Xiao Yu had already gained a rough understanding of the Molian Civilization’s power distribution. Around nineteen light-years from this star lay their capital star system. Centered on that system, the Molian Civilization’s sphere of influence extended roughly fifteen light-years in every direction. Within this range, dozens of stars and their accompanying planets all belonged to the Molian Civilization.
It was estimated that there were over thirty inhabited planets, nearly a hundred industrial, military, and mining planets, for a total of about one hundred and thirty.
These dozens of star systems were like the towns of Earth’s cold-weapon era. In those days, towns could garrison troops and serve as supply points. A town only a few kilometers across could project its power over hundreds of kilometers around it. The same principle applied in interstellar warfare.
Occupying a star system meant controlling at least a two-light-year radius around it. Within the system, factories and logistical bases could be built, damaged ships could return for repairs and refueling, and even new ships could be constructed to replenish combat strength. In interstellar war, when one side could constantly resupply while the other had to rely solely on the resources it carried, the advantage of the former was obvious.
Thus, Xiao Yu’s general strategic plan was set, advance steadily, securing each step. Every time he occupied a star system, he would modify it into a logistics base of his own and station defensive forces there. This would inevitably result in splitting his forces, but that didn’t matter. The Molian Civilization, despite possessing around five million ships in total, clearly could not concentrate all its military strength in one place. They, too, had territories to defend and fronts to attack.
If Xiao Yu could seize all the systems surrounding the Molian capital star system, then the Molian Civilization would have nowhere to run. With these systems as strongpoints and their influence extending over the surrounding area, Xiao Yu could form a de facto encirclement of the capital. No matter which direction they tried to flee, Xiao Yu could easily send forces to intercept.
Once the war entered full swing, massive battles involving over a million ships would become unlikely. The more probable encounters would be star system battles involving hundreds of thousands or tens of thousands of ships, along with ambushes and raids. The two sides’ military power would be tested again and again in these medium-scale engagements, gradually tipping the balance one way or the other.
“This star system is my first captured stronghold. I will use it as my base to steadily expand my territory. Hm… after decades of curvature travel, I’ve already used up part of the supplies I brought. Let’s take some time to rest and resupply here.” Xiao Yu made up his mind and gave the order.
Of course, not every ship would stay for rest. At present, Xiao Yu commanded roughly 3.5 million combat ships, and keeping them all here would be unwise. While the Molian defenses were still lax, it was best to expand the victories quickly.
So, Xiao Yu took stock of all the strategic materials in the fleet, concentrated them into two million combat ships, and split them into three groups. These would move quickly toward the Number 2 system, five light-years away; the Number 3 system, three light-years away; and the Number 4 system, 6.1 light-years away, with the goal of seizing all three in one push. The remaining 1.5 million ships would garrison here, begin base construction, and rest.Xiao Yu had already numbered all star systems under Molian control in sequence. The one he had just taken was, naturally, Number 1, and by that same scheme, the Molian capital star system was designated Number 21.
At present, one thing worked greatly in Xiao Yu’s favor, he had a general understanding of the Molian Civilization’s military strength in each star system, but from the Molian Civilization’s perspective, monitoring him was like staring into a void. Although they knew the total size of Xiao Yu’s forces, they had no way of tracking his movements. They didn’t know whether Xiao Yu would choose to rest or attack, and if he attacked, which star system he would target or with how many ships, none of this intelligence was available to them.
In fact, they didn’t even know who Xiao Yu was. Apart from the name ‘Divine Ark Civilization’ and the fact that it was a Level 5 Civilization, they knew nothing else.
The Number 2 system was a military base with around 300,000 ships stationed there. It lay between the Number 3 system, a mining base, and the Number 4 system, a residential system. It was obvious that the positioning of these systems was meant to use the military strength of Number 2 to protect Number 3 and 4. To counter this, Xiao Yu made corresponding plans, aiming to seize all three star systems in one sweep.
The intelligent beings’ army led by Luka Two was in curvature travel, following a secret route toward the Molian capital star system. After they had departed, Xiao Yu sent a follow-up order instructing them to abandon their current course and take a longer but safer route. According to this plan, they would arrive at their destination in about four years.
However, this timetable was not fixed, Xiao Yu could adjust their arrival time at any moment depending on the progress of the main battlefield.
In the Number 21 system, the Molian Civilization’s capital star system, an emergency meeting was underway on the planet closest to the primary star, which was also the most scenic.
The capital planet of the Number 21 system had the smallest population among the thirty inhabited planets, but it was without question the absolute center of the Molian Civilization. This was because the Number One Data Server, which handled all data exchanges across the entire civilization, was located there under the most stringent protection. All data traffic between the civilization’s more than a hundred different planets, whether financial, military, or civil, relied on the support of Data Server One.
Beyond that, the capital planet was also the absolute financial hub. To protect its environment, the Molian Civilization strictly limited its population, making even tourism for ordinary Molian citizens highly troublesome. This restrictive policy had, in turn, created a trend, having a corporate headquarters on the capital planet became the ultimate symbol of prestige. As a result, the planet hosted the headquarters of more than 2,000 large companies.
It was also the absolute center of scientific research, with all of the civilization’s top scientists gathered here and over 300 major research institutes established on the planet.
To match these titles was the capital planet’s formidable defensive capability. In fact, the two planets in the outer orbits had long been incorporated into the capital’s defensive perimeter. After thousands, even tens of thousands of years of fortification, the entire Number 21 system was a fortress. The Molian Civilization even boasted that unless a Level 6 Civilization or a fully mobilized advanced Level 5 Civilization attacked, the capital’s defense line could not be breached.
This was the Molian Civilization.
With technology advanced enough for system-level navigation, the Molian Civilization had long since begun massive interstellar development. All heavy industry had been relocated offworld, even to terraformed planets, raising the total number of habitable worlds to several dozen and greatly relieving population pressure. Convenient interstellar transportation ensured unhindered movement of goods between planets, and superluminal communication technology allowed beings on different worlds to converse as if face-to-face.
Now, in the most scenic region of the capital planet, such an emergency meeting was being held. Leaders from industrial, military, civil, scientific, and political sectors, scattered across different planets, communicated and exchanged views on the crisis with the support of superluminal communication technology.
“The Azure Sky system has been seized by an unknown force. Thirty thousand warships destroyed, 133,200 mineral transport ships destroyed, with total casualties exceeding 3.3 million. The enemy left only one name, ‘Divine Ark Civilization.’ I’ve checked the database of Data Server One, and this name is not listed among the advanced civilizations of the galaxy. According to data reported by the Kataar before it was destroyed, the enemy fleet numbered about four million ships, with roughly 3.5 million combat vessels. Their average technology level is no lower than ours, and in fact, the defensive performance of their large ships surpasses ours.”
“Overall, their technological level is slightly higher than ours, but not by much. You can tell from the fact that they still rely on ship-mounted negative matter cannons as their primary offensive weapon. Supported by our military-industrial system developed over tens of thousands of years, I believe we are not without hope of victory.”
“The Tianlan system has fallen, and all of our detection equipment deployed there has been completely cleared. For us, the system is now a total blind spot. We cannot determine the enemy’s next move. However, based on our analysis, the most likely next targets are the Roer system, the Auregold system, and the Ferro system. Of these, the Roer system is a military base, with a garrison of about 300,000 ships.”
“At present, the commander of the Roer system is awaiting our next orders. What should we do?”