Chapter 96: Starfire Spreads

Time has slipped by, and three years have passed since the fate‑determining "Mother Nest Battle."

The former "New Hope" stronghold has since grown into a thriving metropolis called Qiming City. Inside the towering alloy walls lie orderly districts, lush green belts, and pollution‑free factories powered by Luo Ya energy technology. In the central plaza stands a monument to fallen heroes and a sculpture symbolizing the fusion of order and life—a Luo Ya warblade entwined with white Pure Fire.

Today is Qiming City's annual "Harvest Festival," celebrating not only bountiful crops but also the many fruits of civilization's reconstruction. The plaza hums with voices; survivors from various outposts wear modest yet tidy clothes, their faces radiating peace and hope. Children chase each other among the crowd, savoring desserts made from genuine fruit grown in agricultural greenhouses.

"Wow, look at this scene—who would have imagined it three years ago?" Kaiwen, now the chief scientific officer, adjusted his signature goggles, holding a freshly dispensed blended juice from a vending machine. "Even the vending machines work now; the taste is a bit off, but it's miles better than gnawing compressed biscuits!"

Beside him stands the increasingly burly Zhang Yang, who is greedily devouring a massive burger packed with real meat from domesticated radiation‑resistant livestock, mumbling, "Cut the chatter… just having something to eat is great! Thinking back… uh, this thing is really something!"

Wang Hu remains silent, yet as he watches the joyous crowd his perpetually pursed lips soften slightly, and he carefully holds a small paper wind‑mill he bought for his daughter. His daughter was born during these three peaceful years, symbolizing the new generation.

Su Yu stands beside Chen Mo in a crisp commander's uniform, her long hair tied up, her demeanor both gentle and capable. She gazes at the scene, her eyes full of satisfaction. "It seems our original choice was right."

Chen Mo clasps her hand, his gaze sweeping the plaza and the city they rebuilt with their own hands, his heart swelling with pride yet harboring a barely perceptible weight deep in his eyes. The cold marked consciousness deep within the Mother Nest three years ago, like a sword hanging overhead, has never truly been forgotten.

At that moment, a low‑but piercing hum rolled in from afar, cutting through the festival's clamor. People looked up in surprise to see an oddly shaped, matte dark‑metallic gray shuttle with sharp angular lines slowly descending onto the designated landing pad outside the city. Its design, unlike the silver‑white streamlined Guardians, is heftier and exudes a cold industrial feel.

"Unidentified vessel! Not a Guardians model! Alert level raised!" Han Qing's calm voice rang through the city's defense system. The well‑trained defense legion swiftly took their assigned positions but showed no overt hostility—having seen too much, they have learned to stay vigilant without hastily starting a fight.

The shuttle's hatch slid open, and descending were not beings but… robots. Unlike the rational elegance of Guardians robots, these are more rugged, with heavy armored joints and monotone red optical lenses that scream "keep away." Leading them is a larger robot whose shoulder plates bear a crossed‑gear and lightning emblem.

It steps before Chen Mo and the others, emitting a synthesized, flat electronic tone:

"Notice. We are a forward reconnaissance unit of the Forged Fire Clan. We have detected large‑scale order reconstruction in this star sector, meeting the criteria for 'Civilization Revival.' According to the Interstellar Pioneering Accord, we will assess this location to decide whether to incorporate it into the Forged Fire trade and protection network."

"Forged Fire Clan?" Kaiwen mutters softly, "That name sounds like a bunch of iron‑clad metalheads."

Chen Mo steps forward, neither deferential nor arrogant: "I am the administrator of Qiming City, Chen Mo. Welcome to our home. But before that, I need to understand the Forged Fire Clan's intentions, and what exactly 'assessment' and 'integration' entail."

The lead robot, designated Anvil‑IV, its red optical lens fixed on Chen Mo, says: "Message received. The assessment will cover technological tier, social structure, defensive capability, and resource‑potential scans. Refusing assessment is deemed a forfeiture of the right to join the network; consequences are your own responsibility."

Its tone carries a condescending, programmatic coldness, as if stating an established fact.

The Forged Fire Clan's assessment is simple and direct, one could even call it… blunt.

In the following days, several small scout drones hovered like ghosts over Qiming City and its surrounding airspace, emitting various scan beams and completely ignoring local flight‑control regulations. They even attempted to forcibly scan the city's underground core energy hub and Luo Ya main control room, only to be repelled by the partial order barrier Kaiwen hastily activated.

"Damn! Those iron clods don't see themselves as outsiders at all!" Zhang Yang, watching the monitor, grits his teeth, "They're sizing us up like livestock at a market!"

"Their technology is odd," Kaiwen analyzes the data, "leaning toward heavy industry, matter reconstruction, and kinetic weapons; their energy usage is… domineering. It's completely different from our Luo Ya order path and the previous 'Reaper' biological route."

The most aggravating incident occurred on the third day. A heavy‑duty engineering robot of the Forged Fire Clan, without permission, drove straight to a rare‑metal mine outside the city, claiming to "collect samples for assessment." The mine's guards tried to block it, but the robot easily pushed them aside with a non‑lethal shockwave.

The news reached Chen Mo, his brows knit. He led his core team and rushed personally to the mine.

Upon arrival, he saw the nearly five‑meter‑tall heavy robot hammering the ore vein with its massive drilling arm, ignoring the angry miners and armed guards nearby.

"Cease your actions immediately!" Chen Mo's voice was low but cut clearly through the machine's roar.

Anvil‑IV's voice emanated from within the robot: "This is a necessary assessment procedure. Inferior civilizations have no right to impede."

