Mars. The Hellfire Plains.The battlefield was a meat grinder of fire and steel. The Terracotta Warriors were relentless. They formed shield walls, advancing step by step, their laser spears piercing through the magma-skinned monsters of Ares's legion. But the difference in size was massive. The magma monsters were twice the size of humans, and every time they were cut, they exploded in boiling lava, melting the Terracotta soldiers nearby.Suddenly, the sky turned dark red. A pressure, heavy as a mountain, descended upon everyone.BOOM. A colossal figure landed in the center of the Terracotta formation. The shockwave vaporized three hundred Terracotta soldiers instantly, turning them into red dust.Grand Marshal Ares stood up from the crater. He was twenty feet tall, a giant among men. His six wings of solidified fire spread out, blotting out the pale sun. He held a spear made of a dying star's core."Is this the best Earth has to offer?" Ares swung his spear. A wave of hellfire swept

The Red Fortress. Core Room."Warning! Energy Overload!" The automated alarm blared through the fortress. The giant crystal core turned from a stable white to a violent, unstable violet.Lucas typed the final command code into the console. [Command: Self-Destruct Sequence.] [Timer: 60 Seconds.]"Time to go, gentlemen!" Lucas shouted, grabbing the paralyzed General Athena's head (which contained her tactical database chip). "I'm taking this as a souvenir."General Yue Fei kicked the blast door open. "Run! The structure is collapsing!" Li Bai grabbed a bottle of "Alien Wine" he found on a shelf. "A pity to waste good wine!"They sprinted through the corridors. The walls were cracking. Magma was leaking from the pipes. The entire planet seemed to be trembling in fear....Outside. The Hellfire Plains.Ares was still locked in combat with Emperor Qin. "You are strong, Human," Ares panted, his body covered in green blood. "But my fortress is eternal! My cannon is charged!"Suddenly, the gr

King Tower. Top Floor. The Secret Lab.The celebrations outside had died down, but the work inside was just beginning. Lucas stood in front of a massive holographic map of the Milky Way. Beside him, the holographic projection of Athena (now his Chief Strategy AI) was highlighting different sectors in red, blue, and green."Administrator," Athena's voice was crisp. "I have analyzed Earth's assets." "The good news: You have a monopoly on Marsium Ore." "The bad news: In the eyes of the Galactic Council, Earth is still a 'Tier 0.7 Primitive Civilization'."Lucas frowned. "Primitive? We just blew up a fortress.""Brute force does not equal status," Athena waved her hand. "The galaxy runs on 'Galactic Credits' (GC), not US Dollars." "Your 90 Trillion USD? It's worthless out there. You can't even buy a hyperdrive with paper money."Lucas rubbed his chin. "So, I'm poor again?" He didn't look upset. Instead, a dangerous glint appeared in his eyes. The glint of a businessman smelling a new mark

Sector 7. The "Rusty Anchor" Shipyard.This place was a cemetery for spaceships. Drifting in the void were thousands of hulks—broken destroyers from ancient wars, gutted cargo haulers, and rusted fighters. The dealer, a four-armed alien mechanic named Scrap, floated towards Lucas on a hover-platform."Looking for parts?" Scrap spat out a glob of oil. "Or just looking?""Looking for a flagship," Lucas said, scanning the endless debris field. "I have 20 Million GC. Show me something that can shoot.""20 Million?" Scrap laughed, shaking his head. "For that price, you can buy a cargo shuttle. A real warship costs 500 Million." "But... if you don't mind fixing things up yourself..." Scrap pointed a greasy finger at a dark corner of the yard. "I have a 'Ghost-Class' Frigate over there. It's from the fallen Shadow Empire. 500 years old. No engine, no guns, just the hull." "It's basically a coffin. 5 Million GC."Lucas looked at the ship. It was sleek, pitch-black, and shaped like a dagger. I

The Edge of the Solar System. Near Pluto.The Centauri Patrol Fleet was bored. Three sleek, silver destroyers were drifting lazily in the void. They were the "gatekeepers" of the solar system, enforcing the blockade that kept Earth isolated.Inside the flagship The Punisher, Captain Xar yawned, playing with a holographic game console. "Anything interesting from the monkeys on Earth?" Xar asked his radar officer."Nothing, Captain," the officer sneered. "Just some radio noise about a 'King Corp' winning a war. Probably just tribal fighting." "Should we send a drone to scare them? Maybe drop a rock on one of their cities for fun?"Xar laughed. "Maybe later. I'm hungry. Let's hijack the next human cargo ship and steal their food..."BEEP. A faint signal appeared on the radar. It flickered for a millisecond, then vanished."What was that?" Xar sat up. "Sensor glitch, sir. It looked like... a shadow? But no ship can move that fast without a heat signature.""Ignore it," Xar waved his hand.