Not only were all the Beastmen stunned, but even Jiang Zheyu herself was in shock.

7S spiritual power was just that terrifying.

Jiang Zheyu stared at the rain of blood falling from the sky, still not having fully snapped out of it.

"Ground those unidentified Mechas." Shan Xun was the first to regain his composure.

The surrounding Beastmen hastily snapped out of their stupor and attacked the unfamiliar Mechas.

The pilots of the strange Mechas had planned to use the Zerg as cover, making it easier to attack and seize the female amidst the chaos. But now that the Zerg had been wiped out in an instant, they had lost their cover. They made the split-second decision to escape.

But how could their dozen or so isolated Mechas possibly contend with the dozens of Mechas from the Second Legion?

In moments, all their Mechas were brought down, and their Beastman pilots were captured.

And just like that, the incident involving the Zerg Race and the unknown assailants came to a close.

The Beastmen began to deal with the aftermath.

Shan Xun recalled his black Mecha.

He set Jiang Zheyu down on the ground.

After stowing his Mecha, Shan Xun stood by Jiang Zheyu’s side as other Beastmen brought the captured pilots of the strange Mechas before them.

"Speak. Who sent you? Which Star Thief Gang?" Shan Xun demanded, his expression cold and harsh. "What was your purpose in capturing the female?" 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

But every one of the captured Beastmen kept their mouths shut, refusing to say a word.

Shan Xun didn’t press them further, as he could already guess their motives. These Star Thieves didn’t go to other planets to capture ordinary females; they came to this Deserted Star specifically for the one protected by the Zone -2 legion. There were two likely reasons: first, because of the female’s extremely high Comforting Power, and second, because they knew she could heal damaged spiritual power.

Most Star Thief gangs had at least a few members with damaged spiritual power.

So, even if they refused to talk, he could deduce the truth.

Shan Xun’s expression was cold. "Take them all away and kill them."

"Yes, sir." The other Beastmen complied, dragging the captives away.

There were countless interstellar Star Thief Gangs, and he couldn’t be bothered to find out which one this was. So long as they dared to come, he would make sure none of them left alive. He would kill them all.

It seemed the leader of that Star Thief Gang had only come via a Biorobot, not daring to show up in person. He probably knew he had no guarantee of capturing the female. If he failed and got trapped here himself, it would be a disaster. Using a Biorobot was the safest option.

And Shan Xun had already smashed that Biorobot’s body to smithereens with a single punch.

"Shan Xun, did you see that?" Jiang Zheyu glanced sideways at him. Unlike the first time she had killed the Zerg, she wasn’t ecstatic, and her heart wasn’t pounding uncontrollably. "I just killed all of them."

’And this time, I didn’t just kill them. I crushed every single Zerg in an instant.’

’But even though this slaughter was on a much grander scale, even more powerful and widespread than the first time, I feel strangely calm.’

Her face was drenched in the blood of the Zerg.

Hearing this, Shan Xun glanced over at her and gave an approving nod. "Yes. It was very impressive."

With her face still drenched in Zerg blood, Jiang Zheyu looked up at Shan Xun, her expression serene. Her tea-colored eyes shone with power and resolve. "So I’ve decided to travel between the planets and eradicate the Zerg Race."

’My real purpose, of course, is to search every planet and find which one is hiding the Zerg Mother. I’ll exterminate the Zerg on each planet, and I’ll also check the uninhabited ones for any Zerg spiritual power fluctuations. If there are Zerg present, my spiritual power will definitely be able to sense them.’

’The Zerg Mother must be hiding in a place where Beastmen don’t live.’

’Even if I don’t know which planet it is, I’m sure I’ll find it if I just keep searching.’

Shan Xun paused after hearing her declaration. After a moment of silence, he spoke slowly, "Have you thought this through? It will be incredibly arduous. You were only supposed to finish purifying the Beastmen at this Research Institute, and then you could have returned to the Imperial Capital Star."

"I’ve thought it through," Jiang Zheyu said, nodding quickly. "But while my spiritual power is strong, my Combat Power is lacking. I can’t go alone. I’ll need you all to go with me."

She stated her circumstances frankly.

"This matter will have to be reported to the Star Emperor. We can only set out if he agrees. If he doesn’t, then we can’t go," Shan Xun said slowly.

"I see." Jiang Zheyu nodded thoughtfully.

’Coincidentally, I have His Highness Jin Yu’s contact info on my Light Brain. I can contact him and ask him to bring it up with the Star Emperor. That way, I’ll find out if they’ll allow me to begin this mission of patrolling the stars and wiping out the Zerg.’

’To get them to agree, though, I’ll have to reveal the full extent of my abilities.’

’The fact that I crushed the entire Zerg Race swarm today should serve as a persuasive argument.’

"You..." Shan Xun began, then fell silent.

"What is it?" Jiang Zheyu looked up at him, puzzled.

"Are you feeling better?" he finally asked.

For a moment, Jiang Zheyu didn’t know how to react. ’Is he insulting me?’ she wondered.

But seeing the sincerity in his deep purple eyes, she knew that wasn’t his intention.

Then it dawned on her—he must be talking about last night, when she’d gotten sick from taking a cold shower.

"All better! I’m all better!" Jiang Zheyu said quickly. She suddenly remembered Shan Xun saying he would request to be relieved of his duties, and she grabbed his sleeve. "Um, my head was just fuzzy from the fever, that’s why I said what I said. Please don’t ask to leave! I think you’re... you’re great."

In reality, she had simply grown accustomed to Shan Xun and didn’t want to go through the trouble of adjusting to a new Commander.

Shan Xun seemed slightly taken aback by her words. He looked down, his long eyelashes casting a shadow over his eyes. "Your mind was muddled by the sickness... so you spoke your true feelings, is that it?"

Jiang Zheyu’s lips parted, her mind racing for an explanation. When nothing came to mind, she suddenly remembered that Shan Xun had told her she could command him. So she spoke imperiously, "Then I forbid you to leave."

She offered no explanation, simply issuing a direct command for him not to leave.

Shan Xun stared at her for a long time, his calm, sharp eyes unblinking, and said nothing.

An invisible pressure seemed to settle over Jiang Zheyu.

Jiang Zheyu mumbled, "You can’t disobey my orders... right?"

Shan Xun’s gaze shifted to the Zerg blood on her face. He took her hand. "Come on. Let’s get you cleaned up."