Skyfire Avenue

Good man, is there anything Lan Qing can’t do?

Hua Li wasn’t as surprised by the status of Middle Heaven’s drones as the Northerners were. After all, he knew Lan Qing better, and their relationship went beyond mere cooperation. Kang Hui’s mind raced and decided that the East must have found some special method of energy use. It was the only way they could use four laser cannons over such a long period and not have to recharge. It was a truly game-changing development that he was completely unaware of until this moment. If not for this war his military would still be in the dark.

It was incredible to see this alliance, which the North consistently looked down on, rising to such technological prominence so quickly. Middle Heaven was an example, superior to the North’s fallen Terminator-class bastion. Kang Hui figured his alliance would need three bastions if they wanted to bring it down in a fight. Nor were there any commanders on his side that could compare with Lan Qing.

The Eastern admiral had told them he would use Middle Heaven to lure the main force away and do whatever it could to reduce their numbers. He had not, however, told them how he’d planned to do that. When Kang Hui saw Middle Heaven blazing toward Europa he was just as surprised as the avatars. But he also knew the only way to truly deceive the enemy was to hide the truth from one’s own side.

Under Lan Qing’s leadership a single bastion was inscrutable, and had limitless utility. Even his own soldiers didn’t fully know what he was capable of or what his goals were. It was his greatest strength.

By now Middle Heaven had stretched far from the main body of the armada, but the blinding light it emitted was clearly visible. Was he really planning to sacrifice himself and his ship in a kamikaze run? Whether or not it would succeed, the courage was stunning.

If his own troops believed he was charging in for a final collision, of course the aliens did as well. Twelve lumbering monstrosities raced after the burning bastion, guided by twelve avatars of the aliens’ home planets.

Meanwhile the human and alien forces continued to pummel one another, neither gaining the upper hand. No one knew what would become of the valiant Middle Heaven either.

Lan Qing stood in the bastion’s control center, his eyes glued to the screens before him. His face was the same expressionless mask it always was. All of the ship’s energy was being called on and the temperatures inside where reaching scalding levels. Through his enhanced perception Lan Qing could sense every wave of erratic energy pulsing from the molonite.

This was precisely the sensation he was looking for. How else would he get the alien generals’ attention?

If the twenty four monsters that followed him were allowed to wreak havoc among the ship, humanity’s chances of victory were slim. It didn’t matter if the aliens break their lines or the humans pressed ahead to Europa, the result would be close combat. The aliens had them beat in that regard.

So, Lan Qing conceived this plan before they set out. A suicide attack!

These creatures were hell-bent on evolution. Destroying the human race wasn’t their main objective. Lan Qing grasped this, and so he pushed the molinite that powered Middle Heaven to its limit. Its precarious nature made them a threat even if Solar Flare wasn’t used.

He ignored the mighty beasts that sought to stop his charge, and pressed ahead. Whether or not they followed, he didn’t care. If they didn’t give chase his suicide run would be unhindered and their mission would be successful.

Lan Qing knew how much energy was contained in the molonite that powered his bastion. He knew what sort of devastation would be caused if it was released all at once on the alien home worlds. At the very least, one of the planets would be completely obliterated. If the three were close enough he could kill all three.

If sacrificing Middle Heaven meant the destruction of his enemy, Lan Qing considered that a worthy price. Not just for the East, but for all mankind.

Of course, as he anticipated, the aliens had come after him and with a vengeance. They put their speed advantage to work and were on a course to intercept.

“Turn!” Lan Qing coldly ordered.

Middle Heaven’s trajectory slowly started to change. It traced a burning arc in attempts to avoid being caught, then swung around again to keep Europa in its path.

While Lan Qing wasn’t sure of the planets’ precise location, Lan Jue’s recon intelligence had proven that they were here. Somehow Europa was involved in their evolution, so they couldn’t be far. Europa’s location was no secret, so that’s where he was headed.

