/Tilted Station/.
Here, officially designated by the Galactic Federation as the Rome sector.
It is a remote, desolate place, yet also a target.
However, this targeting is not one of reverence, but of conquest.
Compared to the Olive Branch Civilization, the Galactic Federation is inherently more aggressive, because the Galactic Federation grew up in war.
The Olive Branch Civilization did not; their path to growth was remarkably smooth. Their largest wars were internal conflicts, resulting in them not being a civilization that desires conquest.
Furthermore, Chu's plan put himself in a passive position; this was fatal.
Of course, it could also be said that if he had succeeded, everything would have improved. He would have become the individual, the leader, who changed the Olive Branch Civilization.
Unfortunately.
The Olive Branch Civilization could not cultivate an individual of unparalleled strategic genius.
It's like a person raised in a kindergarten. Even if he grows to 30, 40, or even over a hundred years old, his experiences are limited; he lacks practical experience.
The Galactic Federation's ability to allow so many races to coexist peacefully is itself an extraordinary capability. In terms of societal management, the Galactic Federation is far, far stronger than the Olive Branch Civilization.
This is one of the reasons for the current situation.
In truth, even if the Olive Branch Civilization had attacked the Galactic Federation from the very beginning, it's uncertain whether they could have completely destroyed it. The Galactic Federation possesses Tachyon communication technology—this was the first piece of information the Galactic Federation released to the Olive Branch Civilization.
Possessing this technology means you can retreat at any time, leaving this star sector.
The universe is incredibly vast. Even with many civilizations, how many surpass Type 2?
In the vast Milky Way, even with a high estimate, there are certainly fewer than 50.
Even if there were 100, each controlling a region 100 light-years in diameter, how much of the Milky Way could they control?
The answer is, one hundred-thousandth; this is a careful estimate. If we include some marginal regions of the Milky Way, it could be one-millionth.
The Milky Way is far, far too large.
Don't look at the vast region currently controlled by the Galactic Federation, nearly 200 star systems. The Milky Way has over 100 billion stars, and Ayla's actual findings are 200-300 billion—a conservative estimate. Because they are within the Milky Way, they cannot see the entire Milky Way; many more stars are hidden on the far side.
Of course, this calculation is actually flawed. If a Type 2.8 civilization exists, it should control at least 10 million star systems, but even that is still very few.
In reality, the Milky Way is a mid-range galaxy in the universe. It could easily support the development of 100 Type 3 civilizations, or one Type 3.2 civilization.
But this is under the condition that there are many Type 3 civilizations simultaneously. If a civilization becomes a Type 3 civilization—or even without reaching Type 3, at Type 2.9—it could begin sweeping across the entire Milky Way, acquiring all resources and strengthening itself to reach Type 3.
Of course, if multiple Type 2.8 civilizations exist when a Type 2.9 civilization emerges, then the Type 2.9 civilization wouldn't be able to easily conquer them.
However, this is improbable. If so many Type 2.8 civilizations truly existed, the Milky Way wouldn't be as quiet as it is now. Whoever gains the upper hand will inevitably eliminate other civilizations, making war inevitable.
These various factors are the reasons for the current situation in /Tilted Station/. They are bound by the Holy Grail Plan; this is crucial information.
No snowflake in an avalanche is innocent.
Conversely, if you can influence a snowflake, you can create an avalanche.
Chu learned this from Luna. He learned to use it. For thousands of years, he has been slowly hibernating, slowly influencing individual decisions.
Now, it's relatively easy for him because the individual consciousness of all citizens in /Tilted Station/ has awakened, meaning they are extremely susceptible to influence.
Chu didn't initially intend to become a fat cat by taking one bite at a time.
However, as he gradually gained control in one part of the Tilted Station, everything changed.
He possesses one key element: revolution.
He completed the dissemination of his ideology in this Tilted Station. Now that /Tilted Station/ has transitioned from a classless society to a class-based one, Chu must oppose the current form of /Tilted Station/ by supporting a classless society.
The core of a classless society is—equality.
Chu is proclaiming that every life should be equal, not divided into high and low. Those in higher positions should bear greater responsibilities, not evade them. Managers are not those who control the Tilted Station, but rather the stewards who represent the will of all individuals; individuals are the true masters of /Tilted Station/.
He uses this skillfully.
Because the original /Tilted Station/ was already quite similar, only the pseudo-collective consciousness was somewhat extreme.
“So what I need to do now is destroy the Gas Victory, then everything in the Olive Branch Civilization will return to normal, and there will be motivation to move forward.”
“Was Gas Victory my enemy from the beginning?”
Standing in the starry sky, Chu, like a nebula, pondered deeply.
Continuing like this, he would inevitably become the enemy's second leader. Although the Tilted Stations within the Olive Branch Civilization are unrelated to each other, what he is doing is fundamentally changing things—a destructive change.
If his actions are considered successful, what would the second leader be?
A failure!
A deceiver who led the Olive Branch Civilization astray.
“Was all of this in your plan, Luna?”
At this moment, Chu longed to face Luna again. He must ask for clarification.
He understands all this.
But does he still have a way out?
He has already been branded a failure, and if he continues like this, /Tilted Station/ will inevitably head towards ruin.
