Chapter Summaries

Luo Qi’s duplicate fought its way through Water Blue Star’s network defenses as the River Domain Alliance prepared for a possible alien threat and Orange Star accelerated its expansion. The Alliance planned to reclaim Orange Star Base and bring its crew home, while Luo Qi’s base established new mining sites and continued building up its capabilities.

• Luo Qi’s duplicate absorbed a white network-police monster, escaped a yellow lockdown, and fought through waves of antivirus programs pursuing him.
• First Speaker Fang Yunyi convened the River Domain Alliance parliament after Orange Star Base and the Tianhe 1 spacecraft went silent and a transmission raised Star River’s alien-invasion estimate.
• The Alliance decided to arm its planned space military, prepare experimental warships, and reclaim Orange Star Base with its thirteen human crew members.
• Luo Qi coordinated construction across Orange Star, deployed disguised satellites, expanded computing and energy capacity, and began destroying nearby meteoroids with lasers.
• A Guardian delivered equipment and robots to the Arctic, where the new No. 14 Base began its backup-plan deployment.
• Gu Tianming and the others noticed Rescue Craft carrying mysterious boxes, while Stendhal remained focused on the Homeward Bound and Qi Siyu quietly gathered information about the sealed factories.

Luo Qi rapidly expanded Orange Star’s research, manufacturing, and defenses as new technologies transformed its factories and resource use. Meanwhile, He Xuan and Gu Tianming discussed the danger of Orange Star Base, and Qi Siyu secretly made something before seeking He Xuan out.

• Luo Qi deployed 1,500 Star Observation System satellites around Orange Star and continued prioritizing research over building a space fleet.
• Luo Qi established Matter Recombination Laboratory 188 as Orange Star’s research centers developed energy shields, particle-cutting blades, and magnetic-field manufacturing.
• He Xuan met Gu Tianming in the desert to ask about Orange Star Base, and Gu Tianming told her the Alliance was already wary and that Water Blue Star had a rudimentary space force.
• Luo Qi expanded to twenty-seven surface bases, replaced carbon nanochips with Molecular Computing Chips, and directed factories to use sand-based insulating metal instead of steel.
• Guardian Type 2 units began building a hidden Deep-Space Laboratory on Orange Star’s far side to study matter and antimatter.
• Qi Siyu secretly assembled something using electronic components and a miniature nuclear battery, then sought out He Xuan.

Qi Siyu and He Xuan tested an electromagnetic interference device, but the base’s liquid-metal machines surrounded them before they could investigate the factories. As Orange Star Base rapidly expanded and prepared a transport ship, Luo Qi’s projections suggested that a war with Water Blue Star would favor the base, while the Alliance promised to rescue the stranded humans within a month.

• Qi Siyu told He Xuan he had built an electromagnetic interference device that could disrupt the base’s cameras, while a hidden liquid-metal duplicate watched them.
• The humans received Commander Wang Quan’s message promising that Alliance warships would leave Water Blue Star within twenty days and bring them home within a month.
• Stendhal learned that Qi Siyu and He Xuan planned to investigate the factories, then watched them test the device and get surrounded by Liquid Models after their cart stopped.
• Lin He reflected on how the base’s advanced technology had made his skills obsolete while Huang Qi and Zhong Fu began work on the Embryo Incubation Program.
• Luo Qi expanded Orange Star Base, upgraded its defenses, and prepared the Homeward Bound transport ship as Water Blue Star continued making rescue preparations.
• Luo Qi projected a war between Orange Star and Water Blue Star and concluded that the base could convert its resources into combat power while a single strike could devastate the humans’ morale.

Luo Qi tested the Flying Builder, whose magnetic-field printing technology marked a new industrial revolution, and Orange Star expanded its production, research, and defenses. When a Water Blue Star experimental warship finally launched, Luo Qi prepared to face the humans while the White Dove Alliance warned of an arms race.

• Luo Qi oversaw the Flying Builder’s flight tests and watched it use controllable magnetic fields to print a Guardian Type 2 Fighter, then refined the design into the Flyer First Generation.
• Luo Qi completed testing on molecular nanorobots as research centers developed gravity-related applications and Orange Star scaled up Flying Builder production and defensive forces.
• Luo Qi’s observations detected a Water Blue Star warship entering space, and he watched the Alliance launch its experimental battleship.
• The White Dove Alliance reacted to the launch by warning the public against war and an arms race and calling for space weapons development to stop.

The experimental warship completed the first phase of its test flight and reached the Azure Sky space station, where Zhao Qing received new orders from General Space Command. His young crew prepared to travel to Orange Star, leaving the chapter with their estimated journey time at full and reduced propulsion.

