One day later, in the capital …
The news that the Thick Soil Sector had fallen again had been spread to the royal palace. The gory and cruel news that the garrison of the Thick Soil Sector had been annihilated added a bloody haze to the royal palace. The new emperor had just ascended to the throne, and he had just declared that he would annihilate the rebels in front of everybody, only to be attacked by the rebels of the four families and the Covenant Alliance at the same time. It was almost a dark joke.
Before the wine in the banquet was cold, an urgent and confidential military meeting was held. Apart from the new emperor, the participants were Li Yao, Lei Chenghu, Li Linghai, Boss Bai, Jin Yuyan, Long Yangjun, and A Boxing Champion.
These people might not necessarily be the most powerful people in the Empire at the moment. Including the expeditionary army and the Imperial Guard, there were a lot of powerful big shots with noble titles who wielded power that could match them.
However, they were the only people that the new emperor truly trusted and could rely on.
"The Holy League's attack began two to three days ago. They must've made thorough preparations for the attack. Before the battle began, they blocked all the signals from the Thick Soil Sector and sent out a lot of fake signals to make it seem that the Thick Soil Sector was peaceful. That was the most critical day."
Gloomily, Lei Chenghu leaned against an enormous light beam and explained to Li Yao and the rest of them, "The expedition army was not very strong in the first place. They were scattered among hundreds of planets and tens of thousands of sailing routes in almost a hundred Sectors. Also, a lot of soldiers were sent back to participate in the battle between the reformists and the four families. Only one third of the forty-eight divisions of the garrison of the Thick Soil Sector was full. The Holy League outnumbered them by dozens of times. They had done their best, but they could only die for their cause.
"We didn't know the fall of the Thick Soil Sector until later. In that case, the few Sectors nearby that were unguarded might've fallen too. Thankfully, there was a small troop of soldiers in the garrison of the Thick Soil Sector. They miraculously stole a high-speed shuttle and escaped from the interception of the Holy League.
"Not only did they bring the news that the Holy League was back, but they also brought the first-hand files that allowed us to see the secret of the Holy League's precise jump to the main planet of the Thick Soil Sector. Please take a look —"
On the light beam behind Lei Chenghu, a series of shaky battle videos were displayed. The camera was aimed at the secret base of the Covenant Alliance that the warriors of the Blade Edge Company had captured, which looked like a super teleportation array.
"This is —"
Everybody was attracted by the magical equipment that looked like a spire in the picture. They were also disgusted by the hibernation cabins of the Holy League that looked like a hive.
Li Yao was the best refiner in the meeting. Naturally, he was duty-bound to be the first to speak. He narrowed his eyes and studied it for a long time, before he said, "It seems to be some sort of super teleportation array or a powerful signal source. Judging from the style of its craftsmanship, it has the primitive feel of the primeval age.
"Judging from the runes carved on the wall and the glittering electric arcs, it is trying to rip apart the three-dimensional space and create small wormholes. Then, it will send a certain special beacon to somewhere else.
"In other words, it can partially replace the space gate. It is even a very advanced and secret space gate that can summon the main force of the Holy League from millions of lightyears away!"
"How is it possible?"
The new emperor — Li Yao still preferred to call him Li Jialing — found it hard to believe. "How can a space gate be built inside the atmosphere? Its signal will be highly distorted when it passes through the atmosphere!"
"About that … Perhaps the Holy League excavated some new technology from the primeval age and improved their space gate. Or maybe they hid a hibernating space gate in the vast space zone of the Thick Soil Sector when they retreated and only activated it with this facility on the ground."
Li Yao opened his hands and said, "There are a lot of ways. The only problem is that the space gate should've released intense space ripples and spiritual waves when it was opened. The defenders should've discovered and destroyed it immediately. Why were the garrison of the Thick Soil Sector so slow?"
"Because —"
Lei Chenghu paused for a moment, his face turning purple and then black. "A while ago, the garrison of the Thick Soil Sector carried out an investigation codenamed 'Absolute Loyalty' and dug out a lot of traitors of the four families who were lurking in the army. Unfortunately, the commanders of the orbit defense fleet and the space detection troops were all from the four families. Naturally, they were suppressed mercilessly. So, there was a minor mess and a mistake in the handover."
Li Yao did not say anything. His eyes bulged as he stared at Lei Chenghu.
Lei Chenghu did not dare to face his scorching eyes and turned his head away, which was rare for him.
"Are you serious?"
