Styx Galaxy.
"My God, Shifu is dead."
"Hmm, I saw," Karl replied simply.
"Next, we..."
"Do nothing."
"As you command."
After Nightmare left, a projection appeared before Karl's phantom form, displaying Ren Kurogane's figure. "Qi-Gong? Interesting."
Earth.
After Ren Kurogane decimated the Taotie King, the invasion essentially ground to a halt. With their leader gone, the Taotie would have to elect a new one before issuing orders—and even if they did, they were no match for the Blackfury Squad. Coming meant death; staying meant being executed by Karl. Their fate was sealed either way.
Ren immediately contacted Qiangwei to teleport him to other warships for further decapitation strikes. For an entire day, he repeated the cycle: kill the captain, call Qiangwei, move to the next ship. By the end of it, the Taotie presence within China's borders had been cleared.
The Taotie had gone all-out, deploying ships by the dozen. Had Kaisha not forbidden large-scale weapons, they might have conquered Earth in half a day. But as long as Kaisha existed, the Order of Justice was a sword hanging over every living thing in the universe. Even Karl, despite being a phantom and better at surviving than Kaisha, didn't want to provoke her yet—not when his plan to "take her offline" was so close to fruition.
Outside the Solar System.
The Queen of Angels, the most powerful god in the known universe, Holy Kaisha, sat upon her throne. A projection before her showed the war on Earth.
"This Ren Kurogane is interesting," Kaisha remarked, watching Ren. "Decisive, no hesitation—the soul of a great general."
She shifted her gaze to Ge Xiaolun. He was exhausted, lying on the ground. "The future Power of the Galaxy isn't bad either. Though immature, he grew from a loser to a warrior in two months and showed remarkable combat instinct in his first war..."
She hesitated, cutting her evaluation short. The screen switched to Qiangwei. Compared to the others, she was in a semi-conscious state. Being a Second-Generation soldier and non-stop opening wormholes for an entire day—while calculating and cracking mothership shields—was a monumental task.
Nearby, Morgana hid in the shadows, looking at Qiangwei with both heartache and pride. "As expected of my daughter!" Suddenly, Morgana sensed something and fled the area instantly.
In space, Kaisha's lips curled. "My dear sister, always running so fast." Resting her chin on her hand, Kaisha ordered, "Set course for Earth."
"Yes, my Queen!"
En route, Kaisha said to Angel Yan, "Yan, you're not getting any younger. It's time you found yourself a god."
"Huh?" Yan froze for a second. "My Queen! I have no such thoughts!"
"The Power of the Galaxy is quite good. Your genetic compatibility is high."
"My Queen!" Yan grew anxious. "That boy is barely twenty. I'm seven thousand years old. I'm not interested!"
"Yes, yes, you're the most mature one in the universe," Kaisha teased. "But in a million years, a seven-thousand-year gap won't seem so large. In the face of eternal love, age is never an issue. The Power of the Galaxy is a good choice."
In truth, Kaisha felt Ren Kurogane was the better match for Yan's pride—he was decisive and socially adept. But Ren already had two partners, and an Angel would never accept that. "Sigh... it seems even the best humans have their flaws."
Earth.
A streak of light descended, and the Queen of Angels appeared directly above the exhausted Blackfury Squad.
"Angels?" The group frowned, unsure of their purpose.
"The woman on the throne is the Queen of Angels, Holy Kaisha. The most powerful god in the known universe," Leina explained. Xiaolun and the others immediately grew wary, thinking a new fight was starting.
Ren stood up slowly. Unlike the others, he remained relaxed. Kaisha probably won't even talk to me. In her eyes, the only Great God on Earth is Xiaolun. I'll just stay quiet and wait for her to leave, Ren thought.
Suddenly, Kaisha called his name.
"Ren Kurogane, Captain of the Blackfury Squad. Essentially the highest commander on Earth right now."
Ren was floored. Me? You're talking to ME?
Kaisha laughed. "Surprised? You think I shouldn't be talking to you?"
Ren nodded. "According to the legends, Xiaolun is the future Great God. Your dialogue partner should be him. You went straight to him last time."
"Hahaha~" Kaisha laughed heartily. Ren's self-awareness was even higher than she expected. If he didn't have two wives, she'd settle Yan's marriage right now. But Angelic love is one-on-one; she couldn't let her warrior be a "concubine."
