123: People's Federation booth (3.3K, please support!)

The booth for "Minamar Specialized Industries" was designed in a grotesque and bizarre way.

Holographic projections flashed enticing discount information alongside exaggerated performance specifications.

Jiang Feng saw incredible, almost boastful projects.

For example, "Deep Ultraviolet Laser Main Cannon, power reaching up to 300 Exawatts!"

For instance, "Super-Giant Advanced Railgun, warhead mass exceeding 12,000 tons! Speed reaching 0.2 C!"

What is 300 Exawatts of power?

Once focused on a single point, that point would instantly reach an ultra-high temperature of hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius, causing any matter to evaporate, ionize, or even trigger the nuclear fusion process of light elements.

Large space stations? Space meteorites? Or even asteroids?

One shot, sustained for a few seconds, would cause it to evaporate entirely once the gravitational binding energy became insufficient to maintain its form!

Aiming at the surface and firing anywhere would result in a vitrified ground area hundreds of kilometers in diameter, where no one could survive, and the massive ejection of matter would be enough to cause a surge in crustal pressure and trigger supervolcanoes.

As for the latter, it was even more of a wild exaggeration.

Setting aside the level of energy required to accelerate a 12,000-ton object to 0.2 times the speed of light, the energy generated by its impact alone would be enough to destroy a continental surface, equivalent to an asteroid impact.

Such a powerful weapon would be enough to destroy any surface civilization it bombarded.

'These guys have absolutely no shame!'

Jiang Feng made his judgment and strode over, only then seeing clearly that the sales staff behind the booth were all humanoid in appearance, but all wore avant-garde virtual reality helmets that covered the entire upper half of their faces.

Inside the helmet lenses, ever-changing data streams and advertisements flowed—they were Aolin People.

Believing in authoritarian culture and dealing primarily in contract assets, their so-called "contracts" were actually just a civilized way of robbing people. Give someone a dollar, and they would take everything in that person's home, including their future.

It almost perfectly illustrated the most blood-curdling form of the word "capital."

They were enthusiastic to the point of being noisy; seeing Jiang Feng approach, several people immediately surrounded him, speaking as fast as a machine gun.

Slogans like "Limited Time Special," "Buy One Get One Free (Selected Accessories)," and "Lowest Price in History" were hurled at him.

"Sir! Take a look at our latest 'Big Bird-class' assault ship! Fierce firepower, high speed, and top-tier stealth performance! Place an order now, and we'll upgrade the engine for free and include a set of anti-detection coating!"

"Don't listen to him! The 'Big Rock-class' is the way to survive! Look at this armor thickness! Order now, and we'll include three years of free maintenance and... a premium insurance policy! Absolutely no traps!"

Jiang Feng patiently listened for a while, attempting to ask about the specific weapon configurations and contract details.

An Aolin Person smiled and pulled up a flickering electronic contract.

The terms were dense and the font was extremely small, with key restrictive clauses, such as "mandatory high-interest loan binding," "exorbitant upgrade costs," and "unilateral contract termination without compensation."

These were all cleverly hidden by flashing color highlights and "discount" information.

Jiang Feng only scanned it for a few seconds before he felt a headache coming on.

He asked Little Handsome to look at it, and it immediately picked out tens of millions of problems from those millions of pages of contract documents.

Seeing this, those Aolin People immediately scattered, not bothering to give Jiang Feng a pleasant look.

'Minamar Specialized Industries, I've certainly learned my lesson!'

'To be a scammer at this level, they really are the best!'

Jiang Feng quickly extricated himself; these Aolin People were the most treacherous scum in the universe, their contracts full of poison without even a hint of sugar.

The booth next door belonged to the "Zinor United Group."

Compared to the booth of Minamar Specialized Industries nearby, the atmosphere here was completely different.

The booth was huge and cold, with dark gray and dark red as the main tones, without any flashy decorations.

There weren't many models on display, but each one was so massive it made one's breathing difficult, exuding pure military deterrence.

A pitch-black battleship covered in menacing gun turrets caught Jiang Feng's attention.

The scale told him that this warship was over three thousand meters long; just looking at it made one's blood boil.

The sales staff behind the booth were Zinorians.

They possessed strong, burly bodies like gorillas, with knotted muscles covered in tough hair.

But their heads were extremely bizarre—like an octopus covered in purple-red tentacles, attached directly to their shoulders.

Compared to the tentacles, their eyes were small, flashing with an inscrutable, eerie light.

They were taciturn, merely using those uncomfortable-looking tentacles to dance silently, expressing their emotions.

These guys were no pushovers either, skilled at cutthroat competition and adhering to militaristic philosophies.

The simplest description is that Minamar Specialized Industries are scammers, while the Zinor United Group are robbers.

One uses documents and capital to swindle people. The other uses guns and force to rob them.

It's hard to say which one is better.

Just as Jiang Feng approached the booth area, a Zinorians stepped forward with heavy strides, blocking his path.

The tentacles around its mouth lifted slightly, pointing toward the pitch-black battleship model.

A cold, emotionless gurgling sound rang out, translated into Chinese in his earpiece.

"Model: 'Odorus'-class battleship."

"Standard configuration, price: 114 billion earth federation coins."

"Weapon options, advanced shields, and Warp Engine are calculated separately."

"Accepts payment in rare minerals, high-value technology, or slaves."

