374: Nine celestial beings

Seeing this, the Commander on the starship reacted swiftly, immediately ordering the energy shield to activate.

A pale blue light curtain instantly spread from the starship's surface, enveloping all Imperial Soldiers.

This energy shield emitted a soft yet resilient glow; when the spatial fluctuations touched it, they vanished like a mud ox entering the sea, causing no effect whatsoever.

After all, the powerful performance of a galaxy-class starship was sufficient to resist these spatial fluctuations, but the ordinary Imperial Soldiers outside did not possess such ability; once exposed to such powerful fluctuations, they would suffer heavy casualties.

"Elder Wu!"

Watching the elder slowly emerge in the sky, several Dujie Realm (Tribulation Crossing Realm) experts showed surprise and reverence, quickly stepping forward and greeting him with extreme respect.

Their voices carried a hint of urgency and anticipation; the elder's appearance might become the key force to turn the tide.

"Is this the power of the Celestial Realm? Merely a flick of the wrist can cause such spatial turbulence..."

Li Yang, witnessing all this through the light curtain, a complex expression flashed in his eyes, and he couldn't help but sigh in a low voice.

In his interstellar career, he had seen many xuanhuan civilizations, but this level of power, the Celestial Realm, was truly his first time seeing it.

"Are you the enemies who invaded my capital?"

The elder, respectfully called Elder Wu, his long robe fluttering in the wind, his face calm as water, his gaze deep and sharp, swept across the Imperial forces like a tangible force, and he slowly asked.

His voice was not loud, yet it seemed to carry an invisible majesty, echoing leisurely in the air.

However, the Empire's side seemed to disregard the elder's question, with no one responding to him. The Soldiers on the starship maintained their orderly formation, weapons gripped tightly, their eyes firmly fixed ahead, as if the elder's words were mere whispers in the wind.

"Hmph, you don't even dare to speak?"

Ignored, Elder Wu's face instantly flashed with a hint of anger, his previously calm expression turning stern.

The silent contempt completely ignited the rage in his heart; with wide, furious eyes, he raised his hand and forcefully struck out a palm towards the starship, simultaneously roaring.

"Suppress!"

This roar was like a mighty bell, containing endless fury and powerful momentum, determined to suppress all enemies before him.

In an instant, the highest, snow-white clouds in the sky seemed to be violently torn apart by an invisible and immense mysterious power.

An incredibly massive palm abruptly appeared before everyone's eyes; this palm was unimaginably huge, even larger than the several-thousand-meter-long galaxy-class starship.

It was surrounded by strange light, and by all appearances, it was condensed from some mysterious and powerful energy.

The giant palm, carrying the force of toppling mountains and overturning seas, rapidly pressed down directly towards the starship.

Wherever it passed, the air instantly ignited, burning fiercely and emitting crackling sounds, and the surrounding space, unable to bear the burden, began to show fine cracks like fragile glass, as if it could completely shatter at any moment.

The giant palm crashed down, and at the moment of impact with the starship, a powerful shockwave erupted, raising dust that blotted out the sky.

The dust, like a surging sandstorm, rapidly spread, enveloping the entire sky above the city.

For a moment, the world was chaotic, making it impossible to see the situation within.

"A palm technique from the heavens... The Rulai Divine Palm?"

Li Yang, watching this shocking scene through the light curtain, his mouth twitched slightly, and he couldn't help but silently grumble in his heart.

However, he had no worries in his heart; with his understanding of the Empire's technology and military strength, he was not at all concerned that this so-called "Rulai Divine Palm" would cause substantial harm to the Empire's forces.

After all, the defense system of a star river class starship was not easily breached.

Indeed, as time passed, the pervasive smoke gradually dispersed, revealing three starships still hovering steadily and unscathed in the sky, like majestic guardians.

The hull surface was as clean as new, without a single scratch, and even the Imperial Soldiers neatly arranged beneath the starship were all safe and sound, their expressions calm, as if the mighty attack just now was merely an illusory bubble.

"What? This is impossible!"

Seeing this scene, Elder Wu's face, which had always remained calm, finally showed cracks, filled with an expression of disbelief.

