TCPUAAV Chapter 79

 

When Sijialan Star sent its sixth communication request, Rong Heng finally answered.

 

He donned the pure white smiling mask and wore a pristine, wrinkle-free white military uniform. Sitting in a large swivel chair, he crossed his long legs, clasped his hands together in front of him, and leaned forward slightly as he gazed at the communication screen.

 

He already had a good idea why Sijialan Star was so desperate to contact Balham Star.

 

But clearly, Sijialan Star had no idea what had happened to Balham Star.

 

As Rong Heng’s virtual image appeared, his bizarre attire left the people in the base unsettled for a moment. Finally, the base commander stepped forward and asked, “Who are you? Let Manson Belloc speak.”

 

“Manson Belloc?” Rong Heng tilted his head, then clapped his hands and turned to the guard robot. “This gentleman wants to see Manson Belloc. Go bring him here.”

 

Moments later, Manson Belloc—disheveled and bedraggled—was escorted in from the warehouse where he had been detained.

 

He was the head of the Ground Control Center, holding the highest authority over the entire facility. But now, he was nothing more than a prisoner.

 

Although Rong Heng had not mistreated or harmed the captives, being locked up in a warehouse for days was enough to drain the spirit of a man accustomed to giving orders.

 

Seeing Belloc’s state, Sijialan Star finally realized that something had gone wrong on Balham Star. And given the other party’s peculiar attire and blatant disrespect, they immediately thought of the notorious interstellar pirates.

 

These roaming marauders of space were never polite to anyone.

 

But the mermaids were never ones to suffer losses in silence. Haman, the clan leader, raised a hand to silence the commander before he could speak further. He stepped forward, locking eyes with Rong Heng, and asked, “The neutron beams near Balham Star—was it you who intercepted them?”

 

“That’s right.” Rong Heng propped his chin up with one hand, speaking in a lazy tone.

 

He had disliked Haman for a long time. Though undeniably powerful, the mermaids’ leader was also arrogant, conceited, and a staunch racial supremacist.

 

In the past, the Four Ancient Clans had at least maintained a façade of amicability. Rong Heng, despite his distaste, had simply turned a blind eye. But now, under the guise of an interstellar pirate, there was no longer any need for pretense—he could be as rude as he pleased.

 

“Mere interstellar pirates dare to do this? You have no idea who you’ve provoked.” Haman’s expression darkened, his voice cold. “Sijil—”

 

“Oh, we know.” Rong Heng cut him off without a hint of politeness. “Even across countless light-years, I can smell the stench of fish from Sijialan Star’s seafood.”

 

As he spoke, he fanned his hand in front of his nose as if genuinely overwhelmed by the imaginary stench.

 

“You—!” Never before had he been so humiliated. Haman’s face flushed red with rage, his usually refined features twisting slightly. “Since you know, yet still dare—are you declaring war on Sijialan Star?”

 

Rong Heng sneered and relaxed back into his chair, his tone still as nonchalant as ever. “If it’s war you want, then war it is.”

 

He clearly did not take Sijialan Star seriously.

 

Without warning, the communication was cut off. The other side was obviously seething with rage.

 

Feeling refreshed, Rong Heng signaled the robot to escort Manson Belloc back to the warehouse. Then, removing his mask, he turned to the others. “With Haman’s temper, he’s definitely preparing for a second strike.”

 

But that no longer concerned them. The Dyson Sphere drew its energy from the star itself, and they had an entire resource planet backing them up. If it came down to a direct confrontation, the ones to suffer would be Sijialan Star, who was trying to erase all evidence in secret.

 

Rong Heng chuckled softly and activated Noah. “Engage defense mode, lock onto Sijialan Star, prepare for first counterattack.”

 

Four days later, Sijialan Star’s second strike came.

 

Two neutron beams, carrying immense kinetic energy, surged forward—one diverging toward the distant B3024 Star, the other heading straight for Balham Star.

 

But Rong Heng had long been prepared. Three neutron beams launched in response—two intercepting Sijialan Star’s attack, detonating harmlessly in empty space, while the third shot forth at superluminal speed—straight toward Sijialan Star.

 

Sijialan Star’s defense system was formidable. A neutron beam traveling millions of light-years was far from enough to threaten the stability of the planet.

 

But this wasn’t about destruction.

 

It was about humiliation.

