Chapter 17: The Five-Year Curse: The Allied Forces' Baptism of Blood

January 1, 2050.

On the far side of the moon, the rending rift once again erupted with heart-stopping energy fluctuations. This time, its glow was even more ominous, radiating an indescribable mental oppressive force that drilled straight into the bone marrow, as if capable of utterly shredding mortal sanity.

The "Primal Chaos" had awakened.

It did not roar, nor did it bellow, yet it writhed out from the rift with a swifter, more solidified presence. Its body was no longer merely a formless black energy mass; instead, it manifested as a translucent, distorted crystalline structure, as if composed of countless compressed dimensions. Its form was no longer a vague "humanoid," but had transformed into an "aberration" with innumerable tentacles and pupils, causing a drastic drop in one's entropy; its very existence was a blasphemy against mortal senses.

"Warning! The 'Primal Chaos' is absorbing matter from the lunar soil! It's... it's 'materializing'!"

In the lunar base command center, the monitor's voice was laced with extreme terror, his words trembling almost inaudibly.

Meanwhile, the most chilling aspect was its entirely new attack mode:

As the Allied mech formations, following their respective predetermined "attack plans," charged towards the divine entity, the first impact was on the mental plane. An invisible "Sound of Silence" directly invaded the pilots' minds. It was not a sound, yet it surpassed any shriek, directly constructing illusions of those unspeakable "aberrations" deep within their consciousness, tearing at their sanity's defenses. Whispers from the abyss of chaos seemed to echo in their ears, attempting to drag humanity into madness.

"Ah! My head... my mech... they're laughing!" An American "Thunder God" mech pilot shrieked hideously over the comms, then his signal abruptly cut off. His mech silently disintegrated in place, not exploding into fragments, but as if erased by an invisible rubber, instantly "vanishing" from the physical plane, as if it had never existed. The lunar dust didn't even have time to rise.

This was the "Primal Chaos'" ability – conceptual erasure. It could, through dimensional resonance, directly remove anything mortals perceived as "existence" from the physical world, annihilating it along with its very concept.

"All units! Activate 'Pan Gu Core' defense protocol! Mental protection level to maximum!" The pilots of China's "Mortal Mech" forces, despite also feeling intense dizziness and having horrifying illusions emerge in their minds, managed to hold on.

This was due to the "Consciousness Stabilization Algorithm" updated by "Pan Gu Core" after the last battle, coupled with their steel-like willpower. Their eyes burned with the flame called "unyielding."

However, due to the Allied Forces' "arrogance" and "petty calculations," the blood price was finally exacted at this moment.

First to fall, the American "Thunder God" mech squadron, under General Stone's direct command, completely disregarded "Pan Gu Core's" coordinated deployment. They unilaterally adopted a "decapitation strike" strategy, charging towards the core area of the "Primal Chaos" at maximum speed. They firmly believed their proud "Plasma Converging Cannons" and "Statue of Liberty" AI could catch the divine entity off guard and kill it with one blow.

But when their "Plasma Converging Cannons" fired at the "Primal Chaos'" core, a terrifying scene unfolded. The energy beams, a destructive force capable of melting steel and vaporizing rock, were instantly "absorbed" by the "Primal Chaos'" tentacles! Not only did these energies fail to harm the divine entity, but they also made the crystalline structure on its body more solid, and its volume slightly expanded! Each attack seemed to "charge" the enemy.

"It... it absorbed our energy! This is impossible!" General Stone, before the holographic screen in the Allied Headquarters, watched this scene, his previously arrogant face instantly turning pale, beads of cold sweat trickling down his forehead.

His proud tactics had become a joke that only served to empower the enemy.

The "Primal Chaos," however, seemed to not even bother glancing at the American mech squadron. Its countless pupils, filled with inter-dimensional contempt and disdain, simultaneously focused on the densest American "Thunder God" formation. Invisible "shockwaves" spread out from the "Primal Chaos'" gaze with incredible speed.

They were not material, yet they instantly "enveloped" the entire "Thunder God" formation.

