The Unified Military Command of the Terran Federation, the Dark Church, and the Miming Sect hereby issues a joint declaration! In three days, a comprehensive live-fire exercise will commence in the Thirteen Consecutive Star System. The participating forces will comprise the entirety of the Terran Federation Space Fleet, the entire Dark Church Space Fleet, and the entire Light Church Space Fleet. The exercise zone is designated as the Thirteen Consecutive Star System. During the exercise, any civilian or military vessel approaching the zone will be destroyed without warning by the exercise command headquarters. The exercise is anticipated to last approximately one month, and its contents, aside from large-scale space fleet combat, remain undetermined.

"Undetermined" means that any scenario is possible; perhaps even a landing exercise involving ground forces numbering in the tens of millions? Naturally, such a landing exercise would require a confirmed landing target, and no one can guarantee that the objective of the landing exercise won't turn out to be a planet controlled by the Romanians.

“Damn it all!” For these two reasons, Nanket, King of the First Romanian Kingdom, and Hesokin, King of the Second Romanian Kingdom, simultaneously cursed the ancestors of a certain person. This person, of course, was Comrade Gu Xiechen, who concurrently served as the Supreme Commander of the Tripartite Joint Exercise. Nanket and Hesokin felt they had completely grasped Gu Xiechen’s mindset: because Earth was secretly annihilated by an inexplicable enemy, Gu Xiechen was making a desperate gamble to salvage some dignity and vent some spleen, and the target was aimed squarely at the Romanians.

Nanket and Hesokin felt grievously wronged. The destruction of Earth was absolutely unrelated to them. Even if Gu Xiechen was angry, he shouldn't take it out on them. Didn't the Terrans often say, "Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its owner"? The annihilation of Earth was indeed a tragedy, but it had nothing to do with the Romanians.

Romanian probe ships had already returned immense volumes of data and analysis reports from the site of old Earth. The data indicated that the Romanians currently possessed the capability to destroy a planet, but lacked the ability to create a black hole precisely at the planet's original location. Even the Romanians couldn't comprehend why the orbital paths of the major planets in the Solar System remained unaffected after Earth transformed into such a colossal black hole; this technology surpassed the limits of the technology left behind by their ancestors.

Therefore, the Romanians felt suffocated. This incident could not have been their doing. Gu Xiechen declaring the entire Thirteen Consecutive Star System an exercise ground—what did that even mean? Did it mean that while he was exercising, Romanian warships couldn't even leave their atmosphere? Otherwise, they’d be destroyed without warning? That was too much!

The First and Second Romanian Kingdoms were currently engaged in a bitter verbal dispute over the "Relocation" of over a billion Romanians and a large number of Spirit Clan members. Envoys from both nations flew back and forth between the royal palaces of the two kingdoms as if their behinds were on fire. Formal state documents, one after another, were delivered to the kings of both nations; the pile of shredded documents, torn apart in front of their assembled ministers, already weighed nearly a ton. This verbal war was far from over. The Romanians truly did not wish to engage in conflict with the Terrans at this critical juncture; they were a mess internally.

But Gu Xiechen gave them no time to react. He claimed the exercise would begin in three days, but in reality, the moment the notice was delivered to the Romanians, the tripartite fleets had already departed, converging in the space around the six planets controlled by the Romanians within the Thirteen Consecutive Star System.

In a mere twelve hours, the fleet gathered near the six planets controlled by the two Romanian kingdoms reached a staggering number. The Dark Church mobilized seven hundred and fifty Silver Wolf-class Battleships, over four thousand five hundred assorted support vessels, and ten Super Motherships leased from the Terran Federation. The Light Church dispatched eight hundred and ninety Six-Winged Angel-class Battleships, over five thousand three hundred assorted support vessels, and also ten leased Super Motherships.

However, the fleet deployed by the Terran Federation struck terror into the hearts of the Romanians. It included three hundred and forty Super Motherships produced by Xiao Xiao and refitted by Ducat, along with thirteen thousand five hundred Romanian Super Warships, each ten thousand meters long. Furthermore, there were over thirty-nine thousand South Heaven Gate-class and North Heaven Gate-class Battleships produced by the Terran Federation. Including support vessels, the total number of warships exceeded one hundred thousand.

All thirty-nine thousand-plus South Heaven Gate-class and North Heaven Gate-class Battleships were rushed into production using the Super Mothership production lines Gu Xiechen had brought back. Utilizing production lines capable of manufacturing Super Motherships three hundred kilometers long to churn out mere three-thousand-meter battleships was akin to using an aircraft carrier production line to manufacture disposable lighters—it presented virtually no difficulty. Coupled with the inexhaustible resources Gu Xiechen commanded, this resulted in the terrifying scale of over thirty-nine thousand battleships. The colossal fleet, remotely controlled by Xiao Xiao and Ducat via their super-brains, gathered like a dark cloud over the space controlled by the Romanian Kingdoms, with the bows of every warship pointed directly at the six Romanian-controlled planets, set in a posture ready to bombard at any moment.

The appearance of this massive "exercise contingent" finally unsettled the squabbling Romanians. The two Romanian Kingdoms immediately formed a joint fleet, mobilizing all of their Super Motherships as well. Unfortunately, their Super Motherships had not undergone modernization refits, and the damage sustained during the last solar storm had yet to be fully repaired. Although they could muster over a hundred Super Motherships combined, their actual combat effectiveness was highly questionable.

Aside from these Super Motherships, the conventional fleet the Romanians could muster totaled only over seven thousand vessels, barely enough to contend with the fleets of the two Church nations, but utterly incapable of matching the Terran Federation’s monstrous armada. Thirty-nine thousand-plus battleships—this immense number was enough to terrify the fainthearted Romanians.

A mechanical platform, one hundred meters long and wide, equipped with an independent life support system, slowly floated out several hundred kilometers from the bow section of a Super Mothership.

Gu Xiechen sat alone on the platform, facing a battlefield command terminal. His expression was calm as he watched the Romanian fleet not far away. His fingers lightly tapped the terminal, issuing command after command. "The tripartite fleet has been reorganized into twelve massive mixed fleets, glaring menacingly just under a hundred thousand kilometers from the Romanian fleet. Countless small space fighters screamed forth from the Super Motherships, weaving provocatively close to the Romanian fleet, skimming across the surface of their warships.

After a long standoff, two small warships shot out from the Romanian fleet like lightning, quickly closing in on the mechanical platform where Gu Xiechen was situated.

Borbert, Borujin, and Yakjin emerged from the two warships and leaped before Gu Xiechen.

The three stared intently at Gu Xiechen. After a long silence, Borbert finally roared fiercely, "What are you trying to do? A decisive battle?"

Gu Xiechen, sitting upright with his hands resting on his knees, offered a gentle, slight smile. "Why not? If it’s a decisive battle, then so be it. There's nothing left to say between the Terrans and the Romanians. With the Terran Mother Planet destroyed, everyone is holding onto their anger. A decisive battle would be a good way to divert our citizens' attention, wouldn't it?"

"Madman!" Borujin roared. "Absolutely insane! We didn't destroy Earth, so why are you picking a fight with us?"

Gu Xiechen smiled at Borujin and said softly, "It's true you didn't do it, but if I don't cause trouble for you now, I fear you might cause trouble for us later!"

Borbert stated bluntly, "Name your terms. Say it. We're unlucky to be targeted by you at this time."

"Good! Wise!" Gu Xiechen raised a thumb in approval. "My terms are simple: fight my four Dark Four Heavenly Kings, and regardless of the outcome, I'll leave immediately."

Borujin and Yakjin's expressions changed drastically, and they shouted fiercely, "Impossible."

