Sanctuary Paradise

Chapter 822 Expeditionary Operations Conference
So, ten minutes later.

"Wow, this place is fucking amazing! If I could drive one of these to the Void Entertainment City, I feel like I could pick up a whole bunch of girls just by snapping my fingers!"

"Randy, well, if you could get your hands on a legion-class warship, I think the first thing you should consider is how to sail it over there and prevent the enemy from closing the gates and running away..."

As the slightly helpless grumble subsided, in the command room projecting a giant galaxy, Xin Lailai glanced at Randy beside her, revealing a somewhat subtle expression. Meanwhile, the White Demon standing next to Randy silently pulled away half a step, as if to indicate that he did not know this shameful ranger.

"Speaking of which, isn't the guardian that the nun mentioned actually here? I thought those guardians were all warmongers who spent all their time in the command room studying tactics."

"Well~ whatever, I already said to just drink whatever you want, so are you guys really not going to have a drink? I just opened a bottle of this premium stuff~!"

Yamu glanced at the command room, which was empty except for the five of them, and said with a hint of surprise. Randy, on the other hand, familiarly went to the bar, picked up a bottle of red wine with the Void Tree emblem, and asked Xin Lailai and the others about it without any shame.

"..."

"Don't look at me, I wouldn't have the nerve to do something like that either. This thing is purely about talent."

How did he manage to survive until now?

"Roaming is normal. When it comes to running away, even someone like Captain Black, who has a flight-type equipment, can only eat dust in the back."

"Uh, let me go ask if we need anything else..."

"Haha, it seems you all got along very well? I heard from the nun that there was a slight disagreement when you arrived, but it seems I was overthinking it~?"

Inside the command room, as the awkward atmosphere caused by Randy gradually spread, Xin Lailai, who was at the head, coughed lightly, just as she was about to find a topic to ease the tension, a seemingly approving voice suddenly came from the seat in the center of the command room. A short, stout man with straight, side-swept bangs and wearing a white military overcoat walked out of the spatial portal, clapping his hands and smiling as he said:

"I apologize for keeping you all waiting, as submitting the report took a little longer than expected!"

"Now that everyone is here, and considering that your time is equally valuable, how about we skip the formalities and get straight to the point?"

The voice, as soft as cotton wool yet exceptionally clear, fell, and at the same time, the 3D galaxy projection that had been floating in mid-air suddenly descended, rapidly enlarging and moving under the gaze of Xin Lailai and the others, finally fixing the viewpoint on a scene resembling the edge of the universe.

"This is……"

"This is our current location, the Lem 176-Desolate Starfield, the border of the third-order world layer of the astral plane. And this is the planned starting point for our expedition, the Reef 16 star system in the 10th Star Cluster of the Lem 176-Desolate Starfield."

As the gazes converged, the major in the main seat smiled and gently slid his left hand to zoom in on the green trajectory representing the world fortress's navigation route on the 3D star map. Then, he tapped a small point of light located at the edge of the star map... or rather, adjacent to that slowly writhing 'dark ocean' area, and zoomed it in as well.

"By the way, regarding the other two routes shown on the map, they are expedition routes managed by your classmates and the Void, respectively. Of course, these have nothing to do with us. What you really need to care about is this route—"

The major spoke, his eyes slightly narrowed, using a hovering cursor to guide Xin Lailai and the others' gaze to a barely perceptible crimson path, as he said:

"The Kashilem Route, that was its name before it was swallowed by the Abyss. According to the information left by your predecessors, namely the previous generation of Pioneer Rangers and Hunters, although many areas of it have changed, the curvature tunnels that form the main body of the route are still more than 50% intact."

"Most importantly, according to the gravitational wave changes observed by the Abyss Observatory established by the Academic Sect, it seems that a large world cluster has recently drifted to the vicinity of this route. Without a doubt, this is an excellent opportunity to set sail."

