Chapter 343: Rescue
Just as Jiang Qin had thought, when the defense line was breached, the news reached the Federation.
This was no time for political scheming. The first priority was to reassure the citizens and dispatch aid for support.
At this moment, even High-level Beastmen who had retired from active duty were called back. The former Grand Marshal, long since retired and completely unable to return to the battlefield, was now managing the home front.
"Currently, the defense lines of the 1st, 3rd, and 5th regiments have been destroyed by Alien Beasts. The Empire’s three defensive positions have also been broken through. It’s only a matter of time before the remaining ones fall.
"What do you all think we should do now to hold the frontline and stop that Alien Beast army?"
All the high-ranking officials present remained silent.
They had long anticipated this day’s arrival; it had just come sooner than expected.
Back then, their ancestors from Ancient Earth could escape to other planets in the universe. But what about them?
Where were they supposed to go?
The Federation Chief sighed. "The Empire is proposing to withdraw all personnel from the Frontline Stars and then carry out planetary destruction."
"Chief! That course of action will only lead the universe to the same fate as Ancient Earth!"
Those weapons capable of destroying a planet were all heavily polluting chemical products.
Both the Federation and the Empire possessed such things, but they were treated as a last resort. No one would actually use them unless absolutely necessary.
Destroying a remote planet would be one thing, but destroying one so close to inhabited stars would mean, at the very least, that hundreds of nearby planets would have to be abandoned.
Adding the other locations into the mix, the final number of residential planets needing to be abandoned would likely be as high as five hundred.
Figuring out where to relocate all those people would be another massive undertaking.
And what about the lingering pollution? Could it trigger infectious diseases or other hazards?
Therefore, everyone was against it.
Interstellar People have long lifespans. Most of them were in the prime of their lives, and their children were still young. If there were long-term hazards, it was obvious that both they and their children would live to experience them.
Why did the people of the past dare to pollute Earth so recklessly? It was because their lifespans were short—the dead don’t care about the problems of the living.
"Fine. Since you all disagree, then come up with a concrete plan that I can take to the negotiating table with the Empire."
The crowd fell silent again.
Every one of them had their brows tightly furrowed, looking extremely frustrated.
But regardless of the final decision, the people had to be evacuated first.
"Redirect all flights. Suspend all spaceship operations to tourist planets and send them all to support the residential stars on the front line.
"Settle the evacuees in the remote regions of the nearby B-level planets for now.
"As for housing, send over some temporary living pods and have the citizens assemble them themselves. For the nutrient liquid, have someone... suggest that the major corporations producing it make a donation."
’After all, the Federation’s treasury is truly broke.’
Every year, they had to spend a fortune purchasing massive amounts of supplies from the Empire or the Myriad Races.
***
After boarding the spaceship, Jiang Qin’s heart was still pounding with anxiety.
Because Yun Xie, who had gone to help on the front line, hadn’t come back yet!
She was worried he wouldn’t make it in time. She could only imagine how difficult the High-level Alien Beasts there must be to deal with right now.
If he got stuck here, for whatever reason, he would surely end up joining the fight.
Even Mo Chen, a seasoned warrior who had fought Alien Beasts for years, had been injured. So what about him?
She wanted to go look for him... but there were other people with her.
After boarding, many of her fans had immediately rushed into her arms, seeking comfort in their fear.
Then there was Lan Yuyan. He wasn’t in any condition to fight, and of course, neither was she. Her spiritual power hadn’t recovered yet.
And Lan Yan’s combat power on land was cut in half.
’Sigh...’
***
After another half hour, the spaceship had no choice but to take off.
If they waited any longer, the flying Beastmen wouldn’t be able to hold open the escape route for them.
The number of flying Alien Beasts was just as immense; they couldn’t possibly eliminate them all on their own.
"We can’t wait any longer. Take off. The rest will have to wait for rescue from other ships."
Those who had been about to object calmed down.
But they couldn’t help but worry as they looked at the females on the ground who hadn’t made it aboard in time.
Even Jiang Qin couldn’t bring herself to say something as irresponsible as "wait a little longer," nor could she selfishly stay behind. She could only send Yun Xie a message telling him she had left safely.
She added a plea for him to return safely, no matter what.
As the spaceship flew further away, the place that resembled a hell on earth completely vanished from sight.
On their way out, the flying Beastmen cleared a path for the spaceship, only turning back to the battlefield after the ship had left the planet’s atmosphere.
And as for those returning Beastmen, no one knew if they would ultimately survive.
On the journey, no one spoke a word.
The females either had red, swollen eyes, were lost in silence, or seemed completely listless.
Lan Yuyan’s lips moved, but he didn’t know what to say to comfort Jiang Qin. He could only pull her into his arms and gently wipe the grime from her face.
Meanwhile, Lan Yan also kept his head down, lost in thought.
...
Although the Federation didn’t want the news of the frontline’s collapse to spread, it was impossible to hide.
And so, by now, the news that the frontline had fallen was all over the web.
A considerable number of people grew agitated.
[Ahhhh, why won’t the Empire accept immigrants? I really don’t want to stay in this trash Federation anymore.]
[See, the Empire is right to look down on us. The Federation Soldiers are all useless. They can’t even hold such an important defense line.]
[Are there any females willing to take their partners and settle in the Empire? I’m an A-level male, looking for a sponsor!]
[All you Empire fanboys, don’t be in such a hurry to suck up. The Empire’s defense lines were breached too, you know.]
[Hahahaha, that backfired fast. I was just about to let the curses fly.]
[@Federation Government, can’t you revoke the citizenship of these fence-sitters? If you hate it here so much, then get the hell out!!]
[People like this are such a waste of resources. Right now, countless Beastmen are dying on the front line, and you ungrateful jerks are just sitting here cursing them out.
Since you think they’re useless, why don’t you, the not-so-useless one, go try your luck on the front line!]
[Exactly! Who knows how many more High-level Beastmen will die this time? Can’t you people have a conscience?]
[I heard some people have been rescued, but a large number are still stranded on the planet.]
[No wonder all spaceship flights were suspended today...]
...
Shi Lichuan, Long Hao, Cang Hong, and Yuan Ling had no interest in reading the rest of the comments.
The moment they learned the front line had fallen, they couldn’t sit still any longer.
The four of them immediately boarded Yuan Ling’s self-made, high-speed private spaceship and rushed toward the Frontline Star.
Along the way, Long Hao said irritably, "I knew it. I never should have left her side for a second."
"To hell with recuperating! Any more of this ’recovery,’ and I’m going to explode."