100: Execution of the final barrier

Star Calendar Year 100,000, zero hour, zero minute, one second.

The Blood Blade Star Domain, the Federation's toughest shield, was currently silently bathed in the suffocating pressure emanating from the advancing Imperial fleet!

That dark red light, like the last breath expelled by a dying star, dyed the entire Star Domain with an ominous bloody hue... In the underground core command room, there was a deathly silence... only the harsh buzzing of the Imperial fleet spreading like cancer cells on the holographic star map... only the frantic trembling of the energy monitor's pointer crashing towards the red limit, pounding on everyone's eardrums and nerves... "Execute the 'Final Bulwark' contingency plan!"

"You all, hold fast and await reinforcements!"

Marshal Luo Mie's hoarse yet resolute command, like two cold star cores, slammed into the silent command room, shattering the last unrealistic illusion in the hearts of all officers.

The "Final Bulwark"... these four words, in the Federation military's top-secret files, represented the most extreme, most cruel, and most desperate defense plan—

Abandon all maneuverability and outer resistance, concentrate all energy on planetary shields and underground bunkers, and hold firm until... reinforcements arrive, or perish with the fortress!

And "hold fast and await reinforcements"... under a surprise attack of such magnitude from the Empire, and with Leader Yun Xi possibly... in that context that no one dared to dwell on, these four words sounded more like cowardice!

Dead silence!

But... it lasted less than half a second!

"Marshal!!!"

A hoarse, tearful roar suddenly erupted from the communication station!

It was General Zhao Weiguo, Commander-in-Chief of the Blood Blade Star Domain Defense Fleet!

An old veteran with a grim scar on his face, who had climbed out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, a Planet-level Peak!

He suddenly stood up, and due to his excessive excitement, the alloy chair behind him slid backward with a harsh screech, shaken by his uncontrolled energy.

His eyes were bloodshot, staring intently at Luo Mie, his voice distorted by extreme emotion:

"We cannot defend! We cannot defend, Marshal!!!"

He pointed at the Imperial fleet on the star map, which was like a crimson torrent, almost ignoring the Blood Blade Star Domain's existence and rushing straight towards the Federation's heartland, his fingers trembling:

"Look! Look at them! They don't even have us in their eyes! Their target is Kunlun Star! It's our capital! It's our home!!!"

"We 'hold fast' here? Watch these scoundrels pass over us to slaughter our parents, wives, and children?! To trample our homeland?! What's the point of us defending here then?! To be cowards?!!!"

His voice, filled with indignant sorrow, echoed in the command room... igniting the suppressed anger and resolve of the other officers!

"General Zhao is right!" Another lieutenant general, responsible for the Star Domain's defensive cannon array, slammed his hand on the control panel, leaving a clear palm print on the hard alloy surface!

"Marshal! Let us go out! Even if we can only delay them for a minute! Even if we can only destroy one of their warships! It's better than watching helplessly here!!"

"The Blood Blade Star Domain's fully staffed Federation combat zone has nine billion, nine hundred ninety-nine million, nine hundred thirty-seven thousand, five hundred twenty-one soldiers! Not a single coward among us!"

A young communications officer, with a tender face but already a War God Level, forcefully wiped away the tears uncontrollably overflowing from the corners of his eyes, his voice hoarse and firm beyond his age.

"We are not afraid to die! Marshal! Let us die in battle! It's better than dying miserably underground here!!"

"You know better than us what kind of character the Empire has!"

The head of the intelligence department, a female colonel known for her composure, had also lost her usual calm at this moment.

She brought up a light screen, on which a series of shocking, top-secret video files from other Star Domains conquered by the Empire rapidly flashed by—

On the shattered remnants of planets, survivors of alien civilizations were wantonly massacred and herded like livestock.

Life-sustaining planets were transformed into breeding grounds for biological weapons, their wails seemingly still echoing through the Starry Sky.

Colony planets, drained of their core energy, turned into cold rocks... The footage finally stopped on a summary of a document leaked from within the Empire, labeled "Low-Level Civilization Processing Guide"... The cold and cruel words sent shivers down the spine of everyone who read them:

[...After conquest, prioritize eliminating all Planetary Level and above resistance forces... Screen for quality population, surviving Warrior Rank and above are used as slave labor to condense Origin Coins, the rest... can be used as biomass fuel or new weapon testing grounds... Planet resources are exploited until depletion...]

