The same scene was taking place in four different places.
DarkStar had sent out a total of five motherships in order to attack Planet Golden Gate!
In one of the DarkStar motherships, Degulish looked at the radar screen before him and said, “Godora’s reconnaissance range is pretty good. When we arrive at Planet Golden Gate, the fleet stationed there will have gotten into formation. It is a pity that we weren’t able to ambush them successfully.”
However, he had not thought that the ambush would be successful. Godora was already on high alert, so it would not be so easy to ambush them again. Besides, they had sent out half of their organization’s troops this time, so it would not make a difference if they failed to ambush Godora.
Not too long later, Planet Golden Gate appeared in their sights, and the other four DarkStar motherships also appeared near Planet Golden Gate. Godora had tightened its defensive formation and opened up a few dozen golden Weiss Magical Protective Shields. The Godoran fleet guarding the planet was only a fourth or fifth the size of the DarkStar fleet. It was as though they were surrounded by wolves.
Five DarkStar motherships were surrounding Planet Golden Gate from five different directions.
Every mothership had a commander, and the overall commander of the attack was Degulish.
“Attack!” Degulish commanded, not wasting any time talking to Godora.
The battle erupted!
There was no sound in the vacuum of space, and numerous light beams, homing missiles, and laser cannons lit up the dark space in a beautiful light display. The attacks continued wave after wave, and before the previous wave of attacks ended, a new wave of attacks started. Endless waves of explosions could be seen outside the atmosphere of Planet Golden Gate.
The dozens of protective shields vibrated violently, looking as though they would shatter at any moment.
Godora’s fleet had adopted a defensive stance and tried their best to sustain the protective shields.
“Don’t even dream of stalling for time to wait for reinforcements,” Degulish sneered.
DarkStar had come extremely well prepared, and before taking action, they had already collected intelligence on the troops stationed on Planet Golden Gate. While Planet Golden Gate was a Grade A colony planet that had a large fleet stationed all year round, it was insignificant in the face of the troops that DarkStar had sent out. DarkStar could crush Godora in terms of numbers, and the battleships of both parties were extremely similar in terms of strength.
On the other side, DarkStar had also paid attention to the movement of Godora’s fleet on the other planets. However, the troops guarding the other planets showed no signs of movement. Thus, even if Godora wanted to seek reinforcements from Juberly Hub, the reinforcements would take some time to arrive. As long as DarkStar unleashed all of their firepower without restraint, they would definitely be able to break through the defenses of Planet Golden Gate before the reinforcements arrived.
“Continue attacking, don’t stop,” Degulish said coldly.
With the numerical advantage, he was not planning to start a ground battle. He only planned to destroy everything with absolute firepower. The objective of their mission this time was not a massacre but to bathe Planet Golden Gate with cannon fire. They wanted to flatten the entire planet and destroy all the structures on the planet. They intended to completely destroy the entire colony planet.
At the same time, Planet Golden Gate fell into complete chaos because of this sudden assault. Countless individuals flooded the dock and wanted to escape in their spaceships. However, the army stationed at the dock received news from their superiors to lock down the dock and prevent any civilian spaceships from taking off.
This action had immediately enraged the populace, and a huge conflict had broken out in the dock. The entire situation was extremely chaotic, and everyone wanted to escape from the planet but was blocked by the army.
“What right do you have to prevent us from leaving!”
“A war is happening up there—do you guys want us to die with you‽”
“It’s my right to choose to leave this planet!”
The soldiers guarding the dock remained unperturbed and had stern expressions on their faces. In truth, they were also extremely afraid of DarkStar wiping out the fleet guarding the planet. If that happened, they would also die. However, they had been through strict training and knew to calm themselves down in times of fear and carry out orders strictly.
The order from their superior was to prevent anyone from leaving the planet. First, the entire planet was being bombarded with cannon fire, and the civilian spaceships would definitely be destroyed the moment they left the protective shield. Second, the civilian spaceships might end up creating chaos in the battlefield. If those spaceships crashed into the Godoran fleet, it was very likely to set off a chain reaction that would spell their immediate defeat. Furthermore, there might be DarkStar spies hidden among the civilians who were planning on destroying Godora’s defenses from within. Thus, while it was a little too much to forbid the civilians on Planet Golden Gate from escaping, it was necessary to do so. Only when the protective shield was about to break would they escape together with the civilians.
Being unable to break through the lockdown of the army, many people collapsed to the ground with fear plastered all over their faces. Many of them greatly regretted not escaping the planet like the others and taking refuge in the universe.
The media outlets on Planet Golden Gate also made use of their observatory equipment to broadcast the battle outside the atmosphere to the entire Star System. The news anchor trembled and suppressed the fear in his heart as he reported the situation on the planet.
The local news was quickly spread into the galaxy, and many news channels broadcast the situation on Planet Golden Gate. After the Long Arc incident, DarkStar had once again stretched out their demonic claws to another planet. The attention of many in the Shattered Star Ring was drawn to this event.
Godora had just announced that they had developed a working antidote for the Mutation Disaster, but this assault had brought a new wave of fear to Godora.
