Chapter 533: Power Struggle in the Star Domain

All of it unfolded in the blink of an eye. By the time everything settled, Song Liang inside the Chenliang was a completely different man—calm, composed, not a trace of his former panic left. It was as if the abrupt tightening of his eyes earlier had been nothing but an illusion.

Right then, he muttered to himself:

“Trying to take down the Chenliang up close? Sorry, but we’ve got three purple-grade components on this ship—including the obsidian hull armor!”

Up ahead, over a dozen Tier 3 Azure Crab General terracotta warriors didn’t let up for a second, their massive pincers driving relentlessly into the torn flesh of the wounded Tier 3 Violet Butterfly Clan member.

On their own, attacks like these would hardly make a dent. Everyone knew terracotta warriors weren’t truly powerful—their combat prowess was second-rate even among their peers.

But reality told a different story. There was something smeared all over the Azure Crab Generals’ pincers. Every time those pincers pierced a wound, the air sizzled with the unmistakable sound of corrosion.

With things like this, the Violet Butterfly Clan member’s life force was draining away at a pace you could actually see.

“That celestial spider venom really is terrifying… and it only took a few drops on the warriors’ claws…”

Watching the tables turn in his favor, Song Liang couldn’t help the twitch of a satisfied smile tugging at his lips.

The celestial spider was a rare, poisonous species his family kept for this very purpose. Not long ago, he’d made a point of acquiring some venom—never thought it’d come in so handy right now.

Bzzz—

But before Song Liang could revel for long, a sudden spatial ripple behind him made his heart leap into his throat.

“That’s not my father…”

The moment he realized it, a blinding beam of energy blasted through from the enemy cruiser’s bow. In an instant, the Chenliang’s outer energy shield overloaded completely; even the faintest remnant of the beam hammered directly onto the jet-black hull.

[Warning: Battleship under attack! Hull armor integrity at 58%. Main structure at 80%.]

Song Liang’s eyes widened. He knew full well the defense from the obsidian hull armor’s ability, Obsidian Guard, was still active—it’d only been about ten seconds since he’d triggered it. Without that, he was certain the Chenliang would have been blown apart by now.

“It’s a Morningstar Family cruiser!”

One look at the enemy’s insignia made Song Liang certain who he faced.

His gaze turned frosty, fire raging just beneath the surface as he stared them down.

“Hand over the component and maybe I’ll let you walk away!” called the opposing captain.

Song Liang kept his icy glare locked on his foe, refusing to answer even a word.

“Stalling for time? Please! Don’t be so naive!”

The taunt crackled through the comms as the thousand-meter cruiser began charging its main cannon at the bow, energy gathering in a blinding flash.

Song Liang’s fists clenched tight. He couldn’t hide the flicker of fear in his eyes.

He desperately wanted to steer the Chenliang away and make a break for it. During the time his terracotta warriors were fighting, he’d already secured the special flash-displacement component. Mission complete, at least on paper.

But the truth was, it wasn’t that he didn’t want to run—he simply couldn’t.

The enemy had used some special means to seize control. The Chenliang was locked in place, unable to move an inch.

“My father is a direct member of the Song Family. Are you Morningstars seriously ready for war with us?”

Fueled by survival instinct, Song Liang snapped at the cruiser’s comms projection.

But the reply sent a chill straight through his bones.

“The two families at war? Heh. Kid, you’re not even important enough to speak for the Songs!”

“Last chance! Three seconds—if I don’t have that component, you die here with your ship!”

After a flash of inner turmoil, Song Liang’s gaze steadied once more.

“Maybe I don’t speak for the Song Family—but let me promise you this. If I die here today so do you. And yours will be a death you’ll never forget!”

His words seemed simple, almost quiet, but they weighed down on the Morningstar captain like a mountain. For a moment, an uneasy look flickered in the enemy’s eyes.

They both knew the truth: this whole disaster was over a single high-grade purple component—the only reason it’d gotten this far was Song Chi’s large-scale search right now.

But if things truly ended with a promising Song family member dead over that part, Song Chi—famous throughout the entire Morningstar Kingdom and even the Tianpan Galaxy—would never let the matter rest.

In those few seconds of hesitation, the silent starry sky rippled again.

A second Morningstar cruiser shimmered into view.

“Dad!”

Song Liang’s eyes lit up at the unmistakable outline of the new arrival.

This new cruiser was the flagship of the Fourteenth Squadron, First Dragon Whale Guard Fleet—commanded by none other than Song Qian, a high-ranking member of the Song Family’s main line.

“Reiser Morningstar! You’ve got a death wish!”

Song Qian let out a sigh of relief on seeing his son unharmed, but all the while there was no hiding the murderous light in his eyes as he glared at the opposing Morningstar cruiser.

One look at the Chenliang’s battered state told him Reiser Morningstar had definitely meant to kill.

Seeing Song Qian’s appearance, Reiser Morningstar’s heart plummeted. His hopes for a tidy victory vanished.

Instinct screamed at him—it was time to retreat.

But just as he prepared to use a second flash-displacement component to escape, more spatial ripples pulsed from behind.

Three more Song Family cruisers appeared on the scene.

The key issue was this: one of those new Song Family ships immediately activated an anti-magic field, slamming the door on any hopes of flash-displacement escape.

“They really are coming to kill me!”

