At this moment, the ten colonies on the arid lands of Muhun Wei were already undergoing synchronized evacuation, with most teams progressing at a similar pace.

The major mercenary guilds had already sent their transport ships, those not contracted by the military, out to earn extra money. Since military transport vessels were forbidden from carrying personal luggage, this presented a prime opportunity for the mercenaries to take advantage of the situation.

On one hand, there were possessions they could not take; on the other, the chance to reach the space city sooner. It was easy to imagine the choice the civilian colonists would make.

The Tran Mercenary Group’s seventy-two transport ships had also dispersed throughout the city to ferry people to the space city. However, the order from Dao Feng was that transport must be free, and every seat on those ships was reserved exclusively for the old, the weak, the sick, the injured, the pregnant, and those holding infants!

Perhaps certain large mercenary guilds were hawking tickets amidst the chaos, accumulating vast wealth, but for Yang Ying, possessing the Tran Corporation—a veritable cash cow—meant there was no need to haggle over a few ticket fares.

Compared to money, Yang Ying needed a good reputation more keenly now. As an emerging super-mercenary group, the Tran Mercenary Group was in a period of rapid development. Everything done now would surely repay them tenfold, a hundredfold, in the future.

About half an hour later, after all the transport ships had disembarked their military personnel, the temporary command post ordered the gates opened, allowing the long-waiting civilians to board.

Naturally, women and children went first.

As soon as this order was given, the crowd outside erupted into chaos. Some wives were unwilling to be separated from their husbands; children were unwilling to be separated from their fathers.

Even if the majority could understand the order, understanding did not equate to acceptance. If everyone acted according to reason, the world would not be what it is now.

The iron gate before Dao Feng slowly opened, and the crowd surged towards the human wall formed by the marines.

Men and women were intermingled in the mass, showing no intention of separating. Even if some intended to halt, they were pushed forward by the mass behind them, squeezing toward the marines' line of defense.

Thus, the marines had to step in to separate them.

Marines were already stronger than ordinary people, and clad in power armor, they surpassed common folk by scores. Their strength was something the civilians simply could not contend with.

The marines spread their arms wide, exerting more force than the iron gate itself. Only women and children who met the criteria could pass through the human wall. Even if some adult men were more agile and tried to slip past, they were far too slow compared to the marines' reaction speed. A casual grab from a marine would secure them, and they would be shoved back into the crowd.

Some, fearless of anything, tried to snatch weapons from the marines. However, the consequence for such individuals was far more tragic: once caught, they were immediately knocked unconscious and tossed onto an empty patch of ground nearby, guarded by designated personnel.

When they woke up, they were instantly knocked out again, giving them no chance to recover. As for whether these people suffered concussions, in the midst of such chaos, who would bother to notice?

Dao Feng watched from behind the human wall. He saw one woman pass through the barrier but still held tightly onto her husband’s hand, hoping to pull him through as well. Her husband struggled desperately to push forward, but blocked by a marine beside him, he could not take a single step further.

After a few minutes, the woman still had not given up.

Dao Feng shook his head, stepped forward, and persuaded her, "Madam, you should board quickly. This is only the first checkpoint. Even if you pass us, there will still be people checking when you board. Insisting on going together will only result in neither of you getting on the ship."

The woman’s husband heard this and immediately prepared to let go, shouting, "Go quickly! We’ll see each other at the space city!"

The woman gripped her husband's hand tightly, crying out, "If we go, we go together; if we stay, we stay together. If you don’t go, I won’t either!"

With that, she tried to push through the human wall to reach her husband.

"What nonsense are you spouting!" her husband yelled. "It’s not like we'll definitely die if separated; it’s just a matter of timing."

"Don’t say that unlucky word!" The woman wiped away a tear and shouted, "If it’s just a matter of timing, then being one step ahead or one step behind is the same. We’ll wait for the next batch to go together."

Dao Feng coughed lightly, reminding her, "The next batch will also prioritize women and children. You probably have to wait for two more batches before it’s your turn to board together."

"Then we'll wait for two more batches!" the woman stated firmly.

Her husband urged, "But what if something happens—"

The woman just shook her head. "If something happens to you, I won’t live either!"

The two then enacted a tear-jerking romance drama on either side of the human wall, so intensely moving that Dao Feng finally couldn't bear to listen. He secretly told them the location of a Tran transport ship that still had empty seats, and then had the marines create a diversion, chasing the couple away.

Watching the husband protect his wife as they struggled to squeeze out, Dao Feng was about to retreat further back when a hoarse voice called out from the crowd: "Stop! You there, the one with the Colonel's insignia! Listen to me clearly, I am a very important person. Let me pass immediately. My father is a high-ranking government official, and my uncle is a general in the army. They can bring you great benefits, and they can also make your life miserable, understand?"

