https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-478-Celestial-Annihilation-Cannon/12920318/
Chapter 479: A Decade and Surprises
Chapter 479: A Decade and Surprises
"Old Hong, after this delivery, you should have enough merits to exchange a few blue components for your son, right?"
"Almost, but the blue components are still not enough. I'd rather get a purple-quality hull armor."
"Purple hull armor? Do you have that many merits?"
...
In the pitch-black starry sky, a fleet consisting of hundreds of ordinary starships and ten escort ships was traveling at full speed.
The magnetic wave communication group chat connected the ten escort ship captains, and they chatted intermittently.
Speaking of merits, the leader, Captain Old Hong, had a subtle hint of pride on his face.
However, he maintained a calm tone.
"You all were transferred from the family's colonial starfield and didn't participate in the previous expansion war. When the family's main force raided the Doomsday Star Clan's lairs on various Floating Lands, there were too many good things to be had. Even if you didn't get much due to contribution issues, it's still far more than just one purple component."
"Hmm... Before this, I had already exchanged a purple main cannon for my son..."
Hearing Old Hong's casual words, the other escort ship captains were filled with envy.
He had already prepared two purple components for his son, and one could imagine that Old Hong's own ship must have even more purple components.
It was said that the previous expansion war was a grand celebration for all the Flame Warship captains in the entire Tianpan Galaxy, but they never expected the rewards to be so great.
This made the other captains regretful, as the family had issued a war summons before the expansion war, but it wasn't mandatory. They had the choice to refuse, and these captains had not participated in the war.
After a sigh, the escort ship captains quickly regained their enthusiasm, and their faces showed renewed determination.
Although they had missed the previous expansion war, the family's development was now very promising, with many opportunities ahead. As long as they were willing to work hard, their future prospects were still very bright.
For example, the current escort mission only required them to safely escort the family's transport fleet to the nearest mid-range teleportation stargate. In the past, the rewards for such missions were very limited, but now, the rewards had tripled.
"Old Hong..."
The group chat spoke up again, but this time, it was immediately interrupted by Old Hong.
"No, radar alert! Everyone, be alert and enter level one combat readiness!"
Although they didn't receive any alerts from their own ships, the other captains chose to trust Captain Old Hong.
They were well aware that Old Hong's ship was equipped with a purple-quality sky-scanning radar, which had a much wider detection range and precision compared to their blue or even white radars.
Whoosh—
The cabin door of Captain Old Hong's ship opened, and a ten-meter-tall steel battle suit rushed out.
Once it left the warship, the alloy battle suit began to rapidly expand, eventually reaching a massive size of a hundred meters.
"It's the Inferno Battle Suit! I've heard that each squad is equipped with a Tier 4 Inferno Battle Suit, but I've never seen Old Hong use it before. I didn't expect it to be real!"
Seeing the hundred-meter alloy battle suit, one of the escort ship captains showed a delighted expression. This was a Tier 4 Inferno Battle Suit, which was said to have played an irreplaceable role for the family during the expansion war.
Before the others could think further, lights and shadows appeared from all directions.
"Be careful, it's the Goldsplitter Sky Spider! Maintain your formation and open fire at will!"
"I've heard that this starfield might have spider-like starfield creatures, but I never expected it to be the Goldsplitter Sky Spider clan that escaped from the Chaotic Starfield!"
Boom, boom, boom! In no time, the entire dark starry sky was filled with energy beams, like a dazzling display of fireworks.
The battle lasted for about half an hour. With the presence of the Inferno Battle Suit, the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders were almost completely annihilated, with only a few escaping in the same direction.
"Old Hong, twelve ordinary starships were sunk, but our squad didn't suffer any damage."
"What should we do? Should we continue to Dinghai 18 Star Gate or turn back?"
...
In the group chat, the escort ship captains' expressions were grim.
Although the family's newly occupied territory was vast, it had been mostly cleared by the Zhulv Warship Captain and his Inferno Battle Suit squad. There had been some attack incidents over the years, but not frequently. This was the first time they had encountered an attack during their missions.
Compared to the subtle urgency in the voices of the other squad members, Song Hong remained calm. After all, he had participated in the grand expansion war, and the appearance of a Tier 3 Goldsplitter Sky Spider didn't faze him much.
After a moment of contemplation, Song Hong spoke, "Everyone, calm down. Lao Yu, contact the nearest communication point through the Flame Network and report this matter. Also, lead the transport fleet back the way we came. These Goldsplitter Sky Spiders suddenly attacked for a reason, and if we continue, we might face their second wave of attacks."
"Old Hong, what about you?"
Song Hong turned his gaze towards the direction where the surviving Goldsplitter Sky Spiders had escaped.
"I have a bad feeling about this. These Goldsplitter Sky Spiders have been spotted by many passersby before, but they've never taken the initiative to attack passing starships. That's why the family never sent anyone to deal with them. This time, their attack seems abnormal, and I want to go and take a look!"
"But that's too dangerous!"
Someone in the squad objected, not agreeing with Song Hong's decision to investigate alone.
Although Song Hong's ship was equipped with several purple components, it was only a Tier 2 escort ship. According to the information provided by the family's foreign affairs department, the Goldsplitter Sky Spider clan that escaped from the Chaotic Starfield included Tier 5 Goldsplitter Sky Spiders.
However, Song Hong's expression was resolute, and he insisted on his decision.
"It's fine. My ship is equipped with a Void Membrane..."
"It has already been enhanced to level 39, and with the ability to conceal itself in the void, scouting from a distance shouldn't be a problem!"
Seeing his determination, the other members of the squad didn't say anything further and began directing the transport fleet to change course and return at full speed.
The Goldsplitter Sky Spiders might come back again, and they didn't have time to linger.
