Central Plains City was one of the most important cities to the current Qin Empire. High buildings were erected and the city was starting to become as prosperous as before the invasion by the Hinon Federation.
Actually, it became better after the reformation by the Emperor after the entire upheaval ten years ago.
Currently, there were pedestrians walking in the streets of the city and the activity seemed to reach a new high according to the current trend and if the situation stayed the same.
This city also became the route for the supply for the frontline in the Star Battle so military vehicles and personnel often were seen on the roads that were recently expanded. The citizens were used to this after the announcement of the Star Battle two months ago.
Many media outlets pictured the Star Battle as something monumental and even some works of art referred to the Star Battle in their works.
That was why there were so many novel prints about the works that took inspiration from the Star Battle and became popular recently.
This caused the other sector to react as well and used the current Star Battle as a business opportunity. The tourism, for example, was announcing that the Central Plains City was a city behind the frontline and gave the frontline a lifeline, so people were visiting the city to see the military units from the Cerulean Defense Force went off to the Rift.
That caused a surge in the number of people inside the city. It had the trend of increasing so the mayor had to manage the flow of the people.
Inside the high building that became the place where meetings between important people often happen, there was one meeting that became important due to the matter being discussed.
“Even though our supplies and logistics are working as usual, the presence of the infiltrators still becomes a concern for the Cerulean Defense Force. So far, there is still no movement from the enemies and the supply arrived at the destination.
“Previously, our supply trucks were being eliminated and it took some hours before we found out. Now, there is no such thing. This means that the enemy must be planning something major that they ignored the supply that went to the frontline.” One officer said this. He was the highest-ranking official in the city and he oversaw the route of the supplies that went to the frontline.
“That was the reason why the territory on the other side of the Rift barely moved. But we should act as usual as not to let the enemy know that we are suspecting them.” Another officer said.
They were seated at the round table where they could see each other quite clearly. This meeting was actually the response they had to make in the face of the enemy.
General Wazowski had given the instruction that the Hunters were on the move and they should not worry about the supply line. But that did not mean that they could relax.
As the afternoon shifted slowly into the evening, the violet sun set on the horizon. It gave the sky a purple tinted color while the clouds were drifting and then came the wind that blew through the city.
The moment the time reached almost evening, the meeting slowly came to an end. The officers finally had a solution which could only be carried out tonight at the fastest.
“Alright. We are done with the problem and the solution has been reached. Dismissed.” The highest-ranking officer then concluded the meeting and ended it.
Several people were already yawning because they had to gather and form an idea to counter the enemy’s move.
One of them finally had the time to pull the curtain, opening the window that could let the sunlight come in. It served its purpose by not letting anyone outside see what was happening inside. The window was large enough that it fit the entire side of the room and now that it was opened, the people inside the room could see the scenery outside.
But they felt a bit bizarre in their mind and hearts. Normally, they would welcome the darkness of the night filled with the stars from heaven to accompany them and it had been so since ever before the Father God appeared.
All of them then looked at each other, seeing the confusion and concern in their eyes, and confirmed that what they saw was something real.
“Do you see that?” one officer said.
“The thing that is supposed not to exist in the sky…is that what you mean?” replied another.
“What is that, then?”
“Call the space observatory now! Something alien is in the sky, damn it!”
Followed by a small chaos in the room, trying to call the others to confirm what they had seen. The citizens of the city also looked at the purple-tinted sky and realized that there was something extra that should not be there.
The mayor was called, and after that, he made a statement on both television and radio to let the Central Plains City keep calm and orderly. He did not want chaos to happen inside the city.
One by one, the people inside the city realized that there was an anomaly in the sky. Worse, the other part of the globe also perceived it, meaning that the thing in the sky was not just an illusion.
“Breaking news. This is the current situation at hand in the middle of the Star Battle and the increasing military activity. Late afternoon was the time when many observers noticed something in the sky that was not supposed to be there. Even some observatories saw this object in the sky and confirmed that it was something alien. Could this be the enemy's way of retaliation in the Star Battle or is it something that just happens under normal circumstances? Find out more with the expert we can contact.”
News related to the anomaly in the sky became popular and propagated throughout the Cerulean Planet. After five minutes, practically everyone in the civilization knew about the matter and could not help but think the worst.
