High Martial Arts: Slay enemies to become stronger, forge invincibility from billions of corpses.

After making up his mind, Song Chen stayed in the void for another five days.

Over five days, he repeatedly practiced the four newly mastered combat techniques, especially the ten-layered wave slash of the fourth level of the Star-Splitting Slash.

He tried the tenth strike, charging for two seconds. The power of the blade after it was unleashed was indeed outrageously strong. He chose a dwarf planet with a diameter of about 800 kilometers as his target.

After the tenth strike, the dwarf planet was split in two from the very center.

The planet's cross-section was as smooth as a mirror. The two broken halves slowly separated under the influence of gravity, and the magma from the core gushed out from the cross-section. It cooled rapidly in the vacuum and solidified into a lava dam spanning hundreds of kilometers.

But after the tenth strike, he was almost completely incapacitated.

This gap is too fatal for battles above level eight. The tenth strike can only be used as a last resort, a desperate measure to take someone down with them.

On the afternoon of the fifth day, the disciplinary department's terminal vibrated.

He opened the task list and found a newly published task in the public task list.

Public missions differ from internal missions within the Department of Punishment. Internal missions can only be accepted by Punishers, while public missions are visible and available to all Alliance member civilizations throughout the galaxy.

These types of tasks are usually large-scale operations that require collaboration among multiple parties.

[Mission Name: Support the Moonshadow Civilization.]

[Task Requirements: This is a public task; there are no restrictions on the identity of the person accepting the task.]

[Mission Coordinates: Edge of the Milky Way, Moon Shadow Starfield, Coordinates GX-7782-K-0091]

[Target Civilization: Lunar Shadow Civilization, Type III Civilization, Independent Civilization in the Milky Way.]

[Mission Objective: The Moonshadow Civilization was invaded by the Blood Erosion Civilization twenty-two standard days ago.]

The Bloodshed Civilization is a Level 4 Devouring Civilization and has been listed as a high-risk civilization by the Alliance.

Through coordinated operations by the Alliance's combined fleet and the combined forces of multiple civilizations, the main invading force of the Blood Erosion Civilization was repelled eleven standard days ago.

[Currently, the remnants of the Blood Erosion Civilization are scattered across multiple asteroid belts and planetary bases on the outskirts of the Moonshadow Starfield, with an estimated number of 30 to 50 million, primarily at the sixth rank, including a small number of seventh and eighth-rank commanders.]

[A public cleanup mission is now announced, inviting all forces to proceed to the Moonshadow Starfield to eliminate the remaining enemies. Contribution points will be awarded based on the number of kills, and these points can be exchanged for corresponding resources in the Moonshadow Civilization.]

[Additional Information: The Moonshadow Civilization is a significant force, serving as an important trading hub on the edge of the Milky Way. Their attitude is open and friendly.]

The Blood-Erosion Civilization is a devouring civilization that evolves by absorbing the psionic energy and biomass of other civilizations; it is extremely dangerous.

Although the remaining troops have been scattered, they still possess a certain ability to counterattack. Those accepting this task should assess the risks themselves.

Currently, volunteer forces from over fifty civilizations have arrived in Moonshadow Civilization to participate in the extermination efforts.

[Task Deadline: Thirty Standard Days]

[Mission Rewards: Contribution points are calculated in real-time based on the number of kills. Killing Bloodstained Civilization units grants an additional bounty bonus. Moonshadow Civilization provides additional rewards such as psionic cores, weapons, equipment, and rare minerals.]

Song Chen read the mission details three times from beginning to end.

The Moonshadow Civilization is a Level 3 civilization, while the Blood Erosion Civilization is a Level 4 Devouring Civilization.

He had previously seen records of devouring civilizations in the Department of Punishment's intelligence database.

This type of civilization evolves by consuming the psionic energy and life forms of other civilizations, and its position in the universe is similar to that of a locust.

