Chapter 577: Good enough to be my child

Now.

Within Ke Luosang's atmosphere.

Countless megastructures stand tall, metal and mirrored surfaces reflecting starlight, producing vast amounts of 'light pollution'.

Closing the distance.

One can see these megastructures arranged in a grid pattern, with an unimaginable number and intricate web of pipes, tracks, and skybridges woven through them.

Moreover, large numbers of airships resembling old‑fashioned vehicles shuttle between the pipes and buildings.

And if one looks straight down between the buildings, some are nothing but endless abysses.

At a glance.

Without close inspection, one knows that those who can withstand sunlight and feel brightness are all radiant and splendid, belonging to the upper stratum of the First Empire's ruling class.

They are either wealthy merchants, officials, or some hangers‑on between the two.

As for life in the endless abyss, it can only be said to be hardly different from the lowest stratum of hive worlds in the Zero Three Universe (Warhammer 40k).

Slaughter, riot, panic, mutation, and so on are the norm.

Clearly the upper echelons of the First Empire's power center lie above, yet they cannot change the impoverished lives of the nearby lower strata; such a regime, let alone letting the prosperity and strength of the 101st Galaxy region flourish.

Yet on the sunlit side's northern hemisphere, there is a single natural mountain range exposed to the sky, and everything nearby—buildings, airships, etc. —is extremely luxurious.

After all, this place has natural formations that ordinary people find hard to reach.

But since the appearance of ten thousand star‑destroying warships within Ke Luosang's gravitational range in an instant, everything has seemed to hit pause.

Immediately thereafter, an uncontrollable atmosphere of panic swiftly spread through the upper levels of Ke Luosang.

It is clearly the capital of the First Empire, with the tightest defenses and most concentrated military forces, so how could the enemy forces reach it so unhindered?

Yet what the vast majority of nobles do not realize is that the so‑called mighty First Empire they envision has already lost half its territory.

If these nobles were made aware of this, before the enemy—that is, the Human Empire's irregular fleet—arrives, they might already have become the Human Empire's 'all lands'.

After all, when it comes to rebellion, these nobles are extremely adept.

Meanwhile.

Not far from that natural mountain range lies the 'Metal Continent', standing at least a kilometer higher than other terrains and close to the upper cloud layer.

Moreover, atop this Metal Continent stands a giant palace whose scale far surpasses other constructions in Ke Luosang, with a magnificent and splendid appearance.

"What on earth is it? What on earth is it?"

Inside the Throne Hall, an aged and helpless voice of questioning echoed.

Only see on the throne sits a 'thing' clad in black robes, with pallid skin, an ugly and extremely aged face, gazing up at the splendid mural above the hall.

But at this moment, it has no mind to appreciate artworks, for it is the openly acknowledged ruler of the First Empire——

Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating.

As for the surface,

Mainly because the First Empire's territory is simply too vast, many local warlords have declared independence, and even if it wanted to govern, it cannot control them.

However, compared to the enemy that appeared not long ago, they are like mayflies versus the heavens—fundamentally not on the same scale.

As emperor, and also as a practitioner of the Dark Force (Spiritual Energy), Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating did not rashly gaze upon the 'cold sun' of hyperspace like the previous reckless Dark Warrior woman.

It dare not sense the opponent, but it knows the opponent is there, seemingly having stepped into their First Empire from other dimensions.

More importantly, not knowing how they provoked the opponent, the 'cold sun' grew brighter and blinding, even driving away the deity it revered and worshipped.

The loss of its greatest reliance, and the fact that the opponent could dismantle half of the First Empire in just about ten days, has left Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating terrified to death.

Moreover, it is already old, having lived nearly three hundred years; it has tasted all the rises and falls, wealth and honor, and the supreme power granted by the deity, leaving it with almost no regrets.

Its only regret is perhaps not having understood from the deity what the true essence of the Dark Side is; otherwise, it could have ascended to a higher dimension like the deity.

Beneath the throne.

They are a group of officials and generals who are 'faithfully loyal' to Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating, plus many red‑armored, red‑robed guards wearing masks, who are in fact even more anxious.

