Meanwhile, somewhere in the Emerald Star Cluster, a small fleet was slowly sailing. The markings on the ship's outer armor indicated that this force belonged to "Ancient Snake," the same fleet that Lu Qi had led at the orientation meeting when he exposed Gaud's superpowers.
Lu Qi stood with his arms crossed in front of the bridge window, gazing at the starry sky outside. Beside him stood another neutral Beyond Grade A, another big shot in the black market.
"How much longer until we reach the stargate at the edge of the star cluster?" Lu Qi asked without turning his head.
"Chief, it's probably another day's journey," the captain in the distance hurriedly replied.
Upon hearing this, the neutral Beyond Grade A player shook his head and said helplessly:
"I feel like I can't catch up with Gaud anymore, Lu Qi. Do you really need to spar with *Tu*shu?"
"I just want to find out exactly what his abilities are."
"Sigh, they're a direct descendant of the Empire; they can simply refuse. Do you dare to Charge the Imperial fleet and force them to take action?"
"Hmph, I'll give it a try."
Lu Qi pursed his lips, adopting a determined and inquisitive attitude.
After the welcome meeting, he took his fleet and a familiar Beyond Grade A escort, and followed Gaud's route, chasing after him, trying to intercept Gaud for a sparring match.
He did this not merely to satisfy his own thirst for knowledge. As a spy for a supercluster civilization, he received a secret order from higher-ups to find a way to force Gaud to take action and confirm whether the other party's ability was [Energy Manipulation]. That's why he relentlessly tracked Gaud.
The Supercluster civilization generally didn't want to take action against Gaud, but this kind of probing was still within acceptable limits; they all wanted to figure out Gaud's true capabilities.
Just then, the spaceship's radar suddenly went off.
"Attention! There is a spatial anchoring area ahead. You cannot maintain warp mode. Please stop warping or detour..."
The two of them were taken aback for a moment.
Spatial anchoring areas generally represent trouble, and neutral Beyond Grade A who frequent the black market generally dislike getting involved in unnecessary trouble.
Just as Lu Qi was about to order the fleet to bypass them, the spaceship suddenly received a communication.
"This is the Crimson Dynasty Exploration Army. We are conducting a temporary inspection of all personnel passing through. Please stop your ships immediately. I repeat, please stop your ships immediately..."
Upon hearing this, Lu Qi had no choice but to stop the fleet. Outside the window, he saw a defensive line of Imperial warships, seemingly blocking off a large area ahead.
Three Imperial ships immediately approached and activated various detection devices to scan Lu Qi's fleet.
At the same time, a projection resembling an Imperial officer appeared on the communication screen, looking at Lu Qi and the other person, and said expressionlessly:
"Please present your identification code, spacecraft flight certificate, crew list, and flight log..."
Although Lu Qi was unhappy, his true identity was a sensitive matter, so he had no choice but to ask the captain to cooperate. In his view, there was nothing to hide.
The imperial officer began his inspection and discovered that Lu Qi and the person beside him were both Beyond Grade A. His expression changed slightly, and a strong look of suspicion flashed in his eyes. He pressed for an answer:
What are you doing here? Why are you passing through this area? What is your destination?
"The Empire has to interfere with this too? This is one of the routes to the border stargate station. Is it strange that I'm passing through here?" Lu Qi frowned. "But what are you doing, sealing off this area and checking for?"
"Find someone." The imperial officer was unwilling to say more and continued to search intently.
Just then, he suddenly noticed that Lu Qi's logbook showed a record of tracking Gaud. His pupils contracted instantly, and he shouted in an unquestionable tone:
"Everyone, disembark the spaceship immediately for further inspection!"
"That's a bit much, we were just passing by." The neutral Beyond Grade A player next to him frowned.
"I'll repeat myself: leave the spaceship immediately for further inspection! Otherwise, we will enforce the order!"
Without a word, the Imperial fleet behind them activated its weapon array, with cannons aimed at Lu Qi's fleet, ready to fire at the slightest provocation.
"Are you threatening me?" Lu Qi immediately became angry.
The empire is vast and powerful, and the officers show him no respect whatsoever, which is bad enough. But now they're pushing their luck, taking a trivial matter as an excuse to try and control me, a Beyond Grade A officer. Do they really think Beyond Grade A are easy to mess with?!
As a neutral Beyond Grade A, he certainly couldn't afford to offend the Empire, but he didn't believe that any Tom, Dick, or Harry of the Empire had the right to disrespect him. Besides, with the Beyond Grade A Association behind him, he wasn't without support anymore!
"Beep beep beep..."
Just as Lu Qi was about to lose his temper, everyone's communicators on the ship vibrated.
Lu Qi frowned, suppressing his anger for the moment, and took out his communicator. Only then did he see the Empire's forced pop-up announcement, and his expression changed drastically.
Gaud has disappeared?!
Who did this? They're incredibly audacious!
Lu Qi's body jolted, and he immediately realized something was wrong.
