Interstellar Survival: Invasion

"That's impossible! We really did receive the great sovereign's guidance. Robots can't enter illusions!" argued Bob.

"Who said that robots can't enter illusions? A slight amendment to your programs is all it takes to make it so that you aren't even aware of what you're doing," said Domo.

While everyone was arguing, the silhouette of an animal appeared on the projection. Surprising all of us, the silhouette was in the shape of a bee from Blue.

"Don't tell me this is the great sovereign. It's a little bee? This is too hilarious," Zhang Bao'er burst out in laughter.

"The leader of the pulp worms is actually a little bee? Bob, is this the great sovereign you saw previously?" asked Zhang Xingxing.

"I didn't see anything. At that time, Dodo left the room with a case. Before I could open the case, the great sovereign had entered my body," said Bob helplessly.

"Hello! May I ask if you're the pulp worms' great sovereign?" asked Kelly curiously.

But no matter what we said, the great sovereign remained silent. Despite the silence, I was sure that it was observing us. Regardless of the interaction, the appearance of the little bee had alleviated some of our worries.

"I reckon this fellow is mute. It can only converse through mental communication. It probably has no idea what we're saying. The language of our civilization is too high-leveled for it to understand," said Zhang Bao'er, who was losing his patience after only a short wait.

"You're the mute one. How is it possible that I can't understand your language?" Surprisingly, Zhang Bao'er's provocation managed to trigger a response from the great sovereign.

"Hello, Great Sovereign. We're here on Violetvoid's request. We're allies," I said.

"I'm already aware of that. Violetvoid told me a long time ago. Why are you only here now? I have been waiting a very long time. Looks like I need to teach that little bastard, Violetvoid, a harsh lesson after this," said the great sovereign. We were surprised to see that the great sovereign had quite a bad temper.

"Little bee, we went through a lot of danger to save you. You're belittling our efforts," said Zhang Bao'er grumpily.

"My apologies, Great Sovereign. My brother has a terrible temper. We need to help you leave and stop the operation involving the super weapons," I said.

"Since you have saved me from Pluto, I am naturally inclined to help you. But for now, you need to think of a way to go through the Midstar Army's defensive perimeter. You have been discovered by the empire," said the great sovereign. It was rather impressive that the great sovereign could immediately identify our current problem.

"What can a single army do to us? Our reinforcements are already on the way. We have even defeated the super virus. What is there to fear about some ordinary imperial soldiers?" Zhang Bao'er started bragging.

"Stop bragging. If the super virus hadn't caused Pluto to explode, you wouldn't have been able to escape. Also, the super virus is still alive. That monster is too powerful. I had personally experienced its prowess. After the explosion, it had grown even stronger. The entire planet is now basically a part of its body," said the great sovereign with derision.

"What? The super virus is still alive even after such a fierce explosion?" Even Temo was shocked by that revelation.

Our gazes landed on the planet that had just undergone a violent explosion. The light was slowly fading away, revealing Pluto's remaining half and the planet's intense surface activities. The planet's surface was moving rapidly like a storm in the sky. Without a doubt, the moving "surface" was in truth a part of the super virus's body. We all broke out in cold sweat upon witnessing such a terrifying sight.

"Looks like humanity will never be able to step on this planet again. This will turn into a virus planet we can only behold from afar," I said with a sigh.

"There's nothing bad about looking at it from afar. I just hope this planet doesn't turn into a true creature like Jupiter II and travel everywhere to harm more planets," said Old Du.

"That might really happen. Should we complete the destruction of Pluto then?" suggested Zhang Bao'er.

"Do not ever attempt that. If you can't fully destroy the planet, you will only provide more energy for the super virus to further evolve. At that time, destroying the monster will be even harder. It might even evolve into a monster capable of freely traveling through the universe," cautioned the great sovereign.

"In that case, we should let it be for now. We have an even more important mission to carry out. Great Sovereign, can you really help us?" asked Zhang Xingxing, pulling our focus back to the task at hand.

"Like I said, your current priority is to get through the empire's perimeter. The perimeter is not as simple as you think. I don't know how strong your reinforcements are, but according to what I know, the league has suffered a complete defeat. They no longer have a functional fleet to stand against the empire or reinforce your team," said the great sovereign, who was clearly doubtful of our strength.

"Great Sovereign, you are obviously extremely capable. Can you summon the superweapons to reinforce us?" asked Kelly.

"The superweapons are too far away, and the imperial battleships are going to carpet search this area soon. The super weapons won't be able to arrive in time. We need to get help elsewhere," replied the great sovereign.

"But we're the only ones here. Where can we get help?" asked Zhang Bao'er, somewhat unhappy with the answer.

At the mention of help, the image of our ally appeared in my mind. The fiend of Pluto had also escaped during the volcanic eruption. I had no idea where that fellow was. Perhaps it could work with us and help us escape.

"We have an ally. The fiend of Pluto. It is a powerful creature, but we don't know its current location," I said.

"That's not an issue. Your star-level friend will give you the answer," said the great sovereign while pointing at Temo.

I moved my gaze to Temo.

"That's really not an issue. The fiend of Pluto is lying on top of Markus," answered Temo calmly.

"What? That monster is right above us?" exclaimed Bob, who was clearly still fearful of the fiend.

"Don't be scared, Bob. We have allied with it," Dodo hurriedly comforted their friend.

"Looks like that fellow followed us to outer space. Since it hasn't attacked us, we must have earned its approval with our previous actions. It is now assured that we're really allies," said Baron Sisse.

"Exactly. You got really lucky. During your suicide mission, you actually encountered the explosion of Pluto, allowing you to accidentally save the fiend of Pluto. It is most likely willing to stay allies with you. If you can obtain its assistance, you might really be able to get through the defensive perimeter," said the great sovereign, finally giving us a positive answer.

"This is great! As long as we reach an agreement with the fiend, we can start the operation immediately," said Zhang Xingxing in excitement.

Immediately, we received another piece of good news from the system. Carter had obtained the parliament's approval. He was heading our way on Skyhawk with a robotic army. They would arrive near the defensive perimeter in about an hour.

Kelly updated Carter on the success of our rescue mission and our current status. Both of us agreed to attack from within and outside and escape the perimeter together. We were nine days away from the final attack on Blue. There should still be enough time for us to do something.

However, I felt rather uncomfortable when Carter constantly enquired about Zhang Xingxing at the end of the call. I was furious inwardly and had a strong urge to have a great fight with him.

However, I was able to force myself to calm down. We were facing a great enemy, and our current priority was the survival of our people. Nothing should affect the important mission we were about to undertake.

"Is Carter sure he will reach his position in an hour?" I asked.

"Yes, according to the information I received. After his arrival, he will be able to help us withdraw," said Kelly.

"Tell Carter to reach the position in time. We will make our plan in accordance with his estimated arrival time," I ordered Kelly.

"Canyue, have you decided on a way to communicate with the fiend?" asked Zhang Bao'er.

I gave a clear answer. "Yes. I have to wake Bulu up again. Regardless of how tired the fellow is, we can only count on it during such a critical moment."