"Forget it, let's go check it out. Worst case, it's just a wasted trip."
With that thought, Topaz immediately decided to set out.
Even if Jarilo had nothing of value, the company could use this opportunity to recover its debts.
As for whether Jarilo could repay centuries' worth of accumulated interest...
Now that the planet was thriving, it could fetch a good price in the cosmos. The company never wasted resources.
"Supervisor Topaz! Bad news! A new swarm has appeared near Jarilo!"
"What?!"
--------------------------------
The silent space outside of Jarilo suddenly echoed with rustling sounds.
A dark curtain silently approached Jarilo, while the people on it had yet to react.
...
"In the name of Landau!"
"Hey! Only one strike!"
The Trampler's body collapsed with a loud thud.
Yanqing smiled at Gepard and said, "This is the easiest battle I've ever fought. Your defensive will is incredible."
The battle was simple—Gepard cast a protective shield on Yanqing, who then charged in with his sword and slashed away, ultimately securing victory.
The ease of the fight almost made Yanqing feel as if he had reached the pinnacle of martial arts.
"After dealing with these guys for so long, it would be embarrassing if I hadn't improved."
Gepard smiled slightly, retracted his barrier, and slowly walked to the center of the battlefield. As he gazed at the terrain, now full of pits and craters from the battle, he pondered.
"The Antimatter Legion has been appearing more frequently lately. Although it's still far from Belobog, this phenomenon makes me uneasy."
"Hmm~ That should be normal. The ice buried underground can freeze the Antimatter Legion, but only to a certain extent. After so long, it's not surprising that they're reappearing."
Gepard nodded slightly, sharing Yanqing's thoughts.
Honestly, the appearance of the Antimatter Legion was somewhat reassuring to him.
Belobog had never stopped recording the events of that great war.
Having read about it, Gepard understood the terror of the Antimatter Legion all too well. Even with the IPC's help back then, Jarilo had failed. In the end, it was only through the power of the Stellaron that both the Antimatter Legion and Jarilo itself were frozen, allowing the planet to survive to this day.
"Oh right, I'll be heading back soon."
"So soon?"
"Well, I came here to bring everyone home. After staying for so long, it's time to return. I have a position in Luofu, after all. Being away for so long, I have no idea if anyone has been handling my work for me."
At the thought of the mountain of paperwork waiting for him, Yanqing clutched his head in agony.
Despite spending his days wandering around Luofu—either following General Jing Yuan or visiting the Artisanship Commission to buy swords—Yanqing actually had a proper job.
He was even considered a high-ranking official in Luofu. To cultivate his skills, Jing Yuan would assign him some simple paperwork to handle.
It wouldn't be surprising if Jing Yuan simply enjoyed watching him struggle.
Although Gepard felt reluctant to see his young friend return to Luofu so soon, the will to protect was never limited to just one person or one matter.
He wished for Yanqing to one day earn the title of Sword Champion.
As the two chatted—
"Whoa! You two down there! Catch me!"
A familiar, ear-piercing scream came from above, followed by a loud thud as the ground caved in.
Or rather, there was already a pit there.
Gepard recognized it as a footprint left by Godzilla when it had passed through. The mark remained even to this day.
"Ow... Hey, you two! One of you is a swordsman of the Xianzhou Luofu, and the other is a guardian officer of Belobog. You're seriously just going to watch and not help?"
Sampo reached out a hand and grabbed the edge of the pit, pulling himself up to reveal his head. His face twitched slightly as he looked at the two before him.
He had clearly seen them look up at him—only to quietly watch as he fell.
Did the bonds between people even exist in this world anymore?
"Sampo, though the cold wave has passed and some old laws have changed, that doesn't mean past crimes don't need to be accounted for. The fact that I'm not having the Silvermane Guards arrest you is already a concession."
Gepard did not have a good expression toward Sampo.
If it weren't for Serval stopping Gepard after learning that Sampo frequently smuggled supplies to the Underworld to help its residents, Sampo would have had to run as far away as possible upon seeing Gepard.
"Heh heh, officer, you can't falsely accuse a good person. Everyone in Belobog knows that I, Sampo, am a pure and upright man, officially certified by Big Sis Serval."
"Ahem… Uh, brother, why did you fall from above? What happened?" Yanqing tried to smooth things over while also asking Sampo why he had fallen from such a height.
Sampo smacked his forehead. "Ayyo, I was just about to tell you about that!"
He anxiously said, "You two need to hurry back to Belobog and give a warning— a large number of Antimatter Legion troops have awakened and are heading toward Belobog even as we speak!"
Hearing that the Antimatter Legion had awakened on a massive scale, both of their expressions changed.
There was no time to verify the truth of Sampo's words. Gepard grabbed Yanqing with one hand and Sampo with the other, then rushed toward Belobog at lightning speed.
…
"The Antimatter Legion… I didn't expect them to revive so quickly." Cocolia frowned deeply.
She didn't doubt the authenticity of Sampo's intelligence. She knew what kind of person he was— though he usually wasn't serious, he never joked about major events like this.
"They must have started from the other side of Jarilo, no wonder we didn't detect them."
Natasha sighed lightly, her expression troubled.
She had come today to get a pharmaceutical supply list approved by Cocolia, but she hadn't expected to receive such news.
An Antimatter Legion advancing from the far side of Jarilo— that was beyond Belobog's current detection range.
According to the intelligence, the legion consisted of numerous high-ranking units, and Yukong even suspected that there were Doomsday Beasts among them.
The Doomsday Beast— a weapon of the Antimatter Legion against planets— was something that Jarilo's current level of technology was completely incapable of handling.
"So, I'll have the Cloud Knights come to support. Belobog will be fine." Yukong said confidently.
The Xianzhou had been dealing with the Antimatter Legion for years; they knew each other all too well.
These were just relics from centuries ago— don't underestimate the Cloud Knights' upgraded and modernized weapons!
With Yukong's assurance, the atmosphere in the room finally lightened.
Suddenly, Bronya asked, "Has this been reported to the Beast Lord?"
"I had Serval relay the message." Cocolia replied.
This was the downside of the Beast Lord not being in Belobog— messages couldn't be relayed instantly, and if there was a special situation where contact couldn't be established, that would be truly troublesome.
That's why she had been racking her brain trying to get Godzilla to return to Belobog.
…
"A large-scale Antimatter Legion attack on Jarilo? Not interested. Let Yukong and the others handle it."
Godzilla lazily swayed his tail, not even bothering to lift a claw.
Although he didn't fully grasp Belobog's military strength, with the Xianzhou joining the battle, let alone an Antimatter Legion from centuries ago— even a upgraded one would have to struggle.
Unless the forces of Destruction officially declared war on the Xianzhou.
Then the Hunt's Revenge would kick in again, boosting its power against Destruction.
Such small skirmishes didn't interest him in the slightest.
Most importantly, the Antimatter Legion was just that— an Antimatter Legion.
No one was leading them.
No loot to collect after wiping them out.
If he had free time, he'd rather take another nap.