330: Countdown to the Ruins and the "Starlight Resonance Network"

Having broken through the Star Devourers' encirclement, the "hope", "Azure Eye-7", and "Hidden Dragon" sailed at full speed through the sea of stars for three full standard days. It wasn't until the rear sensors confirmed no signs of pursuit that they dared to slow down slightly and enter a relatively secluded asteroid belt for temporary rest and reorganization.

On the bridge of the "hope", Wen Youyi looked at the star map displayed on the main screen—the point of light representing "Guixu" was now clearly visible. Based on their current speed, they would arrive in eight days at most. This should have been heartening news, but the atmosphere on the bridge was so heavy it felt like it could be wrung out like water.

The reason was simple: the cost.

"Battle damage statistics are out." Senior Brother Zhang adjusted the 'glasses' on the bridge of his nose, which were made from special polished crystals—this was a psionic auxiliary calculation Magical Artifact he had designed himself, with subtle data streams flowing across the lenses. "The shield generator of the 'hope' is overloaded and needs at least five days for a full repair. During this period, shield strength can only be maintained at 60% of its normal value. Regarding the weapon Systems, one-third of the energy circuits in the 'High-Frequency Purification Pulse' array are burned out. With insufficient stocks of repair Materials, we can only prioritize repairing half of them."

He paused, his voice dropping slightly: "Regarding personnel... forty-seven lightly injured, twelve seriously injured, and... three killed in action."

Silence filled the bridge. Everyone was familiar with those three names—they were all veteran team members who had sacrificed themselves during the Gravel Belt delaying action and this breakout, brothers who had followed Wen Youyi all the way from the Ranch World.

Zhao Iron Pillar slammed a fist onto the control console, leaving a shallow dent in the metal surface. His eyes were red, and he gritted his teeth without saying a word.

Wen Youyi closed his eyes and took a deep breath. As the navigator, he knew better than anyone that sacrifice was inevitable on this path of resistance. But every time he heard such news, his heart still felt as if it were being cut by a blunt knife.

"The remains... preserve them properly," he said, his voice a bit raspy. "When we reach Guixu, find a place where they can see the starry sky and bury them."

"Yes," Senior Brother Zhang replied in a low voice.

In the docking bay on the other side, the situation was also not optimistic. Luo Chen's "Azure Eye-7" reconnaissance ship was too severely damaged and no longer capable of long-distance flight. After an emergency assessment, Wen Youyi and Luo Chen jointly decided to transfer all usable equipment, supplies, and personnel from "Azure Eye-7" to the "hope". As for the hull itself... "We can only abandon it." Luo Chen stroked the bulkhead of his warship, his eyes full of reluctance. This ship had been with him for over a hundred years, accompanying him on countless reconnaissance missions, and now it was to be abandoned in this unfamiliar Star Domain.

His daughter, Lia, stood nearby. This blunt young female scout also had red eyes now, but she stubbornly tilted her head up, refusing to let her tears fall: "Father, once we defeat the Star Devourers, we'll build a better one in the future!"

Luo Chen smiled and patted his daughter's shoulder: "Right, we'll build a better one."

The transfer work lasted an entire day. The already cramped space on the "hope" became even more crowded, but no one complained. The newly joined Sky Patrol crew members quickly integrated into the collective—they were all civilizations threatened by the Star Devourers, making them natural allies.

The technical exchange between Aila and Luo Chen was even more fruitful. The Sky Patrol civilization's accumulation in interstellar navigation, stealth technology, and spatial perception far exceeded that of "Spark," while "Spark's" energy purification, neural networks, and "unconventional" tactical thinking also opened Luo Chen's eyes.

"You use a 'Cooperative' model to manage the interior of the starship, making every crew member both an executor and a participant in decision-making... This concept is very peculiar, but the results seem good." Luo Chen looked at the various "neighborhoods" inside the "hope" connected through the neural network. Those silver-white light paths were like the starship's blood vessels, flowing with information and energy.

"Wen Youyi says this is called a 'Decentralized Distributed System'." Aila was now proficient in using these strange terms from the Ranch World. "Each node has a certain degree of autonomy, yet the whole is coordinated by a core protocol. This way, even if some nodes are damaged, the System won't immediately collapse."

"A very clever design." Luo Chen nodded. "We Sky Patrol rely too much on central intelligence. Once the flagship is destroyed, the entire fleet falls into chaos. This... is something we must learn from you."

