Chapter 367: Ch

’Well, well… you people are certainly up to something, aren’t you, Elven Empire?’ she mused. ’But then again, who isn’t? Everyone has their own game to play. Let’s see whose move is better, and whose is worse… shall we?’”

“Artemishi, prepare the fleet! We are leaving this place for now!” Smith ordered, his smile never wavering as he spoke to his right-hand man standing just behind him.

“At once, sir!” Artemishi replied quickly, immediately passing down the orders. Because the Forger fleet was more scattered than the Elven fleet had been, it took longer for the ships to fall into formation. Eventually, they too accelerated and vanished, following the path the Elves had taken.

Soon, silence returned to the starry void of the unknown system.

Elsewhere, deeper within the galaxy—far from the Galactic Rim and moving toward the Outer and Inner Galactic Spaces—ancient wheels were turning.

Multiple powers that had existed since the dawn of time, still wielding immense influence, had begun to make their moves.

Their eyes were now settled on the Galactic Rim, specifically on a location previously known as a ’Forbidden Zone.’ In truth, it was no such thing; it was one of the most ancient Holy Regions—the first to ever exist.

The value of the Holy Region was not lost on these ancient forces. They sought to try their hand at fishing in these newly turbulent waters, hoping to secure a catch—or perhaps fearing they might become someone else’s bait.

One such power was a formidable Tier-One empire. Though it had been in a state of great decline for some time under the regime of the current Royal Family, it remained a gargantuan behemoth. Even in decay, its sheer power was unmatched.

Natives and travelers across the galaxy bore witness to the grand march of a fleet that had gathered at one of the most populated and vital hubs of the Dark Sun Empire: the Moon Star System.

Once a resource-rich system and a thriving center for galactic commerce, the entire region was now under strict martial law. It was completely occupied by a Grand Fleet numbering more than 30,000 ships.

Every vessel within this armada was a Tier-One class ship. Among them were ’Super Tier-One’ vessels—the Arch-class technology of legend—and a few terrifying ’Annihilation-class’ ships, built using the mysterious Magi-class tech.

The Grand Fleet was assembled from eight of the leading fleets of the Dark Sun Empire.

At its heart was the Destroyer Legion, one of the four elite fleets under the direct control of the Imperial Family. It was a true behemoth—a testament to the Empire’s technological dominance.

The Legion was built around forty Annihilation-class ships, supported by double that number of Super Tier-One vessels, with the remainder consisting of top-of-the-line Tier-One warships.

Following the Legion were the 6th, 7th, 9th, 10th, 15th, 19th, and 20th Fleets. Each of these supporting fleets was comprised of more than 4,000 ships. This massive armada was presided over by the Grand Commander of the 4th Fleet, a man known as Maverick.

So far, the Dark Sun Empire had made no official announcement as to why they had gathered such vast power, nor what the purpose behind this mobilisation might be.

However, those lurking in the shadows had their own ideas about what the Empire was planning. Information was leaked into the public domain, where it was quickly picked up by netizens throughout the galaxy.

“The Dark Sun Empire and their Emperor really aren’t ones to hold back when they make a move, huh!”

Immediately after the posts revealed the potential reasons behind the mobilization, netizens began flooding the comments sections.

User_88: “They are daring indeed. Deploying nearly 20 percent of their total offensive strength that too so far from their rule regions ? You have to admit, the Dark Sun Empire has guts.”

Galactic_Truth: “Meh, what ’guts’? It’s a desperate move, if you ask me. The Dark Sun Empire has been falling down the ranks for quite a while now. But on this point, this just proves there’s some truth to the rumors circulating lately about a long-sealed Holy Region in the Galactic Rim.”

Star_Watcher: “Now that you mention it, the pieces really do click into place, don’t they? But even if the temptation of a Holy Region is great, isn’t the Dark Sun Emperor being foolish? I mean, with the Blood Moon Empire and the Light Holy Angel Empire knocking on their door daily, can they really afford to send away this much strength? Aren’t they afraid of being invaded while their back is turned?”

the great_think tank “Not to mention the Demon Realm, which has been turbulent for the last few years! With demons and Behemoth-class monsters appearing constantly, isn’t the Dark Sun Empire already dealing with enough trouble? This move seems beyond foolish. If something goes wrong at home, who will the Dark Sun Emperor even turn to?

