Chapter 18: Heavenly Tears: The Vanishing Crane Wind
That figure, who had entrenched himself in her heart like a maggot in the bone, the man carrying the last of the elite male-lineage forces of the Angel civilization—thirty thousand remnants of his core legion—had vanished as if evaporated from the face of the earth!
"Any news from the King of Apocalypse?" Keisha’s voice rang out, cold and sharp, cutting off the female officer’s report.
The officer stiffened, quickly pulling up the communication logs. "Reporting to Your Majesty, the King of Apocalypse… there is no new combat report as of yet."
"In the last communication three hours ago, the King of Apocalypse seemed… extremely volatile."
"Her department of 1.2 million elites has thoroughly searched all conventional shipping lanes, jump points, and potentially hidden stargates within a fifty-light-year radius of the Sky City… but found nothing."
"There were no residual energy signatures or spatial disturbances indicative of a large-scale fleet jump. The King of Apocalypse’s exact words were…" The officer’s voice dropped, tinged with embarrassment, "'That cur Hefeng and his pile of junk didn't even leave a fart behind!'"
Keisha’s fingertip tapped the armrest of her throne with a faint "click." The sound was piercingly clear in the silent hall.
Nothing.
Not even Liang Bing, the most cunning hunter and expert tracker, could find a single trace.
That in itself was the greatest anomaly!
How could Hefeng, leading such a battered, demoralized legion with a fleet that could not possibly be fast, manage to become completely invisible?
A cold thought crept uncontrollably into Keisha's mind: Had he abandoned his escape, choosing instead to lie in wait with all his people in some hidden corner near the Sky City, waiting for an opportunity? The notion sent a chill down her spine.
A Hefeng hidden in the shadows, ready to strike at any moment, was ten times more dangerous than one fleeing in the open!
"And the status of the Sky City?" Keisha’s voice turned even colder. "Has our receiving fleet arrived? What is the situation?"
"Your Majesty, the latest news is that the advance fleet led by General Ruoning has arrived on the outskirts of the Sky City."
The officer quickly brought up the report, her expression turning grave. "The situation… is dire. The strategic transport network around the Sky City… has been completely destroyed."
The holographic projection expanded, revealing the tragic scene of the star sector surrounding the Sky City to Keisha.
The massive stargate clusters that once linked the Sky City to various star sectors like a brilliant necklace, supporting vast flows of logistics and personnel, were now reduced to twisted, fractured metal skeletons and floating debris, silently testifying to the destruction in the void.
At the entrances to the wormhole tunnels that had remained stable for tens of thousands of years, the spatial structure showed unnatural wrinkles and tears; violent turbulence poured out like a festering wound, completely blocking the lanes.
The most critical worm-bridges had been bombed until their basic structures were unrecognizable; the severed spacetime ribbons drifted slowly through the cold void like the carcasses of giant serpents.
"According to General Ruoning's preliminary survey and residual energy analysis," the officer said, a hint of lingering fear in her voice, "the means of destruction were extremely professional and ruthless. They used directional antimatter annihilation bombs and spatial gravitational singularity disruptors."
"This was no hasty sabotage, but a premeditated, systematic paralysis! The objective is clear—to cut off all rapid transport links between the Sky City and the outside world, create massive chaos, and simultaneously… delay any potential pursuit!"
The officer paused, adding, "Additionally, according to an analysis of fragments from internal civil communication records in the Sky City, around the time Hefeng’s fleet departed, the entire region received an emergency broadcast issued in the name of the 'Supreme Commander'… the content directly accuses Your Majesty… of planning to… massacre the Sky City… over the affair of Duke Hoffman."
Keisha’s pupils constricted violently! A freezing rage swept through her entire body!
What a ruthless move to pull the rug out from under her! What a vicious Hefeng!
He had not only emptied the Sky City and paralyzed its transport, but also spread such malicious rumors to incite panic!
This was undoubtedly to cover his potential hiding spot, or… to buy more time for his true escape! Smearing her with such filth was a naked provocation and desecration of her "New Order"!
"Hefeng… you really are still in the Sky City!"
Keisha’s voice sounded as if it were squeezed through gritted teeth, carrying bone-chilling cold and the fury of one who had been fooled. "Or… you only just left!"
