The Great Devourer had emerged victorious in the war, and with a sense of joy, it hoped to utilize these spoils of war in an unprecedented manner.
Furthermore, regarding the complex post-war processing and future territorial management, the hive mind centered around Elise operated with its characteristic precision, efficiency, and speed.
“So, what do we do now?”
Thus, they now had to face the question that Lin Miao had muttered to himself in a half-joking manner while looking at the screen and shrugging.
For the Great Devourer's ultimate goal was not simply to govern and maintain the occupied lands.
This was completely contrary to Hestia's tendency to avoid war, focus on managing existing territories, or develop unclaimed lands.
“Seek new enemies.”
Elise's eyes gleamed with anticipation.
That bottomless greed was the manifestation of her very essence, and that intense obsession and fanaticism were the driving forces that allowed her to transcend species and achieve evolution.
For the Great Devourer, which had fought and evolved continuously for survival since its inception, satisfaction was a dangerous symbol that led to the disgrace of elimination.
They must never be satisfied; they must never know contentment. They could only look upward endlessly, thinking only of moving forward.
The bountiful military merits and spoils of war they had obtained were, in the end, nothing more than stepping stones to the next stage.
If anyone were to learn of the Great Devourer's grand and audacious resolve—to consume everything that existed in this universe—some would laugh in derision, while others would feel genuine terror.
“Are we going to war again?”
Legion Commander Lisette perceived this and sighed softly.
“It cannot be helped. That is our very nature, and it is also the direction of our future.”
Celia, who had already grown accustomed to balancing the hive mind with her own self-awareness, explained in detail to help Lisette understand.
In truth, the colony's way of thinking was inherently alien and grotesque, making it difficult for those who had once belonged to other races to easily accept.
“Besides, we don't have many choices. Other factions already know we are an Outer God force that destroyed the high-tier civilization, the Goddess of Light Association. No matter what, conflicts with them will continue.”
In fact, this direction had already been set long before Lisette officially joined the colony.
Although they had merely stood by during Hestia's downfall, the name of the Great Devourer had already been branded as a public enemy by the deities within the Divine Net.
The other side viewed them as enemies, and they themselves craved battle.
Consequently, the outcome was obvious. Though they did not know when or where it would happen, it would ultimately lead to another war.
“Enemy attack detected. The warp coordinates are in the orbit of Planet Dorag.”
Celia's premonition was quickly realized.
Gaia issued a warning through the hive mind that unidentified enemies had warped into the vicinity of the occupied planet.
“Enemies?”
Sitting in her nest and supervising the ongoing 'Rearing,' Elise's eyes and lips curved up into a bizarre smile.
To Elise, initiating an attack was certainly an amusing prospect.
For she could choose where to strike and how to attack as she pleased.
But being attacked first like this was not bad either.
An eye for an eye, returned tenfold—the thrill of such retaliation was one of the few emotions Elise genuinely enjoyed.
“The Goddess of Light Association was a high-tier civilization with over fifty known territories. Even if they are Outer Gods, there is no way they would have enough leftover forces to defend all fifty territories after conquering them through war.”
The force executing the warp was a faction known as Ionia, a magic-based civilization powered by mana.
Just like their commander, who had received direct orders from his 'superior' and was now nervously muttering to himself, they had only one reason for taking military action.
They were attacking the Great Devourer because they believed its strength had been depleted during the destruction of the Goddess of Light Association, and they wanted to seize this opportunity to plunder the massive, unprocessed spoils of war.
In truth, Planet Dorag, where they had warped, was an important resource-producing world that was highly renowned even within the Goddess of Light Association.
“A new enemy, and in great numbers.”
Observing everything through the space species scattered across the cosmos, Elise watched them with keen interest.
The warp of a magic-based civilization was vastly different from that of an etheric civilization.
The vast space rippled as translucent objects slowly materialized. A colossal castle floating in the cosmos, accompanied by intricate magic arrays and a multitude of airships constructed from special alloys, appeared in the void.
Worthy of a high civilization that had successfully pioneered space, these forces were not to be underestimated at first glance, though their scale was somewhat too ambiguous to be called a grand fleet.
Their purpose was glaringly obvious.
They wanted to make a quick fortune and flee before the Great Devourer's main forces could arrive.
[God of Ten Thousand Circles: That fool actually acted alone?!]
[Rune Guardian: Why such a fierce reaction? Is there something wrong with me personally heading out to scout first?]
‘So, this wasn't something they had agreed upon.’
At that moment, Lin Miao grasped the whole story through the Divine Net forum.
Among the deities who had resolved to unite against the Great Devourer, someone had acted independently.
Behind the pretext of conducting a preliminary reconnaissance lay a glaring intent to plunder as quickly as possible to secure profits.
‘Do they think it's fine even if they suffer a minor loss? Or do they truly believe they can just make a quick fortune and run?’
Lin Miao watched the Ionian space fleet gradually approach the planet, a meaningful expression playing on his face.
At this moment, various notifications sent by Elise, who had now become the ruler of dozens of planets, continuously popped up before his eyes.
“Frigates, block them! Then anchor the constellation ships at the designated coordinates. Deploy the interference spells immediately!”
Ionia was a highly advanced civilization, which gave them the confidence to launch such an attack, and they also possessed some understanding of the Great Devourer's tactics and capabilities.
The colossal, castle-like space fortress came to a halt, and immediately began to project a massive magic array with immense power output.
This magic emitted humming ripples that spread in all directions; it was a spell designed to interfere with warp signals.
In space warfare, this was a basic maneuver to prevent the enemy from summoning reinforcements via warping.
“With this, over ninety percent of their forces won't even be able to dream of warping.”
The commander chuckled, looking at the Hive Motherships that were waking from their slumber and swarming forward.
The magitech beam cannons fired by the frigates were suppressing the rushing Great Devourers one by one, carving out a path toward the planet.
“Commander, please look at this.”
“No, what on earth is going on here...”
However, as they looked at the massive screen before them, they quickly froze.
The footage provided by the assault formation that had entered the atmosphere was displaying the current state of Planet Dorag.
This place had clearly been completely occupied just a month ago.
Yet now, after only a single month, most of the land was covered in grotesque nests, and the surface was densely packed with unidentified monsters.
Of course, not all areas were occupied in this manner.
Some regions still retained their past appearance.
However, the panicked members of Ionia had no way of knowing this at the moment.
Those areas were strictly planned and partitioned conservation zones, and the resources of the survivors living there were also under the complete control of the Great Devourer.
Rate on N.U.
