Fortification and consolidation of power

The aftermath of the annihilation of the Tianyan Alliance's vanguard unit was like a giant boulder thrown into a stagnant pool; its ripples slowly spread through the deathly silent Void Realm of the Desolate Star Sector, only to be swallowed by an even deeper silence.

There was no immediate, more violent retaliation as expected.

Perhaps the Seventh Division needed time to confirm the loss of contact with their vanguard unit, or perhaps there were other unknown considerations, but it gave Nidao Fortress a precious respite and time to digest.

Inside Nidao Fortress, the post-battle atmosphere was not relaxed but rather more condensed and solemn.

The joy of victory had long been diluted by Nightmare's cold orders and the pressing reality.

In the main control room, Nightmare stood before the star chart, with Stone Firm, Iron Edge, and Sand Shadow standing behind him, along with Blood Fang, who had just been invited in, his face still bearing the relief of surviving a disaster mixed with deep awe.

Although we won this battle, it exposed quite a few problems. Nightmare's voice was calm but carried unquestionable authority.

The fortress's defensive Formation is adequate for dealing with Late Stage Middle Sovereigns, but if the newcomers are stronger or more numerous, there will inevitably be risks.

The Silver Halberd Guards' combined attack Formation has its merits; if they hadn't been in such a rush to break the Formation, allowing me to seize their weakness, the assault would have consumed even more.

He tapped his finger lightly on the star chart, and virtual models of energy flow appeared around the light point representing Nidao Fortress.

Take sixty percent of the origin crystals plundered from the Golden Yan Protector and the Silver Halberd Guards and immediately integrate them into the fortress's core defensive Formation and the Reverse Path Annihilation Array nodes.

Focus on strengthening energy absorption, conversion efficiency, and regional spatial interference capabilities specifically against combined attack Formations.

Yes! My Lord! Stone Firm bowed to accept the order; he was now responsible for the management and optimization of the fortress's internal Formations.

Hand over the warship wreckage and captured weapons to Iron Edge.

Those that can be repaired and modified should be incorporated into the Nidao Guards fleet sequence.

For those that cannot be utilized, refine them into Materials to replenish the fortress's losses.

Iron Edge replied in a deep voice: Understood.

In this battle, the Blood Fang unit performed well in harassment and stalling, but it also exposed your flaws: being undisciplined, cowardly, and inconsistent in following orders. Nightmare's gaze turned to Blood Fang, who was standing to the side, not daring to breathe.

Blood Fang stiffened and quickly knelt on one knee: This subordinate is incompetent! Please punish me, My Lord!

Punishment? Nightmare said indifferently, Merit should be rewarded, and faults should be punished.

Your unit suffered losses in this battle, so compensation will be doubled as per standard practice.

But... He changed the subject, At the beginning of the integration, I tolerated the bandit nature and lack of discipline in you all because you were familiar with this place.

Now, the Tianyan Alliance knows of my existence, and those who come next will only be fiercer and more ruthless.

Nidao Fortress does not raise trash, nor does it raise two-faced snakes that might bite back at critical moments.

His gaze swept past Blood Fang, also seeming to pierce through the fortress walls to see those former pirates outside who had just experienced a great battle and had varied thoughts.

Stone Firm, Iron Edge, Sand Shadow, the three of you take a team of Nidao Guards and assist Blood Fang in reorganizing his troops. Nightmare ordered, his tone cold as iron.

All Cultivators must be re-registered, their Divine Souls checked, and a basic monitoring brand planted.

Select those who are brave and loyal (or at least too afraid of death to betray) and mix them with the existing Nidao Guards to form the Nidao Vanguard Battalion, Blood Fang will act as the battalion commander for now, reporting directly to me.

Anyone who refuses to obey, harbors ulterior motives, or whose cultivation and character are beyond saving... Nightmare paused, then spat out two words: Eliminate them.

Eliminate, not expel.

On the edge of this perilous Middle Universe Domain, expulsion was equivalent to sending intelligence to the enemy; only complete eradication was safe.