Her previous suspicion that Hefeng was lurking seemed further reinforced by the evidence. Destruction and panic-mongering of this scale could not be accomplished in a short time; Hefeng must have stayed in the Sky City long enough! With such a massive fleet, it was impossible for him to vanish instantly!
"Orders!" Keisha stood up abruptly from her throne, her scarlet cloak billowing without a breeze, and a majestic pressure instantly enveloped the hall. "The forces of the King of Apocalypse, Liang Bing, are to abandon all pointless perimeter searches!"
"Turn around immediately and head to the Sky City sector at full speed!"
"Conduct a dragnet, carpet-search within a one-hundred-light-year radius centered on the Sky City!"
"Every planet, every nebula, every asteroid belt, even the abnormal points in spatial folds—turn them over inch by inch! Find them, dead or alive!"
"Notify Ruoning! The Sky City is to be under the highest state of martial law immediately! All personnel are to stand by and undergo the strictest identity and background checks!"
"Find me any eyes, ears, or hidden base entrances that Hefeng may have left behind!"
"At the same time, use all means to restore basic communications, appease the citizens, and debunk Hefeng's rumors!"
"He Xi!" Keisha’s gaze was sharp as a blade as she turned to the communications officer. "Contact the King of Heavenly Foundation! Tell her I need her to utilize the highest-authority deep-space detection array of the Meiro Heavenly Court to focus on the Sky City and its surrounding sectors!"
"Look for any spatial shielding fields, abnormal energy reactions, or… faint, deliberately masked life signals that might hide a large fleet!"
"I suspect Hefeng never went far; he is hiding right under our noses!"
The orders were relayed like a cold torrent of iron. Keisha sat back on her throne, her frozen countenance masking a roiling fury and cold calculation.
Hefeng, do you think that by creating panic and paralyzing transport, you can hide?
Do you think that by spreading rumors, you can shake my foundation? You are too naive!
This time, I will uproot you and your "sparks," along with the rat hole you are hiding in! The Sky City shall be your burial ground!
***
Meiro Heavenly Court Core, Heavenly Foundation Research Tower.
He Xi stood in the center of the massive circular observation platform, her long silver hair drifting slightly in the zero-gravity environment.
Before her were dozens of giant screens, cascading with waterfall-like data streams from the deep-space detection network covering the Angel Nebula (and parts of the newly acquired star sectors).
Her brows were tightly locked, and her silver-gray eyes, usually like precision instruments, were filled with confusion and a trace of undetectable anxiety.
She couldn't find them.
She absolutely could not find them.
Hefeng and his fleet, so massive it was like a moving planet, seemed to have completely merged with the dark background of the universe, leaving not a single crumb to follow.
Conventional jump engines would leave obvious spatial ripples and energy radiation; even the most advanced warp travel or short-range spatial folding would leave "wrinkles" on the cosmic microwave background radiation, which could be captured by the heavenly systems.
The activity of a massive life cluster would generate complex energy fields and thermal radiation signals that were difficult to fully mask…
And yet, there was nothing.
He Xi had even utilized cutting-edge technology still in the experimental phase, such as "vacuum zero-point energy disturbance detection" and "spacetime continuity scanning," pushing the detection precision to its theoretical limit. The feedback remained a suffocating "no anomalies."
This was impossible!
Hefeng did not take a small task force, but an entire, bloated cluster containing a vast number of non-combat ships and millions of lives!
Such a target should be like a torch in the night on a cosmic scale! Unless… they truly possessed concealment methods that completely transcended the existing understanding of Angel technology, or… they had entered a "realm" that current detection technology could not touch.
Keisha’s order arrived, requiring a focused scan of the Sky City region. He Xi immediately adjusted the orientation of the detection array, projecting seventy percent of the heavenly system's computing power toward the star sector that had just undergone the catastrophe.
High-dimensional scanning beams pierced through layers of space, analyzing every molecule of the Sky City ruins, parsing residual energy spectra, and searching for any traces of artificial objects or abnormal spatial structures…
The result remained the same.
Apart from the chaotic energy fields left by the destroyed infrastructure and the lingering panic within the Sky City (faint psychic energy radiation), the detection array reported an airspace that was "clean" to the point of being eerie.
No hidden fleet, no large spatial shielding field, not even a trace of suspicious energy residue.
