How many years had it been since Bai Lanxue last smiled?

That chilling sight made everyone’s hair stand on end.

Xiao Xiao dared not even look. If he had known Bai Lanxue was nearby, he would have preferred being captured by pirates while drifting in the Sea of Stars to falling into her hands.

Especially today, when Bai Lanxue was in an exceptionally foul mood. She gestured for her assistant to pull up the files on the Silver Talisman prisoners and shoved them in front of Xiao Xiao. "How many of them are still alive? Can you tell me now?"

The so-called expert observation that "the Wolf Den is largely composed of prisoners" was merely her conjecture based on Xiao Xiao's behavior and the Wolf Den's inexplicable rise. She had guessed the Wolf Den was related to the Silver Talisman people, but she wasn't entirely sure exactly which individuals were involved.

Therefore, she needed to know who was there so she could devise the right countermeasures!

The people from Silver Talisman Star should have been her best assets, but now they had become her greatest adversaries. The more Bai Lanxue thought about it, the angrier she became; the veins on the back of her hand stood out, and she was only a palm-strike away from crushing Xiao Xiao.

Xiao Xiao turned away from the files. "Just kill me."

Bai Lanxue sneered. "Refuse to speak? Very well. For every act of defiance, I will vaporize one of your Wolf Den space stations. How many space stations do you have now? Are there enough for me to destroy?"

Xiao Xiao remained silent.

Bai Lanxue completely lost her patience, kicked him sprawling onto the floor, and said coldly, "Drag him to the back and start whipping! Also, show him the live feed of the space station we just destroyed to wake him up."

Xiao Xiao tried to flee, but he had no chance.

Staff members stepped forward, efficiently securing his wrists and ankles, dragging him away. Just then, an urgent alarm blared from the fleet ahead.

The fleet broadcast: "Enemy detected ahead, respond immediately."

Bai Lanxue frowned in distaste.

Who was causing trouble now?

She walked to the massive screen, gazing at the single Fleet Command Ship on display, and for a moment, she thought it was one of her own.

If it weren't one of ours, why would they approach in a Command Ship, practically inviting death?

Bai Lanxue didn't take it seriously. "Destroy it."

When Xiao Xiao saw the ship, he reacted like a dying man seeing hope. He instantly threw off the men holding him, tumbled to the optical brain console, slammed his hand onto the interface, and shouted, "I am Xiao Yi—"

Before he could finish, a staff member rushed over and punched Xiao Xiao hard in the head. Xiao Xiao collapsed in pain, but the staff member hauled him back up and hit him again.

Bai Lanxue watched coldly as he crawled on the ground like a dog, finally smiling with satisfaction.

This was the consequence of defying her.

Suddenly, BOOM—

A deafening crash shook the hull of the Command Ship violently.

Moments later, a woman dressed in fiery red appeared on the screen—it was Hong Fa. A cigarette dangled from her lips. "Ms. Bai Lanxue, long time no see."

Bai Lanxue seemed to instantly locate the source of all her hatred.

It was Hong Fa!

Two years ago, Hong Fa had nearly wiped out all the pirates under her command during the Pirate Wars.

Last year, the Meng Ya Group, connected to Hong Fa, had falsely accused the Star Federation of hijacking cargo ships belonging to the Fia Family.

This year, Hong Fa was leading a group of escapees from Silver Talisman Star, standing directly against her!

In an instant, she felt the burning indignation of "Why was she born when I was?" If it weren't for Hong Fa, her life would never have reached this height!

Hong Fa ignored her, her eyes fixed only on Xiao Xiao, who lay prone. She spoke just three words: "Why?"

Those three words caused Xiao Xiao to instantly break down. Everything he had desperately held onto in the confinement cell was now gone. He fell to his knees, sobbing uncontrollably. "She sent people to infect my city with plague. If I didn't comply, everyone would have been destroyed."

Hong Fa's fingertips trembled, the hand holding the cigarette almost slipping from her control.

How ruthless, how vicious.

Hong Fa suddenly felt a strange admiration for the woman before her. She had always considered herself cold-blooded, even among women or perhaps even among humans, but this woman was colder and more malicious—she targeted innocent civilians directly.

It wasn't sympathy for the populace that moved her, but the sheer principle that using civilians in a political struggle meant one had ceased to be human.

Hong Fa felt no fear; instead, her smile became even more captivatingly charming. "Bai Lanxue, is that the name? I've heard of you for a long time. I thought you must have three heads and six arms, but it turns out you're just a woman with endocrine imbalance!"

Bai Lanxue hated being told she didn't look like a woman the most. While she took a certain pride in her stern appearance, she was simultaneously insecure about not looking feminine enough.

Hong Fa's words had struck her most sensitive nerve.

She said coldly, "You can say that again in hell!"

Hong Fa stood tall, undaunted. "I crawled out of hell; why should I fear going back? This time, I'm dragging you down with me!"

Bai Lanxue did not hold the same caution toward Hong Fa as she did toward Tang Wen. With a sweep of her hand, she commanded, "Kill! Leave no survivors."

With that, she drew her saber, held it horizontally, and a jet of bright blood sprayed from Xiao Xiao's neck. She dipped a finger in the blood and sneered at Hong Fa, "He is your example!"

The most formidable and elite fleet of the Star Federation against Hong Fa's single, small frigate. Bai Lanxue was already preparing the highest honors for her funeral.

However, the very moment the barrage was about to begin, the Sea of Stars suddenly erupted in activity. Various pirate ships swarmed out from every direction, charging haphazardly toward Bai Lanxue's command ship.

Bai Lanxue wasn't surprised. She narrowed her eyes, watching the rain of vessels on the screen. "She is indeed clever."

She hadn't encountered a worthy opponent in years; this woman deserved to be her rival.

Bai Lanxue's assistant, San Lil, couldn't grasp the situation immediately, but he dared not ask. After staring intently at the screen for a long while, he finally understood.

Though the mass of pirate ships seemed chaotic, their positioning—front, back, left, and right—was coordinated perfectly.

Beyond the pirate force ships, there were logistics vessels and interceptors. In a spot hard to see, there was a dark shadow. Zooming in, it was revealed to be a "Luo Shen-class" aircraft carrier manufactured by the Star Federation!

Aircraft carriers played a crucial role in combat, supplying battleships and frigates.

Bai Lanxue, already furious from the insults suffered from Tang Wen earlier, could hold back no longer. "Destroy them!"

Just then, the fleet alarm sounded: "Stealth bombers detected!"

Bai Lanxue started, looking up to see the stealth bombers revealing their mouse-like profiles.

Torpedoes rained down toward the Command Ship. Fortunately, the captain was battle-hardened and maneuvered with maximum speed, narrowly avoiding the brunt of the attack; the torpedoes grazed past, and with a shuddering boom, the Command Ship trembled.

Bai Lanxue nearly burst her lungs in rage.

Those frigates that failed to dodge erupted in continuous bang, bang, bang sounds. Three torpedoes were enough to destroy one frigate. How many frigates could withstand such a deluge of ordnance?