Late at night, the star-force warning devices at the base's perimeter flickered fitfully.
Pale blue patterns of light wound across the ground, clearly outlining the silhouettes of three mysterious figures.
The intruders were slender and upright, moving with an almost eerie silence. Their toes barely brushed the earth, leaving not a speck of dust—clearly top-tier infiltrators accustomed to stealth and assassination.
Their fingertips had already quietly brushed against the star-force lines of the outer traps. Faint black mist drifted around them like a living thing, slowly eroding and dismantling the trigger mechanisms. Their movements were subtle and swift, aiming to slip into the base's central hub without a sound.
"Two on the left wing, one in the center. The target is likely the data pod in the hub."
Yun Meng's voice came steadily over the communicator, her tone calm and unshaken. Her flame star-force had already gathered into a sphere, leaping in her palm with a searing radiance. She tapped her finger lightly on the ground, synchronizing her star-force with the landmines.
"Little Jin, watch the heat. Block their retreat."
Little Jin, having long been poised for action, suddenly threw its head back and let out a low roar. Its amber eyes ignited with a fierce, burning fire. The flame at the tip of its tail surged several times in size, transforming into three condensed blades of fire that shot with a whistling wind toward the star-rail nodes beneath the feet of the intruders.
Boom!
With a thunderous explosion, the fire traps detonated. A wall of searing heat and violent star-force airwaves rose into the sky, sealing the intruders' retreat. The scent of charred earth mingled with the sharp crackle of star-force collisions in the air.
In the instant the intruders fell into chaos, their formation shattered, a cerulean figure tore through the thick night like a teleportation.
Cerulean star-force condensed around Tendo into layers of sharp blade-armor, its edges shimmering with a cold, golden glint. Wherever he passed, the air was ripped apart with sharp sonic booms. A moment later, an invisible star-force domain instantly expanded, causing the warning devices within range to vibrate violently.
Fine cracks appeared prematurely on the ground beneath the intruders' feet. A heavy pressure, like the weight of a great mountain, descended upon the field, making their very breathing turn sluggish.
'Star-force blade armor + domain suppression—the presence is maxed out.'
'Teleportation with sonic booms—every step screams absolute dominance.'
'Controlling the field before even striking—this is the deterrent of a top-tier combatant.'
Seeing Tendo appear, the intruders forced themselves to remain calm and rapidly gathered their star-force. Faint black mist surged out, forming a thick defensive shield in front of them, its surface covered in grotesque patterns. Although these shields managed to withstand the residual heat of the flames, they trembled under the impact.
One of the intruders nearby saw this and his eyes turned vicious. He raised his hand and flung out dozens of poisoned star-spikes. These spikes, wrapped in highly corrosive black mist, fanned out straight toward Little Jin's vitals. The angles were cunning and the coverage wide, leaving no room for evasion.
Yet at that very moment, Tendo raised a finger, and a cerulean star-force slash cut through the air. The blade emitted a bone-chilling cold light, not only shredding all the star-spikes but also carving a trench several feet deep into the hardened ground.
Moments later, the poisoned spikes and black mist evaporated completely under Tendo's pure star-force impact, leaving not a trace behind.
Having finished this, Tendo turned into an afterimage and teleported to Yun Meng's side. The cerulean star-force circled around him like a living creature as his cold gaze swept over the three intruders. That single glance caused their blood to surge and their legs to tremble uncontrollably; their fingers froze mid-incantation, and their gathered star-force instantly collapsed in disorder.
"Leave them to me."
As Tendo spoke, his star-force erupted into several sharp blade-beams, rushing toward the central intruder's face with a world-destroying momentum. Where the beams passed, cracks spread rapidly across the ground, and debris was sent flying by the star-force ripples.
Seeing this, Yun Meng immediately focused her mind, pushing her flame star-force to its limit. She formed a thick fire shield, firmly enveloping herself and Little Jin, holding the flank line steady to prevent any sneak attacks.
Simultaneously, Little Jin entered a state of high alert. Its flames surged, and its breath came out hot. Its eyes were locked onto the remaining intruders as it let out a low, deterrent growl from its throat, leaving the main battlefield entirely to Tendo while focusing on the side defenses.
Observing this, Jing Liuli took the hint and, holding Mo Ying, quickly vanished into the shadows of the corridor. Accompanied by a surge of dream-attribute power, the presence of Liuli and Mo Ying vanished instantly, blending into the darkness as if they had never existed.
