Chương 627: The Price of Breaching an Eternal World Tree's Domain.

The 21 Moon-Types and 2 World-Types soared through the sky. Because of the damage they received from Liu Shu's surprise attack, they could not even approach the speed they used when traveling toward the Ceperet Solar System. Altherion stood in the middle of the central control room and asked, his face cold.

"How long until we arrive at Ceperet?" The substitute captain answered with a solemn face, holding his arm, which had a ghastly scar.

"Star Lord, at our current pace, we will arrive in 20 hours. The one who was piloting the main controls of the World-Type sadly died during the surprise attack, and many of the other specialists fell together with them. After all, most of these specialists were non-combatants, barely reaching Level 90 in the best cases. A spatial rift from Liu Shu could shred through their bodies as if they were paper, which killed most of them.

Honestly, if Liu Shu had wanted to kill all the low-level people, she could've used <True Sun> instead of <Eternal Void>. This attack would not hurt the higher-level people as much, which is why she chose <Eternal Void> in the end. Altherion's cold expression gained a scowl when he heard the time.

"Twenty hours? Are the ships so damaged that we can only go at a few million kilometers per hour through the void?" The substitute captain nodded solemnly.

"Most of the detailed controls are untouchable for once, and I am not confident in controlling it like… captain…" The person gritted his teeth, swallowing their grief.

"Still, even if the captain were here, I believe that our limit would be 15 hours. Some Moon-Types in the fleet are too damaged to support speeds that go over 2, 000 kilometers per second. Not because they can't reach them, but because their hull's integrity is a mess." The substitute captain shook his head.

"If it were not an emergency. I wouldn't have lifted more than 13 of the Moon-Types out of the 21 we chose to move with." Draevin at the side asked, worried.

"Are you saying that eight out of the twenty-one Moon-Types are running on hopes and wishes?"

"Basically…" Someone interrupted, their voice loud.

"Energy signals detected! Moon-Type 11 is being targeted by an unknown source!" The substitute captain's face turned white.

"That's one of the weakest ones!" Everyone turned to look at the virtual window in the direction of Moon-Type 11. They saw the ship make a maneuver, clearly wanting to dodge something. However, as if whatever was aimed at them was expecting it, spatial rifts appeared where it dodged. Gargantuan tree roots manifested from the rifts, not attacking it but appearing in front of it. Each of those giant roots glowed with ethereal blue lines, making them more than visible in the void of space.

The Moon-Type 11 made a quick maneuver, but the compromised hull screeched, one of the stabilizers ripping off. As if the roots were waiting for that, the gargantuan roots coiled everything around that ship. Then, the void became bright. A giant ball of pure light manifested from nothing, engulfing the roots and the Moon-Type 11. Altherion's face was ugly as their ships streaked past the giant ball of light. Even if they wanted to slow down and help, they knew that it was impossible.

The person checking the radars spoke with a solemn expression.

"We've lost contact with Moon-Type 11. The scanner shows no signs of life besides the giant roots." An image popped up in front of everyone, showing a scorched ship split in half and crushed by coiling roots. Draevin slammed his seat.

"How is this even possible!? Wasn't that World Tree supposed to be at a planetary level!? How quick was its ascension and spread that it is already interplanetary!? For the love of the skies, World Trees usually need centuries to take this step, not a decade!" Altherion and company knew that the attacker was Tianlian Liu Shu when the roots manifested in Nualis. Not because they expected her to expand that far, but because there was absolutely no other option besides that conclusion.

The only other option was that the primitive world of Nualis developed a True World Tree while the rest of the world was just entering the <Fourth Energy Cycle>. It was an impossible conclusion, and Liu Shu developing much faster than they thought made a lot more sense. Many shared Draevin's feelings. It was inconceivable that the World Tree's development speed was much closer to that of a human than a long-lived species like a World Tree. Altherion, having lived for a few thousand years, spoke out of experience.

"Most World Trees that advance this quickly usually sacrifice future potential for temporary gain. She must've chosen a space-related species as her Ascension path as well, which explains her mastery." Marisella snorted.

"Short-sighted."

"Is it?" Draevin shook his head.

"While I abhor her, credit where credit is due. Tianlian Liu Shu doesn't have the Covenant's full support. She knows well that she doesn't have the time to just peacefully ascend. Choosing an ascension that takes a short time to be awakened and quickly expand is what allowed her to take us by surprise. Not to mention, if Lord Altherion had not decided to bother her, can you imagine what would've happened by the time others knew about her?" Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road.

Report any occurrences elsewhere. Marisella frowned, but imagining a future without anyone discovering her for centuries, she couldn't help but shudder.

'Just a few decades, and she has already arrived at the nearby planet. In a few centuries, Tianlian Liu Shu might take over the entire Solar System and become a fortress.'

"Order the most vulnerable Moon-Types to move between the World-Types. The others will circle around us. Keep enough distance to dodge so that she doesn't make us collide." Liu Shu observed their trajectory and noticed the change.

