Chapter 93: Landing Operation

The outer defenses of Skysea Star activated in that instant. Divine power energy formed an almost invisible barrier, deflecting the incoming beam of light.

The energy burst in the atmosphere, unleashing an electromagnetic storm that swept across half the planet.

Qu Shixin witnessed it all from the command center, his gaze unwavering.

"They have opened fire! Return fire at once!"

His voice echoed through the command center. Xu Weiyi and Xu Yiyi responded immediately, their fingers dancing across the consoles as they unleashed a torrent of commands.

The defensive satellites in orbit around Skysea Star began locking onto the Sevi Fleet's positions, preparing to strike back.

On board the Sevi Fleet, Sevis erupted in fury, his eyes fixed tightly on the screen, unable to believe that his fleet had fired without orders.

"Who gave the order to fire?" he roared.

"Commander, it was... it was the unmanned ships that attacked!" a officer stammered.

"Cut the link to the intelligent systems immediately!" Sevis said coldly. Even as he issued the order, his mind raced.

Could it be that the opponent's superintelligence had seized control of the unmanned ships? But why would they attack their own planet?

Could it be that the organic life on that world had not yet been eradicated by the machine civilization?

He had wanted to proceed with caution, gather intelligence, and only then begin the war. But now the arrow was on the string, and it had to be loosed.

Although the opponent controlled only one planetary system, the fleet he commanded still faced the possibility of irreversible losses.

Yet since it had come to this, they might as well press the advantage and seize these Earthlings in one swift blow.

Meanwhile, on Firmament Star in the Firmament System, Shen Xing personally witnessed the fluctuations of that energy. His human avatar slowly opened its eyes.

"So it has finally begun."

He murmured under his breath, a trace of grief hidden in his voice.

Since the birth of human civilization, it had suffered no great calamity or mass slaughter beyond civil war. The invasion by the Sevi Civilization would likely not be so easily weathered.

But pain and setbacks were the unavoidable path to wisdom.

For Star-Origin Civilization, this war was only the beginning, the true threshold to becoming a cosmic civilization.

"It is time to learn self-protection..."

At the command center on Skysea Star, Qu Shixin monitored the battle with growing tension. The energy beam from moments before had also drained a considerable amount of divine power, leaving his breathing slightly uneven. By now, the defensive satellite group in the outer reaches of Skysea Star had already locked onto the Sevi Fleet.

"Fire!"

At Qu Shixin's command, beams of energy shot from the satellite array of Skysea Star, straight toward the Sevi Fleet.

Within those beams flickered faint blue sparks. They carried not only immense power of their own, but also the force of Qu Shixin's divine arts.

The instant the attack was detected, Sevis gave the order at once. "Raise the deflection shields. Prepare to absorb the strike!"

The Sevi Fleet's deflection shields activated in a flash. After a brief shimmer, they vanished from sight.

A moment later, the satellites' attack slammed into the Sevi Fleet's energy shields, and the divine force contained within the beams began to erode them.

"Commander, the energy shields are weakening!"

A flicker of surprise crossed Sevis's eyes. He had not expected the strength of the Earthlings' energy weapons to be enough to affect their deflection shields. It seemed this group of Earthlings had indeed acquired technology of considerable advancement.

"Adjust tactics. Spread out and avoid concentrated fire."

The Sevi ships began to shift formation, dispersing to reduce the impact of the Star-Origin Civilization's assault.

At the same time, the Sevi Fleet launched its own counterattack, its weapon systems locking onto the defensive satellites of Skysea Star.

Almost instantly, Xu Weiyi detected the Sevi Fleet's attack signal. He rapidly analyzed their firing pattern, while the mechanical core computed the optimal defensive strategy at superhuman speed.

"Activate the interference matrix!"

Xu Yiyi nodded, her eyes locked on the screen, fingers moving furiously across the virtual keyboard.

"The interference matrix is online. The enemy's systems have been successfully disrupted."

Xu Yiyi's voice rang out. Her analysis showed that the interference matrix was operating effectively. Under its influence, all of the Sevi Fleet's intelligent systems were affected to a certain degree.

Xu Weiyi watched calmly as the interference matrix continued running on the screen. With the innate advantage of the machine civilization, intelligent systems were almost always reduced to little more than decoration. That was one of the reasons the machine civilization was so hard to defeat.

On the Sevi ships, Sevis's subordinates kept reporting the interference they were receiving.

"Commander Sevis, our weapons systems are under severe interference. We cannot lock onto the targets accurately!"

"So there really is a machine civilization backing them..." Sevis thought, his brow tightly furrowed.

In his mind, only the machine civilization could have granted the Earthlings the ability to influence the Sevi Civilization's intelligent systems in such a short time. Since the civilization behind them had yet to reveal itself, it was likely restrained by caution. Perhaps there were limitations of some kind.

"Switch to manual control. All gunners stand by. The moment the interference weakens, open fire at once!"

"The outer fleet, move the ships in! Adjust tactics. Close-range indiscriminate bombardment. Once their shield energy is exhausted, land on the planet!"

The Sevi gunners responded swiftly. Though the interference was severe, they still worked hard to maintain aim and wait for the right moment.

Meanwhile, the outer ships accelerated, like a pack of hunting beasts ready to charge toward the defensive satellites of Skysea Star.

Inside the command center on Skysea Star, Xu Weiyi pulled the link device from his body, then turned to face Qu Shixin. "Old Qu, they're going to land on Skysea Star."

"Activate the planet's ground defenses. Prepare for a landing battle."

Qu Shixin rose to his feet and relayed the order through the command center to the ground forces on Skysea Star. Countless defensive turrets and automated weapon systems came online, hidden in every corner of the cities, waiting for the arrival of the Sevi Fleet.

Although the divine barrier could hold back the Sevi Fleet's invasion, if the enemy moved in and launched indiscriminate bombardment, then once too much divine power was spent, Skysea Star would lose a major fighting force.

Qu Shixin chose to lower the barrier and face the Sevi people directly with divine arts.

Not long after he dismissed the shield, the outer ships of the Sevi Fleet rapidly approached Skysea Star. They released landing pods, and countless Sevi warriors prepared to descend to the planet's surface.

"All units, open fire!"

The ground turrets and automated weapon systems unleashed fierce barrages, weaving a net of fire that blocked the Sevi Fleet's landing forces.

Under the relentless barrage, a portion of the landing pods exploded one after another, turning into fireballs in the sky. Yet some still managed to break through the defenses and land on the surface of Skysea Star.

"The landing force has touched down. Begin the ground combat plan."