Blood Fang's forehead seeped cold sweat, and he quickly said: My Lord, you are wise! This subordinate will definitely cooperate with the three Lords and reorganize with all my strength! I will not let a single parasite remain in the battalion!

I hope so. Nightmare stopped looking at him and turned to Sand Shadow.

You are meticulous and skilled in intelligence.

While reorganizing, take people to carefully search all battlefield wreckage, especially the personal belongings of the Golden Yan Protector and those Silver Halberd Protectors.

Confiscate and carefully screen any items bearing the Tianyan Alliance's mark or that might be related to their internal information.

Understood, My Lord! A sharp glint flashed in Sand Shadow's eyes.

Once the orders were given, the entire Nidao Fortress, along with the pirate fleet temporarily stationed on the periphery, immediately began to operate efficiently.

Deep inside the fortress, in the core energy room, mountains of origin crystals (mainly intermediate crystals captured from the Golden Yan Protector and warship energy cabins) emitting pure fluctuations were carefully transported by Nidao Guards to the Formation nodes.

Stone Firm personally operated them, using the Reverse Path runes taught by Nightmare as a guide, guiding the energy of these crystals thread by thread into the fortress's defensive system.

The dark golden Formation patterns were like being injected with fresh blood; the light became more solid and profound, and as it circulated, it faintly carried stronger devouring and chaotic characteristics.

In the dock area outside the fortress, Iron Edge led a group of Nidao Guards proficient in Artifact Refining and engineering to dismantle and study the captured wreckage of the Tianyan Alliance warships.

The main warships of the Silver Halberd Guards had excellent structures, with defense and firepower far exceeding the junk of the Blood Fang Pirate Group.

Although they were heavily damaged, the core components and armor Materials still had great value.

The harsh sounds of cutting and forging were incessant, and repaired or modified weapons and armor were being reassembled onto the Nidao Guards' assault ships.

And the most lively yet most oppressive place was the temporary camp where the former pirates gathered.

Stone Firm, Iron Edge, and Sand Shadow brought fifty Nidao Guards with cold auras and sharp eyes, like three bone-scraping steel knives, inserting themselves into the middle of this mob.

Registration and checking the cultivation Foundation were just the first step.

More importantly, Sand Shadow personally took action, cooperating with a secret technique derived from the Dao Reversal Origin obtained from Nightmare, to scan and brand the Divine Soul of every pirate.

This brand was not the total life control that Blood Fang had, but a more covert monitoring mark.

Once planted, if their emotions fluctuated violently (such as intense hostility or thoughts of betrayal) or if they attempted to contact specific targets (such as Tianyan Alliance Cultivators), an alarm would be triggered.

The process was not smooth sailing.

There were always pirates who prided themselves on their cultivation, were hard to tame, or still had secret connections with the outside world, attempting to resist or muddle through.

The result was without suspense.

When three minor leaders who tried to incite a mutiny, whose cultivation had reached the Peak of the Elementary Sovereign, were killed on the spot by Stone Firm with thunderous means, their Divine Souls burned into nothingness by the Nidao Demonic Flame in full view of everyone; when five dark stakes discovered by Sand Shadow to still be in regular contact with an unknown force outside the star sector were personally crippled and executed by Iron Edge after soul-searching amidst screams...

Blood and iron-fisted methods were more persuasive than any words.

The remaining pirates, looking at the three corpses that quickly turned to fly ash and the five dying companions who were eventually erased, had their last shred of luck and arrogance completely crushed.

They finally understood that this new master was different from any pirate leader or oppressor of the past.

His rules were simple, cold, and absolute—submit, be useful, and live; betray, be useless, and die.

The efficiency of the reorganization increased sharply.

Finally, from nearly two hundred former pirates, one hundred and twenty relatively qualified Cultivators were selected.

They were mixed with eighty veteran Nidao Guards who had experienced bloody battles in the Elementary Universe Domain, broken up, and reorganized into the new Nidao Vanguard Battalion, under which there were five major brigades.

