Although the military and the government were wrangling, it did not stop Heavenly Expanse from swiftly launching a global manhunt.
However, the government's questioning of those hundred-plus blast sites was clearly a bit of a slap in the military's face—were they saying the military was incompetent?
As for the Empire's Near-Earth Jump technology, that judgment had come from the Alliance's highest leadership.
The basis for it was the major violent explosion that had occurred on Taigu Star last time.
After that incident, the Alliance had sent an investigation team of extremely high rank, taking away some samples and traces of energy.
Later, word came that the higher-ups had concluded that Digital Phantom's ability to come and go freely was likely due to Near-Earth Jump technology.
No one explained how they had reached that conclusion, but the massacre on Taigu probably involved silencing people over similar information.
Just as Qu Jianlei and the others had guessed, the Alliance Fugitive Pursuit Year was not really about pursuing fugitives. It was meant to uncover traces of Near-Earth Jump technology.
This operation was being promoted throughout the entire Alliance. Logically speaking, the higher-ups could not have made such a big move without some confidence.
The military felt they were being targeted hard—this wasn't our claim, it was the higher-ups' judgment. If you've got the guts, ask your superiors!
So they said that since the government considered them lacking in ability, the government could take the lead in the global manhunt.
The military could cooperate, but they would no longer take the lead. Heavenly Expanse's government responded: Since you won't lead, there's no problem with us asking the Local Troops to provide strong assistance, right?
Blue Light Star Region was one of the Alliance's initiators, so there was supposedly little separatist sentiment at the local