Since the decision had been made, there was no turning back, and Xiao Yu’s resolve was to see it through to the end. Under his order, the Nation-Class ship Russia once again unleashed a torrent of negative matter, destroying yet another Droplet probe.
Including this one just eliminated, Xiao Yu had now destroyed three Droplets in succession.
His fleet continued its flight. Perhaps their trajectory had already been exposed, which explained why Droplet probes kept appearing one after another. Or perhaps their course had not been exposed at all, and these Droplet probes were merely pre-positioned by the Guardian Civilization long ago, and he had happened to stumble upon them. Xiao Yu did not know which was true, but he could only proceed as though the second possibility were correct. Because if it was the first, then nothing he did would matter.
Treating a dying horse as if it could still be cured, that was Xiao Yu’s current principle. Until the very moment of death, despair could not be allowed.
Every time a Droplet appeared, Xiao Yu changed course. Up until now, he had already altered his trajectory three times.
The atmosphere aboard the China was heavy with tension. The situation Xiao Yu now faced was, in essence, a dead end. The reason was simple, if the Guardian Civilization was truly determined to crush Xiao Yu, there was absolutely no way he could escape. This was the force of inevitability, not something that could be changed by clever schemes. Facing such a situation, Luka Two was silent, the other brilliant psychosocial scientists were silent, and Xiao Yu himself was silent.
“Perhaps… the only remaining hope lies with your Specter companion.” Luka Two said. “Back in the Tianyuan IV system, it was your Specter companion that appeared suddenly, enveloping you and carrying you six thousand light years away, allowing you to escape the Guardian Civilization’s pursuit. The Specter Race has its own unique means of escape, and it is almost certain that the Guardian Civilization cannot track them.”
“But we cannot contact my Specter companion.” Xiao Yu replied. “I don’t know where it is within the galaxy right now. Perhaps… it doesn’t even know where I am.”
This was a helpless reality.
In fact, there was one more thing Xiao Yu did not say aloud. His hope of survival had a second path. He was certain that the Taihao Civilization, which had regarded him as an experimental subject in the speculation, would not abandon him so easily. A Guardian Civilization that had suffered heavy losses might not necessarily be the Taihao Civilization’s match. But Xiao Yu did not wish his subordinates to know of his entanglements with the Taihao Civilization.“Perhaps… there is a third hope.” Xiao Yu thought silently. “When I was with the aged specter elder, my Specter companion said it sensed I was in mortal danger, which was why it came to save me. Perhaps, at this very moment, it too has sensed my plight and is already on its way. Hm? Or perhaps there is another possibility, that I am not actually in danger right now, and that is why it has not come.”
Naturally, Xiao Yu wished this were true. But even he knew this hope was extremely slim. Not in danger? How could that be possible? The one he faced was none other than the ancient Level 6 Guardian Civilization! A civilization that had contended with the Sweepers for tens of millions of years without being annihilated, but instead had only grown stronger.
Compared to the Trolor Civilization, which the Guardians had eradicated, the Guardian Civilization was undeniably superior. And the methods of the Trolor Civilization had already left Xiao Yu filled with awe, let alone the Guardians.
Through the thousands of years of his own experiences and observations, Xiao Yu had come to form a rough ranking of the mighty forces within the galaxy. At the top of this ranking, without question, stood the Sweepers. Possessing the Neutron War Star, they had annihilated the Micron Civilization, the half Four-Dimensional Taihao Civilization, the Trolor Civilization, and even the previous generation of the Specter Race, all names that had once shaken the galaxy. To be able to defeat the combined assault of all advanced civilizations in the galaxy and still emerge victorious, what kind of terrifying power was that?
Xiao Yu did not know which existence ranked second. The three Taihao Civilizations of the Milky Way, the half Four-Dimensional Taihao from the Large Magellanic Cloud, the three Alien Beast Civilizations that had advanced to Level 6, the Micron Civilization already annihilated by the Sweepers, the previous generation of the Specter Race, and the Guardian Civilization, all had the strength to claim that spot. But Xiao Yu still leaned toward the Guardian Civilization holding second place. The reason was simple, of all the names on that list, only the Guardian Civilization had tangled with the Sweepers for such a long time without being destroyed. That fact alone spoke volumes.
