“…Traitor… Die…”
“…Awaken…”
*…How does Firewine know the language of the ‘Silver Stars’? Why didn’t it just use mental communication with its contact? And what did it mean by ‘traitor’?*
Lei Ting frowned.
He didn’t necessarily doubt the other party, but it was certainly surprising—had Firewine communicated with the Silver Stars before?
On the other side, Firewine quickly finished its conversation. The exchange was brief, sounding as if it were attempting to wake something up to deal with a crisis.
When it finally finished and emerged from the large patch of vitrified, scorched earth, it froze.
Two steps away, it saw a pair of heavy, matte-black armored combat boots.
Hard lines, sharp angles.
“…Haha, what a coincidence,” Firewine grunted awkwardly. “You’re here too… ‘Solar Star’.”
Lei Ting, who had been waiting for about half a minute, looked down at the translucent red blob emerging from the ground and remained silent.
Firewine, stuck halfway out of the earth, was equally silent.
A moment later, Lei Ting leaned down, grabbed the red slime, and pulled. He yanked it upward like pulling a weed or stretching a rubber band, hoisting up a long string of red, flaming gummy candy.
“Explain yourself, Cot.”
He spoke coldly, completely ignoring the other’s violent mental fluctuations, which were screaming: *Holy crap?! How do you know my name??*
“You and the ‘Silver Stars’—what is your relationship?”
Firewine felt that if it had a human form, it would be breaking out in a cold sweat right now. While internally screaming, *“Why do you know that? This isn't right!!!”* it wriggled in place for a moment. “…A partnership. At least for now.”
“It seems there are remnants of the Silver Stars left,” Lei Ting said slowly. “I think I should have a word with them.”
“No! No, no, no, wait!” Firewine quickly popped out of the ground and threw its entire body in front of him to block his path. “Please, don’t be hasty… I can guarantee they are harmless.”
Except for their first meeting, Firewine’s mental fluctuations were always erratic and jumpy, making it easy for Lei Ting to grasp its psychological state. But there was no way this creature didn't know that…
Regardless of their level, any superpowered individual who had received a complete education would have undergone resistance training against the mental sensing and psychological reading of higher-ranked individuals.
Combined with the attitude it had shown him since their very first meeting…
Lei Ting narrowed his eyes. A suspicion that had long been surfacing began to take shape in his mind.
“…You’ve seen me before. No… you know me,” he said, a strange sensation rising within him. “You knew me… at a time I don’t remember.”
It was interesting. Lei Ting knew Firewine because of his experiences in the ‘last time’… but why did Firewine know him?
Firewine froze again. Even when Lei Ting released his grip, it remained rooted to the spot, not shrinking back.
“If you won’t say, then so be it… just this once.” It realized the ‘Solar Star’ had stepped back, speaking with a tone that was unexpectedly gentle. “Just this once,” he repeated.
With that, Lei Ting turned and vanished.
Left behind, Firewine remained in a long silence. It wasn't until it seemed to sense something that it suddenly snapped out of it and hurried away in a panic.
…
Thereafter, the plan proceeded as scheduled.
The weapon at the center of the Milky Way could not be allowed to develop further. If things truly reached an irreversible stage, heaven only knew how many sentient beings a simple ‘environmental shift’ would kill.
Thus, the major civilizations of the galaxy united, beginning to quell the wars under the name of the ‘Consortium.’
Uniting, advancing together, and seeking a way to survive—this was the only solution.
Although no one could completely extinguish the flames of war burning across the galaxy in a short time, at least around the Galactic Core, countless resources were mobilized, and countless personnel were put to work…
Naturally, objections were raised during this period. In fact, with half the galaxy busy, some did ask: “Since that weapon is made of metal, why can’t ‘Solar Star’ just go and shut it down?”
However, whether out of fear that ‘Solar Star’ might seize control of such a powerful weapon, or the thought that “if ‘Solar Star’ wanted to do it, he would have gone already, and since he decided not to, we’d better shut up and pretend the option doesn’t exist”… all the public discourse surrounding Lei Ting quietly dissipated.
Now, except for the Abrisak people, who were still engaged in sustainable self-consumption through civil war, the major civilizations of the galaxy had begun to transition from a ‘combat’ state to a ‘construction’ state.
Among them, a biotech civilization that was very close to the Macro-phage Worms rose to prominence.
The primary species of this civilization, called ‘Bartholite,’ was a strange humanoid creature. They and everything on the surface of their home planet were composed of the same substance. That greyish-white, reddish material was later proven to be the weathered remains of the bodies of certain sentient beings from an earlier era. As for what those beings were…
“‘Wraiths’,” the Bartholite Ambassador said. “Through our investigation of the ancient ruins on our home planet, we discovered that the substance composing us mostly comes from ‘Wraiths’—or rather, back then, they weren't ‘Wraiths’ yet, but took another form.
“A form that could be called a ‘sentient civilization’… rather than a swarm of ants blindly following orders.”
The Ambassador was female, her entire body a greyish-white, with only the area inside her eye sockets being a dull grey-red. She wore a Bartholite-style geometrically partitioned robe, and her appearance aligned perfectly with Orion aesthetics.
“Your planet has a species called ‘ants’ too?” Lei Ting asked, sitting beside her.
“Probably. But it might be different from the one you know,” the Bartholite Ambassador replied.
She raised her hand and projected a hologram.
A grey-white giant insect, as large as a small hill, appeared in the small conference room where they were staying. Others in the room were startled and stood up one after another. “What happened?!”
Lei Ting didn't even look at the crowd to add to their sense of mortal peril; he simply waved his hand.