Blood Fang was appointed as the battalion commander, but the deputy commander of each brigade was held by a veteran Nidao Guard, who reported directly to Nightmare, ensuring core control.

The primary mission of the Vanguard Battalion: clear out all remaining unstable factors within the Desolate Star Sector and expand the scope of reconnaissance, especially extending towards the direction of the Tianyan Alliance's Seventh Division.

Rotate regularly and participate in fortress defense and off-site missions.

Nightmare issued the first formal order to the initially formed Vanguard Battalion.

Those with merit will be rewarded according to the newly formulated battle merit system, and resources and Cultivation Techniques can all be exchanged.

Those with faults will be punished according to the law.

A new order was quickly established in blood and iron.

And the search on Sand Shadow's side also brought key gains.

My Lord, this is a token found in the lining of the Golden Yan Protector's battle robe, and an encrypted star chart fragment from his Storage Ring. Sand Shadow respectfully presented the two items.

The token was dark silver, neither gold nor wood, warm to the touch.

The front was embossed with a complex Derivation character, and the back had some small, unrecognizable runes.

Nightmare injected a trace of Divine Sense and immediately felt a special energy fluctuation contained within the token, which was homologous to the Tianyan Alliance's Origin but even more obscure.

This token... seems to be able to simulate or shield the unique Origin aura of the Tianyan Alliance. Nightmare understood its function after a brief perception.

Wearing this token, within a certain range, one can avoid the Tianyan Alliance's conventional detection Formations and Divine Sense scanning, and mix into their controlled areas. This was indeed a good thing for infiltration.

As for the star chart fragment, after being cracked by Sand Shadow using a special method, the content revealed was even more important.

It was not an ordinary star sector map, but a classified star chart marking the emergency jump channels and secret material transport routes between the Tianyan Alliance's Seventh Division and several of its important strongholds!

Among them, it clearly and accurately marked the precise coordinates of the Seventh Division's core base—Tianyan Star—as well as its peripheral defensive layers and several relatively weak patrol gaps!

Good stuff. A cold light flashed in Nightmare's eyes.

With this star chart and token, Tianyan Star was no longer an unreachable mist for him, but a target that could be spied upon, and even... touched.

How many days will it take to reinforce the fortress defense? Nightmare asked Stone Firm.

Reporting to My Lord, the core Formation reinforcement has been initially completed. It will take another five days to fully finish and test.

What about the preliminary integration and combat readiness of the Vanguard Battalion? Nightmare looked at Blood Fang.

Blood Fang quickly said: Three days! Three days is enough to form basic combat capability!

Nightmare tapped his fingers on the console, his gaze falling once again on the star chart that revealed the coordinates of Tianyan Star.

Passively waiting for the next, more violent encirclement? No, that was not his style.

Five days later, the fortress defenses will be complete, and the Vanguard Battalion's training will end. Nightmare made a decision.

I will personally lead the team, select thirty elite Nidao Guards, and use this token and star chart to raid Tianyan Star and destroy the core of its Seventh Division.

His voice was cold, carrying iron-clad murderous intent.

Before that, those who remain behind must ensure that Nidao Fortress is impregnable.

If you encounter an attack from the Tianyan Alliance, there is no need to ask for instructions; you can use all the fortress's defensive weapons, including the Nidao Annihilation Cannon prototype that is currently being debugged, to fight back with full force and kill without mercy.

Yes! Everyone replied in unison, Battle Intent burning in their eyes.

Instead of sitting and waiting for the enemy to gather heavy troops to encircle and suppress, it is better to take the initiative, smash their command center, plunder their resources, and shock their courage!

Nidao Fortress, like a precise and cold war machine, driven by Nightmare's will, began its final pre-war preparations.

Five days later, the sharp blade would be unsheathed, pointing directly at this... heart of the tumor of the Tianyan Alliance on the edge of the Middle Universe Domain.