Borbert’s eyes flickered as he looked at Gu Xiechen. After a moment of contemplation, he slowly nodded, "Agreed!"

Borujin and Yakjin exploded in rage, screaming at Borbert, "What are you doing?"

Gu Xiechen slammed his palm down on the command terminal. The protective armor on all gun emplacements of the thirty Terran Federation Super Motherships behind him instantly snapped open. In the blink of an eye, those thirty motherships were enveloped in a dazzling white light. The combined muzzle flashes of hundreds of thousands of high-energy cannons were enough to blind a person. The dark void of space seemed illuminated, and the magnificent sight of thirty Super Motherships firing simultaneously stunned Borbert and the others.

The entire line of battleships belonging to the Second Romanian Kingdom in front disintegrated under the barrage. Over three thousand battleships burst into flames simultaneously, and not a single escape pod managed to flee. Millions of Romanians and Spirit Clan members instantly turned to ash, and the space previously packed with warships became eerily empty, not even a sizable fragment remaining.

The motherships' cannon fire was so overwhelming that after destroying the three thousand-plus battleships, a large portion of the fire pierced through the formation and angled toward a natural satellite of a planet controlled by the Second Romanian Kingdom in the distance. The satellite, about a thousand kilometers in diameter, was suddenly engulfed in firelight and dust. A layer over three hundred meters thick was violently stripped from its surface, and even its orbit was slightly affected, causing it to drift about two kilometers further out into space.

Cold sweat immediately broke out on Borbert’s forehead. Borujin and Yakjin simultaneously donned the energy armors they had inherited.

"In the name of royal authority!" Borujin aimed his power technique toward Gu Xiechen.

"Royal authority my ass!" Penghua flashed into existence from the void like a phantom. A single flap of his massive, fleshy wings allowed his body to instantaneously shift hundreds of meters through space. As his huge wings beat, Penghua flickered in and out of existence, brandishing the Netherworld Fan. Sinister evil energy continuously spewed from the fan surface, forming visible, pitch-black currents that coiled around the mechanical platform. Countless twisted faces appeared within the black mist, their sharp, ghostly screams causing Borujin’s body to tense up rigidly.

Penghua grinned menacingly at Borujin, "If you dare make a move, I guarantee the three of you will die faster than anyone else!"

Borujin gritted his teeth, slowly pointing his staff toward Gu Xiechen inch by inch.

Gu Xiechen looked at the ashen-faced Borujin and sighed softly, "Mirror Flower, Water Moon—all an illusion." With a crisp sound, Gu Xiechen's figure shattered. Simultaneously, another Gu Xiechen materialized behind Borujin. This was a unique divine ability formed by Gu Xiechen merging Starry Universe Great Teleportation with the Mirror Flower, Water Moon Evasion Technique from the Supreme Yin Scripture. Not only was it incredibly fast, but it was also the best at generating illusions to confound the mind. Unless one possessed a similar innate divine sense, it was impossible to pinpoint Gu Xiechen’s true body.

"Don't move!" Gu Xiechen held the True Magnetic Two Elements Splitting Light Sword in his hand. The black and white blade, faintly visible to the naked eye, lightly brushed against Borujin’s Adam's apple. "Hanyuu, Chi Long Wang, Night Walker, and Mad Angel—fight us. Regardless of the result, our exercise is over. Otherwise, I won't mind letting this exercise drag on for three or five years. My officers and men can use your planets for live-fire target practice when they’re bored; that would be quite enjoyable too."

A large sheet of cold sweat sprayed from Borujin's head. He swallowed hard, his voice strained, "If you dare harm me, the Romanians will fight you to the death."

Borbert called out urgently, "Lord Gu Xiechen, don't do anything foolish. The Terran Federation's space fleet may indeed possess the strength to defeat us now, but you cannot stop us from deploying our warriors onto your planets using ships. We brought back tens of billions of Servant Race warriors from the Outer Regions; we possess the power to destroy your civilization as well."

