Above the Galaxy-Chapter 1020 - 656: Fight to the Death

Shen Wuxiang felt a bit indignant inside.

He thought Shang Xiulin’s words were quite unreasonable; if he didn’t want to be the grandson, did he intend to be my grandpa?

Of course, Shen Wuxiang also knew that given the hostility between the two families, even if he called him grandpa, he might not agree...

After all, the outside world claims that Shen Wuxiang is the main culprit in the Tang extermination case.

Killing one’s parents and wiping out an entire family—what a deep-seated vendetta this is?

Can a single ’grandpa’ offset that?

If calling someone dad was useful, the Empire’s richest man, Ma Fengyun, would have been bankrupted by now.

"Dean, others may not be aware of my relationship with the Tang Family, but don’t you know?"

Shen Wuxiang felt quite aggrieved.

Because he personally felt that he was merely an executioner carrying out a mission.

At that time, Tang Li commanded the three armies, his merit overshadowing the sovereign; could the Royal Family tolerate him?

He only acted with the trend, snatching chestnuts from the fire...

When a whale falls, all things thrive.

If it weren’t for the downfall of the Tang Family, how could the Shen Family have risen so powerfully?

Resources are limited, the cake only so big; if you cut more, others get less.

Just like now, as they hold the largest piece of cake, naturally, they have to guard against others coming to seize it...

Unexpectedly, the fiercest contenders are once again the Tang Family members.

Is this the so-called cycle of heaven, where retribution is inevitable?

"If others don’t know, how would I?" Shang Xiulin slowly cleaned up the chess pieces, covering the chess box to prevent dust without looking up, said: "The people were killed by you, the benefits taken by you. Now you claim you have nothing to do with that case, who would believe it?"

"Heh..." Shen Wuxiang rubbed his face, chuckling, "What’s the point of saying this? It’s meaningless. History is written by the victors."

"I can erase the traces of the Tang Family’s existence physically, and also in writing... without any hints, many are willing to step forward to help me do this."

"Since that’s the case, what are you afraid of?"

"Afraid? What is there for me to fear."

"You’re afraid of losing," Shang Xiulin stated categorically, "You’re afraid of losing to Tang Fei."

"Is that so? Just because he’s attacking Luo City? The outcome in Luo City is still uncertain, why does the Dean think I would lose? Besides, even if Luo City falls, can he win against me? Don’t forget, I still hold the overall situation."

Shang Xiulin raised his head to scrutinize Shen Wuxiang, his gaze deep and playful, "Haven’t you noticed? You’re mentioning him more and more frequently."

Shen Wuxiang’s expression stiffened, "So what if I am?"

"You’ve already considered him a true opponent in your heart."

"..."

At this moment, confidential secretary Zhou Hanhai strode in quickly, urgently announcing, "Military Minister, the Phoenix Dance Army’s transport ship has been hijacked, Chi Yunfeng has been killed in action."

"What?" Shen Wuxiang was aghast.

Even with his Qi Cultivation Skills, he was utterly shocked by such astonishing news.

The transport ship flew from Huangshan Base to Luo City, traversing the Empire’s internal territorial airspace... how did the bandits hijack the transport ship?

Does this mean they have a strong fleet ambushed within the Empire?

"We received a distress signal from the Silver Demon Ship, but when trying to communicate, we encountered signal interference and blockage... by the time our search fleet reached the battlefield, General Chi Yunfeng was dead, and all transport ships had vanished..."

"Who did it?"

"According to information retrieved from the black box... it was the Undying Army’s Bai Qi."

Shen Wuxiang’s face was as dark as water, yet he said aloud, "Order the Staff Headquarters and all corps leaders to convene a meeting."

"Understood," the aide acknowledged.

Shen Wuxiang strode towards the outside, no longer sparing a glance at Dean Shang Xiulin.

He feared seeing a mocking smile on his face.

------

Shen Annan’s eyes were bloodshot, having not rested well for several days; even his Cultivator’s body was somewhat worn out.

The opponent’s offensive was fierce, while his side’s defense was arduous.

War is brutal, something he can readily accept.

However, a war with no hope in sight drained him mentally and physically.

He couldn’t understand how the bandit army could possess such formidable combat capabilities.

The Flame-Bathed Legion... wasn’t it just recently defeated and then reassembled?

A newly reorganized army from multiple forces shouldn’t be entangled, restricting, and conflicting with each other?

At this moment, Deputy Li Hu hurried in, "Commander, bad news..."

"During major events..."

Fury surged in Shen Annan’s heart, ready to rebuke.

The greater the crisis, the more one must remain calm.

Haste invites chaos, urgency invites errors.

Rushing and stumbling, what significant matters can be handled?

"Our transport ship has been hijacked."

"..."

The fire in Shen Annan’s chest was ignited, roaring fiercely.

He felt murderous intent rising, blood boiling, and even tasted a strong metallic flavor in his mouth.

"The transport ship was hijacked, General Chi Yunfeng has fallen."

"Who did it?"

"The Undying Army’s Bai Qi."

"..."

Shen Annan forcibly swallowed the blood in his mouth, breathing heavily.

With the battle so critical and the transport ship hijacked, it meant Luo City was lacking necessary ammunition and food supplies...

This is extremely deadly.

If the news gets out, it could even affect the morale of the troops.

