Chapter 15: Alien Planet! Alien Beings? Section 7

Death Star, the emerging city.
Gentle breezes blew in, and the view outside the window was picturesque. It was a giant building towering thousands of meters high, the tallest structure on Death Star. From here, one could see the entire city, and after the efforts of the Wandering Tribe to beautify it, it had become the best tourist attraction on the planet. Through the windows, the landscape for hundreds of kilometers in every direction was clearly visible. A huge lake, mirror-like, reflected colorful lights under the sunlight not far away.

Now, this room on the top floor of the building served as the residence of Black Hair.
It had been nearly two months—neither long nor short. Yet in just these two months, Black Hair’s power had grown from nothing to something substantial, achieving rapid progress. The city on Death Star was still under construction, with countless applications from various races submitted to Black Hair daily. The five races selected earlier had even arrived at light speed, and the overall situation was very promising.

Yet Black Hair wasn’t happy at all.
Because the challenge he was about to face was getting closer and closer…
“Interstellar Fleet… Interstellar Fleet… When will you appear? The time has already passed…” Gazing at the dreamlike beauty of Death Star, Black Hair murmured to himself.

It wasn’t that he was afraid of this terrifyingly powerful force, but rather that its emergence had already affected Black Hair’s plans. Before engaging in direct combat, no matter how brave Black Hair was, he couldn’t accept large-scale applications from races to settle there. Otherwise, a sudden war could ruin the reputation of the Blood Wolf faction and make all races fear this beautiful planet.

All living beings avoid trouble—humans included, as well as other races. No one wants to live in a war-torn environment. If Black Hair wanted to develop Death Star on a large scale, he had to overcome this obstacle first!

In fact, this was also the main reason he hadn’t agreed to let other races settle there. The five races that had already moved in were aware of the impending challenges on Death Star and had agreed to help overcome them, which is why Black Hair allowed them to settle.

Still, those five races really surprised Black Hair. Thinking back to the first time he met their representatives, he couldn’t help but feel lucky.

Unlike the other races applying to settle there, apart from the Gold-Eating Insects, the other four races that settled in the first batch were all creatures with extremely fierce combat capabilities. The Bark Insects, skilled at traversing space through their physical bodies, did not possess advanced technology, and their living standards remained at a primitive level. Yet their bodies were terrifying weapons. Each adult Bark Insect was nearly a hundred meters in size, almost as big as a shuttlecraft. Their bodies were hard and their shells thick, capable of withstanding direct attacks from high-powered energy weapons. Their sturdy claws could easily tear through metal—truly formidable combat forces.

The Gelbeasts were viscous liquid creatures whose adult forms were amorphous, allowing them to change shape at will. They had a special ability to devour and alter the structure of matter. Though their combat skills were weak, they were invaluable to the Blood Wolf faction, as their abilities could yield many rare resources.

The Normas, in their adult form, resembled octopuses, with a huge head supported by numerous tentacles. Although they lacked combat capabilities, their technological civilization was on par with that of humans. Especially their missile-making technology could be considered miraculous. Their missiles had basic artificial intelligence, enabling them to make short-distance jumps before striking the enemy—extremely powerful.

As for the Undead… Black Hair sighed. He didn’t even know how to describe them. He hadn’t managed to gather any information about these eerie creatures at all. Among the four races that settled alongside the Gold-Eating Insects, only they were introduced by the Wandering Ones. These creatures existed as mere clouds of mist, making it impossible to determine their form. Moreover, their attitude was extremely cold; even when discussing settlement matters with him, they remained indifferent. If not for the sake of Core, Black Hair would never have bothered to interact with them.

All five races were forces that could not be underestimated, which was why they didn’t care about interstellar fleets at all. Black Hair was certain he had the strength to confront them head-on.

However, he had no intention of doing so.

War, in essence, was a collection of countless small-scale battles. Black Hair would never allow himself to get trapped in a rigid pattern of direct confrontation. What he needed was to achieve the greatest victory at the lowest cost. Even if it was a powerful interstellar fleet, his first concern wasn’t victory itself, but how to achieve it.

