The Empire begins with the Fourth Scourge.

Chapter 2624 Times Change

2624. Times have changed.

(To distinguish them from the Grand Inquisitor of the Court of Jury, the Grand Inquisitor of the jury will henceforth be called the Supreme Inquisitor.)
The Supreme Judge stood before the holographic star map, his pale face expressionless. He gently stroked his smooth chin and slowly said, "His movements are strange. The Fallen Angel."

Arden-Lin, the top female judge of the Imperial Tribunal, stood beside him with her arms crossed, looking rather uninterested. "I told you, I'm not good at tracking. If you have any plans, then just go ahead and do them."

“What I’m trying to say is how he got through our defenses,” the Supreme Judge said, pointing to the holographic star map. “His choice of the planet Disahi wasn’t random. He had his own logic… Moreover, he was able to cross our blockade and then openly appear on a planet not far from our lines, staying there long enough for reinforcements to arrive. This shows that his purpose was to draw our attention.”

"So what? He's no longer on Disahi. So where is he now?" Arden-Lin asked rhetorically.

"Finding his location isn't difficult. Because if it's just about attracting attention, he's succeeded. But I think that's not enough; it hasn't achieved the effect he intended," the Supreme Judge said coldly. "So, he will definitely make another public appearance. We just need to wait. However, I'm thinking about something else."

"What is it?" Arden-Lin asked.

“His main fleet,” the Supreme Judge said. “We have detected that the Kingdom of Dawn is assembling a fleet in the North. And at this time, the Angels of Death have also appeared in the North. This can only mean that they intend to launch an attack in the North.”

“That’s Dunn Wessex’s problem to worry about,” Arden-Lin said coldly. “What we need is to find the Angel of Death. But I must also warn you, if you intend to kill him, the two of us simply cannot do so.”

“I think His Majesty the Emperor also intends to do the same,” the Supreme Judge said. “This time, His Majesty should have taken action himself, but he is currently unavailable for combat, so he sent us instead. Therefore, our objective is not to kill the Angel of Death… but to hold him off.”

A strange look flashed in Arden-Lin's eyes, and she immediately asked, "If His Majesty the Emperor is unable to come to the North, could it be that he has gone to the planet Tepachi?"

A mocking smile appeared on her lips. "It seems that little black dog, Radinal Tobin, is dead there."

"The one who went to resolve the mess on Tepaci and the Targ family was the Dark Prophet, Kadan," the High Inquisitor said.

"Oh? So, the rumors about His Majesty's poor health lately are true?" Arden-Lin suddenly asked.

“This is not something we need to worry about,” the Supreme Judge said.

“But he’s missing,” Arden-Lin said. “The opportunity to kill the Angel of Death is right before us, and I don’t think His Majesty the Emperor will let it slip away. So… where is His Majesty the Emperor?”

“Finding a Sith Lord in poor health is an extremely difficult and dangerous task,” the Supreme Inquisitor said calmly, staring at Arden-Lin. “Because in such a state, a Sith Lord is at his most cunning and ruthless. Once they believe their lives are threatened, they would rather drag the entire galaxy down with them.”

“I understand.” Arden-Lin nodded. “So, this time, we have to rely on ourselves for the battle?”

“That’s why I said, let’s stall for time. His Majesty the Emperor has more than one secret base. He is recuperating somewhere, and I believe he will return soon. If the Fallen Angels still dare to linger in the North by then, then perhaps the Kingdom of Dawn will need a new king,” the Supreme Judge sneered.

As they were talking, an alarm suddenly sounded, and an officer strode over and said, "Sir, Akuria has been attacked! The situation is the same as with Disahi!"

The Supreme Judge immediately ordered, "Immediately seal off Aquaria! Send out Blocker-class Star Destroyers to completely block off the hyperspace channels surrounding the planet! Then immediately dispatch the Lila Super Star Destroyer!"

"Sir, the super star destroyer Lila is currently defending the planet Palin-Minor," the officer whispered.

"Then tell Dunn-Wessex to send the Lyra over immediately, or else the First Sister and I will turn around and leave, leaving him to face the Fallen Angels and the Northern Forces of the Kingdom of Dawn on his own," the Supreme Judge said coldly.

"Yes...yes...I'll report immediately," the officer said hastily, a bead of cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

……

Meanwhile, in the northeastern part of the Milky Way, on the planet Dasomir.

A shuttle disguised as a civilian spaceship flew to the planet's surface and slowly landed near the planet's core.

Why the core area?

Because the core area of ​​the planet Dassomier is now very easy to find. Right on the planet's surface, there is an enormous tree growing.

This tree is shaped like a canopy, and its size is enormous. Its canopy covers an area spanning tens of kilometers! And the entire tree reaches a height of ten thousand meters!
And what's most terrifying is that this tree is entirely blood red!

Indeed, the tree trunk, branches, and leaves were all blood-red, as if it had grown by absorbing countless drops of blood.

Such a scene can only be described as a miracle. Just a short time ago, the planet Dassomier had suffered a fierce orbital bombardment.

Several years ago, Darth Malthael, sensing the sudden resurrection of Gögzerian, the Night Queen of Dath'Thazir, joined forces with Darth Sidious to come and kill the ancient witch king. However, although they severely wounded Gögzerian, she ultimately escaped due to their infighting and backstabbing.

Of course, it was already quite an achievement that Darth Malthael and Darth Sidious didn't immediately engage in a life-or-death battle when they met face to face. This was also because Darth Sidious hadn't yet mastered the Force Storm at that time, and his strength wasn't enough to guarantee a victory over Darth Malthael. Therefore, with an incredibly powerful third party still present, he refrained from making a move.

