Chapter 239: with translation of chapter title

Blue.

It is New York's current dominant color.

And it completely devoured the Empire Building, even swallowing the entire Manhattan core; the source of all this was a small "blue‑light sun".

The western shore of Brooklyn.

A group of colonists rushing toward the tumor‑shaped aircraft, exposed to the "blue sunlight", had not yet noticed Manhattan's sudden change, and vanished like dust blown away by a strong wind.

Far from Manhattan's districts, all colonists, upon witnessing the "sun" for an instant, had their bodies turned to charcoal.

Boom———!

The "sun" rapidly expanded outward, and the "blue light" covered an area with a five‑kilometre radius centered on the Empire Building.

Beyond that zone, a flame‑bearing shockwave burned everything in its path—tall towers, mushroom structures, and those disgusting tentacled plants.

An unknown amount of time passed.

A plasma bomb explosion equivalent to five million tons of TNT scattered the dense clouds, finally allowing New York to receive long‑awaited sunlight.

The ground turned into reflective, crystal‑shimmering wasteland, and Manhattan Island at the blast's epicenter became a "crystalline crater", with scarlet sea water constantly flooding in.

The plasma bomb was like an eraser, instantly wiping away any trace of the colonists' existence.

As for the large portal that also vanished, it was deliberately shut down by the colonists.

Not only New York, but every city and region on Earth that possessed a portal, aside from the front‑line base, was simultaneously hit by a plasma bomb attack.

Moreover, it was an attack that could not be detected or intercepted.

Confused colonists, to prevent their homeworld and key colonies from being implicated, had to abandon their compatriots and close the portals on Earth.

…

In the universe.

Within a system centered on an orange‑red star, the first and second orbital zones host two terrestrial planets, while the outer region contains three gas giants of varying mass and size.

The planet closest to the star resembles Mercury, with a barren, atmosphere‑less surface, making conditions for life extremely harsh.

The second terrestrial planet, smaller than Earth and only slightly larger than Mars, is enveloped by a dense atmosphere.

Beneath the atmosphere, 40% of the surface is a scarlet "ocean", while 60% is land of deep‑red soil,

It is the homeworld of the colonist species, home to roughly 2.3 billion colonists living on a planet extremely hostile to humans.

On the northern shore of the equatorial ocean lies a city of towering spires and mushroom‑shaped structures, the capital of the colonist race.

At the capital's centre, atop the tallest tower, within the vaulted hall, dozens of hunched, wrinkled‑skinned, seemingly ancient colonists sit in a circle.

Like a holographic floating screen, it displayed to them scenes of DivineBody slaying a giant beast and plasma bombs detonating Paris and New York.

"."

The colonists stared at each other in silent bewilderment.

Even though their facial muscles are not as developed as humans' and show little expression, the solemn atmosphere of the hall makes it clear that each of them is now gaping in astonishment.

In the colonists' culture, the concept of a "god" has never arisen.

If they do, it is only their arrogant self‑proclamation as gods, since they can open portals to other worlds and even create the "monster" species.

But the winged DivineBody shattered the colonists' understanding, making them realize for the first time that they had provoked a "god" they should not have meddled with.

Fortunately, they closed the portal in time; otherwise, the fate of annihilation would have befallen them.

!

But a stumbling guard clad in armor resembling an insect's exoskeleton rushed into the vaulted hall, interrupting the colonists' high‑ranking officials' covert relief.

The guard frantically shouted in their language, its four trembling limbs pointing toward the hall's exit.

?

The officials were startled, then followed the guard out of the hall, through a tunnel, to an aerial plaza facing north.

Just after emerging from the sealed tunnel, they saw, deep in the northern continent, a mushroom cloud soaring straight into the sky…

No, it should be described as a massive mushroom cloud breaking through the heavens, at least a hundred kilometres tall, reaching outer space.

Looking farther.

A pervasive "flame tsunami" covered the entire horizon, poised to sweep across the whole continent.

"!!!!"

Even with their limited facial muscles, the officials now displayed extreme terror.

"Played" for over a decade with humans from another Earth, how could they not understand that this mushroom cloud only forms during a nuclear blast.

But…

What kind of nuclear bomb could produce such an effect??!!

When was this nuclear bomb dropped onto their homeworld??

"Boom—Rumble————!"

Before the officials could ponder an answer, a tsunami towering several kilometres, accompanied by an ear‑piercing explosion, swept into the capital, devouring and destroying everything.