The twelve crocodile-beasts swung around to continue their pursuit. They gave up trying to cut the ship off and opted to attack its flanks directly. Furiously beating their wings to keep up, orbs of sickly purple-black energy were spat from their mouths. At the same time the avatars that rode them leapt from the creatures and raced ahead with frightening speed. Their thousand-meter tall bodies blazed with the light of their powers, and together their auras threatened to drown out Middle Heaven’s star-like luminescence. They hoped to forcibly bridle the bastion’s speed.

The closer they came to Middle Heaven, the sense of instability grew more intense. It could blow at any moment, and when it did the aliens would have no chance to flee. So, although the avatars had the strength to stop the bastion, they nonetheless held back. Although they were simply fragments of the planets they came from, they still had a consciousness. Anything with a mind of its own feared death.

Terrifying was the only way to expression the combination of the twelve titans and the avatars that commanded them. Middle Heaven’s shields were increased to their highest levels to withstand their attempts to slow it down. As a result its speed invariably slowed. However the wild fluctuations of energy never ceased.

They were now far from the main battlefield.

Merciless light flickered in the eyes of the primary avatar, another from Monarch. Its arms had become two massive tentacles that spread over Middle Heaven. They swelled larger as the suction pads that covered their underside sucked away the shield’s energy. The human bastion had no way to cut itself free, but it could blast them away.

A slithering cold crept up the avatar’s spine, enough of a sensation to force it to react. Its tentacle-arms detached like a lizard’s tail, and it shot far into the distance as a beam of violet light.

A dark golden light erupted from the position it’d just abandoned. Below, a silhouette was visible on the planet’s surface.

CRACK! The golden light became an enormous golden staff. The first beast to feel its wrath was one of the crocodiles, as the weapon smashed down on its enormous head. Its mighty skull caved in and the brains within were destroyed.

Three more images appeared as the monster as cut up into dozens of pieces. It became a cloud of blood and gore hovering in space.

An image appeared just outside of the bastion, a figured clad head to toe in glittering golden armor. The parts of its body which were revealed were covered in coarse golden hair, and its eyes were a smoldering crimson-gold that shone like dual suns. In its hand was the giant staff that had slain the giant beast.

The image lunged toward the next group of enemies, swinging its staff. Its mighty aura alone frightened several avatars away. However the ten-thousand meter long crocodiles could not so easily elude the attack. One by one they were smashed apart by the staff.

Jue Di had joined the fight, releasing the unbridled might of his Winning Buddha dharma. The ultimate Paragon’s appearance relieved Middle Heaven of its tormentors.

On the others side of Middle Heaven a flash of pink flit by. Another beast had only half a moment to react before it froze solid. A surge of rainbow light painted the creature in a myriad of colors before burst into pieces. A vortex of red energy appeared moments later to swallow the remains of the creatures into nothing.

Several of the twenty-four mightiest aliens were slain in the sudden sneak attack. Meanwhile blinking lights heralded the arrival of several more figures around the bastion. Middle Heaven continued along its arc but no longer headed for Europa. Now it was burning back toward the main battle.

The aliens were unprepared for the sudden change in circumstance. Losing two titans dropped their total power by no small amount, but they would not be deterred. They came around for another charge at Middle Heaven.

Having transferred back onto Middle Heaven several minutes ago, they had been waiting for the right moment to strike back. They wanted to punish the creatures with their first appearance.

This had been Lan Qing’s plan all along, though he’d been taken aback by the full strength the monsters brought to bear. Still Jue Di and Luo Xianni had blocked three of their strongest – Infinite-level powerhouses like themselves. The other Paragons spread out to deal with the remainder.

Humanity undoubtedly was inferior to the aliens in terms of sheer numbers. This was a disadvantage for them when considering aggregate power. However they had Middle Heaven to rely on, and its honeycomb of cannons were effective support in thinning the alien horde.