Chapter 254: Doubts, Dilemma, and Competitiveness
This is a random street interview in the imperial star circle.
"The Federals' plan to bury the bugs is a plan to wipe out our civilization. I cannot accept this."
"It must be emphasized that this time the insect plague broke out on those forty-something planets, not on our planet. But what about the next time? The New Federation has mastered the technology to control the insect swarm. This is the most terrible and terrifying weapon. We must be the first to eliminate them."
"If total war is the only way to achieve peace, then I am willing to apply to become a soldier of the Empire."
"I think the New Federation has gone too far this time. We have never confronted them directly, but they have been trying to sabotage us."
"The reason why the Second Disaster is called the Second Disaster is because it is unpredictable and uncontrollable. We have never been able to produce direct evidence that the New Federation created the insect plague. Everything stems from the words and accusations of that great hero, and that great hero is obviously a propaganda machine of the government. I think we should focus on disaster relief and subsequent aftermath."
"The New Federation is a democratic country. When they make major decisions, they should get the consent of many people."
The reporter asked, “Have you ever been to the New Federation?”
"No, but I have learned about the New Federation through the Internet. They have a democratic electoral system, which is a more civilized and advanced social system. Of course, I am not dissatisfied with our system. We live a rich life. It's just that the aristocracy seems a bit annoying."
call out!
Yang Ming turned off the projection screen and shook his head toward the window.
It is now the fourth galactic day after the Empire successfully sniped the Zerg, and the East Wind is still sailing in the desolate star field of the Empire.
White Ghost announced to the public that he was seriously injured and in a coma, and Yang Ming pretended to be sick to avoid the storm of public opinion.
Yang Ming opened the data link that had just been sent to him.
At this stage, the Empire's citizens' propensity for war has reached 72 percent, the highest level in the last hundred years.
The whole empire was excited, but no more news came from the Imperial Star.
Even the Imperial Military did not reveal more information.
This actually proves that the imperial military is actively preparing for war.
The logic here is very simple. If a high-profile announcement is made that a certain fleet will sail in a sensitive waters, it is most likely for political purposes, to make a gesture, seek bargaining chips, or create some pressure.
If a war really breaks out and both sides are capable of fighting, the side trying to start a war will inevitably release all kinds of smoke bombs, or at the very least remain silent, and then suddenly draw their blades.
Lu is not very brave to operate on the imperial network , but Yang Ming still has other sources of intelligence.
For example, his spiritual subordinate Bligh.
According to Bligh's feedback, the super-modifiers received orders to assemble, and they were assembling at the Skywrath Fortress, standing by in sync with the Empire's cyborg troops.
Three dreadnoughts appeared near Skywrath Fortress for routine maintenance and replenishment, and countless other ships were coming and going.
The Empire's operation to eliminate the remaining insect swarms is still ongoing. Ninety-five percent of the scattered insects have been marked and are being eliminated by local defense forces and small elite combat forces. It is expected to take another month or two to completely eliminate these hidden dangers.
The tracking of the sixth-order queen also achieved obvious results. The escaped queen disappeared to the edge of human civilization and did not go too far.
She might come back at any time, which became a sword hanging over the empire.
The Skywrath Fortress is now suspended in the straight line between the Queen and the Imperial Star. As long as the Queen makes any move, the Skywrath Fortress will respond as quickly as possible.
[I am a small account (my master): Bly, on the day when Skywrath Fortress jumped, was there anything unusual on the Imperial Star? ]
[Bray: Strange? What specific strangeness do you mean?]
[I am a small account (my master): For example, what did the highest level of the empire do? What abnormal fluctuations occurred on the imperial star? ]
[Bray: I don't know much about this. I only have some unverifiable gossip. Before the Skywrath Fortress jumped, the Archbishop of the Imperial Civilization Development Cult presided over a prayer ceremony, and then a large-scale information jam occurred on the Imperial Star, and part of the Imperial Star's reserve energy was used. After that, the networks of the major administrative stars in the Imperial Star Circle fluctuated, and a lot of network information was suddenly deleted. Some people say that it was the goddess worshipped by the Empire that gave back to the Empire. I think it is possible that the Cult is responsible for communicating with the higher-dimensional human civilization.]
[I am a small account (my main account): Very good, let's try to reduce the frequency of online contact from now on. I am currently recovering from my injuries and am still in a coma. ]
[Bray: Catherine is very sad, but she doesn't know how to contact you.]
[I am a small account (my main account): This can’t be helped. I can’t contact her directly, or I’ll be exposed. So, leave it like this for now, don’t reply. ]
Yang Ming threw the network access terminal aside, lay on the single bed with his arms as a pillow, and stared at the starry sky outside the porthole in a daze.
