110: arrogant

The originally aggressive and overbearing iofer pursuit fleet had now been reduced to countless fragments of dust and cooling metal wreckage floating in space.

The perpetrators responsible for all this were gracefully adjusting their formation, like a flock of raptors preening their feathers after a hunt, coldly watching the grace vessel battleship beneath them, which was still firmly pinned to the ground by gravity disruptors.

"Commander, a communication request has been received from the surface."

Inside the bridge of the Falamt Detachment Fleet flagship, the [Blade of Truth], the communications officer's voice broke the silence, "The signal source is from the battleship parked on the planet's surface. The other party is using a psionic band broadcast and is requesting a direct conversation with you."

Major General Trier, sitting in the command chair, curled the corners of his mouth into an amused arc and let out a chuckle full of sarcasm.

"As expected, just as The Guide once said: The weapon of criticism cannot replace the criticism of weapons."

Trier said indifferently, "We tried to persuade them nicely just now, but they ignored us. Now that we have crushed that bunch of inexplicable space trash, they have finally learned how to speak."

"Do we need to refuse?" the adjutant asked, "According to the guide's instructions, we can continue to maintain the blockade."

"No, since they have learned manners, we should also show the grace of a higher civilization."

Trier straightened his crisp silver-gray uniform, "Connect it. Activate the psionic-quantum conversion communication; I want to have a soul-level exchange with that arrogant winged lady myself."

"Yes, psionic channel under construction... conversion system activated."

...

Inside the bridge of the grace vessel battleship, Amira Radiance was closing her eyes tightly, her hands pressed onto the psionic crystal ball on the command console.

She was waiting, her heart filled with unease and trepidation.

For a proud Angel seraph, bowing her head to a group of materialists she regarded as "soulless heretics" was more painful than being killed.

But reality was cruel. The destruction of the Iof People proved the power the other side possessed. In order to preserve the last flagship of the Divine Grace Fleet and for the thousands of her clansmen following her, she had to endure.

Suddenly, a massive will rudely intruded into her mental world.

This will carried no emotion, just like a precisely operating supercomputer, instantly taking over the psionic field around her.

Amira was surprised to find that the other party was not using psionics to communicate with her, but was using a technical means she could not understand to forcibly simulate the fluctuation frequency of psionics, constructing an extremely stable mental link space.

In this pure white mental space, Amira saw the projection of that man.

Major General Trier stood with his hands behind his back, his figure slender, his face handsome and cold. There was not the slightest ripple in those purple eyes, and he was examining her from a high position with a gaze as if he were observing bacteria in a petri dish.

"I am the commander of the Faleim Scientific Conglomerate Detachment Fleet, Trier."

The voice echoed in the mental space, without any pleasantries, direct and cold, "It seems the wreckage of those space pirates has made your laughable arrogance recede a little."

Space pirates? If those Iof People counted as space pirates, then what were the Angel people who had been fighting them for thousands of years?

Amira took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in her heart, and manifested her image in the mental space wearing white-gold armor and bearing six wings, trying her best to maintain the dignity of the Angel royal family.

"I am the commander of the Angel Theocracy Empire Divine Grace Fleet, Amira Radiance."

Although her voice was a bit stiff, she managed to convey a clear thought through psionics, "Thank you... thank you for your help just now, for helping us eliminate those demons who blasphemed the True God."

"Correction," Trier interrupted her unceremoniously, "Eliminating them was because they intruded into our alert zone and fired first; it has nothing to do with helping you. And if we hadn't acted, you would probably have already become trophies for those guys."

This merciless exposure made Amira's cheeks burn, and she gritted her teeth and said: "In any case, this is a fact. Given the powerful strength you have shown, I think we can stop the previous hostility and have an equal dialogue."

"Equal?" Trier seemed to have heard some funny joke, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, his eyes full of mockery, "Ms. Amira, please understand the situation. You are now prisoners trapped on this planet, a bunch of stray dogs. Your spaceship is severely damaged, and your energy is about to run out. I only need to move a finger to make you disappear completely. Do you think this is equality?"

Amira's fists clenched tightly, and the six wings behind her trembled slightly with anger.

This naked contempt made her almost go berserk, but reason told her to endure now.

"Then... what do you want?"

Amira lowered her noble head, her voice becoming dry, "If you want us to surrender or abandon our faith, then you might as well fire directly. The Angel people can die, but we will never betray the True God."

"Put away your boring martyr posture. We have no interest in your ethereal faith, nor do we have any interest in enslaving a bunch of winged guys."

Trier waved his hand, as if shooing away a fly, "What I am interested in is intelligence, detailed intelligence about this star sector, about you, and about those guys just now."

"Tell us, who are you? Where are you from? Why did you flee here like stray dogs?"

"This is not just an interrogation; it is also the only bargaining chip you have to trade for a chance at survival."

Amira was silent for a long time, and finally sighed.

"Alright..."

"We come from the Perseus Arm second arm, which is the homeland bestowed upon us by the True God. Under that starry sky, the Angel Theocracy Empire has existed for thirty thousand years."

A trace of nostalgia and pride flashed in Amira's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by pain.

"We have always followed the will of God, purifying the filth in the universe and spreading the truth of psionics. Until three thousand years ago, our expeditionary force crossed the dark abyss between the arms and arrived at the edge of this Orion Arm, where we encountered those children of hell—the Iofer Federation."

"The war lasted for three thousand years. Countless civilizations were destroyed in our crossfire, and countless planets were turned into scorched earth. We once had victories and defeats, and the front line was always maintained in the Tianyuan Nebula area."

