Chapter 356: Crushing Game, Void Apocalypse
As one of the pillars of the Rebirth Empire, Dmitri held the same level of authority as Emperor Odoacre within the Radiant Mainframe.
His summons quickly received a response from Radiance.
However, to his great disappointment, whether he let Radiance run a search or reviewed the surveillance footage himself, he found no anomalies.
But with the Sub-space already in such disarray, was it really possible nothing had happened?
Dmitri believed there were only two possibilities.
The first was that the intruder possessed an extremely unique ability—one that allowed them to freely enter and exit under Radiance’s surveillance without triggering any alerts.
The second possibility was that Radiance’s data had been tampered with.
“If it’s the second case… then was the data altered by Radiance itself, or by one of the others who share my level of authority?”
A chill ran down Dmitri’s spine.
Whatever the truth, it was no longer something he could handle.
He wasn’t being alarmist.
If someone truly existed who could ignore Radiance’s surveillance and move freely through the Empire—and if that person bore even a shred of malice toward the Empire—then the entire nation was hanging over a fire pit.
If it was Radiance itself that deleted the data, then the Empire was also in grave danger—who knew what else Radiance might be doing in secret?
And if the person who deleted the data was one of those with authority equal to his… then, damn it, the enemy was already inside the main base. How could the Empire possibly survive?
“Go to Bualois. No—Bualois can’t be trusted anymore. Chongxiao? Even worse. The Emperor… Even if he’s innocent, it’s no use going to him. He wouldn’t be able to solve a problem like this.”
Dmitri felt utterly numb.
Standing in the Sub-space, he felt a coldness wash over him, as if a pair of indifferent, murderous eyes were boring into his back.
It was a feeling he had never experienced before.
Even when facing the artificial Psionic God from the Apostolic Holy City, he had not felt this helpless.
No matter how strong an external enemy was, at worst, he could fight to the death.
But if the enemy came from within…
From Slick of the Radiance Family defecting to the Original Pact, to now the theft within the Sub-space—Dmitri felt he could no longer trust anyone.
“Damn it… How did a perfectly good nation end up in this hellish state?”
If the Empire was truly brought down by internal enemies, he would never rest in peace even in death.
Dmitri sat down on the ground.
He didn’t rush out. Instead, he kept thinking.
He thought for two and a half whole days.
Afterward, he packed the remaining relics from the Sub-space into his personal inventory and walked out the main door pretending everything was normal.
When others asked him how the relic fusion was going, he simply said he hadn’t encountered any issues so far and needed a quiet place to continue.
Whether they suspected anything or not, Dmitri, upon leaving the Empire’s capital star, immediately headed for the Esper Garden.
He mulled over everything and concluded—only Bai Fu could be trusted at this point.
Perhaps Bai Fu had her own agendas, but she would never intentionally destroy the Empire.
Because if she had intended that, she wouldn’t have helped the Empire in the first place.
Several days later—
Esper Garden.
Having just dealt with visits from the Supernova Warband and Titan Industries, and not yet having had time to reach out to Lufas for another scheme, Bai Fu was shocked to see Dmitri return.
“What happened?”
Dmitri gave a bitter smile.
“I can’t make sense of it anymore. I’ve never felt so lost. I think… maybe only you can help me figure this out.”
As he spoke, he took out the remaining relics and laid them out before Bai Fu.
“These are the ultra-tier Sacred Relics I told you about before, but…”
Dmitri explained what he had been through, and his current concerns.
“With the Apostolic Holy City likely to attack at any moment, and the Original Pact lurking like a hungry beast, now something like this happens within the Empire… Sigh. I was hoping you might have a way to find out who did it. I won’t let you work for nothing—whatever you want, I’ll do my best to get it for you. And these relics—take what you can use. Leave them in the Empire, and they’ll just get stolen anyway.”
Ding!
Just as Dmitri finished speaking, Bai Fu received a new quest prompt.
【You’ve triggered the hidden quest [Shadow of the Empire]】
【Quest Description: ……】
【Quest Objective: Accept Dmitri’s request and investigate the ultra-tier Sacred Relics theft case within the Rebirth Empire】
【Reward: Divine Light *1】
There was only one reward, but it was priceless—because it could elevate a Sovereign to ultra-tier.
“Though it’s not much use to me… if I give it to Yulia, and then retrieve the final True Spirit Residue Fragment of the Third Apostle, wouldn’t that make Yulia an Apostle too?”