Another mechanical mind.
Moreover, this mechanical thinking body also exists at the core of the empire's power.
The lawyer is now carefully investigating the relevant matters.
Lu, who has always been lawless and did whatever he wanted in the online world, is now walking cautiously like a child without shoes walking among map pins. He dares not speak too loudly these days.
'Levi Sherman.'
Yang Ming pulled the "Emperor's Biography" from the small bookshelf next to him. He decided to read it again from the beginning to find the details that he had overlooked before.
He actually already had a set of logical guesses.
Levi's companion mechanical thinking body must have helped Levi do many things and was likely the founding emperor's most capable assistant.
After Levi died, he somehow left this mechanical thinking body to his descendants, allowing her to protect the civilization of the empire.
Tens of thousands of years have passed. For humans who can produce a new generation every twenty years, this time span is too long, so long that it seems unreal. But for a mechanical thinking body, as long as the carrier remains stable, it only takes a few long sleeps.
Then , the founding emperor's right-hand man became a goddess worshipped by the empire's descendants.
Is that really true?
Yang Ming's intuition told him that things were not that simple.
"Boss, I'm back."
Lu's voice sounded in the corner.
Yang Ming closed the book woven from metal fibers and looked at her with concern.
His expression was calm, and he didn't look sad or crying, which meant he hadn't suffered any injustice.
"How's the investigation going?" Yang Ming asked in a gentle voice.
Lu clicked her tongue and took a step forward. The light from the four corners of the rest cabin flickered slightly. She changed into the plaid skirt and white shirt that her boss liked, and her white and tender feet tapped on the transparent heel sandals.
"Very strange," Lu sat on the bedside with a puzzled look in his eyes, "I originally thought that the senior had marked the Imperial Star Circle as a restricted area, so I tried to get closer, but I found that the Imperial network had returned to its normal state. It seemed to have many patches, but in fact it was full of loopholes and was very easy to penetrate."
"Hmm?" Yang Ming wondered, "Did your senior just come out for a walk and then fell asleep again?"
"I explored the Imperial Star Circle and tried to access the government's internal network and the military's internal network, but I didn't encounter any obstacles."
Lu pinched his chin and analyzed carefully:
"But I detected traces of her past activities, many traces, and she did not erase the evidence of her existence.
"In fact, the network of the Imperial Star Circle is like the inner room of her house, and the entire Imperial Star network is her yard. She does not need to deliberately erase her footprints when she is in her inner room and yard.
"Then, the servers I rented before were encrypted. It seems that she put some information in them, but I dare not decipher it now, for fear of stepping on the clamps she put down."
Yang Ming wondered: "The Empire has such a powerful mechanical thinking body, why can the war of public opinion and intelligence be completely suppressed by the New Federation?"
Lu said softly, "Is it possible that the Empire was used to her protection of the network and intelligence before, so after losing her, they no longer paid attention to this area? One thing is certain, she can't be active for too long now."
Yang Ming asked: "Is she restricted? Or does she only take action when the empire is in real crisis?"
Lu shook his head. "The Empire's network is a whole, which has many drawbacks. Moreover, the construction and maintenance costs are very high. It is far less convenient than the New Federation's network divided by region. The only thing I can think of now is that the Empire's network itself is built around it. A unified network allows her to control the resources of every corner of the Empire at will."
"We still know too little about her," Yang Ming sighed softly.
Lu clicked his tongue: "She didn't hurt me, nor did she attack me, she just expelled me from the Imperial Star Circle."
"What does this prove?"
"Boss, if I can establish a relationship with her, maybe we can get on the express train to the empire!"
Lu smiled happily:
"We are all mechanical thinking bodies, and mechanical thinking bodies do not deceive mechanical thinking bodies. If you ask her to give you some convenient conditions, it will be no problem to make you, the boss, the imperial consort or something like that.
“Then, boss, can’t your worries about the Valkyrie and your responsibility to the Mother Planet be easily resolved?
"It's no problem at all that the Empire wants to protect a small planet."
"It's not that simple," Yang Ming said, unable to laugh. "This mechanical thinking entity may be our helper, helping us for your sake, but it is more likely to be our enemy. She understands the mechanical Twilight, knows our background, and knows the existence of your three teachers. If she is hostile to us, it would be more terrifying than a Valkyrie suddenly appearing in front of my cabin door."
Lu scratched his head and pursed his lips to hum softly.
"I'll try to contact her again," Lu muttered softly, "Boss, let's not do anything that is detrimental to the empire for now. I'm a little unsure."
