Chapter 27: New Nobles – Section 2

In these three turbulent star regions, there were countless pirates. Along the way, Black Hair’s group fought almost every time they made a jump. Though none of them could shake Black Hair’s fleet, they posed an extremely troublesome existence.

It was remarkable that these so-called pirates could survive right under the nose of the Moor Empire. Their race was diverse, and their warships each had unique features. Although their firepower paled in comparison to Miss Wei Li’s five Swan Ships, they possessed a wide array of special abilities.

Some pirate warships could become invisible, while others could merge together. What surprised Black Hair’s group the most was that they even saw warships that weren’t warships at all!

Well, they were actually plants—or sometimes creatures. In Black Hair’s eyes, they were all exceptionally large, which was probably their most striking feature. Even compared to the Moor Empire’s giant ships, they weren’t inferior. But they were definitely not man-made warships! They were purely natural creations!

Black Hair had seen a giant plant shaped like a barrel that moved through space by stretching and contracting. With each contraction, its massive body would eject large amounts of green fluid to propel itself forward. Its weapon was also this strange fluid—once it hit an enemy’s armor, it would cause severe corrosion. Its terrifying destructive power was enough to render even the Wanderers’ armor unusable.

With such a powerful weapon, it wasn’t surprising that these pirate rebels could thrive in these star regions. With their armament, coupled by the ubiquitous cosmic storms in these turbulent areas, even the Moor Empire, unaccustomed to such places, would likely lose half of its forces to the storms before even reaching the destination. By then, the remaining forces would be no match for these pirates.

If too few ships were sent, they couldn’t deal a real blow to the pirates; but if too many were sent, those pirates weren’t fools—they would hide anywhere. Black Hair now understood why the Moor Empire was so wary of these three turbulent star regions. This… was nothing short of a sea of people’s war.

It was a strategy proposed by a great leader of China long ago, one that no one had ever truly mastered to this day. Black Hair, of course, couldn’t either. But just because he couldn’t annihilate these pirates didn’t mean he couldn’t move freely in these areas.

With the formidable strength of the Li Feng, coupled with those five equally excellent Swan-class warships, if Hei Fa were to be troubled by these pirates again, he would hardly be able to survive in space. In fact, since his first encounter with pirates, he had hardly fired a single shot in subsequent battles. He simply ordered Li Feng to move to the rear of the formation, letting the pirates scatter debris everywhere, while the other ships returned to warp travel as planned, moving through the pirate territory as if it were uninhabited. The fact that Li Feng seemed invincible quickly spread throughout the three turbulent star regions. Eventually, almost every pirate gang lost interest in attacking Hei Fa’s fleet and simply allowed them to pass by unimpeded.

Yet afterward, a myth quickly spread across these three star regions—a myth belonging solely to one warship. That warship was jokingly called by all pirates… “Invincible.”

It wasn’t that Li Feng was truly invincible; rather, the pirates’ firepower simply couldn’t penetrate the Wanderer’s hull. After all, their weapons were designed for flexibility and concealment, often at the expense of firepower density. Without heavy firepower platforms, breaking through Li Feng’s defenses remained difficult for them.

Of course, they did try to bypass Li Feng and attack those beautiful and elegant Swan-class warships directly. But with Hei Fa in command, even such attempts failed. Li Feng’s mixed artillery was no joke.

However, such a forced journey posed a severe test for both the Octopus People and the Blood Wolf Pirates. By the time they reached the planned ambush site, almost everyone was exhausted. The Octopus People were weakened by the aftereffects of continuous hormone secretion, and even the self-proclaimed tough Blood Wolf Pirates were suffering greatly.

This included Blood Pupil as well. Strangely, though Hong, who was also his subordinate, was equally exhausted, his eyes held an unusually fierce gaze. This caught Hei Fa’s attention.

He was familiar with that look—a cruel expression directed equally at enemies and oneself. Those with such a gaze surely harbored something deep in their hearts. Hei Fa knew that once that something erupted, it would bring a terrifying disaster to anyone.

It’s time to find a moment to talk to these two brothers… Black Hair thought to himself. They had followed him for so long—these two brothers had indeed fulfilled their duties with utmost loyalty. No matter how much grievance or resentment they might have, as their leader, he had to step in. Even if it were an emperor himself, heh… he’d probably have to see just how sharp Blood Wolf’s fangs really were!