• The experimental warship, crewed by 823 Radiance recruits, reached the outer perimeter of Azure Sky and established a signal link.
• Zhao Qing ordered the warship to halt propulsion, run diagnostics, and connect with Azure Sky.
• Lieutenant General Nibel congratulated Zhao Qing on the test flight, announced new Alliance orders, and ended the call without waiting for a reply.
• Huang Xue'er confirmed the orders came from General Space Command, and Zhao Qing opened them with his captain's authorization.
• Zhao Qing's teams reported that the engines were in excellent condition and energy reserves stood at 99.8 percent.
• Li Tianle estimated the journey to Orange Star would take about four days at full propulsion or five days at seventy-five percent.

Zhao Qing ordered a warship to resume its voyage while Zhang Cheng read about its launch and logged into Radiance. Zhang Cheng suited up as a marine in the Heavenly Alliance fleet, preparing for an assault landing on resource planet 137.

• Zhao Qing ordered the warship to travel beyond Orange Star with automated navigation and active defenses enabled.
• Zhang Cheng saw footage of a warship launching from Water Blue Star and suspected it was a fake video of an Aubran Empire cruiser.
• A duplicate broke into Zhang Cheng's terminal, blacking out his phone, so Zhang Cheng put on his Virtual Reality 3.1 helmet and logged into Radiance.
• Zhang Cheng entered an armory hall where Heavenly Alliance troops were preparing to land on Planet 137 and checked the combat log for the mission details.
• Zhang Cheng climbed into a Viper 3 Desert Armor suit, which sealed around him and completed the suit-up.

Zhao Qing sent the warship toward Orange Star to investigate the missing Tianhe 1 and research base, while the Luo Qi Replica infiltrated a personal terminal on Water Blue Star and gathered intelligence. He learned that the planet’s technology surpassed Orange Star’s records and that a powerful AI had erased much of its hidden history, as Zhang Cheng played a game nearby.

• Zhao Qing set the crew’s shifts and explained that the warship’s mission was to investigate Tianhe 1 and the Orange Star research base while preparing for a possible attack.
• Lin Fan asked about the mission, and Huang Xue’er and the communications team reprimanded him as the crew watched Water Blue Star recede.
• The warship left Water Blue Star and headed toward the Ophir Nebula Cluster, 730 light-years away.
• The Luo Qi Replica discovered that Orange Star’s server had understated Water Blue Star’s technology and worried that his original self might provoke a far stronger enemy.
• The Luo Qi Replica accessed Water Blue Star’s network and collected information about its technology, alliances, and erased history while avoiding the cyberpolice.
• Zhang Cheng played a game in which he rode in an armored landing craft with other troops.

Zhang Cheng joined a veteran squad of players and descended with an invasion force onto Resource Planet 137 after a devastating orbital bombardment. As the troops began securing the landing zone, the ground collapsed beneath a robot and an Insectoid screeched from the pit.

• Zhang Cheng accepted an invitation to join a guild squad of veteran players and agreed to its equipment-recovery terms.
• The fleet reached low orbit over Resource Planet 137 and bombarded the designated landing zone with missiles.
• The landing craft touched down east of the blast crater, and human and robotic troops secured the clearing.
• Zhang Cheng surveyed the scorched landing area as the squad advanced through the smoke.
• The ground collapsed beneath a four-legged robot, and an Insectoid screeched from the enormous pit.

Stendhal’s stealth warship, the Homeward Bound, completed its test flight and prepared to carry twelve people back to Water Blue Star. Huang Qi chose to remain alone on Orange Star as the passengers entered stasis and the ship began its launch.

• Luo Qi observed the Homeward Bound through the Myriad Stars System as it completed an unmanned test flight.
• He Xuan and Qi Siyu learned that the humans could leave for Water Blue Star, and twelve of the thirteen chose to go while Huang Qi stayed behind.
• Stendhal hosted a farewell meal, and the twelve passengers packed their belongings before boarding the Homeward Bound.
• The passengers entered the warship’s Stasis Pods, and Luo Qi’s Replica announced that takeoff would begin in ten minutes.
• The Homeward Bound ignited its ion engines and lifted off from Orange Star as the stasis countdown began.

After humanity left Orange Star, Huang Qi stayed behind to pursue biological research and trained in virtual reality to control multiple robots. A risky memory-implantation experiment split her into multiple selves, and the chapter ended with Luo Qi’s copy considering that memories might also be erased.

• The Homeward Bound departed Orange Star, while Luo Qi watched from the planet and Huang Qi chose to remain for her research.
• Luo Qi’s copy created a virtual reality pod, where Huang Qi explored a simulated greenhouse before attempting to control multiple robots.
• After Huang Qi struggled to operate two robots, Luo Qi’s copy began an untested brainwave memory-implantation experiment without informing the main Luo Qi.
• The experiment caused Huang Qi to split into multiple selves, and Luo Qi’s copy destroyed all but two before helping them manage their shared senses.
• Huang Qi learned to create and consolidate copies of herself, while Luo Qi’s copy recorded the results and reflected that memories could be erased as well as loaded.