In the end, the officials only recalled, before death, that apocalyptic, world‑ending horror.

Leaving the ruined capital, they looked down from high altitude.

After the tsunami‑like shockwave passed, an uncontrollable "plate movement" followed, cracking the earth as scorching magma spewed from the fissures.

Ascending further into outer space, they observed the colonists' homeworld.

The shockwave and the planet's massive upheaval radiated outward from that colossal mushroom cloud, reaching the entire world.

Just as recorded in the Old Testament Genesis—

"The LORD declares He will use a flood to destroy the earth, and not a single living thing will survive."

But the cause of this planetary devastation was not a so‑called God or flood; it was Sui Bian, who authorized the operation, and Umbrella's most powerful strategic weapon, the Nova‑class nuclear bomb.

The Nova‑class consists of a lithium‑triterpene shell enclosing nine warheads, each with a thirty‑million‑ton TNT equivalent, forming a cataclysmic tier.

The explosion of "her" is sufficient to erase 2.3 billion colonists on the home planet, along with the planet's surface environment, which may become unsuitable for life for periods measured in ten‑thousands of years.

The colonists' other two important colony planets likewise suffered two new‑star‑class "door‑to‑door visits".

———————

…

Meanwhile.

In another Earth's Moscow, three hundred meters below the surface, within a small passage on the outer upper layer of the fortress city…

"Bang! Bang bang!" The 7.62×39 mm gunfire roared.

"Buli! Buli! Go die!" Amid the gunfire, a Russian‑style shouted roar intermingled.

Twenty reconnaissance soldiers of the United Military Defense forces, wielding similarly Russian‑styled firearms, alternately covered the blocking Beast Entities as they retreated toward the gate behind them.

Suddenly.

"Awo… Awo…"

A Beast Entity whose left forepaw had been torn by a projectile surprisingly emitted a mournful animal‑like hum.

Its previously soulless eyes now showed a fearful expression toward the guns in the reconnaissance soldiers' hands.

Acting on survival instinct, it turned and fled hurriedly, limping on its injured leg.

Soon, more and more Beast Entities joined the fleeing group, resulting in all the Beast Entities scattering in a chaotic rush, escaping the soldiers' sight.

???

The reconnaissance soldiers, on this side, were confused and bewildered.

"Sss…" At this moment, their communications emitted a burst of static, followed by a superior's order:

"All reconnaissance squads, attention: the monsters have undergone a mutation, and your latest mission is to approach the surface as closely as possible for reconnaissance."

Hearing the order, the scouts temporarily set aside their doubts, and a squad leader wearing a red beret also responded:

"Received."

Next, this reconnaissance squad traversed the tunnel, gradually nearing the surface.

During this period, the squad clashed with Beast Entities many times, but without exception the Beast Entities chose to flee.

In the past, the squad's modest numbers and firepower would have long ago…

Thus the squad moved upward unhindered, reaching an abandoned subway station just a step from the surface, where they successfully rendezvoused with two other squads.

At this point, everyone's emotions were extremely complex, for they had never imagined that in their lifetimes they would be able to return to the surface again.

They hurried upward along the long‑inactive handrail ladder, finally passing through the subway station's exit to the surface.

Over sixty people formed a formation, half‑crouching to observe their surroundings.

They discovered the Beast Entities roaming among the building ruins no longer acted in unison; they even bit each other, behaving just like ordinary beasts fighting over territory.

The most surprising thing was that they found no trace of the hundred‑meter giant beast.

"Situation in the sky at six o'clock!"

Hearing the alert, everyone swiftly swung their barrels to point toward the southern sky.

This time, they saw a flight formation composed of various transport aircraft, as well as a DivineBody flapping its twin wings.

Seeing this, a reconnaissance soldier, face full of astonishment, lowered his weapon and said, "Buli… Suka Buli…"

———————

…

【Detected that the head responsible for assimilation and invasion of another Earth died from an Umbrella‑manufactured plasma bomb, thus the host obtained permission to close the portal.】

Detected 2.87 billion colonists killed by the explosion of three new‑star‑class nuclear bombs.

Because the host approved OriginalBody Robert's operation, the colonist civilization suffered severe damage, teetering on extinction, and then compared the colonist civilization with the host's Earth civilization…

After completing the comparison, the host received 3,000 points, with 36,600 points remaining.

