Chapter 52: The Spiral of Death, Section 1

Dead?
Why would a dead person be valued so highly by Duke Ziyuan?
Not many would be willing to answer this question. Yet everyone knew Duke Ziyuan was telling the truth. If they could gain that person’s support, perhaps the Smo Empire might survive the current crisis. But now…
Duke Ziyuan stared at the screen filled with dense clusters of circular spheres, gritting his teeth as he let out a cold snort.
“Retreat the entire army, widen the front lines, abandon all star stations along the way. Leave a fleet to hold them off—sacrifice is not an option. We can only buy time with space now.”
“Understood,” said the white-haired elder, lowering his head. For the first time, another expression appeared on his face—one of reluctance.
Having followed Duke Ziyuan for so long, it was the first time he had seen him issue orders under such pressure, and those orders were utterly ruthless. Though he was merely a weapons researcher, he understood that with this order, countless lives in the Smo Empire would be lost, and many star stations and regions would fall to the enemy. After all, using space to buy time was a last-ditch measure.
Still, the white-haired elder knew it was inevitable. As the war dragged on, Duke Ziyuan had fewer and fewer resources at his disposal. Meanwhile, the Emperor of Moore had more and more deadly weapons—starting with the locust warships and now these mysterious giant spheres. Each time more terrifying and more difficult. Initially, he had spent all the mineral resources from three star regions to develop real ammunition for the empire’s warships, barely maintaining a stalemate. So how much more would the Smo Empire have to sacrifice to survive this crisis?
No one knew. Only time would tell. Thus, in the days that followed, the Smo Empire entered its most difficult period ever. With every minute and second, vast territories were lost. Its once invincible fleet was forced to retreat step by step in the face of the enemy’s spherical weapons. Every encounter came at a heavy cost, buying only brief respite. The blood of countless warriors was shed across the universe. In just twenty days, the empire lost nearly half of its territory, and the number of warships under Duke Ziyuan dropped to its lowest level since he came to power.

But even so, not a single person in the Smo Empire surrendered. In fact, they didn’t even consider it, for they were well aware of what kind of enemy they faced. There was no such word as mercy in the Moors’ dictionary. Surrender would only lead to a fate worse than death in battle.

The war spread rapidly, and the situation became increasingly brutal. At this time, on the other side of the universe, Black Hair had just left Death Star. Accompanying him were Blood Wolf’s strongest strategic forces: six hundred virtual puppets equipped with Snake Teeth, along with Thor’s Fortress.

It must be said that Black Hair was a man who trusted his intuition greatly, and his intuition had never deceived him. Whether in battle or in leadership, his remarkable intuition had saved his life more than once. This time was no exception. Ever since he saw that heavily damaged giant ship, a badpremonition had lingered in his mind, forcing him to act immediately. Thatpremonition was so strong that Black Hair didn’t even hesitate to deploy Death Star’s most powerful forces.

The formation of six hundred virtual puppets sailing together was astonishing. Even the vast universe seemed to tremble at their presence. Whenever they passed by a planet, their enormous size created a strong gravitational pull, forcing the planet to deviate from its original orbit. Behind them, Thor’s Fortress moved in a way that was equally astonishing—like a giant top spinning. Its flight path was highly irregular; one moment it might be on the left side of the fleet, and the next, it could appear at the back.

Such a fleet could be said to be unprecedentedly powerful, even within the Moors’ Empire. As a result, Black Hair encountered no troubles along the way. Right in the middle of his fleet was a ship that stood out—much smaller than the surrounding virtual puppets, yet it seemed to be the center of the entire fleet, with the other virtual puppets surrounding it like stars orbiting a moon. Despite its unimpressive size, it appeared extremely special.

That ship was, of course, Black Hair’s Lightning Wind.

Perhaps by now, Lightning Wind was somewhat outdated in terms of performance and combat strength. Yet when Black Hair chose a flagship, he selected it without hesitation. Thus, Lightning Wind had become Blood Wolf’s strongest combat unit, far surpassing even the surrounding virtual puppets.

