The planar barrier, like a layer of pale blue gossamer, separated the two worlds inside and outside the plane.
It did not hinder the penetration of light, but it filtered the various unknown fluctuations that drifted in from the outside, gently "dimensionalizing" forms of existence beyond the comprehension of this plane into images that the naked eye could accept.
Thus, when the creatures inside the plane looked up, they did not see two clear individuals but two enormous figures distorted and magnified by the barrier's refraction.
Those two figures floated outside the barrier, their outlines blurred by refraction.
Yet it was precisely this blur that pushed fear to a deeper level.
They could not make out facial features or expressions; they could only see two massive shadows vast enough to nearly cover half the sky.
Like two giants bending down, pressing their faces close to a transparent glass jar, they examined everything tiny inside with an incomprehensible gaze. That gaze pierced through the barrier, pressing heavily on the shoulders of every living being that looked up.
It was not a pressure of might, merely the unadorned presence of a higher life form.
The barrier could filter the fluctuations of laws, but it could not completely block this essential crushing force, just like a thin curtain cannot stop the heat of the sun.
In the hilly lowlands, the plant people who were collecting life energy on the ridges were the first to feel this oppression.
There was no record of such a situation in their memories or history, but the instinct engraved deep in every living being's genes screamed wildly at this moment.
Above their heads, something was watching them!!!
Hundreds of plant people stopped their movements at the same time.
The small flowers on their heads closed instantly, petals tight into balls.
This was their race's stress response—when facing irresistible danger, they would instinctively shut down all sensory organs.
Their slender vine bodies flopped onto the soil, and their tails pulled out of the ground, coiling beside them as if curling up to wait for the storm to roll over them.
On the rock at the top of the ridge, the two octopus-face guards and the companion who had just arrived to report also froze at the same time.
One guard had taken off his helmet, his mouth open, the tentacles hanging from the side of his mouth still in the lazy posture from just now, but now they became rigid one by one, as if frozen by cold, hanging motionless in the air.
The one wearing the helmet still maintained his arms-crossed stance, but his fingers unconsciously tightened, the knuckles digging into the edge of his armor, actually pressing several fine dents into the alloy surface.
As for the octopus-face who had come to report, under his crooked helmet, the tentacles that had burst out earlier were now exploding completely, each trembling at a different frequency, as if something invisible had seized his nerves.
Just then, the communicators of the three all blared a piercing emergency alert at the same time.
The sound was sharp and short, like someone smashing a piece of glass right next to their ears.
But thanks to this emergency alert, the three were pulled back from their fear.
The helmeted octopus-face reacted first, his stiff fingers pressing the communication key with difficulty.
The next moment, the technician's nearly out-of-control voice came through the communicator.
He was clearly trying to maintain calm, but his breathing rhythm was completely off. Every word seemed squeezed out of a violently beating throat: "Two hostile units detected outside the planar barrier. Based on energy spectrum analysis, the enemy is Finality Apostles! Repeat, Finality Apostles! All personnel enter combat readiness, prepare to fight at any time!!!"
Finality Apostles.
These four words stabbed out from the communicator like an ice pick, instantly draining the color from every octopus-face's face present.
The tentacles of the helmetless octopus-face instantly turned from stiff to ashen.
The mucous membrane on the surface of the tentacles lost all luster due to extreme fear, like a layer of dry frost powder.
He opened his mouth, as if trying to silently repeat something, but not a sound could come from his throat.
The helmeted one suddenly raised his head, his gaze fixed firmly on the sky.
The focal length of his helmet visor adjusted frantically automatically, trying to lock onto the two enormous shadows that covered half the sky, but he was shaking so violently that he could barely maintain his arms-crossed posture.
Hearing the final order to prepare for battle, the three octopus-faces turned almost simultaneously. The soles of their combat boots left three deep scratches on the rock as they charged madly toward the medium transport ship parked at the edge of the lowland.
One of them flew too hastily, his shoulder slamming heavily into the trunk of a towering ancient tree, breaking the thick trunk in half.
But he didn't even look back, just subconsciously increased his speed another notch.
That wretched posture was less like soldiers rushing to their posts and more like fleeing for their lives.
The plant people peeked through the gaps in their curled vines and saw a sight they had never witnessed before.
In the sky, the metal constructs that usually only cruised slowly at high altitudes were now darting about like a swarm of insects whose nest had been poked. Hundreds and thousands of warships were taking off, so many that they blocked the pale purple sky.
The energy coating on the warship hulls reflected metallic luster under the starlight. The roar of engines from the gathered fleet shook the ground, making it tremble slightly.
Around each warship, countless octopus people wearing battle armor hovered, their armor thrusters drawing tail flames that interlaced into a dense mesh of light across the sky.
Under the shocked gazes of all the plant people in this plane, the entire military force of the octopus people was ascending simultaneously.
The warship formations split into several echelons.
The forward interceptor fleet had already spread out a defensive formation below the planar barrier. The heavy artillery ships in the rear began uniformly rotating their gun barrels, aiming all firepower at the positions of the two massive shadows above the barrier.
Tens of thousands of octopus warriors circled their respective warships, all energy weapons activated, the shield generators on their armors emitting a rising and falling hum of charging, like a thundercloud ready to strike.
Inside the command deck of the flagship "Iron Curtain," the atmosphere was even more oppressive.
The octopus commander stood before the command platform, one hand pressing on the cold metal surface, the other clenched into a fist hanging by his side.
A giant holographic screen before him displayed real-time detection images from outside the planar barrier.
Even after multiple filtering and algorithm enhancements through the planar barrier, the images could only barely outline two blurred silhouettes.
The detection system was desperately analyzing the enemy's energy fluctuations. Dense data on the right side of the screen refreshed constantly, most of it marked in glaring red as unidentified, with a small portion yielding yellow speculative items.
"Barrier penetration rate... cannot be determined!"
"Law fluctuation frequency band... exceeds database comparison range!"
"Target One energy level... Level Six! Target Two energy level... Level Five!"
The tentacles on the commander's face tensed straight.
His gaze locked onto the smaller of the two shadows on the screen, trying to dig out any useful information from that blurry outline.
A trace of hope still lingered in his heart.
Only Level Five—maybe the enemy's strength wasn't insurmountable...
But the next second, the observer's warning shattered that hope completely.
"Report! Target Two volume is rapidly increasing!"
The commander's pupils shrank.
On the screen, the smaller shadow, which had been stationary, suddenly moved.
In the enhanced detection image, that figure expanded at a visible rate.
Within seconds, all data frames turned red.
Target Two's volume was growing exponentially.
The surrounding spatial structure began to warp because it couldn't withstand the unfolding of power at this level. The planar barrier emitted a strained low-frequency hum under his shadow, the cyan light patterns on its surface flickering violently.
And that figure had already raised an arm.
Five fingers clenched, a pose clearly about to smash downward.
The hand that the commander had pressed on the command platform suddenly tightened, crushing a clear fingerprint into the cold metal surface.
"All personnel..."
The commander's voice was hoarse, but he still forced it out.
"Prepare for battle!"