As the fleet drew closer to the star system containing the Wormhole, Liu Hai encountered increasingly more Pioneer Fleets along the way. The variety of warship models was dazzling, with many foolish youngsters piloting either self-modified or custom-designed vessels.
By the time they entered the starfield surrounding the Braff Wormhole, the sight that greeted them was a sky full of stars—each one actually the ion trails from warship propulsion engines.
Across this vast expanse spanning several light-years, there were over five hundred space stations, three large military Shipyards, and two planetary fortresses guarding the Wormhole on behalf of the military forces.
Supporting these planetary fortresses were conventional armed forces, with more than two second-level legions taking turns on guard duty. Not far away, in one of the Shipyards, a first-level legion stood ready, prepared to join the battle at any moment.
"Boss, how does this scene make you feel?" Li Yali stood beside Liu Hai, grinning as she asked for his impressions.
"Terrifying power. Right now, there are hundreds of thousands of warships from Pioneer Fleets gathered here. Though there aren't many fortress-class warships among them, there are still over a thousand Battleships. I wonder which wealthy factions they belong to."
Liu Hai admitted he was envious. Just look at those massive hulls—a Battleship's three-kilometer-long frame alone could crush a Destroyer under its sheer weight or severely damage a Light Cruiser with a collision.
And that wasn't even considering the rows upon rows of gun batteries lining the Battleships, designed purely for maximum lethality. A military Battleship, sacrificing secondary guns and redundancy to stack firepower, could unleash a full-power strike capable of nearly shattering a planet ten thousand kilometers in diameter.
At the fortress level, fortress cannons using Antimatter as ammunition could truly obliterate a planet in a single shot, achieving planet-destroying capabilities.
As for the two planetary fortresses standing like sentinels on either side of the Wormhole—forget their planetary fortress cannons, whose barrels were twice the size of ordinary fortress cannons—just their hundreds-of-kilometers-wide frames made them untouchable by ordinary fleets.
Moreover, at the fortress level—whether it was an ordinary fortress over ten kilometers in size, a legion fortress exceeding fifty kilometers, or a planetary fortress spanning over a hundred kilometers—they all possessed a capability conventional fleet formations lacked: ultra-long-range spatial strikes.
Their firepower was no longer constrained by the speed of light but instead limited only by spatial manipulation. Based on the intelligence available to Liu Hai's clearance, a planetary fortress near the Wormhole could deliver a strike that would instantly appear a hundred light-years away.
This truly achieved the principle of "detection equals destruction." Even many fifth-tier civilizations, despite their advanced technological prowess, were unwilling to pit their conventional fleets against such terrifying constructs built by fourth-tier civilizations.
Liu Hai was green with envy. He had no idea when he might ever possess his own fortress. The Pyramid Core's stored technologies didn't include any for fortresses larger than ten kilometers—whether because they were unnecessary or simply never researched, he couldn't say.
Even the Intelligent Nexus couldn't provide an explanation, as it was merely a recorder, not a researcher. Its purpose was preservation, not innovation.
"Boss, all the supplies have been restocked in the cargo holds. The Li family's fleet will take another half month to arrive. You could go mingle at some of the Pioneers' cocktail parties in the meantime." For some reason, Li Yali had been urging Liu Hai these past two days to go out and socialize more with the other Pioneers.
Liu Hai leaned back on the sofa and gave her a sidelong glance. "You really think I don't know what you're up to?"
"Let me tell you right now—it's pointless."
"From a short-term perspective, networking with them might have some benefits in the central regions of the Hera Star System. But when it comes to valuable finds, they'll still fight tooth and nail to take them."
"You're not actually a second-level clearance holder, so you can't access many of the critical intel reports from the Council."
"In the outer star sectors, competition between Pioneers is completely legal. They can even kill each other without repercussions."
"So out there, our enemies aren't just alien civilizations—our fellow Pioneers can be just as bad, if not worse."
Li Yali seemed to have already known this, showing no reaction to Liu Hai's words. Instead, she tried to persuade him: "Boss, Pioneers who turn against each other are still in the minority. As long as they don't simultaneously discover a Life Planet or a resource-rich star system, most Pioneers prefer cooperation over conflict."
Liu Hai waved his hand dismissively. "Forget it. No initiative, no trouble. Our target isn't the central star sectors anyway. We're not competing with most Pioneers for the same pie, so there's no need to bother with all that."
Hearing this, Li Yali had no choice but to drop the subject and instead began discussing their post-Wormhole plans with Liu Hai.
As they reached the Wormhole's location, gathering intel on the Hera Star System became much easier. Information leaked by various Pioneer teams spread throughout the sector even before the military could compile and release it officially.
With more intel at their disposal, the staff's plans also underwent adjustments. While the main objective remained unchanged, numerous details needed fine-tuning.
The primary focus was avoiding the more chaotic regions to successfully reach the third spiral arm—the core of their plan. Taking a longer route or paying a higher price was acceptable if necessary.
However, the journey was directly tied to their Antimatter reserves, forcing Liu Hai to spend a considerable sum to stock up on additional Antimatter. After all, the Hera Star System no longer had convenient internal Wormholes spanning tens of thousands of light-years.
After half a month of waiting, the Li family's fleet finally arrived at the Wormhole sector.
During this time, Liu Hai had grown increasingly impatient watching fleet after fleet enter and exit the Wormhole. Now that they'd finally arrived, it meant their own passage through the Wormhole was imminent.
"Boss, Li Xiuxian of the Li family has sent an invitation requesting your presence at his cocktail party three days from now."
Li Yali suddenly presented Liu Hai with an invitation, her expression hesitant as if she had something to say but couldn't bring herself to voice it.
"Just say what's on your mind."
Liu Hai took the blue-gold crafted invitation and skimmed through it. The contents were standard, with no particular hidden meaning.
Li Yali hesitated before speaking, "Boss, Li Xiuxian is the leading figure of the Li family in this generation. The Li family spent over 500 billion Credit Points to assemble the Eternal Fleet for him, with a scale comparable to a third-tier regional army, though the quality still falls short by quite a bit."
"Li Xiuxian is highly talented, which also makes him arrogant and dismissive of others. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him conceited and overbearing. Many people describe him as having talent but lacking virtue."
"What exactly are you trying to say?" Liu Hai had waited for a while, only to hear her evaluate someone without getting to the point.
"Li Xiuxian is petty-minded, yet he possesses exceptional command talent. This time, he's forming the Pioneer Fleet with the intention of making a big impact, aiming to challenge for a position among the Lord Councilors."
"He's invited you to this banquet, likely with the idea of absorbing the Starsea Fleet as cannon fodder. If you refuse, we could face serious trouble once we reach the Hera Star System."