Chapter 29: Harmony of Light and Darkness, Section 2

Black Hair was wrong.
This strange “echinoid” warship wasn’t here to fight—it was here to commit suicide.
Under everyone’s gaze, the giant pirate ship floating in the air suddenly accelerated, heading straight for the tall tower at the center of the dead city. At the same time, its numerous sharp spines erupted like flying bullets. Those thick spines were so razor-sharp that the dead city had nothing to stop them in an instant. A shrill screeching sound filled the sky as countless spines pierced through buildings and tore through the ground, turning the entire dead city into something akin to a porcupine. Even the strongest city walls couldn’t withstand these thick, sharp spines. Amidst flying debris, the dead city was a scene of devastation caused by the spines.
“A physical attack?” Watching this scene, Black Hair was truly amazed.
If these warships were somehow related to the Moors, then this echinoid was undoubtedly the first Moorish warship he had seen using physical weapons. But contrary to his expectations, the Moors’ physical weapons were even more terrifying.
Of course, although the spines were also considered physical weapons, they were far inferior in terms of advancement compared to the Death Star’s hybrid weapons, let alone the high-temperature particle beams. But they were simply enormous—each spine had a diameter of dozens of meters, coupled with a hard material and a sharp tip. Though primitive, the damage they caused was equally terrifying.
The fact that even the dead city’s sturdy walls could be pierced by these spines was the clearest proof.
But the Blood Wolf pirates weren’t focused on these things. Compared to the echinoid’s spine attacks, they were more concerned about that stone on the Rock People’s tower—the magical stone that could emit pure life-giving white light and terrifying energy-absorbing black light.
“That damned echinoid is also a warship. Let’s see how it gets through that black light.” The pirates grinned, their faces revealing their malice.
In their minds, the outcome of this war was already decided. Although the Rock People’s civilization was far inferior to the invaders, that stone was simply too miraculous. With it, they couldn’t see any reason for the Rock People to fail.
But they forgot one thing: stepping away from these illusions, the truth was that the dead city had already become ruins.

Dark spots of light, silent and unseen. With a unified roar from the Rock Warriors, the stones atop the tower once again emitted intense black light. The terrifying black aura spread rapidly like ripples on a lake’s surface. Its edges moved swiftly through the sky, striking the Echidna warships head-on without any mercy.

Just as everyone expected, under this terrifying energy-absorbing aura, the color on the surface of the Echidna warships faded rapidly. Their seemingly sturdy armor proved useless, completely drained and left as empty shells. Their vitality vanished, and their sharp spines stopped moving.

Yet, they did not fall immediately.

Since they were already in motion, even though the black light had stolen all their energy and prevented them from continuing to sail, their immense inertia still pushed them toward the tower.

An ordinary giant ship was already nearly ten kilometers long. Although this Echidna warship wasn’t longer, it didn’t have the width of ordinary ships either. Being circular, its length and width were equal. If such a massive vessel collided with the tower—no, it couldn’t even be called a collision; it would be pure crushing! A crater ten kilometers in diameter would form in the heart of the dead city.

What difference was there between such a crash and an attack?

In an instant, everyone understood the purpose of this Echidna warship.

But what good was thinking about it now? In the blink of an eye, that enormous warship, with its unparalleled momentum, struck the tower like a meteor from the sky.

“Boom!!”

A thunderous explosion sent smoke billowing into the air. Stone blocks the size of mills flew everywhere like bullets. Under such terrifying force, the solid surface of the dead city rippled like waves. Buildings seemed to be lifted into the sky. Even the Blood Wolf pirates on the landing ships were thrown to the ground. When they got up, their faces were pale.

It was terrifying—this was the most direct physical collision. It was a clash of absolute power. Compared to energy weapons, particle weapons, hybrid weapons, or even strategic weapons, such a confrontation was far more shocking, more direct, and more terrifying. This wasn’t so much a battle as it was a disaster!

A terrifying disaster capable of destroying entire planets.

