The large words "Pan-Hua Empire YM72548 Backup Warehouse" stood out at the entrance. Peng Yu and Joseph felt excited.

This warehouse was hidden 30 kilometers underground. They worked hard to open the entrance. During this, dozens of robot soldiers appeared. They killed over 50 employees. Peng Yu was shocked. He had never seen robot soldiers before. He thought it was illegal to install weapons in robots. The United Federation of Intelligent Life punished anyone who broke this law. Even the strongest nation in the universe, the United Federation, followed this rule.

Inside the warehouse, they found a huge amount of supplies. This made them forget the earlier shock. The employees had insurance. If they died in an accident, the insurance company would pay. A few dozen employees died, but it was not important.

The warehouse was filled with warships, missiles, ammunition, and other military supplies. Everything was neatly arranged. Peng Yu was stunned when he saw the inventory. He realized that this was enough equipment for an entire fleet. The value of the supplies could reach 10 trillion Ter.

Although the Pan-Hua Empire had been destroyed for many years, their military technology was still among the best in the universe.

For low-level civilizations that had not yet left their planets, technological development seemed fast. But this was an illusion. Natural laws controlled the universe. A civilization that could not leave its planet could not understand these laws.

Science is like fruit on a tall tree. People can reach the lower fruit by hand. To reach the higher fruit, they need to jump. To reach the highest fruit, they need to make a ladder. To make a ladder, they must study the world around them. A civilization that cannot leave its planet cannot make a ladder to reach the high fruit of science.

Most civilizations stop here. They destroy themselves with nuclear weapons after facing internal conflicts.

Even civilizations that leave their planets are limited. The speed of light is a barrier. Life spans are short. Even the best people cannot understand the universe in their short lives.

Only when a civilization can leave its star system and explore a galaxy can it understand space on a larger scale. It can discover the "Yang-Abel Field" and understand gravity. Galaxies like Mu-Hua, Chang-Geng, and Yun-Meng contain many star systems.

The discovery of the "Yang-Abel Field" allows civilizations to use resources in their galaxy. It also allows free space travel. But even then, faster-than-light travel is still impossible because of the speed-of-light barrier.

Only by understanding the mysteries of space and energy can a civilization discover the "Space-Energy Equation." This would allow faster-than-light travel and make them rulers of the universe.

The process of civilization growth is long. Historian Fei Ernan studied thousands of civilizations in the universe. He found that it took 300,000 years for a civilization to use steam power. From steam power to nuclear energy took 280 years. From nuclear energy to leaving the home planet took 100 years. From leaving the home planet to discovering the "Yang-Abel Field" took 70 million years. Finally, from the "Yang-Abel Field" to discovering the "Space-Energy Equation" took 120 million years.

Fei Ernan divided civilizations into five levels. The first level uses steam power. The second level uses nuclear energy. The third level can travel freely within their star system. The fourth level discovers the "Yang-Abel Field." The fifth level discovers the "Space-Energy Equation."

The United Federation of Intelligent Life consists of fifth-level civilizations. Each level is divided into basic, intermediate, and advanced categories based on scientific achievements.

The Pan-Hua Empire was once a fifth-level advanced civilization. It was one of the top civilizations in the universe. Even though it had been destroyed for years, their technology was still the best. The military equipment in their warehouse was still advanced and would definitely sell.

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Seeing the large amounts of supplies in the YM72548 warehouse, Peng Yu and Joseph were very happy. They cried from excitement. They thought about the scary moments during the Firebird’s landing on Ravon B, the dangerous landing of Tian Gong, and the struggle to convince employees to take high salaries. It all felt worth it.

In truth, they had no money left. They could not pay their employees next month. If they did not find something soon, the employees would quit.

"Peng, we’re rich! Haha! When we get back, I’m going after the hottest star in Byute, Hui Shanna. I can’t stop thinking about her body!" Joseph said excitedly.

Peng Yu smiled and encouraged him. Then he said quietly, "Joseph, look around."