The situation outside the planet was extremely tense, and the fleet stationed on Planet Golden Gate had already lost more than two hundred battleships and more than ten Weiss Magical Protective Shields. The protective shield surrounding the planet seemed to be on the verge of collapse, and a portion of the attacks could already pass through the cracks in the protective shields.
Many cities had activated their own protective shields and did not suffer much damage. However, once the fleet protecting the planet fell, the protective shield of the cities would not be able to last for long. A series of cannons had also revealed itself from the ground and aimed toward the sky. Their missile systems had also been activated, and the atmosphere was extremely tense.
The moment that the DarkStar fleet broke through the atmosphere, Planet Golden Gate could only put up their final defense. However, if even the fleet guarding the planet was destroyed, these defensive structures would only be enough to tickle DarkStar.
“Increase firepower. They can’t hold us back anymore,” Degulish sneered as he observed the situation on the battlefield.
Right at that moment, a screeching alarm went off in the mothership.
“Alert! A large unknown energy source is approaching! The numbers are unknown!”
Before Degulish could even react, the light of battleships exiting from hyperdrive flashed around the edge of the battlefield. Plenty of battleships of all shapes and sizes began appearing on the battlefield and formed a gigantic alliance fleet. They were obviously not there to help DarkStar.
All of those battleships were painted with logos, and more than ten different logos could be seen on all the battleships.
“Sky Ring Army, Purple Gold Army, Blades Army… these are all the large Mercenary Groups in the region!”
Degulish was dumbfounded.
Wait a moment! Why have these mercen
aries appeared all of a sudden? Where did they come from‽
Not just him, the leaders of the other organizations who were viewing the broadcast had also revealed looks of shock.
Did Godora actually prepare an ambush‽
In the flagship of the Sky Ring Army, the leader of the Sky Ring Army, Gureja, had just ended his conversation with the director-general of Godora’s War Bureau. He then looked in the direction of Planet Golden Gate and stroked his needle-like beard while chuckling.
“Ha, Black Star has truly introduced me to a big job.”
Chapter 566 - Your Mothership Isn’t Bad. It’s Now Mine.
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Two days ago, when the Mutation Disaster had been declared over, the citizens of Planet Aquamarine had been overjoyed. In the past half a year, the law and order of the planet had constantly been eroded by the calamity, and it had been a living hell. However, the tough times were over, and the refugees had the courage to start life all over again. In fact, all of them had a far stronger will than before.
They needed some time to recover from the losses suffered in the Mutation Disaster, and the refugees needed to adapt to their new living conditions. The Six Nations and the Sanctuary had plenty of things to be done. The majority of the refugees sheltered by the Sanctuary and the Six Nations had chosen to stay behind. With the Mutation Disaster over, the next thing they had to consider was development.
Bennett had been in discussion with his aides and advisors over the past few days, and they were preparing to expand the Sanctuary. They were going to officially change the Sanctuary into a regime and expand their territory. A city would be built, and the refugees taking shelter in the Sanctuary would become their citizens.
The changes of the Sanctuary had a profound meaning. This was the development of the Planet Aquamarine civilization. If they continued developing at their current pace, Planet Aquamarine would only be able to come into contact with the galaxy many years later. However, with the anomaly that was Han Xiao, that was no longer the case.
A short two days went by, and Planet Aquamarine was taking their first step toward recovery. Han Xiao did not pay attention to them.
Han Xiao’s attention was completely focused on the recruitment of players. After the Main Storyline Mission of Version 2.0 was completed, the key part to the next step of his plan would be to lead the players into the galaxy en masse.
Part of the reason for Han Xiao ending the Mutation Disaster at an earlier time was so that the players could enter the galaxy earlier and work for the benefit of his Black Star Mercenary Group.
Currently, all of his plans were set, and he was only lacking that final push. As long as he announced the time of departure to all the players and made them feel that they had a mission on their shoulders, their sense of belonging to the mercenary group would definitely increase.
Following which, he only needed to gather all the players and head toward the galaxy. At that time, his goal would be accomplished.
Currently, there were about three to four hundred thousand players in the Black Star Mercenary Group, and Han Xiao did not intend to recruit all the remaining players in a single breath. It was still important for him to maintain a certain benchmark. If not, the players who got in through a selection would not feel too good. Thus, Han Xiao did not plan to take all the players along with him at once.
Instead, Han Xiao would leave behind a path for them to follow him. The Black Star Second Base was stationed on Planet Aquamarine, and he was prepared to leave some mercenaries, machinery, and transport spaceships behind. The remaining players would only be able to join the Black Star Mercenary Group after passing the selection and would be sent to the first base after that.
Han Xiao wanted to set up a tradition and let the players get used to the long-term recruitment. Joining the Black Star Mercenary Group was currently the easiest way for the players to enter the galaxy, and players would naturally scramble for the chance. All the future players who started off on Planet Aquamarine would be the same. In fact, not just the players, even the natives of Planet Aquamarine were included in Han Xiao’s plans.
He was leaving behind a bridge to connect Planet Aquamarine to the galaxy. It was just like planting crops. It was important to consider the long-term sustainability of the crops. It was not enough to harvest the crops only once.
