Chapter 282

When the vanguard support fleet of the Ke Luo Empire arrived at Dark Star Xuan, all that greeted them was a dead silence.

The Seventh Truth Research Institute, that secret base that once symbolized the Empire's ambition and glory, has completely vanished from this star sector.

In space, only a few scraps of metal debris remained, along with that intense spatial energy fluctuation that refused to subside.

All of this silently spoke of just how brutal and swift a destructive strike had just taken place here.

The commander of the support fleet, a general renowned in the Ke Luo Empire for his iron-fisted brutality, stared at the scene of devastation before him, hardly able to believe his own eyes.

"What a Bi Te En Empire… you will pay the price!"

He squeezed out from between his teeth the name he hated to the bone.

Unimaginable—that the Bi Te En Empire would dare be so arrogant, so insolent!

They directly dispatched a massive fleet, deep into the heart of the Ke Luo Empire, destroying one of the Empire's most important secret facilities!

This is no longer a provocation!

This is a naked declaration of war!

"Search!"

The general roared angrily into the comms channel, "Comb through this star sector inch by inch! I want to see what traces those damned Bi Te En scum have left!"

Under his strict order, tens of thousands of Ke Luo warships immediately dispersed and began a carpet search of the entire Dark Star Xuan.

Their most advanced detection equipment was powered to full capacity, letting no abnormal spatial fluctuation or foreign metal fragment slip by.

Soon, they had a "discovery".

Amid the floating wreckage of a base, a search team found a fragment blown apart, yet its core data module had been "cleverly" preserved—an information record fragment.

When the data on that fragment was restored and displayed before the general, his complexion grew darker than the background of Dark Star Xuan.

It was an audio recording.

In the audio, a voice full of arrogance and contempt rang out clearly.

"You reptiles of the Ke Luo civilization, this is what happens when you oppose us. Under the glory of the Empire, turn to dust."

Although the voice had been encrypted and processed, the Ke Luo Empire's technicians still quickly matched the voiceprint and locked onto a name that made them grit their teeth.

Bi Long!

The envoy of the Bi Te En Empire!

"It's him again!"

The general slammed his fist hard onto the command console, denting the sturdy metal control panel deeply.

The name Bi Long has recently become known to everyone among the Ke Luo Empire's high ranks.

It was this very individual who spearheaded contact with the emerging Yanhuang Civilization.

It was precisely because of his failure that the Bi Te En Empire issued that laughable blockade order against the Yanhuang Civilization.

Now he has brought a fleet and destroyed the Seventh Truth Research Institute!

To the general, all of this linked together into a crystal-clear chain of logic.

Bi Long suffered a setback and lost face in the Yanhuang Civilization.

To salvage his reputation and prove his worth to the empire's emperor, he chose to launch a hardline military operation to strike the Ke Luo Empire!

His target was precisely this research institute, vital to the Ke Luo Empire and directly at odds with the Bi Te En Empire.

It makes perfect sense!

Everything is "logical"!

"Immediately report all evidence to His Majesty!" the general's voice ice-cold, like ten-thousand-year-old dark ice.

The news that the Seventh Truth Research Institute had been razed to the ground, together with that clearly pointed-to "evidence," swept through the entire Ke Luo Empire like a level-twelve cosmic storm.

The core of the Empire, the Imperial Capital Star.

Within that black palace brimming with iron-blooded and killing intent.

The emperor of the Ke Luo Empire, "Ke Huang," a monarch famed for his cruelty and iron fist, flew into a rage upon seeing the battle report.

Boom!

His massive body, over a hundred meters tall and composed of dark matter and negative energy, shot up from his throne.

A terrifying energy wave, strong enough to warp space itself, erupted explosively from his body.

The entire Imperial Capital Star trembled slightly under his endless wrath.

"Bi——Te——En——!!!"

Ke Huang's roar transformed into a substantive psychic shockwave, reverberating through every corner of the palace.

A member of the imperial clan, Baron Clay, was slain!

Tens of thousands of imperial biologists were slaughtered to the last!

The secret weapon the Empire had spent a millennium developing, on the verge of success against the Bi Te En people, was destroyed in an instant!

Each of these three blows alone would be enough to make Ke Huang furious.

But when they piled together, they utterly ignited the volcano named "War" in the heart of this tyrant!

"Declare war! Declare war at once!"

"Your Majesty! The Bi Te En have bullied their way to our doorstep! We can't endure any longer!"

"Please issue the order, Your Majesty! I am willing to lead the Third Annihilation Legion and level the Bi Te En Imperial Capital Star!"

At the ensuing emergency meeting of the Empire's high leadership, passions ran high.

All the generals and legislators, as if injected with chicken blood, clamored to immediately declare war on the Bi Te En Empire, to wash away this humiliating disgrace with the enemy's blood.

Ke Huang's hawkish ministers went even further, fanning the flames, wishing they could immediately lead the Ke Luo Empire's vast fleet to the doorstep of the Bi Te En civilization's imperial star system.

At this moment, the entire Ke Luo Empire was shrouded in the frenzy of war.

However, although Ke Huang was furious, he had not entirely lost his reason.

He knows better than anyone what the cost would be of launching a full‑scale direct war against the Biteen Empire, which is also a level‑four civilization.

That would mean a stalemate lasting millions of years, the consumption of countless resources, and two vast empires marching together toward weakness in endless blood and fire.

That does not serve his interests.

"Shut up, all of you!"

Emperor Ke's roar silenced the noisy conference chamber instantly.

After speaking, he slowly sat back down on his throne.

He then issued a series of orders.

"Order! The First, Third, and Seventh Annihilation Legions must immediately muster at the empire's eastern border! Take on a posture of total war!"

"Order! The Ministry of Foreign Affairs must immediately issue the sternest diplomatic protest to the Biteen Empire!"

"Demand that they immediately give a reasonable explanation for this attack and hand over the culprit—Bilong!"

"Tell them that if our demands are not met, it will be considered a full‑scale declaration of war—this time there is no room for maneuver!"

Emperor Ke's tone was hardened to the extreme.

He intends to use this extreme pressure to force the Biteen Empire to concede and surrender the culprit, thereby restoring the empire's face.

At the same time, he issued a third order, the most secret of all.

"Dispatch the empire's most elite 'Hidden Shadow' information fleet, equipped with the most advanced detection gear, to immediately head for Dark Star Xuan and its surrounding star sector to conduct a carpet‑like secret search!"

"I not only want the Biteen Empire to give me an answer, I also want to personally track down their fleet's whereabouts and uncover more evidence!"

"I will make that hypocrite Biajie speechless in the face of ironclad proof!"

The Kelo Empire's massive war machine began to run at high speed under Emperor Ke's will.

A full‑scale high‑pressure counteroffensive—military, diplomatic, and intelligence—against the Biteen Empire has officially begun.

The entire eastern star region of the Milky Way Galaxy became roiled with undercurrents due to this sudden storm.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of light‑years away, the Biteen Emperor Biajie, upon receiving the Kelo Empire's ultimatum brimming with the smell of gunpowder, was utterly stunned.

"An attack?"

"Duke Claire?"

"The Seventh Truth Research Institute?"

"Bilong?"

He stared at the string of accusations on the ultimatum, first feeling deep confusion, then a raging fury.

"Kelo! You madman! What trick are you pulling now?!"

He simply had no idea what had actually happened.

Moreover, he did not realize that a colossal black pot had been firmly slapped onto his head.

And there was no way to shake it off.