Great, we're doomed now!

Gradually, Gale realized that something was wrong:

The debris is spreading at an abnormal rate... too slow, and its trajectory doesn't seem like pure inertial flight, but rather like it's being dragged from the inside by something.

An invisible force field... Could it be that this inexplicable force is the driving force that propelled the meteorite to the sun?

As Gale was lost in thought, he witnessed a sudden scene—

A ball of light flew out from the center of the fragment.

The light was not dazzling, but rather hazy, with only the pale color of its core constantly pulsating, like a flame wrapped in a thin veil... It had no fixed shape, constantly flowing and changing.

—The ball of light crossed the debris field and rushed toward the beluga whale at a speed far exceeding that of a meteorite!

Once separated from its carrier, its speed actually increased, and its flight trajectory was no longer the clumsy trajectory change of a meteorite.

"All defensive firepower—"

Before Gale could finish giving his command, the orb of light had already arrived and, unsurprisingly, crashed into the space station.

hum~

It wasn't a physical impact; the light seeped into the outer shell like water seeping into sand, penetrating the interior walls and every corner...

At that moment, the beluga whale was swallowed up in the light!

Meanwhile, at the lunar base, which was continuously receiving signals and monitoring the situation, chaos erupted!

"What happened to the Beluga? What's going on?"

The head of the base, a middle-aged man surnamed Zhou with Asian features, frowned deeply. There were acquaintances and even relatives of his on that space station... Outer space is like the deep sea to humanity; once exposed to the external environment...

Fate unknown? Not so lucky!

However, being a former soldier, he did not lose his composure due to grief and immediately ordered elite troops to escort the scientific team to evacuate on a transport ship.

It should be noted that the White Whale Space Station's defenses are not weak. The means by which it was captured in an instant were probably not just simple physical attacks... The lunar base cannot be said to be safe either, and for all of humanity, the last thing we can afford to lose is these scientists.

As long as people are still around, there will eventually be a second and a third lunar base!

"Commander, you—"

"Judging from the last footage transmitted back by the Beluga, the electromagnetic cannon had accurately destroyed the meteorite... but it still couldn't stop the enemy."

How it captured the Moby-Dick and cut off communications is something we know nothing about. If it were to land on Earth, the consequences would be unimaginable—the lunar base has the most sophisticated orbital defense system; even if it cannot be intercepted successfully, it can still gather sufficient information.

Commander Zhou raised his hand, refusing his subordinate's request: "To confront humanity's enemies in the vast universe, even if it ends here... isn't that a kind of fortune compared to dying in a hospital bed?"

Nourishing~

"Connected! It's the Beluga!"

"quick!"

The commander surnamed Zhou immediately asked, "What did they say?"

"This……"

The next moment, a voice from the other end silenced everyone:

Some people were screaming, some were calling for help, and some were calling out their mothers' names...

The above is relatively rational; the rest is filled with chaotic noise every second!

“I am…I am…Gale…”

"Gale? Can you hear me? What happened to you?"

"I...no...I...I'm awful!"

The scarring is still spreading~

It passed through thick bulkheads, through mechanical equipment, and even through human bodies; nothing could stop it.

Astronauts touched by the "light" were not killed, but rather "covered." Irregular light patterns appeared on their bodies, their pupils dilated, their mouths opened, uttering meaningless syllables... as if they had been transformed into another kind of being.

Jifeng immediately thought of many Hollywood blockbuster plots, but she never expected that she would become a character in the story today... But she quickly couldn't think any further because she felt something invading her consciousness.

"The moon... the base... it's reading my memories..."

Jifeng gritted his teeth and, with his last shred of consciousness, pressed the full-frequency broadcast button.

"This is the White Whale! I repeat, this is the White Whale! The enemy will definitely continue their advance after swallowing the space station!"

Physical attacks are ineffective! Barriers... are useless!

The target...the target is Earth! No, its target is—"

Communication was cut off, and the lunar base command center fell into dead silence... Then the ball of light began to move!

"Activate the planetary defense perimeter," the commander surnamed Zhou ordered.

His words were like a pebble thrown into water, creating ripples that awakened the previously dormant weapon systems, adding a chilling atmosphere to the entire base.

But at that moment, an extra voice rang out:

They're still alive!

A young communications officer stood up from the corner: "I've received intermittent distress signals... There are still people alive on the beluga whale!"

"Fine...so what? We don't have the energy to worry about that right now."

"Can……"

The young communications officer opened his mouth, but said nothing.