But to their surprise, amidst the thick dust, they could clearly see that magical tower still standing firm. That mysterious stone remained suspended quietly, and even though the dust made it impossible to see clearly, people could still sense its faint, radiant glow.
“It’s that shield!” the pirates on the landing ship exclaimed in unison, their delight evident.
Damn it, they never expected the Rockmen to be able to withstand such a devastating impact. That tower, that stone—wasn’t it all too exaggerated? No wonder the Moors would do anything to get it, even refusing to give up at a distance of thirty-six standard jumps.
But the pirates’ surprise ended there. Just as they rejoiced that the Rockmen had escaped another disaster, an even louder explosion erupted. Visibly, a mushroom cloud rose suddenly beside the tower.
“Nuclear… nuclear weapon…” Blackhair froze as he stared at the suddenly appearing cloud.
No, it wasn’t a nuclear weapon. There was no intense flash, no terrifying shockwave, and no deadly radiation. This mushroom cloud lacked all the characteristics of a nuclear weapon. It was just a simple explosion.
But it was extremely powerful, like the explosion of countless tons of TNT.
The explosion occurred right beside the tower—undoubtedly the work of that Sea Urchin warship. At such close range and with such force, the tower couldn’t possibly hold out. Having just withstood a fierce impact, its shield was now at its weakest. How could it remain intact?
Immediately, shrill screams pierced the sky, only to be drowned out by the thick dust. Countless beams of energy pierced the tower, leaving it riddled with holes. Bright red flames splashed like solid matter. The extreme temperature difference created powerful whirlwinds that gathered the dust into a gray tornado spanning heaven and earth.
Disaster—this was absolute disaster. More real and terrifying than any disaster movie. Through the dense dust, Blackhair and the others could even see the Rockmen melting rapidly under the extreme heat of the explosion.
There were no more cries. In such a terrifyingly hot environment, the air was instantly sucked away. Blackhair and the others could no longer hear any sound from the Rockmen. All that remained was the chaos after the explosion.
Was this… the reason why the dead city became ruins?

Silence reigned on the landing ship. Everyone stared blankly at the silent tragedy unfolding outside. Their faces were pale, with droplets of sweat sliding down their foreheads, yet none of them seemed to notice. War was cruel, and they were among its creators. But experiencing such cruelty up close was something they had never done before. Perhaps in their mechs or warships, a mere thought of theirs could unleash attacks more terrifying than this giant sea urchin-like ship. Yet that didn’t mean they would feel the cruelty itself. Interstellar wars had stripped everything of reality. Even the best warriors probably could not have such firsthand experiences. The flames around them had engulfed the landing ship, yet inside, it remained utterly silent. For the first time, the pirates felt the despair of war. Time passed; the flames vanished, the dust disappeared, and the devastation from the battle vanished as well. At some point, the giant ships in the sky, the Rock Clan on the ground, and all the destruction caused by the battle were gone, leaving nothing but the ruined city before them. The city was deserted, filled with ruins. The sky was gray, cold, and desolate—everything had returned to its starting point. The landing craft jolted slightly, and only then did they realize they had arrived in front of that mysterious tower… In the silence, Black Hair let out a long sigh. “Let’s go. We still have a lot to do.” “Yes, we still have to act as executioners,” Blood Eyes replied with a bitter smile. Teams of mechs stepped off the landing ship. Though somewhat disheartened, the Blood Wolf Pirates still carried out Black Hair’s orders perfectly. Once they boarded their familiar mechs, the sense of battle returned to their blood. Soon, Black Hair and his group reached the entrance of the tower. Looking at the pitch-black doors and the scars all over the tower, Blood Eyes suddenly sneered. “Boss, I don’t know why, but I really don’t want to work for the Moore Clan anymore. Even though I know it’s for our own good.” “Me too,” Black Hair’s voice came through the communicator. Though calm, Blood Eyes could sense the suppressed anger beneath it.

“But we must do it. Blood-eyed, this is war. Cruel and realistic. We have no other choice. Everything you just saw was what happened to the Rockmen in the past. The same could happen on Death Star. But one thing is different—here, we can still feel pity for the Rockmen. If it happened on Death Star…”
“Who will pity us?”