"Hey! What are you... what are you laughing at?" Ge Xiaolun summoned his courage and shouted toward the sky.
The squad was terrified. Ren had told them how strong Angels were, and Leina just confirmed she was the Queen. If she took offense at Xiaolun's rudeness, Earth was finished.
Kaisha wasn't angry. She looked at Xiaolun and nodded. "Power of the Galaxy. Not bad. You've become a qualified warrior."
Under her gaze, Xiaolun felt like his entire soul had been stripped bare. It was incredibly uncomfortable.
"Alright, I'm done teasing you." Kaisha turned serious. "Earth Civilization, in the name of the Angels, I invite you to join the Order of Justice! Give me your answer!"
"Wait, what?"
"Joining 'Justice' again?"
"What even is this 'Justice'?"
The group looked to Ren for the decision.
"If we join, can we get more advanced technology?" Ren asked.
"As long as it isn't used for invasion, the Angels can provide almost any data in the known universe," Kaisha replied.
"If we become gods, will the Angels stop us?"
"No."
"Fine. We join the Angelic Civilization."
As Ren spoke, Kaisha's lips curled upward. But just as the deal was struck, a furious voice erupted from the sky!
"NO! I won't allow Earth to join the Angels!" Morgana's voice roared. A projection of a heavily made-up Morgana appeared.
"Holy cow! A monster!" Zhao Xin shouted, crossing his arms. The others winced at her appearance.
Morgana ignored them, her eyes locked on Kaisha. Kaisha frowned with disgust. "Morgana, your makeup is getting uglier and uglier!"
"You #@$%&*...!"
After a round of "polite" insults, Morgana glared at Ren. "Brat! If you dare join the Angels, I'll attack Earth right now! Even if the Queen of Angels is here, I can destroy a city in China before she moves!"
The group's expressions changed. Kaisha's eyes turned white. Seconds later, she said, "She's right. She's currently above Giant Gorge City. No matter how fast I am, she can destroy your city before I strike."
Ren's eye twitched. He just chose the Angels, and Morgana immediately flipped the table? I'm going to destroy that psycho eventually, he cursed internally. He looked up at Kaisha awkwardly. "Queen... it seems we'll have to talk privately later."
Kaisha smiled, not minding. As long as Ren agreed to follow the Order of Justice, the formal label didn't matter. She waved a hand, forcibly closing Morgana's projection.
"Morgana staying on Earth is not a good thing. If I leave, she might launch a devastating strike," Kaisha warned. Ren nodded. "So, I will leave my Left Wing, Yan, here just in case. Since you haven't officially joined us, she won't stay on Earth full-time."
Ren agreed instantly. His life motto: When there's a golden thigh to hug, hug it tight! With Kaisha alive and Leina safe, he couldn't see the Angels losing anytime soon.
Aboard the Giant Gorge.
Dukao was fuming. "This Ren Kurogane! I tried to communicate with him several times, and he rejected them all! Unacceptable!"
Lian Feng and Yu Qin stood by helplessly. After a month with Ren, they understood him. He knew exactly why Dukao was calling—to manipulate his decisions during the negotiation. So, Ren simply ignored him.
When the squad returned, they briefed Dukao and quickly left. The actual war had given them clear goals for the future.
Ren returned to his yacht. Su Xiaoli and Rui Mengmeng were busy in their Dark Planes. Ren also dived into his consciousness.
In the pitch-black "Good Brothers" space, Scientific Ren was waiting. Soon, a figure in Black Armor appeared.
"Oh? A newcomer?" Scientific Ren's eyes lit up. "Brother! You're new?"
"Huh?!" Superbrain Ren (Ren Kurogane) was shocked. "Who are you?!"
"Relax, brother. We're the same person." Scientific Ren held out a fist. "Here, bump fists, and you'll know everything."
Ren Kurogane hesitated. In his mind, this was his Dark Plane system. If someone had broken in, their tech must be far superior! Scientific Ren saw the hesitation, flickered forward, and grabbed Ren Kurogane's hand before he could react!
The next moment, Ren Kurogane's mind was flooded with a multiverse of memories.
One relevant follow-up question: Now that Ren Kurogane has access to the memories of his other selves, should he use his Astral Weapon System to replicate a "Hollow Mask" or "Ninja Tools" to surprise Morgana, or should he focus on using his new knowledge to secretly fix the "crashing" issues with his Dark Plane system?