"They treat weaker civilizations ten, a hundred times more cruelly than the most greedy predators in the Star Sea!" The female colonel's voice trembled uncontrollably.

"If we let them break through our defenses and rush into our heartland, into those almost undefended colony planets..."

"Marshal! That will be Hell on Earth! It will be genocide!!!"

"We have no retreat, Marshal!"

"Behind us is our homeland! It is Kunlun!"

"Blood Blade Star can shatter! It can turn into cosmic dust! But we must never let them pass!!"

"Please give the order to attack!!!"

"Please give the order to attack!!!"

...The furious roars of men, ready to die, almost tore off the command room's dome!!!

Every face was filled with determination!

In every pair of eyes, the fire of dying with the enemy burned!!!

They were not afraid of death; they were afraid of dying without value!

They were afraid of watching everything they protected turn to dust beneath the enemy's warships!

Luo Mie stood there silently, like a statue of star iron forged for ten thousand years in raging flames.

He listened to his subordinates' tearful pleas for battle, looking at their faces, distorted by emotion yet incredibly firm... How could he not understand their feelings?

How could he not want to lead his warriors, piloting warships, like moths to a flame, rushing into that boundless torrent of destruction?!

With life and blood!!!

To carve an indelible scar belonging to Federation Soldiers on the Empire's path of advance!

He was the Blazing Flame Monarch!!!

His title was forged from the wreckage of enemy ships and their hot blood!

But... he couldn't!!!!!

In his mind, he recalled the top-secret military meeting held a month ago at the Pillar of Leaders, attended by only a very few Stellar Level core members.

At the meeting, Leader Yun Xi's calm but infinitely powerful words, like Star Sea decrees, were branded deep into his Soul:

"…If the Empire comes, let them in."

"…Blood Blade Star, and all forward strongholds, their primary mission is not to block the enemy outside the national gate, but to… preserve vital forces."

"…The Federation needs a glorious… annihilation battle! Not a… war of attrition."

"…The most important thing now is to seize every minute and second to comprehend the Law of the Universe, during the period of close proximity to the Origin of the Universe; not a second can be wasted…"

...The leader's inadvertent display of a trace of pressure, far exceeding Stellar Level Peak, which made his Soul tremble... The Sun Body Supremes, Your Highness Yue Xi and Your Highness Xuan Sha, who merely stood there and made him, a Stellar Level High-tier, feel as insignificant as dust... Yun Qinglan's even more incredible existence... He understood!

The Empire was nothing but a paper tiger!

The Blood Blade Star Domain, and even the entire front line, on the Federation's new strategic chessboard, was no longer a "shield" to be desperately defended, but rather... an ambush!

It was a rear ambush to prevent the Empire from escaping!

It was an encirclement!

It was like trapping a dog in a closed room!

The Empire thought they had seized the Federation's fatal weakness at the end of its ten-thousand-year lifespan... little did they know, they were charging headfirst into the Federation's patiently waiting, already open, giant maw capable of devouring a star arm!

In the face of such absolute power, the lives of these nearly ten billion loyal soldiers in the Blood Blade Star Domain should not be pointlessly consumed in a doomed blocking action!

Their sacrifice should be more valuable—for example, as a sharp dagger to tear apart the Empire's homeland in the final counterattack!

At this thought, all the struggle and pain in the depths of Luo Mie's lava-like eyes were replaced by a deeper, almost ruthless resolve.

He slowly raised his hand... no roar, no explanation.

Just a simple gesture.

A majestic pressure of a Stellar Level High-tier, vast as the Star Sea and hot as a constant heart, instantly enveloped the entire command room like an invisible giant palm!

That was not killing intent, but an absolute, unquestionable will!

The boiling pleas for battle, like a torrent choked at the neck, came to an abrupt halt.

All the officers, including the trembling Major General Zhao Tiezhu, felt a sudden weight around them, as if bound by invisible shackles, making even breathing difficult.

They looked in astonishment at their Marshal, at those eyes that seemed to hold the demise and Rebirth of stars.

"The military order has been given."

Luo Mie's voice was not loud, yet it resonated like colliding star cores, carrying the power to crush all doubt, clearly reaching deep into everyone's Soul.

