Chapter 60 Attia's Crisis: The bombing was widespread and swift...
The bombing was widespread and fast; in less than a minute, the entire star system was filled with radiation from the energy bombs. The outermost layers of many starships inside began to age rapidly, while new outer shells were quickly generated by their own energy.
The battle was almost one-sided; Attiyah's warships could only dodge rapidly amidst a dense hail of bullets, unable to launch an effective attack.
Nehemiah spoke into the communications channel to Melville, "Marshal Melville, could you please surround this area from the outermost perimeter at a distance of 100 kilometers? We can handle the rest ourselves."
"certainly."
Melville nodded slightly. He was essentially only invited to provide partial assistance and could not possibly become the main force in the federal military's suppression.
He simply raised his hand, and countless Imperial starships surrounded the area within a hundred kilometers.
The war was progressing very smoothly. War correspondents were traveling around in their own little starships. Although the war had lasted for less than a month, the Federation had already lost many territories. Recently, the rebels even breached the Federation prisons and released tens of millions of prisoners, which was a great disgrace.
The online outcry has reached a point where no amount of writing can quell it. With President Nehmeya personally leading the campaign today, they must quickly complete the coverage of the resounding victory and restore public confidence.
"Everyone hide."
Attiyah discovered that most of these missiles were not tracking missiles, and stealth mode could provide a lot of breathing room.
As expected, once the stealth mode was activated, although the bombing did not slow down, the accuracy dropped significantly. Although it was clear that they were trying to adjust the bombing range, the momentary blind attack still revealed a flaw, giving Atia the opportunity for a full-scale counterattack.
The battle became intense. Atia made quick adjustments. Since their starships were small to medium-sized, they were more agile than the large Federation warships. The offensive and defensive positions were reversed in an instant, and after a period of time, Atia gained the upper hand.
wrong.
Nehemiah discovered that the rebel forces opposite him had been increasing in number for some time. After observing for a while, he realized that several abandoned small planets nearby had already laid ambushes with a large number of troops. Every now and then, a small starship would fly out and blend into the army, making it difficult for the insects to detect it at first.
By this time, their numbers were even showing signs of rivaling his army.
Nehemiah squinted. He thought he was the mantis stalking the cicada, but he never expected that he was the cicada that had been lured in.
Despite being overwhelmed by a large army and at a disadvantage, Nehmaia did not appear panicked.
He ordered, "Cease the attack and retreat."
His eyes were fixed on the star map, and then the circle of red dots that were attacking him stopped abruptly, becoming completely still. Many of them even changed direction and bombarded their own starships.
This unusual operation puzzled almost all the female insect soldiers present, but in that instant, the wind direction reversed again. Although the Federation soldiers did not understand what was happening, it did not stop them from believing that this was all due to the President's good fortune.
"Your Excellency the President!"
"Your Excellency the President!"
The federal troops issued a victory-like celebration.
Nehemiah didn't show any particular expression; in his view, it was all perfectly normal.
Female insects are just female insects, shallow and ignorant, yet they dare to dream of overthrowing his rule. They know nothing about true power. Male insects are the most noble group in the world. What use is strength or speed if they are strong or fast? They can only obediently kneel and submit under his control.
Melville wasn't surprised by this scene. Hawthorne also possessed such abilities, and he had witnessed the wonder of such power long ago. Therefore, he had no hope for this rebel group from the beginning. As long as the S-class male insect was present, this battle would be difficult to win.
However, he still greatly admired the female insect leader, whose living environment generally changed depending on the ruler's attitude towards her.
The Empire was very lucky; Hawthorne was a very kind male insect who never allowed the Empire's male insects to mistreat female insects. However, the Nehemiah of the Federation was very chauvinistic, which led to the Federation being called a republic but actually having a clear class system. The situation of the Federation's female insects was much worse than that of the Empire, and he had even heard about many of the methods of bullying and abuse.
But Melville looked up at the battlefield engulfed in flames. This was ultimately a matter for another country, and he had no right to say anything.
...
So this is the power of an S-class male insect, and this is why the highest leader is always an S-class male insect.
Perhaps because she had developed some tolerance to the black-haired male insect, Atia found herself still able to think and move with difficulty.
Atiyah's movements were choppy and jerky, like a puppet with its limbs attached. He endured the stinging pain in his head and laboriously reached out to place his hand on the little dark room toy that Atiyah had given him.
"...Location locked: 1,000 meters around Nehemiah."
Suddenly, a strange force seemed to flow through the air, causing the starships within it to feel sluggish.
The starships that had paused or even begun attacking each other suddenly all turned their cannons back towards Nehemiah's flagship.
The effects of mind control seem to have disappeared.
Nehemiah frowned slightly, staring intently at the star map once more, trying to feel that power again.
Gradually, Nehemiah frowned, his expression growing deeper and deeper until a crack appeared in his expression. He couldn't feel his own power anymore. What was going on?
