The Almighty Ring

“The man is coming and we mustn’t let him wait,” Jiang Fei said. He turned to his fellow soldiers and bellowed with confidence and vigor.

“To me, my men! To the skies!”

“Aye, aye!”

Everyone roared, enthralled by Jiang Fei’s confidence. Most of them were on the same page as him but since he was keeping the secret of the Hypercruiser to himself and only a handful of trusted few, the other foot soldiers, the lower ranking men, were harboring the notion that they would never come out of this war alive.

Unbothered by the others, Jiang Fei took the lead and left the mountain, his palace, and utilizing a teleportation hub, his army arrived at one of the empty space platforms.

“Bison, later, you will take command of the army and attack the Ultralisks,” Jiang Fei ordered.

“Aye, commander,” Bison responded respectfully. He was not hiding his emotions then. His split second reaction as well as the trembling of his hands clearly showed his excitement. From his perspective, the Ultralisk Uprising was considered to be a calamity that would be the end of all worlds. Jiang Fei’s arrival, or rather, his sudden revelation of a Hypercruiser was a means of escaping. In turn, this cataclysmic event became a hunting sport, albeit a deathly one. Nevertheless, as long as one took safety precautions, they could fight, hunt, and collect precious Ultralisk meat and still survive.

“I have high expectations for you. Do your best.”

Jiang Fei smiled earnestly. There were times when a leader employing positive reinforcements would garner higher morale boost instead of deploying punishment.

“My lord, Bargh and his men are here,” Kaa’lna reported.

“Thank you,” Jiang Fei said. Before he left, he turned to Bison again.

“I want you to act based on circumstance. Do not engage groups of Ultralisks lest you be outnumbered and overpowered. Prioritize on single targets only. I will now leave to deal with that Bargh guy.”

The command to his army was handed over to Bison, allowing him to order his soldiers while he left to deal with the dangerous Bargh. As strong as they were, Ultralisks could only be as intelligent as the dumbest man alive. They would not pose a threat in terms of scheming and plots, unlike Bargh who was powerful and cunning alike, a possible threat that Jiang Fei needed to deal with.

“Aye, commander.”

It was considered to be the highest honor for one to accept the commander post from Jiang Fei himself. He knew not to screw things up as Jiang Fei had shown his sincerity and trust toward him. He would do as he was told and strove to return with as many soldiers as he could.

As Bison got to work, Jiang Fei and Kaa’lna headed to the skies toward the planet Teardarth. Soon, Jiang Fei was greeted by a sea of soldiers, soaring through space and toward him.

“Now that’s a threat.”

Jiang Fei sighed nervously.

The time he spent on Tallgeese outpost was rather short when compared to the other leaders. Nevertheless, he was still strong and capable enough to “procure” himself a planet and own an army of 500,000 soldiers. After a certain event, he was left with 200,000 soldiers. He could easily increase his soldier count as there were many who left earlier wishing to rejoin his banner. Despite how profusely they pleaded, their cries and requests were outright rejected.

The other prominent leaders in the outpost had at least 100,000 soldiers in their own army. While not as impressive as Jiang Fei, it was still impressive nonetheless. But Bargh was able to cough out over 300,000 soldiers. The man had an army that was strong and powerful enough to make himself king of the entire planetary system if he wanted to.

“He’s hiding more than I had ever anticipated!” Kaa’lna exclaimed.

“No need to think too much about it. Soldiers to him are just bridges he uses to cross hard terrains,” Jiang Fei retorted. From the looks of the situation, Jiang Fei knew that Bargh was not coming to make a bargain. The jig was up and he needed to prepare himself for a fight.

“Hello, brother Jiang Fei! Where are your men?”

Bargh’s voice echoed inside his mind. The man was communicating via telepathy.

“At base, chilling.”

Jiang Fei responded, purposely adding in a tone of confidence.

