To save them, Zhong Yun pushed the Mercury's engines and thrusters to their absolute limit, driving the ship to its astonishing top speed.

“Tiange, you must hold on,” Zhong Yun murmured inwardly.

Both Chu Tiange and Bai Yuwan's mechs were known for their speed; even under siege, they should be able to hold out for a while.

On the monitor, three small dots were still lit, confirming that the three of them were still alive. Before they left, Zhong Yun had informed them about the emergency alert system on their mechs. If they encountered danger, activating that system would bring him rushing to their aid, no matter the distance.

Five minutes later, the Mercury arrived at the scene, just in time. The lights representing Chu Tiange and the others were still glowing.

From the sensor readings, it was clear the enemy consisted of ten small spacecraft and over two hundred mechs, encircling Chu Tiange’s trio within a small celestial body.

As soon as the Mercury entered firing range, ten secondary cannons opened fire, instantly obliterating seven small craft and several mechs.

Zhong Yun inwardly cursed the waste; he had intended to wipe out all the enemy ships in one go. But due to the firing angles, three shots went wide.

Despite losing seven ships immediately, the people of the Fierce Beast Nation showed no sign of fear. Facing a behemoth like the Mercury, they advanced instead of retreating, abandoning Chu Tiange’s group to launch a ferocious assault on the Mercury.

The sheer recklessness of these desperate fighters made Zhong Yun frown. The remaining ten cannons, fully charged, roared, piercing the three leading ships and continuing their trajectory through the entire cluster of mechs.

After those ten secondary cannon blasts, the charging formation of roughly two hundred mechs was scattered to pieces. This was immediately followed by a dense barrage from thousands of smaller guns, blowing every remaining mech to smithereens.

From start to finish, not a single mech displayed even a hint of hesitation or retreat.

After retrieving the trio, the Mercury swiftly evacuated the area. The sensors showed a fleet composed of five large warships rapidly approaching their position.

The reaction speed of the Fierce Beast Fleet was far beyond Zhong Yun’s expectations. Before fully grasping the enemy's strength, he chose not to engage in a costly, drawn-out fight, opting instead to withdraw.

“That was too close,” Chu Tiange and the others were back aboard the Mercury. As Zhong Yun stepped out of the main control room, he heard Ruomeng loudly exclaiming.

Chu Tiange’s group was seated on the sofa, seemingly unharmed. Zhong Yun let out a breath of relief and asked, “How are you? Are you injured?”

Seeing Zhong Yun, the three stood up. Chu Tiange confirmed, “We are all fine.”

Ruomeng loudly piped up, “Boss, if you had been even a little later, you’d only be collecting our corpses.”

“It’s good that you’re safe,” Zhong Yun said, taking a seat opposite them. The three followed suit, and Zhong Yun inquired, “What exactly happened? How did you end up surrounded?”

Ruomeng quickly explained the situation in a few sentences.

They had gone to make an arrest, targeting a mining crew on a nearby celestial body. To capture someone of higher rank, they had maintained stealth surveillance in the vicinity for nearly ten hours.

Finally, a figure who appeared to be important descended from a mining vessel, accompanied by an entourage, and began an inspection tour. The trio acted immediately, capturing the entire escort team.

Just as they were making their escape after securing their prize, they were discovered by the guard detachment. After a fierce exchange, as they were about to break through the encirclement, the local patrol forces, having been alerted, rushed to the scene. They were thus pinned down on that planet.

The three had hidden in an abandoned mine shaft, relying on the advantageous terrain to hold out for so long. The enemy was also hesitant, wary of the hostages they held, thus refraining from using high-powered weaponry.

“It seems you really managed to capture someone important,” Zhong Yun mused. Based on the descriptions from the captives, the Fierce Beast Nation society was extremely hierarchical. Given the war effort, military personnel should hold a decent rank. For these soldiers to show such restraint, Chu Tiange’s captive must hold significant status.

“A pity that several of the hostages died during the fight just now,” Chu Tiange said regretfully.

“The leader didn't die, did he?” Zhong Yun asked.

“No.”

“That’s good.” As he spoke, Zhong Yun’s expression subtly shifted.

“What is it?” Ruomeng asked with concern.

“The Fierce Beast Nation forces have caught up.”

It appeared Chu Tiange’s team had indeed bagged a big fish. Seeing they couldn't catch up conventionally, the Fierce Beast military had deployed their entire contingent of mechs.

Behind the Mercury, tens of thousands of mechs swarmed, relentlessly pursuing them.

No matter how fast the Mercury was, it couldn't match the burst speed of mechs during initial acceleration; the short-range explosive power of mechs was naturally something a cumbersome spaceship couldn't contend with.

However, sending mechs to pursue a mere vessel was tantamount to sending them to their deaths; without warship cover, a mech swarm was just target practice for the larger ships.

