Seeing one spot revealed the whole leopard.
Datafication truly deserved to be the core ability of Commander Talent. Even without any other abilities, Datafication alone would increase the Alliance's military strength by more than a hundredfold.
Any attack incapable of inflicting effective one-time damage on a warship or commander would basically be negated.
Not to mention its other advantages.
For example, a warship could maintain 100% firepower even with only a sliver of health left.
"So it really can keep firing with only one rivet left." Qingyang recalled a meme from his previous life.
After testing his Datafication ability several more times, Qingyang turned his attention to the Star Network panel.
"Star Network Express?"
With a thought, several virtual screens appeared before Qingyang.
The Star Network's virtual screens required no medium. They could be deployed even in the Cosmic Wasteland.
#Star Sea Human Alliance, Fifth Era, Star Sea Year 5-7091 graduation season—another prodigy joins the new generation of commanders#
#The Four Super Nations announce that the Alliance will add ten more Council Member State seats#
#The Alliance Exploration Association openly recruits new-generation commanders. Purple-grade Talents are the minimum requirement, with a complimentary T8 Sca-class Cruiser#
#The allied forces of eighty civilizations are defeated by the Alliance Army. Alliance Territory expands by hundreds of millions of light-years once more; a top Elite Nation may be promoted to the ranks of Third-Class Great Powers#
Before Qingyang could examine them closely, a flood of information and images rapidly popped up, leaving him dazzled.
After taking a rough look, Qingyang immediately felt a familiar sense of déjà vu.
#Starfleet Classification#
#Individual Biological Classification#
This was it!
The planet Qingyang lived on belonged to a second-class Elite Nation, the Tianyang Federation. There were not many commanders there, much less any who came to teach in this ordinary star sector.
Those teaching them were merely ordinary instructors who knew something about the superficial aspects of Starship Commanders.
Thus, there was extremely little they could learn. Even now, Qingyang only had a vague understanding of the detailed Starfleet classifications.
[Starfleet Classification, Detailed Introduction to the Initial Stages] [Starfleet-exclusive Warship System: T-series (can be Datafied)] [T8 warship types: Assault Ship, Cruiser, Battleship] At least ten ships are required to be rated as a T8 Fleet [T7 warship types: Starry Sky Aircraft Carrier added] At least one hundred ships in total, with 20% being T7 warships, to be rated as a T7 Fleet [T6 warship types: Star Destroyer, Starship Mothership, special ships (cannot be mass-produced)] At least one thousand ships in total, with 20% being T6 warships, to be rated as a T6 Fleet]
"So that's how it is. They don't all need to be warships of the same rank; only 20% do."
Qingyang felt a little sick. Forget T-series warships—even the cheapest T8 Assault Ship cost hundreds of thousands of Alliance Coins.
Ten ships here, a hundred ships there—it made his stomach hurt just looking at it.
After worrying for a while, Qingyang continued reading.
[Strength Classification for Fleets of the Same Rank: (classified according to the minimum required proportions; T8 Fleets are excluded from this classification)] Common Fleet (20% warships of the same rank) Elite Fleet (50% warships of the same rank) Veteran Fleet (100% of the same rank, with 1% being newly added warships of the same rank) Silver Fleet (100% of the same rank, with 5% being newly added warships of the same rank) Gold Fleet (100% of the same rank, with Battleships as the lowest-grade ships, and 10% being newly added warships of the same rank)] [Suggestion: Once the minimum quantity is reached, begin improving fleet quality. It is best to reach Veteran Fleet status before increasing quantity.]
Qingyang's eye twitched. "This Gold Fleet classification completely treats Assault Ships and Cruisers as if they aren't even ships."
Did Dad have enough money?
The Star of Truth was unusable right now as well. It showed no reaction at all.
Worried about his future wallet, Qingyang only skimmed through the classification of individual power and did not pay it much attention.
In the initial stages, ranks one through six, someone at rank three could contend against organized ground forces, while someone at rank six could cross the universe.
The upper limit of Individual Might was no lower than that of Starfleets, but the further one progressed, the more one depended on Talent.
Starfleets were different. Talent only determined the strength of one's combat power among commanders of the same rank.
Against outsiders, even the weakest Talent was stronger than a Conventional Fleet.
Besides, as long as one had resources, dared to struggle, and had good luck, high-level blue-grade Starfleets were rare but not nonexistent.
It was said that reaching T6 Fleet status could even nourish the commander in return, directly raising them to the level of a Sixth-rank Gene Warrior.
