I've already reached the maximum level, and you guys are just starting out?

Chapter 200: Carol's Fleet Arrives! The Planet-Devouring Touch Falls! Airdrop Plan 3.0!

Beyond the P-8808 star system.

Various interstellar fortresses, large and small, stand scattered about.

Inside the fortress, the commanders of the various advanced civilizations were still idly chatting and exchanging ideas.

until...

boom--

Boom——!
Within the star field, an extremely terrifying aura swept out.

Wherever its aura passed, even large fortresses trembled and became unstable.

"what's the situation?"

"This this……"

"It seems to be the aftershock of a nineteenth-level expert's attack?"

It was just a fleeting moment.

The communication channels of all the major fortresses were completely overwhelmed.

Exclamations of surprise, curiosity, doubt, bewilderment, speculation...

A jumble of thoughts kept swirling around.

At the nineteenth rank, it is already the strongest in the galactic wasteland.

Any nineteenth-tier evolver in the vast galaxy is at least the leader of a high-level civilization.

But now?
The fact that such a terrifying aura emanated from the P-8808 star system, a 'newbie village', was truly perplexing to them.

"Could it be a battle between mutated beasts or infected beings of the star field overlords?"

The moment someone made this guess, it was rejected.

"impossible!"

"Such pure elemental energy..."

"Mutant beasts and infected creatures cannot possibly exert their full power!"

For a while.

The numerous advanced civilizations gathered here looked at each other, completely bewildered.

If it weren't for the restrictions imposed by the galactic rules, they would have loved to command the fortress to plunge into the thick nebula and find out what was going on.

"is it possible……"

"Was that commotion caused by a newly promoted player?"

The commander of a newly emerging civilization suddenly made a suggestion.

This statement came out.

The once bustling and noisy communication channel suddenly fell silent.

then……

Laughter erupted, creating a chaotic scene.

"Hahahaha!"

"No, what kind of idiot was this sent by some civilization?"

"A newly promoted player?"

"The nineteenth level?"

"My God, that's an incredibly exaggerated imagination!"

"If any new player actually reaches level nineteen, I'll eat this driving control screen right now!"

"..."

The atmosphere on the communication channel was light and cheerful.

The 'funny' caused by the young commander also made everyone temporarily put the little episode of 'suspected nineteenth-order fluctuation' behind them.

The nineteenth level was beyond their comprehension.

After careful consideration, they decided to report the matter to the higher-level leaders of their respective civilizations, and then continued to wait quietly outside the star system.

but……

The calm did not last long.

Om-!
Beyond the star system.

The vast void suddenly trembled violently.

"Ok?"

"Detected ultra-high power transition fluctuation?"

"hiss--"

"Possibly a super-large interstellar fortress jump?"

"..."

It was just a fleeting moment.

Throughout the fortresses of all sizes on the outskirts of the star field, piercing mechanical alarms blared.
Several fortresses that were relatively close to that void even hurriedly activated their energy engines at full power and moved far away.

If you run too late, you'll be crushed to dust by the super-large fortress that will arrive via the leap, and there will be no one to complain to!
boom--

Boom——!
Under the watchful eyes of countless people.

The violently shaking void slowly condensed into a spatial passage with a diameter of a million miles.

whoosh-

Whizzing--!
One after another, warships flew out.

"Uh?"

"What type of warship is this?"

At first glance, the commanders of many civilizations were stunned.

In the wasteland of the galaxy, the fortresses and warships of the major civilizations were basically purchased from the Wasteland game store.

The only difference lies in the logos and markings on the fortress and hull, as well as a few personalized customizations.

But now?
The enormous warships that came into their view were all ones they had never seen before!

Completely novel, completely unfamiliar!
It's like...

It doesn't belong to this galaxy!
boom--

Boom——!
The deafening roar echoed on after the Star Destroyer fleet.

Following closely behind was the Sigma drone swarm.

The interstellar mech, standing 10,000 meters tall, has once again broadened the understanding of commanders from advanced civilizations.

Ten thousand meters, when viewed from the starry sky, does not seem to be enormous.

but……

The aura emanating from the mechs sent shivers down the spines of all the commanders who had reached the sixteenth or even seventeenth rank!
In fact.

The Sigma mech from the Ophelia Federation was originally rank 20, but was limited by the level of the Ember.

Previously, the Ember was only at level sixteen, so the Sigma was also limited to level sixteen.

And now?
With Ember's breakthrough, the Sigma mech also achieved a 'breakthrough' at the same time.

Standing before the group of advanced civilizations now are none other than 16 Tier 17 mechs!

Such a display is truly astonishing.

It should be noted that the combat power of interstellar mechs generally far exceeds that of evolved humans of the same level.