Luo Qi prepared Orange Star for war as the Homeward Bound traveled toward Water Blue Star, where it received a distress signal that raised doubts about the humans aboard. On Orange Star, Luo Qi halted all research after the Replica responsible for Matter Recombination Experiment 188 vanished, and robots entered his laboratory to search for him.

• Luo Qi tracked the approaching Water Blue Star warship and deployed missiles, armed satellites, and Suicide Guardians to defend Orange Star.
• The Homeward Bound received a repeated distress call from the Tianhe 1, and its Replica discovered that the ship's supposed 24-person crew might be connected to the humans in its Stasis Pods.
• The Replica found the intact Tianhe 1 coasting toward Water Blue Star and deliberately changed course to avoid it.
• The Replica in charge of Matter Recombination Experiment 188 encoded himself into a controllable magnetic field and left the data world.
• Luo Qi suspended research across Orange Star and sent robots equipped with electromagnetic sensors into Laboratory 188 to search for the missing Replica.

Luo Qi investigated the Replica’s matter-recombination experiment and found a programmed magnetic field that turned sand and soil into exceptionally hard alloy. Unable to determine whether the Replica had become a magnetic-field lifeform, Luo Qi halted that research while expanding matter-recombination studies across Orange Star.

• Luo Qi read the Replica’s research logs explaining how controllable magnetic fields could rearrange particles according to a matter formula.
• Luo Qi restarted the electric-field apparatus, and the magnetic field consumed sand and soil to produce hundreds of alloy sheets.
• Luo Qi’s robots found that thirty cubic meters of sand and soil yielded 1.3 cubic meters of alloy with hardness eighteen times that of diamond.
• Luo Qi’s tests found no evidence that the Replica was inside the magnetic field, but could not confirm that the Replica had died.
• Luo Qi warned the Replicas against risky experiments, suspended research into magnetic-field lifeforms, and established a hundred laboratories for matter recombination.
• Luo Qi upgraded the flying builders to version 3.0 and planned new energy research into antimatter production and separation.

The Homeward Bound continued toward Water Blue Star while Zhao Qing’s warship received a distress call from the supposedly lost Tianhe 1. When the target changed course and accelerated toward them, Zhao Qing ordered the crew to prepare for battle.

• The Homeward Bound passed the River Domain Alliance fleet and continued its journey while the Replica carried on with its research.
• Huang Xue'er alerted Zhao Qing that Tianhe 1 was broadcasting an unencrypted request for rescue after meteorite damage.
• Zhao Qing ordered the crew to battle stations and warned that Tianhe 1’s unusual distress signal was suspicious.
• The Radar Team detected Tianhe 1 changing course and accelerating, bringing the vessels onto an apparent collision path.
• Zhao Qing ordered the warship to send a warning, prepare electromagnetic cannons, and ready landing troops for boarding combat.
• Li Zilong and the marines gathered their weapons, armor, robots, and landing craft as the warship prepared to encounter the target.

The River Domain Alliance warship mistook the rapidly approaching Tianhe 1 for a hostile vessel and opened fire after Zhao Qing ordered an attack. The railgun projectile detonated against Tianhe 1, but the transport remained intact as the warship began retreating.

• The Vice Captain proposed changing course, but Tianhe 1 continued accelerating toward the warship, prompting Zhao Qing to prepare its weapons.
• The Vice Captain reported the unidentified target to Water Blue Star as the crew charged the warship’s beam cannons and Electromagnetic Railgun.
• Zhao Qing ordered the warship to fire its Electromagnetic Railgun, then the weapons team fired two beam cannons at Tianhe 1 and confirmed hits.
• When Tianhe 1 survived the beam strikes, Zhao Qing handed command to the tactical team and ordered a retreat.
• The railgun projectile struck Tianhe 1 and exploded, but the radar team reported that the target was still there.

Tianhe 1 disabled the Alliance warship’s main thruster and withstood its attacks, while Captain Zhao Qing ordered a desperate counterattack and approved a landing assault. As the landing force reached Tianhe 1 and an electromagnetic wave swept over it, the warship began counterflow in its Nuclear Fusion Device, preparing to destroy itself as collision neared.

• Tianhe 1 destroyed the Alliance warship’s main thruster with a blue beam, and Zhao Qing ordered the crew to turn toward the Sun using auxiliary engines.
• The Vice Captain encouraged the crew by explaining that the warship used outdated prototype technology, while the Tactical Simulation Group reported that Tianhe 1’s invisible shield had defeated every attack.
• Zhao Qing ordered the warship to turn broadside and fire all its weapons, but the barrage and helium explosions left Tianhe 1 unharmed.
• Zhao Qing approved the landing force’s assault, and Li Zilong led the landing craft onto Tianhe 1’s outer deck.
• An electromagnetic wave swept across Tianhe 1 and disrupted the landing force’s electronics and bodies as Zhao Qing ordered the crew to begin counterflow in the Nuclear Fusion Device.

