The Quasi-Master, just as the Razorback fighter exploded and disintegrated, ejected from the cockpit using a single-man rocket, drawing his Light Staff, intending to block the energy beams. However, even though the Light Staff was far more maneuverable than the fighter, it couldn't withstand the sheer number and treacherous angles of the beam attacks. After deflecting just two energy blasts, he was hit simultaneously by dozens of beams fired by Blade, exploding in mid-air, utterly annihilated.

After eliminating them, Blade continued to command the remote drones, showering the Ape fighter squadrons with a rain of light, sweeping through them like spilled mercury, wiping out whole swaths at a time.

After a few such passes, the Ape fighters were quickly demoralized and dared not approach him. Wherever he flew, the Ape fighters in his path would scatter in a panic, utterly devoid of any will to fight.

There were no Master-level experts among them; the only two Quasi-Masters had both fallen to Blade's hand.

In the social structure of the Ancient Legion, common Apes regarded higher-ranking Apes as inviolable and insurmountable leaders. Among the higher-ranking Apes, only Masters outranked Quasi-Masters. With two Quasi-Masters having been so easily slain by Blade in a one-on-three engagement, the remaining Apes assumed Blade must be a Master-level expert capable of fighting ten thousand foes, and thus dared not approach to sacrifice themselves.

While Blade was wreaking widespread havoc, Fortress Number One's anti-aircraft guns were also relentlessly firing at the Earth Forces' fighters overhead.

However, the anti-aircraft guns were merely inanimate objects, posing little real threat to Blade, who could evade them with ease. But for the Earth Forces' fighters, they were a massive nuisance.

Fortunately, the tanks of the Terran Shock Troops in the distance were already setting up their siege artillery. Guided by the Observer, they systematically destroyed the anti-aircraft emplacements one by one. The landing force's artillery also opened fire, causing smoke and flame to erupt throughout the ten-kilometer impact crater. The anti-aircraft defenses were already significantly weakened.

After scattering the Ape fighter wings, Blade piloted the Spectre fighter into a dive, turning his remote drones onto the muzzles of the anti-aircraft guns, picking them off in disciplined volleys.

The path of death that others feared like the plague felt like an open road to Blade's Spectre fighter. Wherever it passed, it was as if a vibrant rain of blossoms opened on the ground. Whether anti-aircraft guns, curved-trajectory cannons, direct-fire weapons, artillery, or this gun and that gun, everything was swept clean in a single pass.

Suddenly, atop a small mountain outside the impact crater, there was an explosion. Rocks tumbled down, revealing a massive iron gate. The gate swung open on both sides, exposing three Level Six Hammer Cannons arranged with one above and two below. Their muzzles were pointed directly toward the direction of the landing forces, emitting faint glimmers as they began to charge energy.

The target of these three high-energy cannons was clearly the three approaching Thunder God units. The Thunder Gods were immense; they could be clearly seen from a great distance, and the Apes in Fortress Number One surely knew that if such behemoths reached the fortress gate, their entire defensive system could suffer extremely fatal damage.

But since Blade had seen them, how could he allow them to fire?

The remote drones reversed direction far faster than the Level Six cannons could charge. A sweep of energy beams struck the bases of the three Uranium Cannons, the surrounding wiring, and the barrels themselves, sending up bursts of sparks. The flashes at the muzzles of the three Uranium Cannons dimmed as their charging sequences were interrupted.

That wasn't all. The pilots of the Thunder Gods were Yang Ying's clones, possessing the telekinetic power of top-tier Quasi-Masters, linking minds with Blade, masters no less capable than he. The three Thunder Gods immediately leveled the Five-Level Plasma Cannons mounted on their arms and blasted toward the mountaintop.

Six pillars of light, each a solid three to four meters in diameter, struck the small mountain, completely shearing off the summit. When the smoke and dust cleared, the three Level Six cannons were nowhere to be seen.

"This is the first salvo from the Thunder God main cannons, taking out three Level Six cannons—that should be quite memorable," Blade said with a slight smile, twisting the control stick, turning his fighter around to continue harassing the Ape fighters.

On the ground.

The three Thunder Gods, having fired that salvo, moved to the edge of the impact crater. They stood at a height, looking down upon the main gate of Fortress Number One at the bottom of the pit. After just a glance, they raised the Five-Level Uranium Cannons on their arms, aimed them downward, and fired.

Six five-level light beams bored directly into the gate, melting through it. After the beams dissipated, they left behind six craters with molten edges, glowing red hot.

Several specialized commando squads, piloting hover-motos, had been trailing the three Thunder Gods, waiting for them to clear a path. Seeing the massive holes in the main gate, they immediately let out whoops and charged through the gaps created by the Thunder Gods, initiating the close-quarters battle to capture the fortress.

As they passed the Thunder Gods, they even turned back to wave thanks.

Suddenly, hundreds of hidden hatches surrounding the main gate snapped open, disgorging a torrent of automatic machine guns that formed several layers of curtain fire sweeping toward the commandos.