"Mo Ying, interfere with the perception of the two on the left wing."
Mo Ying nodded. The shadow star-force within its body spread rapidly, forming a blurred perceptual barrier that precisely interfered with the star-force sensing of the two intruders, plunging their vision and senses into chaos.
Jing Liuli seized this split-second opening, using her dream ability to invade their minds. A second later, the intruders' eyes rolled back, and they collapsed unconscious to the ground. The entire process was crisp and clean, with no wasted motion, coordinating perfectly with Tendo to deny the opponents even a moment to breathe.
This scene was witnessed by the last intruder in the distance. His eyes turned venomous to the extreme, and the black mist around him surged frantically like a tide. At this moment, he did not hesitate to burn his own core star-source to gain a brief burst of power. His star-force fluctuations climbed sharply as he prepared to detonate his internal energy to take Tendo down with him.
Caroline hurried over, clutching a medicine box. Her hair was tossed by the air currents, and her face carried a trace of gravity. Spirit Fox leaped onto her shoulder, its amber eyes locked onto the intruder's star-core, capturing the fluctuations of the burning star-source with precision.
"Spirit Fox, release the activity factors. Interfere with his star-source operation."
At Caroline's command, Spirit Fox flicked its tongue, releasing a wisp of transparent saliva. The activity factors fell upon the intruder like specks of light, temporarily slowing the rate of the star-source combustion.
It was at this moment that Tendo teleported behind the intruder. His cerulean star-force gripped the man's neck like a red-hot iron pincer. His fingertips, imbued with immense piercing power, delved deep toward the star-core, forcibly suppressing the burning star-source.
"Ah!"
The intruder's bones let out an overburdened crack. He convulsed violently, and the black mist evaporated instantly upon contact with Tendo's pure cerulean star-force. Deprived of even the strength to resist, he eventually slumped to the ground, unconscious.
Tendo withdrew his hand. The cerulean star-force transformed into chain-like binding talismans, wrapping around the intruder in layers. Each chain was precisely embedded into the star-core pressure points. The star-force patterns moved like living organisms, completely sealing off all possibilities of resistance or self-detonation.
Throughout the process, Tendo's movements were swift and decisive. He remained expressionless, as if he were merely clearing away obstacles.
Without rushing to speak, Tendo stepped forward, his indifferent gaze sweeping over the three fallen intruders. He raised his hand again. A moment later, two more cerulean star-force chains flew out, binding the other two unconscious intruders in layers, the chains tightening as they embedded into their star-core points. His star-force fluctuations were cold and heavy; even though the intruders were in a deep coma, their star-cores were forcibly suppressed, unable to produce even the slightest ripple of energy.
Tendo stood before them, his star-force slowly receding, leaving only faint blue star-dust drifting around his eyes.
"Alright, clean up the scene."
Tendo's tone was flat, yet it carried an unquestionable absolute authority. The entire battle had ended swiftly. The night returned to silence, with only faint traces of star-force collisions and a lingering scent of black mist in the air.
Everyone went about their duties to clear the area. Yun Meng bent down to collect the residual star-rail fragments and trap debris to eliminate any safety hazards. Caroline quickly mixed a neutralizing agent for the black mist, spraying it across the battlefield to disperse the residual toxins. Jing Liuli, leading Mo Ying, carefully inspected the corners surrounding the base to ensure no stragglers were lurking.
[One Hour Later]
The brief conflict over, Tendo and the others returned to the conference hall within the base. Inside the hall, Caroline and the rest had already taken their seats. Warm yellow light bathed the room, creating an atmosphere that was both serious and harmonious.
Tendo walked to the central position. His cerulean star-force had not yet fully receded, and the residual cold aura caused the air around him to stagnate slightly. He scanned the room and spoke calmly: "The enemy's star-force carries clear characteristics of Dark Star Envoys."
The people present were no strangers to Dark Star Envoys. They were a unique group operating outside the boundaries of order and the Association, known for their erratic behavior—a real mixed bag of individuals. While there were certainly 'good people' among them, to most Star Envoys, Dark Star Envoys were generally detested. After all, no one liked dealing with a pack of lunatics.
Regarding this situation, Caroline immediately offered her analysis.