Taking a deep breath, Borbert slowly placed a hand on Gu Xiechen’s bulging, blue-veined arm. "Put down the sword, and I guarantee that Lord Mad Angel will participate in the fight with you. Put down the sword, you can destroy us, but we can also destroy those under your command—mutual destruction is not a good option, don't you agree?"

Penghua hissed wickedly, "Then hurry up and call your people out, or else—"

Yakjin gripped the massive book before him and threatened, "Be careful. When we came to meet you, ten Super Motherships carrying our Servant Race warriors were already en route to Heaven Star and other planets under your control. We have the power to annihilate you along with us; this is absolutely not a bluff."

Gu Xiechen nodded, slowly retracting the True Magnetic Two Elements Splitting Light Sword. He smiled, "Then, we can prepare to begin."

Borbert, Borujin, and Yakjin exchanged complex glances with Gu Xiechen before simultaneously turning and flying back to their respective warships.

After about fifteen minutes, a message transmitted from the Romanian fleet: The Dark Four Heavenly Kings of the Romanians strongly demanded the Terran Federation fleet retreat. They were only willing to fight Gu Xiechen and the others, but absolutely refused to endure a single full-power volley from the Terran Federation Motherships. Flesh and blood could not withstand such a powerful simultaneous discharge of high-energy cannons; it was fatal.

Gu Xiechen did not hesitate and ordered the tripartite joint fleet to withdraw, leaving behind only a single Vast Era-class warship, six thousand meters in length, as backup.

Several Romanian warships trailed closely behind the tripartite joint fleet until these fleets retreated to a sufficient safe distance. Only then did the Romanian warships transmit a signal indicating that everything was normal.

Four dark shadows detached themselves from the Romanian fleet and sped toward the command platform.

Chi Long Wang flew toward them, expressionless, chanting Buddhist mantras while holding a string of enormous prayer beads.

Mad Angel followed behind Chi Long Wang, his six light-wings spread wide, his eyes flickering.

Night Walker remained enveloped in a thick, dark flame, rocketing toward them recklessly like a small sun.

Hanyuu, however, approached slowly, walking step by step through the air. Although his movement seemed slow, his speed surpassed everyone else’s. He was the first to stand before Gu Xiechen. Furthermore, his first words caused the hearts of both Gu Xiechen and Penghua to sink heavily: "What conspiracy are you planning? Are you rushing to eliminate the elite forces of us Romanians? Did the strong practitioners of your Yayuandao Alliance suffer too great a loss when Earth was destroyed? Is that why you little ones are desperately fighting us?"

Gu Xiechen remained silent, gripping his Five Waters Dragon Beard Fan tightly, staring coldly at Hanyuu.

Hanyuu sighed. He looked around and frowned, "It seems today is filled with misfortune. However, I am very curious: how do you intend to kill me?"

Chi Long Wang, Mad Angel, and Night Walker also arrived beside Hanyuu, the four standing in a line before Gu Xiechen.

Penghua stepped forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Gu Xiechen. The Netherworld Fan in his hand continuously fanned, and the sounds of ghostly wails and howling wind vibrated painfully in their eardrums, causing even Hanyuu to frown slightly.

The six individuals stared at each other across the void for a moment. Suddenly, a ray of sword light shot out from the sword casket behind Gu Xiechen, enveloping him and Penghua as they vanished into a spatial barrier. From the perspective of Hanyuu and the others, Gu Xiechen and Penghua had simply disappeared out of thin air; they hadn't even detected what method they used to escape, nor could they capture where they had teleported to.

The hull armor of the lone Vast Era-class warship waiting for Gu Xiechen in space suddenly fractured, revealing a wondrous crystal of pure azure: the Sky-Quenching Azure Crystal!

