Those who face the wall, but are in the Nascent Soul stage.

Chapter 254 We Can Walk Our Own Way Without Gods (6k)

The expeditionary fleet traversed the inner ring for 24 hours.

"How are the Wallfacers doing?"

After commanding this 'time travel' operation, Qian Mengjian hurriedly returned to the meditation room.

"Still asleep. The monitoring equipment shows that the brainwaves of the person facing the wall have entered a peaceful state. It is estimated that they have been over-exhausted and forced into hibernation." The space medic next to him put away all kinds of medical equipment.

Luo Qing was still sitting cross-legged on his straw cushion, his eyes closed. His loose Taoist robe floated in the weightless environment, looking out of place in the pristine white cabin.

After the space medic finished packing up all the emergency equipment, he said to Qian Mengjian, "Captain Qian, you don't need to worry too much. He'll probably be fine after resting for a while. The recovery ability of cultivators far surpasses that of us innate martial artists."

Ding Yi, standing on the magnetic ground, nodded: "Commander Qian, don't be too nervous. The Wallfacer is just too exhausted. This is normal. You have to know how outrageous things he did before. Luo Qing was able to stop the molecular vibrations in a space the size of Earth... How much energy does that require? I don't even dare to calculate it."

Upon hearing Ding Yi's words, Luo Qing immediately opened his eyes and explained, "Ding Yi, it's not as big as you imagine."

"Hey, you're awake?"

"I haven't been able to sleep. Old Ding, although the space I'm in stillness is as high as one trillion cubic kilometers, don't forget that the vast majority of the space within this one trillion cubic kilometers is a vacuum, with hardly any molecules at all."

Luo Qing held up one finger: "I only stopped the entire Devouring Fleet. The Devouring Fleet on the main battlefield consists of 25000 medium and large warships and 75000 small warships. Assuming an average Devouring Warship weighs 5000 million tons, this is only 500 billion tons."

In terms of sheer weight, it's not even as heavy as the Alps. Under Earth's standard gravity, I could easily lift 5000 billion units.

However, stopping the intermolecular forces of all matter at this scale at the molecular level is very difficult; the two are not the same thing. This static force field that lasted for ninety seconds almost drained all my energy and magical power.

Ding Yi muttered, "That's terrifying too..."

After saying that, Luo Qing smiled slightly at Qian Mengjian: "Commander Qian, it's because I didn't try hard enough. Otherwise, I could have directly applied this regional molecular stasis spell to the giant ring, which would have been enough to freeze the area of ​​the giant ring and thus tear it apart... But the mass of the giant ring is just too big. I really can't do it. It's too big."

The paradoxical vice-captain suddenly realized: "That's what I was saying. If the Wallfacers have this ability, why don't they just stop the giant ring? Once part of the giant ring's structure is stopped, under the giant ring's high-speed rotation... ha, I don't even want to think about what will happen."

"Stop dreaming. To stop the intermolecular forces of such a large mass, the total energy required is greater than kicking the sun away. Even cultivators can't do that," Ding Yi explained to Luo Qing.

Luo Qing gave Ding Yi a thumbs up: "You understand me better."

Ding Yi chuckled ambiguously.

Qian Mengjian naturally wouldn't demand more from the wall-facers. He said with great emotion, "Luo Qing, you've done enough. The fleet's ability to quickly break through the Devouring Fleet's blockade and enter the Giant Ring is all thanks to you."

"And besides that molecular stasis field, both your talisman that made the fleet invisible, and the simulated nuclear fusion glow in the distance to confuse the dinosaurs, played a significant role in the battle just now... Believe me, your achievements are unparalleled."

Luo Qing changed the subject: "Where is the fleet now?"

Qian Mengjian said, "We are now 25 astronomical units away from the ring. The turning operation is about to begin. This shuttle operation is more dangerous than I imagined... The ring seems to have come alive. Tens of thousands of ring engines adjusted their angles and tried to surround and lock us with their exhaust flames, but we are fast enough to escape the encirclement of the engine flames."

However, the fleet was not out of danger. Three thousand large ring engines entered overload mode, extending their fiery contrails, which had stretched from tens of thousands of kilometers to hundreds of thousands of kilometers, lashed out like three thousand fiery whips. Most warships dodged, but the [Luo Qing] stellar-class warship at the rear of the fleet was severely burned. Even the [Luo Qing]'s nuclear fusion engine was damaged, leaving the [Luo Qing] in a state of unpowered gliding. It could neither adjust its speed nor turn. The fleet was currently organizing a rescue operation, prioritizing getting the crew of the [Luo Qing] to other warships.

