Warlords: I just made a little fortune, but I didn’t build a country.

In deep space, the circular defense belt surrounding the New Humanity's primary star, Perseus, gleamed with a dazzling red light. In a synchronous orbit 34 kilometers above Earth's surface, the New Humanity Alliance fleet and the Novak starship fleet engaged in a fateful final showdown.

Two 2200-million-ton Titan-class space fortresses, like steel giants, led 34 space battleships of various shapes to confront the Novak fleet approaching in a circular array.

"Activate quantum shield! All warships enter battle formation!"

The voice of Alliance Fleet Commander-in-Chief Catherine Chen echoed within the command cabin. Her gaze was fixed on the approaching enemy ships on the holographic projection. These Novak starships completely overturned humanity's understanding of space battleships—their streamlined, ring-shaped hulls shimmered with the sheen of liquid metal, and countless diamond-shaped energy crystals flickered across their surfaces, like some kind of living organism.

As the Novak fleet came into range, the first wave of attacks came suddenly.

Thousands of plasma cutting blades shot out from the gaps in the ring-shaped hull, drawing dark blue trails in space. These cutting blades used the Novak people's unique living metal technology. When approaching the target, they automatically split into smaller units and swarmed towards the human warship.

"Deploy the anti-aircraft fire network!" Catherine ordered.

Instantly, the human fleet's air defense system fully activated, with tens of thousands of interceptor missiles and laser beams forming a dense web of fire in space. However, the Novak's cutting blades displayed astonishing flexibility. By altering their electromagnetic properties, they cleverly evaded most of the intercepting fire and crashed directly into the human warship's shield.

Amidst the fierce exchange of fire, the New Human Alliance unleashed its ultimate weapon—the Starsplitter antimatter cannon deployed aboard the Titan-class flagship. This massive cannon, with a barrel exceeding a hundred meters in diameter, consumed a full ton of antimatter per shot. As its energy charge completed, two beams of purple light pierced the void, striking directly at the Novak flagship.

However, the Novaks' response was equally unexpected. The energy lattice on the flagship's surface suddenly lit up, forming a hemispherical energy barrier.

The Starbreaker's attack caused a violent explosion the moment it contacted the barrier, releasing enough energy to destroy a small planet. However, after a brief distortion, the Novak energy barrier refracted most of the energy into space.

"How is it possible..." Catherine looked at the scene in shock.

At this moment, the Novak tribe launched their first counterattack, and this time they used the real killing weapon - the star core projector.

Dozens of energy crystals shot out from the Novak warships, rapidly expanding in space to form energy bodies similar to small stars. The high-energy radiation they released instantly disrupted the human fleet's electronic systems, while simultaneously unleashing a powerful gravitational field that gradually drew the surrounding warships closer.

Faced with this crisis, the New Human Alliance activated its final secret weapon: quantum entanglement bombs deployed on their warships (modeled after the Qinwu Empire's black hole projectors). These bombs created tiny quantum singularities, generating a gravitational field powerful enough to tear apart space. As the bombs detonated, dozens of black gravitational vortices appeared in space, engulfing all surrounding matter and energy.

But the Novaks seemed to have anticipated this move. Their warships quickly adjusted their formation, utilizing the unique structure of their ring-shaped hulls to maintain stability within the gravitational vortex, allowing their star core projectors to collide with the new humans' quantum entanglement bombs.

"Boom! Both sides activated their energy shields to resist the aftermath.

At the same time, the priests of the Novak tribe began to perform mysterious rituals to mobilize the energy of the entire fleet through the star core network.

Finally, the Novaks delivered the fatal blow. Their flagship unleashed a wave of energy that blanketed the battlefield. This wave, imbued with the Novaks' profound understanding of the laws of energy, directly impacted the quantum shield cores of the human warships. Under the impact of the energy wave, the shields of one human warship after another shattered, their hulls shattered.

Although the Titan-class battleship relied on its thick armor and powerful energy reserves to hold on, it gradually collapsed under the continuous attacks of the Novak tribe.

When the last antimatter reactor exploded in a chain reaction, Catherine looked at the disintegrating flagship with despair in her heart. She knew that the defense battle had been lost and the new human planet was about to fall into enemy hands.

In this brutal space war, although the New Human Alliance showed a tenacious will to resist and advanced technology, it was ultimately defeated by the Novak people who fully mastered the laws of energy.

"Oh!"

In the silent space, the halo formed by the energy surge had not yet dissipated. On the circular surface of the Novak flagship "Star Flame Altar", liquid metal patterns were flowing at a speed visible to the naked eye, re-reinforcing the energy barrier.

This giant ship carrying the highest priest of the Golden Thorn Clan is now like a dazzling fortress suspended in the universe. The shield composed of countless energy crystals has a glass-like luster, reflecting the explosions that occur one after another on the battlefield.

At that moment, a strange black beam tore through the void. It wasn't the plasma or laser beam familiar to humans, but a dark matter condensation as deep as a black hole, its edges shimmering with purplish quantum radiation ripples.

It traveled across hundreds of thousands of kilometers, hurtling towards us at a speed beyond human comprehension. Wherever it passed, the space twisted and trembled like silk torn apart by an invisible giant hand.

&34;Warning! Unknown energy source detected!&34;

The alarm on the Novak flagship suddenly blared. The Golden Thorn Clan priests within the ship looked up, their crystal tentacles flashing wildly with warning light, their three compound eyes reflecting the terrifying black beam. However, before they could react, the beam had already crashed into the ship.

&34;Bang!&34;

At the moment of contact, there was no dazzling explosion, no glaring light, only a teeth-grinding tearing sound.

The energy shield, so proud of the Novak race, crumbled like fragile glass before the black beam. The dark matter particles contained within the beam devoured the surrounding energy, completely disintegrating the shield's quantum structure.

Immediately afterwards, the light beam spread along the energy conduction path of the ship like a living thing. Wherever it went, the metal was corroded, the energy lattice was shattered, and the star core reactor inside the ship began to emit a scream under the heavy burden.

&34;Boom!&34;

The massive, circular hull was severed in half by the violent tremors. The front bridge area remained intact, but the rear power compartment had begun to disintegrate.

Countless fragments scattered across space, among them the figures of Novak soldiers. Their energy wings fluttered in vain in the vacuum, unable to withstand the deadly threat posed by the decompression. Even more terrifying, dark matter continued to erode the severed hull, transforming metal and energy into nothingness.

Catherine Chen, who witnessed all this, had a face that was originally pale due to the despair of the battle situation, but now it was filled with shock and disbelief.

She stared intently at the holographic projection, her hands unconsciously gripping the control console's armrests. Just minutes earlier, her two Titan-class space fortresses had fired their Starbreaker antimatter cannons and quantum entanglement bombs, only to leave faint ripples on the Novak's shields. Yet, this sudden black beam, with overwhelming force, instantly destroyed the enemy's most powerful flagship!

&34;What kind of weapon is that?!&34;

Her voice was trembling, but no one could give an answer.