Kurokami, of course, had no idea. If others knew what he was thinking at that moment, they would surely be shocked. What kind of force was the Interstellar Fleet? It was humanity’s most powerful force. And Kurokami not only wanted to win but also a decisive victory? Wouldn’t that make people laugh their heads off?
“Maybe… that can be utilized. Hopefully, I won’t be accused of using a bug…” murmuring to himself, Kurokami turned and left the room.

On the other hand, deep in space, the Interstellar Fleet Expeditionary Force.
It had been almost two months. Due to the delays caused by those noble lords, the expeditionary force was finally nearing its goal. Though General Birito was furious, he still had to admit that the closer they got to their target, the more nervous he became.
Who were their opponents? What did they possess? He didn’t know anything except for that giant artificial planet. Such a lack of intelligence was utterly unbearable for the usually composed old general. So he planned to station himself near the coordinates first and conduct a large-scale, detailed reconnaissance covering half of the star system to obtain the information he needed. For this purpose, he was even willing to use an active scanning system that left no traces.

But he couldn’t hide his presence, could he? With those noble lords’ “butler fleets,” he now felt like a nanny. Those guys’ floating ships were as bulky as elephants, with empty cargo holds, just waiting to seize his loot. It was quite a spectacle to see them acting like vultures to this extent. Those noble lords’ “butlers” were truly audacious.

Just one more jump remained. The old general sighed. “Fine, let you act arrogant for a while longer. I hope you pampered brats won’t get scared into urinating yourselves at the sight of brutal battles.”
Waving his hand to call over his adjutant, the old general’s voice turned extremely serious.
“Order the fleet to enter jump mode in batches. The vanguard that reaches the target first should stay on guard at its position. Tell them to keep their guns shining—I don’t want to be greeted by dark gun muzzles.”
“Understood, General,” the adjutant replied loudly.
The order was quickly transmitted. The ships at the front immediately changed formation, grouping into sets of fifty to form a long serpent stretching thousands of kilometers. After confirming all preparations were complete, the lead ships activated jump mode. A blinding white light exploded in space, and group after group of ships vanished from sight.

Transition is a dangerous process during which all members of the warship must enter deep sleep to withstand the effects of anti-space distortion. For this reason, for some time after emerging from transition, personnel cannot immediately return to their posts, creating a period of control vacuum. Thus, no matter where, the first ten minutes after transition are the most vulnerable. If attacked, they can only rely on the warship’s own intelligent systems to defend themselves, unable to respond flexibly.

This is the famous “Black Ten Minutes” in transition theory—a rule that cannot be changed by human physiology.

Yet, no one could have imagined that in this world, there exist beings capable of maintaining consciousness and moving freely in anti-space.

The Bark Bugs!!

This newly joined faction of the Blood Wolves possesses such a miraculous ability!!

Skilled at traversing space with their physical bodies, the Bark Bugs are essentially equivalent to warships themselves. They have two mental systems: one that functions in normal space, and another that only becomes active upon entering anti-space, allowing them to maintain consciousness there and resist the distortions of time. Once they use this second mental system, these massive crustacean creatures become true rulers of anti-space, able to reach any place they desire.

Even… inside giant warships…

At this moment, in the vast, dark expanse of anti-space, such massive crustacean creatures are lurking there. Their entire bodies are curled within thick shells, with only their elongated heads and tiny eyes emitting blue light visible.

Under Hei Fa’s orders, the Bark Bugs have already hidden in position to hunt their prey!!

Silence reigns in anti-space, allowing no sound to exist, yet countless mental waves are exchanging intensely.

“Leader, we’ve found the enemy Mr. Hei mentioned,” said a sharp mental wave suddenly. By “Mr. Hei,” they meant Hei Fa. But due to their limited intelligence, they couldn’t remember human names, so they asked their old friends, the Gold-Eating Insects, for help—thus, Hei Fa was given this title.

“Very good… act immediately. Let those timid guys see the strength of our Bark insect race!! Anti-space is our domain!! Kill those reptiles that invade our new nest, and we’ll surely get Mr. Black’s reward!! I want celery!!” The largest crustacean suddenly became excited, emitting a strong mental wave. With its action, the entire insect swarm became slightly agitated, and the eyes beneath each crustacean grew brighter.