Amid the vastness of the cosmos, a massive fleet sped forward at 3,000 kiloters per second relative to Tianyuan IV. Yet, with no clear point of reference, it appeared motionless. Observing redshift and blueshift confird otherwise to Xiao Yu.
The light from stars ahead of Xiao Yu had shifted toward blue, while the glow of Tianyuan IV behind him appeared redder. This phenonon, caused by Xiao Yu’s rapid forward motion, highlighted the changes in light waves from approaching and receding stars.
Despite the vast emptiness, Xiao Yu’s fleet was a hub of intense activity. Countless robots with basic propulsion systems ferried materials between large transport ships and processing ships. Inside the processing ships, more robots busily converted raw materials into fully constructed spaceships, seamlessly adding them to Xiao Yu’s fleet.
The fleet’s numbers grew continuously.
Seventeen years had passed since the hydrogen bomb flashes were observed. Xiao Yu’s fleet had grown to 110,000 ships. Over ninety transport ships had been emptied of materials, their contents transford into additional ships. Xiao Yu then began repurposing the transport ships.
Each transport ship could be converted into three county-class ships, and Xiao Yu intended to make full use of the materials.
By this point, Xiao Yu had been away from the Tianyuan IV system for twenty-one years, covering a distance of two trillion kiloters—about one-fifth of a light-year.
“Three more years… If the Luka fleet doesn’t catch up by then, I should be safe,” Xiao Yu thought silently.
“Upon reaching the Tiancang V system, I’ll start developing new fusion engine technology. The current engines lack sufficient power and fuel efficiency to achieve 5% of light speed. This ans I must create more efficient engines.”
Although the Luka Civilization was a Level 3 Civilization, their ships also fell short of achieving 5% of light speed. When Xiao Yu queried Luka Two about this, it explained that the Luka Civilization was a nascent Level 3 Civilization, requiring several hundred years of developnt to reach that speed.
The pinnacle of Level 3 Civilizations could reach speeds of 50% of light speed—150,000 kiloters per second. However, this was the practical limit for regular ship travel; only specialized small vessels or weapons could surpass it.
To break that limitation, Xiao Yu realized he would need an entirely new approach.
“A Level 4 Civilization undoubtedly relies on a novel energy source. Nuclear fusion alone cannot sustain the imnse energy demands of faster-than-light travel. Hmm… Level 4 Civilizations might harness energy through proton-neutron material decay. This thod is several tis more efficient than fusion. Within a thousand years, I’m confident I’ll master this technology and upgrade to a Level 4 Civilization!” Xiao Yu thought with conviction.
Taking a break from his work, Xiao Yu summoned Luka Two. “Luka Two, tell about the structure of civilizations in the universe.”
“What aspect would you like to know, Master?” Luka Two responded respectfully.
“Hmm… Let’s focus on the Milky Way for now. What types of civilizations exist?” Xiao Yu inquired, his interest piqued.
“The Guardian Alliance classifies civilizations into several types,” Luka Two began, “The first is Technological Civilizations, where sentient beings evolve through technological developnt. The second is Beast Civilizations, which evolve by enhancing their physical forms. Level 3 and above Beast Civilizations can traverse space using their bodies alone. The third is chanical Civilizations, which erge when a Technological Civilization collapses, leaving behind intelligent machines that continue to evolve independently. chanical Civilizations usually possess vast fleets, swarming like locusts across the universe, but they generally lack the ability to evolve. Ah, of course, I don’t an you, Master—please don’t misunderstand.” Luka Two grew visibly nervous.
“Don’t worry, continue,” Xiao Yu said with a faint smile.
“These are the main types, but there are also unique entities in the galaxy that aren’t civilizations yet exhibit biological characteristics. For example, the nightmare of all civilizations: the Specter Race.”
“The Specter Race?” Xiao Yu’s interest was piqued. This was the second ti he had heard the term.
