But in the end, it all comes down to a matter of decision-making.

"Even in the most difficult times, we never gave up hope of a counterattack." The Goddess of Hope said thus, "Whether from my logical calculations or from all the senior commanders, it is clear to us: only by preserving the hope of counterattack does Human Civilization retain even a sliver of survival."

Yes, both the Goddess of Hope and all the senior commanders of Human Civilization are perfectly clear on this.

No matter how desperate the situation may seem, they cannot truly despair.

Unthinking abandonment and retreat can only lead to a slow death.

Perhaps the warriors at the front have already given up.

But those who lead the entire civilization—no matter what—cannot give up.

The Goddess of Hope is the same.

Her core logic is that everything exists for the survival of Human Civilization.

This is also the greatest purpose for which she was created—the highest directive.

If logic dictates there is truly no chance of survival at all, then even the Goddess of Hope might fall into self-collapse, because her core directive would become unfulfillable.

Of course, that step is almost impossible until the very end, since there is still the ultimate fireseed escape plan.

But even so, this priority alone is enough to make the Goddess of Hope steadfastly maintain the fire of vengeance, even if it is only a fireseed.

Before, Shen Yu was just an ordinary person, entirely removed from such a level of decision-making; now, he finally felt it firsthand.

The Goddess of Hope aside, those among humanity's high command who support this decision are truly the ones possessed of immense resolve.

"No wonder this is the decision-making body chosen in the era of war," interstellar world Shen Yu suddenly realized.

The earliest leadership of Human Civilization had already shattered twenty-three years ago under the first wave of the Void Spirit Race's offensive. The current leadership was selected by the Goddess of Hope, who carried out the most rigorous screening, choosing, bit by bit, from the vast population of Human Civilization.

Disposition, resolve, capability...

In every respect, it is a classic case of new birth out of destruction.

Reflecting on his own goals, and on how he might one day lead such people, interstellar world Shen Yu felt considerable pressure in his heart.

But rather than discouraging him, it made him even more eager.

Eager for the day he could truly work alongside these people.

But now.

It was time to go to the battlefield.

Just thinking of recapturing Wutun—even such a simple notion—was enough to make interstellar world Shen Yu's heart race with excitement.

Because the wormhole passage nearest to Wutun had not yet been lost, reaching Wutun did not require much time.

On the journey to the wormhole entrance, interstellar world Shen Yu consumed Gray Mist to arrive directly.

It was at this spot that he saw the recruits about to be sent to the Wutun Wormhole defense base, so Shen Yu simply boarded the transport ship to travel with them.

He had taken such recruit transports before, but this time, he could clearly feel the difference.

The warriors had undergone initial modifications—on the surface, just a group of recruits who until recently were ordinary people—yet there was little fear or numbness on their faces; instead, each one showed a touch of excitement.

As if they were not heading to a beleaguered battlefield, but marching to win a victory.

Of course, propaganda played a role in this, but clearly, now that Human Civilization finally had a way to kill Void Spirits, the warriors' morale remained consistently high.

Even the recruits were no exception.

The whole of civilization had been repressed for too long.

And what about the veterans?

What, now, was the state of the veterans?

Intersellar world Shen Yu was filled with anticipation.

From all the military intelligence about Wutun he had just learned, that place could rightly be called a 'meat grinder of the battlefield.'

Even though the Void Spirit Race had basically abandoned that scrap of territory with little left to devour, its cost/benefit ratio too low, they had by no means left it entirely unattended.

At least over a million Void Spirits continued to roam ceaselessly within the wormhole defense encampment.

Sometimes, their number even exceeded four million.

That place had become a playground for the Void Spirits—anytime, anyone, however they wished to come and go, to kill as they desired.

It had even become a testing ground for the Void Spirits' new weapons.

Whether meme weapons or biological arms, they were often debuted there, resulting in casualties.

In just ten years, the original forces left behind—the first corps stationed there, 1.5 billion people—now counted less than ten million survivors.

The survival rate has dropped below one percent!

Subsequent reinforcements have fared little better.

The losses sustained during ten years of garrison, though not as staggering as those from the very first defensive battles—

Still, thirty million casualties had been suffered, all for the sake of defending one hope.

A hope for counterattack, a hope for revenge!

And now, with hope finally arriving, how would they react?

Wild joy, burning fighting spirit?

With a measure of anticipation, interstellar world Shen Yu and the recruits slowly emerged from the vast wormhole passage.

The first thing they saw was warships—a sea of warships.

Crowded together, they completely encircled the wormhole.

And beyond that: ruggedness.

A style of the utmost ruggedness.

No hint of coordinated pattern or beauty existed; among the warships wrapped around the wormhole, quite a few were in fact refitted scrap, some even half-destroyed, outfitted with a profusion of crude weaponry. To call them ships would be an understatement—they were closer to war fortresses.

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