From Titan Corporation to the Empire of Man

Chapter 709 The Empire's March Never Ceases

"."

Sui Yang sat quietly on the golden throne, his figure like the axis of heaven and earth, neither wavering nor decaying.

As he slightly raised his eyes, golden light immediately shone from them, creating a vast scene as if the entire galaxy had been compressed into his pupils.

Billions of stars seemed to rotate, burn, and vanish within it, each tiny glimmer of light containing immeasurable psychic energy vibrations.

A single glance can give the viewer the illusion of falling into an endless abyss or gazing at the eternal sky.

Now, after five years of recuperation, the empire is no longer what it used to be, but has become increasingly stable and prosperous.

Especially after the 18th universe, also known as the StarCraft universe, was incorporated into the Empire, hundreds of billions of humans and billions of Protoss officially joined the Empire's ranks. Their wisdom and power are injecting new vitality into the Empire's grand plan.

The empire's territory expanded like a torrent, traversing countless stars and the universe. Coupled with the power of faith provided by hundreds of millions of people, Sui Yang's spiritual energy surged, becoming so powerful as to be almost absurd.

Now, he rarely leaves the Golden Throne, and he rarely goes to the battlefield in person.

The reason is simple: if he fails to fully restrain and control his spiritual energy, even a single unintentional breath or gesture could destroy a planet or even annihilate an entire galaxy.

This is not an exaggeration, but a reality that the imperial leadership is well aware of.

Therefore, unless a truly large-scale chaotic invasion occurs, or an extreme threat like the Tyranids, which number in the billions, occurs, Sui Yang has no need to take action personally.

The current Imperial Army represents the pinnacle of future war machines; its weaponry, tactics, and will enable it to independently undertake the majority of battles.

At this moment, the meditation hall remained as tranquil as ever.

Sui Yang slowly raised his left hand, his palm vibrated slightly, and the air immediately rippled.

As psionic energy was injected, the golden energy transformed into complex geometric patterns, which then projected dozens of hard light holographic screens in front of him.

These screens resemble floating mirrors, their surfaces constantly flashing with energy fluctuations, displaying high-definition, three-dimensional images of the battle.

The details of the battlefield are clearly visible in the footage: the fleet traversing near-Earth orbit, the ground troops advancing with iron will, and even the scorching tail flames of the airdrop pod breaking through the atmosphere, all flowing silently.

These are the results of the unification war on Earth in 1919.

The scene abruptly shifts to a dilapidated city, namely Toronto.

High-rise buildings collapsed like broken blades, streets were covered with blood and scorch marks, and fire and thick smoke intertwined, as if the end of the world had arrived.

From an overhead view, the veteran Terminator soldiers of the Lamenters Company can be seen traversing the streets and alleys. Their heavy armor stands like an iron wall in the firelight, and the combination of firepower and discipline crushes the Blood Cross Infected wave after wave.

Meanwhile, in and around the city, the patrolling gunboats kept firing, their red and white beams of light slicing through the night like divine punishment.

From another angle, transport ships landed one after another in the ruins, and organized groups of clone soldiers poured out of the cabins. Their trench coat-like combat suits looked like a black tide under the flames. Their gun muzzles spewed out scorching, hard beams of light with disintegrating capabilities, tearing the hordes of infected to shreds.

On a street in the city, a team of medics is escorting survivors to safety. The cries of children and the whispers of mothers intertwine, highlighting the tension and cruelty on the front lines.

Sui Yang's gaze wandered among these images, his eyes still radiating a star-like brilliance, yet without the slightest ripple.

He was not indifferent; rather, his emotions had long surpassed those of ordinary people.

What he was concerned with was not individual life and death, joy and sorrow, but whether the overall situation was progressing on track, whether the empire's territory was still expanding steadily, and whether order, and the chaos outside of order, were still firmly contained.

Even so, when the scene cut to an underground shelter where the tyrant and his clone army discovered it, the golden light in his eyes still trembled slightly for a moment.

This is not a wavering, but rather an indescribable feeling.

He knew that the old-fashioned police officers and special police who risked their lives to protect the shelter had long since disregarded their own safety.

Now, however, they are facing an imperial military force far beyond common sense.

This scene symbolizes the end of the old world and the establishment of a new order.

Sui Yang did not speak, but everyone in the meditation hall, whether it was the Imperial Guards, Apu, or Melissa, could feel a faint fluctuation spreading out. It was the Emperor's will, silently enveloping millions of his people.