Then let him correct it; this is the only thing he can do.
“We should be prosperous, democratic, civilized, harmonious, free, equal, just, rule of law, patriotic, dedicated, honest, and friendly.”
This is Chu's slogan; this is what the Galactic Federation told him.
He felt he was going mad, yet he found it incredibly correct! Society should be like this!
But why isn't society like this?
This perfectly matched his inner definition of societal form.
The distribution of resources within the five Tilted Stations is currently extremely uneven. The emergence of classes inevitably creates a ruling class, and the oppressed lower classes will inevitably be discontent, because class systems inevitably involve the strong and the weak, incapable of satisfying all individuals.
With these core values, Chu began influencing the five Tilted Stations.
Within the five Tilted Stations, gradually more than half of the lower-class individuals rallied around him.
“It’s time to launch a counterattack, to reclaim everything.”
Chu looked down at the Tilted Station below. He had never felt that thousands of years were so long.
His machines concealed an ambition. He couldn't turn back, so what if he became the second, even third, leader of the rebellion?
As for the Galactic Federation, it still needs to be destroyed; it's too dangerous.
...
Alpha Eridani, Infinity Academy.
Luna also thought of Chu, someone she hadn't actually met many times, yet a man who exerted immense pressure on her.
According to the information received via the Tachyon communication devices along the Cosmic Silk Road, Chu had begun his counterattack, and the banner he raised was Marxism—something Luna was intimately familiar with.
This is a highly sophisticated societal program; even now, Luna believes it to be one of humanity's most successful societal models.
However, the Galactic Federation doesn't use it. The reason is that the Galactic Federation practices multi-species integration, not just a single species.
Species and nation are very different concepts. Nations can merge, can become completely indistinguishable, but how can species become indistinguishable?
Physical differences, reproductive isolation, ideological differences, intellectual differences, etc., all create divisions. This separation makes socialism completely unworkable within the Galactic Federation.
However, this model is the most suitable for a civilization like the Olive Branch Civilization, with only one species.
This was a temptation Chu couldn't refuse.
Seeing the advanced societal model from the backward one, how could he not learn, not reference, not accept it?
Unless he was a fool.
Of course, this doesn't mean this model will work for his Tilted Station. The reason it works now is because /Tilted Station/ is currently chaotic, and Chu is desperate. When these factors combine, they create a perfect match.
Is this Luna's way of raising a tiger to endanger herself?
No, /Tilted Station/ itself is a giant tiger. Why raise a tiger to endanger oneself?
Only by lulling this tiger to sleep do they have a chance of survival.
“I hear they’re under attack?” Luna said to the air beside her.
Ayla quickly appeared.
“That’s right.”
“The Filament Civilization has dispatched warships; much faster than we anticipated.”
“Seeing their ships, the citizens call them ghosts, because they are too fast; the warship's speed exceeds 40,000 km/s.”
The Filament Civilization's final contact with the Galactic Federation has now arrived, proving that the Filament Civilization dispatched warships ten thousand years ago.
Even as a Type 2.2 civilization—one that may even be approaching Type 2.3—the Filament Civilization possesses unique technology, completely different from the technological development of the Galactic Federation and the Olive Branch Civilization.
Ayla gave Luna a picture; it showed a blurry residual image.
It was a residual image completely integrated into the starry sky. Its appearance wasn't clear, but its size could be estimated; it was approximately a ten-thousand-meter-class warship—not large, but incredibly fast.
The opponent's method of attack is also very powerful.
“The energy level reached level 28. They must possess energy storage technology far beyond our imagination.”
The energy level is a classification system Ayla created. 1 x 10^1 Joules is level 1; 1 x 10^2 Joules is level 2; and so on. Level 28 is 28 orders of magnitude, requiring a Type 2 civilization to produce at full capacity for 100 seconds.
And this energy is hidden within a ten-thousand-meter-class warship, and this is clearly not all of it.
“We estimate its energy capacity to be between level 29 and 29.3.”
The decimal represents a multiple; it’s three level 29 units, not 1.3.
“How many warships have been detected?” Luna continued to ask.
“Nine. This is certainly not the total number. These nine are the attacking warships. We can't detect the rest; their cloaking capabilities are extremely advanced.”
Searching for another civilization's technology using one's own scientific technology can result in two scenarios.
One is finding them directly; their technology is similar to yours, and even if it’s more advanced, you can still trace it.
The other is the current situation; you have no idea what technology they're using, leaving you completely in the dark.
“Follow those warships?”
Once these warships are locked on, it’s highly unlikely they can escape their detection.
“The nine warships are flying in different directions; they're trying to disrupt our detection systems.”
“I suspect their hidden warships have already arrived in our star sector, preparing to attack a star system.”
“They don't know we have Tachyon communication devices, so they're very confident. Such an attack would take years, even decades, for us to discover.”
“This is our informational advantage. I've already sent out information to prepare the main star systems for the enemy’s arrival.”
Currently, the Galactic Federation has 23 Tachyon communication devices. Besides one located on the Cosmic Silk Road, the remaining 22 are installed in 22 star systems. Aside from Alpha Eridani, the other 21 are actually all located in the Tau Ceti sector.