Wen Youyi, however, was not participating in the technical discussion at the moment. He had locked himself in the captain's quarters, with the master key and a pile of Jade Slips covered in calculations spread out before him.

He was calculating the odds: arriving at Guixu in eight days, it was estimated to take three to five days to find and acquire the sixth fragment. And then what? The seventh fragment was in the core mothership of the Star Devourers' Royal Court. How were they supposed to get it? Rely on the "hope" for a single-ship raid? That would be suicide.

"Programmer Wen Youyi, oh Wen Youyi," he rubbed his temples and mocked himself, "back then when you wrote code and hit a bug, you could debug it. Now, how do you fix this 'Universe-level bug'?"

Just then, there was a soft knock on the door of the quarters.

"Come in."

The door slid open, and Aila and Luo Chen entered. Aila was carrying the soothing tea specially made by Mu Wanqing—brewed from Starflowers and Concentration Grass, it was highly effective for recovering Mental Energy. Luo Chen was holding a data crystal plate.

"Still worrying about the last fragment?" Aila placed the tea on the table, glancing at the Jade Slips covered in complex calculations.

Wen Youyi nodded, not hiding it: "We must obtain Guixu, but the Royal Court... that's the Star Devourers' headquarters. With our current strength, going there would be like 'throwing a meat bun at a dog'—we'd never come back."

"So we can't force our way in; we must use wit." Luo Chen sat down opposite him and pushed the data crystal plate toward Wen Youyi. "This is the intelligence Aila and I just compiled—regarding the internal structure of the Star Devourers' Royal Court."

Wen Youyi's spirits lifted, and he immediately activated the crystal plate.

The holographic image unfolded, revealing a Star Domain Structure Map so complex it was dizzying. It wasn't a "planet" or "base" in the conventional sense, but a massive System composed of dozens of terraformed planets, hundreds of space fortresses, and countless fleet anchorages. All facilities were connected via a dark-gold energy network, with a giant, constantly rotating dark-gold vortex at the center—that was the core of the Star Devourers' Royal Court, where the "Dominator" resided.

"This intelligence... how did you get it?" Wen Youyi was shocked. This level of detail was practically like an internal design blueprint.

"Part of it comes from the Sky Patrol civilization's accumulation of observations over tens of thousands of years, and part..." Luo Chen looked at Aila, "comes from an infiltration mission by Aila's brother, Jialuo, before he died. That was thirty years ago. Jialuo piloted the 'Green Scale', disguised as a merchant ship captured by the Star Devourers, and successfully entered the outskirts of the Royal Court. After transmitting this data... he lost contact."

Aila's hands trembled slightly, but she suppressed her emotions: "The intelligence my brother exchanged his life for must be put to use now."

Wen Youyi felt a surge of respect. He carefully studied the structural map, his programmer's instinct allowing him to quickly grasp key information: energy flow, weak points in defense nodes, the rotation patterns of patrol fleets... "Look here." He pointed to a small dot on the periphery of the Royal Court's core area. "The label says this is an 'Abandoned Energy Transit Station', but looking at its position and connection lines... this is simply a backdoor!"

Luo Chen nodded: "We discovered that as well. Jialuo's report back then speculated that this might be a 'legacy' left behind when the Star Devourers annexed some technological civilization during their expansion. Due to energy System incompatibility, they abandoned it. But the basic structure is still there, and... it's not connected to the Royal Court's main defense network."

A light flashed in Wen Youyi's eyes: "In other words, if we can quietly reach this transit station, it might be possible to use it as a springboard to infiltrate the interior of the Royal Court?"

"Theoretically, yes," Aila took over. "But there are three problems: First, how do we reach that transit station without alerting the Star Devourers? It's less than one light-minute from the Royal Court's core, and the patrol density is extremely high. Second, although the transit station is abandoned, it surely has a basic alarm System. Third, even if we get in, how do we find and retrieve the seventh fragment? If that thing is truly inside the 'Dominator's' body, we can't even get close."

Three problems, each harder than the last.

Wen Youyi stared at the structural map, his brain working at high speed. Those complex lines gradually turned into a massive network topology map in his eyes—just like the distributed server clusters he had designed in his past life.

"If we..." he spoke slowly, "don't send the entire ship, but instead send a 'small squad'?"

"A small squad?"

