Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

"Norege, what happened?" Zheng Zha's voice came directly through the implanted terminal. As Patchouli had arranged, he was now sitting quietly in the lounge to adjust his state and wait for the possible attack by the reincarnators.

“Some unexpected events,” Patchouli replied, her gaze fixed on the projection on the screen in front of her that indicated the landing point location of the Senzhou team. “Based on the feedback from my previous arrangements, the main god arranged for the Senzhou team to land directly inside a large ship wreck. Although there are small cleanup ships serving as a bridge connecting the Starship Troopers storyline, considering some uncertain factors, it can be judged that the Senzhou team possesses a considerable degree of space combat capability.”

"They are very strong, most likely stronger than our two teams combined. There's a small chance they're stronger than us plus the entire expeditionary fleet."

"Under this premise, when I complete the intergalactic jump and arrive at the battlefield, the enemy's response will be my assessment of their specific combat capabilities... I detected nothing, which means they possess unimaginable power or treasures. And our fleet advantage will probably not have the desired effect."

“…Noreiki, put it simply.” Zheng Zha’s frustrated voice came from the implanted terminal.

"That means the other side might possess spacetime abilities, and could even jump directly into our flagship for a decapitation strike." Zhang Jie's voice rang out from outside the command hall—Patcholl immediately turned her head to watch the man with a cigarette in his mouth push open the metal door that opened far too slowly and enter the hall. He greeted her, and she nodded slightly to indicate that she understood.

“That’s right,” Patchouli replied. She then added, “But don’t worry about the de Chloe being directly jumped over. I’ve made arrangements for that. Although it won’t be very effective against the physical body of the supernatural creature, if it’s just spatial manipulation using treasures, then the barrier I’ve prepared is an iron wall.”

"And we must prepare immediately, because an attack is imminent, right?"

“Exactly.” Patchouli nodded slightly, her gaze quickly sweeping across the constantly shifting light screen. “I didn’t detect that large piece of ship wreckage. Clearly, there are still members in the Senzhou team who have certain human needs. However, this doesn’t match my calculation model for the breeding team… If they were weaker, it might be a swarm of beasts where multiple third-tier or lower reincarnators counterbalance each other. But once a fourth-tier appears, a beast king will emerge from the swarm.”

"...There must be an extraordinary life form in the Senzhou team that has unlocked the fourth stage of the gene lock. It's a small probability that it's in the mid-stage of the fourth stage, and a large probability that it's in the early stage of its complete state. If it's higher than the fourth stage, then we don't need to consider it. And considering the strict hierarchy that a breeding team would definitely have, the fourth-stage super-strong person who is the captain has no need to care about that piece of debris... Of course, I also considered the possibility that the debris was destroyed, but the small cleaning ship responsible for retrieving that debris was unharmed and we didn't notice when the debris disappeared. So the conclusion is very simple."

She crossed her arms and said confidently, "Without a doubt, the strongest member of the opposing team, their captain, has left his squad, and the remaining two or three ordinary members have taken over the responsibility of fighting against us. They may have some powerful treasures and abilities, but I am certain that their combined combat strength will not exceed the early fourth rank, and they bear a heavy responsibility: they must defeat us here."

She didn't explain why the opposing team's captain had left, and Zhang Jie didn't ask. Meanwhile, Zheng Zha, who was connected to the implanted terminal, had long ago learned the wise man's technique of only listening to the conclusion when analyzing a situation. He hadn't even noticed that such a thing had happened.

He simply followed Patchouli's last sentence instinctively with a question—"You mean they'll attack?"

“Well, after all, they are servants, not kings. And…” She glanced at the data on the light screen that had suddenly stopped refreshing. “Since the intergalactic jump ended, I’ve been speaking openly here for a full three minutes. Such a huge density of information and causal data didn’t make them jump directly to me and attack. This shows that their level is limited and they spent a lot of time traveling.”

"Abandoning the foolish option of flying, dividing the area into sections and making continuous jumps is a feasible solution. And since it's a short-distance space jump that takes less than three minutes to cover twelve light-seconds, we only need to go to the open area I specifically designated..."