Bai Fu’s eyes lit up.
Each Apostle had a unique ability.
The Third Apostle’s most notable trait was its flawless communication with the Ethereal Realm, no matter the location—in essence, it had infinite mana.
And if Yulia became an Apostle and gained the Third Apostle’s ability, that would mean Bai Fu could also have infinite mana.
A high-damage, ultra-durable mage with infinite mana—are you scared yet?
Perfect. This quest was a must.
The only problem was… how the hell to investigate this?
Bai Fu examined all the ultra-tier Sacred Relics Dmitri brought using her Extraordinary Sight, but found no abnormalities.
After thinking it over—
“All right. I’ll give you some Tiny Bai Fu Prayer Cards. When you return to the Rebirth Empire, take my Tiny Bai Fu with you to visit the people you find suspicious. Just talk to them normally—don’t say anything unnecessary. I’ll be able to judge whether they’re hiding something.”
Dmitri agreed immediately.
At this point, he had no choice but to place complete trust in Bai Fu.
With the Prayer Cards in hand, Dmitri returned to the Empire at top speed.
There were too many people he suspected, so rather than meet them one by one, he decided to host a grand banquet under the pretense of “a farewell before his cultivation retreat,” inviting all the suspects.
“This path is difficult. I don’t know if I can make it across… but I must keep walking. If even I, a pillar of the Empire, don’t try, then who else could we expect to?”
Dmitri raised his glass.
His eyes, filled with love and passion for the Empire, swept across the banquet hall.
Chongxiao, royal nobles from the Senate—even Emperor Odoacre himself were present.
They had quarreled. They had worked in close harmony. In the end, where would these relationships lead?
Dmitri downed the wine in a single gulp.
Then, Chongxiao walked up to him and patted him on the shoulder.
“I thought we’d make fine rivals. It’s a shame… But don’t worry. Even if you fail, I’ll fight for the Empire until the very end—until the situation becomes truly irreversible.”
Dmitri smiled. “I’m relieved to hear that.”
After saying farewell to his familiar allies, he stepped into the so-called retreat chamber.
The scene was quite poignant.
No one could have guessed that beneath this heroic façade lay suspicion and schemes.
“Did you spot anything strange?”
“You want me to say it?”
“Say it. Whoever it is—I’ll accept it.”
Bai Fu shook her head. “In truth, I didn’t see who exactly stole the items from the Sub-space. But I did see that quite a few people are preparing to abandon ship.”
She wasn’t trying to scare Dmitri. While using Apostle Vision on the banquet attendees earlier, she noticed several had more than one faction listed under their alignment.
Someone like Chongxiao—already the Patriarch of the Mechanical Firepower Cult—was understandable.
But for individuals with royal bloodlines to suddenly show dual factions? If that wasn’t preparing to flee, then what was?
Dmitri opened his mouth, countless thoughts swirling in his heart, but in the end, he swallowed them all.
What more could he say?
Although the Allied Forces once again held back the Apostolic Holy City’s offensive on the front line, the price paid was the lives of multiple ultra-tier combatants and the detonation of the Extra-dimensional Space.
This kind of Pyrrhic victory would not calm down those with wavering loyalties. Instead, it would only make them more anxious.
They had been lucky this time to repel the Apostolic Holy City, but what about next time?
Bai Fu herself had already been caught up in trouble—no one could seriously expect the Annihilation King to return, right?
Jump ship!
Dmitri knew there were plenty of people in the Empire who were thinking exactly this.
But he could do nothing about it.
“This time we didn’t find that mole, but that doesn’t mean we’ll never find him. As long as he stays within the Empire, as long as he keeps plotting, I’ll drag him out sooner or later. You just focus on healing for now.”
Dmitri nodded.
…
“Sigh, troubled times indeed.”
Bai Fu stretched lazily.
Over the past few days, she had successfully mastered the remaining three Psionic Attributes and unlocked the 【Omniform】 talent.
On top of that, she had fused several ultra-tier relics, boosting both her and Shadow Foxtail’s base stats.
All the important tasks were done; it was time to head out and take some action.
Bai Fu immediately sent Hei Fu to contact Lufas.
“Tell me, who do you want to deal with?”
Bai Fu said: “Want revenge?”
Lufas’s heartbeat skipped half a beat. “What do you mean?”
