The pillar of miasma dissipated! Afterward, a giant pit spanning a kilometer in diameter scarred the ground, affecting numerous Zerg forces, though their casualties were negligible compared to the overall toll.

The battlefield was carpeted thick with insectile corpses. Zerg units of all shapes and sizes littered the expanse, their blood flowing into rivers that snaked from high ground to low, pooling in some areas into crimson puddles.

The sky was choked by the nuclear orbital bombardment, which had driven countless particles of dust high into the upper atmosphere, shrouding the starlit expanse in a suffocating, ashen haze.

“Next up is cleaning up the battlefield,” Yang Ying murmured to himself. Intelligence relayed from observers back on Earth indicated that Master Tu Xin had departed half a day ago, using the Meteor Halo System to speed toward this location. He was due to arrive near Pluto in another two days. While Yang Ying couldn't be certain if Tu Xin would alter his course upon learning of Hadeck’s demise, Yang Ying neither wished nor needed to speculate; two days was ample time to scour the battlefield clean.

Yang Ying issued his command to the Swarm: “Locate every bunker, and annihilate the remaining Ape-men on Pluto and Charon. Go.”

The Overlords descending from the high altitude served as transport vessels. The surviving ground units—Zerglings, Hydralisks, Lurkers, Scorpions, and Mammoths—clambered aboard them and dispersed in all directions.

The Mutalisks, Guardians, Devourers, Kamikaze Drones, and Queen Bees, all inherently aerial units, clustered around the Overlords, serving as their close-quarters bodyguards.

Pluto still harbored numerous bunkers buried deep beneath the surface, concealing Ape-men who had survived the orbital strikes. Since Yang Ying had resorted to such drastic measures as orbital bombardment and had already eliminated their legion commander, he was determined to see the operation through to the bitter end: total extermination of the Ape-men. Once the survivors learned the full truth of the matter, their hatred toward him would be endless. With Hadeck dead, the Ape-men’s path toward escaping biological weaponry was terminated; if Yang Ying didn't kill them, the Earth forces trailing closely behind certainly would.

The half-century war between humanity and the Ape-men was finally culminating in the complete eradication of one race.

The Zerg Overlords’ detection capabilities were hardly inferior to those of the Observers. Bunker after bunker hidden underground was pinpointed. Aerial Guardians and Devourers, massive as small warships, struck the bunker entrances with Spore Pods and corrosive acid, blasting or eating through the doors to allow the ground forces entry.

Some bunkers were equipped with rocket boosters, designed for an emergency launch into deep space, but the moment they ignited, they were intercepted by Mutalisks and torn into shrapnel.

A few high-ranking Ape-men wielded plasma blades capable of inflicting some damage upon the Swarm, but even after six million perished, the Swarm remained an overwhelming, tide-like force, enjoying a superior numerical advantage.

The average survival time for any high-ranking Ape-man charging out was perhaps one minute. They might manage to cut down a few Zerglings or Hydralisks, only to be impaled by needle-like spikes from Lurkers, or vaporized by the biological ordnance spat by Mutalisks. Alternatively, they might succumb to the debilitating poison sprayed by Scorpions before being torn to shreds by the razor-like forelimbs of Zerglings.

Vast numbers of Overlords patrolled the skies, systematically searching for survivors. They often flew in horizontal lines, conducting a methodical, carpet-style sweep, scrutinizing every location where an Ape-man might possibly remain hidden until they were certain no survivors remained.

During this time, Yang Ying meticulously absorbed the fallen Zerg corpses into the Floating Continent. They could not be left behind as evidence, and moreover, these creatures were organic polymer composites and high-grade life forms—excellent biological resources. Their constituent elements could be broken down and recycled, providing sustenance for the next generation’s growth and reproduction; this was an efficient method of disposal. The Zerg forces themselves could internally process these corpses.

Since anything created aboard the Floating Continent could be instantly whisked away back to it with a flash of golden light, Yang Ying’s task of clearing the corpses was swift and simple.

Even the six Ultralisks that had been crushed into paste beneath Hadeck’s bulk at the base of the mountain were recalled by Yang Ying’s golden flash, though they had long since been reduced to unidentifiable sludge.

After nearly another half-day, the sweep of Pluto concluded. The Zerg ground forces boarded the Overlords, and together with the air units, they advanced in a majestic column into space, heading toward Charon.

The Zerg physiology was highly evolved; they could move freely even in the vacuum of space, requiring no respiration. Neither the vacuum, radiation, nor the harmful cosmic rays posed any threat to them.

Upon reaching Charon, the Swarm repeated their previous actions. Several bunkers on this moon had already launched into space, so the Swarm detached a large contingent of Mutalisks to pursue and annihilate them.

The battlefield cleanup continued into the next day before all traces of Zerg activity on both celestial bodies were completely erased. All surviving Ape-men were likewise exterminated, and they even cleared out several raw material warehouses.

Although some of the materials were contaminated with radiation, the technology aboard the Floating Continent made decontamination a simple matter.