Sui Bian, situated aboard the Courage Anthem, sitting behind his personal cabin desk, was listening to the system's voice in his mind.

"Sir," the Red Queen, standing to his left, reported to him:

"Based on the Beast Entities' loss of cohesion, the new‑star‑class nuclear bombs dropped on the colonists' home planet have successfully detonated; currently the three OriginalBodies are engaged in an operation with the UNSC to liberate all fortress cities."

"Good, I understand," Sui Bian replied with a slight nod, and then, not forgetting, added:

"Red Queen, convey to Robert and the others that this time they did well."

"Yes." The Red Queen likewise nodded in response.

After concluding the conversation with the Red Queen, Sui Bian fell back into silence, lost in thought.

The plasma bomb explosion in New York, and the nuclear blast on the colonists' home planet, were actually the work of NuoWa and four Ghost agents.

If that head possessed Spiritual Energy like John, it could easily sense NuoWa and her team's approach, but "unfortunately" that "if" does not exist.

The entire colonist race lacks awareness of Spiritual Energy, so naturally they cannot detect NuoWa's covert infiltration.

A plasma bomb roughly the size of a rugby ball was placed in the Empire Building, ensuring the head would be killed the instant it detonated.

The larger new‑star‑class nuclear bomb was set with a countdown and positioned by NuoWa's team on a massive tumor‑like flying craft.

Afterwards they withdrew to a safe distance, boarding a small transport aircraft equipped with Optical Camouflage and an invisibility coating.

Once she sensed that the tumor craft entered the portal, she detonated the plasma bomb, erasing the head and everything in New York.

Other portals likewise received a "visit" from Ghost agents.

As for why Robert chose to send Ghost agents to infiltrate rather than launch a direct assault, the main reason was to ensure safety.

Now, for Umbrella and the UNSC, the colonists, worth only 3,000 points, are on the brink of extinction; the leaderless Beast Entities no longer pose a threat, indicating that operations toward another Earth are nearing completion.

The last remaining point is to find a suitable reason to withdraw the forces deployed on the far side of the portal.

After all, closing the portal would cause the system to transfer all surviving humans to his universe, but this "all" does not include Umbrella and the UNSC forces.

Although the system will rationally arrange memories, Sui Bian, as Robert's "father", is more prudent and will never directly issue a withdrawal order, leaving possible hidden risks.

Moreover, he had always intended to gradually guide humanity, preparing them in every aspect, so he fell silent for a moment and then spoke:

"White Empress, prepare a batch of living and food supplies, and also dispatch an engineering team to the frontline base beyond the teleportation gate to construct a small atmospheric modification device."

"Very well, sir." White Empress replied.

Finished speaking.

Sui Bian turned on the computer on his desk, which was equipped with a holographic screen, made a few adjustments, and summoned a three‑dimensional Milky Way star map in the center of the cabin.

He then zoomed in, and zoomed in again, until the marked Solar System and the seven adjacent star systems became clear.

Since the exchange of the Fire Spirit and the planetary terraforming device, ten years of rapid development have passed; humanity's total population has reached over 9.4 billion, about to surpass the 10 billion mark, and its reach has already extended beyond the Solar System.

There are now seven exoplanetary colony systems.

The nearest is the Alpha Centauri system, also known as Proxima Centauri, which lies only 4.3 light‑years from the Solar System and possesses a terrestrial planet in the habitable zone with a mass 1.17 times that of Earth.

The farthest is Epsilon Boötes, about 10.5 light‑years from the Solar System; its star's mass is 0.85 times that of the Sun, and the whole system resembles the Solar System.

The habitable‑zone terrestrial planet has a mass 1.08 times Earth's, with a rotation period of 27 hours and an orbital period of 390 Earth days.

Moreover, this planet is extremely rich in titanium, estimated to contain six times the total amount found on Earth and prehistoric planets combined, so its future will be as a production base for human vessels and warships.

Because of its unique location and abundant titanium, Sui Bian named it Zhi Yuan Star (Reach).

When the teleportation gate is closed, humanity's total will directly break the 10 billion threshold and instantly boost the populations of these seven colonies.

Immediately after, Sui Bian returned the star map to its original position.

Quietly gazing at the entire galaxy, his hands resting on the armrest of his seat slowly clenched, and he murmured to himself:

"The road, it seems still very long."

(End of chapter)