To believe that tens of thousands of mechs could drown the Mercury was a joke. Millions might stand a chance.

Zhong Yun once again witnessed the sheer fanaticism of the Fierce Beast Fleet. Such a death-defying unit would be difficult to find in any nation within the Omi Star System.

The enemy’s objective was clear: use the mech swarm to slow down the Mercury until their main force could catch up. This outcome was highly improbable; any commander who issued such an order would face immediate mutiny from their troops.

Grumbling aside, Zhong Yun held no mercy for his enemies. He activated all small cannons, putting them into firing mode, waiting for the enemy to enter range.

The enemy mech swarm seemed experienced with this tactic. They spread out widely, tens of thousands of mechs forming a crescent shape as they rapidly closed in.

Zhong Yun sat at the command console, his eyes fixed on the main screen. The formation of the Fierce Beast mech corps on the screen was remarkably neat, tens of thousands of mechs advancing at virtually the same speed. It was evident they had undergone long, grueling training, exhibiting exceptional coordination.

They were now only fifteen thousand kilometers from the Mercury—the range of the Mercury’s small cannons. Zhong Yun held his fire.

Ten thousand kilometers—the range of the secondary cannons. Zhong Yun still remained still.

Seven thousand kilometers—the range of the main cannons. A sharp alarm blared inside the Mercury’s command center, signaling imminent danger.

A cold glint flashed in Zhong Yun’s eyes as he barked, “Fire.”

Innumerable thin beams of light shot from the Mercury’s stern, descending like a sudden, dense meteor shower, enveloping the entire mech swarm.

Countless bursts of light ignited, appearing spectacular against the pitch-black void of space.

Each flash represented the annihilation of a single mech.

When the light faded, the universe returned to its original darkness.

On the screen before Zhong Yun, the glowing dots representing the mechs had dwindled to only a quarter of their original number. Zhong Yun frowned. To have a quarter of the mechs survive that initial volley was significantly beyond his expectation. He hadn't anticipated wiping them out entirely in that single strike.

The mech swarm, having lost three-quarters of its force, showed no reaction to the preceding attack and continued its relentless pursuit, as if their pilots had never known what death was.

“Fire,” the alarm in the control room grew more urgent. Zhong Yun issued the command again.

Another blinding flash of light swept across the field, annihilating the remaining mechs entirely.

Having cleared the tailing threat, the Mercury calmly made its departure.

Once they had shaken off the Fierce Beast Nation forces and were temporarily safe, Zhong Yun left the main control room, waking Wang Xiao’er to handle the interrogation of the high-ranking figure captured by Chu Tiange.

He suspected that the Fierce Beast Nation army’s desperate, costly pursuit to intercept them was solely because of this individual. If so, his identity must be extremely high, likely privy to secrets unknown to ordinary people.

Zhong Yun urgently needed to understand the situation here; only by grasping the local context could he make the right decisions. In this period without Xiao Ling, he had to rely entirely on himself.

In the confinement room where the high-ranking captive was held, Zhong Yun and Wang Xiao’er observed the man.

He was a man between thirty and forty, with features of East Asian descent, tall in stature, clad in a black, tight-fitting protective suit. He was still unconscious.

Zhong Yun suddenly had an idea: perhaps he could use his hypnotic skills to assist Wang Xiao’er.

Wang Xiao’er’s so-called "Mind Link" was not a psionic ability in the true sense. Although he could perceive others' thoughts and project his own, he could not enter another's mind. Stealing memories or influencing thoughts was impossible.

Therefore, if the subject intentionally concealed information, Wang Xiao’er could not reliably discern the truth. It was a rather mediocre ability, only useful when the target was completely unaware.

Conversely, although Zhong Yun’s hypnosis could induce a trance, it was useless if he couldn't understand the subject’s language.

If he hypnotized the captive first, and then had Wang Xiao’er conduct the questioning, wouldn't the efficiency increase dramatically?

No sooner said than done. Hypnotizing an unconscious person was child’s play for Zhong Yun, and he didn't even need verbal cues—he could achieve the hypnotic state directly through his Yuan.

The captive’s will proved unexpectedly firm. Even while unconscious, Zhong Yun expended immense effort to successfully impose the trance. He was nearly exhausted himself; this type of hypnosis consumed a staggering amount of Yuan.

With the subject successfully hypnotized, Wang Xiao’er began his interrogation. As expected, this round was far smoother than previous attempts; the captive answered every question posed.

As the questions delved deeper, Zhong Yun’s brow furrowed increasingly deeply. This place was far more intricate—and dangerous—than he had initially imagined.

P: Recommending a book, The Rise of 1926, Book ID: 1312207. A chemical engineering master's graduate from the 20th century crosses over into the turbulent 1920s.

P.S.: During the Double Monthly Ticket period, requesting monthly votes.