Wait a minute, it seems he's been tracking Gaud service provider), wanting to challenge him to a duel...
If Gaud hadn't run into trouble, this behavior would have been normal and wouldn't have aroused the Empire's hostility. But now it's different. Gaud has had an accident, and everyone connected to him can't escape suspicion. Even though he was just chasing after him and didn't even encounter Gaud, he's still a suspect in the Empire's eyes, and they won't let go of any clues!
No wonder the Imperial officers had that attitude!
Lu Qi knew the gravity of the situation; now was not the time to worry about whether people respected him or not. He had to find a way to clear his name.
If he dared not cooperate with the Empire's work, he had no doubt that the empire, in its fury, would vent its anger on him; now was not the time to be defiant.
Lu Qi's arrogance immediately subsided. He dared not vent his anger and could only reluctantly tell everyone to leave the spaceship and obediently cooperate with the Empire's inspection, secretly harboring resentment.
--Who is this damn bastard who committed this crime and ruined my life?!
"What? Gaud is missing? Someone really attacked him?!"
President Bader of the Federation of Light abruptly stood up from his chair, looking completely bewildered.
Holy crap, are there really idiots?!
No, this isn't an idiot, it's a madman!
The chief council elder was also astonished and uncertain, "Who on earth is so bold as to actually attack the Empire's direct line? This would shake up the entire situation, create a huge uproar, and cause trouble for everyone!"
Bader frowned and said in a deep voice, "The Arcane are like us; if we don't move, they won't act recklessly... So it's most likely the Super Star Cluster Alliance that did it?!"
"That's right, it must be the Supercluster." The chief council elder nodded.
Before the incident, the two didn't think the Super Star Team would dare to take action, but when it actually happened, in their view, excluding themselves, the only possible culprit was the Super Star Team!
What audacity! Today they dare to attack the Empire's elite forces; will they dare to attack their own elite forces tomorrow?
"The Super Star Cluster has grown too big for its britches. It seems their past Tragedy of the Pinnacle the peak has left them with a grudge. I think it's time to teach them a lesson again..."
Bader's eyes flickered.
The empire suffered the loss, and he was secretly pleased, having weakened it without lifting a finger and reaping the benefits. On the other hand, the empire represented the ruling civilization, and as a member of its Glory, he couldn't help but feel a sense of shared indignation when his ruling authority was challenged. These two feelings were not contradictory.
The chief council elder pondered for a moment, his expression darkening slightly, and said, "Although we are not the murderers, we possess High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter and are most adept at surprise attacks and assassinations. We will most likely become one of the Empire's suspected targets."
"Hmm, that's a problem, which is why we need to express our willingness to help the Empire investigate the case," Bader said thoughtfully. "However, we're not the only ones with this teleportation ability. Who knows if the Mechanic Emperor has stolen this technology? Also, Black Star has a similar single-unit teleportation mech; he might also be..."
"The Mechanic Emperor is a suspect, but he's still Glory ally. If he did it, we also bear responsibility. As for Black Star..." The Chief Council Elder chuckled, "Heh, as long as the Imperial high command isn't out of their minds, they wouldn't suspect Black Star, would they?"
"That's true."
Bader shook his head helplessly.
"Who the hell did this?!"
The leader of the Star Arc Civilization was stunned, as if struck by lightning.
Although this was something he wanted to do, the leader of the Star Arc Civilization knew that no matter who attacked Gaud, the Super Star Cluster Alliance would be the Empire's primary suspect.
This is pushing them into a fire pit!
For a moment, the leader of the Star Arc Civilization was in a state of utter confusion, with one suspect after another flashing through his mind.
"It wasn't me. Could it be another supercluster civilization? Who would have such a motive... Could it be Modo?!"
The Modo withdrew early, and the war situation was no longer their concern. Therefore, the Modo were not afraid to do such a thing. It cannot be ruled out that they had the motive of dragging down the Super Star Cluster Alliance. They were not worried about scarcity but about inequality. The Modo had lost hope of competition, so they wanted the other Supercluster civilizations to fail with them?!
The Star Arc Civilization leader's mind raced.
Or perhaps this is a scheme by the Glory and the Arcane, designed to stifle the Empire's talent and then frame the Super Star Cluster Alliance, making us the scapegoats?!
Even more so, this was the Empire's own conspiracy to make Gaud disappear, frame the Super Star Group, use this as an excuse to give its direct subordinates a reason to participate in the war, and use this as a pretext to reignite the Tragedy of the Pinnacle and massacre the Super Star Group's Beyond Grade A members... Otherwise, how could things have happened so suddenly, and how could Gaud have offered no resistance at all!
The leader of the Star Arc Civilization had an uncertain expression, feeling as if he had seen through everything.
This is a conspiracy against the Super Star Cluster Alliance!
These Three Universal Civilizations have never given up their desire to destroy us!
"We're too passive; we have to do something! We can't let the Three Universal Civilizations fabricate stories like this!"