They lack Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating's laissez‑faire attitude; the First Empire's development to its present state is inseparable from their efforts, and most importantly, who could wield unprecedented power and still let go lightly?

"Just a mere ten thousand Imperial‑class ships!"

"If we fully deploy our ground‑based and orbital weapons, we can easily destroy them!"

"Exactly, that's right!"

"But—" however, a discordant voice sounded: "The latest information we just received shows that our monitoring and fire‑control systems have failed, unable to lock onto the enemy fleet."

"This isn't even the worst." Another military‑clad general with a low voice said: "My troops have already clashed with the enemy ground forces; aside from the previously rumored sporadic giants, most are former Imperial Shocktroopers."

Furthermore, these traitors are all fervent, shouting things like 'For the Emperor!' and 'For the Empire!', which further proves that the enemy leader possesses a means to completely control people's minds or wills.

"This!"

Upon hearing these words, the assembled 'loyal ministers' fell speechless.

The failure of the fire‑control system, and of any means of total control, signifies that Ke Luosang's fall is inevitable.

Even though they recently recalled large numbers of Dark Warriors, raising the count of Dark Warriors in Ke Luosang, especially near the palace, from a few thousand to over a hundred thousand,

They lack confidence.

Looking at the emperor they serve, now feeble and senile, with no trace of reluctance in expression or gaze, one knows their emperor has actually 'surrendered'.

Seeing this, a few of the 'loyal ministers' felt a chill, wondering whether to defect to the enemy.

No, it is to pledge allegiance to the Human Empire, to abandon darkness for light.

There's no way; during Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating's ambitious, mighty era, this group was a community of shared interests, but now they lean more toward 'changing dynasties, enduring families'.

The enemy is not wrong.

But that doesn't mean they will remain enemies in the future.

Moreover, since Pa'erfu·Pa'erpating has lost the will to resist, it would be better to surrender early and join the ranks shouting 'For the Empire!' and 'For the Emperor!'

It is said the enemy are steadfast human supremacists, and being human themselves, with their resources and countless connections, even their post‑surrender status would surely be far higher than that of the shocktroopers.

However, just then, a loud "Boom!" rang out, interrupting everyone's thoughts.

Hearing the sound, they looked toward it.

At this moment, the great doors of the throne hall were burst open inward by an invisible brute force, and along with that force entered the hall more than ten red-clad guard corpses whose bones were completely shattered and whose limbs were limp like jelly.

"Thud! Thud!"

The heavy thuds of the corpses hitting the floor echoed in the hall, and instantly the hundred red-clad guards stationed on either side sprang into action.

Soon, the red-clad troops formed four semicircular lines, pointing their spear tips toward the gate.

Even with their masks on, one could tell the troops' expressions were grim to the extreme, for the invisible brute force that had slain their comrades contained an overwhelming yet familiar dark power.

And only one could wield such power.

"Thud, thud." The heavy footsteps were clearly audible.

"Hoo~ hoo~" A rhythmic, distinctive mechanical breathing sound also reached everyone's ears.

Accompanied by these noises, the master who had just released the dark force, leading a group of elite warriors clad in shining black armor and black robes, slowly passed through the gate into the throne hall.

As for that master, he too wore black helmet and armor, with a black cloak draped behind him, standing about 2.12 meters tall, and his helmet visor resembled a black skull.

And this rather terrifying "he" was the Dark Lord of the First Empire, second only in rank, prestige, and power to Palpatine Palpatine—

Darth Vader.

Moreover, Darth Vader's influence in society and the military seemed to have already far surpassed that of the emperor, who still sat on the throne but had lost his ambition.

"What are you trying to—?!"

Palpatine was about to shout a question, but saw Darth Vader already raise his left hand and make a pinching motion, rendering him unable to speak further.

The black-armored elites also acted alongside their master, pulling the triggers of their high-powered blaster rifles at the red-clad guards and the bewildered "loyalists."

"Tap! Tap-tap!"

In an instant, dense bursts of bright blue blaster fire flashed across the vast throne hall.

Like the unprepared "loyalists," they were wiped out in the first round of the clash, having no chance to surrender, dying in the name of loyalty.