Speaking of this, Amira's voice became sad.

"But five years ago, the balance was broken."

"The Iof People obtained a terrible technology from somewhere. They manufactured a type of shell capable of ignoring psionics. In that decisive battle, our psionic shields failed like melting snow in front of that weapon."

"The empire's main fleet... I do not wish to recall that massacre."

Amira closed her eyes in pain, "To cover the retreat of other royal members and the empire's last remaining forces, the Divine Grace Fleet I led took the initiative to cut off our own retreat and charged into the encirclement of the Iof People."

"We fought in the encirclement for three whole months. My sisters, my warriors, one by one fell in the explosions. Finally, only the flagship grace vessel, relying on its overloaded psionic engine, forcibly broke through the space-time interference devices deployed by the Iof People and performed an unstable long-distance Warp Drive, only then barely escaping to this remote corner."

"We are the only survivors."

After listening to Amira's account, Trier's expression remained calm, but there was a hint of thought in his eyes.

"In other words, the current Angel Empire is already on the verge of total collapse on the front lines?"

Trier accurately grasped the point, "Your colonies in the Orion Arm are being wiped out one by one by the Iof People, and the flames of war might even soon reach your homeland?"

"...Yes."

Amira had to admit this cruel reality.

"So, you are not just fighting for survival now, but also looking for a lifeline."

Trier pointed out sharply, "You kept emphasizing the brutality and power of the Iof People, and hinted that the empire still possesses deep foundations, all just to tell us—if we, the Falaim Scientific Integration Nation, are willing to intervene in this war to help the Angel Empire, you will pay a huge reward."

With her intentions exposed, Amira did not feel embarrassed, but instead raised her head and looked at Trier with burning eyes: "Isn't this a win-win choice? Your Excellency Trier."

"You have already seen the aggression of the Iof People. They are a bunch of irrational mad dogs. Once they completely defeat the Angel Empire and obtain our resources and technology, their next target will inevitably be you! Even if you possess powerful technology, you would feel troubled facing a massive empire that occupies two constellations, right?"

"The enemy of an enemy is a friend. Although the Angel Empire has suffered setbacks, we still have hundreds of star systems of territory and trillions of citizens in the Perseus Arm. As long as you are willing to provide technical assistance or even just contain the Iof People in this direction, we are willing to form the strongest alliance with the Faleim Civilization and share the sovereignty of this star sector!"

As a relatively influential royal family member within the empire, Amira had enough status to make decisions. Her words were highly inflammatory. She was gambling, gambling that this powerful unknown civilization also had ambitions for expansion, gambling that they would not sit idly by and watch the Iof People become the sole hegemon.

However, Trier's reaction was completely beyond her expectations.

"Share the galaxy?"

Trier sneered, the laughter full of the pity of a higher being for a frog in a well, "Ms. Amira, your vision is too narrow."

He took a step forward, his figure instantly becoming incomparably tall in the mental space, as if he were a deity looking down on all living beings.

"Do you think we care about this small Orion Arm? Do you think we care who rules this barren galaxy?"

"It wouldn't hurt to tell you," Trier said coldly, "The Faleim Scientific Conglomerate does not belong to this universe."

"What?"

Amira was completely stunned; this information completely exceeded her cognitive range, "Does not belong to this universe?"

"We come from the other side of the multiverse. Our journey is to explore endless dimensions and truths."

Trier said arrogantly, "For us, your so-called interstellar hegemony struggle is nothing more than two groups of ants fighting over a piece of rotten breadcrumb."

"We can be observers, passersby, or perhaps occasionally act as maintainers of order, but we will never become mercenaries for any low-level civilization."

These words were like a basin of ice water, completely extinguishing the fire of hope that had just ignited in Amira's heart.

If Trier was not lying, such a level of existence was indeed qualified to despise all their wars and glory.

"However..."

Trier looked at the ashen-faced Amira, his tone shifting slightly.

"Although I personally think that we will not directly intervene in your boring wars, other high-level members of our civilization might have different opinions. Of course, the most important thing is the decision of the Great Guide."

"If the guide deems it necessary to intervene in your war, then every one of us will go all out."

Trier lifted the oppressive feeling of the mental space and returned to his normal posture.

"I will report your request, as well as relevant intelligence about your civilization, to the highest level of the Faleim Scientific Conglomerate, that is, the Central Council and the Great Guide."

"As for whether to establish formal diplomatic relations with you, whether to provide you with some degree of humanitarian aid, or even whether to allow you to become our vassals..."

Trier smiled meaningfully: "That will be decided by the big shots."

"During this period, your battleship grace vessel must continue to remain on the ground to accept our supervision. We will provide you with necessary food and medical supplies, but any unauthorized takeoff behavior is prohibited."

"This is my ultimatum, and it is also your only path to survival."

After speaking, without giving Amira any chance to react, Trier cut off the psionic link directly.

The mental space collapsed, and Amira's consciousness instantly returned to the cold bridge of the grace vessel.

She panted heavily, her body already soaked in cold sweat, as if she had just experienced a life-and-death struggle.

"Captain! How did it go?"

The adjutant gathered around anxiously.

Amira looked at the expectant eyes around her, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

Although she had been humiliated and despised, she had also brought back an extremely important piece of information.

The strength of this civilization named Faleim was far beyond imagination, and they were not messengers of destruction like the Iof People.

"Pass the order down..."

Amira leaned weakly against the back of her chair, looking at the silver warships on the screen, her eyes complex.

"Disarm and stand by in place."