"Holy Guard, left wing: 'Male angels' technology has stagnated for far too long. Compared to thirty thousand years ago, their overall strength has scarcely improved at all.'"
Another point was that her current power had already grown formidable. She possessed both a holy body and a spacetime body at once; even if she lagged in some other respects, the angels whose technology had fallen behind—those dregs of the old Heaven—could never hope to contend with them.
"Yan, come here for a moment."
All of a sudden, the voice of Keisha came through Angel Yan's comms.
"Yes, my Queen."
Angel Yan answered crisply, then spread her wings and flew toward the royal palace.
The Merlot Heavenly Court lay amid the Angel Nebula. Innumerable stars wheeled there in their courses; towering buildings rose brilliant and magnificent, sacred and pure. Along her route she saw many angels, fully armed with weapons in hand, winging into the distance.
When they spotted Angel Yan, they would pause and call out, "Sister Yan!"
They did not yet know that Angel Yan was the designated heir to the throne—the crown princess who would be the next Angelic Queen. Calling her "Sister Yan" had nothing to do with succession; it was simply because, as the Holy Guard's left wing, Angel Yan had amassed merit and prestige across countless campaigns over unnumbered years.
Of course, only the young angels addressed her this way. The older angelic warriors did not.
The one they respected, the only one, was Queen Keisha herself.
Inside the palace, the Divine Keisha sat high upon the throne, one leg crossed over the other, a distinct glimmer of amusement in her eyes. There were already four angels present within the audience hall.
One of them caught sight of Angel Yan and gave a cold snort, turning her head away rather than looking at her.
It was Angel Leng.
She and Angel Yan had always been rivals, and that rivalry had endured for a millennium. In the end the other had become the Holy Guard's left wing, while she remained merely a senior guard.
Angel Yan could not help a small laugh at Angel Leng's display.
Though Angel Leng put on a face that seemed to positively despise her, in the future—when Yan became queen—Leng would carry out Yan's orders with utmost seriousness.
"Yan, how are the preparations?"
Divine Keisha tapped her right hand against the throne's armrest and looked at Angel Yan.
"Everything is ready, Queen Keisha."
Angel Yan dropped to one knee and spoke respectfully.
"In that case, go."
"This is your first war: the founders of the Heavenly Palace order—heaven's dregs left over from the old era."
"Enact your justice."
"Their era will end completely at your hands."
Divine Keisha spoke lightly.
"Yes."
Angel Yan's expression grew solemn; her voice was steady and firm.
Outwardly, Angel Leng, Angel Zhixin, and the others showed little reaction, yet each felt a flicker of doubt within.
Why did Queen Keisha call this Angel Yan's first war?
Surely Yan had led no few campaigns by now.
And as for "enacting Angel Yan's justice"—wasn't the justice the angels upheld supposed to be Queen Keisha's order of justice?
Angel Leng glanced at Angel Yan and knit her brows, ever so slightly.
She sensed that there might be some secret between Yan and the Queen—something the rest of them did not know.
Deep in the cosmos, on an unknown planet—
Hua Ye, who had been asleep, suddenly snapped his eyes open and sat bolt upright.
"What's wrong?"
Beside him, the angel Ruo Ning was startled awake by his movement. She opened her eyes, puzzled.
"I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling."
Hua Ye frowned. For days now, a sense of danger had been coiling in his chest, circling him unceasingly—as if calamity were imminent, as if death itself had drawn near.
But in all the universe, apart from Keisha, he did not believe anyone posed a threat to him.
Could Keisha be coming for him?
Impossible.
Thirty thousand years had passed. If she intended trouble, she would have sought him long ago; there was no reason to come only now.
"A bad feeling, really."
"We've lived out here for how many years? What danger could there be?"
Ruo Ning paid little mind to Hua Ye's sudden premonition. Ever since the downfall of the Heavenly Palace order, they had been driven to this backwater and had remained here for thirty millennia.
Because of Divine Keisha, they dared not go out. On these few remote planets they played at kings and queens, and the days—though meagre—were passable.
Because they did not dare venture out, they had no idea how far technology in the outside cosmos had advanced. In her eyes, the only one who could threaten them was still Divine Keisha.
And as someone who had once been Keisha's angelic left wing, Ruo Ning knew Keisha would never rashly break the promise she had made back then to wipe them out to the last.
Because Divine Keisha was a queen—a god—and a god does not break her word.
So she took no stock in Hua Ye's apprehensions.
This was hardly the first time, either. More than once Hua Ye had convinced himself that Divine Keisha was coming to kill him—and each time, nothing had come of it.
She shut her eyes again and went back to sleep.
Hua Ye brooded for a while longer and wound up thinking he must simply be groggy from sleep—frightened by his own shadow.
He could hardly help it. Thirty thousand years ago, that little vixen Keisha had left a shadow in his heart far too deep—had driven him clean off the throne.
A pity the one chance to get Keisha had been ruined by those people from the Shenhe Civilization. Otherwise, even dying would have been worth it.
Thinking of Keisha's figure and face, Hua Ye licked his lips.
But then he sighed. That was nothing but a fantasy now.
Though he had hidden here for tens of millennia, Keisha's fame was known to him.
Queen of the Gods, Divine Keisha.
Even his father had never borne such a title.
She had led the angelic civilization to become the mightiest civilization in the universe.
That kind of ability—one had to admit it.
Smacking his lips twice, Hua Ye lay back down, closed his eyes, and drifted off once more. Awake, there was nothing; asleep, he could have anything.
Meanwhile, beneath the resplendent starry vault, several young and breathtakingly beautiful angelic warriors carried blazing swords, beating their wings as they flew through space.
The battle had not yet begun, but at the insistent request of the chat group's members, Angel Yan had already opened a live stream.
干物妹小埋: "The starry universe is just so awe-inspiring."
Richest Man: "Angels truly are among the Creator's finest works."
普普通通的群主: "Is all your attention on the angels?"
Richest Man: "[shrugs].jpg"
Richest Man: "What else do you expect? I'm a simple guy. The glittering galaxy—after you've seen it a few times, it's about the same."
Richest Man: "It's not like I'm an astronomer out here to appreciate their beauty."
Richest Man: "And, well, appreciating beauty is only natural."
Richest Man: "Right, Lord Madara?"
宇智波舞王: "I have no interest in women."
Richest Man: "…"
Richest Man: "Forgot you're into Senju Hashirama. And my 'Old Man'? He's of the giant clan—odds are his taste doesn't match mine either."
Richest Man: "@金色闪光 You're the same as me, yeah?"
金色闪光: "My heart belongs to Kushina. I have no interest in anyone else."
Richest Man: "…Hypocrite!"
(End of this chapter)
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