When the Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs arrived at the Empyreal Terminus Sector through the turbulence of the universe, the battle in the capital came to an end.
At this moment, about twenty percent of the starships of the four families' ace fleets were directly destroyed by the solar storm and turned into burning coffins. About thirty percent of the starships were paralyzed in the sea of stars because their power or navigation systems were seriously damaged because of the death of the crew members due to the radiation and the internal strife.
As for the other half of the starships, even though the crew members had finally broken free from the nightmares, they were still dizzy and in a trance, unable to fight normally at all. Even if they wanted to steer the starships to escape, it would be a rather difficult task.
Generally speaking, a troop would collapse after losing ten percent of its strength. The elite troops such as the four families' ace fleets could only bear twenty to thirty percent of their strength at best. But right now, more than fifty percent of their combat ability had been lost. Any determination, stimulation, and temptation were not enough to support them to continue fighting.
They had been reduced to a tray of loose sand that was waiting to be captured. They were not strong enough to resist the Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs at all.
For the latter, the most troublesome thing was not to "defeat" the four families' ace fleets but to control the miserable, ragged, and panicked enemy starships as quickly as possible with a much smaller number.
They had to be fast because a lot of starships did not suffer any substantial damage. It was just that the crew members were still suffering from the intense mental blast.
Once the crew members were back to normal, they would certainly flee in a hurry even if they did not dare attack the Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs.
Even though they had estimated the difficulty of the mission in advance, Lei Chenghu and Boss Bai still found the complicated situation tricky.
Only Lei Chenghu's steadiness that was like a hammer and Boss Bai's precision that was like a scalpel could finish the impossible mission as easily as dissecting a cow.
They separated the four families' ace fleets that were in a mess and locked onto most of the flagships and main-force warships that had a high combat ability. They installed tremendous crystal bombs in the engine compartments of those warships and jamming cannonballs between the bridge and the mainframe crystal processors. They also blocked all the cannons and sabotaged the steering units of the turrets.
In this way, 90% of the battleship's combat power would be sealed, and the enemy would be completely 'captured'.
The entire process took an extremely long time.
Thankfully, the mental blast caused by the solar storm was too intense. Most of the soldiers of the ace fleets of the four families were not back to themselves so quickly. Even if one or two of them did manage to recover, they would know that they had lost their advantage when they looked at the starships that were in a mess and the well-guarded battle formation on the opposite side. There was no need for them to be killed for nothing.
Only a few core members of the four families who were stubborn to the end woke up in time with their stubborn willpower and led the starships to escape from the battlefield to the edge of the Empyreal Terminus Sector before the arrival of the Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs. They would return to their hometown after they recovered their strength.
Lei Chenghu and Boss Bai did not stop those people. On one hand, it was because they were too understaffed to capture every fish that escaped. It would be a great victory for them as long as they captured more than half of the enemy starships. On the other hand, the solar storm had seriously damaged the shell of those starships. If they performed a space jump with the broken cracks, it was very possible that they would be obliterated in the four-dimensional storm. The odds of them escaping back to their hometown were less than one in ten.
So, they just let them be.
The whole "capture" operation lasted three days and three nights. It was not until the capital planet revolved for another three and a half days that the reformists' "Fiery Trident Lightning Flag" was planted on every starship of the ace fleets of the four families.
The battle of Seven Seas was over, and the battle in the capital was about to come to an end. However, another battle that was more subtle and complicated had inadvertently ignited its dark and profound fire.
…
Below the capital planet, inside the Gold Crystal Pyramid …
In the past three days, when the Thunder Fleet and the Coalition Fleet of Pyromaniacs were cleaning up the remnants of the ace fleets of the four families, Li Yao had been digesting all the information about the Gold Crystal Pyramid. Through the mental devil, he had been destroying the original defense and control modules to rebuild the defense system and control modules that belonged to him and had been branded with his soul.
The old firewalls were gone, and new, more sordid and safer ones were established without a sound. The silent defense rune arrays were activated again, releasing gloomy flames of spiritual energy and glittering electric arcs. Around the Gold Crystal Pyramid, the thousands of battle puppets that looked like skeletons were alert again. Those battle puppets resumed their vigilance and patrolled on a more complicated and thorough route. They were the extension of Li Yao's will. Without Li Yao's permission, they would not let any Immortal Cultivator in.
"Do you want the core modules of the Gold Crystal Pyramid to enter the deepest hibernation?"
