Inside the "Eternal Light Hall" of the Nine Heavens Moon-Embracing Palace, Lin Feng was enjoying his daily, god-like awakening ritual.
Last night, he "rewarded" that S-class girl named Leila from the "Eagle Federation".
He clearly remembered that when he walked into the magnificent palace called "Weigong Pavilion" prepared for her, the girl's eyes were filled with fear, humiliation, and a trace of morbid honor that she had forced out for the sake of her family.
This complex emotion is Lin Feng's favorite seasoning.
The double pleasure of conquering a powerful enemy and then enjoying his most treasured possessions allows him to feel more real as a "god" than simple killing and lust.
He didn't even touch Leila, but simply sat in front of her, sipping the finest tea from the "Red River Province," while watching her tremble under his oppressive presence until dawn.
As the first rays of dawn pierced through the dome of the "Star Tear Stone" and fell upon the bedding woven from "Void Silk," Lin Feng slowly opened his eyes.
Lin Feng stretched and stepped barefoot onto the ground, which was made of an unknown white jade and could automatically regulate its temperature.
He doesn't even need to think about what to wear today; his chief image consultant has already prepared three perfect outfits based on the weather, lighting, and his possible mood.
Everything was just like every day of the past five years: precise, luxurious, perfect, and... incredibly boring.
Prolonged comfort and absolute power are like the finest, yet most poisonous, wine, eroding his vigilance.
However, just as he picked up the cup of morning dew, which exuded the breath of life, and was about to take a sip—
"Waaaaaah!"
A heart-wrenching, ear-piercing alarm, sharp enough to shatter eardrums, suddenly resounded throughout the entire capital city of Chengtian!
This is not an ordinary alarm.
This is the empire's highest-level alert—a "nation-annihilation alert"!
This alarm had never been sounded since the empire was founded.
This means that a threat, theoretically capable of dealing a devastating blow to the empire, has emerged!
Lin Feng's hand, holding the cup, froze in mid-air.
For the first time, a long-unseen emotion called "astonishment" appeared in those golden eyes that were used to looking down on all living beings.
Immediately afterwards, a violent throbbing from the depths of his soul made him turn his head sharply and look in the direction he had almost forgotten—the original source of the shelter, that mysterious valley hidden deep in the mountains.
"boom!"
As if in response to his gaze, an unimaginably thick, dark red beam of light, mixed with the smell of sulfur and blood, suddenly shot up from the direction of the valley, tearing the dawn sky apart and dyeing half the sky an ominous blood color!
Even in the capital city of Chengtian, thousands of kilometers away, the crimson pillar of light that pierced through the heavens and earth could be clearly seen.
Around the beam of light, the space was visibly distorted and broken, as if a gate to hell had been forcibly opened!
"Warning! Warning! Something's happened in Zone 0!"
"Large-scale, high-dimensional energy reaction detected! Unidentifiable! Unanalyzable!"
"Warning! The 'Sky Eye' satellite system's surveillance in this area has completely failed! All reconnaissance units and drones have lost contact!"
On Lin Feng's personal terminal, the urgent, chaotic, and emotionless alarm from the Empire's central AI, "Pangu," sounded.
The next second, the entire Nine Heavens Moon-Embracing Palace began to shake violently!
Lin Feng hovered in mid-air, his face terribly gloomy.
He finally remembered.
That evil heartbeat from the valley.
The black fungal carpet that he had firmly confined within the valley was expanding at an extremely slow rate.
He had always believed that it was some kind of unknown, dangerous alien creature. He dispatched the Empire's most elite "Ghost" scout units, in conjunction with space-based weapon systems, to conduct a decade-long, top-level surveillance operation there.
Ten years have passed, and apart from the heartbeat that still echoes and the occasional twitch of the fungal carpet, there has been no unusual activity there.
The prolonged peace allowed the entire empire to lower its guard.
They were like frogs in slowly boiling water, indulging in extravagance and pleasure, forgetting the sword of Damocles that had been hanging over their heads for ten years.
And today, that sword has finally fallen.
"Connect to Qin Lan." Lin Feng's voice was as cold as ancient ice.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Qin Lan's holographic projection instantly appeared in front of Lin Feng. She was still wearing that black military uniform, but her face was filled with unprecedented solemnity and anxiety.
Behind her was the Imperial Supreme Command's combat command center, where countless officers were shouting at the top of their lungs, and the entire command center was in complete chaos.
"Your Majesty!" Qin Lan exclaimed as if she had found her pillar of support upon seeing Lin Feng. "Zone Zero... is out of control!"
"Who is the enemy?" Lin Feng asked, suppressing his anger.
"I...I don't know!" For the first time, bewilderment and fear appeared on Qin Lan's face. "Our optical, radar, and energy detection systems completely failed in that area! Judging from the last fragmented images transmitted back...monsters...emerged from that black fungal carpet!"
"monster?"
"Yes! Endless monsters! All kinds of forms, never heard of before! They... they ignore our energy shields! Our Gauss rifle bullets are like tickles to them! They... they are... devouring our tanks! Good heavens!"
Qin Lan's projection flickered violently due to signal interference.
Lin Feng's face was extremely pale.
He knew that his worst fears had come true.
This is no ordinary war.
This is a... catastrophe.
"Pass on my orders!" Lin Feng's voice echoed throughout the chaotic Supreme Command headquarters.
"First, the Empire, immediately enter a state of high alert! All leave is cancelled, all production lines are converted to military use, and all citizens are placed on wartime alert!"
"Secondly, with the capital of Chengtian as the core, launch the 'Absolute Barrier' plan! Inject all the energy of the empire's mainland into the defense system! I want to turn the entire empire's mainland into an impregnable fortress!"
"Third!" A crazed killing intent flashed in Lin Feng's eyes. "Order the First, Second, Fourth, and Sixth Iron-Blooded Legions, which are closest to Zone 0, to launch an indiscriminate, saturation attack on Zone 0, along with the Murong family's 'Obsidian' Legion and Wang Dachui's 'Molten Fire' Legion, totaling 600,000 troops, to spare no expense!"
"Until I find out exactly what the enemy is, I will use steel and fire to completely wipe that valley off the map!"
"Yes, sir!" Qin Lan responded loudly, her eyes once again igniting the fervor of a soldier.
In the face of absolute power, all chaos will be forcibly straightened out.
After giving the order, Lin Feng's figure flashed and he appeared at the highest point of the Nine Heavens Moon-Embracing Palace—the "Star-Gazing Platform".
He looked down upon his empire.
Below, the capital city of Chengtian has recovered from its initial chaos and restored order. Countless aircraft, like worker bees, shuttle through the city's steel jungle. The massive city defense shield is slowly rising, emitting a pale blue light.
Further away, missile silos hidden underground slowly opened, revealing the menacing "Destroyer" intercontinental ballistic missiles inside, gleaming with nuclear energy.
The empire's war machine, a colossal beast that had slumbered for many years, has finally been awakened and is beginning to reveal its fangs, capable of destroying stars.
But Lin Feng felt no relief whatsoever.
His gaze pierced through thousands of kilometers of space, fixed on the crimson pillar of light that pierced the heavens and the earth.
He could sense that behind that pillar of light, an incomparably terrifying, incomparably evil being, filled with a violent and destructive will, was slowly awakening.
That aura made him feel a slight unease.
"No matter what you are..." Lin Feng muttered to himself, his golden eyes blazing with killing intent, "Since you dare to destroy my peace, then I will make you and your world turn into dust in the universe!"
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