Everyone who could attend this court assembly was a bigshot in Tiangong, so the man the Old Angel King called Balo naturally held no lowly status. He was the Director-General of the Prefects among the Six Great Institutions of the palace city. His specific duties had already been introduced earlier, so there was no need to go into them one by one here.
Balo was a fat middle-aged man. Though his body was somewhat bloated, the occasional sharp glint in his tiny eyes made him impossible to ignore.
On the surface, he appeared honest and sincere, but in truth, he was scheming and unscrupulous. He had done no small amount of maneuvering to reach his current position.
After becoming a Prefect, he was practically a local emperor in Tian Cheng District. Using the power in his hands, he gathered a large number of beautiful women, taught them Tiangong etiquette, refined their personal cultivation, and trained them in the art of pleasing men. In the end, he placed those women at the sides of various Tiangong Bigshots—either controlling others to work for him or currying favor to secure conveniences for himself.
Incidentally, the "fitness equipment" used by Hua Ye and Hua Xiong had also been supplied by him. The bastard was essentially a pimp.
After taking his place in the center of the great hall and paying his respects to the Old Angel King, Balo did not waste any time. He took out a palm-sized Storage Device and began to speak.
"As our Angel Civilization grows increasingly prosperous, more and more Subordinate Civilizations have come to pledge allegiance to us. There are many benefits to this. For example, they can help us search for scarce mineral veins, and when major wars break out, they can also serve as vanguards to probe the enemy's strength. However, there are drawbacks as well!"
Balo paused here, a cold glint flashing through his eyes. "Some civilizations' rulers may have grown too accustomed to their comfortable lives beneath Angel protection. They have actually begun to breed ambitions of their own~"
"What?!!"
"They've got some nerve!"
"Which civilization is it? I'll lead troops over there and wipe them out right now..."
There were naturally no shortage of military officials in the hall besides civil officials like Balo. The moment his words fell, the great hall erupted into noise. The commanders of the Angel Legion all revealed fierce expressions, rubbing their hands together as though they could not wait to march their armies to the border and exterminate the Subordinate Civilizations harboring rebellious intentions.
Hua Que waved a hand, signaling everyone to quiet down, then said to Balo, "Continue!"
"Yes, Angel King!" Balo nodded. After sweeping his gaze around the hall, he suddenly smiled. "Actually, viewed from another angle, one can understand why they act this way. They discover scarce and precious resources, yet must offer them as tribute to others. They wish to develop, yet are restricted by others. Anyone would feel dissatisfied under such circumstances..."
"That's complete bullshit!" A legion commander behind Hua Zhen suddenly barked, pointing at Balo's nose as he cursed, "Balo, whose side are you even on?"
"Heh~ Of course I stand with our Angel Civilization. Commander Kent need not make such a fuss; I have not finished speaking yet..." The smile on Balo's face remained, but his voice turned icy. "Understanding them is one thing, but that does not mean our Angel Civilization will permit such behavior!"
As he spoke, he activated the Storage Device's Light Energy Projection, materializing two images above the center of the great hall. "Please take a look. These two Subordinate Civilizations are called Felinton and Alva. Among the many Spacefaring Civilizations, their technological development can be considered outstanding.
Not long ago, the Acting Prefects I sent to garrison their worlds detected Dark Energy fluctuations on their planets. This was no trivial matter. Because of technological limitations, Spacefaring Civilizations should not possess the means to drive Dark Energy. My men investigated there for a long time without finding anything, so they reported this information to me..."
Upon hearing this, everyone in the hall turned grim. They had all thought of one possibility: Felinton and Alva might be researching Super Genes!!
In this era, cutting-edge technology like Super Genes was a bargaining chip in the games between higher civilizations. It was like a strategic weapon; calling it monopolized technology would not be an exaggeration. Therefore, higher civilizations could not possibly allow lower Subordinate Civilizations to possess it.
Just think about it. If every civilization gained the ability to enter the Gene Era, would they not be able to threaten the hegemonic rule of higher civilizations at any time and in any place? Everyone understood this.
"It seems everyone has thought of it~" Balo withdrew the Light Energy Projection and said to Hua Que, "Angel King, this concludes my report!"
Hua Que nodded. Only after Balo had stepped back did he slowly speak. "There was one thing Balo said earlier that I agree with. Some civilizations' rulers may truly have had enough of their comfortable lives under Angel protection. Therefore, civilizations like Felinton and Alva are certainly not isolated cases!"