"As long as we can use the existence of this world cluster as a stepping stone, we can not only reclaim a large number of resource-rich eroded worlds, but also push the map of the astral plane forward once again. This is the purpose of bringing you all here. I'm sure your blood is boiling because of this."

The major grinned, his round-framed glasses reflecting a chilling light under the star map, while Xin Lailai and her group stared at the route marked by the other party, their gazes differing, but all clearly deep in thought.

"Of course, just as Great Britain could not be conquered in a single day, it is clearly not a strategically feasible idea to conquer a large world cluster in one go, and I believe you all understand that."

"Therefore, just as you may have heard from other places, this expedition will also be divided into three phases—"

In the command room, the major casually uttered a local colloquialism and smiled as he clapped his hands lightly. The next second, a large number of markers, routes, and notes sprang up from the star map like mushrooms after rain, causing everyone present to take notice.

"In the first phase, after arriving at the currently designated initial outpost, which is the Reef 16 star system mentioned earlier, we will set up a defense line there, activate the Abyss Purification Device, and use this star system adjacent to the Abyss as a starting point to expand our territory towards the Abyss along the Kassim route until we capture a second planet or world that can serve as an outpost and springboard before we officially enter the second phase."

The trail marked with an iron-gray arrow spread from the boundary between the Abyss and the Astral Plane, and after traveling a distance around the silver-white trail representing the 'Kashilem Route', it stopped at a light spot marked 'Assumption of Existence'.

"Once we enter the second phase, the paradise where you are located will begin to send the second batch of expedition members to take over your duties and help us guard the strongholds other than the initial strongholds. At the same time, the fortress will continuously produce legion-exclusive units capable of performing ultra-long-range and interstellar space operations to help you guard the abyss purification device and conquer new strongholds, thus expanding the battle lines."

As soon as the words were spoken, the star map before them suddenly sprouted three new arrows: blood red, glittering gold, and jet black, on top of the iron-gray arrows. At the same time, like a towering tree with branches spreading out, it spread out in a semi-circle towards the surrounding dark areas, centered on the spot of light where the iron-gray arrows had stopped, around the silver-white trajectory representing 'Kasilem's' voyage.

"Conquering, defending, retreating... this must be a long and arduous process, right? But for a protracted war, this is an unavoidable part. Only by slowly nibbling away at its flesh like a scavenging vulture, and reclaiming the territory it has taken from us, can we seize the opportunity to win this war."

"Of course, if we want to truly end all of this, such repetitive attrition is obviously meaningless. Therefore, once the second phase of the battle line is secured, the most crucial moment of this war will arrive, which is also the most important purpose for which everyone has gathered here—"

Inside the command center, a short, stout man with glasses, sporting a chilling half-smile, adjusted his round-framed glasses, revealing dark golden pupils that shone with a fervent, war-like gaze. He paused briefly, and only after numerous dark points of light appeared on the star map did he speak with a smile:

"Go to those worlds where there are holes in the abyss or even voids in the abyss, and utterly destroy these sources that bring power to the abyss!"

"This is the third phase of the operation, and it is also your most important purpose in this expedition: to gather intelligence, with the Legion, Hunters and Rangers crushing or beheading you."

"Purge, massacre, extermination, destruction, sealing..."

"Ray bursts, annihilation bombs, alchemical explosives, star core destruction devices..."

"No matter the method or means, if we cannot close these abyssal pores or voids, all previous victories are merely 'temporary advantages.' A small eruption of abyssal energy or a small wave of abyssal creatures can instantly destroy these 'temporary advantages.' Of course, even if we close the abyssal passages, no one can guarantee that these areas will truly belong to us, but at least it can transform from a 'temporary advantage' into a 'long-term geographical advantage,' can't it?"

The major said with a smile, while Xin Lailai and the others below the star map nodded slightly, clearly agreeing with his statement.

Just as the other party said, even if the Abyss Holes in the entire area are dealt with, it may not mean that this area has returned to the Astral Plane. But at least compared to the extremely high-risk areas where one has to be on guard against the emergence of Abyss creatures at all times, this is already the best outcome.

