Ye Liuyun knew that to lure more powerful alien warriors into battle, he couldn’t repeat his previous tactic of having the Purple Kylin Snake wipe them all out at once.

He needed to reveal more of his own strength, gradually drawing Sanda into committing more elite fighters.

Of course, this meant greater risks for him. The aliens’ next assault would come with far more thorough preparations.

Three days later, with a solid plan in place, Ye Liuyun emerged from his clone’s spatial realm and once again led his Falcon battleships to confront the alien fleet.

Following his orders, Liu Kui had all the Swift Sparrows retreat to a safe distance, shadowing the alien fleet rather than returning to base.

Tension rippled through the alien ranks—they knew another battle was imminent. Yet uncertainty gnawed at them. What strategy would Ye Liuyun deploy this time?

Ye Liuyun unleashed only three colossal dreadnoughts. Two plowed straight into the alien vessels, forcing them apart, while the third positioned itself between them, cutting off any chance of regrouping.

Sanda’s brow furrowed at the sight. The dreadnoughts triggered memories of the Gold-Devouring Beasts’ ambush. Worse, with its fleet split, it couldn’t guess which ship might conceal the deadly creatures.

But retreat wasn’t an option—this time, it had to strike back.

Immediately, Sanda ordered each alien ship to deploy ten thousand Swift Sparrows. Among those from its own flagship lurked warriors at the second tier of the Celestial Realm—with a thousand even reaching the third tier.

Even if they encountered the Gold-Devouring Beasts, this force could retaliate instantly.

The two alien ships halted, locking in a standoff with Ye Liuyun’s dreadnoughts.

Once airborne, the Swift Sparrows deliberately intermingled, attempting to mask which vessel had dispatched the elite fighters.

A futile effort. Sanda had no way of knowing the power of Ye Liuyun’s golden pupils—he’d already assessed every warrior’s strength the moment they emerged.

Yet he played along, sending his Falcons to engage the swarm while quietly preparing five thousand armored soldiers for combat.

Ye Liuyun had made up his mind—this time, he would deploy the armored soldiers. Otherwise, relying solely on empty-handed tactics would never lure out the elite warriors of the alien race.

Meanwhile, his doppelganger and Mulai had stealthily approached another alien warship, poised to strike.

The battle in the skies was sheer chaos. The nimble Falcon fighters made quick work of the enemy Swallows, obliterating them with ease. Tens of thousands of small warships clashed in a frenzied dogfight, turning the battlefield into a swirling maelstrom of destruction.

Amid the pandemonium, shielded by the colossal bulk of the flagship, the doppelganger seized the perfect moment to strike. Five blinding white beams shot forth, blasting a gaping hole in the defensive barrier of the second alien warship.

Ye Liuyun had deployed these three massive flagships precisely to divert the enemy’s attention and obscure their line of sight. Only three of the alien Tri-Eyes possessed the ability to discern the true power behind his white beams.

In the midst of such turmoil, with the towering warships blocking the view, the aliens failed to notice the doppelganger’s attack—saving him from having to expend another use of his time halo.

The moment the warship’s barrier shattered, Ye Liuyun unleashed another white beam, piercing straight through the hull and leaving a gaping wound.

Mulai wasted no time. He slipped inside the crippled vessel, sprinting toward the energy control room. Meanwhile, the doppelganger hurled two half-beast puppet corpses into the fray before swiftly retreating back to Ye Liuyun’s side.

Liu Kui’s Swallow Fleet sprang into action, launching a relentless assault on the damaged warship.

Panicked, the alien commander aboard the vessel immediately reported the crisis to Sanda.

Inside the warship, the two half-beast puppets ran rampant, tearing through the corridors with brutal efficiency. Countless alien soldiers were slaughtered before they could even scatter, crushed under the puppets’ merciless onslaught.

Sanda, assuming Mulai was responsible, immediately summoned the Soul Devourer. But tracking Mulai across ships proved nearly impossible—especially with Ye Liuyun’s flagship obstructing the way.

To make matters worse, Mulai was an alien himself. Amid the pandemonium of fleeing soldiers and collapsing systems, locating him was like finding a needle in a haystack.

Before the Soul Devourer could pinpoint Mulai’s position, he had already severed the warship’s energy supply with a flash of white light. Stripped of all defenses, the vessel was left completely exposed.

Liu Kui’s Swallow Fleet unleashed a devastating barrage, riddling the warship with gaping holes. And as if that weren’t enough, Ye Liuyun’s flagship rammed into it with crushing force, splitting its hull wide open.

At this moment, Ye Liuyun also deployed five thousand armored soldiers. The falcons had already shot down many of the alien Swallows, while the elite alien warriors turned their attacks toward the falcons.

Though the falcons could withstand a few strikes from these powerful foes, they couldn’t endure indefinitely. As their defenses weakened, they began retreating.

Sanda, meanwhile, ordered all the aliens from the other warship to join the battle. Noticing that Ye Liuyun hadn’t summoned the Purple Kylin Snake this time, he grew even more confident in his judgment.

"Ye Liuyun’s Purple Kylin Snake is still recovering—it’s useless now," he declared, rallying the other aliens.

Alien soldiers from the second warship poured out through the gaping holes blasted in its hull, only to be met with attacks from the Swallows. However, the Swallows posed little threat; the aliens merely deployed small fighter ships to block them temporarily.

Ye Liuyun, meanwhile, unleashed all his falcons and, mounted on his nine-headed demon dragon, summoned the Vermilion Bird. To Sanda’s surprise, instead of overseeing the battle from afar, Ye Liuyun charged straight into the fray.

Sanda hesitated, watching Ye Liuyun closely—until his view was abruptly cut off by the massive central warship.

The five thousand armored soldiers clashed with the elite alien warriors. Though the aliens numbered a thousand, they were vastly outmatched, and many fell under the coordinated assault of the armored troops. As for the weaker second-tier aliens, their sheer numbers couldn’t compensate for their inferior strength.

After a moment’s thought, Sanda decided he no longer needed to conceal his position. He dispatched three thousand third-tier warriors and twenty thousand first- and second-tier soldiers into battle.

At the same time, he sent a cloaked, three-eyed alien and two elite assassins—all draped in invisibility cloaks—to ambush Ye Liuyun.

Just then, Mulai returned from completing his mission, rejoining Ye Liuyun. Meanwhile, the two half-beast corpse demon puppets stormed into the alien warship, reducing the docked Swallows and other small fighters to scrap before turning their fury on the fleeing aliens.

The newly deployed alien elites were immediately intercepted by ten thousand armored soldiers, who encircled and relentlessly slaughtered them.

Only the three cloaked assassins slipped through unnoticed, creeping ever closer to Ye Liuyun.