Suddenly, ripples like an oil film appeared in the core area of the mother nest.
Lin Yi's pupils contracted to pinpoints as the tyrannical will from the depths of the universe infiltrated him at an exponential rate, causing even his perception of space and time to momentarily stagnate.
He could clearly sense that the awakening of that consciousness was not a simple awakening—it was more like some ancient, sealed being using the malice accumulated over countless eras to soak the entire battlefield in venom.
"Long Wu, take command of the fleet." His voice was like the sharp edge of a blade tempered in cold iron as he tossed the tactical terminal behind him.
The moment Long Wu caught the terminal, his palm went numb from the heat of the metal.
This man, who was never afraid of anything, looked at Lin Yi's ramrod-straight silhouette and his Adam's apple bobbed.
He had seen his leader single-handedly take down a boss in the newbie village, and he had seen his leader withstand a spatial storm in a dimensional rift, but the aura emanating from his leader at this moment... seemed more like a rule itself.
"Yes!" Long Wu wiped his face vigorously, and his tactical goggles automatically switched to battlefield overview mode. His fingertips flew across the virtual panel three times faster than usual—he knew that every second of delay could expose a flaw in his boss's plan.
Lin Yi raised his left hand, and the time-space watch on his wrist suddenly emitted a dazzling silver light.
That was the "time domain anchor" he condensed from the original fragments of three spacetime rifts. At this moment, it was trembling violently with his thoughts, and the twelve stars on the dial began to rotate counterclockwise.
"Chu Yao, adjust the barrier coverage to a radius of 500 kilometers from the core of the mother nest." His voice carried an undeniable certainty. "I need at least three minutes of absolute isolation."
\"receive.\"
Chu Yao's response came through the communication channel, accompanied by the slight electrical noise characteristic of data.
The holographic projection in the corner of the command cabin suddenly lit up, and the virtual girl wearing a moon-white cheongsam was sitting upright in the light stream, her fingertips moving quickly through the floating code matrix.
The jade hairpin in her hair had been replaced with a data link port at some point. Pale golden data streams flowed down her hair, weaving a complex array on the ground—this was a temporary deep binding of her core code to the tactical terminal in order to break through the mother nest firewall.
"A fake log has been generated. The virus's origin points to Colin, the vice commander of the Night Owl Third Fleet." Chu Yao's eyelashes trembled slightly, and thousands of lines of scrolling code flashed in her pupils. "Three months ago, he embezzled three ships' worth of crystal ore. I planted a three-month-old timed Trojan in his personal terminal... Now, it's time for him to taste the bitter fruit of his own greed."
As she spoke, the last code node was pressed.
The alarm of the Mother Nest defense system suddenly changed, and the energy cannons that were originally locked onto the human fleet turned their barrels around. Several beams of light that grazed the side of the Federation cruiser were accurately hit on the flagship of the Night Owl reinforcement fleet.
"Good technique." Aizen's voice came from another channel, with a hint of admiration in his low chuckle.
The mysterious superhuman who always wore a dark green Taoist robe was standing in the wreckage area outside the hive, his right hand resting on a charred Zerg carapace.
The spiritual pressure in his palm seeped into the cracks of his carapace like a living thing, and the nine-petaled lotus pattern that was originally tattooed on his wrist suddenly appeared in the air, each petal glowing with a faint blue light.
"Spiritual pressure resonator activated." He chanted softly, his Daoist robes fluttering without wind. "The spatial technique I mastered three hundred years ago on Penglai Immortal Island can finally be put to use today."
Before the words were finished, a muffled rumble suddenly came from inside the mother nest.
The energy channels that originally connected the various combat zones were gripped by an invisible hand, first twisting into the shape of a Möbius strip, and then snapping with a "crack"—fragments of the black hole created by the spatial collapse wandered in the channels, shredding the Zerg warriors who tried to pass through into a bloody mist along with their armor.
"Boss!"
"Barrier formation rate 87%!" Long Wu's voice was filled with suppressed excitement. "The consciousness contamination outside the Mother Nest has been cut off!"
Those insects are now attacking like headless flies, their attack frequency has decreased by 40%!
Lin Yi did not respond.
Fine beads of sweat had already seeped from his forehead, and the starlight on his time-travel watch was reversing faster and faster, each reversal feeling like it was draining his life force.
He could sense that the being on the other side of the barrier was impacting the isolation layer—not with energy, but with something more fundamental, as if it wanted to crush the "rules" of the entire spacetime.
"Two seconds left..." He gritted his teeth, his knuckles turning white from the force. "Chu Yao, Ai Ran, your interference needs to be twice as strong!"
"Understood." Chu Yao's code matrix suddenly exploded into a shower of stardust, her figure becoming transparent in the stream of light. "I need to access your spacetime rift... Three, two, one!"
