Chapter 1189
The Lower Realms Alliance often found it difficult to justify assaulting a planet. Too much collateral damage was possible. It was still necessary often enough, when the other option was to allow themselves to continue being attacked.
It was a bit easier when the entire existence of the Scarlet Alliance was at stake… and when they chose their targets carefully to minimize civilians. Not just civilian casualties, but the mere existence of civilians among their targets. For example, the Imbued Fragments didn’t even really have anything that resembled planets any longer- just husks of planets- and nominally no civilian population.
Obviously when people had no choice but to join up with a sect it wasn’t quite the same as voluntary attachment, but they were taking what they could get. It was that or accept the loss of friends and family in the upper realms, as well as any hope of anyone from the lower realms safely ascending ever again.
Their ships flowed along the tides, concentrating on a small number of systems. They didn’t intend to make the same mistake that the upper realms did. They weren’t concerned about conquering the area or causing the most widespread damage. The intent was simply to force a response.
The fleets moved through the artificial tide. They hit hard and fast when they arrived, but made certain that there was time for their enemies to send out messages- not that there was much hope of preventing an entire system from calling for help.
Ascension-class battleships along with many of the more mobile Assimilation cultivators were the core of their forces, but they had a great many weaker individuals. From the Unified Sector they had ships with large populations of hive mind cultivators that at the top end carried greater power as a group than any Assimilation cultivator. Whether they quite matched an Enrichment cultivator was another question, though it was assumed that in the upper realms they would have a difficult battle against Augmentation cultivators- if they fought with single ships. But they had many ships ranging in power, as well as Byron- the first Confluence cultivator.
Lower realms forces shattered the stone ships of the Broad Eyed Harvesters, tearing apart and melting those made of metal. There had been some time for them to prepare once the tides had appeared- fortunately, it didn’t look like anyone in the upper realms had guessed the true targets. Or perhaps they simply had no allies.
One system of dozens fell in a matter of a few days. Their forces then picked out their next target, making certain that their route would not take them too far from the Tides. Otherwise, their energy would drain far too quickly. That would be a great detriment to all of them.
Except the void ants, of course. They could eat ascension energy as easily as natural energy, and perhaps it was even more nutritious. And of course, there were certain exceptions like the pure tech weapons that they brought along. Then there was Nthanda.