Hefeng and his fleet seemed as if they had never stayed in the Sky City, or rather, they had left in an absolutely "clean" manner, leaving no physical "traces" behind.
He Xi’s fingertips brushed unconsciously across the cold screen, where green characters reading "No Target Signal" flickered. A deep sense of powerlessness and a stronger unease gripped her.
Brother… what method did you use? Where on earth… did you go? Even the heavenly systems cannot find you… that in itself is the greatest terror!
She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. If current detection methods were ineffective, she had to find another way.
Her gaze shifted to the depths of the research tower, where forbidden technology samples from ancient ruins, not yet fully decrypted, were sealed, along with some theoretical manuscripts regarding the "dark side" of the universe and "discontinuous space," which were viewed as fantasies by the mainstream scientific community.
Perhaps… the answer was hidden there?
***
Edge of the Death Vortex.
The massive, silent fleet slipped out of the final patch of violent energy turbulence like a ghost, leaving the cosmic graveyard that had buried countless explorers behind. Outside the porthole, the scene changed abruptly.
Ahead lay a boundless, massive nebula resembling congealed dark red plasma—the "Sea of Blood Mist."
It rolled slowly, exuding a heart-wrenching stillness and ominousness. Within it, the outlines of huge, twisted shadows were vaguely visible, like primordial beasts lurking in the depths of a sea of blood. Merely gazing at it made one's soul feel cold.
The Final Gate had arrived.
This was not only the next node in their route, but also a bloody gateway between the known and unknown of the universe.
The fleet maintained its perfect "Limit Arrowhead" formation, guided by the stable star chart, and sailed smoothly along a route that was invisible to the naked eye but absolutely safe, toward the edge of the Sea of Blood Mist.
They encountered no spatial traps or energy storms as anticipated; the light of the star chart scroll remained as steady as ever, and the final pointer did not deviate in the slightest.
"General, fleet status is perfect. Crossing the Death Vortex, zero losses, zero casualties." Lei En’s voice carried suppressed excitement and reverence. "We… we actually did it!"
Inside the bridge, the gaze of every officer was focused on Hefeng, filled with the relief of having survived a catastrophe and a fervor that bordered on religious faith.
Crossing the Death Vortex without a scratch simply overturned their understanding of cosmic perils! The star chart in their commander's hand was a true creation of the gods!
Hefeng’s gaze swept over the deathly still dark red sea of blood outside the porthole, feeling the steady progress of the fleet. He no longer had a shred of doubt about his foster father’s gratitude or the reliability of the star chart.
Although the road ahead was still shrouded in unknown terror, with this "perfect pass" in hand, he felt an unprecedented sense of confidence.
"Order: The entire fleet is to switch to minimum energy cruise mode. 'The Light' will maintain the lead guard."
Hefeng’s voice was steady and powerful, carrying the confidence of one who controlled the big picture. "The target is the predetermined coordinates in the core of the Sea of Blood Mist. Maintain formation and continue forward."
He did not order a rest. The perfect crossing of the Death Vortex proved the reliability of the star chart and saved a great deal of time and energy.
Now, what was needed was speed—to cross the next perilous pass while Keisha and Liang Bing were still kept in the dark, thinking he was digging three feet deep near the Sky City.
The massive fleet cluster, like a silent and determined torrent of steel, guided by the mysterious light of the chaotic star chart, plunged into the cosmic sea of blood with its churning dark red mist, heading toward the unknowns of the Eternal Canyon and the Boundary Sea, continuing this silent, yet magnificent, deep-space journey. Behind them lay the overwhelming search network of the female angels and Keisha’s cold fury; ahead lay the bottomless mysteries of the universe and the path of rebirth for the "Sparks."
***
Meiro Planet, Residence of the King of Heavenly Foundation, Open-air Hot Spring.
Steaming heat rose, blurring the cold starlight.
He Xi was submerged naked in the warm spring water, her body relaxed, leaning against the smooth star-core jade pool wall, her long silver hair spread out on the surface like seaweed.
The water waves gently comforted her skin, but could not penetrate the cold and anxiety deep within her heart.
She closed her eyes, trying to sink her chaotic thoughts into the water, but her mind was like an out-of-control star chart, repeatedly flashing those inexplicable anomalous data points.
The Sky City.