"Execute the 'Final Bulwark' contingency plan."

"All combat units, increase energy shield power to the maximum, enter absolute defense posture."

"Ground cannon arrays, maintain silence!"

"Fleet... prohibited from launching!"

He spoke each word distinctly, every word like a heavy hammer striking the hearts of the soldiers!!!!!

"Do you think! Sacrificing yourselves here! Is that bravery?! Is that glory?!"

Luo Mie's gaze, like a cold searchlight, swept across every face filled with unwillingness, pain, and confusion.

"Foolishness!!!"

"Your lives are the property of the Federation! They are the sparks for future counterattacks! They are not cheap fuel to stuff into the barrels of Empire warships!"

He suddenly pointed at the star map, pointing at the Empire warships that, like locusts passing through, were arrogant and domineering, even deliberately adjusting their formations and making various insulting and provocative gestures toward Blood Blade Star.

"Look at them! Look at their faces, believing victory is already in their grasp!"

"They mock us for being cowardly? Mock us for not daring to fight?"

"Then let them laugh!"

A cold, utterly cruel curve appeared at the corner of Luo Mie's mouth.

"Laugh! Laugh all you want!!!"

"The harder they laugh now..."

His voice suddenly dropped, like a volcano about to erupt, containing world-destroying energy:

"...the more miserably they will fall! The more thoroughly they will die! when they discover what kind of place they've run headlong into!!!!"

"Your sacrifice should not happen here!"

"It should happen when the Empire fleet collapses and flees!"

"It should happen when we reclaim lost territory and sweep away the enemy!"

"It should happen when that damned Empire territory is crushed beneath our iron hooves!!!!"

Luo Mie's words, like a magical star curse, instantly struck the deepest core of every officer!

They were not afraid of death!

They were afraid of dying without value!!!

And the Marshal's words seemed to tear open a gap in their desperate darkness, revealing a sliver of... light??? that they couldn't understand but instinctively felt a tremor of dread and... expectation toward.

"But... Marshal..." Major General Zhao TieZhu's voice was still hoarse, but it held less grief and indignation, replaced by confusion and... a faint glimmer of hope forcibly ignited.

"Our home... Kunlun Star..."

Luo Mie interrupted him, his gaze seeming to pierce through layers of rock, projecting toward the deep starry sky currently shrouded by the Empire's shadow.

"Kunlun Star is protected by beings billions of times more powerful than us!!!"

"What we must do is believe in them! Is to survive! Survive until the moment we are needed to deliver the fatal blow!"

"This is harder, and more... important, than rushing out now to die!"

He scanned the room, watching the flames in his subordinates' eyes gradually cool from despair and impulse, only to be replaced by a different, deeper, and more resilient fire.

He knew... the morale was stabilized... "Now! Execute the order!!!"

Luo Mie's voice regained its usual composure, yet carried an undeniable decisiveness.

"Remember your anger today! Remember every second the Empire fleet strutted arrogantly above us!"

"Engrave all of this into your bones! Melt it into your blood!"

"In the future, I want you to reclaim it tenfold! Hundredfold! Ten millionfold!"

"Yes! Marshal!!!"

This time, the response was no longer a roar of grief and indignation, but a low, uniform bellow, like clashing star-iron, filled with endless humiliation and the will for revenge!

Inside the command room, the atmosphere, which had been chaotic and desperate, completely changed.

A more oppressive, yet more terrifying, silence began to spread like frozen magma... Every officer clenched their fists tightly, fingernails digging deep into their palms, blood dripping onto the control panel, yet they didn't notice.

Their gazes, like the most precise scanners, were locked onto the holographic star map, recording the identification number, formation, and energy signature of every Empire warship... They deeply and fiercely branded this humiliating scene, along with the Marshal's words, onto the deepest part of their Souls!

...Outside Blood Blade Star, the destructive torrent of the Empire continued to surge forward mightily.

Inside the command hall of the "abyssal roar" flagship, the footage of Blood Blade Star transmitted by high-precision detectors caused a burst of unconcealed, contemptuous laughter.

"Look! Those Federation cowards! They don't even dare to let out a fart!"

"Their shield is lit up like a light bulb, unfortunately, it's useless!"

"I heard the one defending this place is that 'Blazing Flame Monarch' Luo Mie? Heh, a loud name, but he's just a gutless coward!"