He narrowed his eyes and let out a cold snort. "What we Angels need are Subordinate Civilizations that are obedient and know gratitude, not ungrateful wretches harboring ill intent and plotting resistance!"
Hearing this, Miller and He Zheng below could not help exchanging glances. The world only remembered Hua Que as a kind and benevolent ruler. They had likely completely forgotten that he had once been an iron-blooded monarch through and through~
"In that case, Old Third and Old Fourth, the two of you will go separately to Felinton and Alva to handle this matter. Consider it training after coming of age. Whether the Super Gene research is confirmed or not, the power centers of these two civilizations must be reshuffled. We will make an example of them to warn the other unruly ones. Is that understood?"
Old Fourth, Hua Xiong, ran out with his belly jiggling and hurriedly acknowledged the order. Though Hua Zhen was reluctant, he did not embarrass the Old Angel King at this time.
"Alright, that will be all for today. I am tired. You may all withdraw."
The Old Angel King rubbed his brow wearily and waved his hand. No one in the hall said another word. After respectfully paying their respects, they quietly withdrew from the great hall.
"Old Third, what the hell is going on with you?" The moment they left the great hall, Hua Tuo grabbed Hua Zhen and fired off questions like a volley. "Haven't you always valued your life? Why did you suddenly want to go to the battlefield with me? Does this have something to do with that Lieyang Civilization?" He still remembered Hua Zhen's enormous reaction when he saw the Lieyang Civilization's Light Energy Projection.
"I am also quite curious. Could Third Prince explain it to this old minister?" Left Wing King Miller walked over as well, smiling.
Hua Zhen looked at them for a moment. He knew that if he could not give them a convincing explanation, they definitely would not let him off. After thinking for a while, he said solemnly, "Left Wing King, Second Brother, that Lieyang Civilization is not simple!"
Hua Tuo and Miller exchanged a glance. "Oh? How so?"
Shaking his head, Hua Zhen said, "I can't explain it, but the Lieyang Civilization feels even more threatening to me than the Horton Civilization!"
He was not making this up. Setting aside the connection between the Lieyang Civilization and Earth, the special gene they had developed alone gave him an inexplicable sense of familiarity. Later, after carefully considering what Miller had said—
'By absorbing stellar energy, they achieve high-temperature strike effects!'
Was that not a simplified version of the Stellar Drive in his mind? At the time, Hua Zhen had been shocked beyond measure. As technology continued advancing, the abilities evolved from Stellar Drive would be far more than simple high-temperature strikes!
As Hua Zhen understood it, Stellar Drive had five advanced technologies, from simple to difficult: Micro Flare Bombardment, Medium Flare Bombardment, Giant Solar Flare Bombardment, Supernova Bombardment, and the ultimate form, Sun Avatar. If someone truly mastered those things, they could absolutely be considered—no, they would be—a mobile stellar energy entity.
The Heavenly Dao Star System, where the Lieyang Civilization was located, also had an extremely high density of stars. This made Hua Zhen even more certain that the gene they had developed was related to Stellar Drive technology. Was that not threat enough?
"The Horton Civilization is even older than the Angel Civilization, yet you say a newly risen Lieyang Civilization poses a greater threat than them... Old Third, aren't you exaggerating a little?" Hua Tuo said with an amused smile. Miller beside him wore the same expression.
"You know that I have no interest whatsoever in fighting for the throne. But technology is different. It holds great appeal for me, so I am highly sensitive to certain technological matters. In my opinion, the unique ability developed by the Lieyang Civilization is unimaginably dangerous. Trust me, and you won't be wrong!" Hua Zhen said.
Upon hearing this, Hua Tuo and Miller both grew serious.
"So, Third Prince wishes to understand Lieyang's technology, which is why you petitioned the Angel King?" Miller asked after thinking for a moment.
"...Yes!" Hua Zhen went along with it and answered, putting on a show as he sighed. "But Father King would not allow it~"
Hua Tuo pondered for a moment. "How about this, Old Third? After I lead the army to the Kunt Civilization and make contact with Lieyang, I will send you their intelligence at once. Then you can help me study ways to counter them. What do you say?"
I was waiting for you to say that!
Hua Zhen rejoiced inwardly and said with a smile, "Of course, no problem. The more detailed the intelligence, the better!"
Before you continue