131: A ruthless dictatorship suppresses rebellion; the star core backfires, devouring talented individuals.

Chapter 134: Iron-Blooded Dictatorship Suppresses Rebellion, Star Core Backlash Devours Talent

Countdown: 59 days, 18 hours.

The wartime dictatorship order from the East Sea Base exploded like a thunderclap in every corner of the Five Major Settlement Areas.

In the administrative hall of the Southwest Purification Zone, Li Jianguo's face turned ashen as he looked at Lin Zhou's icy gaze on the communicator. Behind him, officials were in a heated argument. Some advocated for immediate grain delivery, while others insisted on holding out: "Our Southwest feeds 70% of the nation. If we give up our rations now and the Northern Border defense line fails, are we supposed to live on air?"

"Lin Zhou has gone mad! He even dared to bomb South of the Ranges; he really will lead troops to attack us!"

Li Jianguo slammed the table: "Pass down my order: close all cross-district grain routes, activate the Southwest self-preservation plan, and have the defense forces guard the entrance to Sichuan! I want to see if Lin Zhou dares to fire upon his own compatriots!"

The rebellion in the Southwest erupted almost the instant the dictatorship order was issued.

Meanwhile, in the command room of the East Sea Base, Lin Zhou had just hung up the communication with the Southwest when the dark purple patterns on his left arm surged up to his neck. The intense pain made his vision darken, and the Purification Warblade in his hand nearly slipped. Chen Hao rushed forward to support him: "Commander, the dark matter residue has already spread to your carotid artery. You can't use your energy anymore!"

"I won't die yet." Lin Zhou pushed him away, his eyes as fierce as knives. "Notify the Red Alert tank clusters to finish assembling within one hour. Target: the outer defense line of the Southwest Purification Zone. Tell Li Jianguo: either open the grain routes before the tanks arrive, or I will blast them open with the magnetic storm cannons!"

"But Commander, the Southwest is our grain-producing region. If we really start a war, the food shortage will only get worse!" Chen Hao said urgently.

"What we lack now isn't grain, it's the people's hearts!" Lin Zhou's voice carried a bloodthirsty decisiveness. "South of the Ranges betrayed us, and the Southwest is rebelling. If we don't make an example out of them, the remaining three districts will waver! When that happens, we'll collapse on our own before the Abyss even makes a move!"

Just as the red alert units were ready to move, an emergency communication came from the Northern Border underground palace—Lin Xiaoyu's star core connection had suffered a fatal backlash!

In front of the stone tower in the underground palace, Lin Xiaoyu's body was convulsing. Golden Star Core Energy surged through him like violent electrical currents. His skin was covered in spiral patterns identical to those on the stone tower, his eyes were hollow, and non-human roars continuously escaped his throat. Dr. Mary tried to suppress it with purification medicine, but she was thrown back by an energy wave, slamming heavily into the rock wall and coughing up blood.

"The ancient will of the star core is too strong! He can't hold on!" Dr. Mary clutched her chest, her voice hoarse. "If this continues, he will be completely consumed and turned into an energy puppet without self-awareness!"

Ivan Lin held Lin Xiaoyu tightly, tears mixing with sweat as they fell: "Xiaoyu! Wake up! Look at me!"

Lin Xiaoyu snapped his eyes open, his pupils having turned completely golden. He shoved Ivan Lin aside and rushed toward the Star Core Crystal at the top of the stone tower with startling speed, the energy waves around him shattering all the nearby research equipment.

"Not good! He's trying to forcibly fuse with the Star Core Crystal!" Dr. Mary cried out.

Once the fusion was complete, Lin Xiaoyu would vanish entirely, replaced by an energy entity controlled by the ancient will. The energy of the Star Core Crystal would also spiral out of control, detonating the mineral vein prematurely and allowing the Abyssal Fleet to seize the energy source without effort.

Far away in the East Sea, Lin Zhou saw this scene through quantum communication, and his heart felt as if it were being squeezed by an invisible hand. He spun around and shouted into the communicator: "Dr. Mary! Use the dark matter inhibitor! Even if it damages his nerves, you must pull him back from the Star Core Crystal!"

"No! The dark matter inhibitor will accelerate his mutation!" Dr. Mary countered.

"There's no time!" Lin Zhou's voice carried a desperate roar. "Either save him and let everyone die, or sacrifice him to buy time for the defense system to activate! Choose one!"

Dr. Mary watched Lin Xiaoyu, who had already climbed halfway up the stone tower, and her tears overflowed. She tremblingly picked up a dark purple potion. This was an inhibitor refined from Abyssal dark matter. Once injected, even if Lin Xiaoyu survived, he might lose his sanity forever and become a mutated being that only knew destruction.

