The Sixteen-Legged Blood Spider landed on the ground. Its upper body maintained a humanoid form, its gaze sweeping over the soldiers and Lei Jianguo, revealing a satisfied smile.
Only humans with abundant blood energy and strong Spiritual Power were suitable incubation hosts.
"C-class Zerg." Kong Shengxu breathed a sigh of relief.
Aunt Huang and the others remained silent, looking up at the enormous dark shadow that had yet to fully intrude through the space rift.
Chu Ran stared at the Sixteen-Legged Blood Spider, feeling a sense of familiarity. She stepped forward to get a closer look.
The Sixteen-Legged Blood Spider keenly sensed the movement from afar. The moment it saw Chu Ran, its body stiffened, and then it quickly retreated a few steps.
Damn it, why was she still here?
Shouldn't a human capable of invoking an A-class unknown god have already been taken to the Central Star?
The Sixteen-Legged Blood Spider's body ached faintly. To repair itself, it had consumed all the energy mines under its territory. Choosing to be the first to enter this time, it had hoped to receive more rewards from the Queen afterward.
But no amount of rewards mattered if it didn't survive.
Aunt Huang grabbed Kong Shengxu. "Tell Gao Yuan to open the space transfer gate."
"Are you joking?" Kong Shengxu said in surprise. "The Zerg have already invaded. Opening the space transfer gate now would undo all our efforts!"
"Young man, I don't know who you've sided with or what benefits they've promised you," Aunt Huang said, clutching Kong Shengxu's hand tightly, her expression fierce. "I won't settle scores with you, because from the moment I put on this uniform, I was prepared to sacrifice."
"Call Gao Yuan. You must get Chu Ran out of here."
Chu Ran was startled. Just as she was about to speak, Aunt Wang covered her mouth.
"Listen to your Aunt Huang," Aunt Wang said, her voice tense. "You have to trust the experience of us old soldiers. The Zerg that hasn't entered yet is at least A-class."
Aunt Wang didn't finish her sentence. The intense spiritual pressure she and Huang Ni felt suggested it was very likely an S-class Zerg.
The Zerg's classification system was even stricter than human Spiritual Power levels. Each level was like an insurmountable chasm.
The Zerg Queen was the only SSS-class Zerg. The first time she appeared on the battlefield, she destroyed an entire human legion. If not for the Marshal invoking an SSS-class god, even the Central Star might have been breached.
Below the Zerg Queen were her guards, all SS-class. They were born solely to protect the Queen and rarely appeared on the battlefield.
Below them were high-class Zerg, ordinary Zerg, and low-class Zerg.
Low-class Zerg were those born with developmental defects or evolved from Zerg Beasts that had consumed large amounts of humans and energy minerals. Based on their combat strength, humans classified them as F-class and E-class.
Zerg without ancient genes normally hatched as ordinary Zerg, with combat strength levels divided into B-class, C-class, and D-class. Most Zerg invasions were led by ordinary Zerg.
A-class and S-class Zerg were high-class Zerg. They were personally hatched by the Queen, and their appearance signaled a major war between humans and Zerg.
Even dozens of B-class Zerg would be better than a single S-class Zerg.
Lei Jianguo himself was an SS-class Spiritual Power user, capable of invoking the God of Thunder, with extremely strong combat strength. He had once severely injured an A-class Zerg.
The high-ranking members of the Seventh Sub-Star Spiritist Association might be a bunch of idiots, but their combat strength wasn't weak. The association president, Edwood, was favored by a necromantic god and had once invoked an SS-class god, the Mother of Death.
If they truly fought to the death, Lei Jianguo might not even be a match for him.
If today's invasion only involved A-class Zerg, it wouldn't be a big problem. But if an S-class Zerg invaded, Aunt Wang closed her eyes—the Seventh Sub-Star might not hold.
If they could get Chu Ran to the starport as soon as possible, there might still be a sliver of hope.
Kong Shengxu showed a helpless expression and secretly started a live broadcast.
"Commander Huang, I understand your desire to protect the younger generation, but the military and government are truly at their limit. To contain the battlefield within Old Street, we've spent enormous financial and human resources, even sacrificing many soldiers' lives. We cannot disregard the safety of other ordinary citizens of the Seventh Sub-Star for the sake of one person."
"I know it's unfair to drag Chu Ran into this war, but when facing the Zerg, personal sacrifice is inevitable. I believe that as the daughter of He Yi, a second-class martyr, Chu Ran can understand." Kong Shengxu said with a helpless sincerity.
Before Aunt Huang could speak, Chu Ran directly struck Kong Shengxu's face with her staff. "Understand? I don't understand! I don't understand why even living is so hard for me."
"When my mother was alive, I had no worries about food or clothing, but I was poisoned and had my Spiritual Power destroyed. After my mother passed away, I became the most insignificant existence in the Chu family with only E-level Spiritual Power. I had no choice but to live at the Garbage Dump."
"I thought fate couldn't get any worse, but who would have thought the Zerg would invade the Garbage Dump? I survived by luck and restored my Spiritual Power with a Divine Fruit, but that wasn't good fortune. I still don't have strong Spiritual Power and can't find a decent job, yet I've become an experiment in the eyes of countless people."
"I came to Old Street to live quietly for a while. I never imagined fate never intended for me to survive." Chu Ran looked sorrowfully at the battlefield ahead and murmured, "Why? What did I do wrong? Haven't I sacrificed enough?"
"Humanity must unite to defeat the Zerg, but I don't know the meaning of my sacrifice. In this life, aside from having a mother who became a second-class martyr but truly loved me, I've never had a single stroke of luck."
By the end, Chu Ran's eyes were full of tears, her voice choked with sobs. She was like a fledgling forced out of its nest, facing a life-and-death crisis before its feathers had fully grown. She didn't know how to save herself and could only call out for her mother helplessly and miserably.
But her mother couldn't respond.
She had already fallen asleep in the stars for the greater good of humanity.
Kong Shengxu never expected Chu Ran to say such things. Cold sweat dripped down his back. Just as he was about to turn off the live broadcast, Aunt Huang grabbed his wrist. "I think you were right earlier. Since we're at such a critical moment, everyone should know the truth."
The other surviving aunties quickly snatched the Light Brain into their hands. "I see you're a soldier too. You don't need to stay behind to take care of us old, weak, and disabled. I know you really want to fight alongside your brothers."
Kong Shengxu certainly couldn't run away on a live broadcast. With a stiff expression, he quickly left.
Aunt Huang looked at the Light Brain, as if gazing at some people, and said calmly, "There is much injustice in this world, and I have no right to persuade you to let go of all the suffering you've endured."
"But for the faint hope of the future, I beg you to regard the Zerg as our greatest enemy."
She closed her eyes, recalling the image of her deceased grandmother.
Her grandmother was one of the lucky ones who survived the dark age with difficulty, but she couldn't stand light or any sound. Even a sudden raised voice would make her tremble with fear.
They had tried everything to untie her grandmother's heart knot, but it was useless. Up until her death, her grandmother remained in great fear of everything around her.
That was the true face of ordinary people in the dark age when humans had no power to resist the Zerg.