The Almighty Ring

The days after Wayne’s defeat were peaceful, albeit slightly stressful, since Jiang Fei had all the time in the world to think about how to solve their food problem.

But those days were merely the calm before the storm, and trouble soon befell the entire planetary system. Though the occupants of the planet had heard about and thus feared Jiang Fei’s power, those from outside the planetary system had not.

One day, the deafening sound of the alarm broke the silence of the peaceful afternoon. Even from inside the palace, faint roars could be heard and slight tremors could be felt.

Be it rotten luck or just something that happened right on schedule, they were now faced with an Ultralisk attack. Though relatively frequent, these attacks usually only happened once a month. But not two weeks after Jiang Fei’s arrival, three Ultralisks had been detected approaching the system.

They were classified as Nebulae types. Despite not being as strong as a Galactic Spectre, they still had combat levels of over 8,000,000, making them powerful enough to kill any strong fighter.

Mayhem ensued as all the soldiers quickly armed themselves for battle. The entire planet mobilized, with countless fighters racing towards the closest teleportation system.

In the event of an attack, all fighters, whether friends or foes, were required to sortie into space and fight off the Ultralisks before they could approach the system itself. If they failed and the Ultralisks were to land on the planet’s surface, many lifeforms would perish, or worse, the entire planet would be rendered sterile.

Kaa’Ina appeared in Jiang Fei’s room and announced, “Jiang Fei, I’m only here to convey a message. Even though you’re new here, you must still adhere to the one absolute rule in all of Tallgeese. No matter how you wish to carry out your time at this outpost, you are required to sortie with all the other soldiers here. Any deserters will be hunted down and killed once the battle is over.”

Instead of being surprised and angry, Jiang Fei nodded in understanding. Besides the unspoken rule that Jiang Fei loved so much—that the strong ruled over the weak—he understood that the rules to sortie during an Ultralisk attack cannot be broken. Otherwise, there would not even be an outpost to begin with…

Jiang Fei gathered everyone together and made an announcement.

“Attention, fellow soldiers! I understand that we’ve been left to rot on a planet that doesn’t even produce its own food. That said, there are monsters out there who will not let us rest in peace! What say you? How should we repay such treatment?”

Jiang Fei was excited, as he had finally met an opponent he could fight without having to hold anything back. He only had to limit his powers when facing another intelligent being.

Since Ultralisks couldn’t talk or communicate with reason, there was nothing holding him back from unleashing his fury upon them!

“We fight!”

“F*ck him inside out!”

“Slice them up nicely!”

“Make ’em cry!”

…

All sorts of passionate responses were heard, and they only grew louder and more spirited when Jiang Fei raised his hands to signal everyone to quiet down. That is how his fellow soldiers saw him⁠—as a symbol of strength and leadership, an icon to follow and learn from. With him at the helm, they would surely live until they one day died of old age.

“Let’s rock!” shouted Jiang Fei enthusiastically.

Invigorated, he led the soldiers to the closest teleportation facility on Dhiras. Many had gathered by the facility when Jiang Fei and his men arrived. From the looks of it, the entire planet had indeed adhered to the rule, everyone was joining the fight against the incoming Ultralisks.

It took some time but when it was Jiang Fei’s turn to teleport, he turned to his soldiers and said, “Be careful! Watch each others’ backs! We are all coming back alive!”

“Aye, sir!” replied everyone, steeling their hearts and souls.

“Good! First Squad, with me!”

Upon Jiang Fei’s order, a small group of elite soldiers joined him at the teleportation bay. A flash of light later, everyone arrived on an asteroid. It was roughly three kilometers in length and size.

Besides the teleportation pad that was built there, nothing else seemed to occupy this drifting rock in space. After about a minute or so, the rest of Jiang Fei’s men arrived and everyone gathered together.

“Is everyone ready?” asked Jiang Fei, transmitting his thoughts telepathically since no one can hear sound in space.

Nobody was properly equipped for space fights, but since everyone there were stronger than even the strongest Metahumans on Earth, they could survive in space for a certain amount of time without the proper equipment.

“Everyone is accounted for,” replied Sarila.

“Stay frosty!” said Jiang Fei, leaving the formation and hovering into the void of space to scout for the enemy.

In no time at all, he was able to pick up a faint trace of all three Ultralisks via the scope.

Kremor Drifter

Combat Level: 8,500,000

Note: An offensive Ultralisk. Armed with sharp blades and fangs, a single cut or bite will poison any unfortunate life form.

Kremor Slasher

Combat Level: 9,000,000

Note: An offensive Ultralisk. Armed with sharp blade-like limbs capable of slashing and dicing.

Kremor Shocker

Combat Level: 9,000,000

Note: An offensive Ultralisk. Be careful of its gigantic eyes capable of unleashing a cloud of lethal electric shocks.

The Drifter looked very much like a cuttlefish with long tentacles. The Slasher was almost similar to a praying mantis, except it had more than ten pairs of limbs. The Shocker was the most alien looking one, as 90% of its entire body was made up of a single eyeball.

Vein-like external protrusions were wriggling about from behind the eyeball, much like a jellyfish. They seemed to function as its limbs, facilitating the consumption of food and releasing electrically-charged excretions during combat.

The three Ultralisks might not share the same appearance, but they did have one thing in common: the urge to kill and feed. No one on Dhiras was capable of facing even one of them alone, much less all three of them at the same time. There may have been some who were powerful enough to do so, but these people were definitely not on Dhiras.

Before Jiang Fei could return and relay the information about the Ultralisks to his soldiers, the other soldiers had already started to fight them. With the exception of Jiang Fei’s squad, the soldiers of Tallgeese had surrounded all three Ultralisks and begun their assault.

Their attacks lacked any coordination and were only done out of spite. Even if they had been coordinated, many of them only had combat levels of less than 300,000.

Due to the severe difference in power, all three Ultralisks had not sustained any significant damage even after half an hour since the start of the assault.

Instead of promptly jumping into the fray, Jiang Fei continued to spectate from afar. He noticed that a certain individual was continuously trying to fight the Ultralisk despite being heavily injured—Wayne. Though he was still injured from his fight with Jiang Fei, he was giving this battle everything he had.

Unfortunately, even with the proper coordination, none of his subordinates were able to pierce through any of the Ultralisks’ skin. Wayne himself could deal some damage, but since he was still recovering from his injuries, there was a limit to how well he could fight.

Silently slipping out of the shadows, Kaa’Ina took the opportunity to speak to Jiang Fei.

“What do you think of this battle?” she asked. “Should you perform well and emerge victorious, I will use whatever power and influence I have to declare you as the King of Dhiras.”

During her first encounter with him, Kaa’Ina had wanted to join Jiang Fei’s force, as she assumed that they were on equal grounds. However, since he had defeated Wayne so easily, her perception had shifted towards seeing Jiang Fei as far superior than herself.

As a member of the Valsalrian Army, Kaa’Ina also subscribed to the concept of siding with the powerful. She was now here, persuading Jiang Fei to show off his skills to the masses, but all for her own benefit.

She hoped to clear any enmity between herself and Jiang Fei, so that she could be one of the people standing next to him when he rose to power in the future.

Jiang Fei chuckled. “The King of Dhiras?”

The thought of becoming a sovereign ruler of the planet had never crossed his mind. However… the notion itself was tempting.