The battle between Yang Ying and Horace left its mark across the entire battlefield of Hammer City, though Yang Ying had already cleaned up before Master Merlin and his entourage arrived. The most important were the corpses of the Blade Emperors, scattered across the few streets where Yang Ying initially fought Horace. Cleaning them up was not difficult for Yang Ying, as the bodies of the Blade Emperors were manufactured on the Floating Continent; they could be summoned back with a flash of golden light, and dismissed just as easily.

Yang Ying arrived on those streets, cast his golden light over the entire area, and dismissed all the corpses, leaving not a single cell behind. He then returned to the lakeside to await the arrival of Master Merlin and his group.

Upon reaching the lake, they saw Yang Ying, unsurprisingly, along with the corpse of Horace. Yang Ying was seated on a nearby rockery, turning the other half of the light staff over in his hands. Seeing them approach, he stepped down.

"Did you do all this?" Master Merlin asked, pointing at Horace’s body, his voice filled with surprise.

Master Pang Qian was not among the Psionic Masters accompanying them. He belonged to the Seventh Fleet and had returned to the asteroid belt by chance to assist in transporting a batch of supplies. He had been conscripted by Master Merlin and, following the battle at Paradise City, had already returned to the Jupiter frontline a few days prior.

Yang Ying recalled his agreement with Ulysses and nodded. "Yes." He had rested for some time, and his psychic energy had recovered considerably, so he let a little of it show.

An aura of lightning spread outwards, and the ground began to tremble, instantly cracking apart. Several Psionic Masters nearby felt as if the very air was saturated with electrical energy, causing a tingling numbness in their skin.

"Peak Master!"

"It’s actually a Peak Master!"

"Strange. I saw Commander Yang Ying in Paradise City just a few days ago, and he was only at the Quasi-Master level then. How did he suddenly..."

Yang Ying retracted his aura instantly, leaving the observers feeling as though it had been an illusion. However, the Psionic Masters were not the type to dismiss something merely because it defied normal logic; they simply accepted it as an immediate, overwhelming display.

The masters simultaneously thought: How did he achieve this? They looked at Yang Ying, then back at Horace’s corpse on the ground. Since they were not familiar with Yang Ying, they waited for Master Merlin to speak.

Master Merlin savored the aura Yang Ying had emitted and agreed. "That was indeed the standard of a Peak Master. Commander Yang Ying, you have now become the sixth Peak Master among humans. Coupled with the death of the Ape race's Peak Master Horace, this truly calls for celebration."

The nearby Psionic Masters echoed their agreement. In the solar system, the Human and Ape races together boasted ten Peak Masters. In the span of ten days, the Ape side had lost Agon and Horace successively, while humanity had gained another in Yang Ying. On the Peak Master level, the balance had abruptly shifted from five-to-five to six-to-three—from parity to a two-to-one advantage. This was tremendous news rarely seen in recent years.

Master Merlin then inquired about the process of Horace’s assault. Yang Ying recounted the events starting from the attack on Rubelin up to the ambush in Hammer City. However, regarding his promotion from Quasi-Master to Peak Master over ten days, and the complete account of ambushing and killing Horace, Yang Ying remained guarded, offering no full explanation.

Yang Ying merely stated, "The method of my ascension to Peak Master is of no use to anyone else; others simply cannot walk the same path I did. Revealing it would only confuse people. As for the process of killing Horace, one can grasp the general idea by looking around. I endured a prolonged and extremely arduous battle, finding a killing opportunity under highly accidental circumstances—an opportunity that is unlikely to ever reappear."

In this statement, Yang Ying spoke no falsehoods. His psychic power was backed by millions of Zerg—a resource other masters lacked. During the fight against Horace, he was consistently at a disadvantage; describing it as a hard-fought struggle was not an overstatement. Furthermore, Ulysses’s appearance and intervention were accidental, built upon a series of coincidences, connected only through a prophecy from decades ago. Now that the Prophetess Catherine had been dead for decades, where could another person in a similar predicament to Ulysses be found? Certainly not in the solar system!

Yang Ying's status was now different. As a Peak Master, even if he remained silent, the Psionic Temple would not press him for details.

Master Merlin tapped his forehead with the knuckle of his index finger, clearly deep in thought. Yang Ying’s response had made his position perfectly clear. Master Merlin knew that further questioning would yield nothing, so he changed the subject. "Let’s conclude the investigation of the immediate situation here. When we arrived, we noticed several pop-up air raid shelters around Hammer City. Presumably, the city's residents are still drifting in space. Now we need to figure out how to manage the living situation for those residents for the next few days. This city won't be habitable until it undergoes a full overhaul."

A great fire had incinerated almost everything burnable in the city. Thousands of structures had collapsed, coupled with shattered roads and widespread devastation, making Hammer City look like a ruin, and yet...