At this moment, on the towering pillars, torches burned with golden flames, their light pulsating with the rhythm of breath, as if they were one with the entire space, illuminating the hall with a sacred and solemn aura.

The golden throne stood majestically atop the steps, with ripples of psionic energy floating behind it almost visible to the naked eye, like a gentle yet indestructible protective curtain shielding the entire human empire.

Beneath the throne, two intelligent AIs, Ap and Melissa, dressed in black cheongsams, stood quietly.

Their prosthetic bodies shimmered like liquid metal, with subtle radiance flowing around the cuffs and edges of their garments, highlighting their almost human-like elegance.

Their eyes, too, gleamed with a deep, data-driven light, yet exuded a gentle aura as they quietly watched over the emperor atop the steps.

Sui Yang sat upright on the golden throne, his expression serene, radiating an unshakeable majesty.

His body seemed to be the focal point of the entire starry sea, and the spiritual energy surrounding him was like an invisible river that gathered from the depths of the void and spread from him through the golden throne, covering the entire territory of the empire.

His breath and pulse seemed to resonate with the fate of countless people.

At this moment, his eyes were as clear as a starry sea, reflecting a strange world filled with danger—

Earth 19.

The battle reports from Lei Ruoya and the Glory Legion, as well as the video materials uploaded by Lei Ruoya, have convinced Sui Yang that the world in question is indeed the Blood Cross universe.

On the hard-light screen, the infected figures rushed, roared, and howled, frantically attacking the human defenses.

They are not simply "zombies," but rather almost alienated humans.

In an instant, Sui Yang recalled a night before he transmigrated, when he accidentally saw a recommended video on the homepage of Bilibili, which refreshed his understanding of "zombies".

Blood Crosses are completely different from zombies in ordinary movies and TV shows. They are closer to the form of infected people in "28 Days Later" or "I Am Legend" and are not actually dead.

Their flesh and blood are still fresh, their functions are still intact, and they even retain all their memories and skills from before the infection.

However, those memories and reason were gradually eroded away by an uncontrollable frenzy and madness.

They have lost patience and empathy, lost the most basic warmth, but have retained the efficiency of thinking and acting.

This means that they are not only savage predators, but also potential "strategists".

What's even more terrifying is that a few individuals within the Blood Cross have displayed an extremely frightening level of "patience."

These individuals may even exploit the properties of the blood cross infection in an attempt to rebuild so-called "civilization".

Furthermore, without the guidance of these special individuals, the Blood Cross knows to smear their bodily fluids on bullets and arrows, using ranged attacks to spread the infection. They will also use camouflage ambushes to wear down the survivors' defenses.

The most outrageous thing was that those Blood Crosses, driven to madness, would throw infected infants into the air, explode them mid-air, and rain them down on the human positions, instantly turning the entire front line into an infected hell.

The graphic content, so bloody it bordered on the perverse, completely crossed the line of humanity that Sui Yang could tolerate.

When Sui Yang first saw this setting in the comic, what shocked him was not just the bloodshed, but the utterly "anti-human" meaning.

That was a crazy idea that deliberately trampled civilization and ethics into the mire, but now it has actually appeared on Earth 19.

However, for the Empire of Mankind, this enemy, Blood Cross, is hardly a challenge.

The auxiliary recruits of the Lamenters Company could easily handle it, let alone the elite of the Glory Legion. This was just a chance for a real combat exercise, a battlefield for young soldiers to temper their will, and a stage for the Glory Legion, which had been silent for too long, to prove itself once again.

But even emperors are not as cold-hearted as iron.

What he cared more about were the human survivors in that world who were still barely clinging to life. Those fellow humans, under the shadow of the Blood Cross, were living a life worse than death, each day feeling like an eternity.

Their loved ones may have been affectionate partners, children, and friends yesterday, but today they have turned into mindless beasts.

They struggled in despair, with little hope of dawn.

"."

Sui Yang sighed inwardly. This kind of suffering, if left unaided, could completely destroy the entire human race.

So, Sui Yang raised his hand and lightly touched the light patterns on the armrest of the throne.

The holographic particles rippled out, and the communication network was instantly connected.

Within moments of the command being issued, two holographic projections of hard light appeared in the void before the Golden Throne.

The first to appear was Malakin Forros, the company commander of the Weeping Company.