Fortunately, the current martial law by the Cerulean Defense Force made it easier to control the population. Furthermore, they had to calm down the restless people who became panicked due to the information given.
Most of the people were smart, so they knew that the appearance of the alien object in the sky was more likely due to the enemy making a move.
Soon, the situation was under control but it was different for Central Plains City.
“So this is what you mean by the sign will be obvious.” The old man with a walking stick was standing on the top of one building overlooking the Central Plains City. Beside him were the familiar Gling that accompanied him in the journey as well as the operation.
“This is the move that the Metamorphic God has used for us. Now is the time for you to do your part.” The Gling said.
“Of course.” The old man chucked before he shot a flare into the sky. The blue colored flare was the signal for the rest of his operators to move as planned.
Then several explosions could be heard, seen and felt in the sector that the military used as their storage for supplies as well as the attempted assassination of the officers of the Cerulean Defense Force. This happened almost simultaneously that which gave the defenders no chance to even retaliate.
“Let’s make this mess even bigger.” He said before descending from the tall buildings.
On the other side of the city, the Hunters finally noticed the commotion and realized that it was probably the ones they were looking for were probably responsible.
Long Wu’s eyes glittered as he felt the undead element on the Glings that went to cause the commotion. He went in one direction while giving instructions to the Hunters.
“Our objective is here. Prioritize eliminating the Glings and the traitors. Don’t worry about the citizens as the military will handle that!”
A radio transmission was relayed to the entire members of the Hunters as they also witnessed the mess. They then started to locate the Glings and the traitors who caused all of this. The city became restless due to this.
Citizens hid in their residences, afraid of catching the stray attack that could end them. To them, it felt like their city was under attack by enemies beyond the Rift.
Ironically, their thoughts were partially correct. Glings were manifesting from their mist form and attacked the officers anyway they could while there were people who used this opportunity to destroy the supplies that were used for the Star Battle.
The situation turned for the worse as more and more supply depots within the city were destroyed either by burning or exploding.
Long Wu was dealing with one of the Gling when he detected a very familiar presence. He ended the life of the Gling with one slash from the dagger augmented with the undead element.
‘The Glings are getting stronger than ever.’ Long Wu thought while glancing at the object in the sky with its round form and red color. ‘Perhaps that thing is the cause.’
But he had to follow what he had sensed. Turning to a certain direction, he moved to the location where he felt the familiar presence. The more he approached the presence, the more he was sure that the other party was prepared to meet him.
In the deserted alley where there was only a small pool of water that remained as well as the remnants left by some homeless people, there was someone who stood there as if waiting.
The moment Long Wu came, the presence of that person finally turned around and looked at him.
“I knew that you would be here around this time. How does it feel to finally catch up with something that constantly evades you?” the old man said while raising his walking stick and pointing it at Long Wu.
“Excited, enraged, empowered, maybe? I mean, you don’t even bother to mask your presence at this point in time. Is this your answer to the obstacle in your path? To continue in the madness?” Long Wu replied cryptically.
Long Wu knew the old man well since he had been at one point under him in hierarchy. But Long Wu knew that the old man was the one who fueled the entire thing to come to fruition.
Long Wu narrowed his eyes as he took the entire situation into account. The deserted alley became a suitable place for them to fight. The fact that the citizens were warned not to leave their residences helped them at this point, where people of great strength roamed around.
“As excited as always, it seems. We need a world where the strong rule. Why should we care about the weak? They became an inconvenience if not a straight burden so why put extra care for them in the first place?” the old man said.
“But no one is born strong. According to your words, your parent should not care for you because you are weak. But that’s not the case. Admit it, this is just your wishful thinking and nothing else matters.” Long Wu knew the old man and realized that kind of thinking was somewhat selfish.
Was it wrong to be selfish? Long Wu thought that it was not even wrong to be selfish. The very first thing someone has in their life is themselves. From their perspective, the world revolves around them.
It could be said that it was the most basic recognition of the reality that they perceived.
What was wrong was to keep that kind of mindset and not change in the slightest. For Long Wu, his selfishness was more about the win-win cooperation between him and the people close to him.
But for the person in front of him, perhaps converging everything to oneself was the way his selfishness was manifested.
Who was right and who was wrong, even he did not know for sure just by the root of their action.