The Paradox Engine vice-captain added, "But Wallfacer, don't worry. Although the fleet is gliding in space at 15% of the speed of light, the warships are still relatively stationary. Therefore, the rescue operation is not as difficult as you might think. The innate martial artists are tough and don't even need to wear spacesuits. They can just paddle over in the vacuum environment."

Upon hearing this, Luo Qing sighed: "[Luo Qing]... I knew this name was unlucky. I've been injured quite a bit since I embarked on the path of cultivation. I'll delete this name from my records from now on."

The deputy captain smiled and said, "We will report this to the Asian Fleet."

Luo Qing pondered for a moment, "So, in this expedition, the expeditionary fleet actually lost a star-class spaceship?"

Qian Mengjian nodded: "If we don't count Mr. Shanqing who has already sacrificed his life, then this is indeed the only battle loss."

Luo Qing asked, "After rescuing all the crew members of the Luo Qing, what will happen to the Luo Qing?"

Qian Mengjian said, "After rescuing the crew of the [Luo Qing], the stellar-class warship responsible for the rescue will use gamma laser rays to completely destroy the [Luo Qing]. After all, it is a stellar-class warship, and the main body of the warship is still intact. It is the crystallization of humanity's most advanced technology. Such a high-tech product, even if it travels into deep space at 15% of the speed of light, will still be risky in the future... Even if it is not picked up by other alien civilizations, it would be bad if it hits the flowers and plants on other planets. Destroying it on the spot is the best option."

Luo Qing pursed his lips. "After withdrawing the crew, don't rush to destroy the Luo Qing. Let me think of a way."

Ding Yi sighed from the side, "Even one starship is a serious loss. Humanity only has five thousand of these things in total."

Qian Mengjian said, "The star-class warships can still be rebuilt. The best outcome would be no casualties. Moreover, compared to the results achieved by the expeditionary fleet, the loss of a star-class warship is already a very small loss."

It's important to know that besides the Luo Qing, the other warships also suffered varying degrees of damage. Some warships even had their nanomaterial hulls completely penetrated and melted. As for the human warships, they were bombarded by numerous missile fragments while traversing the ring road. The immense relative speed left the entire expeditionary fleet battered and bruised, necessitating a return to their home port for at least two years of rest and repairs.

Ding Yi commented: "If I'm not mistaken, the main material used in the armor of star-class warships is still the flying blade nanotechnology from Wang Miao's era, right?"

"Wang Miao?" This somewhat unfamiliar name took Qian Mengjian a while to recall, but as a US military general who had participated in Operation Guzheng, he quickly remembered the man's existence.

"Old Ding, you're right. The nano-protective materials used by the fleet are essentially the same flying blade materials from Professor Wang Miao's era. They've just been made by interweaving nanowires into nano-surfaces, and then layering them to create thickness and volume, which has become the main armor of the fleet... The blockade by the Sophons has only been over for less than two years, and humanity's exploration of new physical materials is still in its early stages."

Ding Yi said, "Once the molecular-level force field generator achieves a breakthrough in miniaturization, it will be transplanted onto the star-type warship. Then, the external materials of the star-type warship will be modified into strong electromagnetic materials. At that time, the material strength of the star-type warship will be increased by several orders of magnitude, and it will no longer be scratched by external cosmic meteorites and missile fragments."

Qian Mengjian earnestly flattered, "Then we'll have to rely on scientists like Professor Ding to make the effort."

Ding Yi rolled her eyes.

Luo Qing said, "You're sure no crew members from the expeditionary fleet were injured, right? I have some healing pills here."

As he spoke, he pulled out a handful of gleaming golden pills. These pills had nine pill patterns on their surface, and each one was a top-grade product from the cultivation world. They were all herbal healing pills made from the super herbs found on Earth. Unfortunately, the people in front of him could not see the preciousness of these herbal healing pills.

The vice-captain said, "Keep this precious elixir for yourself. No one in the fleet was injured. There were just some unlucky ones who fainted. During the previous battle, because the warships were constantly maintaining full-power forward speed, the fleet was under extremely high acceleration. The crew members of the expeditionary fleet were all enduring a staggering 120G while controlling the warships. Although the crew members have generally reached the late stage of the Innate Realm, they still suffered a lot of physical backlash. Many crew members fainted after vomiting and having diarrhea once the fleet had completely broken free from the giant ring and entered the safe navigation phase."

Qian Mengjian also said, "If it weren't for the body tempering method you brought, and the gene technology that the Angel Era gene organization brought by chance, the human space fleet would never have been able to carry out continuous combat in the forward four state. The combat power that the solar system fleet could exert was thus multiplied many times over."

