The Long Serpent Sector.

Kula and his remaining forces finally arrived at the Valiant Legion's former battlefield, where fragments of destroyed warships still drifted.

Years ago, they had witnessed the collapse of Alpha Centauri, a cataclysmic event.

They had no news from Proxima Centauri or the Multi-eyed planet.

But they couldn't return. If the Purple Thorns had won, they'd be handing themselves over. If the Federation had won, they'd have failed their mission.

They could only continue their search...

The barrier was gone.

Among the scattered asteroids was a small, disc-shaped platform, approximately 5 kilometers in diameter.

This wasn't a warship or command center; it looked more like a massive device.

The device was empty; there were no signs of life.

"This is a coordinate anchor!"

After scanning, Kula determined the device's purpose.

Reconnaissance!

It continuously emitted a reconnaissance signal composed of entangled quantum particles. A separate, counter-entangled quantum particle was contained within the coordinate anchor, enabling instantaneous scans of any object within a light-year.

While the quantum entanglement was truly random, this reconnaissance method wasn't as sophisticated as quantum computing.

It detected changes in quantum states. Any civilization observing the emitted quantum particles and measuring them would disrupt the entanglement between those particles and the entangled particles within the anchor, thus revealing the presence of a warship.

This coordinate anchor acted as a boundary marker.

Upon detecting an enemy warship, it rapidly transmitted information back to its homeworld, continuing reconnaissance via optical signals.

It appeared to lack offensive capabilities.

And it didn't deploy any barriers.

They flew to the coordinate anchor to investigate.

Kula and his forces approached cautiously, maintaining a distance of 3 AU.

But then, they discovered that their ships and fighters were unresponsive.

A message was then transmitted to its homeworld.

"Could it be...?"

Kula considered a possibility.

...

Months later.

Luna and Ayla received the data.

"A coordinate anchor?"

"This indicates that the enemy isn't a nomadic civilization; they likely control a significant region of space."

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"The anchor's range is 0.5 light-years, suggesting they control numerous star systems."

Multiple star systems, perhaps dozens.

This was easily understood.

Type 2 civilizations can utilize all resources within their star system; expansion is necessary for further development.

Therefore, Type 2 civilizations typically control multiple star systems.

The Purple Thorns, a newly emerged Type 2 civilization, were likely in the expansion phase, using the Long Serpent Sector as a springboard to reach Proxima Centauri.

This explained why they hadn't initially destroyed the Proxima Centauri civilization.

With Proxima Centauri under their control, their next target was likely the Solar System.

If Earth hadn't been destroyed, humanity might have faced the Purple Thorns.

Ayla added, "Based on the signal's trajectory, the coordinate anchor is transmitting data to a nearby star—Tau Ceti!"

Luna had some familiarity with astronomy.

Tau Ceti is a star relatively similar to the Sun, with about 70% of the Sun's mass. It has a relatively stable system, is less than 12 light-years from the Sun, and its only significant drawbacks are a lower abundance of heavy metals (1/3 that of the Solar System) and a large asteroid belt.

One of its planets, Tau Ceti e, was once considered a potential candidate for harboring life, a possible secondary home for humanity.

Tau Ceti e has 46 Earth masses, slightly smaller than Proxima Centauri c.

This planet might be the Purple Thorn's homeworld.

"Dispatch a reconnaissance vessel to Tau Ceti."

Luna decided to investigate the Purple Thorns' remaining strength.

They were currently about 14 light-years from Tau Ceti. At their current maximum speed, it would take 337 years to reach it.

If they didn't find a significant fleet at Tau Ceti, Luna's next plan was to counterattack the Purple Thorns!

This was highly likely, as a thousand 10,000-meter warships would be considered a significant fleet for a Type 2 civilization.

The Purple Thorns were likely to maintain only a small fleet within their territory.

This was a long-term plan.

A decision would only be made after receiving reconnaissance data in roughly 300 years.

During this time, they would further develop the galactic federation.

...

Another 100 years passed.

Luna instructed Ayla to gather the surviving Kate and relocate them to the Multi-eyed planet.

Given its size and development, the Multi-eyed planet could now support 10 billion sentient beings.

Prosperity returned to the Multi-eyed planet.

Kula and the other Multi-eyed, having waited over a century in space, were still in disbelief upon learning of the Purple Thorn fleet's destruction.

Over this century, under Luna's guidance, the Multi-eyed, Kate, and humans began to integrate, although not to the point of interspecies romance. The three species were growing closer.

During this time, Luna established complete control over the Multi-eyed and Kate civilizations.

The Kate had been a Type 1.9 civilization, comparable in power to Luna.

While cultural assimilation had taken place, it hadn't been a hierarchical relationship but rather a cooperative one.

After the century-long conflict, the Kate were no longer a Type 1.9 civilization; they were weaker than the Multi-eyed.

Luna wouldn't miss this opportunity.

In fact, she had created this opportunity.

With Ayla's assistance, even before the Purple Thorns blockaded Proxima Centauri, she had foreseen this outcome and devised a comprehensive plan.

In this century, the Multi-eyed population recovered to 500 million, the Kate to 3.1 billion. The first generation of humans on Proxima Centauri c had perished; the second generation was still in its infancy, numbering only 20,000.

The population began to recover. Luna deployed ships to collect resources scattered across Proxima Centauri, using them to build a massive fleet.

Within a century, 187 warships were constructed, restoring a significant portion of their military strength.

Leveraging her discovery of strings, Ayla began to exploit this technology.

Controlling strings meant controlling the fundamental building blocks of the universe; strings could be used to create any element.

Based on this, Ayla theorized that, from Type 2 onwards, civilizations diversified, blossoming in countless ways.

Any civilization could utilize strings to develop unique technologies and achieve its own form of peak advancement, like a martial arts master creating a unique style.

The merging of different civilizations would lead to diverse technological paths.

Ayla's definition of Type 2 civilizations further solidified Luna's commitment to the galactic federation.

The federation was the trunk of a tree, and she would cultivate its branches, connecting numerous technologies to form a vast technological tree, creating countless avenues for future advancement.

Upon reaching Type 2.

She would embark on interstellar conquest, like the Purple Thorns.

This wouldn't take long—within a millennium!