'You think I will let you do as you please?' Liu Shu's lips arched coldly, her real body glancing at the sky with a mocking look. Then, she mouthed a single word.

"<Slow>." As if her voice could pierce through the sky and the void, Eternal Energy entangled with the temporal energies around one of the Moon-Types. Simultaneously, another voice drummed into space.

"<Accelerate>." This broke all calculations. One of the Healthier Moon-Types suddenly became much quicker, approaching the slowed Moon-Type rapidly. The strange movement of these two shot alarms in almost every ship, startling them. Before they could react, massive roots suddenly appeared below and above them, blocking their maneuvering. The slowed Moon-Type, unable to dodge up or down, swerved to the right, and like the one before, felt its hull creaking under pressure.

Liu Shu swung one of her roots, wanting to destroy it, but she felt something approach from one of the World-Types. A massive beam streaked through the void, slamming against her giant root with a massive boom. Liu Shu's eyebrow twitched in pain, the root bursting open into a million splinters. Right after, another barrage of beams streaked through the void, landing on her other roots and destroying them quickly. The Moon-Type shields lit up strongly, blocking the splinters and large wood chunks.

But without the integrity of the whole, their shields only became critical, while they ended up barely dodging each other.

'Tsk.' Liu Shu clicked her tongue, but her gaze only sharpened.

"We can't keep this up… She's herding us." Altherion was about to communicate when Liu Shu's voice suddenly boomed throughout the void.

"BREAK!" The voice was like a massive hammer smashing onto their heads, causing thousands to scream and hold their heads in pain. Some of the people piloting grabbed their ears and let go of the controls, causing momentary chaos. Thankfully for them, the automatic control systems took over quickly. Still, Liu Shu was able to move another root and smash it against another Moon-Type ship. BOOM! The Moon-Type was like an egg smashing against a wall. Still, its speed, durability, and size were enough to create damage.

The giant root dented, almost breaking as sap spilled abundantly into the void. The collision was enough to kill most people on impact, but to make sure, Liu Shu manifested another <True Sun> and finished them off. Meanwhile, Altherion was shouting orders to all ships.

"She has a soul attack! Spare more energy for the shields!"

"Speed will decrease by 15%!" The substitute captain shouted back, one eye closed with pain as his brain thumped.

"Do it! Soul attacks are far too lethal!" Liu Shu's ability to attack souls was somewhat lacking compared to her other means. That didn't mean that it was weak in any way. Anyone at her same Level and Tier who received her focused soul attacks would feel their existence flicker like a candle in the wind. The transparent energy shields around the ships lit up, gaining a white mist-like surface. Liu Shu didn't care; her voice echoed throughout the place.

"<Elemental Lord Willow Catastrophe: Fire Nova>." BOOM! One of the Moon-Types felt its shields wobble crazily as the space around it ignited and exploded. Without using the <Eternity Strand>, Liu Shu's abilities didn't linger, but since they were moving so quickly, it didn't matter. Something was different this time around. After the attack collided, a gust of ethereal flames and ice burst around the shield, corroding it with ticking damage. This was the Damage-over-time effect from her <Title: Universal Tree>.

Thermis Blessing: You can manipulate temperature-related elements, +200% Thermal Resistance, infuse attacks with Hot/Cold elements using Aether Mana, +20% Base Damage, +40% Burn/Freeze DoT. If Liu Shu willed it, all damage she did would create a 40% extra burn or freeze DoT (Damage over Time). Because she usually wanted control over the amount of damage she did, she didn't activate it. But when she was now indiscriminately massacring, adding this effect was a matter of course.

"<Elemental Lord Willow Catastrophe: Ice Extinction>." WHOOSH! The same Moon-Type was enshrouded in damaging ice, creating cracks on the protective mist-like shield. Those inside began to panic.

"Shields down to forty percent!"

"Damage over time effects are corroding the rest!"

"Activate insulation!" BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! <Fire Nova> and <Ice Extinction> landed one after another. With each strike, the shields accumulated damage over time effects, stacking them to hell and beyond. The percentage decreased quickly, and after a few minutes, it reached zero.

"[Shields Are Powering Down]." The message from the ship was like Death's warning, and Liu Shu's voice was Death's sentence.

"<Space Collapse>." The Moon-Type's hull crumbled together with the space around it, its shape losing the perfect aerodynamic form. The Solar Winds hitting them became unbearable, and soon, the entire ship exploded. BOOM! Altherion and the others gritted their teeth.

"How much time since we left Nualis?"

"... Forty minutes, Sir." Altherion and everyone else felt their hearts sinking.

'Forty minutes and we lost three Moon-Types already? Will there be any left by the time we arrive at Ceperet?' Marisella spoke, her voice a frustrated and fearful whisper.

"Does this monster not run out of Ternary Essence? Why can she bombard us so freely?"