While under normal circumstances, matters such as searching for missing persons would wait until after the battle concluded, an exception could certainly be made when the missing persons were two Master-level experts.

As soon as the aftermath of the nuclear blast subsided, Blade and his contingent immediately proceeded to the last known location where the two Masters’ fighters had vanished.

Because all pilots were encased in radiation-proof environmental suits within their cockpits, the radiation generated by the nuclear explosion could not harm them.

However, as they approached the area, communication interference grew progressively worse, and equipment like radar began to suffer significant malfunctions. Though only temporary, time was the scarcest resource for the Stone contingent right now.

Blade pressed the control knob on his communicator, only to see the holographic screen erupt in static, his earpiece filled with a constant hiss. The radar screen beside him displayed a similar issue.

He understood this was due to the residual effects of the nuclear blast still lingering in this sector of space, continuing to exert a massive influence on all equipment. He tried adjusting it twice more; seeing the communication system remained unusable, he shook his head and cast his gaze out of the cockpit canopy.

In this state of being blind and deaf, searching for two Master-level experts offered pitifully slim hope.

On his way to the bridge, Alexander passed down a corridor and saw a middle-aged man dressed in grey monastic robes overlaid with a grey cloak standing before a porthole, utterly still, as if he were a billion-year-old piece of anthropomorphic stone, silently staring into the space outside.

“Master Hamlin. Please, remain calm. Master Yan and the others will be fine.” Alexander naturally recognized this old friend with whom he had collaborated for nearly ten years—Master Babu Hamlin, Chief Consultant for the Second Fleet’s Psionic Advisor Corps. Alexander assumed the Master was grieving for the two Master-level experts, so he approached and whispered words of comfort.

Master Hamlin turned his head. His expression was serene, his flowing silver-white hair reflecting the corridor lights. He shook his head, offered a smile, and said, “Alexander, my old friend. You should be the one to calm down. Although the immense energy released by the nuclear blast obstructed my senses, as that energy dissipates, I can now faintly perceive their presence.”

“They are alive? That is the best news today!” A wave of relief washed over General Alexander’s heart. The Vice-Captain standing beside him also wore an expression of sheer delight.

Master Hamlin nodded and stated, “Now, the presence of both of them is becoming clearer. I can confirm they are still alive.”

He smiled slightly, extended his right hand toward the bridge, and gestured, saying, “Very well. You are the commander of the Allied Fleet. Do not hesitate any longer; hurry and attend to your duties.”

“Understood.” General Alexander immediately felt invigorated. He couldn't help but let out two booming laughs, nodding to Master Hamlin as he walked past with the Vice-Captain toward the bridge.

Arriving at the bridge, all the staff members still wore grim expressions. Alexander shouted, “Everyone, focus! The two Master-level experts are safe. Leave the search to those on site; we still have our mission to complete!”

A staff officer questioned, “Commander, should we reinforce defenses around the Space City? In case the Ape-Men attack the Space City again?”

General Alexander raised his hand to stop him, speaking with firm conviction: “That is exactly what Emperor Gang wants—it plays into his trap. Dividing our forces means losing the initiative and letting Emperor Gang buy time. We cannot afford to wait! Furthermore, our military might vastly outnumbers Emperor Gang’s fleet. Instead of following their rhythm, we should press the attack en masse. Let’s see who collapses first—them or us.”

He moved to the command seat, waved his hand grandly, and bellowed, “Tell me now: Will we collapse first?”

“No!” all the staff officers roared back in unison.

Blade searched for another quarter of an hour with no success. He piloted his Ghost fighter out of the area blanketed by the nuclear fallout, intending to check on the progress of the others first.

As the interference lessened, the various systems on the control panel began to recover. The radar displayed hazy images that were gradually sharpening.

“Is that Blade? Anything to report?” The voice of the talkative Quasi-Master emerged in his headset.

Blade saw the Quasi-Master’s fighter hovering in the low-interference zone on the radar screen, and reported truthfully, “Nothing.”

From this setup, Blade already understood that the others were in a similar predicament to him.

A sigh echoed through the headset. The Quasi-Master spoke slowly, “Please, do not give up. According to the other two Masters from the Allied Fleet, the presence of Master Yan and Saint Latith the Paladin has not vanished. This means they are still alive.”

“That is wonderful!” Blade chuckled. “Knowing they are alive gives me the confidence to keep searching.” Although he had already learned this news from his main body, he still feigned the expression of someone hearing it for the first time.

