Reborn as a lotus, she initially refuses to hand it over to the state.

Boom!

The energy core exploded.

The entire Star Chaser scout ship expanded from the inside.

The next moment, the thousand-meter-long ship exploded with a deafening roar, and countless silver and black debris fell toward the moon.

Sky Dome Deep Space Psionic Observatory.

Shen Xinglan stared at the completely extinguished life signal, her chest heaving violently.

"The target's energy level dropped to zero, life signs disappeared, and we destroyed it."

She paused for a moment, then grabbed the communicator and raised her voice: "Starseeker reconnaissance ship, destroyed!"

The world fell silent for a moment, then countless cities erupted in cheers even more intense than before. The first warship had been smashed to pieces by the Lord of the Azure Lotus.

This particular ship was destroyed by a combined effort of human power and global weaponry.

This means that the human race is not limited to hiding behind Chu Zhou; as long as they can break through the enemy's spatial defenses.

Humans themselves could also sever the heads of the Star Sea Hunters. Zhou Zhenshan gave everyone no time to celebrate: "Lock onto the next ship and continue the attack!"

The Wudang sword light once again pierced the sky, and in the Dragon Tiger Thunder Pool, a golden-purple thunder dragon rushed towards the moon, while Chen Wuji held up the River-Suppressing Stele with both hands.

The Eight Extremes Mountain Sinking Force followed the earth's veins, merging into the verdant roots, and the illusory image of the River Suppressing Stele appeared directly above the moon.

boom!

The monument's shadow halted a Starseeker attempting to escape, followed closely by dozens of psionic warheads, blasting the reconnaissance ship's port side into pieces.

The third, the fourth, the fifth ship—outside the moon, clusters of silver-black flames burst forth one after another.

Those starships that had filled humanity with despair just a dozen minutes ago are now plummeting under the combined suppression of the Azure Lotus Dharma Image and human artillery fire.

Inside the Star Chaser I, the only remaining captain stared intently at the battlefield. Of the twelve reconnaissance ships, one had been smashed by the Imperial Seal.

One ship was dragged into an unknown cave, five were destroyed by the Ancestral Realm Human Race, and two were pressed onto the lunar surface by the River-Suppressing Stele and the roots of the Jianmu Tree, their energy cores sealed.

Only three ships are still operational, as the captain of Star Chaser I knows.

If we don't escape now, all twelve warships will remain in the ancestral realm.

It inserted its right hand into the console, and silver-gray blood flowed down its arm into the Astral Core.

"With my very essence, I ignite the astral anchor, initiating coordinate-free jumps!"

The other two Star Chasers followed suit, with their three astral anchors bursting into flames, covering the hull with large amounts of silver-black flames.

The roots of the Jianmu tree, which were entangled inside the warship, were forcibly burned off by the spatial flames.

In front of the three warships, chaotic spatial rifts appeared simultaneously. Chu Zhou sensed the weakness emanating from the Jianmu bud and did not continue to forcibly obstruct them.

The three warships paid a heavy price; nearly half of their hulls were torn apart by spatial turbulence, and the tail of the Star Chaser One was even severed by the Moon White Lotus Leaf.

Ultimately, the three damaged warships plunged into the spatial rift.

Disappearing on the far side of the moon, Chu Zhou looked at the closing crack but did not give chase.

Only when a few hunting dogs return alive can their owners know that the ancestral territory is not a hunting ground they can come and go as they please.

With the escape of the three reconnaissance ships, the battle on the outskirts of the moon came to a complete end. Of the twelve Star Chaser reconnaissance ships, one was destroyed by Chu Zhou.

One ship was taken into the Azure Lotus Cave, five were destroyed by the combined forces of the human race, two were sealed on the surface of the moon, and only three escaped with serious injuries.

This victory was quickly broadcast live around the world a few minutes ago.

Humanity is still debating how long it would take twelve reconnaissance ships to destroy Earth.

Now, only a large amount of burning silver-black wreckage remains on the battlefield, in Linjiang City Square.

Some people excitedly knelt down in the direction of Heilong Mountain, and more and more people around them followed suit and bent their knees.

But before they could kneel down, a ray of azure-silver lotus light fell from the sky.

Everyone's knees were supported by a gentle force, and Chu Zhou's voice resounded throughout Linjiang City: "I am not making a move today for your offerings, nor do I need anyone to kneel before me."

"The Starry Sea Hunting Court is not only hunting down humans; it is destroying the ancestral realm's mountains and rivers, and all living beings in this world."

"I am guarding my own territory. If you want to live, stand up and grip your swords tightly."

The square fell silent.

The little girl nestled in her father's arms, watching the gradually dissipating blue-silver lotus light.

"Dad, doesn't Grandpa Qinglian like people kneeling?"

The man wiped away his tears: "Yes, He wants us to stand on our own."

Global Federal Conference Room.

The representatives who had previously advocated handing over Chu Zhou turned pale and then flushed.

The leader of South Korea stared at the burning wreckage of the warship on the screen, remaining silent.

Wang Jun looked at him coldly: "Who was it that just said they wanted to form a coalition to enter Black Dragon Mountain and capture the Lord of the Green Lotus?"

The leader opened his mouth: "I'm only doing this to preserve human civilization..."

"Preserve civilization?" Wang Jun laughed angrily. "If the Lord of the Azure Lotus hadn't intervened, your so-called civilization would have long been used as fuel for the Jianmu tree!"

