Cannon fodder in the Interstellar

Lin Changfeng was a man of decisive action. On the twelfth day after Ruo Manni returned from outer space, he issued her a transfer order, appointing her as the commander of the Topaz Star Combat Corps.

Over the past few days, Ruo Manni had deliberated on personnel decisions. She proposed that Lin Changfeng appoint Yu Paul as the new commander of the First Base Regiment, with Du Zhijun promoted to deputy commander.

These two positions required formal appointments from the Topaz General Command, so Ruo Manni left the matter in their hands and let Yu Paul handle the rest.

Yu Paul, though keen to follow Ruo Manni, had no choice but to comply with the military orders. As a strong candidate for the commander role, his appointment was logical, so he stayed behind to fulfill his duty.

Aside from her six core followers, Ruo Manni also took Gong Jiafeng, Cao Juexian, Zhao Lixue, and Chen Genghui from the First Base Regiment.

The soldiers in the First Base Regiment were reluctant to see Ruo Manni leave. When she had first arrived as a “parachuted” leader, they harbored various doubts and opinions. Now, however, they shared one sentiment—they wanted her to stay.

But just as her arrival had been sudden, so too was her departure. Their attempts to retain her were futile.

The Topaz Star Combat Corps base was located not far from the Topaz military headquarters, just over 400 kilometers from Baili City.

When Ruo Manni arrived at the base, she was surprised to see that in just over ten days, a camp capable of accommodating thousands of personnel had been fully constructed.

Thanks to Deputy Commander Tong, who had been transferred to oversee logistics and infrastructure, the base was well-prepared. Aware of Ruo Manni’s strong connections with higher-ups, he had secured significant training resources from the Seventh Army, even ensuring that the training grounds were fully equipped.

The Topaz Star Combat Corps consisted of 1,200 personnel, including over 410 six-level warriors and more than 700 mid-to-late five-level warriors, all carefully selected from various base regiments across Topaz Star.

Among the six-level warriors were many who had previously been base commanders. Now, under the command of a newly-adult young woman, Tong was concerned that some might resist her authority, potentially leading to internal conflicts.

Ruo Manni wasn’t concerned at all. Standing on stage, she glanced at the officers and soldiers below—most of whom were older than her—and didn’t bother with formalities.

“We don’t have much time, so I hope everyone can cooperate with me as much as possible. During our recent participation in the Star Combat Corps, I noticed a glaring weakness among Topaz Star’s mecha fighters: our capabilities in space combat are severely lacking. Therefore, Commander Lin has specially established this Star Combat Corps to focus on improving your skills in space warfare,” Ruo Manni stated succinctly.

To ensure the success of this new corps, Ruo Manni had sought assistance from both the Hua De family and the First Prince, who each sent two expert instructors specializing in space combat.

Seeing how capable their new commander was at securing high-level support, none of the soldiers or officers in the Topaz Star Star Combat Corps dared to voice opposition or challenge her.

With the instructors’ guidance, Ruo Manni began leading the corps in intensive training almost daily. The Star Combat Corps base often looked deserted, as most of the soldiers spent their time floating in space.

With no pressing issues arising and training routines becoming repetitive, Ruo Manni and Hebrew Adam resumed their habit of meeting in the battle network every few days. Before they knew it, six months had passed.

“My brother’s plan is likely to come to fruition soon,” Hebrew Adam suddenly remarked.

“Are you referring to the establishment of the Gumera Starfield Alliance Army?” Ruo Manni immediately caught on and sat up straight, eager for him to elaborate.

Through Hebrew Adam, Ruo Manni had learned that the First Prince had been working tirelessly to form an Alliance Army for the Gumera Starfield. She had been following this development closely.

However, the proposal had been stalled in negotiations for over two years, with no tangible progress. Ruo Manni had always been slightly worried that the alliance might never materialize. After all, it was a concept absent from the original novel.

Now, with only about a year left until the Yunkai invasion, any further delays could spell disaster.

“This is largely thanks to the influence of the great beasts,” Hebrai Adam said with a sardonic smile. “Those people have always assumed that our Gus Empire will take the brunt of any attacks—if anyone’s going to die, it’ll be us first. That’s why they’ve been stalling on the formation of the Gumera Starfield Alliance Army. Not only that, but they’re trying to profit from it, demanding that our Gus Empire supply them with free medication.”

Ruo Manni was well aware of the situation. It was actually the work of the Vera Federation, which had been secretly instigating others to disrupt things in order to prevent the First Prince from becoming the commander of the Gumera Starfield Alliance Army.

However, six months ago, the Gus Empire was attacked by great beasts. The Seventh and Third Armies of the empire joined forces to intercept the threat, successfully annihilating all the ultra-beasts heading toward Gus territory.

Unexpectedly, hundreds of great beasts bypassed the vast starfields of the Gus Empire. After flying for over two months, they headed straight for two border planets of the Vera Federation.

Unlike the Gus Empire, which was highly vigilant, the Vera Federation’s slower response led to catastrophic consequences. The first border planet hit by the attack became an ice ball, with all life forms shattered into fragments.

The second planet was slightly luckier. It was only half frozen before reinforcements arrived. Even so, it took tremendous effort and significant casualties among their star mecha fighters before the Vera Federation finally eliminated the hundreds of ultra-beasts.

This incident caused a great uproar, with the Vera Federation publicly blaming the Gus Empire for some time.

But these were cosmic creatures, not pets bred by the Gus Empire. Gus officials ignored the accusations, while smaller nations remained silent. Gradually, the Vera Federation’s complaints died down.

This event served as a harsh wake-up call for the nations of the Gumera Starfield. While the Yunkai invasion was expected to come from the direction of the Gus Empire, there was no guarantee. With its formidable military, the Gus Empire could potentially deter Yunkai forces, causing them to take a detour, much like the great beasts did, and strike other nations directly.

And unlike the Gus Empire, these other nations lacked a powerful star mecha force. If they were besieged without reinforcements, it would mean certain annihilation.

So, when the First Prince invoked this incident last month to call for unity in forming the Gumera Starfield Alliance Army, the Vera Federation’s underhanded tactics significantly decreased.

The smaller nations, having remained silent before, suddenly became enthusiastic in voting their support. It was obvious they had ulterior motives.

“What are their conditions now?” Ruo Manni asked curiously.

“My brother agreed to provide medication on a paid basis to fund the formation of the Gumera Starfield Alliance Army,” Hebrew Adam replied.

“Did they agree to let Cousin Xiahai become the Supreme Commander?” Ruo Manni pressed, focusing on the most crucial issue.

“They agreed,” Hebrew Adam said with disdain, “but the Deputy Commander will be a Level 8 early-stage warrior from the Vera Federation.”

The Vera Federation always refused to be overshadowed, yet they failed to recognize the reality: the gap between their capabilities and those of the Gus Empire was widening.

This news was an enormous relief for Ruo Manni. Initially, she had thought that after years of effort, with Topaz Star producing a significant number of Level 6 mecha warriors, they might stand a chance against the Yunkai forces.

However, the great beast attack was a harsh wake-up call. It made her realize that the time they had was simply too short, their efforts were not enough, and the Topaz Star’s Starspace Corps was still far too weak.