“You can keep blabbering those words because you are strong. If you are weak, no matter how right or correct your words are, you will be dismissed as nothing of importance. Isn’t that proof that strength is paramount in everything?”
“Strength is the foundation, yes, but it is not everything. Although everything is built upon strength, but ultimately it is just a foundation. You need to build something on top of that.”
The two were in verbal combat as it was actually a battle for their belief; their life was staked based on it.
“Looks like words are not enough.” The old man knew that they had reached a stalemate and instead emanated a strong energy. It even distorted its surroundings.
Long Wu was prepared for this moment as he also unleashed the pressure that belonged to the Core Formation Realm. In his hand, a dagger was ready to anticipate whatever was coming.
On the path that led to the Central Plains City, there was a reinforcement that the Headquarters of the Cerulean Defense Force just barely approved due to the strangeness of the situation.
They had gone out from the Undead Secret Realm and took the military armored vehicles to traverse to the western domain of the Qin Empire. One objective was in the minds of those present.
They were all there to support those who resisted the attack on the Central Plains City.
“There is a transmission from the city. The attack has begun! They need more to handle the enemies!” The radio on the vehicles was set to receive transmission from the nearby base and that included the Central Plains City. That was why the moment the people heard the transmission, they exclaimed.
“Let’s go quickly and end this matter! We need to contact the Hunters too, is that doable?”
“We are trying to but there is still no response.”
“Then we need to decide our course of action with the Hunters in mind.”
The reinforcement was on the way but they were worried about the current situation and the enemies they had to face. Fortunately, some people could translate different languages so it became easier to give instructions and communicate.
“Who are you?” A crispy voice could be heard on the radio.
“You are the Hunters, correct?”
“Yes. We are currently dealing with the attacks from both the infiltrators that we initially pursued as well as the traitors who are working with them. Now that it has become clear that they are working together, we are targeting every perpetrator who attacked the supplies for the frontline as well as those who attempted to assassinate the officers of the Cerulean Defense Force.”
“Send us your location. I mean, the location of your operatives in the Central Plains City.”
With that, the reinforcement got an idea of how to distribute their numbers in the city. They soon dispersed to the various parts of the city, helping the Hunters in their endeavor.
There was a Mist Gling who was battling a transcendent at the peak of the Nothingness Realm and they were in a stalemate since the Gling was much stronger, at least equal to the Core Formation Realm transcendent.
“I am unlucky this day! To think that there is one infiltrator at that level!” The transcendent was letting out undead element but the Gling became more frenzied in its attack.
“Damn it!” his attack missed which became an opportunity for the Gling to manifest and attack him. Just as the transcendent felt that his head was about to be smashed, a sudden attack from another transcendent came and rescued him.
He immediately disengaged from the Mist Gling and saw the one who helped him.
“Are you alright?” The transcendent who was helping him turned out to be someone foreign and he did not quite understand what he said but he could feel the emotion of the voice.
The Gling was roaring in pain since the intensity of the undead element became overwhelming for its body.
“Let me finish this. Looks like this one is already injured and this friend made it worse but not lethal. Unfortunately….” The transcendent then lunged to attack the Gling that tried to escape, since it realized that someone strong enough had come.
With a single palm attack infused with the undead element from the Core Formation Realm, the Gling was consumed by the overwhelming undead element and died. Its remains then formed a strange blackish goo on the ground.
The place was quite remote and he knew that the transcendent in front of him was kind of a reinforcement. Sadly, since there was no translator, he did not know what exactly the transcendent said.
Another operator from the Hunters slowly encountered the reinforcement that came from far.
“There is a reinforcement on your way. Please collaborate if you are locked in battle!” The communication channel was filled with this message that even the Hunters knew what was going on.
“Hu, finally I can deal with these people! What the hell are they thinking, siding with the enemy!?” one operator said while evading a Molotov cocktail thrown from his opponent.
“About time!” the transcendent who dealt with weaker Gling finally felt relieved that there was still reinforcement. They were there for the troublemaker and the reinforcement made it so much easier.
But that was not the end of this as the Queen realized that the Gling died at a faster rate, only leaving a dozen of them and one of the Core Formation Realm equivalent of the Gling had died despite being enhanced by the Red Moon of the Rage.
It was understandable, after all, it was already injured and suppressing the undead element in its body. Even if its strength had increased, if it was suppressed, it became a liability.