"Delivery time: 12-18 months. Location: Designated neutral star sector."

"No bargaining accepted."

The Zinorians was incredibly arrogant; after speaking briefly, it sent a parameter file to Jiang Feng and turned to leave.

Jiang Feng stood stunned in place; upon hearing the price, he didn't even have the interest to ask for details and turned to leave immediately.

The Zinorians showed no reaction, but those wriggling tentacles turned toward his retreating figure, and the eerie light in its eyes flashed once.

The consecutive setbacks left Jiang Feng feeling somewhat conflicted.

The powerful survival capabilities of Orbis were tempting but out of reach, the traps of Manama were alarming, and the cold cruelty of Zinorians was uncomfortable. He took a deep breath and decided to go browse the human booth.

Jiang Feng cast his gaze toward the depths of the exhibition hall, to a relatively simple exhibition area.

Here, a black and red flag with a golden eagle was hung.

Here, there wasn't a single alien, as if everyone feared something.

Here, even when humans walked by, those exquisite, perfect Terran Union citizens would secretly spit and cast disdainful glances.

Yet here, it firmly captivated Jiang Feng.

Nothing else, just because it was the booth of the Commonwealth of Man!

Having experienced those bizarre, alien-style behemoths earlier, the booth of the Human Federation appeared exceptionally restrained and pragmatic.

Jiang Feng leaned in, but as soon as he approached, his field of vision was suddenly occupied by an extremely uniform "scenery."

'What is this?'

Jiang Feng was practically roaring in his heart, standing there stunned with his mouth open.

On the Human Federation booth, there were no cold alloy frames, no cascading streams of data.

Instead, there were... people.

All young women, twenty of them? Or perhaps more?

They wore form-fitting dark gray federation uniforms, outlining impeccable body curves.

Their dark, silky long hair was meticulously tied into identical buns at the back of their heads, revealing beautifully curved, fair, and smooth necks.

Their faces were astonishingly identical; they stood there like exquisite dolls cast from the same mold.

But looking closely, in those same eyes, there were different glimmers of light.

This scene itself carried a suffocating sense of oppression.

Spectacular? Yes.

But more than that, it was a strong sense of strangeness brought about by some inhuman, cold, and orderly system.

"Little Handsome?" Jiang Feng asked immediately.

"They are Clones." Little Handsome filtered the information and explained to Jiang Feng.

"The Human Federation lacks population. After conquering a nation that possessed 'Ancient Cloning Vats,' they vigorously developed cloning technology."

"In the current Human Federation, one out of every five people is a Clone, especially prevalent within the military system."

"At the same time, colonial development also relies heavily on the participation of Clones."

Jiang Feng took a deep breath, closed his mouth, and walked toward the booth.

The moment his footsteps paused, that dark gray "tide" surged.

"Welcome to the Human Federation exhibition area!"

A uniform, sweet voice, as if precisely tuned, rang out in unison, carrying well-trained enthusiasm.

'They are real people.' Jiang Feng could feel the warmth within it.

With a rush, a dozen or so Clone sales guides, as if attracted by an invisible magnet, instantly surrounded him, forming an overly tight circle carrying a faint scent of perfume.

They wore highly consistent, perfectly curved smiles on their faces, surrounding Jiang Feng, Little Handsome, and Gold-Wrapped Silver in the center.

Wherever he looked, there were only faces that were almost indistinguishable, as beautiful as phantoms.

"Sir, are you interested in our products?"

"What kind of information do you need? Civilian ships? Research vessels? Or armed transport platforms?"

"We possess the Federation's most cutting-edge starship technology!"

They spoke all at once, their voices identical, their speed and tone also standardized through training.

The waves of sound surged over him, layer upon layer, carrying a dizzying sense of repetition; Jiang Feng's eyes were almost turning red.

He roared in his heart: 'How am I supposed to tell them apart? You tell me, how am I supposed to tell them apart?'

They were so close that the fabric of their uniforms was almost brushing against Jiang Feng's work clothes.

A slender white hand, with fingertips rounded and delicately manicured, brushed against Jiang Feng's palm quite naturally, as if it were unintentional.

Her fingertips carried a warm touch.

'I want to join the Human Federation!'

In Jiang Feng's heart, at this moment, there echoed... and only echoed, one voice.

"Sir, you look like a pragmatic person."

The owner of that hand... Jiang Feng couldn't distinguish which one she was from the ones who had spoken just now.

She smiled brightly, her voice sweet: "Pragmatic people definitely need a truly reliable and powerful ship."

'Buy, buy, buy, buy!'

Deep inside Jiang Feng's heart, a little devil was acting on impulse.

'Stop, stop, stop, stay rational!'

In his mind, two voices were fighting; Jiang Feng simply closed his eyes and steadied himself.

When he opened his eyes again, he had already calmed down.

His gaze crossed the swaying, exquisite faces and cast toward the center of the booth behind them.

There, a holographic projection of a starship was slowly rotating.

The lines were sharp, the structure solid, without any superfluous decorations.

Thick keel, heavy armor, angular weapon platforms...

What rushed toward him was a pure sense of power forged for utility and survival; below the projection, a simple nameplate indicated the model: "Centaur-class Armed Freighter."

Beside it, a line of small text indicated enticing information: "In stock, docked at the Lunar Orbital Station."