Global Era of Star trekking Chapter 1893 - 918: Full Strategic Retreat (Part 2)
Previously on Global Era of Star trekking...
...
The fierce clash unfolding in the heart of the Chaos Void has unquestionably drawn the gaze of every major power throughout the All Heavens Star Sea.
As the Abyss Demon Clan withdrew securely into the Bottomless Abyss, sacrificing just one Transcendent Demon God, a chill gripped the spirits of all factions in both the All Heavens Star Sea and the Chaos Divine Land.
With five Transcendent Demon Gods making it back safely to the Bottomless Abyss, curbing their activities grows ever tougher, and the Abyss's efforts to upgrade its dimension are bound to press on relentlessly.
Shattered Starry Sea, Torch Domain.
Right now, the top leaders of the Torch Civilization have convened for an urgent council regarding this crisis.
Inside the grand Assembly Hall of the Ancestral Domain, tension hangs so thick it's almost tangible, like water about to spill.
Leaders from the Five Great Empires and prominent families wear grave faces, all keenly feeling the crushing pressure radiating from the core of the Chaotic Void Sea.
Transcenders have perished, Demon Gods have escaped, and the drive behind the Abyss's dimension upgrade surges forward without halt... Every update lands like a massive blow to everyone's core.
Discussions stretched over days, filled with heated arguments, thorough examinations, and careful projections.
Certain voices pushed for banding together every force in the All Heavens Star Sea to strike the Abyss no matter the price; others argued for sealing off the realms entirely and fortifying with powerful arrays to dodge the worst; while a few despaired, claiming that against the looming abyssal takeover, all fights are pointless, leaving the Civilization Fire Seed Plan as the sole lifeline.
In the end, following exhaustive talks and fierce clashes, the top five authorities of the Torch Council—Jiang Yuan, Song Chi, Ying Yi, Ji Heng, and Ferdinand—united to settle the civilization's key strategy.
Firstly, launch a full-scale strategic withdrawal.
Starting now, the Torch Civilization shifts to maximum alert and carries out a total strategic pullback.
The [All Heaven Six Harmonies Reincarnation Array], retrieved with great effort from the Chaos Divine Land, gets repositioned to serve as the heart of the supreme defensive setup.
Its primary hub will anchor in the [Sky Mountain Secret Realm] at the civilization's center, linking directly to the secret realm's essence for unbreakable stability. The remaining five auxiliary hubs of the rotation arrays will deploy to the Ancestor Lands of the Shenxia Dynasty, Chi Yu Divine Dynasty, Holy Hall Federation, Xian Qin Divine Dynasty, and Heavenly Ruins Divine Court, creating a six-way connection that forms an immense barrier around the core territories.
Every outer Torch affiliate group, exploration armadas, fleets colonizing Alien Star Domains, and even regular folk must heed the supreme directive to fall back within the deadline to the central Torch Humanity Galaxy Clusters—the Second and Third Torch River System Communities—where they'll bunker down behind the arrays for protection.
Secondly, revive and expand the Civilization Fire Seed Plan.
The "Civilization Fire Seed Plan," which had been dialed back amid shifting circumstances, now reignites on a scale dwarfing its earlier efforts.
Selected with precision and outfitted thoroughly, [Fire Seed Fleets]—each packed with Torch warships across all levels and full archives of the Torch Civilization's tech from basics to advanced cultivation arts, along with history, culture, and skills—have set off in strict secrecy, venturing into uncharted star oceans far from the Abyss's reach.
Their vital duty is to safeguard and carry forward the Torch Civilization's final ember if disaster strikes the primary force.
Thirdly, hasten the elevation of the Heavenly Ruins Continent.
As the lone Ancestor Land among the Five Great Empires still awaiting promotion to Star Continent status, the Heavenly Ruins Continent's development now claims top strategic priority like never before.
From here on, the Heavenly Ruins Divine Court's main focus becomes channeling every available resource to speed up the continent's ascent.
This isn't just about upholding the honor of the Heavenly Ruins Song Family and Divine Court—it's crucial for the full potency and shielding power of the [All Heaven Six Harmonies Reincarnation Array], since a Star Continent's energy and rule backing far outstrips that of a Ninth Level Continent.
To achieve this, portions of resources from the other four empires and the whole civilization will flow toward the Heavenly Ruins Divine Court.