...
After separating from the team, Song Hong controlled his ship and headed towards the direction of the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders they had encountered earlier.
With the purple sky-scanning radar, he didn't lose track of the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders' location and carefully followed them.
Under his deliberate control, the battleship maintained a suitable distance from the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders ahead, making it difficult to be discovered while also keeping track of their trail.
After flying for several hours, Song Hong's mind remained tense. His survival in the Great Exploration War relied on his meticulousness and vigilance.
Fortunately, he wasn't disappointed. After a few hours, the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders slowed down, and soon, Song Hong's ship's purple sky-scanning radar displayed numerous figures.
"So many Goldsplitter Sky Spiders, and judging from their size, there's even a Tier 4 Goldsplitter Sky Spider!"
Song Hong's pupils suddenly contracted, and he dared not let the ship move an inch forward. After calming down, he focused his gaze and saw a familiar spatial vortex channel in front of the Tier 4 Goldsplitter Sky Spider.
"This is... the entrance to a Star Sea Sanctuary?"
"It's actually a Star Sea Sanctuary. No wonder the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders took the initiative to attack, fearing that the family fleet would continue to advance and discover the existence of this sanctuary."
Thinking of this, Song Hong's heart was filled with joy.
The value of a Star Sea Sanctuary is immeasurable, and reporting it to the family would undoubtedly bring a substantial reward.
While carefully maneuvering his ship, Song Hong simultaneously summoned the power of his five-in-one heart, quickly connecting to the Flame Network.
Although the development level of this star field is not high, after so many years, the Song family has naturally established a basic Flame Network, albeit rudimentary, but it can still allow him to notify the nearest family communication point at the first moment.
Dozen light-years away, the Song family's temporary Flame Network communication node.
"What, a sanctuary?"
The clan member in charge of this communication node was also a second-rank captain. The communication point had previously received the report of the Goldsplitter Sky Spider's attack, but since it was only a third-rank Goldsplitter Sky Spider and had already been killed, the priority of the message was not high.
Normally, it would take nearly ten days for the message to be reported to the fourth-rank clan elder stationed in this star field, let alone the Foreign Affairs Hall headquarters far away on the Dragon Spine Continent.
However, with the mention of the "sanctuary," the priority of this message became completely different.
Within just a few dozen minutes, the message was passed up layer by layer until it reached the fourth-rank clan elder of the Song family in this star field.
...
Dragon Spine Continent, Dragon Spine Sacred Mountain, Clan Ancestral Hall.
Looking at Song Chi, who was already exuding a fifth-rank life aura, Song Wujiang nodded.
"Not bad. In ten years, you've managed to break through to the fifth rank in Guidance Art. At the age of 190, as a formal battleship captain, you're among the top three in the three-thousand-year history of the Song family."
Song Chi: ???
A battleship captain under 200 years old, only ranking in the top three?
He was a little puzzled, but Song Chi didn't show it. However, Song Wujiang's gaze was sharp, and he still accurately captured the fleeting look of surprise in Song Chi's eyes. But he just smiled and didn't respond directly.
During these ten years, he had also signed a Zhongming Blood Pact with a fifth-rank peak Bright Sun Phoenix. This could be seen from the faint shadow of dual pupils in his eyes.
Of course, it should be said that the Bright Sun Phoenix has now formally advanced to the sixth rank. After Song Wujiang offered some of his good items, the fifth-rank peak Bright Sun Phoenix recently officially advanced to the sixth rank, a year faster than the Heavy Plume's advancement to the fifth rank.
Song Wujiang didn't pay much attention to this matter and changed the topic.
"As for the actions of the Black Devouring Beast, we'll have to wait a while longer. At least until Ru Ya's Guidance Art breaks through. If you want to go out at this time, it's naturally possible.
However, the prerequisite is that you can return as soon as the family takes action. We can't do without the help of your time domain-type artifact in dealing with that Black Devouring Beast. Moreover, it needs to be enhanced to the seventh rank as soon as possible; the sixth rank is not enough!"
"Mhm!"
Song Chi nodded quickly. The reason he proposed going out was to search for the suspected second component of the Time Chess. If he wanted to return to the Dragon Spine Continent, it would only take a word.
"Hmm?"
Just as the matter was settled and Song Chi was about to leave, a certain bronze chair in the Ancestral Hall suddenly began to glow.
The two of them looked up, and after a while, a projection of a clan elder appeared on this bronze chair.
Without waiting for Song Wujiang to ask, the projection of the clan elder spoke first.
"Elder, a sanctuary has appeared in the Jie Ling Starfield, temporarily occupied by Goldsplitter Sky Spiders. I fought with the fourth-rank Goldsplitter Sky Spider guarding the sanctuary entrance and discovered that this sanctuary is very special, prohibiting units of the fourth rank and above from entering."
Hearing this, Song Chi asked a question.
"Has the clan sent people in to investigate? Can we confirm the rank of the sanctuary?"
Upon hearing this, the projection replied:
"If the clan members below are correct, it's most likely a Primeval Sanctuary!"
As soon as the word "primeval" was mentioned, the eyes of the two in the Ancestral Hall flashed.
However, the clan elder's projection was still anxious.
"Elder, I don't know how, but a sixth-rank Goldsplitter Sky Spider suddenly appeared among the Goldsplitter Sky Spiders. The casualties of the clan members below are very severe. Please send family support as soon as possible!"
Hearing this, the sixth-rank life aura on Song Wujiang's body uncontrollably leaked out.
Hearing about the severe casualties of the clan members, he was obviously angry.
But in the end, he turned his gaze to Song Chi beside him.
Song Chi also understood and nodded lightly.
(End of Chapter)
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