All of that was considered in his plans. After the completion of the Main Storyline Mission, Han Xiao did not immediately set his plan into motion but gave the players some time.
He was also prepared to rest for a few days.
However, news of DarkStar attacking Planet Golden Gate had ruined his rest.
In the workshop of the Black Star Second Base, Han Xiao stopped repairing his Mechanical Beast Guards Army, and his eyes were glued to the screen of his communicator. The galactic news was being broadcast at the moment. Just when Planet Golden Gate was in a precarious situation, more than a dozen large mercenary groups rushed over as reinforcements. The originally one-sided battle suddenly became an evenly matched one, and both parties began to engage in an intense war.
“The ambush on Planet Golden Gate really happened. It seems like resolving the Mutation Disaster crisis early did not affect DarkStar’s plans. They did not give up on the ambush.” Han Xiao heaved a sigh of relief. Thankfully, his guess had not been wrong.
With the experience of his previous life, Han Xiao knew of DarkStar’s plans. However, he was not sure of the exact timeline of their plan; he only knew the sequence of their plans.
The ambush on Planet Golden Gate was a key event in the storyline, and Han Xiao had not been certain that DarkStar would carry out the same plan as in his previous life. But after a series of careful analysis, he had felt that the attack on Planet Golden Gate was a key part of DarkStar’s strategy, and it would not be changed.
A month ago, when Han Xiao provided a sample of the Mutation Source, Han Xiao did not hide what he knew about DarkStar’s plans and raised it with Godora’s War Bureau as an opinion. He said that this was something that he found out from analysis and prediction. With his knowledge of DarkStar in his previous life, Han Xiao’s argument was extremely convincing.
Because of the sample that he had provided and Han Xiao’s close ties with Godora, the War Bureau decided to take a gamble and formed a trap based on this intelligence.
Ever since the outbreak of the Mutation Disaster, Godora had always been on the losing side and needed a huge victory to prove their strength, stabilize their internal situation, and regain their citizen’s confidence.
In order to ensure that their trap remained a secret, Godora did not send any of their troops. The War Bureau knew that DarkStar was definitely keeping tabs on their military. The moment that Godora gathered their forces on Planet Golden Gate, their plan would be exposed. In order to bait their prey into the trap, Godora needed to make use of an external force and thus thought of the mercenaries.
The ones willing to accept such a mission would only be the large mercenary groups.
The risk of such a battle was large, but the rewards were also tempting. This single mission was comparable to a few hundred thousand small-scale missions. Apart from the remuneration of the mission, the mercenaries were also allowed to deal with the spoils of war from the battle.
Han Xiao had not spent the past few years in the Shattered Star Ring in vain. He had worked with a few hundred different mercenary groups and had close ties with them all. The influence and connections of the Black Star Mercenary Group were nothing to be scoffed at.
Han Xiao formed the bridge this time and introduced Sky Ring, Blades, Purple Gold, and many other large mercenary groups to the War Bureau.
DarkStar naturally did not know that their plans had already been exposed by Han Xiao long ago. They had thought that ambushing Planet Golden Gate would catch Godora off guard but did not know that Godora was actually looking forward to them attacking Planet Golden Gate.
As the
middleman, Han Xiao had a referral fee of 150,000 Enas. Naturally, the various mercenary groups that participated in the battle also charged sky high remuneration. Only an entity like Godora would be able to afford to hire that many large sized mercenary groups.
To be hired for an intergalactic war, the size of the mercenary group isn’t the only factor. One also needs to have a sizeable fleet of battleships. When I lead the players into the galaxy, the Black Star Mercenary Group will be comparable to those large mercenary groups in terms of numbers. However, we will still be lacking in terms of battleships. Thus, I still have to earn more money.
Han Xiao collected his thoughts, and his mouth curled up as he watched the broadcast on his communicator. Leaving the workshop, he went into the cockpit of the BlackLight Stealth and knocked on the control panel.
“Risda, I need your help.”
The next second, a figure of light appeared. “Black Star, what do you need me to do?”
“You are an AI lifeform and should be able to travel through cyberspace, right?”
Risda nodded and said, “This is my way of survival. Even if you are able to destroy the shell that I am living in, I can still survive in cyberspace.”
“I will get Phillip to open up a path for you to go to the first base,” Han Xiao said with a deep voice. “I will have the members of Sky Ring work with Phillip to construct a movement channel for you. They will try to attack a DarkStar mothership and help you infiltrate the system of the mothership. I need you to avoid or even replace the original AI system of the mothership and remain hidden in DarkStar.”
Risda was a virtual lifeform who lived in cyberspace. Apart from aiding one in hacking, he could still lie dormant in the main frame system, just like how Risda occupied BlackLight Stealth and had swallowed the original AI system of this spaceship.
If Risda wanted to go undercover, he would be able to easily avoid the majority of firewalls with its processing speed. However, the condition for that is that his target had to have opened up a virtual connection to the outside world. Also, being connected by hardware was much easier than infiltrating through virtual space.
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