 

Rong Heng could already picture Haman fuming, jumping up and down in rage.

 

*

 

Three hours later, the Main Control Room received confirmation—the neutron beam had struck its target.

 

Five hours later, news broke across the Holographic Network: Sijialan Star had suddenly been hit by a neutron beam, causing planetary tremors and triggering several tsunamis.

 

While tsunamis posed little threat to the mermaids, who resided in the ocean, the fact that Sijialan Star had been attacked was unprecedented—a massive interstellar event!

 

Not only the inhabitants of Sijialan Star, but people across the entire network were shaken. For a time, the Holographic Network buzzed with speculation about the origins of the neutron beam that had struck Sijialan Star.

 

The mermaid Clan Leader, who already knew the truth, was so furious that he smashed his desk into pieces.

 

A mere band of space pirates dared to be this audacious?

 

Utterly lawless!

 

But this was not the end.

 

It was only the beginning.

 

What truly set the entire Holographic Network ablaze was a livestream.

 

On an otherwise unremarkable streaming platform, a group of interstellar pirates—all wearing strange masks—claimed responsibility for the attack on Sijialan Star. They called themselves the Eastern Alliance.

 

At first, no one took them seriously.

 

Over the past two days, plenty of people had claimed responsibility for the neutron beam attack, making such declarations commonplace on the network.

 

What truly captured the public’s attention, turning this stream into the center of a galactic frenzy, was the video footage the pirates released.

 

In the video, an overwhelming swarm of Zergs blotted out the sky. Amidst the tide of monstrous creatures, a landmark building from the Energy Center stood prominently—unmistakable in its identity.

 

A masked man narrated in a grave voice:

 

“The Zergs have already infiltrated the Galactic Empire’s territories. Perhaps, as you watch this very broadcast, a remote planet is being silently devoured by them. The root cause of this catastrophe is Sijialan Star. They colluded with the Zergs—transporting dormant Zergs from the Melchers District and releasing them, opening a path from the Frontline District’s defenses straight into the Empire’s core territories. Now, these Zergs have begun their conquest of the Empire’s domain. The B3024 Star, which was attacked, may be the first, but it will not be the last.”

 

At the end of the video, the man wearing the pure white smiling mask spoke with a chilling finality:

 

“The era of peace is over. War is about to begin.”

 

The viewership count skyrocketed.

 

Some hurled accusations. Some lashed out in rage. Some felt a creeping fear. The comment section flooded with an endless barrage of messages, burying the screen in text.

 

But the masked individuals offered no further explanations.

 

They cut the livestream—vanishing without a trace.

 

Some filed complaints, accusing the stream of spreading panic and chaos. The original broadcast was swiftly taken down, but recordings made by viewers continued to circulate across the Holographic Network.

 

Now, the Eastern Alliance and Sijialan Star became the newest hot topics, sparking heated discussions.

 

Yet, few truly took Rong Heng’s warning to heart.

 

Most remained indifferent.

 

The Frontline District’s soldiers had always kept the Zergs at bay.

 

The Empire’s core had been peaceful for far too long.

 

People had forgotten the brutal wars their ancestors had fought against the Zergs.

 

They had forgotten the spirit of unity that once bound the Empire together against external threats.

 

No one believed that the flames of war would ever reach their own doorstep.

 

They had grown used to turning a blind eye to the suffering of others.

 

—Until someone cried for help.

 

A desperate plea echoed across the Holographic Network.

 

A young Beastkin, barely in his twenties, connected his consciousness to the Holographic World through a neural-link headset. In a crowded news forum, he shouted for help.

 

His mental projection was unstable, his form flickering as he knelt on the ground, weeping uncontrollably—begging for someone to save Lunka Star.

 

Then, he showed them.

 

The state of Lunka Star—

 

A sky blackened by an endless swarm of Zergs.

 

Ruined buildings, reduced to lifeless rubble.

 

A military force in full retreat, their defenses crumbling.

 

Bodies strewn across the ground, lifeless, abandoned.

 

“Save us… I beg you… Please, save Lunka Star…”

 

His mental projection distorted further, his form twisting unnaturally. Then, he vanished completely, as if he had never existed.

 

His last words echoed in the silence:

 

“They have sealed off Lunka Star. They won’t let us leave.”

