Chapter 449

The grudge conglomerate collapsed under the barrage of the rule-rewriting weapon, leaving only a void space a hundred kilometers in diameter at the spot.

At the center of the void, that grudge core emitting a dim light hovered silently.

The surrounding chaotic energy streams still surged wildly, but that nauseating malice had mostly dissipated.

"Report! Target locked! Recovery team requests to sortie!"

In the comms channel, a young commander's voice could barely conceal excitement.

This is a treasure left behind by an eighth-level civilization; bringing it back could earn a lot of contribution points.

Zhou Yunhai, however, did not rush to give the order; he frowned, staring at that crystal on the screen.

It went too smoothly, so smoothly it felt like a carefully wrapped trap.

Even the dead remnants of an eighth-level civilization shouldn't be this fragile.

"Uncle Lei, what do you think?"

He turned his head and asked.

Lei Ge's smile had long vanished from his face, his eyes slightly closed.

Half a second later, he snapped his eyes open and barked: "Don't move! That's bait!"

Almost at the same moment, Qin Hao's voice blasted directly into Lei Ge's mind, speaking extremely fast:

"Retreat! The true grudge is reviving! It's reading your subconscious, simulating what you fear most!"

Before his words faded, an anomaly suddenly erupted.

That grudge core, which seemed harmless, suddenly throbbed violently like a heart, its color shifting from dim to deep black.

The surrounding chaotic energy streams, upon being summoned, turned into countless black lightning bolts, frenziedly tearing at the spatial walls of this dimension.

"Warning! High-dimensional rule fluctuation index is skyrocketing!"

"Alert! Unknown concept entity is materializing! Cannot parse! Cannot parse!"

On the main control screen,

that crystal stretched and twisted wildly, ultimately forming a colossal shadow that blotted out the sky.

It had no fixed form, yet it was like a mirror, reflecting the deepest abyss that all who gazed upon it dared not touch within their hearts.

That was fear itself.

Zhou Yunhai's face turned ashen, "What the hell is this?"

"This is the Abyss's true trump card—rule-level mental contamination!"

Lei Ge gritted his teeth, "It directly attacks our consciousness defenses!"

As if to prove his point, chaos began to erupt on the bridge.

Countless whispers drilled into everyone's ears—demonic murmurs, loved ones' wails, the death knell of civilizations.

Some saw Blue Star reduced to ash, some saw themselves suffocating in the void, some saw their comrades torn apart before their eyes…

"Activate maximum-grade mental defense! Yanhuang Spiritual Resonance at full power!"

Zhou Yunhai roared, hoping to suppress the spreading panic with military order.

But this is a curse left behind by an eighth-level civilization.

Even with Yanhuang Spiritual Resonance bolstering them, many crew members with weaker wills still showed anguish, cold sweat soaking their uniforms, their gazes beginning to scatter, on the brink of collapse.

"Report! The mental defense net is collapsing!"

"That thing… it's devouring our sanity!"

Despair spread like a virus through the fleet.

If this continues, they will become part of that Abyss themselves without the enemy lifting a finger.

"Xiao Qin! This side can't hold much longer!"

Lei Ge shouted anxiously through the mental link.

The next moment, Qin Hao gave a solution.

"Lei Ge, don't panic."

The greatness of human nature lies in our ability to light torches in despair. Fear? In the face of the will of Yanhuang Civilization, it's nothing.

Give it a lesson with the brilliance of humanity.

Lei Ge's body shuddered, and he instantly understood.

That is the trump card Qin Hao bestowed upon them, a concept-level weapon called Hope.

Yunhai!

Lei Ge suddenly lifted his head, his eyes burning with the flame called faith, "Order all warships, link all channels of Yanhuang spiritual resonance to the Pangu!"

Since it wants to play on the spiritual level, then we'll accompany it in playing a big one!

Although Zhou Yunhai didn't understand the technical principles, he unconditionally trusted Qin Hao and Lei Ge.

All fleets, hear the order! Energy circuit reconfigured! Target Pangu, Yanhuang spiritual resonance—full power output!

Hum——!!!

A booming roar like a great bell and drum echoed in the void.

An invisible force to the naked eye, yet capable of making the soul tremble, a mighty power,

It surged from every warship and every Yanhuang warrior, converging upon Pangu like a hundred rivers returning to the sea.

It was the cry of countless beings, the unyielding backbone, the arrogance and grandeur of defying heaven!

As this power gathered, Lei Ge felt his consciousness infinitely elevated,

He was no longer an individual, but the executor of the will of the entire Yanhuang Civilization.

He slowly raised his hand, pointing from afar at the "Fear Phantom" that blotted out the sky, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

You scum of the abyss, do you think simulating fear can crush us?

"Sorry, the Yanhuang people's knees just won't bend!"

"Give me—break!"

With Lei Ge's furious shout, a warm light that made one want to tear up—that is, the light of humanity Qin Hao spoke of—burst forth from the Pangu Ship.

This light shrouded that invincible fear phantom.

Hiss—

A shrill wail came from the Deep Abyss, the sound of rules breaking.

Before the absolute blazing will of civilization,

All dark, twisted, fearful illusions,

They didn't even last a second, directly exploding, disintegrating, and turning to nothing.

The originally arrogant resentment core resurfaced, its light dim as a candle in the wind, and its originally violent rules were forcibly subdued,

Becoming extremely docile.

Report! The resentment reaction has disappeared!

High-dimensional rules have restored stability!

Crew consciousness has returned! We… we made it through!

The survivors' cheers nearly overturned the bridge's top cover.

Everyone gasped heavily, exchanged glances, and saw in each other's eyes a glint of light called pride.

What about resentment? What about the Deep Abyss?

They were just lifted up by us!

Zhou Yunhai looked at Lei Ge standing tall before the command console, his eyes full of shock.

Only now did he understand how terrifying the foundation that Chief Commander Qin Hao spoke of really was.

Don't just stand there,

Lei Ge adjusted his collar, restoring his usual smiling expression, and said, "Recovery team, get to work. This is spoils of war—don't damage it."

Yes!

Several shuttles swiftly launched, easily taking the resentment core into their hold.

Report! The core has been recovered!

Mission accomplished perfectly!

Zhou Yunhai let out a long breath and ordered, "All ships, self-check, prepare to return!"

However, just as the fleet had turned its bow and was about to sail out of the Deep Abyss entrance, Qin Hao's voice came again.

Lei Ge, don't relax just yet—outside there's still an audience waiting to watch the show.

Lei Ge blinked, then looked toward the holographic projection.

At the Deep Abyss entrance, countless signal points were approaching.

That was the Universal Alliance's fleet!

Literally millions of warships formed a tight encirclement, sealing the exit so tightly not even water could leak through.

Leading them were the flagships of the Nüwa Civilization, the Thunder God's Hammer Civilization, and the Five Great Council Civilizations.

This posture—does it look like they're here to rendezvous?

Clearly they're here to collect corpses and, by the way, divvy up the inheritance!

They were certain the Yanhuang Civilization would at least lose a layer of skin even if it didn't die—perfect timing to profit from the fire.

But now, the Pangu Ship set out with its full complement, not a speck of paint scratched off, marching out boldly.

This scene was nothing less than a resounding slap, fiercely striking the faces of everyone in the Alliance.

Report! The Alliance fleet sent a communication demanding we immediately stop the ship, shut down the engines, undergo a full safety inspection, and hand over the mission items for harmless disposal!

Zhou Yunhai's face darkened, his eyes brimming with killing intent: "These hypocrites really dare to speak up."

Lei Ge, however, smiled—his smile a bit cold.