Commander Zhou shook his head, turning his attention to the approaching cosmic sphere of light. Looking at this monstrous thing that had just wiped out an entire space station, he clenched his fists tightly, prepared for battle and even sacrifice.

Suddenly, its trajectory changed again.

It wasn't affected by gravity, nor was it intercepted by the defensive perimeter's firepower, but its strange maneuvering reappeared... Something's not right!

The lunar base is stationary and cannot be moved, so we can just rush over there. Unlike targeting a space station, we shouldn't need to adjust the orbit, right?

In reality, it abandoned its lunar base!

As if it had suddenly lost interest, it flew off in another direction without any hesitation!

Commander Zhou was stunned for a moment, and before he could even feel happy, a deep question arose in his mind: "What is it chasing?"

"I'll try to track it... This band is... Could it be!"

—The operator zoomed in on the image, and not far in front of the ball of light, a silver-gray shuttle was flying at full speed.

"Hundred Styles!"

"Kazuma Asuka?"

Everyone's expression changed, as if they had realized something.

Just then, a burst of static came through the communication channel, followed by a familiar voice.

"This is Hyakushiki... The research mission has been interrupted, and the target's attention has been successfully attracted. Next, we will take it away from the Earth-Moon system."

Kazuma Asuka's voice was short and abrupt, as if he were speaking through gritted teeth, clearly indicating that he was under considerable pressure—both physically and mentally.

Testing machines like the Hyakushiki, which require repeated high-intensity operation in a short period of time, will definitely put a considerable strain on the body.

Asuka had already successfully completed her mission, but now she has taken the initiative to intervene in the unexpected event, acting like bait to constantly lure the enemy to change their route... If she gets caught, it's all over!

Everyone was grateful for Asuka's help, but at the same time, they couldn't help but worry about him.

"Asuka, do you need backup?"

"The space-type Victory Swallows equipped at the base are too slow. Only the Type 100 shuttle, which can reach sub-light speed, can keep up with the enemy... Damn it! Ugh!"

"Asuka! Your energy reserves have been largely depleted during the test flight just now. If—"

“I know,” Kazuma’s voice was unusually calm. “I can hold on for a little while longer.”

He cut off the communication...

In the cockpit of the Hyakushiki, Kazuma Asuka glanced at the screen; the ball of light was relentlessly pursuing him, slowly closing the distance. He immediately yanked the control stick, and the Hyakushiki traced an almost impossible zigzag in the air.

The ball of light missed its target, changed direction, and continued its pursuit. Seeing this, Asuka grinned; he already had a guess as to what this thing was.

It's probably related to the mysterious entity he encountered during his last experiment.

Almost the instant he noticed the other person, a primal urge surged from the bottom of his heart, like an instinct calling him, wanting to get closer to that ball of light and merge with it.

At the same time, he immediately realized that the ball of light must have the same feeling for him, otherwise it would never have given up the lunar base that was right in front of it and chased after his small shuttle like a mad dog.

"At least it can buy us some time."

Kazuma gritted his teeth, his gaze sweeping over the family photo in the corner of the control panel, a hint of sadness flashing in his eyes.

I'm sorry... but some things have to be done!

Without further hesitation, he rapidly operated the control panel, forcibly activating the plasma drive. The engine, which had not been properly maintained, instantly emitted an overload warning sound throughout the cockpit, causing the fuselage to tremble violently.

The subspace rift slowly tore open in front of them, but no sooner had the rift formed than the pursuing ball of light rushed in without regard for anything else!

In the critical moment, the shuttle automatically deployed the "Bayeli Shield" on its surface, and golden light instantly enveloped the fuselage, colliding violently with the incoming ball of light.

hum!

boom!

Energy turbulence surged into the cockpit, and Kazuma felt dizzy and his consciousness gradually blurred.

He bit his tongue hard, trying to stay awake, but his body was no longer under his control. The next second, everything went black, and he completely lost consciousness.

-

The Moby-Dick has been attacked, and all crew members are missing.

When the message reached the hidden base, Ye Shouzheng was standing below the redstone base, looking up at the slowly rotating crystal, estimating its approximate energy level.

"When did this happen?"

“A message just came from headquarters. The lunar base issued an emergency report three minutes ago saying that the White Whale was swallowed by an unidentified light, all communications were cut off, and its fate is currently unknown.” Liuli paused. “The light has left the White Whale and is moving towards the Earth and the Moon.”

"A monster attack at this time? It must have been Redstone who brought it here... Sigh? Today should also be the day of the Type 100's test flight, right?"

Thinking of Asuka Kazuma, Ye Shou frowned slightly, looking thoughtful: "Could it be..."

"team leader!"

"Ok?"