The closest star to Xiao Yu was a red dwarf with a mass of about 50% that of the Sun—a typical and most abundant type of star in the universe.
Smaller stars undergo nuclear fusion at a much slower rate, granting them significantly longer lifespans. While the universe itself is approximately 13.7 billion years old, the lifespan of a red dwarf far exceeds this, aning no red dwarf has yet reached the end of its life.
Within the Aquila Nebula, there were several open star clusters, each containing dozens or even hundreds of stars. Among these, the red dwarf was an unremarkable, ordinary mber.
Stars form from the gravitational collapse of interstellar dust, making the Aquila Nebula a massive stellar nursery. Xiao Yu observed at least several dozen protostars within the nebula.
Protostars represent the embryonic stage of star formation. As interstellar dust collapses under gravity, the core temperature rises until deuterium fusion begins, halting the core’s contraction. During this phase, interstellar dust continues to rain onto the protostar, increasing its mass.
As the core temperature and density rise, hydrogen fusion begins, releasing light and heat, signaling the true formation of a star. At this point, the star emits streams of high-energy charged particles, pushing away the surrounding dust and halting further mass accumulation.
Through this process, a star is born.
The Aquila Nebula, this colossal stellar nursery, was also known by a more poetic na. The Pillars of Creation.
Stars are among the most critical entities in the universe. They generously radiate energy, laying the foundation for the ergence of life. Thus, calling such a vast stellar nursery the Pillars of Creation was far from an exaggeration.
Xiao Yu noticed a protostar located 1.6 light-years away. From its poles, it emitted powerful jets of material stretching billions of kiloters. Its gravity had drawn nearby interstellar dust into a rapidly rotating disk, feeding into the growing star. Intense ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma-ray bursts erupted during this process.
Such phenona epitomized the wonders of the Aquila Nebula.
Beyond the stars, Xiao Yu also identified several peculiar locations. One such site, 1.4 light-years from his target star, housed a star with 0.7 solar masses in chaotic motion. It orbited an invisible point, rapidly shedding mass.
The Sun loses about 5 million tons of material per second through fusion, with 4 million tons converting to energy. By contrast, this 0.7 solar mass star was losing 20 million tons per second—a rate that defied stellar evolution theories.
Combining this data with the star’s strange orbit, Xiao Yu concluded it must have a companion star siphoning its material.
This companion was invisible in the visible spectrum, indicating it no longer underwent nuclear fusion and had a small size but significant mass.
Xiao Yu determined that the companion was a white dwarf.
The white dwarf, like a ravenous piranha, was tearing chunks of material from its companion star.
At its current rate, Xiao Yu deduced a high likelihood of a nova explosion occurring in the near future.
Of course, “near future” in cosmic terms could an anything from a few million years to a single second. Based on his observations, Xiao Yu estimated with 95% confidence that the white dwarf would trigger a nova within 1,000 years.
Novae and supernovae are distinct phenona. While novae can occur repeatedly on a white dwarf, Type 1a supernovae, though also involving white dwarfs, operate via different chanisms. Among the various explosive deaths of stars, nova events are the least powerful.
Yet, even the weakest nova explosion vastly surpasses events like the Jupiter-Moon Collision or the collision of Tianyuan A with Tianyuan IV in magnitude. Xiao Yu’s target star was just 1.4 light-years from this ticking ti bomb. A nova could easily impact him.
After much deliberation, Xiao Yu decided to stick to his original course. His reasoning was twofold: first, at this distance, a nova might not necessarily affect him; second, observing a nova explosion up close could imnsely enrich his understanding of stellar evolution theory.
Amid the reddish expanse of space, Xiao Yu’s fleet pressed forward.
Tiny flashes continually erupted on the Energy Shields of Xiao Yu’s ships—evidence of interstellar dust colliding with the shields. Under the blanket of countless sparks, the fleet appeared cloaked in a dazzling garnt of stardust.
The density of matter here was thousands of tis greater than in other regions. Thick gas clouds constantly slowed the fleet, and the impacts from the particles threatened to nudge the fleet off course. Xiao Yu had to constantly adjust his trajectory and accelerate to maintain a speed of just over 3,000 kiloters per second.
Fortunately, Xiao Yu’s fuel reserves were sufficient, or they would have been depleted long before reaching his destination.
As ti passed, Xiao Yu steadily closed the gap to his target star. He was now just 10 years away, approximately 950 billion kiloters.
This distance was still beyond the star’s heliosphere, but Xiao Yu was already encountering small teoroids. These chunks of rock followed chaotic orbits, weaving unpredictably through space.
Within the context of stellar scales, the entire Aquila Nebula was a chaotic n-body system. The interactions between its nurous bodies created a level of instability that rendered the orbits of interstellar objects largely unpredictable. teoroids seed benign one mont but could abruptly shift under the influence of so distant star, careening toward Xiao Yu’s fleet and detonating on his shields in a shower of sparks.
Xiao Yu could only sigh in resignation at such occurrences.
The premature appearance of teoroids indicated the extraordinary chaos within this star system. Xiao Yu revised his estimation, believing this system to be ten, perhaps even a hundred tis more chaotic than Tianyuan IV.
“Ten more years to reach my destination… my speed is far too slow. When will I finally step into the realm of a Level 4 Civilization and master faster-than-light travel?” Xiao Yu muttered in frustration.
According to Luka Two, advanced Level 3 civilizations could reach 50% of light speed, while civilizations in the early stages of Level 3 could achieve 5%. Xiao Yu resolved to prioritize related research upon reaching his target system.
Over the past two decades, Xiao Yu had fully integrated the tens of thousands of Luka captives aboard the New Holand. Through relentless indoctrination, they had beco unwaveringly loyal to Xiao Yu—so much so that they would willingly sacrifice themselves at his command.
Thousands of Luka children had been born during this ti. As soon as they were old enough, Xiao Yu established schools to instill loyalty from an early age. The phrase “Eternal loyalty to the master” was prominently featured in their textbooks.
Today was the monthly status report day. Xiao Yu connected with Luka Two, listening quietly as it relayed updates from the New Holand.
After the report, Xiao Yu transmitted data about his target star and ordered, “Have your scientists draft a viable technology upgrade plan for to review.”
Luka Two responded with deference: “As you command, Master.”
Xiao Yu didn’t give it much thought. Compared to other matters, the Luka were not worth significant attention. However, three days later, an urgent communication from Luka Two changed his perspective.
“Master, Master! Could you… could you provide more detailed information about this star region?” Luka Two’s voice was hurried and anxious.
Curious but compliant, Xiao Yu forwarded detailed data on the Aquila Nebula. Three hours later, Luka Two sent another urgent ssage.
Irritated, Xiao Yu answered. Luka Two’s voice was tinged with bitterness as it said, “Master, we have a problem.”
“Hm?” Xiao Yu expressed his confusion with a single syllable.
“The Aquila Nebula, known as the Crimson Sector within the Alliance, is classified as a Level 2 moderately dangerous zone. Thirty thousand years ago, a Level 4 Civilization fleet passed through this region. Afterward, all biological mbers of that civilization underwent horrifying mutations…”
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