Chapter 65

Looking at the four characters "Gray Demon" on the light screen, Bronya's mind inexplicably conjured the face of Gray Wind.

Then...

"How could it be Lord Gray Wind? Such a beautiful woman, how could she be called a demon?"

Bronya couldn't help but shake her head.

"Star Gate?"

Herta raised an eyebrow.

Throughout the universe, Star Gates are a very common type of mega-structure.

They allow ships to enter the pioneered Silver Rail in a relatively safe manner, traverse the imaginary barriers between star systems, and arrive at neighboring galaxies.

Through this structure, even ships that have not received the blessing of Path power but possess jump capabilities can conduct inter-galactic travel.

What harm could opening a Star Gate possibly cause to the universe?

"Or is it that the Star Gate mentioned by the Scourge Empire is something similar yet different from those in the universe?"

Herta couldn't help but stroke her chin with interest.

A unique, massive structure appeared on the light screen.

Its shape resembled two mechanical flowers, standing between the stars, facing each other.

【Star Gate: A conduit traversing the basic structure of subspace, through which one can quickly reach other Star Gates, establishing a rapid transit network spanning the stars.】

The two mechanical structures on the light screen erupted with dazzling purple light, and the space between them twitched and twisted, as if a stone had been thrown into a pool of water.

A moment later, the space between them emitted a mournful cry, and a rift was torn open, revealing the scenes of hundreds or thousands of different star systems within.

"The technology of the Scourge Empire is truly not simple."

On the Enterprise, Aventurine watched the scene on the light screen with interest.

Tearing the basic structure of space to link Star Gates of different star systems between the stars—

this technology is far more advanced than the "Star Gates" mastered by the IPC.

The Star Gates mastered by the IPC are merely tunnels between adjacent star systems, facilitating inter-galactic travel for ships without jump capabilities.

But the Scourge Empire's Star Gates can directly link stars in the distant beyond...

"As long as enough Star Gates are built, all star systems will become neighboring worlds."

"The entire universe will be truly connected together, and the high walls between star systems will no longer be a problem."

"The massive energy consumption required for jumping will also become a thing of the past..."

Aventurine couldn't help but smile.

"This is very useful for universal trade. Ratio, do you want to make this a research direction?"

As he spoke, Aventurine looked at the Dr. Ratio in front of him.

Dr. Ratio, however, pinched his chin and looked at Aventurine: "Have you not discovered a more important matter?"

"Oh?" Aventurine raised an eyebrow.

"Everyone with an understanding of the universe's structure knows that there are unknown imaginary voids between star systems that are difficult to cross."

"Without directly or indirectly leveraging the power of Aeons, people cannot cross the barriers between star systems."

"In other words, the current universal civilization relies on the gifts of the Aeons."

Dr. Ratio shifted his gaze from Aventurine to the vast galaxy outside the window...

"And the Star Gate technology mastered by the Scourge Empire can link the universe without needing to rely on Aeons."

"The Path of Trailblaze will be broader than ever before."

"Star Gate..."

On the train, Himeko pinched her chin, looking at the brilliant galaxy outside the window, and also at the Star Gate on the light screen connecting the myriad realms.

Turning distant worlds into neighboring worlds, making distant journeys feel close at hand...

Is this act Trailblazing? Is it a better Trailblaze for the train?

Himeko could not comment; she only knew that if the sentient beings of the universe could build Star Gates,

then the journey of Trailblaze would extend beneath everyone's feet...

"Conductor, what do you think of this Star Gate?"

Himeko asked the Conductor, who was staring blankly at the light screen.

The Conductor, however, seemed as if he hadn't heard Himeko's words.

"The swirl of wind... no matter where it is, it is rotating. It never stops, never ever stops..."

"Just like Trailblazing..."

"You and I once made a promise: the journey of Trailblaze never stops... but you, you fellow, where are you now?"

Pom-Pom gripped the mop and said in a low voice:

"Is this kind of Star Gate the never-ending Trailblaze you were looking forward to?"

Watching Pom-Pom's reaction, Himeko smiled gently,

then moved her gaze back to the light screen.

The scene on the light screen changed, moving to a peculiar Star Gate.

This Star Gate flickered with a pale green light, with gray dust floating around it, as if it had been excavated from a desert.

This unique Star Gate rotated in the void, but the world it led to was sealed; no ship could enter.

"Is this the L-Gate? The Star Gate opened by the Scourge Empire?"

Himeko showed a curious expression.

"Re-linking something that has been sealed—why would this be called a crime?"

"Could it be that there is some terrifying thing behind this gate?"

Just as Himeko was curious, a sound rang out on the light screen...

【"We have discovered an ancient subspace portal."】

【"At some point after its initial construction, its connection to the rest of the network was severed."】

【"It can now only point to one valid destination—an unexplored star sector outside our galaxy."】

【"It has been named the L-Cluster by our astronomers."】

【"More intriguingly, this Star Gate is constructed entirely of extremely advanced micro-nanobots."】

"These gray dust particles are nanobots? Isn't the quantity too massive??"

The sentient beings of the universe were somewhat surprised as they looked at the text on the light screen.

These gray dust particles permeating the entire star system were actually all nanobots.

"If all these nanobots were activated, I'm afraid they could instantly cover an entire planet..."

"They're just nanobots, just a large quantity; it's not like we haven't seen them before."

"Even the Scourge Empire evaluated the design of these nanobots as extremely advanced... they shouldn't be ordinary nanobots, right?"

Just as the sentient beings of the universe were feeling curious, the Scourge Empire's research ship on the light screen began to study this L-Gate.

【"This Star Gate emits a faint energy signature, but it is deliberately locked in a maintenance cycle to prevent it from being activated."】

【"If we manage to disable this process, we will be able to reach the L-Cluster."】

"It's sealed? Prevented from being activated?"

"Is there some secret behind it, or does a terrifying danger exist?"

"But the technology of this L-Gate is clearly very advanced; whether it's danger or opportunity, uncovering it will certainly yield rewards."

The sentient beings of the universe looked at the sealed L-Gate on the light screen, all showing curious expressions.

【"According to the intelligence we have gathered, other civilizations in the universe are also conducting research on the L-Gate."】

The scene on the light screen flowed.

In several star systems, different civilizations were conducting research on different L-Gates.

Most of the progress was very slow.

The nanobot technology and subspace technology present on the L-Gate were clearly a difficult problem for most civilizations.

The sentient beings of the universe vaguely sensed that this was a competition between multiple civilizations.

Whoever could open the L-Gate first would be able to head to the L-Cluster, discover the secrets within a step ahead, and obtain unknown technology.

They could even gain super-strong mobility to dispatch troops to other civilizations by occupying the L-Gate.

"Competition, is it?"