If the Filament Civilization fleet attempts to attack any of those 21 star systems, they will encounter a preemptive strike.
However, Luna and Ayla aren't negligent; they are carefully analyzing strategy.
“Their primary presence is in this star sector, spanning about 18 light-years. We can expand this to 25 light-years, placing everything here under surveillance.”
“Quantum anchor points are very useful for detection, but previously we didn’t widely distribute them across the star sector, only around the star systems themselves.”
“The opponent is unlikely to possess information about quantum anchor points; this is our advantage.”
“Currently, our main strategy is passive defense, waiting for the enemy to reveal themselves. We will also dispatch warships to gradually compress the enemy's spatial zone, containing them within a range we can control.”
As they spoke, Ayla received new information.
“The plan can’t keep up with the changes. The Filament Civilization launched a super-long-range star-level weapon. We didn’t set up any false starfields in their direction; they destroyed one of our main stars.”
Luna had witnessed the Filament Civilization's star-level weaponry, directly annihilating tens of trillions of individuals in the Olive Branch Civilization.
However, if the opponent only hits the star, the impact on the Galactic Federation is actually not significant. Life within the star system has time to escape. The final number of survivors won't be high, but a large portion can survive.
This is because their weapon is a laser weapon, not the Olive Branch Civilization's gravity weapon; this is a fundamental difference.
A gravity weapon can instantly cause gravitational collapse. For a massive star, it could even collapse into a black hole in 0.1 seconds. A laser weapon only disrupts the star's stability, similar to a gamma-ray burst.
Of course, this civilization's laser attack weapon and a true gamma-ray burst still differ. The energy can be more concentrated, retaining 80% to 90% of its energy over extremely long distances, instead of scattering along the way.
But that's not the truly terrifying part.
“Bring up the star sector map.” Luna and Ayla jointly studied the star sector map; the destroyed star was within their defined area.
“It seems their main force is here. Issue a full star sector alert. Deploy part of the fleet, and have the surrounding star systems prepare defenses to prevent being lured away by the enemy.”
This is a long-distance operation; even with Tachyon communication, there is still a time delay.
However, Ayla was well-prepared.
“There's a god-computer over there that can handle unified operations. The god-computer's computational power isn't much less than mine, equivalent to me 5000 years ago.”
Luna delegated authority 20,000 years ago; Ayla is also gradually relinquishing control. Unless they can achieve true faster-than-light travel, as the Galactic Federation's territory expands, Ayla will experience judgment errors due to distance.
This is an inevitable learning process.
The arrival of the Filament Civilization means the war between the Galactic Federation and the Filament Civilization has begun.
The use of violence between civilizations is naturally a life-or-death struggle.
Luna doesn't have any so-called information-gathering methods; she directly puts the Galactic Federation into a state of combat readiness; any enemy must be eliminated first.
Within the Galactic Federation, armed forces aren't only the military; there are also explorers.
In the early stages, explorers were essentially considered reserve forces. Although disciplined, they still need combat capabilities.
“Luna, this defense can also be considered a drill.”
The drill Ayla mentioned wasn't a military drill or an explorer drill, but a wartime drill involving Swarm technology.
This is crucial.
The Galactic Federation is currently rapidly developing biotechnology. If the current stage of biotechnology products can be used as a main combat force, then the Galactic Federation can reduce its spending and, through Swarm legislation, deploy Swarm technology on a large scale.
“Are the c1c10 super-Swarm nests ready?”
“They should all be within the Tau Ceti sector. If possible, I authorize it.” Luna's expression was serious.
She also wants to know the effectiveness of Swarm technology in actual combat.
Super-Swarm nests are a new type of nest. Normal nests are built on the surface of a planet or control a small asteroid, but super-Swarm nests directly use a low-mass planet as material for a giant nest.
A c1 super-Swarm nest resides on a low-mass planet with a diameter of approximately 1100 km, and including the nest itself, it can reach a diameter of 1500 km.
Luna has never seen one in person, but she has seen videos.
It's certainly a sphere made of flesh and blood. Imagine a sea urchin; the center of the sea urchin is the low-mass planet itself, and the spines are mountains of flesh. These flesh mountains are connected by an extremely complex network; its appearance is more like a sphere tied together with ten thousand rubber bands, though somewhat sparser. There are hollow structures providing access for the Swarm.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Each super-Swarm nest has 1000-3000 brain-worms responsible for management, and the maximum number of Swarm units per super-Swarm nest is 10 billion. The total number of c1c10 super-Swarms is a terrifying 173 billion.
“Ready. The Swarm is always in a state of combat readiness.”
“The super-Swarm brain-worms not only control the Swarm, I've also given them control over small bio-engineered warships.”
“This significantly increases their combat power.”
Bio-engineered warships have been developed for over a thousand years since Luna’s departure, and now 500-meter-class bio-engineered warships can be consistently produced.
They seem small.
But a 500-meter-class bio-engineered warship's individual capabilities surpass even the strongest Swarm units, bringing significant changes to the Swarm.
...
Luna and Ayla's strategic approach proved effective.
Perhaps their guess was correct; the Filament Civilization warships were heading towards the star systems surrounding the attacked star system. They aimed to achieve maximum results in the shortest time.