This cache of materials had been accumulated over a long period by the Ancient Legion, intended for their imminent invasion of the Inner Solar System. The quantity far surpassed the total amount of various raw materials Yang Ying had acquired under the guise of the Teran Corporation throughout the Terran Era—by more than ten times!

This singular haul alone made Yang Ying feel the expedition was worthwhile, purely in material terms. Spiritually, witnessing Hadeck’s fierce will and engaging him in a battle fought with every conceivable means, culminating in his destruction, provided Yang Ying with immense satisfaction—it was utterly exhilarating. Such an intense level of combat had likely never occurred in Earth’s recorded history.

With both planets thoroughly sanitized, and the atmosphere still heavily irradiated, rendering them useless for the immediate future, Yang Ying decided to depart Pluto. He recalled all Zerg forces back to the Floating Continent and hailed the base for pickup.

Soon after, the Behemoth materialized outside Pluto once more via a spatial jump. Yang Ying was now alone; he boarded the Behemoth unceremoniously and began his return journey.

Half a day later, a golden meteor streaked rapidly from the distance toward Pluto. The light suddenly extinguished, revealing Master Tu Xin’s personal craft.

Master Tu Xin peered out past the cockpit. He saw that Pluto and Charon were obscured by an impenetrable pall of nuclear dust. He mused internally, “Pluto has been reduced to this. This looks like the aftermath of massive nuclear bombardment, so uniform and dense—it must have been orbital strikes. By this calculation, the Teran Mercenary Group must have already paralyzed Pluto’s defense system before launching their main assault? It seems the Ape-men here are likely doomed.”

Master Tu Xin was an expert in warfare; with a mere glance, he could analyze the general flow of the battle. Even so, his tone was laced with malicious glee, as if voicing an unsaid sentiment: “So, the Ape-men have finally met their end!”

He then piloted his craft deeper into Pluto, witnessing firsthand the scarred, ravaged surface, spotting numerous fallen Ape-men corpses scattered about. However, upon closer inspection, the traces of combat had been meticulously wiped away.

“They didn’t want anyone knowing what methods were used? Besides the nukes, the Teran Mercenary Group must have employed some unknown means. I wonder how they managed to kill Hadeck?”

Master Tu Xin circled the planet, traversing half its circumference, until he found the spot where the blue pillar of light had appeared—the kilometer-wide crater. Though two days had passed, the area surrounding the pit was still saturated with residual energy, marking the highest energy concentration on the entire planet.

Master Tu Xin, possessing profound mental powers, scarcely noticed the minor radiation. Sensing the anomaly, he halted his craft next to the massive pit, opened the hatch, and leaped out.

He walked around the interior of the crater for a while, thinking, “The energy here is abnormally dense; this is almost certainly the location where Hadeck’s form and spirit were utterly destroyed.” He sensed the environment more carefully, nodded, and concluded, “Hadeck is indeed gone. Such a powerful and pure energy surge—did the Teran Mercenary Group truly wield this?”

After lingering in the pit for a moment, he re-boarded his craft, made two more circuits above Pluto, and then turned back toward the Inner Solar System.

The Behemoth passed through hyperspace and emerged in the Asteroid Belt. Following a concealed route, it navigated deep into the meteor fields before looping back to the secret base.

Since Yang Ying had switched to a clone body before the battle with Hadeck to maximize his fighting capacity, his first priority upon return was switching back. He approached the medical bay where his original body lay, and his primary consciousness quietly returned to its host.

Yang Ying’s original body opened the medical pod. With a flash of golden light, he recalled the clone body back to the Floating Continent.

Katarina approached, smiling. “Sir, welcome back. I’ve already heard tales of your heroism on Pluto. You even defeated Hadeck! The Ancient Legion is nearing total collapse. There seems to be no person or faction left in the Solar System capable of opposing you now, Sir.”

Yang Ying stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, inhaling the fragrance of her hair. He chuckled, “You must be joking. Defeating a venerable enemy like Hadeck using mere Swarm tactics hardly qualifies as heroism.”

“If Sir says it is, then it is. If Sir says it is not, then it is not.” Katarina leaned into his embrace, enjoying the moment. After a while, she continued, “The results of the Uranus campaign just came in, eight hours ago. Li Yose defeated Onsalier soundly.”

“Mmm, that was expected,” Yang Ying stated calmly.

“There’s even bigger news, Sir. The Ancient Legion has been virtually wiped out, and the Earth forces suffered heavy casualties. Onsalier and Master Merlin engaged in a deathmatch; Onsalier fell, and Master Merlin was gravely wounded,” Katarina added.

“Oh?” Yang Ying lifted his head slightly, then settled back down. “That is both outside my predictions and yet entirely logical. After Hadeck’s death, the Ancient Legion lost its backbone. The fall of their Pluto stronghold meant the loss of their rear base and supply lines. Without mastering spatial jump technology, they couldn’t even retreat. Trapped between relentless pursuit and a dead end, coupled with the collapse of their spiritual pillar, their chance of survival was completely extinguished. To die spectacularly in battle was perhaps the final fate the Ancient Legion deserved.”