At some point, the sounds of combat faded.
A voice cried out in grief through the tactical headsets: "They killed the captain! They killed Vic! Why aren't you fighting back?! Damn it! You cowards!"
A moment later, Vic's voice crackled through: "Uh, actually, I'm still alive. Everyone else alive, respond so I can take a headcount. I don't think Wei Huan came here for a massacre; he's just here for justice."
"He killed Mr. Hodgson on our soil!"
"But Hodgson framed our heroes on our soil. Have you forgotten General Yake?"
"..."
After a long silence, Vic spoke again: "It seems everyone is alive except for the captain. Wei Huan isn't a butcher. Think about it, brothers—he's razed countless Dark Beast royal territories. If he wanted us dead, we wouldn't be breathing, right?"
Conviction is one thing, but when conviction wavers, the instinct to survive takes over. There was no point in dying for Old Hodgson; that was a different price bracket entirely. Facing Wei Huan, few could summon a true intent to kill. He had given too much to humanity; even those on opposing sides admired and respected him in their hearts.
Resistance vanished almost instantly, allowing Wei Huan to seize control of the situation without much effort. But the war, clearly, was not over.
---
"Iron Heart" suddenly issued a warning.
A red-mapped virtual display popped up, showing the Aosam territory. Two virtual missile icons appeared: one launched from the Starlight Building in the center of Peanut City, and another from the coastal defense line in Mississippi.
Two light-nuclear grade weapons were en route, their trajectories locked onto Wei Huan's current coordinates.
Aosam had struck.
While Wei Huan's execution of Old Hodgson terrified the common guards, it enraged and panicked the high-level administrators. If Wei Huan could kill Hodgson so casually, were their lives even in their own hands? Fear of the future exploded alongside their anger. They chose to strike with their strongest weapons while they still had a pretext.
If Wei Huan had already crippled the Dark Beast royalty and elevated human strength, was he really "essential" anymore? Men accustomed to absolute power could not imagine living under a supreme authority.
As the missiles streaked toward Peanut City, the civilians on the ground were oblivious. They were too busy cheering and live-streaming the "miracle" of General Wei's undead army appearing in their streets.
"Look! That armored wolf is so cool!"
"How do I become a Necromancer? This class is amazing!"
Suddenly, someone screamed and pointed at the sky. "Look! What is that?"
The crowd looked up to see a shocking sight: swarms of Double-Headed Stealth Demons launched themselves like bullets toward two different directions.
High above, white light flashed—missiles trailing fire were plummeting toward the city. Before the citizens could even process that their own government had fired upon them, the undead intercepted.
Unlike a standard defense grid, the Stealth Demons didn't try to detonate the missiles mid-air. Their high mobility and strength allowed them to ignore the heat and kinetic force. They swarmed the missiles, physically grabbing the metal casings. One by one, they added their weight and strength, forcibly diverting the trajectories. The missiles slowed, their nosecones tilting away from the city center until they eventually came to a dead halt, suspended in the air by a mass of undead wings.
"Are those... missiles?"
"My God, my own country just tried to nuke me? And Wei Huan saved us?"
"Damn it! My hero, you finally came!!"
The realization spread like wildfire through Peanut City and across the internet. Any criticism of Wei Huan's intrusion vanished instantly.
---
Mu Zhong sat cross-legged next to Wei Huan, watching a camera feed from the Starlight Building through Iron Heart.
Inside an office, a voice screamed: "What do you mean 'intercepted'? Where are our Challengers?! Are we just going to let a foreigner run wild over our heads?!"
"Negotiate? If he wanted to negotiate, he wouldn't have killed Hodgson! This is a declaration of war!"
"I don't care about his greatness! Aosam has never shrunk from the front lines! If not for our losses in the Sequence 4 world, Daxia wouldn't have had a chance to rise! I have to show him that Aosam is not to be trifled with!!"
Mu Zhong looked at Wei Huan. Wei Huan was busy managing the undead to contain the Aosam Challengers closing in from all sides.
"Paralyze the Starlight Building," Mu Zhong said to Iron Heart. "They can't make a choice, so we'll make it for them. Hodgson is dead. No one can stop Yake from leaving, and the Xu family must pay for their treason."
Wei Huan nodded. He didn't want a bloodbath. He knew the people of Blue Star shouldn't have to "pay the bill" for their leaders' ego.
---
In the streets, the situation was surreal. When Aosam's official Challengers arrived, they attacked with the indiscriminate violence of killing machines. Civilians were caught in the crossfire.
But the "monstrous" undead moved to protect them. A Face-Hugger might shield a child with its body; a Stealth Demon might carry an elderly woman to safety. A Shura Horse galloped through the chaos like a dark knight, scooping up terrified bystanders and carrying them away from the combat zone.
The people looked at the terrifying undead and felt... love. Compared to the soldiers they paid taxes to support, who were now firing into their neighborhoods, these rotting ghosts were their true guardians.
The sentiment of the city shifted. 'This country needs a change in leadership.'
---
Deep beneath the Starlight Building, the High Patriarch of Aosam and his inner circle were hurrying toward a secure bunker. They had been plunged into a communications blackout as Wei Huan paralyzed the building's power and network.
They reached the final threshold—a manual-lock safe room—only to find a small, palm-sized Kobold standing there, grinning at them with a shifty, squinty-eyed expression.
The group froze. Cold sweat poured down their faces.
This tiny creature looked as fragile as a rat, but no one doubted its danger. It was a conduit. At any moment, it could vomit out a massive Earth Pit Beast or Wei Huan himself.
"High Patriarch!" someone shouted from behind. "Don't compromise! Aosam is the land of the free! We never bow!!"
the Patriarch's lip twitched. He didn't turn around, but he mentally noted the speaker. 'What an idiot. If you want the job so bad, you stand here with a gun to your head.'
He knew they had crossed the line first. Hodgson's ambition had dragged the whole country into this mess—blocking Yake' beacon, harboring the Xu traitors, and using Wei Jinhong to antagonize Daxia.
The Patriarch took a breath, looked the tiny Kobold in the eye, and let go of his pride.
"Tell General Wei... I will assist with any request." He turned to his subordinates.
"I've already planted people in the Hodgson estate. I know where General Yake' beacon is hidden. I can arrange for its retrieval immediately. As for the Xus and the Gong Group, they are in Aosam; they won't escape."
He looked back at the Kobold. "Would the General like a glass of wine? We can talk. He is the hero of humanity; I have always respected him."
The Kobold remained unmoved and silent, but it didn't summon any monsters. It just stood there, a tiny, terrifying sentinel.
When the rear security detail finally caught up, panting and frantic, they saw their leaders standing in a daze.
"The undead have surrounded the building!" the guards yelled. "We're cut off! Why are you just standing here?"
The Patriarch sighed. "Go back. General Wei is here to 'cooperate.' We overreacted. Return to your posts."
The guards then saw the little Kobold at the door. Cold sweat ran down their necks. Without them even noticing, Wei Huan's influence had penetrated to the very heart of their power. In the face of these pervasive undead, they were as helpless as infants.