However, what awaited them was a well-prepared preemptive strike.
Even at 40,000 km/s, their speed is 7.5 times slower than the speed of light. Star systems with Tachyon communication equipment could transmit information immediately after receiving Ayla's orders. Because the Tau Ceti sector has a relatively high density of Tachyon communication equipment, these star systems had begun preparing ten years before the Filament Civilization warships launched their attack.
Epsilon Eridani.
“We are closest to the attacked star system. The enemy is most likely to attack us. Don't let your guard down.” Grada said seriously.
Grada is a Kate, and the Planetary Governor of Epsilon Eridani. If humanity is the first major race in the Galactic Federation, then the Kate are undoubtedly the second. This stems from their inherent strengths. Currently, among the integrated civilizations in the Galactic Federation, none are stronger than the Kate; they were a Type 1.9 civilization before integration.
Planetary Governors control not only a planet but also the surrounding space. If a star system only has one habitable planet, the Planetary Governor is the supreme leader of that star system.
Some star systems don't have planets but have numerous Dyson Swarms as habitats; the supreme leader of such a star system is also a Planetary Governor.
Epsilon Eridani doesn't have a habitable planet; its B star is a gas giant 1.45 times the mass of the Sun, only serving as a resource supply point.
On the outer atmosphere of Epsilon Eridani b is a giant Tilted Station, approximately 10,000 kilometers in diameter; this is the main city of Epsilon Eridani.
“The god-computer has planned our battle; we just need to follow the plan. Can’t even do that?”
“Where is the ty-27 legion now?”
“They’ve actually left the star system's range. What are they doing? Committing suicide?”
“Recall them. Who is their legion commander? I want to bring him to a military court immediately.”
Grada practically roared. Such undisciplined troops shouldn't be in the army.
Elsewhere, in a simulated meeting room, the surrounding figures were also simulations. Everyone sat around a giant round table.
“The ty-27 legion commander must be that guy, Skien. Twenty years ago, I said he was a battle maniac who shouldn't be in the military.” A Warbeast spoke.
Warbeasts aren't brutish; on the contrary, they are very cunning and true strategists.
“Belleto, that's not necessarily true.”
“Skien’s deployment was supposedly to find the Filament Civilization's most likely attack point, which was our oversight.”
Belleto shook his head.
“Impossible. The Boundary God's plan couldn't have an oversight.”
The Boundary God is currently everything to the Galactic Federation; it’s impossible for it to make mistakes.
“Don't be so anxious. It wasn’t an oversight of the Boundary God, but ours. That area wasn't covered by quantum anchor points. If the Filament Civilization is adept at exploiting information blind spots, do you think they would use this weakness?”
“Let Skien go. The Filament Civilization warships are not easy to deal with, but he’ll learn from his folly.”
“Of course, the outcome is good for us because he can help us scout the Filament Civilization's attack.”
The other leaders laughed.
Belleto, however, couldn't laugh. Every soldier should be respected; as a military commander, he must correct the mistakes of his subordinates to prevent casualties.
This is why he said Skien shouldn't be in the military.
That guy’s personality is better suited to being an explorer.
Skien did find a blind spot, but Skien isn't at that level; he doesn't know that blind spot was deliberately left. If the Filament Civilization warships dare to approach from that weakness, they will face the most powerful firepower.
Theoretically, Skien is only doing useless work.
“I hope he survives.”
His expression was impassive; his huge body, even as a simulated image, was very imposing.
...
On the southwest side of the Epsilon Eridani star map, this area is considered the rear.
Even some military experts wouldn't expect an attack here; simply analyzing military operations easily overlooks information blind spots.
This is like in the 21st century, deploying troops around the border, calculating perfectly, but still having an area unseen by satellite imagery.
If an enemy knows you can't see this area, would they attack other directions or this unseen area?
The answer is obvious.
The ty-27 legion has a total of 14 warships, of which only 2 are Battleships.
Skien is on one of those Battleships; he calls his treasure the Elise, and rumors say he secretly calls it his "wife."
His second-in-command is a female Lelera.
“Commander, while I'm sure of your judgment, I wonder if you're overestimating our combat power?”
“Based on the Filament Civilization warships' demonstrated combat strength, they are clearly stronger than our Battleships.”
Skien turned around, confidence in his voice.
“What are you saying, Captain Sia?”
“The Filament Civilization is a Type 2.2 civilization, and so is our Federation. Who's afraid of whom is still uncertain.”
Sia threw a bucket of cold water on him directly.
“Commander, you might have amnesia.”
“Our Battleships are 2000-year-old antiques. The Federation's major research and development efforts have shifted to bio-engineered warships; they almost forgot to update our battleships.”
Skien shook his head.
“No, no, no. The Filament Civilization warships' speed is 40,000 km/s, but how far are we from the Filament Civilization?”
“A full 1300 light-years! Even at their fastest, it would take them 9750 years to get here. Add preparation time; it’s possible they left their civilization 9800 years ago, or even 9900.”
“Their ships are almost ten-thousand-year-old antiques.”
Sia felt their commander, Skien, was truly illogical.