And in today’s highly developed Star Chain network, there’s no way he can completely isolate the information.

Sure, the Qishan Group can send resources again, but this hope is very slim.

Firstly, the preparation time for supplies, whether it’s ammunition or food, requires advance arrangements. They can’t possibly hand over all inventory to the battle at Luo City.

Do other major military regions not need food and ammunition supplies?

Secondly... Bai Qi can rob you once, will he rob you a second time?

Even if our side prepares in advance to prevent them from actually stealing the food, they can still harass and bomb the surroundings.

If they can’t get it, they’ll destroy it.

If he were in Bai Qi’s position, he would do the same thing.

Unless Bai Qi and his Undying Army are wiped out first.

The video phone rang, Shen Annan glanced at the incoming call display, and immediately pressed the answer button.

Soon, Shen Wuxiang’s tall and majestic virtual image appeared in the living room.

Even across thousands of kilometers, Shen Annan could still feel the intense killing intent from his stern face.

"Greetings, Military Minister." Shen Annan saluted respectfully.

"You’re already aware of the news, right?" Shen Annan said steadily.

"Yes, Military Minister."

"I can’t provide you with more supplies and equipment..." Shen Wuxiang said unemotionally, looking at Shen Annan: "So, prepare for the final battle. This battle will decide the fate."

If someone else had made such a demand to him, Shen Annan would have cursed, ’Are you crazy?’

Although Luo City’s defensive shield was withdrawn, and the city walls were breached, with these tens of millions of citizens risking their lives, the bandits wouldn’t dare to ’act recklessly.’

This is also why, after losing Luo City’s defense system, the bandits have been afraid to start a large-scale bombing until now.

They also don’t want to bear the infamy of ’killing innocent civilians’...

They are all preparing for the best ascension.

But now, the Military Minister wants them to come out of this super fortress of Luo City and engage in a decisive battle with the bandits...

"Yes." Shen Annan accepted the task without hesitation, stood up straight, and raised his voice: "Even if I die, I will bite a piece of flesh from their bodies..."

This time, Shen Annan did not utter words of certain victory.

As he is a direct confidant of the Minister, there’s no need for such courteous words between them.

What he can do is to do as much as possible for the Minister.

Even if he finishes the mission stationed at Luo City, he must cripple the Flame-Bathed Legion...

Shen Wuxiang’s expression finally softened somewhat, gently comforting: "Annan, I believe in you."

------

Flame-Bathed Legion. Command ship.

Tang Fei tightly held Bai Qi’s hand, chuckling as he said: "General Bai Qi, we meet again."

"To serve the Lord is my honor." Bai Qi said humbly.

From the moment he defected from the Undying Army, he had no other path to take.

The only choice was to follow the young ’warlord’ in front of him.

"After some time apart, why are you starting to act like an outsider?" Tang Fei pretended to be dissatisfied, saying: "You are a Bai Family member, a senior to Wuxin. I am as close as brothers with Wuxin, and you are also my elder... According to seniority, I should call you uncle."

"..." Bai Wuxin.

"I don’t deserve it." Bai Qi replied nervously and fearfully.

"What’s there not to deserve? Privately, we’ll refer to each other as uncle and nephew going forward." Tang Fei firmly set this matter, looking at Bai Qi and said: "Every time I see Uncle Bai, something good happens."

"The first time we met, it was on Blue Star, wasn’t it?"

"Yes, that time I was ordered to welcome Princess Phoenix."

"Indeed, back then I was a native of Henshan, and in a flash, so many years have passed."

"At that time, the Lord was like a dragon trapped in shallow waters..."

"Forget it, forget it, there’s no need for such flattering words. What dragon trapped in shallow waters? Surviving itself was not an easy task back then."

"Yes."

"This time you’ve brought me three Silver Demon Attack Ships, along with supplies and equipment on over ten more ships... That’s a huge achievement, I really don’t know how to thank you."

"The Lord said... we are our people. These are all things I should do."

"Moreover, this was only achieved under the Lord’s meticulous planning."

This is not Bai Qi deliberately flattering; it is indeed the case.

Back then, Bai Qi, with his thirty thousand Undying Army soldiers, departed, and Tang Fei did not let him return to the base camp but instead used guerrilla tactics to roam the Empire’s heartland.

As he was well aware, having his forces there was enough of a distraction to prevent Shen Wuxiang from having the ability or energy to find Bai Qi and wipe him out.

This laid the groundwork for this resource hijacking.

Otherwise, getting starships from the outskirts and transporting them in would be a huge hassle.

With the transport troops receiving messages from here, they would likely have vanished without a trace long ago.

"What is yours, is yours. Rest assured, I’m taking note. We’ll reward merits later." Tang Fei promised confidently.

Regardless of the great achievements by Bai Qi personally or his desire to win over the Bai Family, Tang Fei must offer considerable benefits.

Moreover, with Bai Wuxin, his staunch confidant, he must pay additional attention.

"Thank you, Lord." Bai Qi bowed in gratitude.

Kong Yinghan pushed the door open and said: "Lord, there’s movement from the Luo City direction; they’re starting to assemble troops on a large scale, seemingly preparing for a general offensive..."

Tang Fei’s face showed a bright smile as he spoke: "Finally here."

"Lord..."

"Since they’re coming out, let’s have a decisive battle with them."

"Yes, Lord."