"The being you wanted to hand over just shielded Blue Star from twelve disintegration beams. And what have you, in turn, shielded Blue Star from?"

In the conference hall.

No one spoke up for the leader.

Mr. Ye did not pursue the argument further.

He deployed two complete warships from the lunar surface.

"Immediately contact the lunar base and seal off the area around the two warships. No one may touch the ships without the joint permission of the Global Federation and the Ninth Bureau."

"Shen Xinglan took the lead in establishing the Star Sea Technology Research Group. We must figure out how the phase engine, the astral anchor, and the decomposition beam operate before the enemy's main ship arrives."

Zhou Zhenshan looked at everyone in the conference hall: "Today's battle is just the beginning. The destruction of the reconnaissance ship does not mean that the Star Sea Hunting Court will retreat."

"On the contrary, the real fleet will only arrive sooner."

The words fell.

The monitoring screen in front of Shen Xinglan suddenly lit up red: "Large-scale spatial energy combustion detected. Source: Starsea Hunter's Main Fleet!"

She quickly brought up the deep-space imagery, where behind the seven main ships, more than a hundred escort ships were disintegrating on their own.

The ship's hull transformed into a massive amount of silver-black energy, which was then poured into the central Zhezhi.

Ahead of the seven main ships, a stargate of withered trees covering tens of thousands of kilometers is slowly taking shape.

Shen Xinglan's expression changed: "The enemy is burning their escort ship, using spatial acceleration, and recalculating their arrival time. Twelve days..."

"Shortened to six days!"

The atmosphere in the meeting room became heavy again, but this time, no one suggested surrendering.

Xuanweizi's projection looked up at the starry sky: "Six days it is. Today, the human race can destroy five of its reconnaissance ships. Six days later, we can continue to destroy its main ship."

Zhou Zhenshan's black and gold city defense token lit up in his palm: "Issue the order to activate the six-day boundary defense plan. All cities should replenish their psionic barriers. The Ninth Bureau's sealing squad will guard all spatial rifts."

"The military has taken over major psionic nodes worldwide, and all the technology obtained from the lunar warship wreckage is shared globally."

"Six days from now, we will face the Starsea Hunter's main fleet."

The boundless sea of ​​stars.

Three battered Star Chaser ships struggled to break out of the spatial rift.

The bow of the Star Chaser 1 is only half intact, and the stern has completely disappeared.

With only one in ten soldiers remaining, the entire 7th Plant Hunter Group fell silent when they returned to the vicinity of the Broken Branch.

On the bridge of the USS Broken Branch, the projection of Captain Star Chaser One kneeled below the throne.

"Your Excellency, the remnant of the Jianmu tree has awakened its boundary-fixing ability. That green lotus can use the ancestral world's earth veins and the moon and stars to project a complete king's domain across the starry sky."

"Star Chaser III was dragged into its lair, the rest of the warships..."

"What about the rest of the warships?" Seros asked indifferently.

The captain of Star Chaser One lowered his head: "Eight ships lost contact, and only three of us returned."

Inside the bridge, there was no sound. After a moment, Theros rose from the black root throne.

With each step it took, the withered branches hanging down inside the bridge would tremble violently, and countless silver-armored warriors sleeping on the branches would open their eyes at the same time.

"Eight Star Chasers and seven thousand Hunter Court warriors were left outside a Level Zero civilization by a mere Azure Lotus that had just entered the King Realm."

Theros arrived in front of the Blue Star projection, where the Ten-Petaled Green Lotus, the Lunar Moon, the Mountain and River Imperial Seal, and the Jianmu Sprout were intertwined.

The Bone Wing Commander whispered, "Your Excellency the Judge, that blue lotus is no ordinary king of spiritual plants."

"Within it lies a growing celestial realm, with the towering Jianmu tree perfecting its foundation. If given enough time..."

Theros continued, "It will become the ruler of the realm."

The Bonewing Commander lowered his head: "Yes."

Theros's vertical pupils shifted: "Then we must not let it live. Burn 108 escort ships and open the Broken Branch Stargate."

"Six days from now, I will personally descend upon the Ancestral Realm."

Corner of the bridge.

The old prisoner, whose limbs were pierced by chains, laughed again.

"Seros, are you afraid?" Seros turned around. "Would I be afraid of a mere lotus that has just entered the King Realm?"

The aged prisoner raised his cracked face: "If you weren't afraid, why burn 108 escort ships?"

"You don't want to seize the Jianmu tree; you're afraid that the green lotus will continue to grow and one day it will venture into the sea of ​​stars and find the main realm of the Hunter's Court."

A crimson light appeared in the vertical pupil between Theros's eyebrows.

The next moment, a black silver chain pierced through the old prisoner's shoulder.

Dark green blood splattered on the ground, and Theros did not continue to torture it.

Instead, he raised his right hand, and a spear formed from withered tree branches, black silver chains, and countless remnants of spiritual plant souls appeared in his palm, the spear manifesting in the world.

The entire ship, the Broken Branch, was shaking. The smile on the old prisoner's face finally disappeared: "The King Hunter's Spear, you actually brought out the King Hunter's Spear from the main court."

Seros gripped his spear, his icy gaze fixed on Blue Star: "Azure Lotus, didn't you want me to retrieve it myself? Well, I'll give you a gift first."