Dao Feng looked toward the source of the voice and saw a short, pot-bellied youth, complete with a belt, his eyes bloodshot, gesturing wildly at him. The young man acted as if he owned the world and the other person was second best.

Dao Feng stepped forward and shook his head. "There truly is every kind of person in this world."

The tall youth mistook his words as a sign of compliance, believing Dao Feng was about to let him through. He puffed out his chest, raised his eyebrows, and widened his eyes, roaring at the marines forming the wall before him, "Hurry up and clear a path!"

"Idiot!"

Dao Feng reached him in a flash, seizing the youth's smug face with his hand. With a violent shake, he nearly popped both of the young man's eyeballs out.

When Yang Ying released his grip, the youth was spitting blood, with dozens of teeth falling from his mouth.

In that single shake, Dao Feng had used his telekinesis to precisely sever the roots of the teeth, shaking out every single one of his molars.

The youth felt as if a giant bell was violently ringing inside his head, causing his entire body to tremble uncontrollably. He involuntarily crouched down.

Dao Feng looked down at the youth and said, "You should pick your moments for lying. What government official? What general? If you were truly someone important, you would have fled on a private vessel two weeks ago. No important people are left in Water Lily City now."

With that, the youth collapsed and fainted. Dao Feng ordered the marines to drag the short, stout youth away and place him with the pile of others who had been knocked out.

The process of boarding continued. After about a hundred minutes, the first batch of transport ships was loaded and departed Water Lily City, flying toward space.

The transport ships delivered the people to the space city in the outer orbital path and then returned to the colony with the second batch of reinforcements.

When the second batch of troops arrived at Water Lily City, the available manpower increased, and since the public knew the first batch of women and children had arrived safely, the tension in Water Lily City eased slightly.

The boarding process for the second batch of women and children officially began. The order was much better than the first time, and having gone through the motions, efficiency also improved considerably.

This second boarding took half an hour less time than the first.

The transport ships made another round trip, but this time they brought no reinforcements. Two batches of troops were sufficient; any more, and the transport ships would end up making one more return trip at the end to ferry them back to the fleet.

The third boarding saved fifteen minutes compared to the second.

When the fourth batch began to board, the overall progress already surpassed the military's estimated schedule, raising hopes that the evacuation mission could be completed in an even shorter time.

Things seemed to be developing in a positive direction.

However, problems soon arose.

Although the ancient legion's reconnaissance drones had yielded no results, the Ape Men understood from this lack of success that the Earth Army was serious this time.

The Ancient Legion eventually guessed that Jupiter was undergoing a large-scale evacuation. Patrol fleets stationed relatively close to Jupiter began converging on the planet.

While these fleets were not as large as the combined fleet of the Earth Army and the mercenaries, they were certainly capable of waging harassment tactics and threatening the space city.

Furthermore, the frontline fleet holding back the main force of the Ancient Legion at a distance noticed that the enemy had suddenly become like they were injected with stimulants, attacking recklessly regardless of losses, inflicting damage on the frontline fleet far exceeding expectations.

The original target of holding out for forty-eight hours suddenly became extremely arduous.

In the outer orbital path of Jupiter, Yang Ying stood silently in the bridge, listening to the intelligence reports coming from General Alexander’s flagship.

He was analyzing the current situation internally, trying to gauge whether the withdrawal operation could be completed successfully.

The entire withdrawal plan was devised solely by the military; Yang Ying had not been informed of everything, but what he knew was enough. The problems encountered now were all scenarios considered during the planning phase; the forty-eight hours inherently included a contingency buffer.

From the current situation, all unexpected events seemed to remain under control.

"Sir, the Observer has sent intelligence," his staff officer reported loudly while Yang Ying was deep in thought.

"What has the Ancient Legion done now?" Yang Ying asked, looking up.

"It’s not the Ancient Legion, it's the military's movements. They have undertaken actions that do not align with the plan," the staff officer replied.

"The military wouldn't take actions outside of the plan; it just means we don't know their exact strategy. Tell me, what happened?" Yang Ying was also curious about the military's actions.

"They dispatched a landing force, which has landed on Europa—a location that does not exist in the data," the staff officer stated.

"What do you mean, a location that doesn't exist?" Yang Ying pressed.

"It means there are no military bases, no colonies—the records are blank. It should be a completely empty location," the staff officer explained.

Yang Ying hummed thoughtfully. "It seems the military is keeping some things from us. Let the Observer approach for a closer look."

Truthfully, Yang Ying was merely curious; at least, that was all it was for now.