148: Chapter 148 Luring the Enemy into a Trap, Entering the Void

The smoke of battle over Shattered Star Gorge had not yet dissipated, and Zhou Zhiting stood upon the debris, overlooking the battlefield.

The corpses of 150,000 Void Clan members littered the gorge, their black blood converging into rivers.

The soldiers of the Realm Guardian Army were cleaning the battlefield, gathering spoils of war, and treating the wounded.

Zhou Zhiting's communication talisman vibrated incessantly, with messages of congratulation pouring in from various realms.

She replied to them one by one, yet her gaze remained fixed blankly on the terrain of Shattered Star Gorge.

Though this battle was won, it had come at a heavy price.

Out of the 80,000 Realm Guardian Army soldiers, only 40,000 remained fit for battle.

If the Void Clan were to attack once more, the Eastern Front would surely be breached.

She had to think of a more thorough solution.

She summoned her deputy general and several veterans from the Investigation Department.

"Tell me, why does the Void Clan come in an endless stream?"

An investigation veteran replied, "Because their lair is on the other side of the rift."

"As long as their lair remains undestroyed, they can reinforce indefinitely."

Zhou Zhiting nodded; this was precisely the problem that worried her.

"Then can we strike across and wipe out their lair?"

The crowd looked at each other in dismay; this idea was far too bold.

The deputy general hesitated and said, "General, the situation on the other side of the rift is unknown."

"If we rashly enter, I fear we will face more misfortune than good."

Zhou Zhiting pondered for a moment and said slowly,

"I know the dangers, but passive defense is not a long-term solution."

"If we can find the Void Clan's lair and destroy it in one fell swoop—"

"—then the Eastern Front can truly find peace."

The investigation veteran suddenly spoke up.

"General, this subordinate has an idea."

"We can use the reverse of the luring-the-enemy tactic."

"We can intentionally let a small faction of the Void Clan return."

"Then track them to find the location of their lair."

A light flashed in Zhou Zhiting's eyes; this was a good idea.

"Tell me the specifics."

The investigation veteran unfolded a simple map.

"On the other side of the rift, there must be a stronghold of the Void Clan."

"After these small squads retreat in defeat, they will surely flee back to their stronghold."

"We can leave a tracking mark on them."

"Once they flee back, the mark will lead us to the stronghold."

Zhou Zhiting nodded repeatedly; this plan was feasible.

She immediately issued an order to select several investigative Disciples who excelled at tracking.

They prepared special tracking marks, guided by the Power of Chaos.

This type of mark was extremely concealed, making it very difficult for the Void Clan to detect.

Next came waiting for the right opportunity.

Three days later, the rift showed abnormal activity once more.

A force of about 5,000 Void Clan members surged out from the rift.

Instead of attacking directly, they wandered around.

It seemed they were probing the strength of the Realm Guardian Army.

Zhou Zhiting sneered; they were here to scout the path.

She gave the order to proceed according to plan.

The frontal defense line feigned weakness and deliberately opened a gap.

The Void Clan rejoiced and charged deep into the defense line.

Only to be tightly surrounded within the preset trap area.

After half an hour of fierce battle, more than half of the Void Clan members were dead or injured.

The remaining battered troops fought desperately to break through.

The Realm Guardian Army intentionally let them escape.

Tracking marks had already been quietly planted on the fleeing Void Clan members.

The investigative Disciples held their breath and concentrated, sensing the movement of the marks.

"General, they have fled back to the rift!"

"The marks are still moving, penetrating deeper into the other side of the rift!"

Zhou Zhiting was overjoyed and immediately dispatched people to follow up.

Several investigative Disciples quietly infiltrated the rift.

Following the trajectory of the marks, they tracked them all the way.

The other side of the rift was a hazy, gray space.

The space was permeated with Void energy that corroded everything.

The investigative Disciples protected their bodies with special Magical Artifacts and cautiously moved forward.

After tracking for a full day, they finally found the Void Clan's stronghold.

That was a gigantic black planet suspended in the Void Realm.

The surface of the planet was densely packed with the nests of the Void Clan.

Between the nests, countless Void Clan members came and went.

At the center of the planet stood a massive black palace.

The palace exuded a terrifying Void energy that far surpassed the previous Void Emperor.

The investigative Disciples dared not approach, recording the location from afar.

Then they quietly retreated and returned to the Meteor Minor Realm.

After hearing the report, Zhou Zhiting was both shocked and delighted.

What shocked her was that the Void Clan's lair was so massive, far exceeding her imagination.

What delighted her was that they had finally found their lair and could take the initiative to attack.

She immediately sent a communication talisman message to Black Stone City, reporting this discovery to Ling Shuang.

Upon receiving the message, Ling Shuang was also immensely shocked.