"Alright, since no one is hurt, I won't give them to you." Luo Qing stuffed the herbs and pills back into his pocket.

Don't give up.

The group discussed the gains of the war with the awakened Luo Qing for a while. Qian Mengjian summarized, "Compared to the dinosaur fleet and the gamma laser ray defense system on the dinosaur ring, I am more worried about the engine on the ring. The engine on the ring is more flexible than we imagined, and can even be used as a weapon, which was unexpected."

The deputy captain also said, "All the battlefield information and tactical analysis have been sent to the headquarters of the three fleets. They should receive our information in about 40 hours. The subsequent operational objectives of the Solar System Fleet will change from killing as many dinosaurs as possible to destroying as many large ring engines as possible."

Luo Qing clenched his fist: "These engines are indeed a problem. I'll think of another way."

Qian Mengjian said, "Humanity will also find a way. Currently, only a stellar hydrogen bomb can destroy the large ring engine in one hit. If we use an electromagnetic railgun to bombard it, we would need at least tens of thousands of shells. The exhaust flame of the large ring engine not only has a propulsive function, but also protects the large ring engine itself. The next step should be to develop a side attack based on the equator of the large ring engine to avoid the main direction of the engine's exhaust... But there are also engines at the equator, which makes things very difficult."

Luo Qing blinked: "If not, I'll go to Da Huan. Stealing a few engines shouldn't be too difficult."

Upon hearing this, Qian Mengjian immediately refused: "Neither Fleet International nor the United Government will allow you to do this! Shan Qing's remains have not yet been recovered!"

In the tomb of Seoncheong, located on the Anvil Plain, Seoncheong sneezed while lying on the sofa.

Does anyone still remember me? Even the original me didn't come to collect his corpse, pshaw.

Ding Yi turned to ask, "Commander Qian, when will the fleet be able to return to Jupiter?"

"The fleet is currently returning to Jupiter at 15% speed. With braking, it will be in Jupiter's orbit in 20 days. This is the advantage of fighting on our doorstep. The human fleet is backed by the solar system and can be resupplied and repaired at any time, while the giant ring and Trisolaran fleets will be less affected if any are destroyed."

"We're going to wage a war of attrition. No matter how big the Devouring Giant Ring is, can it be bigger than the entire solar system? Sooner or later, we'll wear these dinosaurs down with a stellar hydrogen bomb!" the vice-captain said fiercely.

Luo Qing asked, "What about the 5000 planetary-level warships that were following behind us in the expeditionary fleet?"

"The planetary-level warship group will rely on the Kuiper Belt to intercept the first wave of the Devouring Fleet that rushes into the solar system... Even the most ordinary planetary-level warships are far more powerful than the strongest 'Tyrant'-class warships in the Devouring Fleet. They will be responsible for holding off all the remnants of the Devouring Fleet outside the Kuiper Belt and holding out until the main force of the solar system fleet arrives to provide support."

Luo Qing said in a deep voice, "There will be battle losses."

Qian Mengjian shook his head: "There has never been a war without casualties since ancient times. Moreover, we do not have an overwhelming advantage. Let the planetary warship group fight against the Devouring Fleet, while the main force of the Solar System Fleet takes the opportunity to directly confront the Great Ring, causing the Great Ring to stop or turn around. This is the main mission of the Solar System Fleet."

...

"Why weren't antimatter weapons used?!" The fleet commander confronted the commander of the large ring with a fierce expression.

The commander of the Great Ring calmly countered, "The antimatter bombs are encased in magnetic bottles within a vacuum, located in outer space outside the equator, far from the core of the battlefield. These antimatter bombs can only be launched by the Great Ring manipulating the electromagnetic field, like throwing stones. What gave you the illusion that we can hit a sub-light-speed spaceship with stones?"

"So you just stood by and watched nearly 30,000 capital warships and nearly 70,000 smaller ships be slaughtered by the human fleet?"

"The fleet is merely a repurposing of the 'iron' waste produced by heavy nuclear fusion. The fleet's mission is to protect the Great Ring, but the Great Ring's mission is not to protect the fleet. Moreover, this battle is suspicious; why were all the Devouring Warships stationary at that time?"

"You ask me? How would I know? I was just in a daze for a moment, and when I opened my eyes, most of the fleet had been destroyed... I'm increasingly doubting whether the Devouring Empire can win this battle. The enemy is too strong."

The fleet commander seemed to have lost all his strength and collapsed onto the sofa.

The commander of the Great Ring said calmly, "We can win. We may pay a heavy price, but we will definitely win. As long as the Great Ring can devour any planet, all the sacrifices and casualties are acceptable."