Such a high-level mech is of immeasurable value.

For ordinary advanced civilizations, it can certainly be considered one of the foundations of their civilization!

But now...

"Who is it?"

The same thought crossed the minds of all the commanders.
All eyes were drawn to the three colossal fortresses that had arrived late and were slowly emerging from the spatial passage.

Having witnessed the awe-inspiring impact of the Star Destroyer and the Sigma mech, these commanders now felt...

The arrival of three super-large fortresses is perfectly reasonable.

There are more than a dozen Tier 17 mechs. It would be really unreasonable if there weren't several super-large fortresses guarding the area.

[Beep!]

[Beep beep!]

Inside the fortresses and fleets of all sizes outside the star system.

The mechanical beeping kept going on and on.

"Lord Lord!"

"Important situation report!"

Coordinates: Outer perimeter of star system P-8808!

"..."

Encrypted emergency communications were transmitted by these commanders to the highest levels of their respective civilizations in various ways.

Combining the previous nineteenth-order fluctuations with this sudden arrival of a 'mysterious and powerful force'.

They almost all came to the same conclusion—

Something big is about to happen in the P-8808 star system!
the other side.

Outside the slowly closing void passage, inside the super-large fortress numbered S-1.

Carol frowned as she gazed at the numerous fortresses and fleets of all sizes scattered across the distant starry sky.

When she was a commander in the Celsa fleet, she had heard some news about the promotion of new players.

It is said that—

Many advanced civilizations like to ambush players outside the 'newbie village' where they are newly promoted.

New players who rise from the wasteland planets can acquire miniature or even small interstellar fortresses in a simpler way.

These types of fortresses are also needed by various civilizations.

As far as Carol knew, the Celsa civilization had also participated in a similar 'encirclement' a few years ago.

On that occasion, the Celsa civilization also gained several fortresses.

Although they are all just miniature fortresses, only one small fortress at a time, this method of 'plundering' is obviously much more cost-effective than spending a lot of Origin Points to buy them in the Wasteland Shop...

"call--"

Carol gazed out at the starry sky and let out a long sigh.

A hint of danger flickered in her bright eyes.

If these bandits were to actually set their sights on their own lord...

As her servant, she wouldn't mind activating the 'Quantum Resonance Destroyer' again.

Under the immense power of the Decomposer, all fortress fleets in this star system, regardless of size, will be instantly annihilated.

"The master has just arrived in this starry sky..."

"Perhaps, we also need an opportunity like this to make an example of someone?"

Carol stared out the porthole, lost in thought.

At the same time, she also conveyed the news of her arrival outside the star system to Ember.

"Carol Alexis!"

"With our interstellar fortresses and fleets, we await the arrival of our lord!"

……

...Morning Star.

Half a day has passed since the seventeen-colored lotus strike from the embers.

but……

The shaking of the entire planet has not yet stopped.

If the embers hadn't managed to condense an energy shield in time, the entire Morning Star would have been completely destroyed by that attack, just like the Star Devouring Touch of the sixteenth-tier Star Domain Overlord.

[You descended with divine might, using your ant-like body to defeat and slay the 'Nineteenth-Tier Galaxy-Level Mutant Beast Overlord—Touch of the Star Devourer', granting you +5000 million Civilization Source Points!]

Such a feat is unprecedented in history and has shaken the world!

[You have obtained the following resources: 2 Tier 18 Energy Crystals!]

Before Yu Jin's eyes, the reward information from the system panel had been displayed for quite some time.

This also means that the powerful star system overlord that had come with overwhelming force and dominated the entire planet has completely perished.

"Pity."

Yu Jin shook his head and sighed softly.

He never expected that the seventeen-colored lotus he casually created would be so incredibly powerful.

He was originally thinking...

Let's make this 'Star-Devouring Touch' into a giant teppanyaki and distribute it to the citizens of Dawn City to nourish their bodies.

But now?
The Devourer of Stars, along with its head and tentacles, was reduced to ashes, leaving not a trace behind.

Boom——

The vibrations of the morning star finally came to an end.

Ember breathed a sigh of relief and ceased maintaining the planet's energy shield.

This is also the moment.

wow-

The aftershocks, which had lingered for almost half a day, swept across the entire Morning Star region.

Sandstorms raged across the planet.

But these sandstorms were no longer enough to threaten the planet itself, and Ember no longer bothered with them.

"S-lord!"

Inside Crystal Mountain, the group from Linglong City shouted in unison.

Puff-!
They knelt down, they all knelt down.

Whether it was Nangong Linglong or Gao Sheng, after witnessing Yu Jin's Seventeen-Colored Lotus instantly kill the Star Domain Overlord-level mutated beast, they were completely defeated.