They do not engage in production or scientific research; they specialize in invading lower-level civilizations, consuming all the psionic resources of the target civilization before transferring them to the next target.

The alliance's attitude toward this civilization is clear: if discovered, attack without leaving any survivors.

However, the Blood Erosion Civilization is at level four, one level higher than the Moonshadow Civilization, so the Moonshadow Civilization cannot stop it and must seek help from the alliance and the outside world.

The main force has been driven back by the Allied Combined Fleet; this should be the biggest focus in the mission description.

The task of mopping up the remnants was not to confront the main force of the fourth-level civilization head-on, but to skim profits from the scattered remnants.

Song Chen could already see the kill count beckoning to him.

Moreover, this mission has another advantage: it's a public mission, attracting many participants, with over fifty volunteer forces from various civilizations already there.

The more people there are, the more chaotic things become, and the more chaotic things become, the easier it is for him to work alone.

No one would notice how many enemies a seventh-tier human killed on the battlefield, because everyone was killing.

He didn't need to worry about revealing his strength or being questioned by Lar; he could simply blend in with the coalition of dozens of civilizations and quietly make a fortune.

Moreover, this mission is located at the edge of the Milky Way, far from Judgment Star, far from Ral, and far from anyone who might question the source of his power.

After spending a few years at the edge of the Milky Way, his strength increased when he returned. This could be attributed to the resources he captured from the Bloodthorn Civilization on the battlefield. In any case, they were a devouring civilization, and any strange or unusual things could be attributed to them.

The only downside is the distance; 35,000 light-years is a bit far, so we'll have to make several more jumps.

After thinking for a moment, Song Chen pressed the accept button.

[Public quest accepted: Eradication of the remnants of the Blood-Eroded Civilization in the Moonshadow Star Sector. The quest giver's identity has been registered.]

[Mission duration: 30 standard days. Contribution points are settled in real-time, based on the number of kills.]

Please proceed to the mission coordinates to report for duty as soon as possible.

Song Chen turned off the terminal and stood up from the void.

He stretched his shoulders, and the Silver Armor automatically covered his entire body, while the black crystal core on his chest began to rotate.

He opened the disciplinary department terminal and brought up the remote control interface of the Shadow Bee Jump Craft.

The maximum single jump distance for the Shadow Bee is 300 light-years. To reach 35,000 light-years, more than 100 jumps are needed. Including the engine cooling time after each jump, it would take about 11 days.

"Shadow Bee, autopilot mode, target coordinates: Moon Shadow Civilization."

"Full-speed jump, no need to stop in between."

Three seconds later, Yingfeng's reply popped up on the terminal screen:

[Command confirmed. Autopilot mode activated, engine warm-up in progress. Estimated arrival time: eleven days from now.]

Number of jumps: 117.

The spaceship silently turned its bow, aligning itself with the edge of the Milky Way.

The warp ring lit up with pale blue psionic patterns.

The first jump was initiated, and the spaceship vanished into space as a beam of light.

Song Chen sat cross-legged in the cabin; eleven days was enough for him to do a lot.

All four combat skills have just been upgraded, and the attributes have increased dramatically. They need to be repeatedly practiced to fully adapt to the new power limit.

He closed his eyes and began to introspect.

The star core slowly rotated within the body, its rotation speed nearly three times faster than before the upgrade. Each rotation brought forth a ring of pale golden psionic energy ripples that spread throughout the body along the meridians.

The fourth level of the Star-Splitting Slash technique was automatically activated in his consciousness, and a very thin, semi-transparent light film faintly appeared on the surface of the star core. It was the prototype of the star corona, also known as the "pseudo-corona state".

A true psychic crown is the mark of an eighth-tier Star Crown Realm cultivator, which he doesn't yet possess, but this pseudo-crown already allows his swordsmanship to carry the rank suppression of a Star Crown-level combat skill.

He repeatedly rehearsed the energy flow of the tenth strike, simulating the angle and force of each strike in his mind over and over again.