Chapter 48: The Greatest Thief in History, Section 6

Chaos, utter chaos.
If war had long become commonplace, such chaos was a rare sight among the Moors. All the tribes allied with the Moor Empire had not faced such turmoil in years. They were accustomed to the dominant tribe’s invincibility and to standing as victors before others. Yet they never imagined they would one day be forced to flee in desperation.
This was not war, but it was even more terrifying. Once the energy core of the space station exploded, these residents would likely not even survive intact. Thus, the Seven-Six Star Station was now in a state akin to the end of the world. Whether they were the lofty Moors or the humble slaves, there was no difference—everyone screamed in panic and rushed toward the nearest spaceport. The massive transport ships in the distance were their only hope.
On the streets and corridors, crowds fled in panic, huddling together with their families. The entire space station erupted in chaos, with crowds surging like a tide.
In contrast, the spaceport remained orderly.
As the dominant force ruling the universe, the Moors indeed had reason to be proud. It wasn’t just their devastating warships but also their genuine competence. Unlike the laxness common in human societies, Moor Empire officers never relaxed their vigilance, no matter how great their achievements. Whether in war or peace, their military discipline was enough to make any race ashamed.
Thus, just five minutes after the declaration of war, thirty imperial warships had already gathered in one corner of the spaceport. All crew members were in position, with captains lined up neatly, waiting for the arrival of Governor Bloodpupil to hand over full command of the fleet.
Admittedly, this was something they were reluctant to do—no one wanted to share their power. But as part of their basic training as Moor officers, none of them complained. They simply waited quietly, watching the crowds fleeing in the distance.
Those crowds were heading toward the transport fleet, while they were combat ships, not part of the rescue effort. So despite sharing concerns for the safety of the residents, they could not offer help and could only endure the wait.

Fortunately, the wait wasn’t long. Soon, they met the person they wanted to see—the governor of Station 76-3, the actual ruler, Lord Bloodpupil. As always, despite the tense situation, Lord Bloodpupil remained lazy. He wore a military uniform carelessly draped over him and slippers on his feet, looking utterly unconventional. Yet no one dared mock him. After all, in the past few months, every officer at Station 76-3 had been dealt with by Lord Bloodpupil. The sudden, terrifying attacks from behind made every officer shudder at the thought. So, despite their dissatisfaction with Lord Bloodpupil’s behavior, the officers still stood at attention, casting pitying looks at their governor. With such serious problems arising at the station, it seemed the higher authorities could no longer protect this governor—even if he was a subordinate of the legendary Count Beck. The destruction of the station was a grave crime. No matter how capable Count Beck was, he would surely blame this governor for poor supervision, possibly leading to his dismissal. At this thought, many people’s eyes showed gleams of schadenfreude. But they didn’t realize that to Lord Bloodpupil, such looks were utterly ridiculous. What a bunch of foolish officers—still trying to scheme against him. Didn’t they know their lives were now measured in minutes? In his eyes, they were already on the hit list, and unfortunately, the executioner… was himself. Well, since they had allowed him to bully them for so long, he would let them go peacefully… Lord Bloodpupil sighed inwardly but issued orders with a serious expression. All officers, including the captain, were to gather in the airport conference room to discuss how to rescue the military and civilians. This statement immediately caused a storm of outrage. All the officers glared at Lord Bloodpupil in fury. At such a critical moment, how could this incompetent governor still think about holding a meeting? Could meetings solve the station’s core problems? Could they ensure the safe evacuation of hundreds of millions of residents? Instead of finding solutions, he just wanted to delay things. Governor Bloodpupil was truly a disgrace to the empire!

