Brother, just how powerful is our family?

The year 4733 of the Yellow Emperor's reign.

Void.

A Conqueror-class warship is traveling through the starry sea at ten times the speed of light.

Inside the bridge, Qin Zhanjun stood in front of the holographic star map, watching the point of light getting closer and closer.

That was a colony star system of the Serantia civilization, designated Serantia-9.

It is 14 light-years away from the Zenu Galaxy and 18 light-years away from the newly built "outpost" base of the Yanhuang civilization.

Eighteen light-years. Traveling at ten times the speed of light, it would take more than a year.

A Thranduil orbital cannon projectile traveling at 0.5 times the speed of light would take 36 years to travel from Thranduil-9 to the outpost.

That's the absolute speed advantage. I can hit you anytime, and you can never hit me.

Qin Zhanjun's voice came through the communication channel, "Prepare to exit Warp Speed."

The ship shuddered slightly, and the starlight outside the window changed from blurry lines back into clear points of light.

Conqueror-001 exited warp drive and hovered silently in the void.

Behind it, twenty-three Conqueror-class warships emerged one after another from warp speed, like a group of silent behemoths.

Report your current location.

"We have arrived at the outer edge of the Serantia-9 system, 0.3 light-years from the galactic edge. The enemy has not detected us."

"Reconnaissance ship deployed."

Four small reconnaissance ships broke away from the formation and silently slipped into the darkness.

Three days later, the reconnaissance data was transmitted back.

"Establish a dynamic star map of the galaxy," Qin Zhanjun ordered.

The holographic projection lit up, revealing the complete appearance of the Serantia-9 star system to everyone.

A G-type main-sequence star with seven planets, the third of which is the host planet of Serantia-9, a planet with life.

There are twelve large spaceports in orbit, thousands of defense platforms, and—

"Orbital artillery positions, approximately 12,000," the intelligence officer reported. "More than in the Zenu system. Looks like they've learned their lesson."

"Being smart is useless," Qin Zhanjun said calmly. "Distribution patterns?"

"They're focusing on the inner part of the galaxy, towards the direction of the Zenu galaxy. They think we'll come from there."

"What about other directions?"

"Much sparse. Only routine patrols."

Qin Zhanjun looked at the star map, a slight smile playing on his lips.

It's in the direction of the Zenu Galaxy again.

"Full fleet, change course. Drift around to the far side of the system."

"Yes."

The twenty-four Conqueror-class warships restarted their engines, drawing a huge arc in the void.

They bypassed the edge of the Serantia-9 system, cutting in from below the ecliptic plane, and silently slid into the shadow of the gas giant on the far side of the system.

The Thranduil's twelve thousand railguns were all pointed in the wrong direction.

dawn.

Dawn on Serantia-9 primary star.

"Target: Railgun position. Order: Clear layer by layer from the outside in." Qin Zhanjun's voice was calm as still water. "Fire."

Thirty-six electromagnetic railguns fired simultaneously, drawing thirty-six invisible death trails in the void.

Ten seconds later, the first wave of projectiles hit the outermost railgun emplacement.

When the projectile struck the target at 0.8 times the speed of light, the railgun platform was vaporized within one-tenth of a second, leaving no fragments behind.

The shockwave spread silently in the vacuum, tearing the surrounding small platforms to pieces.

Within a minute, the outermost eight hundred railguns disappeared.

The Serandians reacted quickly. The remaining platforms began to turn, attempting to locate the source of the attack.

But their sensors needed time to lock onto the target—while the Yanhuang civilization's fleet had already completed preparations for the second salvo.

"Second round, fire."

Another thirty-six bullets.

Then came the third round. The fourth round. The fifth round.

The Serandian railguns finally began to return fire. Projectiles were launched from the platform, heading in the general direction of the Yanhuang civilization fleet.

But they couldn't hit them—the fleet was constantly maneuvering, changing position after each salvo.

By the time the Serantian projectiles reached the target area, the fleet had already left.

This is a one-sided massacre.

Two hours later, all twelve thousand railguns were destroyed.

"Target: Spaceport."

Twelve Serantia's main warships rushed out of the harbor in an attempt to counterattack.

They move as slowly as snails.

"Ships three through eight, take care of them." Qin Zhanjun didn't even glance at the warships.

The six Conqueror-class ships turned, their thirty-six main guns aimed at the oncoming Serantia warships.