He widened his eyes, staring intently at the three starships, as if trying to see through them.

As a Celestial Realm Experts, he had absolute confidence in the power of his palm strike; in his understanding, let alone high-grade spirit beasts, even the legendary Ancient Beasts would have no chance of escaping unscathed from this palm.

However, the scene before him completely overturned his understanding.

"I am a Celestial Realm expert! My palm strike, let alone high-grade spirit beasts, even Ancient Beasts couldn't fully withstand it. Who exactly are you people?"

Elder Wu's voice trembled slightly, carrying both anger and confusion.

He couldn't fathom what terrifying power these suddenly appearing mysterious forces possessed to so easily withstand his world-destroying blow.

Little did he know, the shields equipped on a star river class starship had reached the level of a fifth-level civilization; how could his attack, coming from a general fourth-level civilization, possibly break through its defenses?

In the power system of cosmic civilizations, to break through the shield of a star river class starship, at least a top fourth-level civilization would need to exert its full strength to have a chance.

And to cause substantial damage to the starship's hull, an even more powerful force from a fifth-level civilization or above would be required.

Elder Wu had clearly underestimated the strength of the enemies before him; this collision of vastly unequal power was destined from the start.

Just as Elder Wu was momentarily dazed by shock, the command personnel on the starship made a decisive move, seizing this excellent opportunity to swiftly order the firing of the annihilation cannon.

Accompanied by a deep and reverberating roar, a beam of annihilation light, imbued with destructive power, shot out like a surging torrent, rushing straight towards Elder Wu.

"Damn it!"

Elder Wu, finally regaining his senses, cursed inwardly, sensing trouble. Without time to think, he hastily waved his hand, attempting to block this fatal blow.

As he waved his hand, a powerful and mysterious energy surged, and a spatial rift, black as ink, suddenly tore open before Elder Wu, as if leading to an endless dark abyss, emitting a heart-pounding aura.

This spatial rift, like a giant devouring maw, directly swallowed the whistling annihilation beam.

However, the annihilation cannon's beam was like a surging river, continuously firing out.

Each beam contained world-destroying power, continuously impacting the spatial rift created by Elder Wu.

As time went on, Elder Wu's forehead gradually became covered with large beads of sweat, and a strained expression appeared on his face.

After all, activating and maintaining such a spatial rift required an enormous amount of energy, and even with Elder Wu's powerful Celestial Realm strength, he felt somewhat overwhelmed and began to struggle to hold on.

After only a short ten-odd seconds, Elder Wu realized that he could no longer sustain it.

Helpless, he could only give up blocking, gritted his teeth, and with a ghostly flash, he hastily moved away from his original position.

Only the slightly trembling spatial rift remained, along with the annihilation cannon still firing destructive beams, witnessing the thrilling scene that had just unfolded.

Without Elder Wu's obstruction, the annihilation beam, like a wild horse unbridled, became unstoppable, directly piercing through the entire capital city.

Wherever the beam passed, everything was ruthlessly destroyed; a prosperous metropolis was instantly torn open with a shocking gaping wound.

Streets, tall buildings, and structures collapsed one after another, turning into dust, and smoke billowed up, blotting out the sky.

"If you don't help, I really can't hold on!"

Elder Wu was burning with anxiety, shouting at the sky with all his might.

At this moment, he was exhausted from coping and knew that he could never resist these powerful invaders alone.

No sooner had he spoken than spatial rifts bloomed like petals in the sky, light flickering within them, and several more elders emerged from them.

Each of them exuded a majestic aura, enveloped in a mysterious and powerful presence. Including Elder Wu, they were precisely the only nine Celestial Realm Expertss in this civilization.

"Hmph, not only has the capital been invaded, but cities all over the globe have been invaded..."

One of the elders, with a solemn expression, slowly said.

His clothes were tattered, and his body bore obvious signs of battle, stained with blood, clearly indicating he had just fought his way back from battlefields in other cities.

These words were like a heavy hammer, making everyone present feel even more somber, realizing that this crisis had spread throughout the entire civilization, and the situation was extremely dire.