Miners? Black slaves?
It's not important anymore...

Facing such a terrifying big shot, being alive is already an immense stroke of luck.

Not to mention, by rounding up, you could even become a big shot's 'colleague'.

"..."

Yu Jin looked down at the eighth-tier evolved beings and the ninth-tier mature female city lord kneeling in front of him and nodded.

"good."

Ember didn't pretend; instead, he nodded seriously.

From the moment he saw this group of people from Linglong City, he already regarded them as miners from Dawn Fortress.

If we can cooperate, that would be the best.

If someone doesn't cooperate, there are ways to deal with that.

"Remember, ten days."

Ember gave his final instruction, and as he finished speaking, the surrounding void began to tremble.

With his business settled, there was no need for him to stay any longer.

"grown ups!"

At that moment, Nangong Linglong's sweet cry rang out.

"how?"

Yu Jin turned around and glanced at her.

His indifferent gaze sent shivers down the spine of the ninth-rank city lord.

Subconsciously, Nangong Linglong slightly tightened her legs together.

"You, your name..."

"May I know?"

Goldman Sachs and the others swore they had never heard such humble words from their city lord.

But at this moment, they didn't feel anything was wrong at all.

"grown ups!"

"May we know your name?"

Goldman Sachs and others shouted in unison.

"what--"

Yu Jin shook his head and chuckled.

hum-

Spatial fluctuations spread.

His figure disappeared from the spot.

From the void, a faint voice drifted out:
"ember."

……

……

Dawn Fortress, Sky Tower.

Embers appeared before the fifty-meter-long bed.

"Master~"

"You're back!"

"You were the one who killed that octopus monster earlier, right?"

"Master, you are so amazing and powerful!"

The Momono sisters, who had somehow changed into revealing maid outfits, crawled up to Yu Jin upon seeing him return, and spoke in unison.

Faced with the sisters' compliments, Yu Jin shook his head and smiled, offering no response.

He returned to the fortress because he had important business to attend to.

Swah——

A flash of light appeared before Yu Jin's eyes.

The system panel appears.

"Your commander, Carol Alexis, has sent a communication..."

"..."

Yu Jin glanced at it and then looked away.

Carol arrived a little earlier than he had expected.

but……

Ember wasn't in a hurry to leave the P-8808 star system, which was the starting area.

Carol's report about the group of advanced civilization bandits entrenched outside the star system further solidified Ember's idea.

The moment Ember ascended to the wasteland of the galaxy, he received a notification from the game Wasteland.

First of all--

Like planetary wastelands, galactic wastelands also possess an 'promotion' mechanism, only it's called 'dimensional ascension'.

The destination of the dimensional ascension, unsurprisingly, is the Ophelia Federation, where Athena resides, namely, a higher-dimensional civilization.

Secondly——

The next promotion is just around the corner.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they have almost no time.

Half a year, just half a year.

The next promotion will be a full hundred years from now.

a hundred years?

The embers cannot wait a hundred years.

He must, and could not, allow himself to miss this opportunity.

Half a year is undoubtedly an extremely short time, so short that it is not even enough time to fully explore the countless regions of the vast galaxy.

Dawn Fortress, or rather, the Blue Star civilization, is currently ranked only 100,000th.

Only those in the top 10,000 can be promoted.

Originally, Ember intended to target the Celsa civilization.

but……

In the wasteland of the galaxy, Celsa was actually just a pushover.

The information Carol reported gave Ember a new idea.

"Who is the hunter, and who is the prey?"

"That's a good question..."

Ember's mind raced, and then he sent a communication to Carol.

Not long after.

Carol responded—

"Your Excellency, the Supreme Lord!"

"I will certainly carry out your instructions and spread this information!"

"If necessary, I will use methods to increase its credibility!"

Carol's flexibility and adaptability greatly pleased Ember.

Simultaneously.

The battle with the Morning Star gave Ember a sense of his strength in the star system wasteland, or rather, in this 'newbie village' of the P-8808 star system.

He established his authority and gained fame.

The rest can be left to Yin Yao and the others.

Once the planet's progress reaches the required level, the Dawn Fortress upgrade can be initiated.

And during this time...

Ember took a deep breath, his face showing a seriousness and solemnity he had never shown before when facing the Touch of the Star Devourer.

A gray-black helmet appeared out of thin air in front of him.

Exactly...

The High-Dimensional Helmet in Wasteland Online!

In previous games like Mars Online and Venus Online, Ember was used to airdrop warships and resources to Carol.

And this time?
He wanted to give himself, and his Dawn Fortress, a series of massive airdrops!
(End of this chapter)