Fuya Ming was terrified, her body moving beyond her control. The sudden transmission jolted her into sudden clarity: "Damn it, this guy isn't just a mercenary; he's an Adept! And an incredibly powerful one at that!" A fierce surge of joy flooded her heart, and Fuya Ming, with ‘unrivaled valor,’ unleashed five consecutive sword strikes, shoving a dozen burly soldiers of the Dokke Federation back dozens of steps. She seized the moment, shouting, "Warriors of Yafik, counter-attack!"

"Long live the glorious Dokke Federation! Hail! Hail! Hail!" Those Dokke Federation soldiers, repelled by the bronze swords, charged toward the Yafik soldiers on the sidelines with 'roars and howls.' With dozens of echoing impacts, another large section of the venue was littered with blood and scattered limbs.

With a loud clang, Fuya Ming, who had been wildly swinging her blade, was suddenly thrown backward by an immense force. Unbeknownst to her, Gu Xiechen had already manipulated her right up to the alloy case containing the Yafik Planetary Defense System controls, which lay discarded on the ground. The Kingdom Elder who had been carrying the case moments before had been pulverized into a bloody pulp, but twelve expressionless attendants, clad in black robes, now formed a defensive ring around the alloy box. One of them held a blue lightsaber—it was this guard who had repelled Fuya Ming with a single stroke.

"Shadow Guards!" Fuya Ming exclaimed, startled. "I command you to surrender the console to me!"

The Shadow Guard holding the lightsaber snarled menacingly, "It belongs only to those recognized by the Law!"

Sensing a critical turn of events, Gu Xiechen rapidly strode to Fuya Ming’s side, pointing at the Shadow Guard and shouting, "Insolent!"

"No!" Fuya Ming grabbed Gu Xiechen's hand, her voice urgent. "The Shadow Guards are sworn to protect the Yafik Planetary Defense System. They are the Kingdom's strongest Adepts, and they never interfere in the Kingdom's power struggles. Their sole mission is to guard this console! Do not confront them—"

She paused, a trace of alarm mixed with profound respect in her tone. "They... are extremely powerful!" The implication was clear: Gu Xiechen was no match for them.

Gu Xiechen swept a cold gaze over the Shadow Guards and let out a soft scoff. Merely twelve late-stage Mars-level psychics. A wicked, confident smile touched his lips as he stepped forward. A chilling aura, carrying the desolate, ancient essence of primordial wilderness, crashed down upon the Shadow Guards.

The Great Desolation Scripture: Soul Chapter: Soul Calamity Technique. This was a comparatively rudimentary method for applying soul power found within the Great Desolation Scripture. Any cultivator possessing Golden Core strength could utilize it—a savage technique relying purely on one's overwhelming soul power to clash head-on with the enemy. Gu Xiechen’s soul origin was ridiculously powerful; his soul energy surpassed that of these Shadow Guards by a factor of hundreds, if not thousands. The moment the Soul Calamity Technique erupted, it was as if dozens of Mount Tais had simultaneously descended. The twelve Shadow Guards cried out in agony, feeling an unbearable piercing pain in their skulls. Their vision went black, and they were lost, floating between heaven and earth.

Witnessing Gu Xiechen merely take one step forward, sending the twelve Shadow Guards reeling back a hundred meters, blood streaming from all seven orifices, Fuya Ming’s beautiful phoenix eyes snapped wide to their absolute limit. A strange light flickered in her dark pupils as she stared intently at Gu Xiechen’s back—ethereal and detached like a pine on a cliff face, yet possessing the heavy, ancient grandeur of a primordial mountain peak. She drew a deep breath.

Ethereal grace and primal ruggedness—two completely disparate auras—merged perfectly in Gu Xiechen’s form, lending him an extraordinarily captivating magnetism.

"Too strong!" Fuya Ming's heart hammered violently. These Shadow Guards were the ultimate bastion of the Yafik Kingdom, first-rate powerhouses even in this sector of the stars! Twelve of them, working in concert, couldn't withstand the casual strike unleashed by Gu Xiechen. Just how powerful had Gu Xiechen become?

Bending down, Gu Xiechen retrieved the small alloy box. He turned to Fuya Ming with a gentle, refined smile and handed the box controlling the Kingdom's strongest defense mechanism back to her. "Esteemed Princess, congratulations. You are now the sole legitimate heir to the Kingdom, and you command its greatest power!"

Fuya Ming smiled. This smile was like a mountain forest, previously green and lush, suddenly bursting into a dizzying array of multicolored blossoms. With a slight eagerness, she accepted the alloy box and nodded toward Gu Xiechen. "Mr. Gu, I never imagined your strength reached such a height!"

In the span of a single sentence, Fuya Ming had produced a thumb-sized, full-spectrum chip and swiftly inserted it into a tiny crevice near the handle of the box.

Amidst faint mechanical whirring, the main body of the alloy box suddenly dissolved. A golden liquid flowed out, rapidly coating Fuya Ming's left hand. In the blink of an eye, her entire left arm, from finger to shoulder, was encased in an exquisitely crafted pale-gold gauntlet. Tiny, sporadic electronic lights flashed across its surface, enhancing its magnificent mystery.

Gu Xiechen watched Fuya Ming's left arm in astonishment. He had expected the console to be of a traditional design, but never imagined the activated control unit would transform into such an artistic piece of armor. He could sense the immense power latent within the gauntlet; the subtle energy fluctuations suggested that the power stored within this arm guard was comparable to the entire output of the main engine assembly of a Primordial-class battleship.

With such vast energy condensed into this small gauntlet, Gu Xiechen felt a prickling sensation on his scalp.

Fuya Ming took a deep breath. The feeling she now projected was entirely different from moments before.

Now, she exuded an aura of majesty, as if everything was precisely under her control.

"Congratulations, Your Highness!" Gu Xiechen rubbed his palms together vigorously, laughing. "We have finally reclaimed control of the Kingdom!"

Fuya Ming smiled faintly and nodded. "I truly didn't expect it to go so smoothly. I thought obtaining it from the Shadow Guards would take considerable effort!" Gazing passionately at the continuously flashing, strange light of the gauntlet, Fuya Ming clenched her fist tightly, as if holding the entirety of the Yafik Kingdom in her palm.

Gu Xiechen inwardly mused about Fuya Ming. Yes, he hadn't expected it to be so smooth. This girl was no soft-hearted soul either; it seemed her cunning matched his own, perhaps even surpassing his in ruthlessness. Twelve late-stage Mars-level psychics! If ordinary mercenaries had carelessly provoked them, they’d have faced total annihilation.

Clasping his hands behind his back, Gu Xiechen smiled. "Now, it's time to end this nuisance. Those who opposed you are gone, their wings mostly clipped. We should probably keep a few of those envoys!"

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