 

Everyone present in the Holographic World knew exactly what it meant when someone’s mental projection twisted and disappeared.

 

It meant that their physical body in reality had already died.

 

Most likely, the unstable projection they had seen was merely a faint remnant of his consciousness, lingering for a brief moment after his death.

 

The tragedy that unfolded before their eyes finally forced some people to acknowledge the truth:

 

The Zerg invasion was real.

 

And Lunka Star’s fate was swiftly confirmed.

 

At 5:43 PM on March 26, the Sikkim Daily published a mourning article—

 

“Lunka Star, located in the Caesarea District, has suffered a catastrophic disaster. A leak in the Giant Tokamak Reactor triggered an Energy Station explosion, leading to a series of chain detonations. The planet has suffered an apocalyptic event. There were no survivors.”

 

A full-page spread covered the disaster.

 

But not one word mentioned the young Beastkin who had pleaded for help on the Holographic Network.

 

This blatant attempt to cover up the truth finally ignited public outrage.

 

Some began recalling the words spoken by the masked pirates during their livestream:

 

“Perhaps, as you watch this very broadcast, a remote planet is being silently devoured by the Zergs.”

 

Many had dismissed it as a joke.

 

In this era of interstellar-wide Holographic connectivity, no one truly believed that an entire planet could vanish without a trace.

 

But now—Lunka Star’s fate slapped them all in the face.

 

It hadn’t disappeared silently.

 

Its ending was far more terrifying.

 

The Zerg invasion was real.

 

Yet, instead of rescuing the invaded planets, the Empire’s response was to seal them off—And let them “disappear” in a way that seemed perfectly justified.

 

This time, it was a reactor leak.

 

Next time, when it’s their planet’s turn—what grand excuse will they hear then?

 

The thought sent chills down everyone’s spine.

 

A sense of urgent crisis mixed with seething outrage—no one wanted to be the next sacrificial pawn in the Empire’s cover-ups. People took to the Holographic Network, demanding the truth behind Lunka Star’s destruction.

 

Even in front of Palka Palace, protests erupted, with demonstrators calling for answers.

 

For two days, public fury boiled over.

 

Then, the current Emperor of the Empire, Siyan, held a press conference—and revealed the truth about Lunka Star’s annihilation.

 

He publicly acknowledged that Lunka Star had fallen to the Zerg invasion.

 

According to him, the local government was underprepared, their defenses too weak. Less than twenty-four hours after sending out a distress signal, Lunka Star was completely overrun.

 

But the real shock came next— The distress signal never reached the central government.

 

Instead, a high-ranking official intercepted it in secret and sent it to Sijialan Star.

 

The so-called reactor explosion?

 

Nothing more than a cover story—fabricated to hide the truth.

 

In reality, Sijialan Star had deployed a planet-destroying weapon to wipe out Lunka Star, silencing all evidence of the Zerg invasion.

 

Siyan’s voice was grave.

 

“Even before I ascended the throne, I knew the Empire was fractured by racial divisions.

But never did I expect that, when facing the Zerg threat, some of our own would turn their blades against their own people. As Emperor, I have failed.”

 

The refined and strikingly handsome emperor stood before the cameras—his expression sincere, his tone somber and resolute.

 

Then, in a move that stunned the crowd, he removed his imperial crown—and bowed deeply in apology.

 

A reporter immediately pressed forward with the question on everyone’s mind:

 

“Your Majesty, how do you intend to deal with Sijialan Star?”

 

Siyan straightened.

 

The remorse in his gaze hardened into cold determination.

 

“I will declare war on Sijialan Star—for treason. Governor Haman will stand trial before the military tribunal.”

 

That same day, the Sikkim Daily ran its front-page headline in bold, glaring text:

 

“Sijialan Star: Traitors to the Empire!”

 

“Governor Haman to Face Trial!”

 

Siyan’s declaration was a match thrown onto dry tinder—

 

The rage of those following the Lunka Star tragedy erupted into full-blown fury.

 

 

---

 

Lunka Star’s fate mirroring what could have happened on B3024 if our cast wasn’t there…

 

Things are really imploding everywhere now o_o

 

Also… I really have a hard time believing that Siyan knew nothing about Haman’s plans considering they’re both obsessed with genetics modifications and experiments….

 

Thanks for reading!

For every three ko-fis, I will upload a bonus chapter~