“Commander, the Filament Civilization was already a Type 2.2 civilization 20,000 years ago; their technology then surpassed ours now.”
She wanted to dissuade him, but Skien wouldn't listen.
He said to the other officers, “This is our time to shine.”
“If we win this war, we will all receive rewards. I'll become a main legion commander, and you will all gain outstanding military merit.”
The other officers cheered.
Sia looked around, feeling that this battleship didn't contain a single sane person; they were all incredibly foolish.
Dealing with petty thieves might be fine, but in an inter-civilizational war, this would definitely lead to death, and it's a serious violation of military discipline.
Unfortunately, as a member of the legion, she had to stay.
Just as she was thinking about how to continue dissuading him, a streak of light in the sky instantly pierced a patrol ship beside them. It was destroyed, and countless soldiers spilled out.
Fortunately, mechs are common in the military; those with mechs could survive in space for several days.
“Prepare for battle, activate shields, and initiate a full retreat!”
Sia quickly shouted.
Meanwhile, Skien excitedly exclaimed, “Just as I predicted!”
“Hurry, track the enemy warship, main cannons begin charging, other warships disperse and encircle the enemy; we must capture them!”
Naturally, nobody listened to Sia, instead following Skien's orders and launching an attack.
The remaining twelve warships fanned out towards the origin of the attack. Their sensors showed nothing there, yet the attack came from that direction.
However, using optical detectors, they did find some light distortion.
The enemy warship was indeed extremely fast, like a ghost.
By the time it was detected, it had already approached the ty-27 legion to within one astronomical unit.
Currently, the Galactic Federation's Battleships used gravitational confinement fields. Moreover, they were equipped with energy storage devices, using the gravitational confinement field to directly output large amounts of energy to the cannon; the entire process took only three minutes.
All preparations complete, Skien ordered firing.
The Battleships' main cannons weren't purely electromagnetic; they also employed strong force.
Strong force could directly affect the atomic arrangement of the enemy warship's hull, easily causing nuclear fission reactions on the surface of the enemy ship.
However, no matter how powerful the attack, it still needs to hit its target.
The Battleship's onboard computer calculated the Filament Civilization warship's trajectory; the shot hit perfectly.
“Ha ha, it was that easy.”
But…
It wasn't. The next moment, they saw the Filament Civilization warship emerge from the explosion with an even stronger light distortion.
Sia connected to the computer to analyze the enemy's defensive methods.
The computer provided the results in 10 seconds.
“Estimated 48% use of gravitational vacuum defensive measures, 31% use of electromagnetic shield-type measures…”
Gravitational vacuum is using gravity to create a vacuum environment in a surrounding area. This vacuum is absolute; an absolute vacuum means no matter exists.
Photons can pass through an absolute vacuum, but this is a gravity-created absolute vacuum; photons will be affected by gravity and therefore cannot enter that area. They are not reflected or absorbed, but distorted by gravity, preventing them from hitting the warship itself.
The Galactic Federation also knows this method, but it's mostly used on main ships. Battleships aren't unsuitable, but gravitational vacuum devices are extremely energy-intensive; Battleships can't sustain them.
Sia initially thought it was undefeatable.
But Skien became even more excited.
“This defensive method is extremely energy-intensive. With sustained attacks, they won’t hold out for long.”
Sia wanted to kick Skien. This wasn't a game; the other side wouldn't just stand there and take it.
Sure enough, the Filament Civilization warship counterattacked.
An invisible beam destroyed another warship; the beam's frequency was extremely high, approaching that of a gamma ray.
“Attack! Fire the main cannon again!”
“Other warships, charge your weapons too and deploy the combined 【Barrier】 to block the enemy attack.”
Skien felt confident that he could capture the enemy; they weren't that powerful.
The main cannon finished charging, again locking onto the enemy's trajectory. The distance between them was very close, increasing the laser weapon's accuracy.
The Filament Civilization warship again activated its defenses, then continued to approach.
“Excellent!”
“Release antimatter and deploy a gravitational interference field.”
At such close range, the gravitational interference field would be effective, rendering the enemy's defenses useless.
The enemy drew ever closer, within ten million kilometers. The Battleship directly released the gravitational interference field, and the Filament Civilization warship finally appeared before the Galactic Federation.
It didn't look like a single warship, but six warships combined; its front was hexagonal, with hundreds of matter-like beams connecting the center.
The antimatter cannons were ready and fired.
The enemy's defenses were disrupted; the gravity couldn't be maintained. The antimatter quickly collided with the enemy warship's surface, and terrifying energy engulfed it.
“This time, they shouldn't escape.”
Sia saw the wreckage of the Filament Civilization ship; she breathed a sigh of relief. The commander was reliable sometimes.
But the next instant, dozens of beams streaked from the sky towards them, each incredibly precise. The electromagnetic shields were torn apart by the overwhelming energy; detectors found 67 Filament Civilization warships approaching.
All officers and soldiers on the warship changed color.
But it was too late. The enemy's attack was too fierce. Beams pierced all the warships of the ty-27 legion, including Sia and Skien's Battleship.
Without a moment's pause, they flew towards the interior of Epsilon Eridani.