His figure was straight as a spear, his face was cold and stern, and his eyes held an undeniable determination. Even in just an image, his aura was as heavy as steel.

Following closely behind was the commander of the Glory Legion, Leroya Sivarine Vitelius.

Her armor was more imposing than that of Fros, engraved with runes and emblems symbolizing glory and order. Her eyes were like cold, sharp swords, her expression resolute yet proud—a unique quality belonging to the Legion of Glory.

She showed no fear despite the ferocity of the blood cross; instead, her gaze was sharp, as if this was just another test of the Legion's loyalty.

Two holographic images stood side by side before the golden throne, respectfully bowing to Sui Yang.

Golden flames danced on their illusory figures within the hall, illuminating their solemn silhouettes.

Sui Yang stared at them, his gaze deep and his voice steady and authoritative:
"Gentlemen, what you are facing is not just a group of infected people who have lost their minds, but an extremely dangerous and almost anti-civilizational group."

The Blood Cross represents not merely death, but a distorted order. It uses memories and skills, employing twisted logic, to construct its own world—an existence utterly opposed to human civilization.

He paused for a moment, his gaze seemingly piercing through time and space, looking towards the distant Earth of 1919, stained red with flames and blood.

"I am not worried about whether you can win, because victory will ultimately belong to the Empire and to the iron will of mankind. What I am worried about is the suffering of the survivors. Remember, your mission is not only to annihilate the enemy, but also to let your fellow human beings see the dawn again."

The sound echoed in the hall, and the golden flames flickered, as if even the space itself was trembling.

"Yes, Your Majesty (my lord)."

Fross and Lei Ruoya bowed in unison, their voices firm and clear.

At that moment, the eyes of the two figures in the phantom flashed with an undisguised fervor and passion. They understood that this was not just a battle order, but a mandate from the Emperor himself.

As for Sui Yang, he still sat on the golden throne, his gaze as calm as the sea, yet he carried the hopes and burdens of hundreds of millions of lives.

Golden flames burned eternally in the palace, extending the empire's will into the endless depths of the starry sea.

As the communication images gradually faded, the meditation hall returned to solemnity and silence.

The golden flames on the torches trembled and burned, illuminating the hall like a divine kingdom. Sui Yang did not rush to issue further instructions, but instead fell into deep thought.

The origin of the Blood Cross remains a mystery to this day.

Sui Yang recalled the many hypotheses he had seen in comic strip interpretation videos back then—

Some theories suggest that the blood cross originated from a primitive virus that prehistoric humans suffered from, and that those infected eventually became the ancestors of modern humans through their tenacious survival abilities.

Another, more pessimistic view claims that nature sees humanity as an overblown threat and thus releases a cleansing force in the form of viruses.

Some firmly believe that this was a man-made product created in a laboratory, and an accidental leak triggered the entire apocalypse.

More extreme interpretations point the finger at the supernatural, claiming it is a gift and curse from evil gods, retribution for human civilization.

These hypotheses are mutually exclusive, but they are no longer relevant in the face of the current empire.

"."

Sui Yang narrowed his eyes slightly, and his spiritual energy surged quietly, like an invisible tide penetrating space, sweeping across every inch of Earth 19 with vastness and precision.

His perception transcended layers of atmosphere, penetrating into city ruins, dense forests and wastelands, and even touching the faint hope in the hearts of the survivors.

A moment later, he withdrew his psionic energy.

The result is clear: on that land, there is no trace of chaos.

This did not surprise Sui Yang.

At the beginning of the 21st century, Earth was merely a small pawn on the macroscopic stage of the universe, not yet enough to attract the greedy attention of subspace.

The appearance of the Blood Cross may simply be a distortion in the fate of humanity itself, and it has not been tainted by deeper "natural" forces.

However, precisely because of this, the battle cannot be delayed for too long.

Once the Legion of Glory and the Weeping Company are fully engaged, they can completely eliminate the threat on Earth 19 in just a few weeks, or even days.

That world will eventually return to order, and the surviving humans will be brought under the protection of the empire and given a new home.

Sui Yang's gaze turned to the depths of the meditation hall, and spiritual energy gathered in his eyes, forming ripples.

He has already decided that once the threat of the Blood Cross is quelled, he will open a new spatial gate. The Empire's progress has never stopped, and the unification of Earth 19 is just one link in an endless journey.
(End of this chapter)