176: Chapter 176 Lak III

When the news first spread, no one believed it, or rather, its influence was minimal.

From the top of the Empire to the bottom, everyone was busy with the war, and no one had the time to deal with the Ecclesiarchy's nonsense; after all, it wasn't the first or second time the Ecclesiarchy had lied.

During another frontline battle, Imperial soldiers were facing forces a hundred times their own and were on the verge of collapse.

But unexpectedly, just as the entire battlefield situation was spiraling out of control, a figure descended upon the planet.

A drop pod landed in the center of the battlefield, and as the hatch opened, a Battle Sister wearing power armor and draped in a golden, ethereal halo stepped out.

The light radiating from her seemed to have an innate suppression over the enemy; every Lux Aliens soldier that attempted to approach her instantly burst into flames upon contact.

The soldiers stood frozen on the battlefield, watching this scene in disbelief, and after a brief moment of stunned silence, they realized that Saint Sabbat had already wiped out this wave of attacking Lux Aliens, bringing victory to the entire Empire and saving those Imperial soldiers on the front lines.

The soldiers excitedly surrounded Saint Sabbat, watching her and the handmaidens beside her, and let out thunderous cheers.

Saint Sabbat was practically welcomed into Muto Hive City by the soldiers as if she were a savior.

The news of the Living Saint arriving at the Hive City instantly spread to every corner, from the lowest levels to The Spire; everyone knew that the Living Saint had descended upon Muto Hive City.

This news also reached the ears of the commanders and nobles, and no one dared to slight her.

After all, the Living Saint is the representative of the Emperor, and everyone must welcome her with the highest etiquette.

At a banquet, they met Saint Sabbat, and just from this one banquet, the entire Muto Hive City quickly confirmed Saint Sabbat as the supreme leader.

Under the command of Saint Sabbat, all military forces were quickly integrated, and everyone had a unified leadership.

In the command room, Saint Sabbat looked at the Astra Militarum commander, Reqi, who was explaining the current situation to her.

"The entire southern continent has fallen, leaving only one Hive City, and that is Muto Hive City."

"And we can currently mobilize only about 4 million troops, with the only additional support being the Bakolo Knight House."

The Knight House could be said to have mobilized their entire family's combat power to this planet; within Muto Hive City, they had nearly a hundred knight mechs.

"The current movement of the aliens is to gather the vast majority of their forces in the east, preparing to launch a large-scale offensive."

After Reqi finished his report, he stood still, waiting for Saint Sabbat's instructions.

"Assemble the Knight House, leave necessary forces in other directions, and commit all Astra Militarum, Planetary Defense Force, and Battle Sisters to the frontal assault. We must win in one blow. We must take the initiative to attack and crush the invading enemy forces; only in this way can we open a gap, and only in this way can we give our army a chance to breathe."

Reqi was stunned upon hearing this; this was equivalent to a high-stakes gamble.

If they took the initiative, the glory brought by victory would be enough to boost the morale of countless soldiers, and could even sweep away the shadows of previous failures.

If they failed, the consequences would be unimaginable, and the entire Muto Hive City would completely fall.

Reqi wanted to say something more, but when he looked up and met Saint Sabbat's firm eyes, he ultimately swallowed the words he wanted to say.

He felt that there was something in Saint Sabbat's eyes called the belief in certain victory.

"Living Saint, we will obey your orders. The troops will concentrate in the south and will take the initiative to attack."

Saint Sabbat's orders were quickly conveyed to every corner of the Hive City.

The Bakolo family's knights were the first to move.

A large number of knight mechs gathered in the south.

Nearly 1 million troops also gathered here under Reqi's mobilization, which could almost be said to be the last elite of the southern continent.

The Astra Militarum were equipped with full quotas of gear, and their armored strength was also very sufficient.

Leman Russ Tanks were fully configured and assigned to every infantry regiment.

The heavy artillery units were also allocated the standard ammunition amount for a volley as per the artillery manual for the first time.

Everyone realized that a decisive battle was imminent.

The aliens had gathered nearly 10 billion troops in the south, while also deploying a large number of Giant Beetles, Corrosive Dragons, and even ten Scarab Lords.

Commanding this force was the Lux Third Prince.

The Third Prince stood on a mountaintop, looking down, and what he saw was an endless army.

Clearly, in his heart, he believed that this army was enough to trample any city.

Lux III had actively requested this mission this time to earn merit in this battle and prove his ability to his older brothers and Her Majesty the Queen.

Just then, a black-armored Lux Alien came to the side of the Lux Third Prince.

"Third Prince, 40 billion troops have gathered, and we can launch an attack on Muto Hive City in one go."

"Commander, how long do you think it will take for us to take down the entire Muto Hive City?"

The Third Prince asked the general beside him at this moment.

The black-armored general did not dare to give a definite guarantee.

After all, having committed 40 billion troops and mobilized nearly one-third of their military power to attack this last Hive City, it seemed they had the advantage, but in reality, they had far overlooked one problem.

No one knew the defensive power of the last Hive City, but it was certain that their strength would absolutely exceed their imagination, as this Hive City had gathered all the remaining forces of humanity.

However, looking at the prince in front of him, the black-armored general pondered for a moment and ultimately yielded to the Third Prince's will.

"Replying to His Highness the Third Prince, I believe it won't take long before we can take down the entire Hive City."

The Third Prince was very happy to hear this.

"Haha, I will use the corpses and blood of the entire city to prove myself."

The general heard this, looked helplessly at the prince in front of him, sighed, and hoped that there wouldn't be any accidents midway this time.

The outskirts of the entire Muto Hive City were like a green ocean, with an endless stream of aliens gathering here.

At the same time, a large number of trenches and defensive bunkers stood outside Muto Hive City, and in the trenches, soldiers gripped their laser guns, staring fixedly at the green expanse in the distance.

A soldier spat, knowing that what lay before him were countless Lux Aliens.

The real bloody battle was about to begin.