"Fire!"

She said this, and the next moment, all the main cannons of the patrol fleet fired simultaneously!

Section 40: Saying Hello

The hunting fleet's first round of bombardment aimed to pinpoint the enemy's exact coordinates, so they used disruptive shells designed to maximize interference range. When countless tiny points of light exploded at the location Patchouli had planned, marking an unusual area of ​​spatial distortion on the command screen, Patchouli knew her judgment was correct.

—The Senzhou team does indeed possess some kind of spatial power, and the members of the Reincarnation Squad who use it do not have the ability to fully control this power. Therefore, the Central Continent team will make the first move.

"All fleet personnel, switch fire control to energy weapon system and immediately cover the designated area."

Patchouli gave the order, and her will was immediately carried out—the hunting fleet, like a group of sharks smelling blood, opened its jaws wide toward the area marked by the chaff, and the sharp teeth that tore off were lines of fire made of lasers and heat rays!

Since the Tyndall effect and scattering do not exist in space, lasers and rays are the fastest and sharpest spears until manufacturing processes allow for the mounting of hop engines on missiles. The time between their strike and impact is extremely short in warfare operating on the order of light seconds, and this time their target was less than 100,000 kilometers from the location of the hunting fleet!

One hundred thousand kilometers—a distance that's practically face-to-face in space warfare. Although the two sides clashing aren't conventional interstellar powers, this still serves as a basis for consideration—the Senzhou team lost the initiative due to adopting the wrong war strategy, and now they're about to taste the bitter pill before close combat.

The space trembled slightly due to the density of energy.

Within the Korendadu star system, the overall brightness of this silent space increased almost imperceptibly due to the hit of this round of artillery fire. And when the warships of this galactic age struck the target that the order required them to hit—in just an instant, the area marked by the disturbance missiles turned into a sea of ​​light and heat!

The light was laser light, concentrated on something. The heat was the heat wave emanating from the ablation of that thing. In less than a second, the area irradiated by the laser shone brightly like a nascent star, and the hidden object was revealed in this illumination, showing a blurry outline!

Those were the wreckage of a ship, boiling and burning in a sea of ​​light and heat. An ordinary starship wouldn't last even a second under such firepower, yet this ocean persisted in the cosmos for a full ten seconds, the relentless radiation finally destroying the wreckage completely!

Silently, a spark ignited in space.

Patchouli raised an eyebrow slightly.

—No score notification from the main god.

—The other party didn't lose a single new employee.

So……

"Second round of self-inspection, the second-highest level intrusion contingency plan is activated immediately. Notify all ships, secondary weapon systems are to be taken over by the flagship, non-combat personnel are to prepare accordingly." She quickly issued the orders, and the cross-shaped container in the command hall suddenly sank underground and disappeared without a trace. She turned her head and glanced at Zhang Jie.

“I forced them to jump directly into our fleet. Depending on the distribution of the ships, they can reach our flagship in a maximum of six attempts. Before that, I will try to deplete their spatial abilities as much as possible, and try to create an opportunity to keep them here on the first encounter. You and Zheng Zha should be ready soon.”

She spoke softly, her words carrying a hint of dismissal—as she spoke, the outer fleet opened fire. After being forced to make a long jump, the Senzhou fleet would randomly land among the few decoy ships closest to the center. And when they landed and were detected by the instruments, Patchouli would activate the pre-planned destruction of that warship!

This is a war of attrition, using one's own cannons to kill one's own soldiers, in order to reduce the opponent's forces by even 20 while suffering 1,000 casualties. Because any difference could be the key to victory or defeat, and Patchouli never hesitates to use any consumables.

She knew that her teammates might not accept this approach, so she simply did it without saying anything.

However, her companion also had hands and eyes.

"Should we use those people from the Southern Flame Continent team now?" Zhang Jie asked. He didn't leave, seemingly oblivious to the implication in Patchouli's words—he saw an icon belonging to their own fleet on the identification panel next to Patchouli suddenly darken. And soon another icon turned deep red.