But despite their anger, the officers had no choice but to obey orders. They obediently stepped down from the warship and headed toward the conference room at the airport. Fortunately, it wasn’t very far, so in less than two minutes, dozens of officers filled that small space. Bloodpupil was the last to arrive. After staggering through the door, he didn’t immediately discuss matters with the officers. Instead, he suddenly smiled, turned around, and closed the door. Darkness descended the moment the door closed, followed by the sound of blades cutting into flesh, along with shouts and screams… Thirty seconds later, the door opened again, and Bloodpupil stepped out calmly, his military uniform still spotless. Yet the murderous intent on his face hadn’t faded. He lightly lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, coughed, and smiled at a Bloodwolf warrior following behind him. “Tell the brothers to take control of the warship and report the situation to the leader. From here on, it’s up to him.” The Bloodwolf warrior nodded, then waved his hand, leading the other warriors like wolves toward the warship in the distance. Before Bloodpupil even finished his cigarette, more than thirty imperial warships began flashing their signals one after another. At the same time, the evacuation from Station 763 Star was halfway complete. About 80% of the crowd had entered the transport ships, while the rest had nowhere else to go. These abandoned people stayed at the airport, crying bitterly, pleading, or cursing. But no one showed them any sympathy. The transport ships gradually left the port under their desperate gazes, flying toward the airport’s exit. It could be said that whatever number remained had little hope left. The transport ships needed to teleport out of the explosion range of the station and couldn’t turn back to save them. Not far away, the station’s doors also began to close gradually as a final effort to reduce the impact of the explosion. They were like people trapped in a furnace about to explode—there was nothing they could do but wait for death.

Desperate screams echoed in the air, and waiting for death was an even greater torment. Under such circumstances, no one could remain sane. They screamed frantically and turned their blades on their fellow humans. Xue Tong witnessed several strong men rushing into the crowd, pulling out a similarly desperate girl, and beginning to abuse her right before everyone’s eyes. The girl did not resist, only staring blankly at the airport’s ceiling with a lifeless, gray gaze. Those in the crowd who dared to protest were beaten and kicked by those strong men.

“Although I know it’s not my place to feel sympathy, I really can’t stand watching this.” Seeing this scene, Xue Tong unconsciously clenched his fists before releasing them again. After thinking for a moment, he summoned a Blood Wolf warrior beside him.

“Go and kill those guys. Then free up two transport ships for those refugees. Don’t leave any crew on them. If they can leave, it’s their luck; if not, it’s not our fault for being heartless.”

“Understood, Brother Xue Tong,” the Blood Wolf warrior replied loudly before rushing off. Soon, Xue Tong saw those violent men dragged out of the crowd by his subordinates and beheaded right before everyone’s eyes. The brutality of the Blood Wolf warriors instantly silenced the others, reducing even their cries to whispers.

Clearly, they couldn’t understand why there were still so many vicious people at the airport when the space station had already been evacuated. And it seemed they didn’t care at all, showing no concern about the impending destruction.

But there was no need for them to guess. The two transport ships that arrived later were what truly surprised them. These ships had originally been brought by Hei Fa, and at Xue Tong’s orders, their propulsion engines were removed and given to them. Though still smaller than the Moors’ transport ships, they were more than enough to accommodate the remaining refugees.

There were indeed many capable individuals among the refugees. Soon, the two transport ships took off under Xue Tong’s gaze, heading out into space. Though their flight was extremely unstable, there was no doubt they were flying. For the remaining refugees, escape was no longer an impossible task.

And these survivors didn’t realize that it was precisely because they left later than others that they got to witness the most unforgettable scene of their lives.

Just as they had just left the space station, its giant hatch finally closed. Soon after, a dazzling transition halo appeared on one side of the station, from which hundreds of massive ships emerged in succession, slamming into the station’s outer wall. Thick plumes of exhaust were ejected from their tails, forming an energy column hundreds of kilometers in diameter. The once planet-sized space station also began to move under such tremendous thrust.

Ten meters, a hundred meters, a kilometer. The station moved faster and faster, eventually turning into a beam of white light that shot deep into the universe. In less than a moment, the area where the station had been was now empty void—no trace of the giant space station remained.

A giant space station had actually flown away right under everyone’s noses?

Inside the transport ship, the remaining refugees stared at each other, unable to believe their eyes. After a brief silence, someone suddenly let out a shrill cry of despair.

“Thieves!! Catch… catch the thieves!!!!”