The speed of the Spaceship was fast, so before long, it pierced the atmosphere of the Origin Planet.
"So this is the No. 881 Level 3 Origin Planet." Sebastian gazed at the lush green world below as the information he had previously studied resurfaced in his mind.
The specifications for a Level 3 Planet required a diameter between 10,000 and 100,000 kilometers, so this Origin Planet with a bit over 50,000 kilometers was considered medium-sized. Compared to Earth, it was nearly four times larger.
However, unlike an ordinary world, this was a living Planet. Rich deposits of Origin Crystals nourished the world, allowing countless forms of life to flourish, most of them dense forests and other vegetation.
Once the Spaceship descended into the atmosphere, Sebastian immediately noticed the difference from what he had seen in orbit. The entire Planet radiated vitality. A rich, vibrant aura filled the air.
"Planet numbers are assigned according to the amount of Origin Crystals each Planet contains," Sergey explained. "Generally speaking, the larger the Origin Crystal reserves, the larger the Origin Planet itself. Of course, there are exceptions. Some newly formed Origin Crystals haven't accumulated enough energy to bring life to a world."
The spacecraft gradually slowed. Beneath it, a thin translucent barrier appeared like a massive protective dome, separating the upper atmosphere from the world below. It was the Origin Barrier.
This was as far as any spacecraft could travel. As Planetary Lords, they could proceed no farther; only the races they created were permitted to enter the Origin Planet itself. The Planetary Lords were strictly prohibited from crossing the barrier.
"According to the plan..." Sebastian immediately began issuing orders.
Upon arrival, the first priority was reconnaissance. Only after confirming that no enemy was nearby would everyone establish their coordinates and open their Planet Channels, allowing their respective races to enter. Following standard procedure, every Planetary Lord would deploy 10,000 troops, so 3,000 Planetary Lords meant an army of 30 million units.
Naturally, Sebastian was the lone exception. Quality always outweighed quantity. This principle became increasingly important among Supernatural races, where individual combat power varied tremendously. Against powerful enemies, overwhelming numbers alone meant very little.
Once the initial reconnaissance confirmed there were no Demons nearby, everyone proceeded to the next phase. Opening their Planet Channels was the most critical step.
"After opening your Planet Channels, don't send your troops in immediately." Sebastian reminded everyone once more. "Send reconnaissance units through first. Carefully inspect the area around each portal. Confirm there are no enemies lying in ambush before deploying your main force."
His caution was well justified. According to countless war records spanning millions of years, Demons were an exceptionally dangerous race. They excelled at hiding in places no one expected before launching devastating surprise attacks. The moment troops emerged from a Planet Channel was often when they were most vulnerable.
"Once you've confirmed the area is secure..." Sebastian continued, "...move your forces immediately toward the rendezvous point."
Since only the Planet's coordinates could be fixed, every Planet Channel would appear at a random location on the Planet. No one knew exactly where they would arrive, but their destination was the largest Origin Crystal Mine. This Origin Planet contained three Origin Crystal mines in total, one large deposit and two smaller ones.
"Everyone, prepare yourselves. The operation officially begins in one hour and ten minutes."
"An hour and ten minutes?" Several veteran Level 3 Planetary Lords frowned slightly as they couldn't understand Sebastian's decision. Wouldn't acting sooner be better?
"The Captain's civilization has developed aerial reconnaissance units," one rookie Planetary Lord explained.
"I see..." The veteran Planetary Lords immediately understood. Having reliable scouts greatly reduced the risk of walking into an ambush.
Naturally, Sebastian opened his Planet Channel first.
On Terra, outside the Royal Tomb Mountains, the newly modernized Astra Militarum stood fully assembled. Sebastian had already informed the Militarum's high command about the impending battle against the Demons.
Leading the expedition were the aging veterans Alpin and Chesty Puller. Although Puller still loved swearing, his command ability remained beyond question.
The new Astra Militarum consisted of conventional Guardsmen supported by Battle Droids. There were 10,000 Guardsmen and over 100,000 Battle Droids.
The present Astra Militarum had almost completely entered the age of artificial intelligence as the number of human Guardsmen decreased year after year, while robotic forces expanded continuously.