"He probably lost his nerve knowing Yun Xi is dead, right? He doesn't even have the courage to come out and offer symbolic resistance!"

"How boring! I originally wanted to use this hard nut to test our new 'Core Fission Cannon'!"

Empress Aisara sat high on her throne, watching the image of the planet that had curled up like a hedgehog, a flicker of disdain crossing her dark golden eyes.

"It seems Lord Aolong's deduction was spot on," she stated flatly, her tone carrying the superiority of one who controls everything.

"The Federation is terrified. Order the vanguard fleet to ignore this useless planet and advance at full speed! I shall hold the Empire's victory celebration on the ruins of Kunlun Star!"

"We respectfully obey Your Majesty's decree!!!"

The Empire fleet became even more reckless. Several massive "Tyranny Class" dreadnoughts deliberately deviated from the main route, skimming along the edge of Blood Blade Star's shield.

The energy turbulence generated by the huge hulls caused violent ripples in Blood Blade Star's shield, like giant stones dropped into a calm lake... The menacing cannon barrels on the hulls pointed intentionally or unintentionally toward Blood Blade Star's surface, full of provocation!

Even more brazenly, an Empire assault ship launched a flare toward Blood Blade Star that carried no lethality but was covered in Empire insignia and insulting graffiti.

The flare exploded on Blood Blade Star's shield, forming a giant skull pattern giving the middle finger, which slowly dissipated after several seconds... Waves of arrogant laughter and vulgar insults poured through the Empire fleet's public channel... Inside Blood Blade Star's underground command center.

Dead silence!

A silence like a tomb!

Only the heavy breathing of the officers and the grinding sound of clenched fists could be heard!

They silently expressed the monstrous rage and humiliation in their hearts!

Admiral Zhao WeiGuo bit down hard, blood seeping from his gums, staring intensely at the slowly dissipating insulting pattern on the screen, as if he wanted to devour it whole... The young intelligence officer was shaking with anger, tears welling up in his eyes, yet he stubbornly refused to let them fall... Marshal Luo Mie was expressionless, but the fiery energy field around him was now as cold as absolute zero.

He slowly raised his hand and pressed it onto an inconspicuous button on the control panel.

That was the final safety lock in the "Final Bulwark" contingency plan, authorizing the activation of the 'mutual destruction' device.

His finger gently stroked the button, as if touching the edge of death.

If he pressed it, the geocore of the Blood Blade Star Domain, along with the hundreds of billions of various 'landmines' hidden around the Star Domain, would be instantly detonated!

The resulting energy would be enough to turn all nearby Empire warships, along with himself and the nearly ten billion soldiers, into the fundamental particles of the Universe.

This was the most extreme, and most helpless, counterattack... But!

He couldn't do it!

His mission was to survive, to wait!

He slowly withdrew his finger, as if he had expended all his strength... He turned his back to the humiliating screen, his voice hoarse and low, yet carrying an iron will that spread to every corner of the command room:

"All of you... remember today."

"Remember every bit of humiliation the Empire has brought upon us!"

"This debt..."

"...will be washed away with blood in the future!!"

No one answered.

But every pair of eyes looking at his back burned with the same flame!

That flame was named hatred, named endurance, named... revenge!

The torrent of the Empire fleet finally completely bypassed Blood Blade Star... spreading rapidly like ink dropped into clear water, toward the seemingly undefended heartland of the Federation...

Blood Blade Star, this steel fortress that once symbolized the Federation's unyielding will! Now stood like a silent reef in a storm, enduring the crashing waves and mockery alone... It did not sink... It was waiting... Waiting for the inevitable... final judgment... before the dawn!

Inside the command room, Luo Mie slowly sat back down in his chair and closed his eyes.

It was as if the chaos and humiliation in the outer space had nothing to do with him.

Only his slightly trembling eyelids betrayed the monstrous, suppressed tidal wave within him, ready to erupt like a stellar core!!!

He knew that the real battle had not yet begun.

And he and his Blood Blade Star Domain had completed their... most painful, yet most critical mission... standing down... Next... is waiting for the Leader... No! And the moment the four magnificent Sun Bodies, and that unfathomably dark Luminous Body, rise!

At that time, the laughter of the Empire will turn into... the most mournful wails!!!!!