The Quasi-Master, taking no offense, continued, “Per the arrangements of Allied Fleet Commander General Alexander, I will temporarily serve as the liaison here. If you discover anything, you can notify me immediately.”

“Understood,” Blade replied seriously. He turned his fighter around, about to re-enter the high-interference zone.

“Wait a moment,” the Quasi-Master called out to stop him. “When the others emerged, they all asked about the battle on the other front. Don't you want to know?”

The ‘other front’ naturally referred to the battlefield where the main Allied Fleet was engaging Emperor Gang’s fleet.

“Of course, I want to know. I’m just deeply worried about Master Yan and Saint Latith the Paladin’s safety, and I want to find them as soon as possible,” Blade said, naturally concealing the fact that he was perfectly aware of the battle’s progress. He could only continue to pretend ignorance.

The Quasi-Master believed him, saying with relief, “I am glad you feel that way. Actually, the situation on the other side is not complicated. I’ll tell you: After the nuclear explosion, General Alexander commanded all forces to launch a fierce assault on Emperor Gang’s fleet. Now, Emperor Gang’s fleet has lost fifty percent of its combat power and has retreated. You can search at ease; we still have some time.”

“I understand, thank you for informing me.” Blade offered his thanks, then accelerated his Ghost fighter, flying back into the high-interference zone to begin the second round of searching.

He knew, of course, that things were not as simple as the Quasi-Master described. Although Emperor Gang’s fleet had temporarily retreated, they were still trailing the Allied Fleet like shadows; this was clearly just a strategic withdrawal to reorganize their stance.

Moreover, during this period, another patrol fleet had joined Emperor Gang’s ranks, slightly replenishing their losses.

Returning to the high-interference zone, Blade continued to search for any trace of the two Master-level experts. As time passed, the interference effect also diminished. Since particles scatter much faster in the vacuum of space than on Earth, the effects of the nuclear explosion disappeared far more quickly than they would have on the planet.

The high-interference zone was continuously shrinking, and the affected systems on the Ghost fighter gradually returned to functionality.

“Found them! I found one!” a strange voice shouted over the public channel in a tone of sheer delight.

Although the static remained severe, Blade clearly heard and understood the message.

“Found who?” the Quasi-Master immediately pressed.

“It’s Master Yan Shouyi. He’s alive! His fighter is just floating in space, and he’s waving at me!” the unfamiliar voice exclaimed with extreme excitement.

Almost everyone who heard this wonderful news let out a genuine cheer. The public channel was instantly filled with various sounds of celebration.

“That’s great!”

“I knew Master Yan wouldn't die!”

The Quasi-Master coughed twice, quieting the noise in the channel, then asked in a serious tone, “What is Master Yan’s condition?”

“His communicator seems broken, but he doesn’t appear to have major injuries. I’m going to retrieve him now,” the unfamiliar voice stated.

“If his communicator wasn’t broken, he would have contacted us already,” the Quasi-Master laughed lightly, his voice much more relaxed than before. Although Saint Latith the Paladin had not yet been found, locating one was a good start.

After a while, the unfamiliar voice reported, “I have received Master Yan. He is in my cockpit now.”

Shortly after finding Master Yan, Saint Latith was also found by the search units of the Holy Light Knights. He also had no apparent injuries, save for having been exposed to the radiation zone for too long, causing some damage from penetrating gamma rays.

Master-level experts could survive in the vacuum of space with their physical bodies and did not require equipment like environmental suits. Since their fighters were damaged by the nuclear blast, the force of the radiation struck them directly.

However, as long as they were not at the epicenter when the nuclear bomb detonated, a little radiation inflicted limited harm on them—nothing fatal like it would be to ordinary people, amounting to at best minor injuries.

For someone like Master Yan, a few days of maintenance using his Qi-Shaping method would result in a full recovery. As for Saint Latith, his Holy Light power required only a few hours to completely restore his body.

After some conversation, everyone learned that before their aircraft hit the nuclear bomb, Yan Shouyi and Saint Latith had actually managed to destroy the nuclear weapon using their Uranium Ray Cannons.

However, because their fighters were still extremely close to the device at the time, the highly concentrated radiation crippled the Star-class Master fighters, causing their communication and power systems to fail. The two Master-level experts could only remain inside their cockpits, awaiting rescue.

Blade heard all these details on his way back.

After the rescue targets were located, the groups dispersed. Master Yan naturally returned to the Twelfth Fleet, and Saint Latith needed to return to the battleship of the Xian Army.

At this juncture, with Emperor Gang’s fleet in retreat, the Allied Fleet gained a precious period of respite.