Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

“What’s Lei Chenghu doing? Why did he change the flagship at the critical moment?”

Li Yao scratched his face, not knowing what he should do.

Iron Torrent, Lei Chenghu’s previous flagship, was not a new warship that had applied the state-of-the-art technologies, but a classic model that had been in service for almost a hundred years. There were not many secrets about its internal structure. Even the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs had several similar warships of the same model or of a lower rank than this. Li Yao knew everything about their structures.

He was thinking to sneak into Iron Torrent without alarming anyone based on his knowledge of the starship of such a model. Then, he could carry out his incredible techniques in tube-crawling and reach the ceiling of the toilet of Lei Chenghu’s personal room. It would be best if he jumped down while Lei Chenghu was using the toilet, in which case even a man as tough and determined as Lei Chenghu would certainly be greatly shocked.

He did not expect that Lei Chenghu would change his flagship temporarily, and it was one of the brand-new models that did not have any files.

He believed that it must be an advanced warship that Wuying Qi strengthened and modified with the technologies and magical equipment from the Supreme Emperor’s mausoleum and the royal palace after he controlled the capital. That was the only way to pique the interest of the “God of War”.

It was needless to elaborate on the internal defense of such a warship. Li Yao could never break in without any knowledge about what safety measures were inside.

Also, Li Yao could easily tell that, since Wuying Qi did not really trust Lei Chenghu, the “present” that he offered to Lei Chenghu must be malicious. Perhaps countless sensors and cameras had been set up in secret in order to collect the data about Lei Chenghu’s commanding ability and to monitor Lei Chenghu’s every move.

If Li Yao went to Lei Chenghu recklessly for a negotiation, it was possible that the content of their negotiation would be automatically sent to the capital.

Once Wuying Qi discovered that Li Yao and Lei Chenghu were joining hands, he would definitely take corresponding reactions regarding the new situation.

It was not something that Li Yao was willing to see.

“This is bad.”

Stunned, Li Yao stared at the dense spots of light on the 3D light beam, which seemed to be slithering into his head like tiny bugs, giving him a strong headache. “It does not seem viable to sneak in, and chances are high that Wuying Qi will notice me even if I do. So, is there a way to reach out to Lei Chenghu openly without raising Wuying Qi’s suspicion?”

“Hey, hey—”

Boss Bai’s voice came again from the communication channel. “We’re about to detour to the back of the Astounding Thunder Fleet. However, Lei Chenghu’s battle formation is meticulous. His flanks and his rear are well defended. If we have to collide, it will be barely possible for me to guarantee that no actual damage will be caused. Do you know what you are doing?”

“Yes, I do!”

Hearing Boss Bai’s voice, Li Yao suddenly had an idea. “I just came up with an amazing plan, but it needs the assistance of a fearless, devoted friend…”

…

On the bridge that looked like a gray palace on the brand-new “Iron Torrent”, the Astounding Thunder Fleet’s flagship…

His hands on his back, Lei Chenghu stood at the center of the panoramic 3D light beams, simply allowing the stars and the barrages that were even more brilliant than the stars to swallow him.

The crystal cables as thick as snakes extended from the super crystal processors to a special helmet that covered the head of the “God of War” tightly, transmitting the battlefield data and all kinds of other information.

Hum—Hum—Hum—Hum—

The few super crystal processors connected to Lei Chenghu’s brain were all overloaded, with dull noises echoing from the cooling units, as if they could not withstand the sabotage of Lei Chenghu’s computational ability that was as overwhelming as tides.

Finally, when a fabulous transformation of the fleet was about to be completed, one of the super crystal processors could not take it any longer and exploded. Smoke and fire were popping up nonstop, implying that it had completely crashed.

Lei Chenghu grunted, and his right eyeball let out a weird noise too. Red blood and tears flowed out of his eye, as if the eyeball had broken into halves.

Emotionlessly, he blinked his eyes and wiped the red fluids on the corner of his eye with his cold, iron left hand, before he took off the nerval interaction helmet.

“Hurry up! Commander Lei is wounded!”

All the soldiers in the Astounding Thunder Fleet knew Lei Chenghu’s extreme and fearless style where his soul was easily burnt to the maximum very well. A senior medical team had been standing by. The moment they saw that half of Lei Chenghu’s face was reddened by blood, they moved forward to provide treatment. While scanning, repairing, and cooling Lei Chenghu’s brains they injected all kinds of high-energy nutrition drugs and medical drugs into his body.

His eyes half narrowed, Lei Chenghu enjoyed the service of the medical team and listened to his advisor’s report on the losses of the enemy and his own.