It would be even better if they possessed supernatural abilities. Their ability rank could be directly raised to rank six, not to mention that a T6 Fleet could kill rank-six individuals as easily as slaughtering chickens!
After roughly finishing his reading, Qingyang shifted his gaze toward the virtual world.
The next moment, Qingyang's consciousness arrived in a vast white space.
[Welcome, new commander Xingchen. Please configure your Personal Space.]
After thinking for a moment, Qingyang raised his head and watched as an antique complex of buildings, gardens, and woods gradually appeared.
Then Qingyang opened the most conspicuous mall page on the panel.
[Xingchen] [Star Points: 0] [Commercial Section:] [Listed Products: None] [Purchase Records: None] [Note: Star Points are the universal currency of commanders. Upon killing enemies or Hostile Civilizations, their Fortune and energy will be Datafied into Star Points.]
He opened the Commercial Section.
[2011 Public Commercial District. Teleport?] [Tianxing Mall. Teleport?] [.]
"Teleport to the 2011 Public Commercial District!"
A moment later, Qingyang left the virtual world in a daze.
"Good grief, a T8 Huochen-class Battleship costs 20,000 Star Points? The blueprint costs 500,000?! The model might be a little obscure, but Star Points really do have incredible purchasing power."
Qingyang sighed. The world of commanders was even more exciting than he had imagined!
Noticing that the sky had already begun to brighten.
Qingyang leaped off the bed and walked to the window. The magnificent starry sky and the bustling Starport were reflected in his eyes.
The stars... in his previous life, he could only dream of them.
The next day.
After hurriedly getting ready, Qingyang boarded a flying shuttle. "Destination: Sky Villa District."
A Starship Commander academy?
Of course there was one, but it had no physical location.
All Starry Sky Academies existed in the Star Network's virtual world, and classes were generally held there as well. Therefore, admission to a Starry Sky Academy had nothing to do with high school.
The Star Sea Human Alliance's basic policy for commanders was that real combat and experiential teaching had to go hand in hand.
They attended classes on the virtual Star Network and competed for resources whenever they had time, while spending most of their days roaming the stars.
If one day the profile of a classmate or friend turned gray, do not be surprised. They might have died.
You would never know whether the classmate sitting beside you was fighting a cult fleet head-on in reality or waging guerrilla warfare against the insectoid race.
Bang!
The antique wooden door shattered on impact, and Qingyang's face was full of excitement.
"Dad! I'm back!"
"..."
Buzz—
The cleaning machine moved about, silently clearing away the wood chips.
The elegant man with medium-length hair and a pure white Zhongshan suit closed the blue-covered book in his hand.
A vein bulged faintly on his forehead. "If this isn't something important—"
Qingyang chuckled. "Of course it is. My Commander Talent awakened!"
"Guess what grade it is?"
Qingyundao raised his head. A blue glint flashed across his monocle, and he immediately frowned.
"Contract-type Talent?"
Qingyang was stunned. He could actually tell?
Dad was not simple at all.
Qingyang quickly reacted. "What's wrong with the Contract-type Talent?"
Qingyundao calmly replied, "There is no problem at the beginning, but after certain contracts are activated, requirements will appear.
You can think of it as you drawing up an agreement with some mysterious existence. You gain powerful bonuses, but later, you must fulfill the agreement's requirements.
Don't worry. The fact that this agreement can appear proves that it has been recognized by the rules of civilization. You won't lose out."
Not losing out was one thing, but I still had to be able to complete it!
Wait, a mysterious existence... the Star of Truth!?
Qingyang thought about it for only a moment before putting it aside and breaking into a smile.
"Hehe, Dad, look at this warship."
"Mm, it's being built."
"Dad, just how rich is our family?"
"Moderately well-off."
"When will the warship be ready?"
Qingyundao flipped through his book. "T-series warships are rather troublesome to manufacture. It will take a few more days."
"What model of T8 Assault Ship is it?" Qingyang asked excitedly.
Qingyundao replied indifferently, "Shining Moon Type."
Shining Moon Type? Was there a famous Assault Ship model called that?
Then Qingyundao added, "A Battleship. I'll give you the manufacturing blueprint as well when the time comes."
"???!!!"
(For a detailed explanation of Starfleets and individual power, please see the related standalone chapter.)
The protagonist's additional Commander's Shield will have its function demonstrated in Chapters Seven and Eight.
However, the protagonist definitely will not often participate in individual conflicts. Most battles will be fleet battles.
Before you continue