He knew what it was, but he didn't say. He just watched quietly, his gaze conveying to Patchouli a message of unwavering resolve.

— Don't do that next time.

Patchouli responded with an indifferent look.

—【If things don't get this bad next time, then yes.】

The exchange of glances between the two ended in an instant.

Since Zhang Jie has decided to remain silent, Zheng Zha, who is isolated from the implanted terminal and mental link, will naturally not know anything about this matter.

“No need. This battle is a direct confrontation with few variables, requiring our hard power. Their value can be applied elsewhere.” Patchouli shook her head slightly, and as she continued the conversation, the second marker turned black, and immediately the third marker turned red again.

She began to urge, "Hurry up, they should be here soon. If possible, take care of the newcomers."

"Understood." Zhang Jie nodded and immediately began to take action.

The battle began forty seconds later.

.......................................

They've arrived.

Zheng Zha sat quietly in the quiet room on the bridge, his hands resting on the Destruction Greatsword, a sense of alarm surging within him like a tidal wave.

They are powerful, so they only have one chance.

He closed his eyes, and two powerful and unfamiliar auras were reflected in his will. They were two strangers who suddenly appeared at the stern of the ship, and they made no attempt to hide their hostility!

Zheng Zha gently pressed down one side of the blade.

There are 3,355 people on board this starship. Facing such a powerful enemy, I'm afraid not many will survive this battle. So be it. Although you are destined to die in the aftermath of our battle, I will bear the weight of your lives.

The next moment, he suddenly opened his eyes!

Genetic lock, the third limit!

Destruction Mode, all enabled!

Energy burst, full load!

The ship's walls before him shattered like paper! And the walls behind them crumbled as well! In the blink of an eye, he reached several times the speed of sound, and it didn't even take him a millisecond to smash through all obstacles from the center of the bridge to the stern hall!

His sword strike had been building up for a long time, his energy and fighting spirit boiling over. And the moment he stepped into the stern hall, the thinner of the two strangers couldn't even muster a defensive stance!

So he swung his knife.

'boom--!!!!'

The stern armor shattered instantly, and the frail man, caught off guard, was even blasted into space by the blade! Countless barriers formed on his body the instant the blade touched him, then collapsed in an instant. The blade's force even shattered his armor, which resembled that of a Greek demigod, and tore a long, narrow rift in it, nearly cutting him in two!

Just a little bit more!

He stomped his foot, and a shockwave immediately rippled through the alloy ground. The momentum that had not yet completely dissipated surged up a second time, ready to unleash a second, pursuing strike into space!

'clang--'

The next moment, the immense pressure emanating from the blade's trajectory forced him to abruptly stop. He slightly lowered the greatsword in his hand, and the greatsword slashed down by another attacker collided precisely with his own greatsword!

The spatial structure of the stern hall froze for nearly half a millisecond at that moment.

Half a millisecond later, the shockwave from the clashing swords completely destroyed everything in the hall except for the two combatants. Steel turned to dust, plastic vaporized and burned, and glass and other composite structures disintegrated into small molecular polymers. The shockwave spread outwards, even causing the stern of the ship to swell by a tenth, like a compressed balloon!

The entire stern section of the De Croy was completely destroyed in the aftershocks of the engagement. The negative pressure caused by the damage to the hull created a fierce wind, whistling sharply. The two combatants retreated slightly to the sides amidst the wind and whistling, each sizing up the other.

A sense of annoyance welled up in Zheng Zha's heart.

One must strike with full force, for the second strike will be weaker. And the third strike, already exhausted, was naturally not within his consideration.

"A yellow-skinned man, the captain of the Central Continent team?" The tall reincarnator carrying the giant sword said in a deep voice, his voice generated by energy vibration, with a hint of surprise in his tone.

"Zheng Zha." — Zheng Zha once again raised the Destruction Blade, and crimson flames ignited on its blade.