A salvo struck six enemy ships simultaneously, causing them to explode into six brief bursts of flame in mid-air.

"Spaceport, clear."

The projectile struck twelve spaceports. The massive structures collapsed, exploded, and shattered upon impact. Thousands upon thousands of Serandia workers and soldiers died in their sleep.

"Target: The third planet. A habitable planet."

Qin Zhanjun paused for a second.

He remembered the Zenu system. He remembered the seven-day orbital bombardment. He remembered the two hundred million lives lost.

"Fire."

Main guns fired simultaneously.

The projectiles pierced the atmosphere and crashed to the ground. Each projectile, upon impact, created a crater tens of kilometers wide. The shockwaves destroyed everything within a radius of hundreds of kilometers. Firestorms burned away all the oxygen. Ashes blotted out the sky.

Five days.

Seventy-two rounds of salvo. Two thousand five hundred and ninety-two 10,000-ton warheads.

The surface of the primary planet Serantia-9 was completely reshaped. Cities were reduced to ruins, factories to craters, and farmland to scorched earth.

Two hundred million Serandians were reduced to ashes in the five-day bombardment.

Then, the fleet left.

There was no landing, no occupation, and no flag-raising ceremony.

After completing their attack, the fleet immediately turned and vanished into the void at ten times the speed of light. All that remained was a lifeless planet and countless fragments floating in space.

Two months later, Serantia-12.

Same tactics. Same raid. Same destruction.

Then there's Thranduil-15. Thranduil-8. Thranduil-11.

One every two months. There's no discernible pattern. Sometimes it's three months, sometimes a month and a half. Sometimes it attacks a star system in the east, sometimes in the west. Sometimes it concentrates twenty-four warships to attack a single target, sometimes it splits its forces to attack two targets simultaneously.

The Serandians could not predict it at all.

Their railguns were always aimed in the wrong direction. Their fleet could never keep up with the enemy's speed. Their defensive systems were rendered useless in the face of overwhelming speed superiority.

In the year 4732 of the Yellow Emperor's reign, the second expeditionary force set off from the solar system.

Seventy-two Conqueror-class warships and over six hundred auxiliary vessels—this was the second interstellar expeditionary force dispatched by the Yanhuang civilization, and also the largest one.

Wei Zhentian stood in front of the porthole of Conqueror-121, watching the sun gradually recede into the distance.

His grandson, Wei Zhiqiang, was in the first expeditionary force, in the territory of Serandia, sixty light-years away.

He didn't know where his grandson was or which galaxy he was fighting in, but he knew one thing: the two of them were on the same front.

"Company commander, what are you thinking about?" A young soldier walked over.

Wei Zhentian shook his head: "It's nothing. Go check the equipment."

"Yes."

He turned and left the porthole, his steps steady. His 100-year-old body, enhanced by genetic optimization, was stronger than that of a 30-year-old.

The second expeditionary force followed a different route than the first.

They will not go directly to the Zenu system, but will first arrive at the "outpost" base, where they will rest and resupply before joining the attack on the Serantia civilization.

The total voyage is expected to take three years.

Three years.

Wei Zhentian thought to himself, "Three years from now, I'll be 103 years old. Will I be able to see my grandson on the battlefield then?"

Maybe.

Three years later

The year 4735 of the Yellow Emperor's reign.

Two years have passed. And then another two years have passed.

The first expeditionary force has already conquered seven star systems of the Serantia civilization.

Seven. Each one uses the same tactic—appear suddenly, saturate the area, and then disappear.

The Serandians are going crazy.

Their chief elder roared in the council chamber: "Where did they come from?! Why can't our railguns ever hit them?! Why can't our fleet catch up?!"

No one answered.

Because the answer is too simple—speed.

Ten times the speed of light versus 0.5 times the speed of light. A difference of twenty times. Faced with this difference, all defenses, all strategies, all struggles are meaningless.

The Serandians began to feel fear.

It wasn't a fear of death; they had become accustomed to it. Two hundred million in the Zenu system, two hundred million in Serantia-9, one hundred and fifty million in Serantia-12… Death had become numbers, and numbers had become numb.

What they fear is the unknown.

When will the enemy arrive? From where will they come? Which star system will they attack?

I don't know. I don't know anything.

The rulers of every galaxy are asking the same question: "Will we be next?"

Nobody knows the answer.

Meanwhile, the fleet of the Yanhuang civilization is sailing through the void, searching for its eighth target.