The reason was simple: inside Lightning Wind’s cabin were 136 humanoid armor suits, each only three meters tall—what could be called Proto-Force Armor.

The fleet sped through space at high velocity. Yet, the cabin was unusually quiet. Black Hair sat in Li Feng’s familiar captain’s seat, his expression solemn. Beside him, Blood Pupils, Monkey, and the others also sat quietly. Perhaps influenced by Black Hair, they no longer carried their usual ease.

After a long while, when the fleet emerged from hyperspace once again, Monkey finally couldn’t hold back and spoke up.
“Boss, where are we heading? Why haven’t you said a word since we returned from the Twin Stars? And why such a serious mood? Who offended you? Just tell us, brothers. Even if it’s Marshal Wick of the Interstellar Fleet, we can take him down.”
“Yeah, boss. Just say it—now that we have the Primal Power Armor, who are the Blood Wolves afraid of? I can take on their flagship alone,” added Baroka carefreely, his face showing pride. It was clear that the Primal Power Armor had greatly boosted his confidence, giving him an air of invincibility.

But this time, Black Hair didn’t speak as they expected. After remaining silent for a long time, he finally turned his gaze outside the window, at the endless starry sky, and suddenly said,
“Stop trying to amuse me with these childish jokes. We’re all veterans—can’t you tell where we’re going just by the course? If you have time, get some rest. After the next jump, you probably won’t have such quiet moments again.”

“Are we really going to fight?” Hearing Black Hair’s reply, Monkey wasn’t afraid at all but instead showed excitement.
“Then whom should we fight? Emperor Moore or the Smo Empire? Oh, right. Boss, you’ve always liked to plunder everywhere. Should we attack both sides this time? No problem—with the Primal Power Armor, either one is fine. We’ll definitely make a huge profit this time.”
Hearing Monkey’s words, Baroka nodded in agreement again, eager and ready to go.

Black Hair glanced at them and sighed bitterly.
“Is this really how you see me?”
“Of course, boss. Don’t forget—last time, you even helped us take over Moore Station. With such skills, no one is better at plundering than you. The Smo Empire is our warehouse—why not plunder it? Wait for Emperor Moore to treat us?” Monkey replied seriously after thinking for a moment.
“But this time is different,” Black Hair suddenly interrupted him, his expression turning serious once more.

“Monkey, I won’t lie to you. But this time, I really can’t tell you the reason. All I know is that I must go, and I must bring enough strength. Otherwise, not only me, but you as well, our Blood Wolves, and even all of humanity will never get another chance.”
“Is it that serious?” Blood Pup, who had remained silent until now, was slightly stunned. “Why? Boss, where did you draw that conclusion from? And who is the enemy?”
Without answering right away, Black Hair simply turned his gaze outside the porthole. After a long silence, he spoke again.
“The Emperor of Moore.”
“That effeminate guy?” Monkey exclaimed in shock. “How is that possible? Didn’t he already show off his strongest forces? They’re just Locust Warships. Even if they’re highly armed, they have no advantage against our real weapons. Boss, are you overthinking things?”
“Overthinking?” Black Hair sneered. “Monkey, this is my intuition, along with a vague judgment. Do you doubt it?”
“No,” Monkey shook his head firmly. “If it’s your intuition, Boss, I have to say—I believe you. But this is indeed a bit absurd. Even if it’s the Emperor of Moore, he has no reason to destroy us. Don’t forget, we’re already on his list of enemies. Count Beck.”
At the end, Monkey emphasized his words, as if reminding Black Hair of something. But all he got in return was a bitter smile from Black Hair.
“I’m afraid we’ve never been out of his sight.”
“What!?” Monkey was shocked. “How is that possible?”
“Nothing is impossible. Monkey, never underestimate your enemy. Especially a tyrant who can dominate half of the universe. How could they easily believe something they haven’t seen with their own eyes? Sometimes I even suspect that the Emperor of Moore is right beside us, watching us right now.”
“That’s a bit exaggerated, isn’t it?” Monkey’s mouth hung open; he was completely speechless…