To provoke the second strongest power in the galaxy with only the strength of a Level 5 Civilization was nothing short of courting death. That was why Xiao Yu’s heart felt so bitter.
“I never intended to provoke you. I only wanted to develop peacefully. How did I end up with such rotten luck?” Xiao Yu sighed to himself as he continued his flight.
“Having destroyed three Droplet probes in a row, my message should already be clear enough, that it is absolutely impossible for me to submit to the Guardian Alliance. The Guardian Civilization must understand my stance by now. From here on, they shouldn’t bother sending more Droplets to persuade me, right? The most likely scenario is that they’ll deploy Droplet probes to hide in the dark, secretly tracking me, and once they free up their forces, they’ll send a fleet to surround me. In that case, finding and destroying the Droplets shadowing me becomes critically important.”
Xiao Yu pondered silently and made his decision.
Tachyon communication technology had thoroughly solved the problem of being unable to receive external signals or conduct scans during curvature flight. As a result, tens of millions, even over a hundred million probes, were scattered by Xiao Yu. Each of these probes possessed the ability to maintain curvature flight alongside the main fleet. Spread loosely around it, they monitored everything within hundreds of billions of kilometers. With this setup, Xiao Yu was confident he could identify any Droplet probe the instant it appeared and immediately destroy it.
But once again, reality defied Xiao Yu’s expectations. After making these arrangements, he quickly discovered a fourth Droplet probe. No, saying he ‘discovered’ it wasn’t quite right. This Droplet probe revealed itself deliberately. Boldly and brazenly, it barged into Xiao Yu’s detection network, appearing right in front of him.
“This thing… is it here to try persuading me again? Just what is the Guardian Civilization playing at?” Xiao Yu thought irritably. Without waiting for the Droplet to transmit a message, he immediately controlled the nearest City-Class ship and decisively launched an attack.
It was just a Droplet probe, hardly worth mentioning to Xiao Yu now. Even a City-Class ship had the capability to destroy it in a very short span of time. And so, accompanied by a torrent of negative matter tachyons, this Droplet once again vanished without a trace.
Xiao Yu’s fleet then shifted course once more.
Where there was a fourth, there would be a fifth, a sixth, even a seventh. Over the next two months, Xiao Yu destroyed more than twenty Droplet probes. Every time, as soon as a Droplet appeared, it was immediately wiped out, none were given the chance to speak a word.
The unending stream of Droplet probes once again plunged Xiao Yu into confusion. He could not understand what the Guardian Civilization was really trying to do. Were they trying to lock down his route of travel, making pursuit easier later? But if that was the case, why bother showing themselves? Wouldn’t tracking him in secret be more effective? Were they trying to persuade him to join the Guardian Alliance? But hadn’t the destruction of so many Droplets already demonstrated his absolute resolve? The Guardian Civilization couldn’t possibly be so foolish as to miss that point.
“What exactly are they trying to do?” Xiao Yu wondered, but he could not arrive at an answer.
Another Droplet probe appeared ahead. This time, Xiao Yu did not immediately order its destruction. Instead, he remained silent, waiting to see how it would react.
“Perhaps, from their words, I can infer what they truly want.” Xiao Yu thought.
The Droplet probe once again swaggered into Xiao Yu’s detection net, making no effort at concealment. Then, a transmission was sent.
“Foolish Divine Ark Civilization, you are testing the patience of the Guardian Civilization. We are a peace-loving civilization, and unless forced, we do not wish to destroy you. After all, you are a Level 5 Civilization with great potential. To simply eliminate you would be a grave loss to the camp of Technological Civilizations. Do not remain obstinate. Submitting to the Guardian Alliance is your only path of survival!”
“The patience of the Guardian Civilization has limits. Do not continue to resist. Make the correct choice. Follow me and return to the Guardian Alliance, or else our Guardian Alliance will annihilate you completely!”
To Xiao Yu’s astonishment, this Droplet probe had once again transmitted such a message.
“Are the Guardians all a bunch of fools?” Xiao Yu cursed loudly. “Why spout so much nonsense? To submit to the Guardian Civilization is impossible. Now go and die!”