The crowd fell silent and returned to cross-checking the various data points they had been working on.
“They and you…” Surrounded by an acoustic barrier, he stared at the giant ‘ant.’ “…are composed of the same substance.”
“In fact, on my home planet, even the plants are composed of the same substance as us,” the Bartholite Ambassador shrugged.
This was miraculous. Although carbon-based ecosystems were the mainstream across the galaxy, for everything to be made of the same substance yet develop into different plants, animals, and even sentient life was indeed beyond ordinary understanding.
Furthermore, under such conditions, this civilization’s materials science, medicine, and architecture were bound to be unique among the diverse cultures of the galaxy.
And that was indeed the case.
The biotechnology of the Bartholite civilization was exactly like that—the name ‘Bartholite’ had another meaning in their language: ‘Omnipotent.’ The ‘Bartholite Substance,’ named after them, was the foundation upon which they built their brilliant civilization.
But at the same time, this civilization was the galaxy’s largest source of inspiration for horror films…
Imagine: the pedestrians on the street, the surrounding buildings, the steps beneath your feet, medical supplies, and weapons—all composed of the same substance.
If applied to Orion humans, it would be like a person walking down the street and realizing that everything in sight, except for the wind, clouds, water, and stars, was made of perfectly processed severed limbs.
From this, one could see the cultural gap between civilizations.
“When multiple civilizations decided to adjust their appearance to align with Imperial citizens years ago, we were the only ones who passed the motion with a unanimous internal vote,” the Bartholite Ambassador said, clearly not taking it to heart. “Bartholite substance editing technology is the foundation of our lives. Changing our appearance isn't a big deal…
“…No, rather, having a unified appearance style instead of maintaining a thousand strange forms is more beneficial to our unity.”
This was undoubtedly a decision born entirely of rationality and the pursuit of maximum benefit. Lei Ting nodded in acknowledgment.
The Bartholite Ambassador did not let the conversation go cold; she began introducing her civilization’s technology. “Over the years, we have successfully overcome the difficulties of manufacturing Bartholite substance. Now, we can mass-produce it by replicating the birth process of ‘Wraiths’ and canceling out the existence of the ‘Wraith’ itself.”
“The material used is Star Beasts?” Lei Ting suddenly asked.
The Bartholite Ambassador showed no surprise. She smiled. “Yes, the material is Star Beasts. Of course, only the parts that haven't had time to dissipate after death.”
The Bartholite civilization was the very biotech civilization Lei Ting had known about in his early years—the one that advanced its technology by capturing, hunting, modifying, and utilizing Star Beasts.
Now, they relied on technical means to convert Star Beasts or other substances into Bartholite substance, and then converted that substance into different properties to replace corresponding materials. Their entire technology tree was shockingly convenient.
At the same time…
“…I am very sorry.” The Bartholite Ambassador bowed her head, putting on her most harmless and fragile expression. “Regarding the matter of… the neural implants…”
When Lei Ting had purged the Human Federation Council, the biological monitoring devices found in the brains of the first few people caught had originated from Bartholite!
“Talk to my deputy,” Lei Ting said indifferently. “His name is Gerhard Yondell.”
He had no desire to interfere in these political matters. To put it bluntly, even if the other party had planted spies in the Council chamber, it wasn't something that couldn't be resolved through an exchange of interests.
For such things, he would and could only act as a hands-off manager and dump it on Yondell.
*To minimize the political weight of a ‘Double-S,’ Vice Chairman Yondell, you’ve worked hard.*
Before the Bartholite Ambassador nodded and took her leave, Lei Ting asked one more question: “You use Star Beast tissue to replicate the process of creating ‘Wraiths’…
“…So, Star Beasts actually possess a ‘Psionic Spirit’?”
“Yes. But they are beyond common logic, and the form of their ‘Psionic Spirit’ is also beyond common logic,” the Bartholite Ambassador said. “They are a form of highly materialized energy life, and their ‘Psionic Spirit’ is everything you see—”
“—The ‘Star Beast’ itself is a massive aggregate of ‘Psionic Spirit,’ Your Excellency Solar Star…”
As she spoke, she suddenly switched to mental transmission for the final sentence:
—[They are a type of ‘Superpowered Entity’ existing in the material realm, or… ‘Great Abyssal Demons.’ But restricted by the rules of the material realm, they do not possess the ability to transmit pollution.]
Having said that, she walked away quickly.
Lei Ting did not stop her. After all, no matter where she went, as long as she was within the galaxy, he could always find her if he wanted to.
It was just… *‘Star Beasts share similar characteristics with Great Abyssal Demons and Superpowered Entities’?*
He let out a long breath, inexplicably thinking of the place where Firewine had been acting strangely. He knew that deep underground there lay a sleeping ‘Star Beast.’
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 考特 | Cot | Firewine's real name. |
| 综合体 | Consortium | The united front of galactic civilizations. |
| 巴托利忒 | Bartholite | A biotech-focused civilization and the substance they are made of. |
| 幽魂 | Wraiths | Entities related to the origin of the Bartholite substance. |
| 巴托利忒物质 | Bartholite Substance | The universal material used by the Bartholite civilization. |
| 格拉赫尔·永戴尔 | Gerhard Yondell | Lei Ting's deputy/Vice Chairman of the Council. |
| 灵思 | Psionic Spirit | The mental/spiritual essence of a being; in this context, the core of a Star Beast. |
| 大异魔 | Great Abyssal Demon | A high-level or primordial form of the Hetero-demons/Abyssal Demons. |
| 超能实体 | Superpowered Entity | A being that is a manifestation of pure superpowered energy. |