“Yes, the Specter Race. They are a special existence—lacking physical form, they exist as sothing akin to radio waves. Bloodthirsty and powerful, they evolve by devouring the souls of intelligent beings. High-level Specter Race mbers are incredibly terrifying. Over the past 70 million years, records show they have exterminated over 3,000 civilizations, including even a Level 5 Civilization.”
“The Specter Race? How similar they sound to the Jovian Phantoms…” Xiao Yu shivered at Luka Two’s explanation, suddenly recalling the Phantoms he had imprisoned.
Even now, so Phantoms remained aboard his ships. Since acquiring advanced material-crafting technologies, Xiao Yu had stopped using Phantoms to enhance materials, relegating them to storage rooms where they had been left unattended for a long ti.
“The Specter Race is the common enemy of Technological and Beast Civilizations. However, because chanical Civilizations lack souls, the Specter Race disdains them. Every ti traces of the Specter Race are discovered, the entire galaxy mobilizes for a large-scale hunt. Thirty million years ago, facing an exceptionally powerful Specter Race, the Sweepers and the Guardian Civilization even joined forces. Despite this, they nearly suffered defeat. It was only when the Sweepers deployed their Neutron War Star that the Specter Race was annihilated,” Luka Two explained in detail.
Xiao Yu fell into deep thought.
“Could the Phantoms be part of the Specter Race? If they truly are, this is far more serious than I imagined. Have I imprisoned such a terrifying entity? This must remain hidden from the Luka people. I’ll study this myself,” Xiao Yu resolved, before asking another question.
“How are Specter Race mbers created?”
Luka Two shook its head. “I don’t know. However, their ergence follows certain patterns. They are always first discovered in places where civilizations once existed but were exterminated. Recent studies suggest that their formation may be related to extinct civilizations. Roughly one in a thousand destroyed civilizations will give rise to a Specter Race. For instance, the most recent Specter Race was found near a yellow dwarf star. The third planet of that star once hosted a Technological Civilization.”
Xiao Yu’s heart skipped a beat. “A yellow dwarf star? Give the details about this star.”
Luka Two promptly transmitted the data to Xiao Yu. The star had a diater of 1.39 million kiloters, a mass of 2×10^30 kilograms, and was classified as a G-type main-sequence star with an absolute magnitude of 4.83 and a surface temperature of 5778 K. It orbited eight major planets, and its third planet once supported a mid-Level 2 Technological Civilization that had since been extinguished.
“This is the Sun—my Sun,” Xiao Yu thought solemnly.
Controlling his robots, Xiao Yu retrieved the container holding the Phantoms and silently observed them through the caras.
“Could it be… you are the restless souls of my kin, refusing to find peace? On Jupiter, I even destroyed so many of you… I’m sorry—I truly didn’t know.”
In that mont, Xiao Yu’s emotions were a turbulent mix, difficult to articulate.
After regaining his composure, Xiao Yu set the matter aside for now and continued his inquiry. “Aside from the Specter Race, what other entities exist in the galaxy?”
“There are certain unknown, terrifying presences,” Luka Two replied. “I’ve heard that hundreds of thousands of years ago, a Guardian Civilization fleet of 100,000 ships suddenly disappeared near a star in the First Spiral Arm. Follow-up investigation fleets also vanished. I don’t know the details, but the Guardian Civilization designated the star’s surrounding area as a Level 5 Extrely Dangerous Zone. Across the galaxy, there are hundreds of Level 4 and above danger zones, potentially harboring unknown, powerful entities.”
“Where is the closest danger zone to ?” Xiao Yu asked.
“It’s a sparse star cluster known in your civilization as the Pleiades Cluster, approximately 450 light-years away. It is classified as a Level 4 High Danger Zone. A Level 5 Civilization fleet once passed through it, and all biological life aboard perished under mysterious circumstances, though the ships remained unhard. The cause is still unknown,” Luka Two answered.
“The universe is truly dangerous,” Xiao Yu sighed. “I must continue to grow stronger, to avenge humanity and allow my kin to rest in peace…”
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