Chapter 227: Passing the Torch

The news from Mo Ying was like the final death knell, shattering the last shred of hope within the Guangtan Alliance.

The False Emperor's mad plan had turned the "Exile Land" into a colossal trap that devoured everything, and they had already been swept into the vortex's center, with no retreat.

"The final expedition..."

Li Qingxuan's words echoed through the council chamber, carrying a power both tragic and resolute.

No one objected, because everyone understood that this was the only, and final, choice.

Either wait in silence for destruction to descend, or step willingly into hell to fight for that faint, almost non-existent glimmer of hope.

The entire Guangtan Alliance, like a war machine pushed to its absolute limit, began its final, most frantic preparations.

Li Feifei sat at the central command, her eyes bloodshot from processing a deluge of information for hours on end.

She mobilized all the rare resources in the Alliance's stockpiles, sending purchase requests through every channel to any faction that might offer help—"Calming Spirit Crystals" to stabilize the mind, "Void Dust" to interfere with energy detection, broken stone tablets recording ancient sealing knowledge... any item that might be related to the "Exile Land" mission was being collected at any cost.

The Tongxu Clan Chief led the Dwarves into action; he had the forges of Anvilburg blazing at full capacity, and the Dwarf craftsmen worked day and night, the sound of hammering never ceasing.

They no longer pursued the elegance or durability of weapons, but instead pushed to extremes for destructive power against and resistance to the energy of annihilation and unknown spiritual contamination.

Batch after batch of special ammunition, with ferocious shapes and engraved with exorcism runes and energy-disruption warheads, was produced.

At the same time, they began a final, near-total disassembly and rebuild of the meritorious "Shadow-class" Assault Ship, striving to push its stealth, defense, and speed to the limits of current technology.

Queen Aister, meanwhile, led all the Elf mages and Druids of the Moonlight Ring in two critical research projects.

The first was to use the power of the Tree of Life sapling, combined with Li Qingxuan's "Life Imprint," to attempt to create a small-scale "Life Pure Land" barrier, hoping to provide the expedition team with a temporary shelter against spiritual contamination and the erosion of annihilation.

The second was to delve deeply into the fragments of knowledge obtained from the Ancestral Observation Station, trying to find clues about the internal structure or sealing nodes of the "Exile Land."

At the same time, Li Qingxuan was also making his final sprint.

He barely slept, on one hand deeply comprehending the fusion of the "Life Imprint" with his own 【Weird Divine Realm】, trying to take another step forward on the threshold of the third stage, 【Divine Kingdom Arrival】.

On the other hand, he maintained close communication with the Shadow Hall, obtaining fragmented intelligence—bought with the lives of the "Shadow Eye"—about the outer defenses of the "Exile Land," the patterns of its energy fluctuations, and the energy characteristics of the Beacon source.

The Shadow Hall also showed unprecedented sincerity in cooperation.

Mo Ying not only shared all non-core confidential intelligence but also dispatched the Star Speaker Elder and Xingren, along with a group of the top Star Spirit Rune Masters and Shadow Assassins, to personally come to the Guangtan Alliance to assist in the expedition preparations.

The ancient knowledge of the Star Spirits began a deep, hasty fusion with the forging of the Dwarves, the magic of the Elves, and the organizational ability of Humans.

Time flew by with a suffocating sense of urgency.

One month, two months...

The expedition preparations advanced frantically, but the atmosphere within the Alliance grew heavier and heavier.

Everyone knew that this expedition was likely a one-way journey.

Li Qingxuan meticulously handed over all Alliance affairs to Li Feifei, the Tongxu Clan Chief, and Queen Aister.

He designated that during his absence, these three would form the Supreme Council, making joint decisions on major Alliance matters.

"If we don't come back..." Li Qingxuan looked at the three companions he trusted most, his tone calm yet carrying immense weight, "the Guangtan Alliance is in your hands. Preserve the spark, seek new hope. Don't seek revenge for us; surviving is the most important thing."

Tears welled in Li Feifei's eyes as she nodded firmly.

The Tongxu Clan Chief silently clenched his fists.

Queen Aister gracefully performed an ancient Elf ritual, a determined light shining in her silver eyes: "The Moonlight Ring will stand or fall with the Alliance."

On the night before the expedition's departure, Li Qingxuan climbed alone to the highest Watchtower of Guangtan Fortress.

He looked down upon this home he had built with his own hands in the apocalypse—bright with lights, orderly, and full of life.

Here were his family, his beloved, his comrades-in-arms, everything he had fought for.

He knew that this journey was not just for himself, but to protect this hard-won peace.

He reached out his hand, his fingertips seemingly able to touch the invisible protective force that enveloped the Alliance.

Inside him, the "Life Imprint" crystal grew slightly warm, resonating mysteriously with the land beneath his feet and the distant Tree of Life.

"I will come back," he murmured in his heart, a promise to this land and a vow to his own fate.

The next day, at dawn.

The Assault Ship, after its final modification and codenamed "Fortress of Hope," along with two escort ships provided by the Shadow Hall, fully loaded with supplies and suicide squad members, hovered silently outside the "Leviathan" spaceport.

The expedition members gathered on the bridge.

Besides the core members—Li Qingxuan, Huang Rong, Yan Xin, Xingyuzhe, and Xingren—there were fifty warriors, the most powerful and resolute, carefully selected from the Alliance and the Shadow Hall.

Among them were battle-hardened Dwarf berserkers, Elf rangers with peerless archery, Shadow Assassins skilled in stealth and assassination, and Human Awakened who mastered various strange abilities.

Every one of them knew the purpose and danger of this journey, but their eyes held only determination, not fear.

There were no impassioned speeches, no tragic farewells.

Li Qingxuan took one last look through the porthole at the familiar starfield and the distant planet that carried their hopes and attachments.

"Set off."

At the command, the engines of the three warships ignited simultaneously, like three meteors swimming against the current, charging without hesitation into that final darkness from which even light could not escape—the Exile Land.

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