Chapter 359: Exploration of Star Sector 350
Bai Zhongqi did not play a dominant role in the specific affairs of the Star Alliance; he merely provided the general direction and engaged in intentional meetings. After a meeting with Teizene, Bai Zhongqi stopped handling the cooperation matters with Gigite Civilization directly. The diplomatic department of the Star Alliance naturally had a dedicated mission to handle this affair. Bai didn't care about the outcome of the negotiations, but the final agreement needed his approval before it could be passed.
The Order Association Fleet had experienced a victory that was akin to a disastrous defeat, suffering significant losses. The Order Association itself being a collective of multiple civilizations, many civilizations had proposed that their fleets return home, over which Caesar was powerless.
The Order Association Fleet was disbanded right there in the Gigite Star, with each civilization's fleet embarking on different routes, and Caesar transformed from the commander of thousands of warships of the Order Association Fleet to the commander of only a few dozen warships from the Ape Planet Civilization's fleet.
Gazing at the Earth recycling spacecraft that had arrived at the orbit of Gigite Star, Caesar couldn't help but sigh; he placed his hand on the panoramic window of the warship, momentarily lost in thought.
The Earthlings acted very swiftly, and those inconspicuous-looking recycling spacecraft surprised Caesar greatly. Whether it was wreckage or fragments, the recycling spacecraft would circle it and decompose the material. Caesar guessed that those materials were directly absorbed by the recycling spacecraft. The recycling spacecraft, after completing their tasks, docked again at the newly established Iridium Star space station, which Caesar was unaware of being not just a recycling station but also an Iridium Star Atomic Substance Construction factory.
The recycled materials were reused, carried by unmanned assembly spacecraft, and continued to build other orbital facilities in the orbit of Gigite Star. The Star Alliance was mainly constructing weapon platforms here, and Bai Zhongqi had also arranged to build a large spaceport controlled by Iridium Star, which actually served as a base for the Universe Army.
"The Gigite already completely breached the norms of the Order Association, seeking cooperation with Earthlings. Although Earthlings might not have had the intention to destroy the Order Association, their actions undoubtedly completely shattered the unity of the Order Association," Caesar felt utterly powerless in the face of the dominance of Earth Civilization.
He watched as Gigite Star drifted farther and farther from his sight through the window, and eventually, the warship entered warp speed and left the star region.
Before Caesar left, Bai Zhongqi had already departed from Gigite Star. Yet, he had not returned to Earth nor did he go to Lingge Star again; instead, he chose to participate in an exploration mission.
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Strictly speaking, Lingge Star and Gigite Star were not in the same star region, but they were located in the same star sector. As the Star Alliance continued to develop itself, Bai Zhongqi had also outlined a tentative influence range plan for the Star Alliance, intending to establish its sphere of influence within the local Bubble Star Region and adjacent star sectors.
"Although we haven't even fully transformed Earth into a completely Iridium Star level civilization's administrative star, and there are many undeveloped planets within the Danlu Interstellar Cloud, we must first expand our sphere of influence before venturing deeper into Galaxy," Bai Zhongqi said leisurely.
Zero looked at Bai Zhongqi, who appeared to have everything under control, and asked, "Your Majesty, are you worried that if we make contact with those high-level civilizations without securing our sphere of influence, we might become a target for all?"
"That's hard to say. The balance of power within the Galaxy has always been very even. Powers like the Teizene Empire, although seemingly very ferocious, only cause trouble within two or three star sectors and even fail to catch the attention of those high-level civilizations. The so-called Galactic High Governance Council, moreover, is a behemoth within the Galaxy, and their established civilization level model has even become a common rule among the civilizations of the Galaxy. To become a power in the Galaxy, to gain our dignity, and to ensure the continuation of the Iridium Star Earth civilization, we must be cautious," he explained.
Bai Zhongqi was now executing a strategy of comprehensively exploring the situation within the star sector. Fortunately, he now had a large number of warships, allowing him to divide the fleet into many squads to carry out exploration activities. Information about many areas could be obtained through other means, such as Gigite Star, which very willingly handed over some general information about the surrounding star regions to the Star Alliance.
However, even with the existing data, there were issues with timeliness, detail, and accuracy. The higher the civilization, the more and more valuable is the intelligence gathered, Bai Zhongqi knew, the intelligence he received from other civilizations had passed through many hands, and many things, without on-site surveying, were always not that trustworthy.
The star region where Lingge Star was located had many different names, with the official name given by the Galactic Council being the Yesha Star Field. The Yesha Star Field is located in what Earthlings call the Loop-I-Bubble in the Interstellar Cloud, adjacent to Earth's local Bubble Star, which is a material void in the Galaxy. Both of these material voids are areas of lower material density in the Galaxy. Although planets are relatively distanced from each other, this does not mean that the region lacks resources and life.
Bai Zhongqi looked at the star map of the Yesha Star Field and remarked gently, "Star regions like Interstellar Bubbles are not so friendly to universe civilizations because the distances between planets are farther and the material distribution is more widespread, making it harder for a nascent interstellar civilization to obtain resources from other planets or to communicate with other civilizations before making a technological breakthrough. The density of civilizations in both star regions is also relatively low, and there is no presence of a high-level civilization."
Zero joked, "Now we are here."
Bai Zhongqi smiled but said nothing, as the Iridium Star Earth civilization indeed had the foundation of a high-level civilization but did not yet possess the atmosphere of one. To solidify his foundation, Bai Zhongqi believed that it would take at least twenty to thirty years, even with the assistance of the Deep Sleep System.
Zero, curiously inquiring, asked Bai Zhongqi, "Your Majesty, although the density of civilizations in both star sectors is low, there are still conservatively estimated to be hundreds of interstellar civilizations, and possibly many planets like Lingge Star that have not yet stepped into interstellar civilization. Does the Star Alliance intend to eventually incorporate all these civilizations under its command later on?"
Bai Zhongqi shook his head, "That is not necessary. Not all civilizations are willing to contact or cooperate with us, nor are all civilizations willing to abandon their own things to join us. We are better off earnestly developing ourselves. If there are planets and societies like Lingge Star, we might maneuver a bit. But after all, we still need to first develop Earth, Emerald Sea Star, and other administrative stars well; expending energy on transforming other planets would be somewhat counterproductive."
Even with Lingge Star, Bai Zhongqi had no plans to push reforms rapidly to meet Earth's standards. He opted instead for a slower approach of changing the planet through means like technological inputs.