That realization brought genuine panic to Reiser Morningstar’s face.

Moments ago, he’d mocked Song Liang for being insignificant. That killing him would never start an inter-family war. But if it was flipped—wasn’t the same true for him?

After all, the Morningstar Family had six thousand years of history and thousands—if not ten thousand—Tier 3 Torch Captains like him. What would the loss of one more matter?

Right as desperation set in, two more Morningstar cruisers arrived.

Reiser Morningstar thanked his fellow clan members from the bottom of his heart; then with his escape assured, he put on his arrogant mask all over again.

The Song Family may have grown strong in the last century or two, even rising to become the kingdom’s most powerful house below the royal family, but in Reiser’s mind, the so-called Dragonspine Song Family with only a few thousand years of legacy were still upstarts—nothing compared to the immortal Morningstars.

……

Within the Song Family’s communication channel, a clan member messaged Song Qian:

“What now, Commander?”

The murderous intent in Song Qian’s eyes only grew. His voice was icily resolute.

“Reiser Morningstar must die. I’ll take full responsibility—attack!”

Reiser must have sensed his intention, because his expression darkened instantly.

“Song Qian, do you really want to break the fragile peace between our families?”

Song Qian didn’t reply—he simply ordered his ship full speed straight at Reiser’s flagship.

Behind, the three other Song Family cruisers split up—two intercepting the new Morningstar arrivals, one joining Song Qian in closing in on Reiser’s ship.

Seeing that, Reiser Morningstar’s face contorted in anger and shock. He was already weaker than Song Qian, and now, facing two ships, he knew he had no hope of lasting long.

“No! I can’t let things go on like this—Song Qian really will blow my ship away!”

Panicked, Reiser shouted to his companions behind him:

“Hurry, activate the sub-emblem!”

Responding to his command, one of the Morningstar cruisers not caught in the anti-magic field fired up a special component.

Bzzz, bzzz, bzzz—

Up above, the starry sky rippled violently as a massive spatial disturbance swept across a vast area.

Slowly, a phantom began to materialize.

It was a Zhulu-class Cruiser projection—a ship 3,300 meters long.

“Watch out—it’s a Morningstar Zhulu-class projection!”

Song Qian’s face shifted. He barked a warning to his fleet at once.

But before the Zhulu-class projection fully took shape, a flash of killing intent burned in Song Qian’s eyes.

The Song Family cruiser at the front, now armed with a purple-grade ramming prow, shot toward Reiser’s flagship at full speed. If they collided now, with Reiser unable to activate his ship’s armor defenses, it was sure to leave a gaping hole in the hull—maybe even cripple the ship.

And if luck turned against him, that battleship would wind up dead in the water.

But when the two ships were less than a hundred thousand meters apart, the fully formed Zhulu-class projection at the rear unleashed a torrent of energy. Its domain field spread out, and unlike the Song Family’s anti-magic domain, this one crushed the field beneath an unstoppable force.

Not only that, but under this mysterious field, even Song Qian’s speeding battleship froze—locked in place by some unknown force.

Just like that, the entire battlefield flipped on its head.

Finally, a respectful voice rang out from one of the Morningstar Family cruisers.

“Welcome, Elder Quinn!”

……

There was no answer. Quinn Morningstar—the Zhulu-class Captain—clearly wasn’t interested in turning this into a spectacle. Instead, he spoke coldly through the imposing projection:

“This matter ends here. Disperse—”

But before he could finish, Song Qian exploded with rage, his voice erupting through clenched teeth.

“End here? This is Song Family territory! Not only did your people trespass and attack, you nearly killed a Second-Tier member of our family! Elder Quinn, you want to just call it even right here, right now?”

For a Zhulu-class Captain to be publicly interrupted by a mere third-tier commander, even if Song Qian had the moral high ground, Quinn Morningstar’s eyes darkened instantly.

“You dare question a Zhulu-class Captain?”

His chilling words echoed from the projection, and with them came a crushing domain that slammed into Song Qian’s ship.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Under Quinn Morningstar’s tightening grip, a sixth-tier domain pressed down on Song Qian’s flagship with terrifying force.

[Warning: Battleship under attack! Energy shield integrity 54%.]

[Warning: Battleship under attack! Shields overloaded. Armor integrity at 78%. Hull integrity 97%. Repairs recommended.]

[Warning: Armor integrity down to 20%. Hull at 41%. Repair immediately!]

In just a second under Quinn’s terrible power, Song Qian’s ship’s damage stats shot through the roof.

“Dad!”

On the Chenliang off to the side, Song Liang’s eyes went wide, his voice breaking.

“The Morningstars aren’t the only ones with a Zhulu-class Captain!”

Even under heavy fire, Song Qian’s voice was rock solid.

With a single thought, he activated the projection sub-emblem embedded in his flagship.

“Song Qian, of the Song Family, requests the elder’s arrival!”

The moment those words fell, space ruptured above his ship. Another gigantic 3,300-meter Zhulu-class Cruiser projection condensed out of thin air.

When the Song Family’s projection arrived, the crushing force on Song Qian’s ship vanished instantly.

An instant later, a woman’s angry voice echoed through the darkness between the stars.

“Quinn Morningstar! Did you really think my Song Family has no one?”

A quick retort came from the Morningstar Cruiser projection.

“Song Ting, you are hardly worthy to speak with me!”