Afterwards, feeling that he had been used, Darth Sidious was furious and ordered the five Imperial-class Star Destroyers he had brought to carry out a thorough orbital bombardment of the area where they had fought.

Under such bombing, the area they had been in, spanning thousands of kilometers, was completely engulfed in flames, and crystals even formed at the extremely high temperatures!

However, in just a few years, this area, which had been completely crystallized by the orbital bombardment, miraculously recovered and even grew such an enormous blood-red tree! This situation is completely unbelievable.

After the shuttle came to a stop, the hatch opened, and a person dressed in a black cloak stepped out. He looked up at the literally colossal tree before him, his brow furrowed. Standing before such a terrifying tree, a person felt incredibly small. Because looking up at the sky, the entire sky was covered by the boundless canopy, not even a sliver of sunlight could be felt, only a blood-red expanse, and a mysterious, refreshing fragrance permeated the air.

After thinking for a moment, the man stepped forward and entered the area covered by the giant tree.

The giant tree was incredibly lush. Although it was tens of thousands of meters tall, it actually had countless branches extending tens of meters above the ground. Moreover, countless aerial roots grew from the branches, some of which were even as thick as a tree, hanging down to the ground to support the branches.

Moreover, as they went deeper, even more terrifying scenes appeared before them.

Countless sacs hung from the branches of the giant tree. These sacs were so numerous that it was impossible to tell whether they were plants or animals, because they looked like fleshy tumors, which were extremely disgusting.

However, amidst these pouches, one could see a person! Upon closer inspection, they were countless Night Witches and Light Witches!

There are countless witches wrapped in these sachets, at least hundreds of thousands or even more! Some of the witches' bodies have even shriveled up completely, looking like mummies.

It appears that this giant tree has trapped almost all the Night Sisters and Light Witches on the entire planet Dathomir inside its pouches and hung there, as if they were all fruits of the tree.

No, rather than the fruit, they are the nourishment for this giant tree.

After walking another ten kilometers or so, the man had entered the depths of the giant tree's territory. He raised his hands and found that his left hand had begun to wither, becoming skin and bones from the elbow down. Countless small red dots clung to the shriveled skin.

However, he didn't care at all and just kept moving forward.

"Ah... what do I see? Hehehehe... a fragmented soul. Hehehehe..." A strange laugh came from deep within the giant tree.

All that could be seen was an old woman, dressed in a magnificent red witch's robe, her skin deathly pale, floating out from the depths of the giant tree. She circled the person once, then let out an extremely unpleasant, eerie laugh, "Who are you? You poor little thing. You feel familiar, yet strange... Hehehehe. However, you probably can't go any further... Soon, you will become nourishment for the sacred tree. Hehehehe."

"Ah, Matriarch Tarzin. I didn't expect to see you here," the newcomer said casually.

"Who are you?" Matriarch Tarzin asked again.

“If I cannot go any further, then take me to her.” The man showed no panic at his impending death; he simply said calmly, “Take me to see the Night Queen, Geszerian.”

"Hehehehe... What right do you have to meet the great Queen of the Night...?" Matriarch Tarzin sneered.

"She will see me," the man said.

A terrifying and eerie ball of green energy began to gather in Matriarch Tarzin's hand. "Let me do it..."

"Bring her here." A voice suddenly rang out from all directions. The voice was extremely unpleasant, like fingernails scratching a blackboard, making one feel uncomfortable just by hearing it.

Madam Tarzin was stunned, but she dared not disobey the voice and respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. I will bring him here immediately."

As she spoke, she gently waved her hand, and two branches began to grow and spread rapidly, sprouting countless aerial roots that grabbed the person. Then, countless branches and leaves gathered together, like a pair of wings, carrying him into the depths of the giant tree.

They moved quickly, and soon they could see the massive, terrifying trunk of the tree.

This giant tree, which is 10,000 meters tall, has a trunk that is hundreds of meters in diameter. It looks like a blood-red wooden wall that stretches almost to the end of the line of sight.

Upon reaching the tree trunk, they saw another witch standing there, clad in a bright red sorceress's robe. While she appeared no different from Matron Tarzin—just an elderly witch of the Sisterhood of the Night—a closer look revealed…

The person standing in front of me is not a single person.

It's not the tree itself!

That vast and terrifying primal force was like a blood-red ocean, devouring and melting everything! Only when you use the primal force to sense it can you discover that the part of this giant tree above ground is just the tip of the iceberg; its incredibly developed root system has already penetrated deep into the entire planet Dassomier!
That's right, the entire planet is part of this giant tree!

The dark witch standing before us could be any part of this tree; she was simply in charge of the conversation.

“Geszer Ryan… Hehehe, we meet again.” The newcomer let out a twisted, sickening laugh.

“You’re as annoying as ever, Darth Sidious,” Geszerian said calmly. “But you are, after all, the Emperor of the Galactic Empire, and I should still give you the proper courtesy—I will give you a chance to speak before I completely devour this remnant of your soul.”

Darth Sidious raised his hand to look at the withered parts of his body that were spreading, but showed no fear. He said, "It seems you don't have much time for me."

He lowered his hand, stared at Geszerian, and said, “Let’s cooperate. Let’s kill the Angel of Death—Darth Malthael.”

“Hehehehehe…” Geszerian chuckled. “This is the second time you’ve made this request, Darth Sidious. What makes you think I’ll agree this time?”

“Because things have changed,” Darth Sidious said. “Beside the Death Angel, there is now a corpse. This corpse is darker and more powerful than the Force of the Dark Side! You could even say that it is the source of darkness! And the Death Angel, who controls this corpse, has only used one-tenth of its power, yet it is already invincible. I have failed.”

Geszerian suddenly fell silent. After a long while, she asked, "Is the corpse you're talking about a pale-skinned bald man?"