But after flying ten astronomical units, the surrounding area suddenly went dark. All light was blocked, including cosmic microwave background radiation; only gravity could be clearly detected.
“The ty-27 legion wasn't completely without merit; at least it served as effective bait, lulling the Filament Civilization into a false sense of security.”
“Release the resonance weapon.”
From the outside, that region of space was enveloped by a massive circle.
And within that circle, the gas gradually increased, filling the entire sphere.
This gas began to vibrate at the same frequency, causing resonance in the Filament Civilization warships. The Filament Civilization warships attempted to activate their defenses, but found their equipment malfunctioning; the energy in this space seemed to be blocked.
No, it wasn't blocked.
The energy was simply overwhelmingly abundant.
Imagine a device that only needs one star of current to operate, but it's placed in an ocean of electricity; the load is directly overloaded.
That analogy isn't entirely accurate because the Filament Civilization's equipment can certainly handle more than one star; this sphere is unlikely to create such a large energy differential, but even a slight influence is sufficient.
Advanced civilization equipment is also high-precision. This environment could cause sensitive equipment to fail immediately; a one-minute delay is enough.
Resonance began, gradually intensifying.
The entire space hummed.
Within this humming, the Filament Civilization warships were damaged; countless cracks appeared on their surfaces, resembling the fragmentation of hardened glass.
No warship or life could survive this prolonged resonance.
This resonance lasted 58 hours before ending.
When the sphere dissipated, only a pile of warship debris remained at the center.
Complete annihilation.
This was a premeditated trap. The Filament Civilization's warships weren't numerous enough to pose a significant threat to the current Galactic Federation.
Their strengths were roughly equal; at most a tenfold difference; who's afraid of whom?
However, this was just one battlefield; other star systems faced similar attacks.
The Filament Civilization's dispatched warships were slightly more numerous than Ayla had calculated.
...
Cygni 61.
This is considered the second target of attack.
Cygni 61 is a binary star system; the two stars are similar in size and mass, approximately 0.7 and 0.63 solar masses respectively.
Both are orange dwarfs, closer in spectral type to red dwarfs than yellow dwarfs. Smaller stars sometimes have longer lifespans; orange dwarfs have extremely long lifespans, typically 15-30 billion years.
Red dwarfs are even longer-lived, at least hundreds of billions of years; very small red dwarfs can live for trillions of years. Therefore, no naturally destroyed red dwarfs exist in the universe today.
Cygni 61's star system has no planets; the Tilted Stations here rely on several asteroids.
The Galactic Federation certainly has the technology to create Tilted Stations, but Cygni 61 is a relatively early construction project. Therefore, all the equipment here dates back 20,000 years and hasn't been updated.
This is a problem within the Galactic Federation.
The Galactic Federation developed too rapidly; most resources were used for new constructions, leading to many older areas with outdated equipment, only undergoing basic maintenance.
This resulted in the Cygni 61 star system being relatively impoverished; it’s considered a poor area in the Galactic Federation. Ordinary citizens can only eat organic produce, such as vegetables and fruits. Protein sources are limited to common animals like the pigs currently raised in the Galactic Federation’s inner circles.
This type of pig meat differs slightly from the pigs of the 21st century on Earth. Galactic Federation pigs commonly grow to over 5 tons, with some exceeding 10 tons.
Consuming this in the 21st century might seem extremely healthy, but these foods leave many unnecessary impurities in the body, affecting lifespan. Therefore, the Galactic Federation now consumes various artificial foods; even meat is simulated meat, not real meat.
This simulated meat is indistinguishable from real meat, but its basic composition is simpler, making it easier to digest.
Human lifespan is 260 years; in wealthier areas, the average is 260 years, while in poorer areas, due to consuming natural resources, average lifespan is around 240 years.
The Planetary Governor of Cygni 61 isn't as skilled as the one in Epsilon Eridani.
“What should we do?”
“We don't have many warships, and the star system's defensive network isn't complete; we’re no match for the Filament Civilization warships.”
He was worried and desperate.
Although they knew, information travels at the speed of light, and the speed of rescue ships can't reach the speed of light. The rescue ships are still en route; by the time they arrive, it will be too late.
“The order from above is to resist as long as possible. It seems they’ve already decided to abandon us.”
Through the glass, a district leader looked outside, utterly distraught.
The wealthy fled long ago; the poor are left to die here. Currently, no companies in the star system are operating; fear has caused the citizens to vent their emotions through looting.
Buying for zero credits?
No, these citizens aren't even buying anything; they grab whatever they can and destroy it, regardless of value.
This chaos and frenzy has left the management in utter despair.
“Planetary Governor, aren’t you escaping?” the district leader asked.
Ming leaned against a wall, shaking his head: “The people still need us.”
“And what would I gain by escaping? Even if I’m not judged, how can I face myself and continue in this position?”
“You haven’t escaped either.”
Only the two of them remained in the meeting room, as the others had fled.
Escaping at this moment wouldn't be criticized; this is an undoubtedly fatal situation.
However, whether they could justify staying was another matter.
The two exchanged glances and fell silent.
They didn't contact the military; the military had also fled. Perhaps some remained, but they'd be of no use.