However, the battle situation did not allow him to make such a mistake. The cannons aimed at him opened fire in unison, and a dense barrage of energy bullets rained down on the main ship.
Nehemiah immediately directed the activation of the protective shield.
At this moment, Nehemiah was very suspicious. Under his control, the ability of the S-class male insect had always been a secret. How could this rebel know in advance and produce something that could counter this ability?
As the battle raged on, both sides opened their hatches, and one by one, female insects spread their wings and flew into space, wearing specially made soft armor and carrying sharp blades and energy guns brimming with energy.
Fully mature female insects can travel in space for extended periods thanks to these devices, and their more flexible wings allow them to switch between various attacks in the air. After the initial bombardment, the insect-on-insect battles truly begin.
In an instant, the empty space turned into a dark mass, and all the sounds of attacks were silently swallowed up by the universe. Only the constantly flying blood testified to the intensity of the war.
When the numbers of both sides are roughly equal, the side with stronger conviction and more experience is more likely to win.
As a result, the federal military suffered almost a series of defeats, but Atia was not happy. This was just another war between female insects, and only the female insects died, while the male insects remained high above and watched.
How ironic.
Nehemiah's expression was not good. He had thought he could win easily, but he had been forced into this situation. "Don't think you've won."
As soon as he finished speaking, a large vortex of tiny crystal fragments suddenly appeared directly above this star field. Then, a huge alien star beast roared out from the center of the vortex and landed in the center of the war, then swung its eight sharp claws and attacked wildly.
This was a berserk Starry Sky Beast King. One of its six deep purple eyes had a deep scar. Atia immediately recognized it as the one that had seriously injured him back then. This Beast King was extremely strange. Its screams had a power that seemed to pierce the mental realm, which was why he was seriously injured at that time.
Without a doubt, the sudden arrival of this crazed alien beast king here was no coincidence. There is only one reason: it was deliberately lured here by some insects.
Melville immediately ordered the soldiers who had rushed into the battle to be recalled. He frowned and looked coldly at the elderly male insect on the other end of the communication line.
"President Nehmeya, you didn't mention this before."
Nehemiah smiled slightly and said, "It's just a coincidence. Now the tide of battle has turned. As long as we hold our ground around here and don't let them escape, how can we not wipe them out in one fell swoop?"
What he said was correct, but Melville disagreed and immediately hung up the call.
The alien beasts of the stars feed on insects; if they don't eat insects, they will quickly weaken and die. This one looks so strong; one wonders how many insects it has eaten.
The moment Atia spotted the Star Beast King, he immediately ordered the recall of most of his soldiers and flew out to lead an elite squad to meet the Star Beast King.
However, Atia discovered that no matter how they tried to guide the Star Beast King, it would only stare intently at their starship and go berserk, so he realized that Nehemiah had done something beforehand.
They actually dare to keep alien creatures that feed on insects as pets; they're truly shameless.
With a formidable enemy at hand and their retreat blocked by the combined forces of the Nehemiah Empire, the most urgent task is to withstand the attacks of the alien beasts, await reinforcements, and break out from within and without.
That item had limited effect on the Starry Sky Beast King. Although the power of the Mental Scream was weakened, it still caused many lower-level female insects to become mentally disoriented, resulting in their bodies stiffening and being hit.
Nehemiah had already recalled all his soldiers, and the tide of battle had turned once again. Who was the mantis and who was the cicada? It was impossible to say for sure in a short time.
"Da da—"
Suddenly, he heard hurried footsteps behind him, followed by a frantic report: "Your Excellency, the energy depot, warehouses, armories, and other places have been planted with automatic detonators at some point, and they have all been blown up and are on fire. Engineers have arrived at the scene, but the situation is too serious to repair. I'm afraid the starship will spontaneously combust in less than 5 minutes. We must leave immediately."
Nehemiah's smug gaze suddenly shifted, his eyes instantly turning to the silver-haired female insect on the screen. When did this happen? He hadn't noticed at all.
That damned female insect, even on her deathbed she still dared to try and bite off a piece of his flesh.
At the same time, Atia raised his long sword high and slashed heavily at one of the celestial beast's legs.
Blood splattered instantly; the leg was almost severed by the blade, and Atia was also sent flying by the force of the blow.
Ordinary cosmic beasts would have their attack power greatly reduced after suffering such severe damage. However, this cosmic beast seemed to have been given some kind of hint, completely ignoring it and letting its severed leg sway on its body, with only a thin strip of skin connecting it.
"Bah!"
The support team's insects froze for a moment, then the beast swooped down on them. If they were hit in this situation, they would be crippled even if they didn't die.
They instinctively closed their eyes.
At this critical moment, the beast's dive suddenly stopped. Sometime later, the silver-haired leader flapped its wings and flew back, standing in front of all the insects. With a kick of all its might, it barely managed to block the beast's dive attack.