The commandos had anticipated this change. The forward hover-motos were equipped with missile launchers and immediately fired missiles toward the hatches.

However, compared to the Thunder Gods, their response was mere child's play.

The massive panels on the shoulders, back, flanks, and thighs of the Thunder Gods simultaneously flipped open, revealing hundreds upon hundreds of missile ports. They unleashed a deluge of missiles, plowing viciously through the area surrounding the main gate under the watchful eyes of countless spectators across the battlefield.

Soil meters deep was churned up; the state of the hatches, whether open or closed, no longer mattered.

Several intact artillery pieces in the distance rotated their muzzles and unleashed their firepower at one of the Thunder Gods. Several shells struck the front armor of the Thunder God, enveloping most of its body in smoke and fire.

But when the smoke cleared, the Thunder God was standing unharmed. Where the shells had struck, there were only a few white marks, as if a layer of surface paint had been scraped off.

The Thunder God remained stationary. The turrets mounted on its shoulders rotated, turning their muzzles toward the distant artillery. Four Level Four Uranium Cannons fired in unison, instantly turning that area into a sea of fire.

Next, the Observer transmitted the geological survey map of Fortress Number One's surroundings, locating all the hidden hatches concealing the Level Six Fortress Cannons. The three Thunder Gods silently separated, intending to eliminate those Level Six Fortress Cannons one by one according to the map.

The trajectory of a Uranium Cannon shot is a straight line, and those Level Six Cannons were designed to face outer space; they lacked the ability to turn and attack the ground.

As for the three Level Six Uranium Cannons encountered earlier, they were an exception—flat-trajectory weapons specifically built to guard the fortress. They were destroyed before they could fire their first shot, blasted into the sky by the Thunder Gods.

The commando squads reached the main entrance and deployed large explosives from their hover-motos, tossing them into the six molten holes. After a few seconds, the ground shuddered, and a thick cloud of smoke and dust billowed out of the six openings.

Then, the commandos opened the trunks of their motos, retrieved their individual rocket packs, strapped them on, and lined up before jumping into the six molten holes.

They were merely the vanguard, entering to create an opening for the follow-up forces.

About ten minutes later, the reserve forces arrived. Infantry soldiers disembarked from their troop carriers, reformed their ranks, took a brief rest, and then followed them into the main gate. However, the six molten holes were clearly insufficient for so many people to enter all at once.

Fortunately, there were a few Psionics in the group. They drew their light sabers and carved out several more entry points on the main gate, increasing the speed at which the main force could enter exponentially.

By this time, the Earth Forces had achieved sufficient air superiority, and a majority of the fortress cannons facing space had been destroyed by the Thunder Gods. The Joint Fleet observing from beyond the planet had not expected the plan to proceed so smoothly. They immediately changed course and entered the airspace originally assigned to Fortress Number One from the intermediate layer.

The fleet of the Ancient Legion did not pursue deeply. It was clear they understood that winning against the superior force of the Earth Army, without the support of ground fire, was impossible—it would only result in needless losses.

There would be other days; as long as they remained near Jupiter, they could fight again.

Inside Fortress Number One, as the number of Earth Forces soldiers grew, the entire fortress gradually fell under occupation. The infantry carried by the medical transport planes Blade had brought played little role; by the time they reached the main gate, the Earth Forces units had already crowded the area.

Seeing that the situation had turned dire, the Ancient Legion fighters immediately turned tail and fled toward Fortress Number Two on the opposite side of the moon. Earth Forces fighters pursued for dozens of kilometers, eliminating several hundred more Ape fighters before turning back.

Blade did not participate in the chase. He landed his fighter a short distance from the main gate. Some soldiers on the ground recognized his craft and immediately cheered toward the sky.

The atmosphere on Callisto was too thin; sound attenuated too quickly, completely failing to reach Blade's ears. However, simply seeing the multitude of hands waving below allowed him to imagine their jubilant cheers.

This time, it was almost single-handedly Blade who had subdued the entire Ape fighter force, creating perfect conditions for the landing force to assault the fortress. Without Blade, the Earth Forces' air power would have faced almost hopeless odds suppressing the Ape fighters under the constant barrage of anti-aircraft fire, especially considering the presence of two Quasi-Masters on the Ape side.

But in retrospect, the ease with which Blade achieved victory was rather coincidental.

He later learned that the Ancient Legion did have a Master-level expert on Callisto, but that Ape Master had been lured away by a Psionic Master for a massive battle near Fortress Number Two, thus missing the engagement at Fortress Number One.

When that battle concluded in a draw, the Ape Master, discovering that Fortress Number One had already fallen, could only grit his teeth and swallow his frustration.

When Blade arrived at the main gate, he could still hear sporadic explosions emanating from inside Fortress Number One, indicating the fight was ongoing. According to the continuous intelligence flowing up from below, the Earth Forces inside the fortress had already secured approximately eighty percent of its interior.