Before long, the Swarm fleet emerged in the deep space directly ahead of their target, two hundred million kilometers away.
The entire fleet was silent and motionless. Because their signals were so weak, the target ship only discovered the presence of the Swarm fleet after more than twenty minutes had passed.
“Warning: Hyperspace movement detected. Target is 150 million kilometers from our position.”
The AI automatically made its judgment. Inside the ship, mechanical creatures that looked like joined triangular pyramids walking on two sharp spikes immediately cried out.
The biological beings inside the ship's cockpit all grew tense.
The masters of these mechanical creatures were strange beings that resembled sausages. Two long segments were joined vertically; when they walked, these two segments served as their legs.
In short, it was a bizarre image that made it difficult to imagine they were actually a space-faring species.
By now, the captain of the Sausage People had determined the general appearance of the newcomers through the images on the large screen.
The view was blurry and the objects were small, but looking closely, they gave off the sensation of prehistoric horrors.
“What are these things? Ships from another civilization?”
The captain did not perceive the blurry figures as biological organisms, assuming instead they were starships like those of any ordinary technological civilization.
“An alien civilization! It must be an alien civilization!”
Another of the Sausage People inside the ship cried out in surprise.
Their voices seemed to originate from a strange internal cavity, producing an eerie sound like a screech mixed with electronic tones.
“So many of them?”
As the scale of the Swarm fleet gradually became clear, the leader of the Sausage People felt a sudden jolt of fear.
“In all these years, we have only encountered two lower-level civilizations. When have we ever faced a formal fleet?”
However, in a culture where size equated to strength and massive scale represented a more advanced civilization, the small hulls of the Swarm did not seem to possess much deterrent power.
“What should we do? Those ships are closing the distance between us.”
Although the Swarm had not moved, the Sausage People grew increasingly apprehensive.
“There is no need for concern.” After carefully observing the Swarm's situation and looking back at the terrifying volume of his own vessel and the various technologies on board, the captain felt there was no reason to worry. “We have encountered several civilizations like this before. Simply reveal the main cannon to warn them against engaging. Then, turn on the signal lights and repeatedly message them to express our desire for communication.”
The captain’s orders were clearly met with approval by the crew members below.
Two minutes later, the massive hull opened its giant forward cannon port.
A dull, heavy sound echoed through the vessel.
Though they were in space, solids could transmit sound. Moreover, the interior of the ship was filled with air, allowing the Sausage People to clearly hear the grand, resonant noise.
As the cannon port, which measured over a hundred meters in diameter, was fully revealed, Xia Jin naturally saw it almost immediately.
“Baring their weapons?”
Xia Jin smiled at the sight.
“They want to fight at the very first meeting?”
Without a second thought, she immediately ordered the Swarm into a combat-ready state.
The upgraded weapons slowly deployed.
From within the seemingly ordinary muzzles, an astonishing amount of energy gradually began to radiate.
The Sausage People in the distance finally sensed that something was wrong.
“What is happening? Is that unknown civilization revealing weapons as well?”
“Quickly, operator! Control the signal lights and send a message. Send them another electromagnetic wave to warn them to be careful.”
The captain shouted, and the Sausage People inside began to operate their consoles with frantic tension.
“Captain, the signal lights have been activated. The lights on the other side have lit up as well.”
“Hmph, very good. Wait for a reply. Send a message to our home planet and tell them that after many years, our Pia Civilization has encountered a new alien civilization. This represents the possibility of a habitable environment. From this moment on, the conquest and exploration of alien civilizations will begin with our long-range fleet.”
The captain spoke to his subordinates with absolute confidence.
The deciphering of the distant light began.
However, the AI brain soon discovered something amiss.
The frequency of the light was wrong, and the energy intensity was far too high.
“Smart computer has detected a discrepancy. Analyzing the characteristics of the target light.”
Before long, the AI identified the problem and suddenly issued a warning: “Alert! High-energy reaction detected. The target fleet is charging its main cannons.”
“Alert! Energy levels are too high, far exceeding current endurance limits. The system is diverting backup energy to activate the advanced force field shield.”
Suddenly, the room was flooded with various warning lights.
“What?” Sensing the abnormality, the captain stared with the large eyes at one end of his sausage-like body.
“This is bad! Those aren't signal lights—they're weapons!”
The main cannons were charging.
The energy level was higher than anything they could have imagined.
Most terrifyingly, in an incredibly short span of time, a massive swarm of strange organisms flew out from around the target fleet.
Their numbers expanded to hundreds of thousands in moments, eventually surging toward the millions.
The dense swarm of creatures known as scourges almost completely obscured the detection screen.
They covered the sky and the stars.
In the next instant, the cannons at the front of several Swarm ships fired.
Swoosh—
In a single heartbeat, beams of light cut through the void, hurtling toward the enemy ship.
The moment they perceived the light...
Boom!
The ship jolted violently. Then, the outer force field shield shattered instantly. A significant fraction of the hull, along with its alloy structure, evaporated in a flash.
“Warning: Encountered a gamma-ray burst attack!”
“What? A gamma-ray burst? How is that possible?”
The captain was completely stunned.
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