At the same time, he flicked his right hand, and the thin blade in his hand instantly extended to more than a meter, with faint flowing light floating on it. With a flash of light, another knife mark appeared on the face of the strange beast.
Attiyah jumped away and issued the order.
"All queens, retreat to a safe distance; you are no match for it."
Palmer looked anxious. "The Legion Commander! You..."
Before he could finish speaking, the leader in front of him had already spread his wings and gathered his strength, then shot away like a shooting star.
"..." Palmer's eyes were full of worry, but he knew that they would only get in the way, so he immediately commanded the various starships to go to the appropriate positions and provide support to the Legion Commander's Bug by launching energy cannons from a distance.
Just a quarter of an hour. If we can hold on for just a quarter of an hour, reinforcements will arrive. Then, with the help of their newly developed automatic tracking explosive seeds, we should be able to quickly create an opening and inflict heavy damage on the Federation army.
Palmer stared intently at the star map in front of him.
Legion Commander, please, please persevere.
...
"Bah!"
"Bah!"
With two sharp screechs, two more legs of the alien beast were cleanly and decisively severed.
At the same time, Attiyah also had many wounds on his body, especially his soft armor which was cut open, and radiation was slowly eroding his body.
Atiyah was breathing heavily, his eyes already showing signs of exhaustion, and his movements were becoming stiff. A few drops of blood floated down his eyelashes, it was unclear whether they were his own or someone else's.
He carefully observed the Starry Sky Beast King's movements, trying to find a breakthrough point from it as soon as possible. He had to finish the battle quickly; he couldn't hold out much longer.
only……
I'm so sorry.
Atiyah thought to himself.
You have put your child in danger.
"..." He seemed to hear a sigh.
"You are me, your goal is my goal, your choice is my choice."
No need to apologize.
"I'll help you."
Atia's two crimson pupils underwent a subtle change, with a faint purple tinge gradually spreading until it covered the entire pupil, creating a heterochromatic eye with one red and one purple pupil.
As if an invisible force filled his body, Atia's eyes sharpened, and amidst the tacit sound of cannon fire around him, he plunged his sword into one of the Beast King's two eyes. Then, using the momentum of being thrown back, he twisted in the air and, taking advantage of the Beast King's body slightly arched back in pain, he gripped his long sword and flew at lightning speed like a meteor, leaving a long gash on the Beast King's stomach.
Instantly, the sound of sharp weapons colliding seemed to travel through his knife and his bones into his body. Atia flipped over and increased the force, suddenly stabbing into the softest part that had just been slashed, then extending the blade to two meters. Blood immediately gushed out from the gaps in the blade.
The beast king was wounded in a vital spot and suddenly began to roll violently. Atia used the force to pull out his long sword, and a large amount of blood gushed out instantly, floating around in streams.
The tiny crystal fragments in the blood refracted different lights, indicating that the attack had successfully and severely injured the beast's core.
One more blow and the domesticated animal will be killed.
Palmer's tightly clenched hands finally relaxed a little. That's good, that's good...
"Screech!!!" The dying beast king let out three sharp cries.
"Screech!!!" As if in response, a sharp screech also came from the deep sky not far away. The power was so strong that even from such a distance, one could feel a mental tremor. The sound was so furious and powerful.
The expressions of almost all the insects present froze instantly.
As if to confirm their conjecture, the moment the voice fell, the Starry Sky Beast King, even larger than the Starry Sky Beast in front of them, appeared. Upon seeing the nearly dying beast, it let out another huge shriek.
Its shriek brought a more powerful mental shock. Even Atia, who had become somewhat accustomed to it, was stunned and stood still for half a minute when he heard it directly.
Move... move... get moving...
However, his mind was so stagnant that even his thoughts seemed to be playing out like a slideshow, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move an inch.
That half-minute was a fatal one. Even if Palmer commanded all the starships to open fire immediately, it would be difficult to withstand the enormous alien beast king.
Legion Commander Worm!
Everything seemed to slow down, with the cannonballs sliding through the air frame by frame, and the Beast King's sharp claws thrusting forward frame by frame, as if to impale the tiny female insect on its claws.
No! ! !
"bite--"
Everything froze—the floating blood, the agonizing screams, the claws so close at hand—everything froze.
All insects can see, hear, and think, but they cannot perform any actions, not even moving their eyes.
what happened?
Palmer's gaze remained fixed on the current star map screen, in the center of which was the familiar Legion Commander Worm...
No, there's one more worm.
In the image, a handsome male insect with black hair and black eyes tightly embraces a silver-haired female insect covered in wounds.
Around him, countless faint, transparent threads solidified into physical forms, binding the flying beast king like suspended puppets. Its pitch-black, seemingly poisoned claws were less than half a meter away.
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Author's Note: Thank you AAA for the gift! *kissing sounds* [starry eyes][heart eyes][cheers]
Thank you "Shangcheng" baby for the nutritional solution! [Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers][Go for it!]
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