"I'm sorry..." Dr. Mary closed her eyes and pressed the remote injection button.

The dark purple potion flowed along the energy conduits within Lin Xiaoyu's body. He let out a piercing scream as his golden pupils were instantly overtaken by dark purple. His body fell from the stone tower, crashing heavily onto the ground. After a few convulsions, he went completely still.

The energy fluctuations of the Star Core Crystal finally returned to stability.

Dr. Mary rushed over and tremblingly checked his breathing—he was still alive. But his skin was now covered in a web of dark purple and golden patterns, like a bizarre totem. His breath was so weak it could be extinguished at any moment.

"Commander, Lin Xiaoyu is temporarily stabilized, but..." Dr. Mary's voice choked up, "he may never wake up again."

Lin Zhou stood with his back to everyone, his shoulders shaking violently. He knew he had made a decision that was correct, yet incredibly cruel.

At that moment, news came from the Southwest: "Commander! The Red Alert tank clusters have reached the Southwest perimeter. Li Jianguo still refuses to open the grain routes. He says... he will live and die with the Southwest!"

Lin Zhou slowly turned around. The dark purple patterns on his left arm had already spread to his cheek, and there was no warmth left in his eyes.

"Prepare the magnetic storm cannons."

"Commander!" Chen Hao was so anxious that tears fell. "Those are our compatriots!"

"In the face of the apocalypse, there are no compatriots, only those who can survive and those who hold us back." Lin Zhou's voice was as cold as ice. "Fire! Blast their defense towers first. I want to see how long Li Jianguo can keep up his tough act!"

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Three magnetic storm shells whistled through the air, carrying blue arcs of destruction as they precisely struck the defense towers on the Southwest perimeter. The massive explosions shook heaven and earth, and the defense towers collapsed, kicking up clouds of dust.

In the Southwest administrative hall, Li Jianguo's face was as pale as paper as he watched the collapsing towers on the screen. The officials behind him were already shivering, and someone knelt on the spot: "Director Li, let's surrender! We can't beat the red alert units!"

"We can't surrender!" Li Jianguo roared. "Lin Zhou has become a dictator! Even if we hand over the grain, he won't let us off!"

Just then, an emergency alarm came from the direction of the Southwest grain fields: "Director! It's bad! The dark matter contamination has spread to the main grain area. Tens of thousands of acres of rice paddies have withered. We... we have no more grain!"

Li Jianguo's body went limp, and he slumped into his chair.

The grain he was so proud of, the capital he used to oppose Lin Zhou, was powerless in the face of dark matter contamination.

"Pass my order... open the grain routes." Li Jianguo's voice was desperately raspy. "Tell Lin Zhou we will hand over the grain, but please... save the people of the Southwest."

The Southwest rebellion came to an end in a tragic fashion.

In the command room of the East Sea Base, Lin Zhou watched the Southwest grain routes open on the screen, his face expressionless. He walked to the window and looked at the distant sea horizon. The pain in his left arm grew more intense, and his consciousness began to blur.

Chen Hao handed over a medical report: "Commander, your mutation level has reached 70%. The medical team recommends immediate Star Core Energy treatment, otherwise..."

"Save the treatment energy for the defense system," Lin Zhou interrupted him. "I can still hold on."

His gaze fell upon the vital signs monitor for Lin Xiaoyu on the holographic sand table. That weak, straight line was like a needle piercing his heart.

Countdown: 59 days, 12 hours.

The Southwest grain routes were opened, the workers in the Northwest Heavy Industry Zone finally had food, and the development of the Star Core Magnetic Storm Cannon began to accelerate. The betrayal of the Lingnan Coastal Area had not yet triggered a chain reaction; the other three districts did not dare to make any further moves under Lin Zhou's iron-fisted methods. Lin Xiaoyu lay in a medical pod in the Northern Border, his life hanging by a thread.

But the crisis was far from over.

On the holographic sand table, the speed of the Abyssal Fleet suddenly increased.

Dr. Mary's voice rang out again, filled with unprecedented panic: "Commander! The Abyssal Fleet has activated their warp engines! Their arrival time... has been moved up to 30 days!"

30 days.

It was cut exactly in half from the original time.

Lin Zhou snapped his head up, looking at the dark purple fleet drawing closer on the screen. A tragic smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"That's fine."

"It saves me from further suffering."

Outside the window, the setting sun sank below the sea horizon, and darkness began to shroud the earth.

Countdown: 30 days, 0 hours.