The losses on his own side did not move the seasoned general whose nerves were as tough as iron at all. Even when his advisor carefully told him that one of his biological grandsons “went missing” in the clash just a moment ago, he did not even bother to raise his eyes but acknowledged it casually.

During the fierce battles in the past hundred years and on the battlefields against the slaughter machines of the Covenant Alliance, he had lost too many family members and friends. Even he had almost been killed and only narrowly escaped countless times.

The loss of a grandson could not touch his nerves that seemed to be made of special materials at all. At least on the battlefield, he had already trained himself to be calmer and more indifferent than the slaughter machines of the Covenant Alliance. That was perhaps the greatest reason why he could defeat the Covenant Alliance again and again.

At this moment, he was more interested in Yun Xuefeng than an insignificant grandson.

After he reached the same conclusion from the real-time data and the report of his advisor, he finally put on a cold smile. “Yun Xuefeng is doomed. Unless he turns around and runs away immediately, his fleet will definitely fall apart after another three to four collisions!”

Naturally, all the senior officers on the bridge of Iron Torrent knew that it was impossible for Yun Xuefeng to turn around and run away. If the commander on the four families’ side in the war fled, it would be a preannouncement of the reformists’ victory!

For Yun Xuefeng, even being defeated or killed on the battlefield would be better than fleeing.

However, it remained to be seen whether or not Yun Xuefeng had the courage to “sacrifice for his country”.

After the situation was clear, the bridge of Iron Torrent was enshrouded in a cheerful atmosphere. All the officers were rubbing their fists and couldn’t wait to charge at Yun Xuefeng’s chaotic battle formation that hadn’t been reorganized yet, hoping to smash the other “pearl of the expedition army” into pieces in only one round.

Right then, earsplitting alarms echoed. On the left side of the panoramic light beams, a large cluster of dense light spots appeared abruptly, like a black cobra leaping from the darkness and opening its eyes or a fiend that had shown up from the void and bared the fangs!

What triggered the alarm was not the quantity but the thoroughness of their battle formation that was much better than the main force of Yun Xuefeng’s fleet, the commanding ability as indicated by their orderliness in the high-speed charge, and their stealth ability since they seemed to be melted in space until they showed up a moment ago.

Just like beasts could smell other beasts and vipers could sense other vipers, the seasoned warriors on the bridge of Iron Torrent that had been through too many battles and could immediately realize that they had encountered an opponent that was more terrifying than the nobles like Yun Xuefeng, one who shared the same qualities as them!

“What… What’s this fleet? Has Yun Xuefeng been hiding such a terrifying force on his side? Was our intelligence mistaken, and a certain ace fleet of the four families participated in this battle?”

“The enemy had set the power output of the starships to the minimum and covered themselves with the remains of starships and the stone belts that were still emanating radiations while they approached us stealthily. In order to prevent us from detecting them, they did not turn on their spiritual shields even when they passed the most dangerous area in the stone belt! If it were only one starship, it would’ve been understandable, but the hundreds of starships were all the same. It was… It was almost incredible!”

“It was impossible for the enemy to keep their battle formation intact when they leaped out of the remains and the stones. However, they finished regrouping and readjusting the moment they set the power output to the highest and launched a full-speed charge! Only an ace commander of the four families could’ve been capable of that!”

“Are you sure the ace commanders of the four families are capable of that? Why do I feel that even they do not have the ability to combine a thousand main warships into a sharp saber so quickly? So wild, so brutal, so aggressive…”

“However, what are they doing exactly? They’ve come rather aggressively, but the route of their advance seems to be mistaken. They are not marching at us but at the empty area between us and Yun Xuefeng’s fleet. Wouldn’t that be a waste of the advantages that they have earned through hiding for such a long time?”

The knowledgeable, battle-tested advisors whispered to each other in confusion, deeply astounded by the fleet that had emerged out of nowhere.

The knowledgeable, battle-tested advisors of the Astounding Thunder Fleet were discussing in confusion, deeply astounded by the fleet that had appeared out of nowhere.

“No, you’re mistaken. It’s not an error in the setting of the attack route but a rather brilliant tactic choice.”

Lei Chenghu pushed the doctor away and rose abruptly. His eyeball was bleeding hard, but thirst was beaming out of it. “Our army’s battle formation is tight and immaculate. There’s also still some distance between us and the enemy. We have enough time to change our battle formation and deal with it patiently.

“The enemy’s starships are outnumbered. However aggressive they are, after such a long march, they will be out of their momentum when they reach us. Even though they may cause a blow to us, they will have great losses themselves, unable to fight on anymore.

“However, what the enemy is charging at is exactly the spot where our army and Yun Xuefeng’s fleet will collide again. The enemy is waiting for an opportunity—the brief chaos after our army and Yun Xuefeng’s fleet pass by each other again!”