First, there was activity.
A normal administrative galaxy had a functioning production system.
That was determined by the very nature of intelligent civilizations.
But within the administrative galaxy that the Sky Peng Horizontal had reached, there was no sign of any productive activity at all!
Everyone could see it.
Numerous mining bases had been built along the outer edge of the Asteroid Belt, and each one was equipped with a number of mining ships.
But now, the mining bases were utterly silent. Not a single flare from mineral smelting could be seen.
Some mining ships were docked at the bases, while others hovered above them. All remained relatively motionless.
The many Space Factories and space farms floating in the void were in the same state.
There wasn't a trace of life!
If that were all, everyone could understand it as a sign that this galaxy had perhaps been abandoned.
Or that the life forms within it had been wiped out by some sudden cosmic disaster—such as a gamma-ray burst.
But a closer look at the appearance of these artificial structures made it clear—
That probably wasn't what had happened!
The structures that should have conformed to the principles of mechanics and engineering—so long as the constants of the universe remained unchanged, the conventional technology tree would remain unchanged too. Accordingly, while the artificial structures of different civilizations might differ in their details and styles, they still had to obey objective laws.
Yet to everyone watching, they had taken on a grotesquely altered appearance!
What kind of Space Factory sprouted densely packed tendrils, or grew thirteen tentacles, or was covered in irregular scales?
And what kind of space farm had plants that spewed black blood, grew claws, or bore six or seven biological heads?
Most striking of all were the several