After Ducat's modifications, most of the Vast Era-class warship’s hull was occupied by a subspace energy core. At this moment, the core’s micro-spatial conduit was drawing infinite energy from the subspace, purifying it into surging light energy, which was then channeled into the Sky-Quenching Azure Crystal. The crystal, which gathered the energy of heaven and earth for attack, erupted in an intensely dazzling blue flame that blinded the eyes. Then, a beam of blue light, thin as a hair and condensed to the utmost degree, tore through the void and accurately struck the center of Hanyuu’s brow.

This blue beam carried immense energy, but more importantly, having been focused by the Sky-Quenching Azure Crystal, this energy was transformed, like iron ore refined into a steel blade. Energy that could have only caused minor harm to Hanyuu instantly possessed a terrifying power capable of endangering his very existence.

Especially since the sixty-six gray-white Supreme Yin Lotuses shimmering on the Sky-Quenching Azure Crystal imbued the blue beam with the terrifying cold of the Supreme Yin Blazing Flame, further increasing its destructive power. Moreover, the thirty-six fist-sized Golden Crow Heavenly Fire seeds within the energy core provided this blue beam with the annihilative power of a Celestial Immortal.

Boundless despair and terror flooded Hanyuu's face. He roared, "I refuse to accept this!"

The blue light rapidly expanded outwards, growing from hair-thin to a hundred zhang wide. The bodies of the Dark Four Heavenly Kings were instantly engulfed by the light, and their forms vaporized in that instant.

Four specks of light shot out from the explosive blue radiance—these were the mental imprints of the Dark Four Heavenly Kings. They intended to escape the all-consuming light, hoping for a chance at survival. But the intense blue light vanished in a flash. Gu Xiechen, wearing a faint smile, leaped out from the spatial barrier, landing precisely beside the four mental imprints.

The True Magnetic Two Elements Splitting Light Sword drew a long rainbow, accurately piercing the four imprints, completely destroying any hope the Dark Four Heavenly Kings had of resurrection.

The Dark Four Heavenly Kings were at least at the Void Realm, with Hanyuu possessing terrifying power close to that of a Celestial Immortal. When Gu Xiechen pierced their mental imprints, the immense energy condensed within them instantly erupted, threatening to blast Gu Xiechen and Penghua into dust. Jie jie—a strange laugh echoed. Penghua opened the Netherworld Fan, and a pitch-black vortex spanning several zhang wide opened on its surface, swallowing the four massive energy masses. Hundreds of thousands of imprisoned cultivators swarmed forward, devouring those four energy masses completely.

Penghua then unfurled the Netherworld State. Boundless dark energy surged out. In the space where the warships destroyed by the thirty motherships had been, millions of flickering light points were snatched from the void by the black mist. Each light point represented a Romanian soul. The black mist swept up millions of Romanian souls, dragging them into the Netherworld Fan.

Gurgle, gurgle. The Netherworld Fan shuddered, seeming to burp like a living creature. Penghua jumped in fright, nearly throwing the bizarre fan away. He looked at Gu Xiechen, whose expression remained unchanged, startled. He had no idea where Gu Xiechen had learned such a strange artifact-refining technique that could produce such a bizarre fan.

Furious, Borbert, Borujin, and Yakjin charged forward, accompanied by tens of thousands of Servant Race warriors who possessed innate abilities allowing short-term survival in space. Borbert roared, "Gu Xiechen, you are too shameless! Didn't you want a decisive battle? Didn't you want a duel? Why—why would you use warships?"

Gu Xiechen stood with his hands behind his back, casting a malevolent glance at the tens of thousands of Servant Race warriors behind Borbert. He felt a surge of shock inwardly. These damnable creatures had biological makeup situated between carbon-based lifeforms and silicon-based lifeforms. Their general appearance resembled humans, but the thick black carapace covering their exterior carried insectoid characteristics. A scan revealed that the physical strength of these beings was comparable to alloy, and the strongest attack generated by their biological energy nearly rivaled that of a Mars-level Innate Warrior.