Bai Fu: “Void Sovereign. Before the decisive battle with the Apostolic Holy City, we need to clear out all these unstable elements.”
Lufas grew excited.
Hunting a Void Sovereign?
This was his kind of thing!
He could avenge himself, and if luck held, he might even acquire a new Void Sovereign Core.
If he could fuse one more Void Sovereign Core, then even if Bai Fu saw through his cards—so what?
But he couldn’t appear too eager.
He had to act obedient, earn Bai Fu’s trust, make her think he was no threat—then he could strike.
“I’ll lead the way.”
The two stepped into the Void, beginning their hunt for the Void Sovereigns.
Counting Lufas, there had been seven Void Sovereigns in total.
Of course, that was already past tense.
After the battle in the Extra-dimensional Space, only five Sovereigns remained alive in the Void Dimension. With Lufas defecting, its overall strength had plummeted. That was exactly why Bai Fu dared to act now.
Lufas’s first target was the Void Sovereign Yuan Shi, the one he had previously failed to ambush.
He struck again—and failed again, falling into a pincer attack.
“Lufas, today you’re dead!”
“Is that so?”
Lufas curled his lip in disdain.
“Since I dared to come, I’ve prepared thoroughly. Do you really think this is a two-versus-one?”
A cruel grin spread across Yuan Shi’s monstrous head. “Bluffing. Lufas, you’ve offended everyone you possibly could. Who else could you get to help you now?”
“Bluffing? Why don’t you take a look behind you?”
“Behind me?”
Yuan Shi suddenly twisted its head—and saw someone it would never have imagined.
“Bai Fu!”
Why Bai Fu?
“Weren’t you beaten into an idiot by Lufas? Why are you here? Don’t tell me you’ve become his puppet?”
Yuan Shi was confused, shaken to its core, but quickly regained composure.
No.
This wasn’t a big problem.
Bai Fu was strong, but still had a gap compared to them. That much had been clear from the previous battle in the Extra-dimensional Space.
“I thought you had some trump card, but if it’s only a puppet like Bai Fu, Lufas, you’re still dead to—”
“You’re wrong!”
Bai Fu suddenly cut Yuan Shi off.
“I’m not Lufas’s puppet. On the contrary, Lufas is my follower now.”
“Hmm?”
Yuan Shi froze.
“And,” Bai Fu smiled, “today the ones who’ll die are you two.”
As she spoke, Kabaye, the Prayer Angel, and Shadow Foxtail emerged from beneath her feet, from before her, from behind her.
Kabaye’s enormous body tore through the sky, making even the giant Void Sovereigns seem small.
“Send them off!”
With that quiet command, Kabaye, the Prayer Angel, Shadow Foxtail, and Lufas charged together.
Since ascending to Sovereign rank, Bai Fu had never fought a battle so well-equipped and with such overwhelming numbers.
Crushing.
Absolute crushing.
The mighty Void Sovereign seemed like a weakling in front of her and Lufas.
Under the combined seals of the Ethereal Realm Descent, Boundless Darkness, and Dark Energy, Yuan Shi couldn’t even send out a cry for help.
It could only watch as its body was torn apart inch by inch, unable even to self-destruct before dying.
Two Void Sovereign Cores floated in the Void.
Lufas stared greedily but didn’t dare move.
Bai Fu raised a hand, and the two Cores flew into her grasp.
The next second, she did something completely unexpected to Lufas.
She opened her mouth and, as if eating a candy bean, swallowed one of the Cores whole.
“?”
Lufas was dumbstruck.
“You—you just ate it like that?”
Bai Fu looked curious. “It’s just digesting and absorbing a Void Sovereign Core. What’s the big deal? Don’t you do it this way?”
I… I…
Damn it, what kind of normal person absorbs a Void Sovereign Core like that?!
Lufas’s body trembled.
She had eaten a Void Sovereign Core raw and was completely fine.
This wasn’t human anymore!
Lufas dropped to his knees on the spot.
And to think he’d been planning to grab another Core and take revenge on Bai Fu.
Revenge, my ass!
That would be suicide.
From that moment on, Lufas couldn’t muster even a single thought of defiance.
Ding!
【Lufas’s Favorability toward you +43, Current Favorability 78 (Deep Reverence)】
Bai Fu smiled in satisfaction.
“That’s more like it.”
“When you’re a dog, you should act like a dog!”
“Come on, let’s go bury the Void completely!”