“Wooooooooo…”
A long, mournful siren echoed throughout the Star City, perhaps all the Star Cities in Cygni 61.
The previously chaotic citizens miraculously ceased their actions. They looked towards the starry sky, seeing nothing, yet remaining motionless, awaiting death's arrival.
From within the star system, countless beams of light, like comet trails, shot towards the outer reaches.
The battle had begun.
Of course, they couldn't see it because those beams were confined and dispersed. Since no photons escaped the energy, they wouldn't be detected.
Some citizens felt their Star City moving, seeing other nearby Star Cities moving as well, not in one direction, but towards each other.
“Bang!”
The sound of impact echoed.
Numerous explosions erupted.
The atmosphere's gravitational confinement field within the Star City failed; all creatures felt a suffocating pressure.
The next moment, the temperature regulation systems also malfunctioned; the absolute cold of space struck. Citizens with mechs instantly saw a layer of mech armor form on their bodies.
But their relief was short-lived, replaced by sorrow.
Most citizens didn't have mechs; their time truly stopped.
A second later, they couldn't escape. An invisible attack swept through the Star City; the next moment, the entire Star City was disintegrated into particles, with no fragment larger than a tiny speck.
The Star City and everything within it vanished.
Ming received news of several Star Cities being destroyed, but could only feel despair.
“Wait,” he said.
Wait for what? To die!
“They kill us, and they bury us too.”
“The Galactic Federation is inviolable. How many interstellar wars and inter-civilizational wars has the Galactic Federation endured?
“We’ve never fallen, and we won’t this time either.”
He pulled a chocolate bar from his chest. This chocolate wasn't made from cacao beans but from completely harmless synthesized chemicals; however, the flavor was identical to Earth chocolate, having passed Luna's rigorous quality control.
This is one of the most popular snacks in the Galactic Federation now, due to its retro branding.
More attacks arrived; more Star Cities were destroyed.
Below them, citizens couldn't withstand the pressure and committed suicide.
“I’d rather kill myself than be killed by those damned bastards!”
Life flickered out; despair was palpable.
At this moment, a shadow appeared behind the star; it seemed small, but this was due to its distance. According to the sensors, its diameter was at least 1000 km.
“What is that?”
Before the citizens could react, they saw something like a nebula leave the massive sphere and fly into space.
Then, numerous explosions occurred within that nebula.
“It’s reinforcements!”
Hope ignited again among the citizens of the Star City.
Ming left the wall, bringing up his virtual interface and staring intently.
“It really is reinforcement, but how could they arrive so quickly?”
The nearest star system would take at least a year and three months to send a fleet; this arrival was far too quick.
He also breathed a sigh of relief: “It seems we’re saved…”
He and the district leader showed a faint sense of relief; with reinforcements arriving, they could certainly defeat the enemy.
But this relief was instantly shattered.
Ming and everything around him were shattered into atoms, erased in an instant.
The Filament Civilization warships naturally shifted from defense to attack upon the arrival of reinforcements; Ming wasn't wrong to say they were saved.
However, information in space has a delay, meaning the Filament Civilization warships could launch an attack before detecting the super-Swarm nests. This attack wasn't faster than light, but relatively slow; this allowed Ming to see the reinforcements first, then be hit by the Filament Civilization's attack.
Despair, hope, then despair before death.
This is not uncommon in interstellar warfare.
The reason the super-Swarm nests arrived so quickly is that they were already in the nearby space. Amateur astronomers using telescopes to observe deep space could easily find them, but professional observatories avoid scanning that area, keeping them unnoticed; even Ming, the Planetary Governor, was unaware.
These nests use planetary engines to move, reaching speeds of around 500 km/s. Upon approaching, they release all Swarm units.
These Swarm units flew towards the Filament Civilization warships; it seemed comical; they couldn't even see the warships' tails.
The Filament Civilization casually unleashed attacks, annihilating these insects.
1 million!
10 million!
100 million!
Insect deaths continued relentlessly, like grass under a reaper.
1 billion Swarm units were lost in the blink of an eye; under the warships, these insects were less than ants.
But…
Soon, the Filament Civilization warships noticed something amiss.
After the insect numbers thinned, their killing rate slowed, but the insect numbers quickly rebounded.
The super-Swarm nests continuously released insects; tens of thousands more emerged every second.
The brain-worm could only directly control 1 million insects, but they could cut off control of the previous insects after giving orders and take control of new insects.
These insects weren’t initially adults but eggs.
The Swarm's development from egg to adult is extremely fast, only 30-60 minutes. With this cycle, the Hive could continuously produce insects.
Theoretically, a perfectly functioning super-Swarm nest could produce over ten billion insects unless the enemy directly destroyed the nest.
The Filament Civilization noticed this and began to bypass the Swarm to attack the super-Swarm nest.
Invisible, super-high-frequency beams bombarded the nest, but were stopped just before impact. A hexagonal energy cage absorbed those photons, turning from transparent to visible.
The super-Swarm nest was covered by a massive energy shield, 3000 kilometers in diameter.
The nest itself isn't particularly valuable; in fact, it contains numerous energy devices for defense and carries a large number of power sources on its massive surface.
These power sources are far beyond the capacity of a single warship.