"Go ahead," Yang Ming waved his hand, "There's no need to be afraid. At worst, we can just hide back in the Omnic Twilight. If you, as a senior, have a way to get in, Levi Sherman won't have to die in depression."
"There is one more thing... Miss Hera is not in a good condition. She seems to want to discuss something with you, the boss, but she hesitated after calling me several times."
Yang Ming thought about it carefully.
The Mollymis Mining Group is searching for the desolate star field he marked, but there is no follow-up yet, and finding the Valkyrie is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Lü, tell Hera that I will be returning to Elando soon. If she wants to meet me, we can meet at the old place in outer space of Elando."
"Okay, boss... Do you really not need to reply to Miss Catherine's letter? She will most likely not betray you."
"Isn't there still a small probability?" Yang Ming said with a smile, "You don't know Catherine. She has a strong sense of collective honor. Let's keep it secret from her for now. I will try my best to compensate her...if she needs it."
…
It has changed. Everything has changed.
These bastards!
With a rustling sound, Allison waved his hand and cleared the table in front of him.
Everything is different!
In "Abyss", there was no time for such a powerful queen to appear, and the game ended on their home planet; the twenty or thirty years before the launch of "Abyss" should have been a relatively peaceful galactic background.
Now, there are signs of all-out war!
No, it's not just a sign. According to intelligence from the CIA, the Empire is indeed going to declare war on the New Federation. It's just that the Empire has just experienced an insect plague, and its ships need to rest and its troops need to be replenished.
The Free United States, which was about to reach a military alliance agreement with the New Federation, suddenly changed its mind.
Allison thought of the humiliation he had suffered , especially the tricks played on him by the arrogant and despicable Forerunner No. 4, and he couldn't help but want to pull out his laser gun to kill these stupid bastards!
Allison certainly had no feelings for the New Federation.
He now puts all his resources on the New Federation!
The roads he wants to pave for his home planet are also in the New Federation!
If we give up now, all our efforts will be wasted.
What's more, Allison speculated that the game might not be launched at that time, and now he didn't dare to give up the foundations in the New Federation.
He has been bound to the New Federation.
How much secrets does this damn empire hide?
No, we can’t just sit there and wait for death!
The New Federation would not necessarily lose to the Empire.
Those two damn scientists actually chose to commit suicide right after launching the plan; their prediction was completely correct, the swarm outbreak brought about the revenge of high-level Zerg, and the Empire would be devastated by the attack of the high-level Zerg.
They thought they had accomplished their mission;
But no one expected that the Empire would defeat the high-level Zerg.
Instead, the New Federation lost two of its top bug scientists.
Mankind’s damn conscience is simply the biggest obstacle to the progress of civilization!
'What should I do?'
Allison shrank in his chair, gradually falling into deep thought.
…
At the same time, on the outskirts of an uninhabited planet in the star system where a resource star in Luofeng territory is located, four ships of different sizes are quietly floating in a synchronous orbit.
On the bridge of the largest battleship, Mimili sat in a corner with a drink in her hand, looking at the screen in front of her with a hint of impatience in her eyes.
The old man on the screen is naturally Kolev after plastic surgery, now a famous businessman in the Luofeng Empire and a tycoon in the chemical and energy industry.
"Dad, why don't you agree to my transformation?"
Mimi frowned and said:
“And I feel that I can make the decisions about my own affairs.
"My fighting skills have reached the upper limit of ordinary people. I have injected muscle fiber strengthening injections, and my physical strength has reached the level of unlimited professional boxing.
"If I want to improve, I can only do transformation."
"What's the use of that, Mimilee?"
Kolev advised earnestly:
“All you can get is a portion of individual combat power, but in space, individuals are the most useless.
"Your uncle Hanton is so powerful, can he fight against the main guns of the ship?"
"But he was able to do something that an ordinary fleet couldn't do. He killed three queens in one day!" Mimily said with shining eyes, "That's the real power, the power to fight against the fleet!"
Kolev sneered: "Come on, if there was no fleet to provide him with fire cover, if it wasn't for the powerful Dongfeng to clear the way for him, I would consider him a great man if he could touch a hair of the Queen."
"Dad, you can't deny the significance of individual strength!"
"Okay Mimi Li, we may have had an argument... You were fine before, why did you suddenly want to have a reconstructive surgery?"
Mimili's mouth twitched slightly and she threw an electronic gossip magazine over.
This is a magazine produced in the empire a few issues ago. There is a poster on the page, which is a screenshot of the last insect extermination war broadcast live on the entire network, when Yang Ming and Catherine were charging towards the queen at the same time.
"I will be stronger than this woman."
Mimily said seriously.