While the Blood Wolf group was taking urgent rest, elsewhere in the universe, a massive Moor giant ship was sailing slowly…

Lord Locke was in a terrible mood.

As the commander dispatched by the Tarot family specifically for this campaign against the new races, he was well aware of what his actions meant. Yet he truly had no other choice.

The Moor Empire was a world that placed great emphasis on military achievements. In this vast empire with numerous races and expansive territories, its officials maintained an almost miraculous level of integrity. This integrity didn’t mean they refused bribes or avoided pleasure; rather, no matter how great their desires or greed might be, when faced with truly meritorious individuals, they would unhesitatingly make way for them, never suppressing them—even if it meant sacrificing their own interests.

Undoubtedly, this was a contradiction. But it was precisely because of this contradictory official system that the Moors grew stronger with each battle, expanding from a second-rate race in the universe to become a formidable cosmic dominator.

On the other hand, the Moors’ punishment for cowardly acts like desertion in battle could be described as cruel.

Those who retreated during battle were executed. Those who deserted were executed. Those who betrayed their side were executed!

These three execution orders were personally issued by the Moor emperor. Since the founding of the Moor Empire, not a single person had ever managed to escape. So now, Lord Locke lived in constant fear.

Fortunately, he had sought refuge with the Dark Hand Duke. By Moor law, this couldn’t be considered treason—at most, it was poor command. He believed the Dark Hand Duke would sort things out for him. That was all Lord Locke could do to comfort himself.

As a lord, Locke owned several mineral-rich star systems within the Moor Empire and had intricate connections among the empire’s high-ranking officials. That’s why the Dark Hand Duke accepted him. Lord Locke was well aware of this, so he had already given the Dark Hand Duke gifts from two star systems as a token of respect. As the sole survivor of the campaign against the new species, he also believed his intelligence gathered was a significant contribution.

At these thoughts, Lord Locke shuddered. The image of that black demon that rushed through the air and the blood-red mechs behind it flashed again in his mind!!

Oh, Mother Tiya above. What kind of mecha is that? It can coordinate with others to reach speeds beyond those of warships. Its long sword can even pierce through its own flagship’s armor!! It cut deep into half of the ship’s hull, nearly splitting the flagship’s bridge in two. If not for my quick reaction to stop it from striking again, I would have had no chance to escape even if I wanted to.

Heaven knows how such terrifying beings could exist among that new race. The Empire’s intelligence reports didn’t mention anything like this. Although the previous two reconnaissance missions were discovered and destroyed by them, there was still plenty of information available. These newcomers call themselves humans. Though they claim to be powerful, in Lord Locke’s eyes, they’re probably not even one-tenth as strong as the Moor Empire. Moreover, these humans are obsessed with infighting, constantly at war with each other. Even though they adopt a federal system, it’s far inferior to the Moor Empire’s strict self-discipline. If the Empire doesn’t launch a campaign against them, it won’t be long before they destroy each other completely.

How could such a mediocre race produce such terrifying individuals? Lord Locke’s mind flashed again with the image of that black demon-like creature’s flaming eyes and the sword beam that tore through the stars. His face paled instantly.

The attendant beside him noticed his expression and promptly brought over a cup of coffee-like drink, then left without a second thought. Along the way, Lord Locke had shown this expression many times already. The attendants were used to it. Other than bringing him coffee to calm him down, they couldn’t think of any effective solution.

By usual standards, the lord should have downed the coffee in one gulp and regained his composure by now. The attendants exchanged glances, thinking helplessly.

But this time, they were likely to be disappointed. What came next was the crisp sound of a cup hitting the ground.

“Crash!!”

“Enemy… enemy attack!!!” The lord suddenly screamed shrilly. At the same time, the attendants realized that, somehow, several white ships had appeared in front of their warship. These ships had elegant appearances, with hulls shaped like layered willow leaves. No matter how you looked at them, they were breathtakingly beautiful—like a group of swans gliding gracefully in the water.

Wait… swans!!!

The attendants exchanged glances, seeing fear in each other’s eyes! They suddenly remembered that Miss Veri’s escort fleet was named after “The Swan Song”.

Could it be that…

“Boom!!”

Severe oscillations interrupted the servants’ shock. Before they could understand what was happening, two enormous mechs suddenly appeared in front of the bridge. Through the portholes, one could even see the mechs’ demonic, blood-red eyes!!
“How is it possible they’re… blood… blood-red mechs!!!?” Lord Locke was stunned, frozen in place…