“Come now… the uprising is before us and you don’t think we should fight as equals?” Bargh stated, insinuating that the man was going to bail from fighting the war with everything he had. Technically speaking, it was against the rules. The one that clearly stated that all capable men and women must participate in the fight with the Ultralisk.

“Lord Bargh, with all due respect, it would not matter how big or small one’s army is when it comes to dealing with an Ultralisk Uprising,” Jiang Fei replied, scoffing coldly.

“Oh my, where is that animosity coming from? Brother Jiang Fei, an army of men and a squad makes a whole world of difference. Even if you have one soldier more, the chances of us surviving the battle increases,” Bargh laughed as he replied.

“Both of us know that they will die, no matter if they come in a billion or a million. Granting them false hope would be as cruel as granting them a swift death. That chance of surviving doesn’t apply to them now, does it?”

Jiang Fei arched an eyebrow.

“What are you implying now, brother Jiang Fei. Hope is for anyone to hold dear, no matter who it is. That is all there is.”

Bargh appeared next to Jiang Fei as he spoke.

“I’m not implying. I’m merely suggesting that the chance of surviving had never once included the soldiers. It is just you. You alone.”

Bargh stopped smiling then. He knew, judging from the tone of which Jiang Fei spoke that Jiang Fei had had a peek behind the curtains.

“You’re right. I want to live. Everyone here is thinking the same thing. Do you not want to live?”

“What kind of question is that? No one in their right mind wants to die! I for one never had that thought. I fight my way to continue surviving. Besides, if I want to leave now, no one can stop me.”

Jiang Fei waved his hands. A holographic image of the personal one-man shuttlecraft was shown for a brief moment before it vanished.

“I see… No wonder you would reject a return-order. You already own a ship of your own!”

Bargh had never expected Jiang Fei to have such a precious tool with him. Even if Bargh had a plan to survive the Uprising, he could never truly craft a plan to escape the entire outpost.

Without a ship, no one could transverse planets or systems. The only force that was around the entire quadrant of this galaxy was the Valsalrian Army. No other forces could come close since the Valsalrian Army had been using this outpost as a prison, an execution base for wrongdoers to die. Transport ships only came harboring more wrongdoers and supplies. Escaping was impossible.

That piece of tech Jiang Fei had briefly flaunted granted hope for Bargh. That vessel would enable him to leave this wretched place.

“See what I mean by leaving anytime I want?” Jiang Fei taunted. He saw the sudden change in his facial tics, the look in his eyes that glinted with hope. It was one he had expected. However, this was but the first step.

Jiang Fei had shown the shuttlecraft to Bargh in order to entice him to make the first move. He knew that Bargh had hostile plans against him but not the details of his plan. That was why he had always been careful in not getting involved in the battle with the Ultralisks. At least, not for now.

Jiang Fei’s plan was to deal with Bargh first and only then would he fight the Ultralisks. Once they were close enough to Dhiras or the other planets, he would then execute the exodus.

“Brother Jiang Fei, have you heard of a saying my people have?” Bargh hovered closer to Jiang Fei.

“What is it?” Jiang Fei responded, charging and channeling energy all over his body to prepare.

“Fortune is never for one to flaunt!”

A bright white light flashed from his eyes that momentarily blinded Jiang Fei.

That was a common psychic attack used by a Bjolnian. It was meant to help Barge take control of Jiang Fei’s mind while he distracted Jiang Fei by initiating a meaningless conversation about a saying.

Jiang Fei could feel the penetrative psychic force in his head, trying to burrow deeper. However, one second after it entered his mind, the foreign psychic force was quickly absorbed by the Core of Will.

If anyone wanted to assault Jiang Fei with psychic force, they would first have to deal with the godly Core of Will. Besides Theon, it was unlikely that a second person would be able to penetrate Jiang Fei’s mental barrier. Sure, there might be others as space was infinite and so was possibility, but for the time being, Bargh was no way close to being someone that could harm Jiang Fei via psychic attacks.