At the same moment, the nine-petaled lotus pattern of the indigo dye suddenly burst forth with dazzling light.
He bit his tongue hard, and blood splattered onto the center of the lotus pattern, instantly tripling the size of the spatial collapse.
The main energy pipelines inside the hive exploded one after another, and orange-red flames spewed out from the cracked bulkheads, turning the originally dark blue Zerg architecture into the color of hell.
"Barrier...complete!"
Lin Yi gave a low shout, and the starlight on the time-space wristwatch suddenly stopped.
The space in the core area of the mother nest was suddenly coated with a thin layer of pale gold film, and the violent will that almost crushed the soul was finally isolated on the other side of the film.
"Hoo—" Long Wu slumped in the command chair, his combat uniform soaked with cold sweat.
He looked at the battlefield data on the holographic screen, his eyes widening suddenly: "Boss!"
Things are in chaos at Night Owl's place!
Their communication channels were filled with curses; Colin's flagship had been hit by three holes by his own side and was now exchanging fire with the Seventh Fleet!
Lin Yi wiped the sweat from his forehead and glanced at the tactics panel.
In Chu Yao's fabricated log, Colin's "evidence of treason" was circulating at the speed of light among the Night Owl's top brass. Those usually arrogant generals were now like cats whose tails had been stepped on, accusing each other in the public channel.
"Su Qing, intercept their encrypted communications." He turned to look at the corner, where the ponytail girl holding a laptop was biting her lower lip, her fingers flying across the keyboard twice as fast as usual.
Upon hearing this, Su Qing looked up, her eyes behind her glasses shining brightly: "It's already being done."
I just caught a clip... from Grand Marshal Night Owl's private channel. "She paused, her fingertips trembling slightly," he said, "He said... he wanted to activate the 'Cleanup Protocol,' sending all suspected generals to military court."
A faint smile appeared on Lin Yi's lips.
He knew that when these once-arrogant invaders began to kill each other, the balance of the war had completely tipped.
Behind that pale golden barrier, in the darkness of the core area of the mother nest, a pair of eyes glowing with an eerie green light were slowly opening.
Su Qing's fingers paused abruptly on the keyboard, the blue light from her laptop making her ears flush red: "Brother Lin, the Night Owl Third Fleet's 'Anvil' has suddenly turned!" She pushed up her glasses, which had slipped down her nose, and saw the red trajectory line on the screen veering off the main battlefield in an eerie arc. "Their communications are filled with talk of 'Colin's private army defecting,' and the vice commander has led a third of the fleet straight into deep space!"
Lin Yi's pupils contracted slightly, and the red dots jumping on the tactical panel looked like sparks scattered by the wind.
He raised his hand to his temple, and the power of spacetime surged in his mind—this was not an ordinary desertion, but a chain reaction of collapse caused by mutual distrust among the higher-ups.
The Trojan horse that Chu Yao planted three months ago is now gnawing at the intruder's command system like a virus.
"Chu Yao, expand the reach of the forged logs." His voice was low and husky, like a grating hue. "Synchronize Colin's 'evidence of treason' to every squadron leader's terminal."
The girl in the moon-white cheongsam in the holographic projection paused, her fingertips pausing. The data stream at the ends of her hair suddenly surged into a silver waterfall of light: "Requires 20% of your spacetime rift access." For the first time, her virtual face showed a flicker, and the data stream at the corners of her eyes rippled slightly. "This will affect your spatial manipulation precision for the next three hours."
"It's worth it to cripple their command system." Lin Yi tugged at his tactical collar, his Adam's apple bobbing in a cold, hard arc. "Go do it."
Chu Yao's figure blurred for a moment in the stream of light, and when she reappeared, the jade hairpin in her hair had completely transformed into a data interface.
The code chain that her fingertips traced suddenly split into millions of strands, wrapping around the mother hive's communication network like silver spider silk—this was the price she paid for forcing her way through the firewall with her core code. At this moment, her virtual skin was covered in snowflake-like noise, yet she was still chuckling: "Night Owl Grand Marshal's private terminal...is receiving video data of 'Colin's deal with humans'."
What do you think his expression will be when he sees his most trusted right-hand man shaking hands with the fake 'Lin Yi' I'm talking about?
A piercing buzzing sound suddenly rang out from the command center.
Long Wu abruptly ripped off his tactical goggles, the veins on his forehead throbbing rapidly: "Boss!"
The Night Owl's virtual conference hall is now open!
"They're holding an emergency strategic meeting!" He pointed to the purple light that suddenly lit up on the holographic screen—the intruders' private mental link space. "Going in now can interfere with their decision-making!"
Lin Yi's gaze instantly turned cold.