The fleet commander shook his large head: "I hope it's as you wish, but I've been a pessimist since the moment all my fleets were brought to a standstill. I simply can't understand the principles behind that technology. That state of fleet stillness is just the tip of the iceberg of this war's defeat."

"You must understand, before the enemy arrived, the human fleet had somehow managed to obscure the light from the nuclear fusion engines, creating a false image of the distant fleet and deceiving our optical observation system. ...If the human fleet can continue this offensive, then the destruction of the Devouring Empire is only a matter of time."

The Great Ring Commander said to the Fleet Commander, "Even though the Devouring Empire has been destroyed, humanity may not be able to win this war. Don't forget, according to the original design of the Great Ring by the gods, even if the Devouring civilization on the surface dies, the Great Ring can still devour on its own. Moreover... ever since the Emperor died, the neutrino transmitter has been sending out distress signals in the direction of the gods."

"A god?" The fleet commander exhaled two puffs of white breath. "It's been tens of millions of years since any dinosaur has seen this so-called god. I'm more inclined to believe it's just a fairy tale. Tyrannosaurus Karl, if you truly want to become the new emperor who devours the empire, then you must be prepared for both victory and defeat for the empire."

The commander of the Great Ring shook his head: "I have absolutely no interest in becoming the new emperor. I just want our world to become more normal, instead of having to eat the deformed monsters that exist on planets... Go and organize the remaining fleet, keep moving forward, and go and clear out the human warships in the Kuiper Belt."

"If I lead the fleet forward, how will you deal with the human stellar-class warships that come after me?"

"I have already ordered the production of a large number of secondary gamma laser turrets. In three months, the entire surface of the Great Ring will be fully armed. Moreover, the Great Ring has been 'enraged,' and those Great Ring engines are the Great Ring's true weapons. In the upcoming war between the Great Ring and the Solar System Fleet, I will do my best to ensure that as many dinosaurs as possible survive in this war."

"It seems you've made ample preparations. Well then, I wish you good luck!"

The fleet commander snorted coldly, and as he stood up, his sharp tail lashed out, leaving a rift in the sofa he was sitting on. He walked up to the Tyrannosaurus Karl, who, as a savage dragon, was even larger than the Tyrannosaurus Karl.

The fleet commander looked down at the commander of the large ring and said in a sinister tone:

"I have incorporated the vast majority of noble dinosaurs into the combat system of the remaining fleet. The era of nobles is coming to an end. If the Dragon Society you represent cannot help the Devouring Empire overcome this crisis, nor can it usher in a new era, then wait for the punishment that 'God' will bring after descending upon the Great Ring."

And I will die in the war against humanity, following His Majesty the Emperor.

After saying that, the fleet commander turned and left.

The Grand Commander watched as the fleet commander departed.

"General, what should we do next?" the small velociraptor beside him asked cautiously.

"Produce more antimatter weapons. The yield doesn't need to be too high; bullet-sized will suffice. Protect them with electromagnetic confinement devices. Produce at least 20000 antimatter bullets and hide them in newly manufactured small four-dimensional fragments. Antimatter bullets are our best weapon to destroy human sub-light-speed spaceships. Using four-dimensional fragments, as long as they hit, they can be destroyed. Keep our troops calm and don't easily reveal the existence of antimatter bullets."

After the commander of the Great Ring finished speaking, he looked up at the scenery of the inner ring. The mushroom cloud after the nuclear explosion had not yet completely dissipated, and countless flames were still burning on the giant ring that jutted out into the sky. The nuclear explosion in the direction of Zone Six was still occasionally flashing.

"I'm going to negotiate with the Light Speaker civilization. Humanity's nuclear strikes can't be attributed to these stupid mushrooms and blamed on the dinosaurs. Send a hundred Stegosaurus-class warships into the orbit of the Sixth District to deter these messy little civilizations. If they really don't obey orders, then completely annihilate all the farmed alien civilizations."

"But aren't these alien creatures just gifts to please the gods?" the little velociraptor said timidly.

"God has not come," the Great Ring Commander said irritably.

"Moreover, God is a thing of the past. I hope that the Devouring Empire can overcome the crisis on its own. The Devouring Civilization is not a servant of God and does not need to try to collect these messy life forms to please God... Leaving God's protection and breaking away from the Devouring habit is the most important step for the Devouring Civilization to move towards sustainable development and break out of the historical cycle!"

"Either rise from the ashes or die in the solar system."

"This is the place where dinosaurs were born, so it can be considered a return to their roots."

(End of this chapter)