The Canchuan system lay midway along the Cross Nebula trade route. In the strictest sense, however, it was not particularly blessed by nature. It had no naturally habitable planets, and the few terrestrial planets with solid crusts but thin atmospheres offered little value for colonization. In the Milky Way, star systems like this were, quite literally, as numerous as grains of sand in the Ganges.
But its location was exceptionally convenient for travel.
Three major routes spanning the entire Spiral Cross Nebula converged here, then immediately branched out again. Thanks to its outstanding natural advantages as a transport hub, it was only natural that the system would become a vital crossroads.
Naturally, it had also become one of the universe's most prosperous trading hubs. If not for the vast stretches of lawless "open sea" within the Spiral Cross Nebula itself, it might even have become a strategic battleground.
Yet it was precisely the balance of power between the two great hegemons that made Canchuan one of the few free-trade systems in the universe whose sovereignty was administered by the Galactic Civilization Council while its governance remained autonomous. After several centuries of development, this system with little natural wealth had grown to a permanent population of over ten billion. During a boom in trade, the number could easily double or even triple once visitors and merchants were included.
Most of these people lived in orbital cities above stable terrestrial planets, and these vast orbital structures naturally served as commercial ports and warehouses as well.
Merchant sailors were often among the ordinary workers with the greatest purchasing power. Wherever they gathered, enormous business opportunities were sure to follow.
So the Alliance began expanding the orbital cities, building giant complexes that combined shopping, entertainment, and leisure. They even considered constructing a Universal Amusement