He looked at the gray-robed old man who had remained silent in the corner—Xuan Mingzi had taken off his bamboo hat at some point, and a few strands of blue light were wrapped in his pale hair, which was the sign that he was connecting to the virtual network with the remnant soul of the game's main brain.
"Same as always." Lin Yi's thumb rubbed against his time-travel wristwatch. "You impersonate the chief staff officer of the Third Fleet and suggest a 'concentrate forces to counterattack the Alliance's rear supply lines.'" His voice softened, as if he were stating a perfectly ordinary point of conversation. "Remember, make them believe it's the 'safest' option."
Xuanmingzi's fingertips curled slightly at his side.
He stared at the flashing virtual conference hall icon on the tactical screen, his Adam's apple bobbing—it was the last vestige of humanity he, as the remnant soul of the game's main brain, was struggling against.
But when his gaze swept over the inverted starlight on Lin Yi's wrist, over the undried bloodstains on Long Wu's combat uniform, and finally landed on Su Qing's eyes, which were bruised from staying up all night, his fingers under the gray robe suddenly clenched into a fist.
"Understood." His voice was hoarse like the scraping of rusty iron. As he turned, he stirred up a gust of wind that caused ripples to appear on the holographic projection in the command center.
The next second, his figure had merged into the data stream of the virtual network, leaving only a very soft murmur in the air: "This is... the last thing I can do for humanity."
"Long Wu." Lin Yi suddenly turned around, his tactical boots making a crisp sound on the metal ground. "Lead the assault team and break in through the gap in the east area."
The target is the triangular pyramid-shaped energy nexus. He raised his hand and drew a striking red line on the holographic screen. "Destroy it, and the Hive's defenses will weaken by 30%."
Long Wu's pupils suddenly contracted, and the muscles beneath his combat suit taut into iron-cast lines.
He abruptly ripped off the wolf fang pendant from his neck—it was a gift from Lin Yi, given to him personally three years ago in the starting village, and it was now dangling in front of his chest with his movement. "Boss, there are three Zerg lords stationed in the East District!"
"So you're leading the 'Shadow Blade' squad." Lin Yi's lips curled into a sharp smile. "Chu Yao will hack their thermal imaging, and Aizen's spiritual pressure can interfere with the swarm's perception." He patted Long Wu's shoulder, the warmth of his palm seeping through his combat suit. "I need you to complete the mission in twenty minutes."
"Yes!" Long Wu's answer was like a thunderclap. As he turned around, his tactical goggles had already switched to individual combat mode.
He paused at the command center door, then turned to look at Lin Yi: "Boss...where are you going?"
Lin Yi didn't speak, but simply raised his hand and pointed to the western area of the Mother Nest on the tactical screen—marked with three scarlet exclamation marks, which was the outer barrier of the Mother Nest's core area.
The time-space watch on his wrist suddenly lit up with twelve starlight rays, and pale golden light seeped out from the cracks on the dial, which was the origin of the time-space rift resonating.
Su Qing's voice suddenly burst from the communicator: "Brother Lin!"
The virtual meeting room was in complete chaos!
The Grand Marshal adopted the 'staff officer's' suggestion!
"They're turning three main fleets around!" Her voice trembled with barely suppressed excitement. "Night Owl's vanguard is now running around like headless chickens; half the defensive forces at the eastern breach have been withdrawn!"
Lin Yi's gaze swept across the frantically jumping red dots on the tactical screen, finally settling on the darkness of the western area of the Mother Nest.
He could sense that the eerie green eyes behind the pale golden barrier were still watching them, but at this moment, humanity's counterattack had only just begun.
"Long Wu, let's go." His voice was deep and rumbling like thunder, his fingers slowly pressing on the time-travel wristwatch. "Let this war... truly begin."
As Long Wu's assault fleet disappeared into the warp light, Lin Yi had already changed into a pure black combat suit.
He gazed at the surging swarm of insects outside the command module when a rift in the spacetime between his wrists suddenly tore open—a silver band of light visible only to him, winding its way up the wall of the western section of the Mother Nest.
"Su Qing, connect me to Aizen." His fingers traced the light from the crack in his wristwatch, which flowed in his pupils. "Tell that guy to get his spiritual pressure resonator ready."
I need... nine mirror paths.
In the shadows of the western section of the Mother Nest, a dark figure was climbing up the wall.
Every step he took treaded on the edge of a spacetime rift, leaving footprints that bloomed into silver flowers in the air—a unique trajectory of the [Spacetime Overlord], which even the most sophisticated detectors of the Zerg could not capture.
Ten meters above his head, the barrier in the core area of the mother nest suddenly rippled.
Those eerie green eyes blinked, as if they had sensed something.
But before it could react, a cold whisper came from the darkness: "The game...it's time to change the rules."
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