"As for the subsequent world recycling and profit distribution, I don't think I need to elaborate further. So... does anyone have any questions they'd like to ask?"

Having finished explaining everything, the major looked around at everyone and asked with a smile. Xin Lailai and the others all showed a thoughtful expression upon hearing this. Meanwhile, Randy, who had already finished more than half a bottle of the rare red wine produced by the top-tier winemaker of the Void Realm at the bar, suddenly raised his hand and said:

"Um! Can I ask a question? About the outpost, I'd like to ask, if we encounter a situation where we might be able to hold it or we might not be able to, should we prioritize holding it to the bitter end, or should we prioritize retreating and running away?"

As the flippant question faded, Xin Lailai's gaze flickered, while the major in the main seat chuckled softly and spoke with absolute certainty:

"Of course, we should retreat immediately, Lord Randy."

As the major spoke, a dangerous yet excited glint flashed in his dark golden eyes. He flashed his signature half-smile, narrowed his eyes, and addressed the crowd:

"Lord Randy, and everyone here, whether you are the distinguished guests who are about to arrive, or every soldier present in this fortress, in my opinion, your value far exceeds that of this war itself. Therefore, I cannot tolerate wasting such precious people in this place."

"In the end, this is just a recapture war. It is neither a life-or-death counterattack nor a turning point that will determine the outcome. We are simply reclaiming the territory that the astral plane once lost, nothing more."

"Even if we fail, suffer heavy setbacks in this war, or are even manipulated by the enemy, it will only mean losing our established strongholds, returning to square one, and starting over. Even if we lose a lot of resources, as long as you all survive, we will have already gained the most precious thing—"

"That is the experience of war."

"Including you all, every member in this fortress... and those who are about to arrive at this fortress, are precious talents with unlimited potential, personally selected by Paradise, which possesses incredible power. War can transform this potential into valuable experience with the highest efficiency, turning it into your powerful strength in the next war."

"If one game doesn't work, then two, three, four... For a battle to retake the situation where even if we fail, it's just a retreat back to square one. As long as we can accumulate experience, even if we fail many times, it's just an insignificant number."

"but--"

"If you can succeed even once during this long period of accumulation, even if it's just occupying the most insignificant barren planet, by the standards of a recapture war, that would be a victory for both of you and us."

"This is the significance of the recapture war. Gentlemen, in this war, we are the attackers wielding spears, while the Abyss is merely passively defending against our attacks. If we were to abandon the hand that holds the spear in order to launch an attack, it would be like destroying an entire land for temporary sustenance, an utterly foolish act of self-destruction."

"Oh, right, there's a small limitation to add here: everything mentioned above is based on the premise that you are 'retreating,' not 'fleeing.' You should be able to distinguish between the two, right?"

"Well, Lord Randy, do you have any further questions?"

In the main seat, the major interlaced his fingers, looked at Randy who was enjoying his wine, and asked with a smile. Randy grinned and said with great satisfaction:

"That's all. For me, that answer was enough!"

"Is that so? And what were everyone's answers?"

"Gone."

"..."

"Well, what I wanted to ask has already been asked."

"Same here."

"In that case, I look forward to seeing how you all perform in the war."

After three different voices fell, the major smiled and said, raising his hand and gently swiping to move the three-dimensional star map in front of him back to the top, thus announcing the end of this combat meeting. Xin Lailai and the others nodded slightly and stepped into the spatial portal one after another.

"Hey, wait a minute! Take me with you!"

"roll."

"Damn it, White Demon, how could you be so heartless! I even saved a cup specifically for you!"

Can the expedition team be replaced?

"Uh, give up. As far as I know, the other ranger in Death Park is even more difficult to deal with. If you don't believe me, ask Captain Black and this White Demon."

"As far as I know, yes."

"..."

……

(End of this chapter)