She immediately summoned Song Xinghe to discuss countermeasures.

Looking at the rough sketch drawn by the investigative Disciples, Song Xinghe furrowed his brows tightly.

"This black planet should be the mother star of the Void Clan."

"The palace at the center of the planet likely houses the Void Emperor."

"An existence a tier higher than the Void Emperor."

Ling Shuang's heart sank: the Void Emperor.

That was a legendary existence capable of swallowing Star Domains.

If it were to personally make a move, no one in the alliance could stop it.

Song Xinghe continued his analysis.

"However, we cannot sit back and wait for it to attack."

"We must take the initiative to attack while it has not fully awakened."

"Destroy its mother star and eradicate the roots of the problem."

Ling Shuang nodded; although this plan was risky, it was their only chance of survival.

She immediately sent a communication talisman message to Zhou Zhiting, telling her to prepare for the expedition.

At the same time, she mobilized elites from various realms to form an expeditionary army.

Ten days later, the 30,000-strong expeditionary army had finished assembling.

Commanded by Zhou Zhiting, they carried a large quantity of realm core crystals and destructive weapons.

Their target was the Void Clan's mother star, to destroy it in one fell swoop.

Before their departure, Ling Shuang came to see them off personally.

"Zhiting, this trip is fraught with extreme danger."

"You must be careful; if things become impossible, retreat immediately."

Zhou Zhiting nodded solemnly.

"Rest assured, I will return alive."

The 30,000-strong army boarded the star skiffs and majestically sailed toward the rift.

Crossing through the rift, they entered that hazy, gray space.

The investigative Disciples led the way, advancing toward the Void Clan's mother star.

Along the way, Void Clan patrols continuously appeared.

With thunderous momentum, the expeditionary army quickly wiped them out, leaving no survivors.

They absolutely could not let the news leak and give the Void Clan a chance to prepare.

After five days of sailing, the Void Clan's mother star finally appeared in their field of vision.

The black planet was unimaginably huge, a hundred times larger than Black Stone City.

On the surface of the planet, countless Void Clan members were active.

They seemed unaware of the expeditionary army's arrival.

Zhou Zhiting gave the order for the entire army to conceal themselves and wait for the right moment.

Late at night, the Void Clan's mother star fell into a deep slumber.

The expeditionary army quietly approached and set up a destructive grand array.

Using 360 realm core crystals as the foundation, they channeled the Power of Chaos.

Once activated, the grand array would detonate the entire mother star.

Setting up the array lasted for a full three hours.

When the final realm core crystal was embedded into the array base,

Zhou Zhiting took a deep breath and gave the order to activate it.

"Destructive Grand Array, rise!"

360 beams of light lit up simultaneously, intertwining into a net.

The entire mother star was shrouded within the light.

The Void Clan members jolted awake from their slumber, shrieking frantically.

But it was already too late; the grand array had fully activated.

The Power of Chaos detonated the core of the mother star.

An earth-shattering roar echoed out.

The entire black planet exploded with a deafening roar.

Countless Void Clan members turned to ashes in the explosion.

That black palace also collapsed in the explosion.

From the depths of the palace came a terrifying roar.

That was the dying scream of the Void Emperor.

Before it could fully awaken, it was thoroughly buried.

The soldiers of the expeditionary army cheered with jubilation.

The Void Clan's mother star was destroyed.

The Void Emperor was dead.

The threat of the Void Clan was completely lifted.

Zhou Zhiting stood upon the star skiff, gazing at the aftermath of the explosion.

An indescribable emotion surged in her heart.

It was finally over.

The Eastern Front had truly found peace.

She sent a communication talisman message to report the victory to Ling Shuang.

Upon receiving the news, Ling Shuang burst into tears.

"We have won… We have completely won…"

Within Black Stone City, the commoners cheered once more.

This time, it was more fervent than ever before.

Because from this moment on, the Void Clan no longer existed.

The Realm Guardian Army expeditionary army returned in triumph.

Zhou Zhiting walked at the very front, the smoke of battle still clinging to her battle armor.

The citizens lined the streets to welcome them, with fresh flowers scattering across the roads.

Ling Shuang greeted them personally at the Star Port, tightly embracing Zhou Zhiting.

"You have worked hard, you have done it."

Zhou Zhiting shook her head and looked out at the citizens filling the city.

"I did not do this alone."

"It was all the soldiers, all the Guardians."

"Everyone achieved this together."

Bai Yunzhou, currently in the Eternal Forbidden Zone, also received the news.

He looked at the communication talisman and revealed a gratified smile.

The Void Clan had finally been completely resolved.

Next, only the Ash-Eater Clan remained.

He turned around and continued deeper into the forbidden zone.

The Law of Creation—he must find it.