The debate raged on in the forums, with more users joining the fray.

Void_Drifter: “We all know this Emperor is a bit reckless, but where are his advisors? Where are the think tanks? Even we can guess that this move doesn’t help the Dark Sun Empire at all. Can’t they see that? Or have they actually made preparations we don’t know about?”

Cynic_Prime: “The person above me is being way too optimistic. Sure, those old fossils in the Empire and their think tanks definitely know the risks. But what kind of countermeasure could they possibly come up with? When the Dark Sun Empire is serving itself up on a silver platter, why would the Blood Moon and Light Holy Angel Empires look the other way?”

“As the debate raged across the Galactic Net, it did not go unnoticed by the Dark Sun Empire. However, they made no effort to refute the claims or issue an announcement to reassure their public; instead, they allowed the rumors to simmer.

Aboard his flagship—an 80-kilometer-long battleship that represented the pinnacle of the Dark Sun Empire’s technological and magical craft—Grand Commander Maverick scrolled through the Galactic Net.

“These people really have a lot of free time, don’t they?” he remarked with a chuckle. He leaned back, a dark smirk playing on his lips. “Well, let them have their fun. Soon enough, they will realize this wasn’t a desperate move, but a calculated one. And if all goes well…”

He left the sentence unfinished, his smile turning predatory. He turned toward his subordinate, tilting his head leisurely. “Admiral Clark, are the fleet supplies and equipment fully loaded?”

Admiral Clark checked his terminal immediately. ’Yes, Commander. The last of the supplies has been delivered, and the dropships have just cleared the supply vessels.’

“Good,”Maverick nodded. “Organize the fleet into formation. Pass down my orders: prepare for the jump. Coordinates: [REDACTED]. Synchronize the fleet-wide FTL sequence immediately!”

“At once, Grand Commander!” The Admiral saluted and moved to relay the commands.

Slowly, the scattered ships began to fall into a singular, massive formation. Within half an hour, every vessel—from the smallest escort to the largest carrier—had its FTL drive circulating and linked to the flagship’s core.

The propulsion engines flared to their peak state as the armada accelerated away from the planetary stations. Finally, a massive tear in space appeared, and the 30,000 ships of the Grand Fleet vanished into the void.

….

The Dark Sun Empire was not the only power making its move. Numerous other Tier-One powers, and even coalitions of top-rated Tier-Two factions, were acting in kind.

Some moved openly, while many more operated in the shadows. Outwardly, every faction and power projected their intentions toward the Sol Region—the Holy Region—but that was rarely the whole truth. Many were simply exploiting the greed of others to fulfill their own hidden agendas. The Dark Sun Empire was just one of many players in this dangerous game.

Slowly, the waters around the Southern Galactic Rim became deeper and murkier. It reached a point where no one could predict what would happen next, or when the first strike would land.

Though many remained oblivious, some did not. Intellectuals like the ’God’ Think Tank and various other experts raised their own theories across debates and podcasts. they spoke of how internal warfare within the Galactic Federation was intensifying, and whispered that some of the galaxy’s greatest powers might soon fall.

However, these broadcasts were short-lived. The podcasts were systematically taken down, vanishing before the public could even realise they existed—let alone watch them.

While the general public was unable to see the full picture, and the initial impact on them seemed small, some things simply could not be hidden. The prices of essential and necessary goods began to skyrocket across the galaxy.

Mega-corporations and national industries had already started hoarding essential ores for weapon production and military logistics. Mid-to-low-level companies were the first to feel the crushing pressure; profit margins vanished, and mass layoffs loomed on the horizon.

Under these suffocating conditions, time marched on. A month quickly passed.

And a new development began to spread, sending shockwaves through a small part of the galaxy…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep