The fleet traveled day and night without rest. Thanks to the autopilot system developed by their predecessors, the pilot and co-pilots could rest in turns.
Out in deep space, there were no fresh vegetables or cooked meals, only nutrient fluids distributed among teammates to fill their stomachs.
Beardman had been drinking nutrient fluid for who knows how many days now.
After fighting for so long, his sense of time had blurred. Only when a subordinate handed him another nutrient pack did he suddenly realize he needed to eat again.
Gradually, Beardman lost track of how many times he'd drunk the stuff. The only way he could gauge time anymore was by counting how many stars he and General Yaoqing had blown up together.
He turned to look at the colossal statue, separated from him by countless light-years.
Once people learned of its power, they were all terrified, afraid that one day, they'd look up to find that giant figure hovering over their home planet.
Right now, that giant was directly above one such planet.
A dazzling beam of light slowly dimmed.
The planet beneath, completely transformed into a hive, beyond salvation, was sealed within an impenetrable barrier.
The arrival of the Swarm had annihilated the native species, snuffing out the civilization there. The world had become nothing more than a nest for birthing new Swarm offspring.
The most effective solution was to use a star-destroying weapon, the "Angel of Serenity."
That planet would be completely isolated, erased from the universe forever.
And the Swarm? Trapped there, they would devour each other as resources dwindled, never to reach another planet again.
Beardman thought about the name "Angel of Serenity" and felt a chill run down his spine. But then he remembered weapons like "Planetary Implosion Star" and "Neutron Extermination."
By comparison, "Angel of Serenity" almost sounded humane.
Before Beardman could dwell on the thought, an order came from the Xianzhou Marshal.
The command was clear, retreat immediately from the Adliffon Galaxy.
Beardman didn't understand why, but when he saw the Xianzhou fleet abruptly change direction, his instincts screamed danger.
"Follow them," he barked to the pilot.
Soon, he realized the Xianzhou ships were accelerating to maximum speed, as if something even more terrifying than the giant itself was chasing them.
"Keep up with them," Beardman ordered through gritted teeth.
He didn't know why the Marshal had suddenly ordered a retreat, but he was willing to trust that man's judgment, trust that the Marshal would make the most rational decision to keep his subordinates alive.
Even after leaving the Adliffon system, the Xianzhou fleet showed no signs of slowing down.
A cold dread crept into Beardman's heart. Was there an enemy out there that even the giant couldn't defeat? Could it be a Emanator of a Aeon?
The Xianzhou were sworn enemies of the followers of Abundance… Could it be the emissary of the "Abundance" Aeon?
Beardman had no clue. His thoughts ran wild, but before he could make sense of them, he received a communication from General Yaoqing Chaoyan.
When he answered, he saw not only Chaoyan but also several people he didn't recognize. Yet the first person his eyes fell upon was none other than the Xianzhou Marshal.
That man was calmly, almost tenderly, soothing one of his subordinates.
The subordinate had an exceptionally cute face and spoke in a sweet, girlish tone.
Listening closely, Beardman's eyes went wide. That person was none other than General Zhuming, the same woman who had been swearing furiously at the machines alongside Chaoyan earlier.
He was stunned.
'You Xianzhou people really do have two faces, huh?!'
After his initial shock, though, Beardman had to admit, it somehow made perfect sense.
He listened as Zhuming vented about the sentient machines without uttering a single curse word. After a while, his brain just went numb.
'What do you mean you were scared by the machines?! Who scared who, huh?! Weren't you the one trying to ram your ship into the cockpit earlier?!'
'And who in their right mind bad-mouths themselves to their superior like that?!'
Beardman sat numbly as the Marshal continued to gently coax his subordinate.
At first, he thought the subordinate was the odd one…
But after hearing the Marshal's words, he realized, no, the boss wasn't normal either.
That wasn't a commander-subordinate relationship, it was more like a father and daughter. Even real parents don't spoil their kids that much.
Beardman waited patiently until the two finally calmed down.
Then, smiling pleasantly, the Xianzhou Marshal looked at the group and said, "We are about to witness the birth of a Aeon."
Beardman, "???"
'…Huh? What did you just say? Birth… what now? A Aeon?!'
He wondered if he was going crazy, like General Zhuming.
Otherwise, why would he think he'd just heard the words "Aeon"?
He glanced around for confirmation, but everyone else looked perfectly unfazed. He exhaled in relief.
He must've misheard.
But to his horror, Chaoyan spoke up next, and her words left his mind completely blank.
The woman who always claimed to be "more feminine than any other woman" asked calmly, "Has it not ascended yet, Marshal? Please, allow me to lead the fleet back to the Adliffon system and kill it..."
The moment she said that, the others' eyes lit up.
Beardman, "...???"
'Chaoyan, what are you talking about?!'
'Do you realize that my men and I are on the same side as you?!'
'You want to go back and die together with us? Do you really think you can kill something before it becomes a god?!'
'Wait, how did the Marshal even know about this? And why were his subordinates so confident in something that absurd?'
'Could it be… he was right? Were they actually going to witness the birth of a Aeon?!'
Looking at the eager-to-slay-a-god Xianzhou generals, Beardman felt his scalp go numb.
He could only pin his hopes on the Marshal.
Fortunately, he hadn't trusted the wrong person. The Marshal shook his head. "I wouldn't let my subordinates take that kind of risk."
Indeed, before a Aeon ascends, it might still be possible to kill them, but Zero wasn't about to throw his people into danger.
If it were just him, he'd absolutely take the giant and test it out himself.
He couldn't die anyway, he had a death-lock cheat running.
But with his subordinates and allies here, he thought for a while and decided to treat this not-yet-ascended "NPC" as a tool.
As the saying goes, only when you manage a household do you realize how expensive oil and rice are. Zero had learned to save wherever he could.
What could he do, saddled with such a troublesome Aeon? Just keep building up his savings.
He remembered when Arashi ascended to godhood, his HP bar had almost hit zero.
Maybe this time, this nameless NPC might destroy a few nearby planets.
Or, even better, wipe out an entire star system?
That would be great. It'd save him a ton of resources.
He could even use the opportunity to test the effects of "Angel of Serenity."
If it could withstand divine power, then it might also hold up against an Aether Convergence Engine, right? In that case, before deploying the engine, he could continue to apply "Preservation" and wrap up all planets except the Xianzhou ones.
Zero chuckled lightly and said to his subordinates, "Let's wait together. Let's witness the birth of this Aeon. Come to think of it, this might be a rare experience."
The subordinates nodded eagerly, some even pulled out cameras, as if they were about to film a historic moment.
They began praising their Marshal as usual.
Beardman, "..."
'That's a Aeon we're talking about! A being that can decide the life or death of entire worlds and star systems with ease!'
'And you're talking about killing it?!'
'Even setting that aside… why are you all acting like tourists waiting for a sightseeing event, the birth of a god?!'
'What is this, a cyber delivery room? And you're delivering a Aeon?!'
Beardman was utterly shaken.
Was he the crazy one, or were all the Xianzhou people insane? There didn't seem to be a single normal person among them.
Everyone's drunk but me, he thought bitterly, listening to these notorious Xianzhou generals flatter their Marshal, calling him wise, farsighted, greater than the gods themselves.
And then they started throwing shade at their colleagues to make themselves look better.
Beardman, "..."
For a moment, he could almost see a bunch of kittens and puppies fighting for their owner's affection.
He didn't understand, but he was deeply, deeply shocked.
As a blunt soldier, not good with words, he quietly retreated from a battlefield he'd never meant to join.
To the Xianzhou people, their Marshal was a god who could never be wrong. Whatever he said, they believed.
But if the Marshal wasn't even in the Adliffon system, and even Chaoyan hadn't sensed anything, how did he know what was happening?
Beardman didn't know. But he did know this, whether a Aeon was truly being born or not, whether the Marshal spoke truth or lies, it didn't matter.
The Xianzhou generals would never question him. They only obeyed.
Everyone waited, for news from the Adliffon Galaxy.
Zero stared at the galactic map, watching the values climb steadily until they matched the parameters of an "Elation" Aeon.
["Destruction" Aeon]
[Its homeworld suffered from both a Swarm infestation and an Emperor War]
Zero raised an eyebrow. Looked like this one might be a kindred spirit.
'Perfect! What a great tool! Someone like that could help me fight disasters side by side!'
He scrolled down.
[It believes the birth of the universe was a mistake. Civilization is a disease of the stars. Therefore, it will destroy all civilizations in the cosmos.]
Zero, "..."
'I think you're a bit extreme.'
On the map, the newly ascended "NPC" obliterated its own planet. Its energy readings skyrocketed. Then it unleashed divine power and destroyed several nearby worlds.
Among them, the planets protected by "Preservation" remained unharmed.
The entity paused there; its readings spiked again, this time, doubling.
The planet that had deployed "Angel of Serenity" vanished completely.
So "Preservation" couldn't withstand a Aeon's power… let alone the Engine.
With that result confirmed, Zero said to his subordinates, "It's the 'Destruction' Aeon. It will annihilate all civilization."
He kept watching the map, trying to predict its next move.
His subordinates exchanged glances but didn't interrupt.
After thinking for a moment, Zero selected several star system coordinates and relayed them to his team.
The Adliffon system was doomed.
No need to waste manpower or resources there anymore.
That alone saved a huge amount of credits.
Still, Zero didn't relax. His next goal was clear, protect the fleet, and at the same time, make full use of "Destruction" as free labor, borrow the Aeon's power to fight the oncoming catastrophes.
As for its destructive capability…
Compared to Arashi, this one was probably even stronger.
Arashi targeted specific enemies, but "Destruction" attacked indiscriminately, completely uncontrollable.
Through the projection, Zero looked at his scattered subordinates across the galaxies.
He smiled faintly, expression unreadable.
"This Aeon has helped us deal with the disaster in the Adliffon system."
Beardman's eyes went wide; his jaw dropped.
He thought for a long, long time, trying to grasp the meaning behind those words.
A terrible realization began to form in his mind. He glanced at the other Xianzhou generals, hoping their reactions would confirm it.
But reading people had never been his strong suit. He couldn't tell.
The generals were already saying their goodbyes, preparing to head for new star systems.
As the others signed off one by one, Beardman looked toward the Marshal, who hadn't yet disconnected, and asked, "Marshal, what about the Adliffon Galaxy…?"
Zero glanced at the map, where the system was gradually fading from existence.
"Just now," he said evenly, "the 'Destruction' Aeon was born. The first thing it did after ascending was to annihilate the entire star system where its homeworld was."
Seeing Beardman still stunned, Zero estimated the timing and added, "By the time you reach your new coordinates, the Adliffon system will have completely vanished."
Beardman drew a deep, shaky breath.
When he looked up again, he no longer bothered to hide his emotions. Shock and fear showed plainly on his face.
Just a little more, just a little, and he and his men would have perished under the hand of a god.
Generations of human intelligence and progress, wiped away by the mere whim of a divine being.
Humanity could give everything they had, but in a god's eyes, their efforts were nothing more than futile resistance.
No, more accurately, the Aeon hadn't even noticed them.
To it, humans were ants. Their struggles were like mayflies pushing against a tree.
A Aeon could so easily destroy entire galaxies, stripping life itself from existence.
Such meaningless, effortless death… no soldier could truly accept it.
Beardman fought back tears. His voice trembled as he stammered, "You truly are all-knowing and all-powerful… Are you… are you a god yourself? Is there anything you can't do?"
Zero froze, momentarily speechless.
Beardman looked up at him, the man who stood on the opposite side yet treated everyone equally, and bowed his head in gratitude.
"Truly… thank you. If not for you, my men and I, we'd never have made it home…"
Zero looked at his tear-streaked comrade and said nothing.
He'd never been good at comforting people who cried.
His mind drifted. He thought of the Cloud Knights.
They went to battle for the Xianzhou, for the people, for their families.
Even knowing they could die, there were always more who volunteered.
On the battlefield, death came equally to all.
Even as it drew near, whether swallowed by the Swarm or slaughtered by machines, Zero believed they would fight back with their last breath, dying as warriors.
Beardman's mouth wouldn't stop running.
"It's truly the Xianzhou's fortune to have you…"
Zero wanted to say, no, it's his fortune to have them.
After all, anyone in his position, with what he had, would have made the same choices.
He didn't say it. He simply waited quietly for Beardman to calm down.
When Beardman finally wiped his tears and realized how emotional he'd gotten, embarrassment set in.
He looked nervously at the Marshal, but the man only smiled, graciously overlooking his lapse.
Then, gently, he said, "Thanks to that Aeon, we've taken one more step toward ending the calamities. Now then, let's move forward."