By contrast, the red-clad guards waved their spears, quickly and precisely deflecting the blaster bolts, or reflecting them back at the black-armored elites.

"Hum! Hum!"

However, the black-armored elites seemed to possess some sort of stance, also enabling them to deflect the blaster bursts.

Even if occasionally unlucky, and the stance failed to protect them, causing them to be killed by their own rifle fire, it was no great loss.

Mainly, the black-armored elites were simply too numerous; the number flooding into the throne hall alone exceeded five times that of the red-clad guards.

And the red-clad guards gradually could not hold out; no matter how strong they were, they could not withstand such an onslaught.

Thus, to swiftly turn the tide and also to save the emperor, all the red-clad guards abandoned defense, ignored the incoming blaster fire, and chose to charge at the most crucial target—the still-walking Darth Vader.

But the result.

"Pfft! Pfft!"

The red-clad troops nearer to Darth Vader all burst apart and died.

Those farther away fell into a stunned state, like sitting ducks, and were killed by concentrated fire from the black-armored elites.

It appears the red-clad guards did indeed swiftly change the battle—only to accelerate their own deaths.

The clash in the throne hall suddenly ceased, leaving only the heavy footsteps and mechanical breathing.

Soon.

Darth Vader arrived at the platform where the throne stood, looking down upon the suffering, desperately struggling Palpatine, who could do nothing.

There was no villainous victory declaration, no taunting or mockery, just a moment of silence before Darth Vader clenched his left hand into a fist.

"Crack!"

With a sharp, loud bone-crunch, Palpatine ceased struggling, his hands and limbs going limp and powerless.

His head, however, having been pinched and exploded by the brute force on his neck, could not stay attached, rolled off his torso, and finally came to rest before Darth Vader's feet.

"Bang!"

The Dark Lord without hesitation stomped and exploded the emperor's head, which died with eyes unclosed.

This shows the deep grudge between the two sides, and Darth Vader harbored intense hatred, thus striking first as a sign of respect.

"Clap! Clap!"

At that very moment, scattered applause echoed through the throne hall.

?!

This caused Darth Vader to instantly turn toward the source of the applause, simultaneously drawing the lightsaber hilt attached to his waist and heightening his vigilance to the utmost.

The instant he completed the turn, "he" was utterly shocked.

Because the black-armored elites, who should have been sweeping the battlefield and standing guard—those he had especially cared for and trained—now all lay lifeless on the ground.

And the one clapping, likewise dressed entirely in black, had at some point flashed into the hall's center and, with thunderous force, disposed of all the miscellaneous personnel—Sui Bian.

Seeing Darth Vader dispatch Palpatine without a word, Sui Bian admired all the more this Dark Lord who had fallen due to familial ties, and also wished even more to seize and correct his soul.

"Hum!"

A bright red lightsaber ignited.

"You are that cold sun." Darth Vader's voice was low and mechanical, with little fear: "Being able to have you descend in person shows… you are very interested in me."

Sui Bian did not bother to explain, simply drawing the Emperor's Sword out of thin air, then hanging its scabbard at his waist and gripping the hilt with his right hand…

"Clang!"

"Boom!"

The instant the blade left the sheath, raging flames ignited the entire hall, temperature soaring, even space itself seeming to warp.

!!

Merely this sword-drawing move already forced Darth Vader to involuntarily drop to one knee; fortunately his right hand still gripped the hilt tightly, otherwise the lightsaber blade might have sliced off his right knee.

Not bad, you're qualified enough to be my child.

？！

Be his child?

This is…

He hadn't even finished asking what he wanted to ask when Darth Vader, plunged into utter shock, saw Sui Bian already stepping with the pace that he could observe, a 'slow step,' yet he swiftly swung his sword down.

Seeing this, Darth Vader exerted all his strength to raise his lightsaber to block.

Unfortunately, no matter what he did, the blade of the Emperor's Sword would eventually fall.

However, before his body was about to lose its life, Darth Vader, at close range, saw that the flames capable of incinerating a soul had inexplicably extinguished themselves?!

In the next moment he plunged into endless darkness; after he realized that his own self had been illuminated by the cold sun, he opened his eyes again and saw.

A strange doctor wearing a bird-beak mask.