Yet, over these fateful days of assemblies shaping the civilization's path, Song Chi—one of the five key deciders and the true force behind the Heavenly Ruins Divine Court—stayed absent in person.
Currently, Song Chi resides far inside [Chicang’s No. 004 Breeding Secret Realm].
Time flows differently in this secret realm compared to the outer world. Song Chi floats in the void, legs crossed, as law runes swirl around him like orbiting celestial bodies, flickering into being and fading away.
Without distraction, he channels his Guidance Technique at full throttle, drawing in the plentiful energy amassed within the secret realm to swiftly boost his cultivation level.
He knows full well that against beings of transcendent might who can sway a whole civilization's fate, any plan feels brittle; only unmatched strength offers real security.
What about the partial laws and rules in the secret realm?
Having evolved into a Cosmic Secret Realm, the Breeding Secret Realm now fully meshes with the Dao rules of the All Heavens Star Sea, erasing that issue entirely.
On the outside, meanwhile, Song Chi’s [Zhu Tian Ruins Market] hums at peak velocity like never before.
Following Song Chi’s directive, every Torch Ship Captain in the civilization got a hidden command to ramp up trade volumes in the market through all means, snapping up any scarce materials that could bolster the civilization's roots—especially those holding rule origins or proving stellar for realm breakthroughs.
Song Chi’s goal stands plain.
Counting on Jiang Yuan, Ying Yi, and fellow Human Emperors to achieve transcendence alone in little time offers too faint a prospect.
Thus, the only fast path lies with the [Zhu Tian Ruins Market].
He demands a flood of trades to swiftly exceed the market's limit, propelling it from Tenth Rank to Eleventh Rank without delay.
Based on past trends, the Tenth Rank Zhu Tian Ruins Market already enjoys the boon of an Eleventh Rank peak legend; upon reaching Eleventh Rank, it'll undoubtedly upgrade that boon to Twelfth Rank. Then, whether stepping in himself or beaming in via the [Dao Origin Totem Pole] for empowerment, he'll gain true transcendent combat might.
This alone gives the Torch Civilization a shot at holding its own in the turmoil.
As this colossal tempest ravages the All Heavens Star Sea, the Torch Civilization's mighty vessel charts the right heading—be it fortifying lines, handing down heritage, or chasing breakthrough chances. All have braced for the direst outcomes and steeled themselves to fight tooth and nail.
While the Torch Civilization pushed hard with their strategic retreat, Fire Seed Plan, and continent push, grasping for any thread of hope in the gathering gale, an unyielding demand pierced straight through the vast star sea to hit the Torch Domain's heart.
This transmission stems from the united proclamation of the Titan Giant Clan and Eternal Clan.
These pair of timeless powers, towering at the All Heavens Star Sea's summit under transcendent guidance, aim to forge a "Star Sea Civilization Coalition" that unites every race's strength across the All Heavens to counter the Bottomless Abyss's forthcoming wilder surge and consumption.
The message's tone appears steady, using the metaphor of close allies to stress alliance's urgency, and even vowing that in the coalition, spoils of war and say in the future star sea setup will tie to each one's input.
Still, the unyielding intent woven through the words, plus the subtle weight of a transcendent civilization trailing the dispatch, bore down hard on the Torch Civilization's top brass.
All grasp that amid this star sea-wide survival stakes, the Titan and Eternal Clans offer no extra leeway or kindness than ever.
Any group shunning unity, or half-committing with subpar troops, courts the wrathful strikes from these two transcendent powers.
Smashing examples to cow the rest, and brutally folding in every possible force with iron fists marks the quickest and most probable tactic right now.
And the concrete draft notice hitting the Torch Civilization calls for sending eight mythical powerhouses (existences at Tenth Rank or higher), plus a huge armada of at least one billion Torch warships.
"Eight mythical... one billion fleet..."
Back in the Ancestral Domain Assembly Hall, the elite circle that had just broken up reconvened, the air thicker than earlier. Emperor Jiang Yuan drummed his fingers on his jade throne's arm, murmuring the draft's figures softly.
Such figures spell real strain for the Torch Civilization, with eight mythical forces nearly draining the civilization's on-hand mythical might.
What's more, this lighter call stems from Sky-splitting God King appreciating Song Chi’s earlier move; without that, the demand would've straight-up seized over ten mythical forces.