There was no explosion, no debris, no agonizing screams. Hundreds of exorbitantly expensive "Thunder God" mechs, symbolizing humanity's highest technological level, along with their pilots, "evaporated" from the lunar surface in the instant the shockwave passed, as if wiped from history! They didn't even have time to utter a cry.

Their signals abruptly ceased in the communication channel, leaving only cold data blanks, and on the lunar surface, in the very paths where the mechs had charged, perfect voids remained, as if those areas had never been trodden upon.

And those Japanese "Yamato" mechs and South Korean "Photon Guard" mech squadrons, who had previously handed over command to the US due to their pro-American stance and charged at the very forefront, were also not spared.

They vanished into nothingness in the same wave of impact as the "Thunder God" mechs. Their sacrifice became yet another footnote to American arrogance, and a silent irony.

"My God... they're gone! The entire formation... completely vanished!" Inside the Allied command center, there was a deathly silence.

Every face was etched with unbelievable terror.

And the "petty calculations" of the other nations completely collapsed under the divine entity's new attack mode.

The European Allied Forces, originally deployed in relatively "safe" areas, found their reserves utterly unable to react. The divine entity could directly "teleport" or "distort space," suddenly appearing beside them. When European mechs attempted to retaliate, their weapons were either absorbed or "conceptually twisted"; gun barrels warped into knots before firing, launched missiles turned to smoke in mid-air, and control sticks inside cockpits instantly became soft mud, plunging pilots into despair.

Their forces, intended to "preserve strength," were like lambs to the slaughter before the divine entity, falling apart. Their "prudence" became "slowness," utterly defenseless against the enemy.

Forces from India and other nations, eager to "claim glory" and too far out on the front lines, were ruthlessly devoured by the "Primal Chaos" after losing allied support.

Their mechs disintegrated under invisible forces, or were directly controlled by the "Divine Will," turning to attack friendly forces, causing deeper chaos and fratricide.

Emerging powers like the Philippines, who had previously clamored to not be left behind, also underestimated the enemy's true nature, pushing valuable units into undefended areas.

As a result, they were instantly disintegrated from within by the divine entity, turning into twisted piles of alloy scrap, swallowed into those endless tentacles along with their pilots.

The Allied command system instantly plunged into unprecedented chaos and collapse. Communication channels were filled with the desperate cries of various commanders, the screams of mech pilots, and the wails of data alarms. The front lines were easily torn apart by the divine entity.

On the lunar surface, human wreckage and fragments, along with continuously twisting and evaporating areas, lay scattered like leaves swept by a storm, painting a doomsday tableau of human civilization.

Amidst this desperate cacophony, a steady and resolute voice suddenly rang out on the encrypted channel. It was General Ivanov, the Supreme Commander of the Russian Federation. He had witnessed the horrifying state of the entire Allied force and clearly saw the tenacious resistance of China's "Mortal Mechs" against the mental assault – they were the only units not instantly erased.

"All Russian mech units! Obey the supreme command of China's 'Pan Gu Core'! Immediately converge on China's 'Mortal Shields' formation and provide all available fire support!"

General Ivanov's voice, filled with do-or-die resolve, echoed through the command center.

"We are mortals, but we will never retreat! Rather than perish separately, let us fight side by side! Even if it is with flesh and blood, we shall forge the last steel Great Wall for humanity's hope!"

His orders were swiftly executed. Although Russia's mech forces also suffered heavy losses, they showed no hesitation. They charged fearlessly towards the flank of China's "Mortal Shields," using their own flesh, blood, and mechs as cover against the divine entity's terrifying onslaught, attempting to buy even a single second of respite for the Chinese forces, fulfilling their ultimate loyalty with a sacrifice of steel.

"General! Allied command system is nearing paralysis! Our forces have suffered heavy casualties!"

In the lunar base, the Chinese commander's voice was filled with despair, yet also a faint glimmer of hope born from Russia's support.

General Li Mingguo, in the Earth command center, watched the human civilization's most brutal baptism of blood unfold on the large screen.

His heart felt as though it was being torn apart, but in this ultimate despair, he became unusually calm. He knew that now, only China, only the "Mortal Shields"—with the fearless support and close cooperation of Russia, and Gu—the god created by humanity's mortal strength—could turn the tide. A true war between mortals and gods had just begun.