Chapter 752: Pacifying Dongjiang

Furthermore, this was only the first time; there were still six Rifts left.

Xu Wuyi didn’t linger. He turned and headed toward the camp, but stopped after a few steps and looked back at Qiao Tongyu.

“Uncle Qiao, that hidden Great Commander never showed up.”

Qiao Tongyu’s expression shifted slightly. He had been so excited earlier that he completely forgot about this. Out of the seven Great Commanders, only six had emerged. One remained hidden deep within the Rift, never showing its face from beginning to end. This was not good news.

If that Great Commander continued to hide, it meant it had sensed danger and knew there was an existence outside it couldn’t afford to provoke. Once they left, it could easily emerge to cause chaos again. However, there was nothing they could do. The Federation couldn’t possibly send people to the other side of the Rift to clear out the Star Beasts in the Alien Star Realm. Setting aside the risks, even if it were perfectly safe, a Star Beast Great Commander wasn’t stupid. Seeing that a Grandmaster Level human powerhouse had descended, it would have fled long ago.

Xu Wuyi stayed at this Rift for another two days.

On the first day, he tried using his aura to provoke the hidden Great Commander, hoping to force it out. The Power of Order seeped through the Rift’s passage, sweeping back and forth across the fragment of the Star Realm. It terrified all the Low-tier Star Beasts hiding in the shadows, sending them scattering in all directions. Yet, that Great Commander never showed itself.

The next day, Qiao Tongyu suggested having the Battle Group feign a retreat to create an illusion for the Great Commander that the danger had passed. Xu Wuyi followed the plan, temporarily retreating to the rear of the camp and retracting all his aura, leaving only the Martial Artists of the Battle Group to patrol near the Rift as usual. For that entire day, there was no movement from deep within the Rift.

The Great Commander seemed to have vanished completely. No matter what happened outside, it simply refused to come out. Xu Wuyi could even faintly sense its existence through his Spiritual Perception. It was hiding in a secluded corner deep within the Rift, completely motionless, suppressing its aura to the absolute limit. It was scared out of its wits.

Qiao Tongyu stood before the Rift, looking at the Qing-grey light trail that still pulsed slightly. His expression was complicated.

“This thing is quite smart,” he said, a hint of helplessness in his tone. “Knowing there’s an existence outside it can’t provoke, it just stays put. It would rather cower inside and starve than come out to die.”

Xu Wuyi stood beside him, remaining silent. He also felt a bit helpless. With his current strength, if he ventured deep into the Rift, he could absolutely find and kill that Great Commander. However, that fragment of the Star Realm was quite large with complex terrain. It would take an unknown amount of time to thoroughly search it.

Moreover, who could guarantee there were no other hidden dangers inside? If the hidden Great Commander was merely bait and the real threat lay waiting deeper within, rushing in recklessly could lead to disaster. The Federation had suffered this kind of loss more than once.

Qiao Tongyu fell silent for a moment before turning to look at the Battle Group members moving equipment behind him.

“Forget it. Since it won’t come out, we won’t force it,” he said. “Gather the men and prepare to shrink the Rift.”

Xu Wuyi looked at him and asked, “Can it be completely closed?”

Qiao Tongyu shook his head and answered truthfully, “No. Although there aren’t many Star Beasts behind this Rift, the current Energy Level of the opening is too high.

“Forcefully closing it would be time-consuming and labor-intensive. The resources required would be more than three times those needed for a level like the Profound Abyssal Rift. It’s not worth it.”

He paused, continuing to explain, “Our plan is to use Energy Neutralization Devices to compress the Rift to its minimum state, and then set up a Sealing Array to temporarily seal it.

“This way, it remains, but Star Beasts basically won’t be able to break out. Afterward, we only need to regularly dispatch people to patrol and ensure the seal doesn’t loosen.

“Once more time passes and the Rift’s Energy Level naturally subsides, we’ll consider handling it properly.”

Xu Wuyi nodded and asked no more. He had seen this handling method many times; most of the processed Rifts in Dongjiang Province were dealt with like this. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to close them completely, but rather that the cost was too high, making the return on investment disproportionate. Spatial Rifts were fundamentally a natural phenomenon, the result of friction between Star Realms. They could never be completely shut down, making this kind of dynamic management the most scientific approach.

Over the next day and a half, the Battle Group began setting up equipment around the Rift. These Energy Neutralization Devices were much smaller than those used to close the Profound Abyssal Rift, but there were far more of them. Over twenty units were arranged to form a massive circle around the Rift. Technicians worked around the clock to adjust the parameters, calculating the optimal Energy output curve.

By the morning of the third day, everything was ready.

At Qiao Tongyu’s command, the twenty-plus Energy Neutralization Devices activated simultaneously. Precisely calculated Energy beams bombarded the weak points of the Rift, causing the Qing-grey light trail to violently distort.

This process lasted for nearly three hours.

When the Energy beams finally ceased their bombardment, the Rift that had once pierced the heavens had shrunk to less than three meters. It hung quietly in midair, resembling a tiny wound. Runes lit up in the void, weaving into a complex net that eventually covered the small Rift. The light flickered a few times before gradually dimming and completely fading away.

From the outside, it looked as if nothing was there. Only by getting truly close and using Spiritual Perception could one detect the faint Energy Fluctuation, proving that the Rift still existed.

Looking at the sealed Rift, Qiao Tongyu let out a long breath.