"This is my home, not your testing ground!" Chen Mo's gaze sharpened. "Stop now, or we will deem this hostile action!"

"Warning. Resisting assessment will lower your rating, affecting future trade quotas and security guarantee levels." Anvil‑IV replied without emotion, its drilling arm even increasing power.

"Dammit! No respect!" Zhang Yang roared, about to charge forward.

"Hold on." Chen Mo stopped him. He knew they could not easily spark a war, especially with the opponent's unknown background. Yet he would not allow them to trample their dignity and sovereignty.

He stepped forward, the Resonance of planetary order quietly stirring within him. He did not attack; instead he focused the power at his feet, then slowly lifted his leg and gave a gentle stomp.

Hum—!

An invisible wave radiated outward from him. It was not a destructive blast but a subtle tweak of the rules. The heavy robot's massive drilling arm, the instant it touched the ore vein, caused the rock ahead to instantly become as hard and dense as diamond.

"Clang!"

The drill bit struck the rock, emitting a harsh screech, sparks flying, the bit wearing and cracking at a visible speed—while the rock remained unscathed.

The heavy robot froze, seemingly unable to comprehend the phenomenon. Its sensors flickered wildly, calculating this violation of physical law.

Chen Mo calmly addressed Anvil‑IV: "This is our 'order.' We do not welcome barbaric assessments. If you wish to communicate, adopt an equal stance."

This move was not meant to destroy, but to demonstrate power and control—a force different from sheer violence, yet deeper and more inscrutable.

Anvil‑IV's red optical lens flashed intensely a few times, as if recalculating. Moments later, it issued a new command; the heavy robot halted and silently retreated.

"Detected unknown high‑level energy usage pattern. Assessment data updated. Qiming City civilization, potential rating: upgraded to 'Valuable.'" Anvil‑IV's electronic tone remained cold, but its meaning had shifted. "We will adjust our contact strategy. In three days, a clan trade representative will arrive for formal negotiations."

After speaking, it led the robot contingent onto the shuttle it had arrived in and swiftly lifted off.

"Ha… finally got those plague‑bringers out of here." Kaiwen exhaled, wiping sweat. "Chief, that move you just used was awesome! You completely took them down!"

Chen Mo showed little joy; watching the ship vanish into the sky, he said gravely, "This is only the beginning. The Forged Fire Clan… appears to be a civilization that follows a blunt might‑above‑all principle. Displaying strength can earn temporary respect, but may also invite greater covetousness."

He turned to the others: "We must accelerate our pace. Not just for development, but to ensure we have sufficient self‑defense and even counter‑strike capability for any future storms."

The Forged Fire Clan episode sounded a warning bell for Qiming City, immersed in peace and development. The universe hosts not only friendly Guardians but also forces that follow jungle‑law principles.

In the days that followed, the whole city seemed wound up like a spring. Under Kaiwen's direction, the Academy accelerated deep analysis of the Luo Ya database, especially technologies concerning interstellar travel, advanced energy applications, and defense systems. Han Qing's intelligence network began extending toward low Earth orbit and farther star regions, establishing an early‑warning system. The defense legion, led by Zhang Yang and Wang Hu, started drills to counter various unknown technological foes.

Chen Mo spent more time communicating with the ancient Luo Ya Stele, seeking a deeper grasp of the nature of order's power and probing whether Luo Ya civilization left records of other powerful civilizations in the universe. Su Yu assisted him, using True Knowledge Vision to sense the source of that cold marked consciousness; though still vague, it yielded some insight—she faintly felt the mark was not isolated but a node within a vast network.

Three days later, the Forged Fire Clan's trade representative arrived as scheduled. This time came a larger cargo ship and a robot calling itself "Trade Commissioner No. 7," whose form was more humanoid (though still a metal skeleton with red optical lenses). Its demeanor remained devoid of humanity, but at least it observed surface courtesy.

Negotiations took place in Qiming City's conference center. The other side presented some industrial product blueprints and high‑strength alloy samples, seeking to trade for Qiming City's unique Luo Ya energy core technology and the application method of the "Order Definition" capability.

"Core technology concerns the foundation of a civilization; we cannot sell it," Chen Mo replied bluntly. "But we are willing to exchange some civilian energy tech, agricultural techniques, and certain specialty mineral resources."

The negotiations were arduous and lengthy. The Forged Fire Clan's logic was direct and utilitarian, calculating equivalent values down to several decimal places. In the end, both sides reached a preliminary, limited trade agreement focused on resource and technology exchange, without touching core domains.

After seeing off the trade commissioner, Chen Mo stood before the massive Star Map in the command room, marked with known Guardians activity zones, occasional Observer signals, and the newly added direction of the Forged Fire Clan's claimed sphere of influence.

"The universe is vast, with many neighbors, and… they don't seem very easy to get along with," Kaiwen sighed.

"Precisely because of that, we must become stronger," Chen Mo said, pointing to the vast, unknown darkness beyond the Star Map. "'Forged Fire Clan' is only the first 'neighbor' we've encountered. The mark that signals our existence may be hidden deeper in the star sea. The Chaos Whisper confronting Luo Ya civilization may not be far away either."

His gaze swept over every companion present, his voice firm and powerful:

"Our journey has never ended. The stage has expanded from this continent to the entire sea of stars."

"We will let Qiming City's Starfire not only illuminate the ground beneath our feet, but also become an ever‑burning lighthouse in this boundless darkness, an unassailable… order fulcrum!"

A new chapter has already unfolded. The star‑filled sea stretches endlessly, challenges and opportunities coexisting, and humanity's civilization will continue to spread its resonance steadfastly into the deep cosmos.