"Someone likely wanted to use them to hide their own identity while testing the base's situation. Therefore... we probably won't learn much from those captives."
Tendo remained silent, knowing Caroline was right. Expecting to get information out of these types was likely a fool's errand.
After providing the initial intelligence, Caroline tapped her data terminal. A second later, the holographic projection in the center of the hall, equipped with a superconducting interface, flickered to life. It was an image projected from the star-energy data terminal; the silhouettes and star-force fluctuation maps of the three Dark Star Envoys appeared clearly. Black, chaotic lines marked abnormal nodes on the map, with glowing quantum data streams pulsing at the edges.
"Although their star-force fluctuations match the traits of Dark Star Envoys, they carry traces of deliberate modification."
Caroline's voice was steady as her gaze locked onto the faint metallic marks on the wrists of the projected figures.
"These aren't natural brands. They are forcibly implanted quantum interface chips—star-energy devices banned by the Federation. I've only ever heard of this technology in relation to the Iron Dome family."
"These chips can tamper with a Star Envoy's neural star-force links to control their actions. They also lock down information transmission channels, preventing leaks at the source."
With that, Caroline tapped the terminal again, pulling up the perimeter scan records and tracking logs.
"I detected faint traces of high-tier star-force residual at the base's exterior. It has extremely high purity and carries the radiation signature of a star-energy amplifier. It was likely left by the mastermind while remotely controlling the chips."
"The culprit was at least ten kilometers away, achieving precision control through a quantum star-energy link. This technology far exceeds standard Federation equipment levels."
Hearing this, Yun Meng rubbed her temples, her finger tracing the trap layout on the terminal.
"In other words, this raid was just a scouting mission. Once the mastermind figures out our defensive parameters, they will likely launch a targeted attack."
"Yes," Caroline nodded.
Tendo's gaze crossed the catalytic nodes on the molecular structure diagram, zooming in on the chip image to the maximum. The details of the circuit patterns and star-energy interfaces became clear.
"The etching technique for these specific chips isn't something an ordinary person can master. It's a 'neural penetration' design banned by the Federation. I don't believe an average organization could possess it."
"As such, the opponent is either a secret organization or a technical outlier that has breached the Federation's database."
Tendo paused, his star-force suddenly tightening, creating an invisible pressure field.
"Regardless of who it is, since they dared to provoke us, they must be prepared to pay the price."
Though he said this, everyone present essentially had an answer in their hearts. When it came to technical expertise in quantum and mechanical fields, very few in the New Federation or the Star Envoy Association could compare to the 'Iron Dome Family.'
"Tendo, what about the captives?" Jing Liuli asked softly, tapping her terminal to bring up their vital sign data. "The chips have locked their neural information, but keeping them might allow us to deconstruct their signal frequency and reverse-trace the location of the mastermind's control terminal."
With a wave of his hand, Tendo switched the holographic projection to a 3D layout of the base's dungeon.
"Lock them in the deepest part of the dungeon. Reinforce the confinement with superconducting star-energy locks. At the same time, connect them to a star-energy purifier. Use high-frequency star-force pulses to weaken the chip's neural interface effect."
"Caroline, you are responsible for deconstructing the residual star-force fluctuations of the chips. Develop a circuit interference agent to destroy their signal-receiving modules."
"Liuli, take a team and maintain a 24-hour watch. Use your dream ability to probe their subconscious. Meanwhile, start the brainwave star-energy decoder; even if you only catch fragmented signals, do not let them go."
"Understood," the two replied in unison. Spirit Fox leaped onto Caroline's shoulder, its amber eyes staring at the chip circuits in the projection, sensing the patterns of star-energy flow. Mo Ying stood and brushed against Jing Liuli's leg, ready to lock onto abnormal brainwaves in coordination with the terminal's signal capture mode.
After making these arrangements, Tendo looked at Yun Meng and said, "Sister Yun, the perimeter defenses of the base need some reinforcement. I'll have to trouble you with that."
Yun Meng waved her hand and smiled. "It's nothing. It'll only take a bit of effort."
This wasn't arrogance; she truly possessed that level of strength.
Following these orders, Tendo and the others became busy once more. Although they had only caught a few small fry, and those small fry weren't particularly useful on their own, through them, Tendo had roughly narrowed down the scope of the 'traitors' hidden within the Association and the New Federation.
With this information, the scales of victory would only tip further in their favor.
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