145: You are a guest from afar, let’s enjoy the fireworks first.

Lin Mo’s finger lightly tapped on the cluster of buildings labeled “Energy Supply Center.”

The action was calm and unruffled, yet it was as if a god had placed a chess piece on the board, destined to overturn mountains and rivers.

Gu Zhixia’s pupils suddenly contracted.

Her tactical thinking, like a bolt of lightning, instantly caught up with Lin Mo’s rhythm, and an incredibly audacious battle plan roared into formation in her mind.

“You mean…”

Her voice carried a slight tremor, born of extreme excitement, that she herself hadn’t noticed.

“We ignore the three hundred orbital cannons, ignore the entiregarrison fleet, and even disregard that indestructible energy shield…”

“Directly attack this energy center, which appears to have the weakest defenses?”

“Yes.”

Lin Mo’s answer was concise and clear, as if stating an undeniable truth.

His gaze, like the most precise probe, penetrated layers of building models, reaching the hidden, most fatal vulnerability within.

“The ‘World Tree’ mode’s deep scan results for this planet show that underground, enough high-concentration radioactive fuel to power this industrial zone for a hundred years is sealed.”

“Every fuel rod is a miniature dirty bomb waiting to be detonated.”

The corner of his mouth curved into an extremely cold arc.

His eyes, not like a devil’s, but more like a higher being about to judge a devil.

“Light it up.”

“We might get to enjoy… the grandest fireworks display in history.”

“Fireworks?”

This word, like a sensitive tendril, instantly plucked at the heartstrings of a certain Little Girl who loved snacks.

Nianqiu had, at some point, finished her cleanup in the kitchen, and was now hugging her beloved carrot pillow, poking her small head out from behind the commander’s chair.

In her big, watery eyes, there was no fear of war, only pure curiosity and longing for an unknown spectacle.

“Brother Mo, are we going to set off fireworks?”

“Are they the kind that ‘whoosh—’ fly really, really high, then ‘bang!’ explode into lots and lots of little stars?”

As she spoke, she gestured with her small hands in the air, earnestly mimicking the blooming of fireworks.

This innocent and naive demeanor formed an absurd yet strange harmony with the tense, imminent atmosphere on the Bridge.

Gu Zhixia helplessly rubbed her forehead, having completely given up on treating her sister’s brain, which could wander off at any time, anywhere.

Lin Mo looked at the Little Girl’s expectant face, and a corner of the coldness in his eyes, enough to freeze stars, quietly melted.

He reached out and habitually ruffled that fluffy small head.

“Don’t rush.”

“The show is about to begin.”

His voice returned to its emotionless calm, as if what was about to happen was not a raid that would determine the Life and death of countless people, but merely a performance to fulfill a Little Girl’s wish.

He sat back on his throne, his slender fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

That action was setting the rhythm for the symphony of destruction about to play.

“Having come a long way, we should at least knock.”

As his words fell, a cold command was directly issued to the Natural Selection’s weapon core.

“Electromagnetic main cannon, lock on to the Energy Center.”

“Fire.”

No superfluous words.

Above the hull, covered in smooth armor, a main cannon’s muzzle silently slid open, revealing a barrel so deep it seemed to devour light.

The next second, a hyper-condensed torrent of metal, moving at terrifying sub-light speed, tore through the dark red sky!

It trailed a long ion plume, generated by intense friction with the atmosphere, like a spear of judgment from the realm of gods, accurately and brutally smashing towards that seemingly inconspicuous Energy Center!

However, just an instant before the projectile was about to hit its target!

Buzz—

A pale blue energy shield, like an inverted giant bowl, instantly unfurled above the entire “Purgatory Furnace”!

Boom!!!

A deafening roar finally exploded over this dead industrial wasteland!

The electromagnetic cannon shell slammed squarely into the shield, its terrifying kinetic energy transforming into a fiery energy surge over a kilometer in diameter, raging wildly!

The entire shield violently shook, its surface rippling like water, but it ultimately withstood this terrifying blow, capable of instantly vaporizing a cruiser!

Piercing alarms, at this moment, finally echoed throughout the entire “Purgatory Furnace”!

Countless dormant turrets rose from underground, their dark muzzles all turning towards the sky, locking onto the black warship hovering like an ominous cloud.

An arrogant voice, amplified by a loudspeaker and imbued with an industrial metallic texture, reverberated across the sky like rolling thunder:

“Unknown intruders, your attack is meaningless. This is Leviathan’s ‘Purgatory Furnace,’ the forging ground of order. Now, kneel and state your names; perhaps you might still earn a chance to survive as slave labor.”

“Shield strength is much higher than the database estimate.” Gu Zhixia frowned slightly, looking at the stable shield energy readings on the tactical sand table. “They recently upgraded their shield generators; conventional physical strikes will be difficult to be effective.”

She turned to Lin Mo, her phoenix eyes burning with fighting spirit, filled with eagerness.

“Let me deploy. After the ‘Thunder Dragon’ upgrade, I am confident I can find and destroy their shield nodes within three minutes!”

She was already impatient to unleash the god-slaying frenzy in her heart upon these so-called “dogs of the gods”!

“No need.”

Lin Mo shook his head, those two understated words carrying an absolutely reassuring confidence.

He looked at the blue shield, still holding firm amidst the aftershocks of the cannon fire, and instead of solemnity, a hint of playfulness appeared in his eyes.

“Physical attacks are just an appetizer.”

“To confirm how tough their turtle shell really is.”

“Since conventional knocking doesn’t work…” He paused, the curve of his mouth becoming dangerous and mad.

“Then… let’s add some fuel to the fire.”

As this thought arose, the entire Natural Selection began a violent, astonishing transformation!

On the smooth, obsidian-like surface of the hull, dark golden patterns, like molten gold, were forcibly branded by some invisible force!

These patterns were no longer the Life and verdant green of the “World Tree” mode, but were filled with pure, tyrannical, destructive power!

The lights on the Bridge, from a soft, ethereal blue, instantly switched to a scorching, dark gold, as if being inside the core of a star!

The entire warship, as if transforming from an ancient god representing Life and protection, became a fiery beast from primeval Purgatory, wielding the authority to incinerate all things!

Lin Mo’s voice, like the final oracle from a fiery divine throne, slowly echoed on the Bridge, every word carrying a scorching temperature.

“Natural Selection, switch form—”

“zhurong!”