Li Yao, however, was unwilling to let him go. He gnashed his teeth and said, one word after another, "Look at the situation. You know that the Holy League will show up at any moment, and you're still purging the frontline?"
"What can I do?"
The veins on Lei Chenghu's neck protruded all the way to his temples. He bashed the table and roared, "Ever since the failure in the battle of Seven Seas and the battle of the capital, the expedition army has been the target that the four families have been trying to win. They know that they are dying, too, so they are spending all their money to draw back the soldiers in the expedition army who belong to the four families. They are even instigating the entire expedition army to rebel!
"Nobody wants to treat their comrades so cruelly. I am even more reluctant to let the experienced veterans who have been through life and death be killed by our own people. However, screening, investigation, and loyalty education are absolutely necessary. Otherwise, the whole expedition army will raise the flag of 'Emperor Chengwu' again when they wake up!
"Yes, the garrisons in every world of the expedition army have their own screening and investigation methods. Many of them are very extreme, but what can I do? Can I split myself into thousands of clones and join countless troops in hundreds of worlds, like a kindergarten teacher supervising children, supervising them on how to conduct the investigation?
"Don't say that our methods are cruel. We have to correct the wrong! Otherwise, how can we guarantee the loyalty of the expedition army to the new emperor, to the reform, and to the new Imperium? Do we have to rely on you to persuade them, or do we have to play videos for the entire expedition army again? "
"You —"
Li Yao was exasperated. "How can you be like this?"
"Alright, my dear subjects …"
It was also Li Jialing's first time to be an emperor. He had performed rather well in the coronation ceremony just now, but now that he was caught unprepared, he had no time to care about the dignity of an emperor at all. He simply said drily, "With everything coming to this point, it is useless for you to argue. You'd better figure out a solution now! Marquis Liaohai, what's the situation in the other worlds other than the Thick Soil Sector? Have you found anyone from the Holy League? "
"Not yet."
Lei Chenghu took a deep breath and managed to calm himself down. Displaying the map of the newly-recovered area on the light beam behind him, he said hoarsely, "However, the loss of the Thick Soil Sector alone is fatal enough! Please take a look. The Thick Soil Sector happens to be at the center of the sailing routes in the newly-recovered area. It has a high density of jump points and is a hub between the battle areas in the frontline. Therefore, a lot of assets have been stored there.
"The loss of the Thick Soil Sector not only cost our army a lot of precious assets, but it also caused a 'blockage' between the supply lines in the frontline. Dozens of worlds used the Thick Soil Sector as a 'platform' to rest and resupply on the way. If the supply lines are reset, the fuel and resources consumed on the way will be increased by at least 20%, and the resupply time will be delayed to some extent, too.
"More importantly, the Holy League's occupation of the Thick Soil Sector is like a nail that has been hammered into the core of our newly-recovered area. Through the platform, they can attack all the Sectors around freely."
As he spoke, Lei Chenghu clenched his fists hard.
"I tried to explain to the Council of Elders a year ago that the war in the previous period was too smooth. The main force of the Covenant Alliance was not destroyed at all, and our expedition army was projected to more planets, more sailing routes, and the almost infinite sea of stars. While we secured the apparent victory, we lost the mobility that was most important to us!"
Lei Chenghu said coldly, "Right now, the main force of the Holy League is like a fist that can punch wherever it wants. We have to divide our forces and defend ourselves. We want to defend a hundred Sectors, but we can't defend any of them in the end!"
"Then —"
Naturally, Li Yao asked, "Can we abandon part of the newly-recovered area, retract our troops, and wait for an opportunity to fight the main force of the Holy League? At the very least, we can defend the few most important strategic locations."
"It's very difficult. Such a strategy would've been correct a year ago, but it's impossible right now. The problem is not military but politics."
Lei Chenghu shook his head and said, "We are different from the people of the Holy League. The people of the Holy League are a bunch of lunatics and machines who do not care about any influence at all. They can abandon dozens of Sectors without any hesitation, and they can also bury themselves deep below the ground for years or even decades, before they break out of the soil like bugs without caring about the casualties. But we can't do that. We are the legitimate army of the Imperium, the guardians of mankind, and the representatives of the glorious path of the civilization of mankind!
"Right now, the new emperor has just ascended to the throne, and the Imperium is about to usher in the most glorious era. As a result, we have to withdraw from dozens of Sectors voluntarily and let those Sectors sink into darkness again?
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