"Yes." Wen Youyi's thoughts became clearer as he spoke. "The 'Hidden Dragon' has undergone multiple modifications, and its stealth capabilities have reached the limit. Combined with Aila's understanding of the Star Devourers' reconnaissance patterns, we should be able to avoid the outer patrols. As for the transit station's alarm System... don't forget what my background is."

A programmer's greatest strength was finding System loopholes, writing exploits, and bypassing backend detection.

"You mean, hack into their System?" Aila's eyes lit up.

"To be precise, it's 'unauthorized access using known vulnerabilities'." Wen Youyi's professional habits kicked in, and he laughed after saying it. "Cough, anyway, that's what I mean. The Star Devourers' technical System originates from the Star People, and we have the master key—that's the highest-level authorization key. As long as I can physically access their network, I'm confident I can get a temporary pass."

Luo Chen listened, stunned. "Are you people from the Ranch World... all so good at this kind of 'asymmetric confrontation'?"

"Forced into it," Wen Youyi gave a bitter smile. "To resist under the surveillance of the spirit net, without a bit of hacker spirit, we would have been harvested long ago."

He stood up and paced in the room. "The biggest problem is actually the third one—how to extract the fragment from within the 'Dominator'. If that thing really is the core energy source of the Star Devourers, it will definitely be heavily guarded. Perhaps the 'Dominator' itself is a super combat unit."

Aila suddenly spoke up. "Maybe... we don't need to 'extract' it."

Wen Youyi and Luo Chen looked at her simultaneously.

"Do you remember the reaction of the γ-3 Mothership?" Aila said. "When the master key approached, the 'Echo' inside it was awakened, creating a conflict with the Star Devourers' commands. If the seventh fragment is indeed inside the 'Dominator', and since the 'Dominator' is the oldest Star Devourer unit, the 'Echo' within it might be stronger and more complete than that of the γ-3..."

Wen Youyi understood. "You mean, we don't take the fragment out, but use the master key to 'activate' it directly inside the 'Dominator'? To make the 'Dominator' fall into chaos or even... turn against them?"

"The probability is low, but it's worth a try," Aila said. "At least it's more realistic than trying to seize a fragment by force."

The three discussed for a long time, and a plan so bold it bordered on madness gradually took shape.

The core idea was: split into two groups.

The first group, "hope", would lead the main force to Guixu. On one hand, they would obtain the sixth fragment; on the other—more importantly—they would draw the attention of the main Star Devourer force. According to Luo Chen's intelligence, the Star Devourers would never allow any power to enter Guixu, as there are things there that even they fear.

The second group, consisting of Wen Youyi, Aila, and a small crack team, would pilot the "Hidden Dragon", carrying the master key, and secretly head to the abandoned transit station on the outskirts of the Star Devourer Royal Court to attempt to infiltrate and execute the "fragment activation" plan.

"The risk of this plan..." Luo Chen took a deep breath. "I optimistically estimate the survival rate of the 'Hidden Dragon' squad to be no more than 20%."

"Then let's turn that 20% into 100%." Wen Youyi grinned. "The first rule for programmers: never believe the estimated success rate given by the System; those are just algorithms meant to scare you."

With the plan set, the next step was the preparation work.

The "Hidden Dragon" needed a deep modification—installing a "Phase-Shift Cloaking Device" extracted from Sky Patrol technology. This thing could allow the ship to enter a "semi-dimensional stealth" state for a short time, making it almost undetectable by conventional means, but its energy consumption was extremely high, and it could only be maintained for fifteen minutes.

Wen Youyi began writing a special "intrusion protocol"—based on the energy signature of the master key, it simulated the identification signals of high-level Star Devourer units. This task was like forging an access card; the technical difficulty wasn't high, but obtaining the accurate "encryption algorithm" was hard. Fortunately, with the data fragments left by Jialuo provided by Aila, plus the "high-level authorization attributes" of the master key itself, after three days of tireless attempts, Wen Youyi actually managed to create a barely usable "temporary pass generator."

Regarding personnel, Wen Youyi originally only wanted to take Aila—she knew the Star Devourers best, and the two of them worked well together. But Zhao Iron Pillar flatly refused to agree.

"Boss, don't even think about shaking me off this time!" Zhao Iron Pillar blocked the door to the captain's lounge, looking like he wouldn't leave unless he got a 'yes'. "Last time in the Sea of Illusory Shadows, you went alone. This time, you have to take me no matter what! I might not be as smart as you guys, but I'm definitely reliable for fighting and protection!"