"Rost." — The Senzhou team's reincarnators also raised their greatswords, the blades gleaming with light.

The clash of swords and blades resumed immediately. The instant they made contact, two equally powerful energies erupted in all directions. The stern, already reduced to scrap metal, was completely destroyed in this second collision. Explosions, flames, and shockwaves erupted as the two figures clashed and collided from stern to bow. Intense energy turbulence poured from every fragile porthole, turning this massive starship into a blazing torch!

Blood flows ceaselessly like an iron river.

This was the first time Zheng Zha had encountered an opponent of equal strength, one who could withstand any force he exerted. Since mastering the complete third-tier technique and the immediate application of destruction during the Anubis Trial, he had almost entirely abandoned most of the complex techniques in his swordsmanship, as he could easily defeat his opponent with overwhelming power and speed. However, abandonment did not equate to loss; through numerous trials, he had developed his own complete and self-contained swordsmanship. And now, even with the renewed application of these sealed techniques, the scales of victory had not tipped in his favor by an inch!

In just a few seconds, he and Rost had exchanged over a thousand blows! Horizontal slashes, diagonal cuts, upward thrusts, straight jabs. Grappling, throws, shoulder strikes, knee strikes—neither swords nor fists could determine a victor—Zheng Zha failed to land a single punch or strike Rost, and all of Rost's blows were blocked, the force of each sword and palm strike completely neutralized!

On the 1,300th clash of swords, the entire De Croy starship finally succumbed to the pressure from the internal and external forces and broke apart into two pieces out of thin air!

The two combatants suddenly separated!

[Mind Storm]

A familiar voice suddenly rang in Zheng Zha's ears. Without thinking, his blood and qi surged, and his body retreated at a speed ten times faster than the disintegration of the starship. The next moment, the two sections of the starship wreckage, which were not yet completely disintegrated, were covered and crushed by countless blue-purple energy turbulence as thick as oil cans, and were torn into countless fist-sized metal fragments in the blink of an eye!

【Shifting Forms】

A gentle energy enveloped Zheng Zha, and the next moment he found himself standing on a floating platform amidst a slight spatial distortion. The suffocating feeling in the vacuum made him slightly uncomfortable, but his body immediately adapted to the silent space in the blink of an eye.

As he regained his footing, he saw a silver-gray semi-solid shield suddenly unfold before him, completely blocking the tens of thousands of black arrows that rained down upon him. The arrows turned the silver-gray shield black the moment they touched it, followed by a silent explosion that filled the surrounding universe!

He saw Patchouli standing in the center of the platform, while Zhang Jie, whose eyes shone with light, stood on the other side, forming an equilateral triangle with his own position. As the mysterious runes on the surface of the platform beneath his feet flashed, the energy and spirit that had been slightly depleted from the fierce battle were completely replenished in an instant, and he returned to his peak condition.

Ten thousand meters away, the two members of the Senzhou team stood quietly in space. Regardless of the swordsman, the tall, thin man who had been slashed out of the starship by Zheng Zha at the beginning showed no signs of injury. Even the damage to his armor had been completely repaired. The slightly drooping black longbow indicated that he was the one who had just released that rain of black arrows.

Ten thousand meters—a suitable distance. Neither side can deliver an immediate and fatal blow at this distance…at least not at the moment.

Did it not cause him any real damage? Or did he conceal his injuries?

Zheng Zha turned his head slightly, refusing to ask such a foolish question as where everyone else had gone. He then looked around; in the pitch-black universe, only the distant insect planet's sun and the burning, disintegrating wreckage beneath his feet offered a sliver of light.

"What are the odds?"—He suddenly asked, seemingly out of the blue, amidst a directional surge of energy.

“Sixty percent,” Patchouli replied.

"You'd do 60% of the work?"

“I’m not Alice. What she wouldn’t dare to do, I might not dare to do; what she wouldn’t do, I might not refuse to do,” Patchouli said calmly, her tone unhurried. “Be careful, this time they’re serious.”

The next moment, a golden sun ignited ten thousand meters away!