"Thousands of light-years?"
"Yes, later we observed the starry sky and found that it was indeed more than 5,000 light-years away from that swarm of planets. Moreover, the new planetary system that the old man moved us to had 7 rocky planets and 3 gas giants, and there were no advanced civilizations within hundreds of light-years around. I think he specifically chose it for us. So we quietly developed there for more than 400 years until we reached the Star System-Level Civilization, and only after rebuilding our fleet did we set sail again."
"Minister, did you go back to that swarm planetary system for further observations afterward?"
"Yes, about 300 years ago, when our military technology had reached the advanced stage of the Star System Level, I felt it was necessary to re-explore that planetary system and resolve the doubts that had persisted for many years. So I led my fleet there again. Unfortunately, we encountered that fleet again. This time, our strengths were not much different, and we had a sufficient numerical advantage. The enemy only had more than 10,000 warships, which we wiped out in less than a few hours."
"After consuming them, we immediately attacked the swarm, killing all the insects. Although some insects were of high level, their numbers were small, so we easily wiped out the swarm. Just as we were collecting the fragments of their warships and some insect corpses and preparing to leave, a mysterious fleet attacked us. At that time, we had more than 80 million warships, while the enemy only had a mere hundred."
"They attacked our warships like wolves swarming a flock of sheep. It took me a full 50 million warships to hold them back, while the remaining 30 million fled in panic. Although we escaped, not a single one of the 40 million warships and hundreds of millions of crew members survived. Hundreds of millions of crew members! Do you know how much my heart ached at that time? Many of those children were children I had watched grow up, but not one of them survived. This was one of the few times we suffered such heavy casualties."
"Later, we fled to a new planetary system to rest and regroup, preparing to replenish the number of warships we had lost. Just as our fleet was about to be completed, the fleet of the Xuan Star Civilization appeared, and you know what happened next."
"Minister, this is so complicated, a single Zerg swarm involves three civilizations?"
"Yes, but we found the Patrols with a devastating attack with only a few First-Tier Mother Insect, and now they dare to openly feed the Insect Race."
"Minister, you don't know, but the civilization that Patrols is the mastermind behind feeding the Insect Race. It's Small Star Sector Advanced Civilization called the Fish Horse Star Civilization. Hundreds of years ago, we were attacked by them, and billions of people were killed. By the way, weren't those hundred mysterious warships that attacked you over 30 kilometers long, like giant ears of corn?"
"Yes, could they be warships from the Fish Horse Star Civilization?"
"I see, Minister. I know what's going on. The civilization feeding the swarm is Star System-Level Civilization. They can't beat you, or at best, they can only fight to a draw. The Fish Horse Star warships don't dare to openly annihilate lower-level civilizations, especially near the swarm, where they're even more hesitant. So they called upon the Xuan Star Civilization to act as their henchmen, or rather, the Xuan Star Civilization is also one of their subordinates feeding the swarm."
"Logically, planets like theirs should be under strict surveillance; it's impossible for other civilizations to discover them so easily."
"Minister, feeding the insect swarm is something that the Great Star Region Civilization absolutely forbid. Several Great Star Region Civilization are fighting a bitter battle on the front lines. It's one thing for other civilizations not to help, but who would dare to feed them? Wouldn't that be suicide? Therefore, they can only do it secretly in planetary systems far away from their civilization territories. Let alone using fleets to monitor them, they don't even dare to deploy satellites. Once discovered, they can easily be tracked down. After all, it's not always a low-level civilization that discovers these insect planets. Maybe one day a high-level civilization will pass by, like Mr. Daozi, who definitely knows about it."
What is their purpose in feeding these insects?
"I don't know, but I suspect this purpose must be related to the entire Milky Way, otherwise they wouldn't dare to take such a risk."
"Yes, I think so too. So our mission is still very heavy, and I suspect that the Fish Horse Star Civilization is not the biggest mastermind behind it all."
"Could it be the Great Star Region Civilization? That's impossible, aren't they always fighting against the Insect Race?"
"Regardless of the possibility, we are not yet capable of participating in this matter; we can't even guarantee our own safety."
"Yes, when we were at the Star-Level, we thought that reaching the Star System Level would be enough to protect ourselves. Now that we've stepped halfway into the Small Star Region, we're finding that we're still not powerful enough."
"Therefore, we must continue to carry out the leader's mission!"
"Minister, what do you mean?"
" Xiao Hu, I know this is cruel, and I'm reluctant to part with you all, but now is not the time for us to stay together. The leader's arrangement makes sense. By going separately, we have a greater chance of survival, we will see more, and we will gain a deeper understanding of the universe."
"Minister..."
"Listen to me, we've been venturing into this cosmos for over 1500 years, why have we never received any information from the leader? I don't think it's because the leader's fleet lacks technological strength. Don't forget who Dean Xu Xiaodong is. Although the leader left us with the most top-notch scientific and technological personnel back then, I believe that with Director Xu's abilities, training a new batch of scientific and technological personnel is definitely not a problem."
"It's not that the leader doesn't want to contact us, or that he can't contact us; it's that he doesn't want to restrict us. Do you remember what the leader said back then: 'We'll meet again in 100,000 years.' At the rate of human development, is it really necessary to wait 100,000 years to meet again? Every word the leader said had a profound meaning. He said this simply so that we wouldn't contact him, wouldn't rely on him, and would go ahead and do things on our own. Only in this way can we forge our own path."
"So let's part ways once the technological exchange is complete."
"Minister, you're right. Anyway, we now have a four-dimensional communication network, so we can communicate and meet anytime."
"Well, in the end, we still have to thank you. Your development is excellent and comprehensive, especially the four-dimensional communication network. With this, our crew members won't be sacrificing themselves in large numbers. They dreamed of returning to Earth, but in the end, they never even saw a shadow of Earth."
"Minister, I might search for a quiet planetary system and work my way up to Small Star Sector Civilization. What about you? What are your plans?"
"Me? The original route is no longer viable. Now, with such advanced, unanalyzed technology provided by you, we'll need a long time to digest it. So, I plan to slowly move in the original direction from a position ten thousand light-years from the galactic center. Once I reach the Small Star Sector Civilization, I'll go and meet the Insect Race. We've come this far, and only fighting can make us progress faster. Everyone has gotten used to this kind of life."