That crown city of the Angel civilization, now on the virtual star chart sand table she had constructed, was bound tightly by countless scarlet chains.
The spatial node data representing giant stargates, wormhole tunnels, and great worm-bridges all showed the glaring deep purple that represented "completely destroyed/loss of function."
The energy residual spectrum clearly pointed to directional antimatter annihilation and spatial gravitational singularity disruption—this was the most professional and thorough method of destruction, with the goal of turning the Sky City into an isolated island cut off from the outside world.
However, the scan data of the star sector on the outskirts of the Sky City was suffocatingly "clean."
No violent energy disturbances from a large-scale fleet forcing its way through the spatial blockade.
No "wrinkles" in space left by warp travel.
No high-energy radiation residues characteristic of short-range jump engines.
Even… not a single faint, complex energy field or life-thermal radiation signal that would inevitably be produced by the transit of such a massive fleet cluster could be captured!
Liang Bing’s 1.2 million elites, like the fiercest hounds, had sealed off and plowed through every "conventional exit" within a one-hundred-light-year radius of the Sky City—the stable shipping lanes that were like interstellar highways, public jump points, and even hidden stargates with the slightest record—again and again.
And the result? They hadn't even found a single fragment of armor from Hefeng’s fleet!
"Brother… are you really still in the Sky City?" He Xi murmured to herself, her voice blurred by the water vapor, carrying deep confusion and a trace of undetectable wavering. "Defending a lone city to the death… this is not your style… you never fight a battle without a way out…"
She remembered her brother Hefeng, the brother who used to argue with her until his face was red in academic debates, but was meticulous in his care for her in daily life.
The god of war who was calculated and always kept a backup plan on the battlefield.
How could he make the near-suicidal choice of defending the Sky City to the death?
This did not fit his wisdom, nor did it fit the responsibility of the "Sparks" he now shouldered!
"But…" He Xi’s brows were locked, contradictions winding through her thinking like thorns, "if you are not in the Sky City… then what was the point of the abnormal destruction of the channels?"
"Could it be a diversion to cover your true departure? But… where are the traces?"
"How could it be possible to leave no traces at all? Carrying such a massive fleet, unless… unless you didn't take the 'road' at all…"
The thought flashed by, only to be forcibly suppressed by her.
Not taking the "road"? Then where could they go?
The universe is vast, but the known physical laws and spatial structures are relatively fixed.
Did they burrow into a star?
Or sink into a black hole?
This was too absurd!
The existing detection arrays were sufficient to cover all theoretically possible spatial anomaly points.
Her thoughts were like a tangled mess of hemp, becoming more tangled the more she tried to sort them out.
The warmth of the hot spring could not dispel the chill in her heart.
In front of He Xi’s eyes, the figure of Hefeng fighting in a blood-soaked rage like a demon on the battlefield of the Angry Sea seemed to reappear, as did his cold, ruthless gaze when looking at the female angel warriors.
An indescribable sorrow welled up in her heart.
"Brother… why must you be so persistent?"
"Why must you help the tyrant, shedding the last drop of blood for that decaying Heavenly Palace Order?"
Her voice carried a hint of choking, only the warm water could hear her vulnerability. "The Angel civilization… has already shed too much blood… If Father were watching from heaven, seeing us siblings slaughtering each other, seeing this star-filled sky ravaged by war to this extent… how heartbroken he would be…"
He Xi buried her face in the water, trying to let the water drown her pain.
For a long time, she lifted her head, water droplets sliding down her pale cheeks, indistinguishable from spring water or tears.
"Surrender… brother…" she whispered to the void, as if Hefeng were right in front of her. "As long as you lay down your weapons… I… I will beg Keisha… I will trade all my merits and status… She… she will spare your life… she surely will…"
She was like someone trying to persuade Hefeng, but more like she was trying to persuade herself. She knew better than anyone how deep Keisha’s hatred for Hefeng was.
If they met on the battlefield, it would inevitably be a fight to the death.
But if Hefeng surrendered voluntarily… perhaps… there was still a glimmer of hope?
Even if he were imprisoned forever, losing his freedom, at least… he would be alive.
The thought gave her a faint comfort, yet it also made her feel a suffocating pain.
Imprisonment… for someone as proud as her brother, perhaps it was harder to accept than death?