Besides the conventional troops and Battle Droids, the Legion of Supernatural Creatures was also deployed. This was truly an army of extraordinary beings. It consisted of Godzillas, Giant Kongs, Pikachu, Space Kangaroos, and Cybertronians.
Following the Ancient Star Battlefield campaign, both the Godzilla and Giant Kong races had expanded significantly.
The Godzilla population had continued reproducing, eventually forming an entire family. Several offspring had already been born, and two of them had inherited most of the original Godzilla's incredible abilities and characteristics.
The Giant Kong race had not remained idle either. After being overshadowed by Godzilla during the Ancient Star Battlefield campaign, the entire race underwent intense improvement.
They trained even harder to strengthen their species, especially after consuming the Fruits of Epiphany. Their individual combat abilities had increased dramatically thanks to the fruits' remarkable effects.
Aside from the Humans, fixed annual quotas had also been established for these extraordinary races. As for Pikachu, Cybertronians, and the Space Kangaroos, there were now 10,000 of them serving throughout the army.
Following them were the indispensable scientific and logistics divisions, while commanding the entire expedition personally was Catherine. Now fifty years old, Catherine remained remarkably youthful despite the faint wrinkles beginning to appear on her forehead. Time had finally begun leaving subtle traces upon her beautiful face.
"In her later years, Elizabeth led the expedition into the battle for glory... and emerged victorious." Catherine silently reflected. "Now... I have the same opportunity."
After the Ancient Star Battlefield concluded, she had believed that such an opportunity would never come again during her lifetime. Yet unexpectedly, before the year had even ended, destiny had presented another chance.
As the Planet Channel slowly opened, Catherine took a deep breath before raising her voice. "Move out!"
A reconnaissance force composed of Robots and regular Guardsmen entered first, while flying above them were countless Micro-Drones. These machines resembled gray sparrows, and they were the latest creation of the Intelligent Research Institute. Although tiny, each one was packed with sophisticated equipment.
Their official designation was Sparrow Reconnaissance Drone, and every Sparrow carried state-of-the-art detection instruments, possessed exceptional speed, and featured limited stealth capabilities, making them difficult for enemies to detect. Unlike military drones, however, they carried no self-destruct mechanism, and their sole purpose was reconnaissance.
The moment the Planet Channel stabilized, thousands of Sparrow drones shot into the sky to survey the surrounding region. Meanwhile, robotic mice spread across the ground, scouting the terrain below.
Since the Demons possessed no underground races, subterranean surveillance received less attention. Even so, the robotic mice retained limited underground detection capabilities.
For this campaign against the Demons, Sebastian had spared no expense. He directly consumed 100 Origin Crystals to accelerate Greater Terra's development by several decades while Catherine and the rest of the high command had spent those decades preparing for this decisive battle.
The reconnaissance drones alone numbered in the hundreds of thousands. For this expedition, they deployed 100,000 Sparrows, which is almost enough to cover nearly the entire Planet.
After passing through the Planet Channel, 3,000 drones immediately scattered in every direction. Each Sparrow could reach speeds of 5,000 kilometers per hour. At that velocity, surveying the entire Planet would require only a few hours.
Each Supernatural task force remained relatively close to its assigned landing zone. Although their exact locations couldn't be predicted, their approximate positions could.
Soon, one of the Sparrows detected the location of one of the Origin Crystal mines.
"Move out immediately." Catherine gave the order, and the Astra Militarum sprang into action without delay.
Instead of using Scarab Walkers, they boarded massive spaceships of the Phoenix-class support vessel. These enormous flying vessels were larger than transport aircraft but smaller than full-scale warships, and each ship could carry 10,000 troops.
Since the largest Origin Crystal mine lay relatively close to the Planet Channel, they arrived quickly. The moment they landed, there was no pause for rest as Catherine immediately issued her next command. "Deploy the defensive base at once!"
Droids immediately got to work.
Watching everything unfold, Sebastian finally let out a sigh of relief. He turned toward the surrounding Planetary Lords and ordered, "You may now open your Planet Passages and deploy the units you have created."