When the operation reached the last step, the mental devil asked Li Yao, "If they enter the hibernation state, it will be good for safety and stability. However, if you want to infuriate the sun again, it will take a long time to warm up, which will lead to …"
"It will lead to insufficient deterrence?"
Li Yao immediately understood what the mental devil meant.
"Yes."
In the past three days, the mental devil had figured out what the so-called legacy of Wuying Qi 3.0 was.
As Li Yao's "dark personality" in the first place, it did not resist the identity of "master of the Gold Crystal Pyramid" at all. It was even very interested in the role that could intimidate the entire Imperium of True Human Beings on its own. It couldn't wait to be a deterrent.
As for the "evil dragon", the mental devil did not care about it at all. Instead, it felt that it would be particularly cool if it wore dragon scales!
It seemed that it was the best decision that Li Yao had ever made when he split his soul into two and caused trouble in the mainframe crystal processor of the Gold Crystal Pyramid while the relatively bright personality fought Wuying Qi 3.0 on its own. Otherwise, chances were that he would've been swallowed by Wuying Qi 3.0 on the spot because he couldn't resist the temptation.
"That's indeed a problem, but I will not gamble with the lives of all the residents of the Empyreal Terminus Sector, not even when I'm at my craziest, most desperate, and most infuriated!"
Li Yao said resolutely, "Even if I don't destroy the core units of the Gold Crystal Pyramid, I have to put them into the deepest hibernation in case of any accidents.
"However …
"The lack of deterrence is indeed a problem. How about this? Can you simulate a system so that even though we've completely shut down the core units of the Gold Crystal Pyramid, it will still appear to be in the most sensitive operation and ready to be activated at any moment?"
"I can, but that will change 'strategic deterrence' into 'strategic deception'."
The mental devil sniffed and said, "I feel that it's a lot less stylish. Also, I have to remind you that the premise for 'strategic deterrence' to work is that all the enemies and even your own people must be convinced that the deterrent is an insane lunatic who will use all the deterrence methods without any hesitation. How should I put it? You clearly don't have the power to convince people.
"For an Immortal Cultivator as determined as Lei Chenghu, as an iron-blooded militarist, it is very possible that he will ignore your strategic deterrence and even interpret your strategic deterrence as a strategic deception. Then, he will simply do whatever he wants without caring about any of your cries.
"After all, not that I'm criticizing you, but you've cheated too many people. You don't have any credibility at all."
"What are you talking about?"
Li Yao bulged his eyes. "What do you mean by 'I've cheated too many people'? We were the ones who cheated together, alright?
"However, you do have a point. I'm indeed a righteous, benevolent, and merciful man in front of the public. It's indeed difficult to make Lei Chenghu or other Immortal Cultivators believe that I will use the entire Empyreal Terminus Sector as a bargaining chip."
"Yes. The so-called 'strategic deterrence' is a competition of wills. The wills here are not wills of fighting but craziness."
The mental devil said solemnly, "It's obvious that you're not as crazy as Lei Chenghu. How can you play 'strategic deterrence' with him?"
"Fine. That's a problem. How can I make Lei Chenghu, such a stubborn, iron-blooded, nationalistic man, believe that a kind and innocent Cultivator like me is crazier, more brutal, and more iron-blooded than him?"
Li Yao sighed. Watching the mental devil finish the deep hibernation of the core units of the Gold Crystal Pyramid, he scratched his head and walked out of the control room. "I need to think about it carefully …"
Long Yangjun and Li Jialing were both waiting anxiously outside. The moment they saw Li Yao, they immediately surrounded him and looked at him up and down with both concern and wariness.
"What are you doing? Are you checking if I've turned into a vicious dragon? "
Li Yao frowned and said angrily.
"Yes, we've all heard about 'Wuying Qi 3.0' from you. I have to say that it's a very sordid move!"
Long Yangjun rubbed her fists and said concernedly, "The situation forces you to become the master of the Gold Crystal Pyramid and control the power that can intimidate the entire Imperium. But who knows if you'll lose yourself and fall into darkness in front of such great power? Of course, we'll keep an eye on you and try our best to 'wake you up' the moment you show any sign of metamorphosis! "
"That's right, Brother Yao. I've been digesting Wuying Qi 2.0's legacy in the past few days too. I have to say that it's truly a powerful and dark power!"
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