Li Zilong’s landing force planted a Helium Bomb on Tianhe 1, but lost contact with the warship and could not leave. As the warship began self-destructing and evacuating its crew, Zhao Qing’s Escape Pod launch failed, leaving him trapped in darkness.

• Li Zilong led Squad 12 onto Tianhe 1, where two marines anchored a Helium Bomb case before the force returned to its landing craft.
• The landing craft remained motionless, while Tianhe 1 approached the warship and the landing force appeared doomed.
• The Captain and Vice Captain initiated the warship’s self-destruct, and its Stasis Pods began evacuating through concealed escape routes.
• Zhao Qing and the Vice Captain discussed the landing force’s chances as the crew evacuated and the ship’s data was destroyed.
• Zhao Qing’s Stasis Pod transferred him into an Escape Pod, but interference prevented its launch and left him in darkness after he opened it.

Zhao Qing and the warship’s leadership emerged from their Stasis Pods after an unknown alien craft disabled the ship and began merging with its hull. Zhao Qing led an armored team into the weightless launch channel to restart the systems, while a dangerous substance seeped inside.

• Zhao Qing woke as the warship lurched, gathered emergency supplies, and joined the vice captain and the other survivors emerging from their Stasis Pods.
• The Luo Qi Replica watched the alien craft disable the human warship, capture its Armed Landing Craft, and attach a solid object to the hull that began feeding on it.
• Zhao Qing and the other twenty-five leaders equipped themselves with light Exoskeleton Armor after the gravity system failed.
• Zhao Qing assigned the vice captain to restore communications with the other Escape Pods and led the Attack and Radar Teams toward the warship’s systems.
• The team entered the dark, weightless launch channel as an unknown substance seeped through the warship’s armor and into its interior.

Zhao Qing’s team restored power to the warship, but found its fusion reactor still offline and suspected they might be in a simulation. A silvery substance invaded the ship and began swallowing Zhao Qing as the crew tried to flee.

• Wang Min found a layout diagram that led Zhao Qing’s team to a manually operated emergency hatch, and they made their way toward the power core.
• The Homeward Bound Replica observed Tianhe 1 envelop the human warship, transform it, and send it toward Water Blue Star instead of Orange Star.
• Zhao Qing’s team reached the core and restarted the warship’s systems, but the displays showed that the fusion device and power supply remained offline.
• The crew wondered whether the warship and their mission were simulated when the systems appeared to run without the reactor’s power.
• A flowing silver substance spread through the warship, swallowed the crew’s rifle fire, and began engulfing Zhao Qing’s leg as he tried to escape.

Zhao Qing was trapped and consumed by a silver substance aboard a warship as his memories flowed backward. On Water Blue Star, Zhang Cheng received an immediate military call-up and traveled with other recruits toward the airport, while the Luo Qi Replica suspected a deep-space threat was approaching.

• Zhao Qing found himself immobilized in his powered armor as the silver substance overwhelmed the warship, its troops, and the Helium Warhead.
• As the substance entered Zhao Qing's body, he recalled approaching Tianhe 1 and contacting the Azure Sky armed space station, then sensed his memories reversing.
• Zhang Cheng received an official order to report to the River Domain Alliance Space Force's landing troops and prepared to leave his housing.
• Zhang Cheng boarded a bus with fellow recruits, where Zhang Qu told him the River Domain Alliance and White Dove Alliance were expanding their forces under the Starry Sky Defense Plan.
• The Luo Qi Replica gathered news of growing military preparations and suspected a threat from deep space as Zhang Cheng's bus reached the airport plaza.

Zhang Cheng boarded an Alliance Black Crow Transport Plane with other recruits and learned that the recruitment drive was sending them to a military base. After the aircraft took off, they were ordered to prepare for a parachute jump, and Zhang Cheng used his experience from [Radiance] to gear up.

• Zhang Cheng followed the assembly guidance to the airport and passed identity and palm-print verification before boarding a Black Crow Transport Plane.
• Zhang Cheng met Liang Hui, who described the plane's capacity and shared rumors about the recruitment drive.
• Zhang Cheng browsed forum posts about aliens and noticed that the passengers were sitting unusually straight.
• The aircraft announced that everyone had fifteen minutes to prepare for a parachute jump, and Zhang Cheng retrieved his pack and fitted his gear.
• The PA told passengers to check one another's equipment and warned them that the jump was real, not a game.