Chapter 168: Orbital Invasion of the Capital

Desolate Star Region.

Xitoris Kingdom.

Capital planet.

Sadik had been in great spirits lately. Every update from the front lines brought good news.

Except for Tuoba, all other border clans had been completely isolated by the Royal Guard. Wiping them out was only a matter of time.

Once these clans were taken care of, he could focus all his strength on handling Tuoba.

Most importantly, even with Tuoba nearly cornered, Skywarehouse V remained eerily silent, as if Tuoba’s fate was none of their concern.

This reassurance put Sadik at ease.

He even started planning how to approach the civilization behind Tuoba after dealing with them.

But suddenly, in orbit above the capital planet, a rift tore open without warning.

A massive silver-white warship, stretching 5.7 kilometers, burst out from the crack. Without a word, it unleashed its full arsenal.

Hundreds of blazing blue ion beams instantly tore through and obliterated every warship and orbital defense installation within its line of fire.

Even several orbiting space cities weren’t spared. They were left in ruins as well.

After all, the intel from Tuoba revealed that these space cities were also loaded with heavy weaponry.

“Report! All major threats in orbit have been completely neutralized!”

“Report! Enemy ships detected approaching, distance six units, number: 180, speed: 90, still accelerating!”

“Report! Surface scan complete. Targets ready for elimination on your order!”

“Report…”

Inside the bridge, a flurry of rapid-fire reports rang out one after another.

So far, the situation matched almost perfectly with the results of the simulations built on Tuoba’s intel.

Now for the next phase…

“Meng Fei, start clearing the surface. Split off some firepower and wipe out that incoming fleet too!”

“Yes, Commander!”

In the next instant, orbital bombardment began.

Ion beams, their output purposely limited to just 15%, locked onto the planet below, striking with relentless precision.

Anti-air auto-turrets, ammunition depots, troop gathering points—every strategic site fell within their targeting radius.

Nothing was outside the line of fire.

Against strikes from orbit, ground forces stood no real chance.

Weapons and personnel were obliterated in an instant.

Meanwhile, even from six light-seconds away, the Houyi’s range could still rain down destruction.

And these were just the capital’s security ships.

It was like swatting down children with every blast.

“Commander, all high-threat targets within a 300-kilometer radius of the palace have been eliminated!”

“Deploy the Tuoba Clan’s mech unit and drop troops immediately—begin orbital airdrops. Stay alert for enemy reinforcements: destroy anything that enters the 300-kilometer palace perimeter!”

“Yes, Commander!”

With orders issued, the assault ships, already prepped on the Houyi and loaded with Xitoris warriors, launched one after another.

At the same time, rows of Bai Ze mechs shot out from hexagonal launching tunnels on both flanks. They joined up with the assault ships, then began their orbital drop on the palace.

Anyone looking up from the palace now would’ve seen a scene out of a meteor shower.

Countless fireballs streaked across the sky, plunging straight down toward the palace.

At the very same moment—

Chaos had completely overtaken the palace interior.

“Damn it! Where are the enemy coming from? Why didn’t the security fleet at the interstellar current mouth give any warning?”

“Your Majesty, the enemy appeared suddenly in orbit—it was as though they materialized out of thin air!”

“Out of thin air? Are you claiming this is actually a fourth-tier civilization’s warship?”

Sadik exploded with rage.

He’d already seen footage of the ship. In fact, he recognized it immediately—Parlo had shown him footage from the battle at Skywarehouse V, and this was the same vessel.

There was no mistaking it.

But calling it a fourth-tier civilization’s warship? Sadik didn’t buy that for a second.

If they truly had that kind of technological edge, why bother with tricks against Parlo? They’d just jump straight over and steamroll the place—there’d be no need for complicated attacks through the current.

Yet, if it wasn’t a fourth-tier civilization…

Then the way they appeared was just too strange.

So—

What on earth was going on here?

“Your Majesty, bad news! They’ve started their orbital drop—the target is the palace!”

“How many usable soldiers do we have left?”

“The ground-based Heavy Infantry regiment stationed outside, meant to protect the palace, has… has been wiped out! All we have left are the 3,000 palace guards, but they’re not equipped with heavy weapons…”

Exactly how strong is an orbital drop force?

Anywhere, in any civilization, such units were always the absolute elite—composed almost entirely of heavy infantry.

So, what was ‘heavy infantry’ in the age of interstellar warfare?

Take the Federation for example: every heavy infantry soldier wore full-coverage exoskeleton armor and was loaded with heavy weaponry.

And the Tuoba Clan?

Their heavy infantry kits were all sourced straight from the Federation’s arsenals.

Even with some restrictions, they still retained eighty percent of the Federation’s heavy infantry combat power.

As for the 3,000 palace guards…

They were basically just light infantry at best.

Scratch that. In fact, most of them couldn’t even be considered real light infantry—they weren’t even professional soldiers.

No exosuits, no vehicles, no heavy weapons. Even their light sidearms were strictly limited.

More than half didn’t even have guns—their ‘weapons’ were stun batons or other non-lethal gear.

Against orbital drop troops, their combat effectiveness was in another universe entirely.

There was just no comparison.

To make matters worse, the Tuoba Clan’s troops were bringing three hundred Bai Ze mechs down with them.

As long as reinforcements didn’t break through, these 3,000 guards didn’t stand a chance.

——

In less than half an hour,

all 3,000 palace guards were annihilated. Right in the palace’s central lawn,

dozens of Bai Ze mechs and hundreds of heavy infantry surrounded Sadik and the court officials, locking them in.

Moments later, one of the mechs’ hatches swung open.

A pilot, dressed in a custom Federation flight suit, jumped out.

But just a glance at his stature was enough to know—he definitely wasn’t human.

He was way too short.

He quickly removed his helmet, showing his face.

Sadik’s eyes widened instantly.

He recognized this guy!

Back when he’d taken the throne, Tuoba had visited the capital, and this man had been among Tuoba’s retinue.

“You?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. The Patriarch sent me to deliver a message.”

“Hmph. What did he say?”

“The Patriarch says, for the good of all Xitoris, Your Majesty knows what must be done. He also promises your future will be secure.”

“Your Majesty, you mustn’t!”

Everyone knew what Tuoba’s words meant.

He was basically demanding Sadik surrender the Royal Guard and step down as king.

Dozens of ministers around them broke down crying.