The leader of the Star Arc Civilization gritted his teeth.
Trying to frame us? We're not naive; we need to find a scapegoat that will leave the Three Universal Civilizations speechless!
A series of figures flashed through my mind, one of which suddenly stopped.
He has no lack of motive, possesses perfect abilities, is highly suspicious, and can further alienate this person from the Three Universal Civilizations...
It's you I choose, Manison!
In just a few days, the Empire's announcement swept across all star systems like a hurricane, causing a sensation in countless regions!
Some regional terrorist organizations, lacking any sense of their own limitations, brazenly claimed responsibility for the incident. However, less than a day later, the Imperial Fleet arrived and Thunder wiped them out, leaving no survivors!
Almost everyone realized that the Crimson Dynasty was utterly enraged this time!
Many forces fell silent, keenly sensing the impending storm.
It seems like things are about to change...
The Beyond Grade A Association also held an emergency meeting to discuss how to handle the matter.
In the large round table conference room on Planet Fein, numerous Beyond Grade A individuals gathered for a heated discussion.
"How could this happen? It's so sudden!"
"It's only been a few days, and Gaud has already... sigh!"
"Anyone with that kind of power is most likely someone within the association. Whoever did it, step forward!"
The crowd was filled with righteous indignation.
Although Gaud was a close associate, his plight resonated with everyone. Every now and then, people would turn to look at Gaud's empty seat, their faces showing a sense of shared sorrow.
The venue was as noisy as a market when the Sun Hunter spoke, his thunderous voice drowning out the entire room.
Everyone turned to look, and saw him staring at Manison with a suspicious expression, saying in a deep voice:
"Mechanic Emperor, tell me honestly, did you do it?"
"Nonsense! I think you've all been brainwashed by Black Star! I'm the president, how could I possibly lead the way in breaking the rules!" Manison's face twitched, enraged.
However, the crowd remained skeptical, continuing to scrutinize Manison.
Han Xiao's persistent efforts to stir up trouble have subtly sown seeds of doubt in everyone's minds.
Seeing this, Manison's forehead veins bulged, and he felt a deep sense of injustice, as if a snowstorm had struck in June.
No matter how he explained, he couldn't clear his name; these Beyond Grade A members still suspected him... and this situation was all caused by that brat Black Star!
Manison turned and glared fiercely at Han Xiao, wishing he could fight Han Xiao in public and make the world darken and the sun and moon lose their light.
At this moment, Clottey slowly stood up, expressionless, her tone icy:
"Regardless of who among you is responsible for Gaud's disappearance, we will find you and make you understand the consequences of provoking the Empire!"
As he spoke, he glanced at Manison indifferently, his meaning clear without a word.
The Three Universal Civilizations civilizations, usually silent, all solemnly declared their determination to capture the murderer, with many glancing occasionally at the Mechanic Emperor seated at the head of the table.
Manison's expression grew increasingly grim.
However, Sorokin's gaze toward Manison grew increasingly tender.
If the occasion hadn't been inappropriate, Sorokin would have almost given Manison a thumbs up and exclaimed, "What a brave man!"
Just then, Han Xiao, who hadn't said much, cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention, and then slowly began to speak:
"Gaud had already joined the association before the incident and was one of our members, under the association's protection. Now that he's in trouble, this is not only a provocation against the Empire but also a challenge to the association's authority. We have an obligation to find the True Culprit; it is the association's duty!"
Therefore, I suggest that the association immediately announce a thorough investigation into this matter, with all Beyond Grade A searching for clues and issuing a cosmic Pursuit order!
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone cheered, whether sincerely or not.
"The vice president is right, the association cannot stand idly by!"
"How dare you touch our people? Do you think we're all just decorations?!"
Han Xiao's proposal was exactly what most people wanted to hear. Some worried that if they didn't express their opinion, the Empire would take retaliatory action like it did with the Tragedy of the Pinnacle, threatening their lives.
Now Han Xiao is advocating that the association provide assistance, which can somewhat divert hatred and prevent being targeted by others.
Moreover, protecting the safety of its members is one of the association's responsibilities, and most people are happy to see the association mobilize, as it means they will receive similar treatment in the future.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the arena was as enthusiastic as if Han Xiao had raised his arms and called out, and many people had responded.
Clottey glanced at Han Xiao, her expression softening slightly. She nodded in acknowledgment and sat down again.
He also wanted to seek the association's help, since so many Beyond Grade A individuals constituted a very powerful force, giving them a greater chance of finding the True Culprit.
Black Star, being an ally of the Empire, showed great respect and immediately decided to assist. Seeing this, Clottey became even more convinced that the Empire's strategy was correct.
--Letting Black Star take control of the Association is definitely a good thing for the Empire.
Han Xiao observed everyone's reactions, maintaining a serious expression, but secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
This was the effect he wanted: the various factions suspected each other, unaware that the True Culprit was right before their eyes...
He has completely muddied the waters himself.