of the river!" General Chris snorted coldly, his tone full of dissatisfaction with Lin Fei, "He relies on his bit of reputation, and the support of the public and some military generals for his nonsense about acting cautiously, so he dares to openly delay orders!"

"People from small places just don't understand the big picture, damn it!"

"I am already thinking about relieving him of his command immediately!"

"Calm down, Your Excellency, General," the representative of Yaoguang City, a middle-aged man known for his strategic wisdom, interrupted him, "Now is not the time to assign blame."

"In fairness, before this intelligence about Mecha-Energy Feedback was confirmed, Lin Fei's caution was not entirely unreasonable."

"Rashly attacking indeed carried the risk of aiding the enemy."

"The support from the public and the military also indicates that his decision was logical at the time."

"We cannot have infighting now, and we especially cannot shake military morale at such a critical juncture."

Although these words were said tactfully, the meaning was clear — moving against Lin Fei now would not only trigger a larger public opinion storm but could even lead to unstable military morale.

General Chris's expression shifted, and he ultimately suppressed his anger, but the malice in his eyes deepened.

He knew that these people were pretending to mediate, but each had their own agenda.

Everyone knew that the only candidate left with enough prestige and the ability to unite forces to execute this thunderous strike seemed to be Lin Fei.

But how to make him willingly execute this mission that was a near-certain death sentence?

Or rather, how to secure the maximum benefits for oneself in this inevitable all-out attack?

After a suffocating silence, a more secretive encrypted communication channel, limited to the top leaders of the seven Great Cities, was quietly opened.

Without bystanders, without high-sounding excuses, all that remained was the most naked game of interests.

"Since a swift victory is the only option, there must be a protocol," the old representative of Yuheng City was the first to break the silence, "Who takes the lead? Who is responsible for the flanks? How are the spoils divided?"

"I mean, if we successfully reclaim the Star Core Divine Weapon, how should it be disposed of?"

"According to Alliance regulations, it should be returned to Tianshu City! That is our Great City's Star Core Divine Weapon. Besides, every one of your Great Cities already has one; do you want to snatch ours too?" General Chris immediately emphasized.

"Regulations are regulations, but for this operation, every city will have to invest huge resources and take risks; we can't just work for nothing, right?" the representative of Tianxuan City said insidiously.

"My suggestion is," the usually taciturn and mysterious Lord of Tianji City suddenly spoke, his voice sounding as if it came from the dark starry sky, "Whoever finally captures Dawn Morningstar will have priority usage and research rights for ten years."

"After ten years, regardless of the research progress, it must be returned to Tianshu City in its entirety."

"These ten years are enough for us to fathom some of the mysteries of the Star Spirit and bring a qualitative leap to our respective cities, which can be considered a form of compensation for our efforts."

Once this proposal was made, everyone fell silent.

Ten years!

For the ever-changing apocalypse, ten years is almost equivalent to an era!

Ten years is enough for a Great City that has mastered a Star Core Divine Weapon to leave other competitors far behind!

This was a bet full of temptation and risk!

It meant that the upcoming all-out attack would no longer be a simple joint pursuit, but a more cruel, more unscrupulous treasure hunt!

Every Great City would commit its trump card forces, because the winner would receive unimaginable returns!

Greed instantly overwhelmed all concerns and hesitation.

"I agree."

"Seconded."

"Let's do it!"

The leaders of the seven Great Cities, these big figures who controlled the fate of humanity on Saka Star, reached this agreement in the darkness.

In an instant, new orders poured out from the command centers of the seven Great Cities like a rushing flood.

It was no longer small-scale special infiltration, no longer tentative fire reconnaissance.

This time, it was the true ace legions!

Yuheng City's heavy armored cluster, like a torrent of steel, crushed the ruins along the way, the roar of engines shaking the wasteland.

Kaiyang City's aerospace tactical formation, dozens of sci-fi shaped vertical take-off and landing fighters tore through the clouds, carrying powerful air-to-ground missiles under their wings.

Yaoguang City dispatched their ace — the genetically modified biological corps; those twisted and powerful biochemical warriors, under the guidance of mental links, pounced on the target like bloodthirsty beasts.

Tianquan City's magnetic storm infantry legion, Tianxuan City's shadow assassin unit, Tianji City's space interference units...

Each Great City dispatched terrifying forces sufficient to launch a small-scale war!

Seven powerful combat corps, from different directions, like the claws of a giant beast closing in, launched the second wave of all-out attacks on that lonely abandoned base!

The clouds of war, with unprecedented density, shrouded this scorched earth.

And in that assault boat still hovering at the edge of the battlefield.

Lin Fei looked at the countless signal dots on the holographic screen representing the main forces of the seven Great Cities, which had become as lively as a festival, and the smile at the corner of his mouth grew brighter.

"Sister, look," he pointed to the screen, his tone as relaxed as if he were going to watch a grand fireworks display.

"The second course is served."