Senior Brother Zhang also stood silently by. "Captain, my understanding of starship Systems and energy networks might be helpful for the infiltration."

Even Wang Wu and Xiao Wu came. "Although our combat power isn't high, one of us is good at reconnaissance and early warning, and the other at equipment maintenance. There will surely be a place where we are needed!"

Looking at these companions who had shared life and death, Wen Youyi's nose felt a bit sore. He knew this mission was a narrow escape from death and personally didn't want to drag more people down, but... he knew even better that some paths really cannot be finished alone.

"Alright," he finally nodded. "But on one condition: follow all commands. When I say retreat, no one is allowed to linger in battle."

"Understood!" Zhao Iron Pillar grinned widely.

Preparation work proceeded intensely, and "hope" continued to approach Guixu. On the seventh day, when a strange "nebula" appeared in the Star Domain ahead, everyone knew—the destination was close.

It wasn't an ordinary nebula, but a slowly rotating silver vortex composed of countless tiny points of light. The center of the vortex was deep darkness, but the edges emitted a soft silver-white glow, like a gate spanning across the starry sky.

"The Gate of Guixu." Luo Chen stood before the bridge's observation window, his voice filled with awe. "According to records, this was once the Star People's largest interstellar port and knowledge base. It was later destroyed in the dimensional wars, and the residual spatial structure formed this natural hyperspace entrance."

"Strong spatial distortion and energy barriers detected," Aila reported. "Conventional entry is impossible. We need... the key."

Wen Youyi took out the master key. The master key, which had now fused five fragments, was two feet long, with a gentle silver-white light flowing through it. Only two empty spots remained on the star map on its surface. When it was exposed on the bridge, the silver vortex ahead suddenly reacted—the rotation speed of the vortex increased, and a speck of golden light lit up in the dark center, echoing the master key.

"It seems we haven't found the wrong place." Wen Youyi gripped the master key tightly. "Prepare to enter. All hands to battle stations, Level 1 alert."

"hope" adjusted its course and slowly sailed toward the silver vortex. The closer they got, the more they could feel that majestic spatial power—the ship's hull began to vibrate slightly, the starlight outside the portholes was stretched into threads, and time and space became blurred here.

Just as the bow was about to touch the edge of the vortex, Wen Youyi held up the master key.

The master key erupted with a dazzling golden light, turning into a beam of light that shot toward the center of the vortex. The moment the two touched, the silver vortex rippled like a water surface with a stone thrown into it, and a passage just large enough for "hope" to pass through slowly opened.

Inside the passage was a bizarre sight—it wasn't the starry sky, nor a tunnel, but a "river" composed of countless flowing images and data streams. Wen Youyi saw scenes from the peak of the Star People: magnificent star cities, bustling starships, and images of various interstellar races living together in harmony. But these images were yellowed and fragmented like old movies, permeated with a lingering sadness.

"These are... historical memories preserved by Guixu," Aila said softly. "The Star People recorded their civilization within the spatial structure. Even if the physical entities are destroyed, the memories remain."

"hope" moved slowly along the river of memories. It was unknown how long they sailed—the sense of time here was completely distorted—until light finally appeared ahead.

The moment the ship sailed out of the passage, everyone involuntarily held their breath.

Before them was a magnificent sight beyond words.

It wasn't a planet, but an entire Star Domain that had been modified. Countless giant ring structures floated in the void, with continuous building complexes built upon them. The style was ancient and solemn, composed entirely of some silver-white metal, with complex patterns carved on the surface. Further away, a star modified into a Dyson Sphere form emitted a soft warm light, providing energy for the entire Star Domain. And in the center of the Star Domain, a pyramid-shaped building as towering as a mountain stood quietly, with a giant crystal embedded at the top, resonating with the master key in Wen Youyi's hand.

But all of this was shrouded in a shadow of ruin—many ring structures were broken, buildings had collapsed, and those patterns were dim and lusterless. The entire Guixu was silent, like a giant, deathly quiet mausoleum.

"We've arrived," Wen Youyi said softly. "The final legacy of the Star People, Guixu."

And his gaze had already fallen upon the top of that pyramid building.

The sixth fragment was right there.

But for some reason, looking at these magnificent yet lonely ruins, Wen Youyi didn't feel much excitement; instead, a strong sense of unease rose in his heart.

It was as if... something had been sleeping here for too long and was about to be awakened by them.

(End of Chapter)