And the several hundred strongest among these Servant Race warriors possessed energy levels no weaker than those of Golden Core stage cultivators—a truly astonishing sight.

What if there are only tens of thousands here, but how many of these perverts did Borpot and the others bring back from the alien domain? Ten billion? Twenty billion? Heaven knows how many they brought! On their flourishing home world, how many more deviants like them exist? If such monsters were deployed onto the ground battlefield, how long could the Earth Federation forces hold them off? Ten minutes? Twenty minutes?

Billions of such warriors could absolutely annihilate the Earth civilization. Even if a master like Gu Xichen managed to escape, what meaning would life hold for him without his own kin, without the human race? Even if the Earth Federation fleet could deal a devastating blow to the Romans, the result would still be mutual destruction.

Taking a long, deep breath, Gu Xichen, with a face as cold as death, stated indifferently, "Why can't I use the battleship? Since you permitted this vessel to remain here, it implies you approved of my use of it, doesn't it? I complied with your request; all the super-motherships have withdrawn."

"Shameless!" Borpot roared.

"Despicable," Bolujin stomped in anger.

"You are utterly beyond shameless!" Yakjin was so furious his eyeballs turned gold.

Gu Xichen swept a glance over the three indignant figures with his blood-red eyes and said lightly, "Any other nonsense? If not, I'm leaving. Now you should understand the power we possess? You can bring about mutual destruction with us; we can do the same. So, in the future, do not provoke us Earthlings."

Borpot opened his mouth, his eyes twitching with rage.

Gu Xichen paid them no mind and turned to leave the scene with Penghua.

The three of Borpot wanted to attack, but the thought of the massive, despair-inducing fleet behind Gu Xichen made them grudgingly swallow their fury.

The so-called exercise was nothing more than a brazen display of force. Gu Xichen intended for the Romans to understand that the people of Earth now possessed the power to take them down with them. They should cease scheming against the Earth Federation.

Killing Hanyushezhe and the other Four Heavenly Kings of Darkness was not just a display of strength; it was necessary because Hanyushezhe had the potential to upset this balance.

A Celestial Immortal-level master could inflict a fatal blow on the Earth Federation's command system. Hanyushezhe could easily conduct decapitation strikes against the Earth Federation, plunging them into chaos, and potentially destroying every super-mothership the Federation possessed. If that had happened, it would undoubtedly have been an extinction-level disaster for the entire Earth Federation.

Having lost figures like the Corpse Emperor, who could contend with Hanyushezhe, Gu Xichen had to eliminate the dangerous existence that was Hanyushezhe.

Without Hanyushezhe, the Earth Federation truly achieved a balance of "mutually assured destruction" with the Romans.

The Earth Federation's super-fleet had the ability to destroy the Roman civilization, and the Romans' massive servant armies had the ability to destroy Earth civilization. Only mutual destruction could maintain a temporary peace for Earth. The Earth Federation was safe only until one side possessed the power to completely annihilate the other without fearing its own destruction.

This security was merely a sandcastle, likely to be shattered by a single tsunami.

Only when the disciples of the Three Sects—Nine Nether Path, Kunlun Mountain, and Zhongnan Mountain—regrew, and several Void Realm masters were established among them, would this security truly solidify.

Killing Hanyushezhe was merely a temporary measure, a choice made out of necessity.

On the journey back to Paradise Star, Gu Xichen conducted an extensive exchange with many people via communicator.

The destruction of the Earth's home world instilled in Gu Xichen a deep sense of crisis. Certain matters had to be addressed immediately, and they had to be executed swiftly.

In the vastness of the universe, too many dangerous factors existed. Gu Xichen could only proceed with the utmost caution, treading on thin ice.

He did not know what awaited him ahead; he could only steel his resolve. Just as he had resolutely killed Hanyushezhe, he had to push forward with unyielding determination.

No matter what lay ahead, it would ultimately boil down to nothing more than fighting and "killing a path to survival."