Fortunately, all space cities had established procedures for sudden catastrophic events, and Hammer City was no exception. Yang Ying’s Terran Mercenary Corps, as the protectors of Hammer City, were very familiar with these procedures.

"I have already issued the orders. Specialized personnel will be here shortly to handle the matter," Yang Ying said.

"That is good," Master Merlin nodded. He glanced at the half light staff in Yang Ying’s hand, paused, and asked, "Commander Yang Ying, that is Horace's light staff, isn't it?"

"Yes," Yang Ying nodded, and as he spoke, he activated the staff, emitting a zira sound as a golden light blade sprang forth.

"Indeed," Master Merlin chuckled. "May I ask, where is the other half of the light staff?"

"The other half has another use," Yang Ying replied, naturally omitting that he had given it to Ulysses.

"Are you planning to keep it for yourself?" Master Merlin asked with a smile, then suddenly shook his head. "No, wait. Judging by the destruction in this city, your battle with Horace involved thousands of exchanges. A standard silver light sword couldn't last that long. You must have a weapon here comparable to Horace’s."

"Master Merlin’s perception is indeed sharp," Yang Ying complimented, validating the master’s deduction. Since he had been seen through, there was no harm in admitting it frankly, though he had already returned the two golden light swords he originally used to the Floating Continent, so he wouldn't display them now.

"I heard that the Gamma-Bex Laboratory on the Moon recently forged a batch of energy focusing crystals. Although there were only one hundred in total, one of them coincidentally turned out to be a million-to-one golden crystal. Have you heard anything about that, Commander Yang Ying?"

Upon hearing that Yang Ying possessed a weapon comparable to Horace’s, Master Merlin’s mind raced with possibilities. The origin of the weapon was a very serious matter, but instead of asking directly, he used an example as a subtle probe.

Yang Ying was no longer the man he used to be; a Peak Master commanded corresponding respect even across the entire galaxy.

"No, I’m not familiar with the Gamma Laboratory. My weapon is self-produced by the company," Yang Ying replied simply.

Master Merlin understood Yang Ying did not wish to elaborate further. Hearing that the Terran Corporation possessed the capability to forge light swords was satisfactory enough. He coughed lightly. "If Commander Yang Ying has the time, perhaps we could discuss something thoroughly. I wonder if you would be willing to trade this golden crystal that originally belonged to Horace?"

"That can certainly be negotiated," Yang Ying said. He had no need for Horace’s golden crystal and had long intended to trade it for something he required. Master Merlin's proposal suited him perfectly.

After some discussion, the two sides quickly finalized the transaction. Yang Ying exchanged the golden crystal for fifteen space cities. Although Yang Ying might have preferred something else, when he asked about the Psionic Temple codices he most desired, Master Merlin gave the same old reply: trading responsibility for strength. Among things other than knowledge, space cities were the best substitute.

Fortunately, Yang Ying was fairly content with the number fifteen. The frequency of silver crystals to golden crystals was roughly ten to one, but while a silver crystal was worth one space city, a golden crystal was worth fifteen. This single transaction immediately surpassed the total number of space cities he currently possessed. Yang Ying wasn't worried about the population issue; as long as the Floating Continent continued to develop, it could always be filled.

Soon after, the rescue teams arrived outside the city and collected the air raid shelters. These shelters were generally rectangular, with non-sharp edges, varying in size to accommodate fifty to sixty people, while the largest could hold nearly a thousand. With over 400,000 residents in Hammer City, there must have been over a thousand shelters of various sizes.

After being recovered, these shelters were diverted to other space cities for temporary residence until Hammer City was fully renovated, at which point the residents would be returned to their homes.

Hammer City was naturally handed over to the Ge Xing and Earth United Industry Group—henceforth abbreviated as: Ge Di Lian Gong—for complete renovation. The battle between Yang Ying and Horace had not only damaged surface structures but also destroyed quite a few mechanical devices used for daily operations inside the space city due to the aftershocks of their massive fight.

Subsequently, the Terran Corporation bore a small portion of the costs for personnel resettlement and the repair of Hammer City, while the insurance company covered the majority. It was worth noting that the insurance company responsible for space city insurance was also an enterprise under Ge Di Lian Gong. In essence, almost all the losses resulting from the Hammer City battle were paid for by Ge Di Lian Gong.

Ge Di Lian Gong’s action was clearly a gesture of goodwill. More than that, according to later reports from the Ghost Agent Corps, the news of Horace’s death at Yang Ying’s hands and Yang Ying’s promotion to Peak Master spread, temporarily quelled many undercurrents targeting the Terran faction. Major powers were digesting this news, re-evaluating the strength, influence, and potential of the Terran faction. As for what countermeasures they would adopt after completing their analysis, the Ghost Agent Corps was continuing to track and investigate.