The assassination mission went far more smoothly than Ye Liuyun had anticipated.

The team remained undetected, silently eliminating one alien warrior after another until none were left standing. Many of them even managed to collect the corpses and storage rings of their enemies.

"Fall back!"

At Ye Liuyun’s command, the group retraced their steps through the formation. The Qiong Qi, ever diligent, hurriedly reset the array to its original state.

Once outside, Ye Liuyun recalled everyone into his spatial realm to rest. He gathered the alien third eyes and, alongside his doppelgänger, began refining them. The corpses, meanwhile, were distributed among the Demon Vine, Mulai, and Blue Armor.

However, Ye Liuyun decided Blue Armor wouldn’t join the next mission. While competent in combat, his lack of stealth made him too conspicuous, likely to alert the enemy’s elite fighters.

After refining the harvested third eyes, Ye Liuyun and his doppelgänger ventured into the heart of the alien army with Mulai, capturing numerous foes to replenish the soul energy consumed by the Black Light.

Only then did they set their sights on another alien-controlled city.

This time, however, the aliens had heightened their vigilance.

The previous city’s warriors had gone silent, and when scouts were sent to investigate, they found them all slaughtered. Now, the aliens were on guard, deploying patrols of their own with strong spatial abilities.

The moment Ye Liuyun’s team breached the formation, a nearby alien warrior sensed their presence.

Fortunately, Ye Liuyun was the first to enter. Without hesitation, he unleashed a beam of Black Light, instantly obliterating the foe.

Using the Thousand Illusions Art, he then assumed the alien’s appearance, shed his invisibility cloak, and seamlessly took over the patrol duties. Now, he could roam the city openly, gathering intelligence.

Soon after, he and his doppelgänger eliminated another alien, with the latter taking its place in the patrol rotation.

Once they had thoroughly mapped the city’s layout and pinpointed the aliens’ positions, Ye Liuyun assigned tasks to his team. The Demon Vine was unleashed, joining the others in launching a coordinated assault.

Taking advantage of his patrol duties, Ye Liuyun stealthily approached the dwellings of two three-eyed aliens. With a swift strike of his dark energy through the walls, he eliminated them both before entering to dispose of the bodies.

However, their assassination mission was abruptly cut short when the remaining aliens burst out of their training chambers. Unbeknownst to Ye Liuyun, they had established a timed check-in system. When the designated moment arrived and many failed to respond, the aliens immediately realized something was amiss.

Acting swiftly, Ye Liuyun directed the Demon Vine and Mulai to strike first, targeting the remaining three-eyed aliens. Seizing the element of surprise, he unleashed the Demon-Sealing Stele, coordinating with the Demon Vine to launch a fierce assault. The other assassins seized the opportunity, delivering lethal blows wherever they could. Mulai’s radiant white beams shot out relentlessly, felling several aliens before swiftly repositioning to evade retaliation.

Meanwhile, Ye Liuyun and his doppelgänger blended in with the fleeing aliens, pushing outward with the chaotic tide. Initially, he considered eliminating them all, but then a thought struck him—these aliens were fleeing toward the city where Mu Xi resided. This was his chance to infiltrate their ranks and get closer to her.

With a quick decision, he had his doppelgänger vanish once more, swiftly stowing the Demon-Sealing Stele, Demon Vine, and Mulai into his spatial realm. The other assassins continued their pursuit, harrying the aliens as they fought their way out.

The remaining aliens pooled their world-forged energy, launching a combined assault on the barrier Qiong Qi had erected.

"Let them break through," Ye Liuyun urgently communicated to Qiong Qi. "I need to follow them into the other city."

Understanding the plan, Qiong Qi subtly weakened the barrier from the outside, allowing the aliens to shatter it. The moment the barrier collapsed, the surviving aliens bolted toward Mu Xi’s city.

To sell his cover, Ye Liuyun had his doppelgänger deliver a controlled strike to his chest, feigning injury before recalling the doppelgänger into his spatial realm. One of the aliens, believing it had saved him, hastily pulled him along in their retreat.

Ye Liuyun had been worried about infiltrating the alien formation, but with this unexpected assistance, he decided to play along and feigned unconsciousness.

Meanwhile, Mo Sha and the other assassins, now free from the threat of the three-eyed aliens, pressed their attack without hesitation. The three Xuanwu warriors, in particular, had no qualms—their tortoise-shell defenses could withstand any assault. They relentlessly pursued the fleeing aliens.

Just then, a streak of golden light shot forth from the city where Mu Xi resided.

"It’s Mu Xi! Fall back now! Hawks, intercept!" Ye Liuyun’s spiritual sense recognized the threat instantly, and he barked the order for retreat.

In the starry void, five hundred Hawk-class vessels descended in swift succession, unleashing a barrage of attacks from a distance.

Mu Xi responded with both palms striking out—one blast aimed at the fleeing aliens, the other at the Hawks in the sky.

Two thunderous explosions rocked the battlefield. Behind the escaping aliens, a ten-meter-deep crater was blasted into the ground. Fortunately, Ye Liuyun had ordered Mo Sha and the others to withdraw in time—had they been caught in that strike, even the Xuanwu warriors would have been left half-dead.

Overhead, more than twenty Hawks were obliterated in the blast. The remaining vessels scattered, but the next wave of Hawks continued firing energy cannons, keeping Mu Xi pinned down.

With a mere clench of his fist, Mu Xi collapsed the surrounding space, crushing another cluster of Hawks effortlessly.

Seizing the chaos, Ye Liuyun followed the aliens toward their stronghold. Dragged along by one of the creatures, he slipped smoothly into their formation.

He then pretended to regain consciousness, struggling to his feet with feigned effort. Seeing him able to move on his own, the alien released him without protest.

The aliens quickly dispersed, each retreating to rest. With Mu Xi still occupied, Ye Liuyun wasted no time and dashed toward the alien altar.

The towering altar, dozens of meters high, was piled high with human bones.

"Damn these vile creatures!"

Without hesitation, Ye Liuyun compressed the space around the altar, crushing it into rubble. In the same motion, he seized a massive crystalline orb pulsing with primal energy and stashed it away.

At this moment, some of the alien creatures had already been alerted and were rushing over to investigate.

Ye Liuyun immediately used his golden pupils to teleport the Golden Crow Sacred Flame into the collapsed altar, igniting a fire within. Then, pretending to be just another onlooker, he ran closer to "assess the situation" and even "helped" put out the flames.

Except, the more he "helped," the worse it got—he kept secretly using his golden pupils to stoke the fire amidst the piles of bones.

Eventually, the blaze grew uncontrollable, forcing Ye Liuyun and the surrounding aliens to abandon their efforts.

"Prepare for battle!"

Ye Liuyun swiftly alerted the two thousand armored soldiers, ordering them to ready themselves for combat. The moment Mu Xi returned, he would strike her down at close range, while the soldiers would be responsible for eliminating the remaining aliens.

There were still many three-eyed aliens lurking around, and casualties were inevitable. But with superior numbers on his side, the odds were still in his favor.

Meanwhile, Mu Xi, engaged in battle outside, had yet to encounter the assassin and was growing impatient with the relentless harpy eagles.

Though the eagles were no match for her, their sheer numbers forced her to expend precious energy fending off their attacks. After smashing several of them, she could already feel her reserves draining.

With a growl of frustration, she turned back toward her lair—only to see flames rising from the altar in the distance.

"ROAR!"

Mu Xi let out a furious bellow and surged forward with renewed speed.