Joseph noticed that the remaining employees were showing greedy expressions. There was an uneasy feeling in the air. If they did not control this, something bad could happen.

After talking briefly, Peng Yu announced, "All employees will receive 0.2% of the profits from selling the military supplies."

"Thank you, boss! We’re rich!" the employees shouted, and the tension disappeared.

Peng Yu and Joseph felt relieved. They told the employees to do a full inventory of the warehouse. They could only turn the supplies into valuable Ter after selling them.

They had also studied Ravon B's climate. Based on models and observations over the past few months, they knew that every 30 days, the violent lightning in the atmosphere would weaken by 1.5 to 2 hours before returning to its normal, terrifying 100 trillion volts. During the calm periods, landing on Ravon B was very hard.

The history of civilizations in the universe is long. After the first cosmic war, all nations agreed to use a new calendar.

In the cosmic year 117823, a news story broke on New York, the most prosperous commercial star in the Byute United States. New interstellar explorers Peng Yu and Joseph discovered a huge treasure. Their personal wealth reached 300 billion and 250 billion Ter, making them the news figures of the year.

Peng Yu and Joseph’s success sparked interest in the Pirate Nebula. Many people went to the Pirate Nebula looking for treasure. Some became rich, while others went bankrupt. This kind of interstellar exploration slowly became different professions. First, interstellar explorers, like Peng Yu, who went to dangerous places to find treasures. Second, interstellar scavengers, who searched battlefields, abandoned planets, and asteroid fields for valuable objects or metals.

In the cosmic year 202012, on December 21, a worn-out triangular spaceship traveled at half the speed of light through the Pirate Nebula. Inside the cockpit, a young man held a crystal object. The object had 20 faces, each an equilateral triangle.

Gong Feng couldn’t help but say, "A crystal Platonic dodecahedron—rare, but useless. Another failed expedition."

His name was Gong Feng, a citizen of the Cabas Empire. His sister was a soldier in the Gong Feina Empire.

Gong Feng had always loved adventure novels. He knew many real-life explorers. After reading a biography of Peng Yu and Joseph, he was inspired to find partners to go to the Pirate Nebula for treasure hunting.

Now, 90,000 years had passed since Peng Yu’s time. The Pirate Nebula had been visited many times. Since an explorer named Larry found a small "fluorite" warehouse 30,000 years ago and became rich, no one had made any significant discoveries. The Pirate Nebula was no longer a popular destination for explorers.

However, Gong Feng was still interested. He tried to find partners, but no one agreed to join him.

Reluctantly, Gong Feng begged his father for money. He bought an old exploration ship called "Determination" and came to the Pirate Nebula alone.

This time, he bought a star map from an experienced adventurer. The map showed that there was a battlefield ruin near the "Core 32B" asteroid belt.

Excited, Gong Feng arrived at the location. He found many shipwrecks floating near the asteroid belt, including over 20 battleships and many ultra-large transport ships. Battleships were the top weapon in space warfare. If transport ships were escorted by battleships, there must be something valuable.

He activated the scanners on the "Determination" and flew through the wreckage.

Unfortunately, he found nothing valuable.

Not giving up, Gong Feng used a metal analyzer to look for rare or precious metals. But again, he found only cheap, ordinary materials.

He remembered the old adventurer who had sold him the star map. The man had said, "Young man, I’m old. I’m selling you this treasure map cheap. If you become famous, don’t forget to mention my name." Gong Feng angrily muttered, "Mention your name? You old turtle! Next time I see you, I’ll beat you up!"

Despite his frustration, Gong Feng faced an awkward situation. This was his fourth expedition. He had boasted to his friends that this time, he would make a great discovery. Now, with nothing to show, he felt embarrassed to go back.

Finally, Gong Feng decided to use the outdated optical telescope on his ship to observe the wreckage of the ultra-large transport ships, hoping for a miracle. Under the light of the "Core 32B" system’s sun, he spotted the hidden "Crystal Platonic Dodecahedron."