9: "Our engineering vessel has been destroyed."

(Some say there are too many side characters; this will no longer be the case after chapter 49.)

(There was no outline before chapter 50, so I wrote as I went.)

...Building a base in reality doesn't require a tiered upgrade system like in games.

After the main base construction was completed, the night lamp's mission rewards were issued.

Mm, 300 proxima centauri coin + one encrypted technical file, secured!

After the joint production line was in place, Xi Hai checked his resource reserves.

Huh? How did they increase instead?

He opened the night lamp to check.

Oh, there's even a 'Main Mission' module.

His resources were automatically claimed as he completed base construction.

(Main Missions: Similar to a beginner's guide in The setting, this module offers resources and electronic currency as rewards for reaching certain milestones in base/fleet construction.)

Seeing those resources, Xi Hai had a sudden thought and asked,

"night lamp, can every Pathfinder base claim main mission construction rewards?"

"Sorry, the 'Missions' module only recognizes bases that come with the night lamp system."

"Then how do system-internal bases acquire resources later on? Do they share with self-built bases?"

"Every time mining is completed, the acquired resources will be stored in the real-world base and then stored again in the system warehouse."

"Stored twice?"

"That's one way to understand it."

Xi Hai instantly understood the mechanism.

Doesn't that mean my mining efficiency is double?

"What if I withdraw resources from the system base and then deposit them again offline?"

Wouldn't that be a perpetual motion machine?

"Resources in the system warehouse can only be used for upgrading the system's own base and for constructing warships within it; they cannot be withdrawn."

The night lamp mercilessly shattered Xi Hai's fantasy.

Alright, then I'll just honestly go mining.

"Then build 20 X-8 engineering ship. Let's start collecting resources from the surrounding asteroid clusters as soon as possible."

"Command accepted."

"Currently under construction."

...On the opposite side of the material universe, there exists a region called the 'Void'.

Its relationship with the material universe is somewhat like that of an 'inner world' and an 'outer world'.

However, compared to the material universe, the laws governing the Void are far more complex.

Within the Void, both time and space operate under a peculiar logic, while also connecting to the material universe in some strange ways.

Taking one step in the Void might mean traversing a galaxy in the material universe; sailing for a week in the Void might paradoxically mean moving back a few steps in the material universe, with only a second having passed.

Tens of thousands of years ago, during the "golden age," humanity partially deciphered the laws of the Void, establishing star marker navigation routes within it to connect vast territories.

But now, after several 'Great Decay,' for a fragmented human civilization,

Let alone building Void routes,

Most human factions, without relying on ancient star markers left over from the "golden age," can't even dream of detecting the Void.

Human civilization is merely clinging to its past glory, barely surviving.

And this struggle for survival won't last much longer—

Ancient creations are accelerating their decay, and those who know history are gradually fading away.

Most existing Void routes have severely exceeded their service life and are beginning to experience various malfunctions.

For example—

Near a cosmic dust cloud, a fleet with black and white livery was stopped, on standby.

"System anomaly, restarting."

On the flagship's bridge, a man wearing a white headscarf looked at the red-lit control panel and pressed his hand to his forehead, saying,

"Where did this bring us?"

The person next to him, however, was calm, even patting his shoulder.

"Don't worry, Salman,"

"The navigation team is comparing star charts; they should pinpoint our location soon."

"Forcibly leaving the Void route, we should be lucky that only the electronic system malfunctioned this time."

The man called Salman shrugged and replied,

"You certainly have a good attitude, Samir."

"How come I don't remember encountering such turbulence when we exited midway before?"

"I really hope our carefully prepared operation for the 'Sacred Goal' doesn't fall through."

"This time, the Second Emissary even sent someone to get us two discontinued items."

Just then, the equipment restarted, successfully reconnected, and the ship's communicators began reporting one after another.

"Our current position has been confirmed: the region between planet 6 and planet 5 in the Ursa Major V12.22 star system."

"Specific relative coordinates (7888.876, 25368.129, 27663.870)."

After hearing the location report, Samir smugly punched Salman on the shoulder.

"Hear that? At least we made it to the target star system..."

"Let's go, Captain."

The red light on the control panel had vanished. Salman's lips moved, but in the end, he only let out a sigh.

Then, he adjusted his headscarf and ordered,

"Depart!"

"Proceed to the designated position!"

"All fleet, full speed ahead!"

————————————

"Main battleship production line in position."

On Xi Hai's side, the smoking production line finally finished producing the last X-8 small engineering ship.

By this time, Xi Hai had entered the Pathfinder base's office area, while Xu Ling had been transferred to the base's medical area.

Xu Chang had finished his immersive learning half an hour ago and was now accompanying Xu Ling in the medical area.

This guy is a bit too fast, Xi Hai mused, turning his gaze towards the window.

The newly built X8 was docking.

According to the night lamp, setting ships actually carry primary Centralized Control Shipboard AIs that can autonomously execute simple commands.

Crew members are mostly there for contingencies and for complex on-site operations and command.

However, repetitive flights like mining are perfectly fine for AI.

So, the first 19 X-8s had already departed for the nearest mining area right after rolling off the line.

Once this first batch of resources is sufficient, I'll gradually replace the mining ships with medium and large mining ships... Suddenly, the night lamp chimed.

"Operation initiated."

"Our fleet is engaged in combat."

"Our engineering ship has been destroyed."

"??????????"