Every member that had joined the Star Sea Community knew and followed one supreme law.
"Sometimes, the vast Star Sea is both a stage and a dining table."
"Every civilization in the Star Sea is either at the table, on the menu, or beside the table. Otherwise, it's watching from far below the stage. Keep quiet."
It was clear from their interactions so far.
The Human Federation could unilaterally decide that the Angel Civilization was unworthy of sharing a feast at the same table.
That meant they could only be served up at the Federation's table, just like the Demons and the other native civilizations of the Milky Way.
Of course, the human race had always had a big appetite.
The Angels and the other native civilizations of the Milky Way weren't the only ones who could be placed on the Federation's table.
Hou Shen Galaxy.
Heavenly Dao Galaxy, Lieyang Planet.
Inside the planet.
The landscape was desolate, with yellow sand and dust swirling through the air.
With few plains, grand cities had been built among the ravines and mountains.
In Old Cloud Firmament City, the towering Cloud Firmament Treasure Hall stood atop a mountain.
"The situation is more or less confirmed. Main God Lena has fallen into enemy hands on Planet Earth."
"Planet Earth and the Chiwu Star System are now occupied by that 'Human Federation.' Earth's Super Seminary couldn't stop their invasion."
Inside the hall, a burly, middle-aged man in ancient armor listened to his subordinate's report, his face full of worry.
Pan Zhen, guardian of Lieyang Planet and master of the Heavenly Dao Pagoda.
The emergence of the Human Federation was a bombshell for the God-level Civilizations of the Known Universe.
After learning of it, the Lieyang Civilization was both anxious and troubled.
A thousand years ago, they had suffered heavy losses fighting a monkey on Earth. Now that Earth Civilization had been wiped out, that monkey must have been defeated as well.
Earth's Super Seminary had been defeated by the Human Federation, and the war had proceeded at incredible speed.
The other side had conquered the entire Chiwu Star System in less than a day.
That could only mean that the Human Federation was far stronger than Earth's Super Seminary.
Perhaps, in a sense, the other civilization's overall strength even surpassed that of the Lieyang Civilization.
As far as the Lieyang Civilization was concerned, Earth should have been theirs for the taking. It was meant to be the next home for the people of Lieyang.
With only half a planet left, Lieyang Planet couldn't support many more people.
For nearly ten thousand years, the Lieyang Civilization had repeatedly tried to relocate, only to be thwarted by one problem after another. But that hadn't diminished their desire for Planet Earth.
When the Taotie prepared to invade Earth, Pan Zhen sent Lena there, intending to help Earth Civilization resist the invasion and infiltrate it from within. He had hoped to secure a share of Earth for Lieyang.
But the plan had collapsed before it could even be carried out.
And their own Main God had been lost along with it.
Without their Main God, what would become of the Lieyang Civilization?
Pan Zhen felt a chill run down his back.
"Have you negotiated with this Human Federation?"
"Is there any way to get Lena back from them peacefully?"
The Lieyang Warrior shook his head, his face pale.
"We tried for a long time, sending interstellar messages again and again to contact them. We finally got through to the Human Federation's Ministry of Foreign Affairs..."
"But their diplomats said the Federation doesn't release prisoners of war. If we want something, we can bring a fleet to their doorstep and demand it from their fleet in person."
Their words were blunt, and their meaning was clear.
If you lost something on the battlefield, you'd better have the strength to take it back on the battlefield.
There was no such easy way to get it back just by talking.
Pan Zhen was at a loss. But seeing the Lieyang Warrior hesitate, he immediately sensed something was wrong. "What is it? Is there more?"
"Reporting, General. After learning of the situation, General Xuan Tianji went to Planet Earth in person, hoping to rescue Main God Lena directly..."
"What? Who told him to act so rashly?" Pan Zhen's eyes widened. He was beside himself with frustration.
"General..."
"Get him back at once!"
"But... General Xuan Tianji has already reached Planet Earth."
"..."
Planet Earth.
After nearly a month of consolidation, the entire planet had been transformed.
The once blue planet now shone like a piece of jade.
Several construction ships were stationed in Earth's outer space, and the Star Ring Base encircling the equator was under construction. It was a scene of bustling activity.
Beside the Star Ring Base under construction, a massive celestial engineering structure was nearing completion.
The Museum Celestial Pivot.
Beneath its magnificent space dome.
Several workers were hard at work. One of them used Psionics to set a thousand-ton alloy block onto the ground.
During a break, they chatted freely over their mental channel:
"I heard an alien dropped out of a wormhole yesterday. He said he represented some Lieyang civilization and came to demand a prisoner of war from the Federation."
"He nearly got turned into a pincushion by the automated defense turrets the moment he landed... Coming alone to threaten the Federation? Even those arrogant Sea Stars wouldn't dare do that."
"I don't know what's wrong with the aliens in this universe. Are they all idiots? How do they even dare..."
"I heard this one's some kind of god... Supposedly he can manipulate Stellar Energy."
"Yeah, right. He's just a weakling. His total energy output is barely comparable to that of a twenty-first-ring Psionic. In the Federation, he wouldn't even pass the new-recruit exam. And he calls himself a god."
"I heard this 'god' is locked up in an exhibit case right now. Come on, let's go take a look..."
The minimum qualification for joining the Federation's Psionic Troops was to be a thirty-fifth-ring Psionic.
"Ring" was a measure of restriction level.
Psionics could cause immense physical destruction, and nearly every citizen under the Human Federation's jurisdiction was a Psionic.
The use of Psionics had greatly enriched the entertainment and communication options available to Federation citizens.
But to prevent the abuse of Psionics and the unnecessary costs of managing the consequences,
every Federation citizen was fitted with a Restriction Ring at birth to suppress their Psionics. The greater the restriction, the more destructive power the Psionic could unleash.
Only those serving in the Federation's military could freely remove their Restriction Rings.
This system ensured one thing: the most powerful Psionics were all serving in the Federation's military.
As they chatted, the workers made their way deeper into the Museum Celestial Pivot.
The Museum Celestial Pivot was a vast combination of a space museum and a space zoo.
The main reason they were building this celestial structure in Earth's outer space was to contain all sorts of strange Alien Species.
For now, the exhibits in the Celestial Pivot were still rather sparse, but that problem would soon be taken care of.
In the newly completed exhibit cases,
exhibits such as Sun's Light, Galaxy Power, Nuo Star God of War, Demon Queen, Victorious Fighting Buddha, Xuan Tianji, and Da Bulun were on display.
Crocodile God Soton, who had just been resurrected after his Dark Data Super Gene was decrypted, was also among them.
Of course, the Descendants of Deno who had once hidden on Planet Earth were included as well: Du Kao, Lian Feng, Yu Qin, and the others. They had been made into an entire series of exhibits.
They'd heard that another batch of "Angel Warriors" would soon be sent from United Star for a group exhibit.
At the moment, the only "Angel" in the Celestial Pivot was Sumari, a Male Angel accidentally captured alive on Earth.
The Federation couldn't be bothered to distinguish between Male Angels and female Angels. They were all alien vermin cut from the same mold. In any case, they'd be made into a single series for group display.
These novel and unusual exhibits added a touch of mystery to the entire Museum Celestial Pivot.
Every exhibit was placed in an absolute Stasis Field, unable to escape, preserved forever and untouched by the passage of time. They were displayed in dazzling splendor.
And there were already several Museum Celestial Pivots like this throughout Federation territory, housing many Alien Species captured from another universe.
Behind every series of exhibits lay the end of an entire people...
Before you continue