"It seems we are all the same..."

"How are things on your side? Resolved?"

Elder Wu's expression was anxious, and he quickly inquired.

Ever since they detected the invasion, the nine Celestial Realm Expertss had all ended their seclusion and joined the resistance.

However, the enemies came with fierce momentum, launching a full-scale invasion of cities worldwide.

Helpless, the nine of them could only disperse, each defending against the enemy, and Elder Wu, being the strongest, was initially responsible for guarding the capital.

But who would have thought that even Elder Wu, as the strongest Celestial Realm expert, would be so vulnerable against the enemies before him?

"Alas, none were resolved. It's precisely because of this that we rushed back to regroup."

The elders shook their heads, their faces full of helplessness and bitterness.

In their respective areas, they had all encountered the Empire's starships.

Just like Elder Wu's situation, facing the powerful force displayed by the star river class starship, they had no chance of winning; all their resistance was like a praying mantis trying to stop a chariot.

This cruel reality made them realize that this crisis far exceeded their imagination, and the entire civilization was facing an unprecedented situation of life and death.

To ensure that this operation could be concluded perfectly with the fastest speed and most stable posture, Li Yang had truly gone all out, bringing all 24 galaxy-class starships under Lin Bi's command and deploying them in this conquest of the civilization.

Only the starship Li Yang himself was on remained behind, responsible for overall command and coordination.

"The opponents are very strong, especially that big thing in the sky."

Mentioning the enemy, the elders' expressions instantly became very solemn.

After all, they had all personally experienced the terrifying power displayed by the galaxy-class starship.

To be honest, in a one-on-one fight, none of them would be its match.

It was precisely because of this that they had no choice but to temporarily abandon their respective battlefields and gather in the capital.

"Hmph, with the nine of us working together, I refuse to believe we can't defeat this wretched thing. Once the situation in the capital is resolved, we'll go to other places."

Elder Wu let out a cold snort, his words filled with unwillingness and determination.

With that, he flashed, taking the lead like a black lightning bolt, charging fiercely towards the starship.

Seeing this, the others also followed without hesitation, their auras erupting abruptly, as if with the combined power of the nine of them, they would engage in a desperate struggle with the powerful starship to defend the last dignity of their civilization.

In the starship's Command Room, Li Yang had been steadily and calmly observing the battle. When he saw the nine individuals, touted as the civilization's strongest, charging aggressively towards the starship, a flicker of interest appeared in his eyes.

He leaned forward slightly with keen interest, his gaze fixed on the nine, a strong sense of anticipation welling up within him, eager to see if these nine top experts could truly contend with a star river class starship and display strength that would impress him.

"Heaven Suppressing Palm!"

Elder Wu roared, his palms instantly radiating dazzling golden light, like two golden suns.

He forcefully pushed his palms forward, and a mighty, overwhelming force surged out; the air shrieked under the impact of this force, as if being forcibly torn apart by an invisible giant hand. This palm strike contained the majestic aura of suppressing heaven and earth, aimed directly at the starship.

"Chaos Annihilation Fist!"

Another elder's spiritual power surged wildly, instantly transforming into a chaotic color.

He leaped high, unleashing an incredibly fierce punch at the starship.

Where the punch passed, space was twisted into a tangled mess, emitting crisp crackling sounds, and black fissures spread rapidly like a spiderweb, as if to annihilate everything in its path.

"All Phenomena Return to One!"

The third elder rapidly formed hand seals, muttering incantations.

In an instant, various elemental forces in heaven and earth converged madly: the fire's blaze, the water's gentleness, the wind's swiftness, the earth's thickness... All elements seemed to be drawn by some mysterious power, rapidly fusing together to form a powerful and strange energy torrent, rushing towards the starship... The other six experts were not to be outdone, each unleashing their signature techniques cultivated over many years.

For a time, the entire world seemed to plunge into apocalyptic chaos.

Energy lights flickered in the sky, and various powerful forces intertwined and collided, emitting deafening roars.

The space around the starship, like fragile glass, could no longer withstand the ravages of this terrifying power, showing large areas of fragmentation, as if it would completely collapse at any moment.