The energy shield itself is a combined 【Barrier】-type energy shield, primarily defending against electromagnetic forces by creating high-frequency gravitational waves and a particle array.
Absorbing electromagnetic forces is easy to understand.
High-frequency gravitational waves are a defensive strategy against gravitational weapons; like creating continuous ripples on water to weaken incoming waves, this defense is very effective against gravitational wave weapons, but it's still ineffective against black hole weapons.
But to deploy a black hole weapon, you need to bring the black hole close, and the numerous Swarm units would form a suicide squad for defense.
And the particle array defense is against strong and weak force weapons.
Strong and weak forces act at the atomic level. A strong force field and a weak force field inherently require a medium; a vacuum is a countermeasure, and the particle array defends against chaotic particle flows.
These particle flows carry atoms that spread chaos through strong and weak forces, disrupting the electron balance within the affected atoms.
The Galactic Federation is rapidly advancing biotechnology; naturally, they would utilize it at the forefront. This is now the Galactic Federation's strongest shield.
The Barrier's purpose is to ensure the Swarm's operation.
Insects flew towards the Filament Civilization warships. The Filament Civilization warships knew the insects’ purpose was attrition and could only retreat, moving away from the swarm to avoid disruption.
But this retreat was limited. They were the attackers; retreating was akin to withdrawing from the battlefield.
Therefore, after retreating about three astronomical units, they used their speed advantage to bypass the Swarm and attack the super-Swarm nest.
Energy beams bombarded the nest.
The brain-worms within the super-Swarm nest chuckled: “Useless. We use the most advanced technology and have abundant energy; what can you use to break the Barrier?”
But the next moment delivered a slap in the face.
The energy Barrier was pierced; a large section of the super-Swarm nest was destroyed.
“What happened?”
The brain-worms urgently activated the computer to analyze the Filament Civilization's attack method; the conclusion was unknown.
“Unknown” means the enemy used a method undetectable by their sensor network, or perhaps a method beyond the Galactic Federation's imagination.
“Continue producing insects. Don't panic. We still have 200 billion insect eggs; the queen is accelerating production; our resources can support the reproduction of at least 1.6 trillion.”
The brain-worm group was frantic, frantically issuing reproduction orders; they must use Swarm units to exhaust and block the enemy.
They also recalled the insects that had flown out, ordering them to circle around the super-Swarm nest.
“In that case, we can only defend passively. Deploy the bio-engineered warships.”
The super-Swarm nest contained 100,000 bio-engineered warships; these warships were making their interplanetary combat debut. After their launch, the super-Swarm's combat power increased significantly.
Initially, 10,000 bio-engineered warships flew out, heading towards the Filament Civilization warships at 30,000 km/s.
The Filament Civilization warships clearly didn't expect the super-Swarm nest to have other combat units; they initially chose to disperse.
The bio-engineered warships weren't equipped with powerful offensive weapons but were equipped with the Galactic Federation's newly developed negative energy weapons.
Negative energy can cancel out positive energy, then release a large amount of energy. Using it as a defensive measure is wasteful.
Detecting negative energy is extremely difficult. If the Filament Civilization lacked negative energy detection equipment, they wouldn't see the bio-engineered warships' attacks.
This is similar to antimatter and dark energy weapons, but at this level, the mysteries of the universe are gradually being understood. Type 2 civilizations no longer have these weaknesses; antimatter and dark energy weapons have gradually receded from the mainstream weapons stage.
However, negative energy remains a very difficult energy to utilize. According to Ayla's estimates, ordinary Type 2 civilizations rarely acquire it due to the high cost and low payoff.
This is correct. A bio-engineered warship first released a negative energy weapon; distant Filament Civilization warships didn't react, then were hit half an hour later. A terrifying light erupted there, as bright as two stars colliding.
The Filament Civilization warships were completely unaware of what happened.
After discovering this, the super-Swarm nest brain-worms deployed the remaining 90,000 bio-engineered warships.
However, the Filament Civilization warships weren't defenseless; they counterattacked, basically hitting their targets every time. A single attack could destroy a bio-engineered warship, inflicting heavy losses.
These bio-engineered warships weren't equipped with defenses; all their energy was dedicated to offense, similar to Swarm units.
As for why not replace all the Swarm with these bio-engineered warships, it’s because the bio-engineered warships' primary offensive capabilities and kinetic energy come from machinery; they can’t reproduce endlessly like the Swarm, hence the use of the Swarm.
During the stalemate, two more super-Swarm nests appeared: c4 and c7, similarly massive.
The Filament Civilization was surrounded.
Negative energy weapons struck the Filament Civilization warships like ghosts.
All 83 Filament Civilization warships had no chance to escape.
This battle can serve as a combat model for future super-Swarm nests. After receiving the report, Luna and Ayla were very pleased. The super-Swarm nest's main function is to reduce the cost of eliminating enemies, and it succeeded.
Elsewhere, under the Galactic Federation's preparations, the Filament Civilization warships were all eliminated, without exception.
Of course, these were only the Filament Civilization's warships from ten thousand years ago, and merely scouts gathering information. The battle was merely a warm-up.
However, in Alpha Eridani, Luna's attention was drawn to other news.