Upon receiving the star chart of the Orion Arm, Eagle immediately handed it over to the Strategy Department for analysis. This could save a great deal of tedious work, far surpassing the effort of dispatching personnel to scout the solar system's terrain.

The Milky Way Galaxy. Billions of clusters converged here; his modest holdings, if thrown in, might not even cause a ripple.

Although this star chart was only foundational, the volume of information it contained was considerable. The Strategy Department spent a full two days just to fully decipher it.

The data within the chart revealed that the entire Orion Arm was divided into twenty-eight star sectors. A total of fourteen thousand four hundred and twenty-five charted planets were marked, with the territorial domains of various races clearly visible. Among these ten thousand-plus planets, aside from the Public Supply Stars mentioned by Jiayouna, there were several hundred planets holding immense influence within the Orion Arm. These included nearly two hundred developed planets qualified as Interstellar Metropolises, and over a hundred Capital Stars belonging to various races.

According to the manual embedded within the star chart, the races whose Capital Stars were listed belonged to advanced civilizations—meaning their civilizations had mastered the technology of spatial jumps.

An Interstellar Metropolis served as the core of an advanced civilization's power, often aggregating resources far exceeding those of several, or even dozens, of solar systems. Only advanced civilizations could construct them. Even straining their utmost, each advanced civilization could only forge one or two Interstellar Metropolises.

As for the Public Supply Stars, they were divided into two categories. The first type was established by advanced civilizations and did not fall under the conventional definition of inhabited worlds. The vast majority had only one or two cities across the entire planet, serving to provide repairs and supplies to passing spacecraft. Since this was not a crucial task, these facilities were often built on marginal planets with extremely poor living conditions, high modification costs, but which were too wasteful to abandon entirely.

The second type was established by lower-level civilizations to offer supply services to passing advanced civilizations. The environments on these planets were significantly better, and they mostly featured large markets where unique resources could be bought and traded. Since the lower-level civilizations themselves lacked the capability for interstellar travel, this was their only means of exchanging goods with the advanced races.

Naturally, any lower-level civilization offering supply star services must possess a considerable level of technological advancement; at the very least, aerospace technology was indispensable, allowing them to provide basic spacecraft repair and maintenance services.

The humans of the Solar System belonged to this tier of lower-level civilization, they simply hadn't established Public Supply Star services. It wasn't that the Terrans didn't want to; rather, the Solar System was located in a remote area of the Milky Way. Firstly, its resources were scarce, and secondly, it was not situated on any major transit route. Establishing such a service would attract no visitors, merely resulting in a wasteful expenditure of resources.

Through this star chart, Yang Ying gained a deeper understanding of the Ge Xing civilization's strength. Out of the twenty-eight sectors in the Orion Arm, the Ge Xing civilization occupied two, placing them fifth among the over one hundred advanced civilizations in the Arm based on their territorial holdings.

However, Yang Ying knew in his heart that the territory encompassed by these two sectors was merely a reference point; it was not entirely under the direct rule of Ge Xing. There must be numerous lower-level civilizations living within Ge Xing's sphere of influence that were not marked on the chart.

Yang Ying even secretly speculated that perhaps even the Ge Xing people themselves were unaware of exactly how many lower-level civilizations existed, or how many habitable planets lay within their sphere of influence.

After all, the Milky Way was vast. Even with spatial jumps, every corner could not be explored. Spatial jumps navigated through hyperspace, making it impossible to see or track what lay along the route. This was evident in the fact that although the Ge Xing sphere of influence spanned two sectors, they still only had just over a hundred inhabited worlds listed—inhabited worlds were not displayed on the star chart; that data came from intelligence Yang Ying had previously collected on the Ge Xing.

As for Earth, although it did not fall under the jurisdiction of any advanced civilization, it was situated very close to the spheres of influence of both Ge Xing and Kustar Star, making it understandable that it became entangled in the conflict between the two races.

The Kustar Star people also occupied two sectors, and their territory was contiguous with that of the Ge Xing. Their strength was no less than that of Ge Xing, perhaps even slightly superior, ranking them fourth.

In a study, Yang Ying reviewed the report submitted by the Strategy Department. The study was not large; shelves lined the walls on both sides, but they did not hold paper books. Instead, they were filled with square data chips. The information contained on a single chip was equivalent to an entire library, stored entirely in holographic video format. A specialized reader could interact with the reader, encompassing sound, video, text, and imagery all within one small data chip.

Even the entirety of formal education, from primary school to university, could be accomplished with a single data chip; only research-based learning required mentorship.

Knock, knock.

After finishing the report, the study door was knocked upon. Yang Ying looked up, the identity of the person outside already manifest in his mindscape. Yang Ying said, "Kaliya? Come in."

"Yes!" Kaliya opened the door, walked in, saluted Eagle, and reported, "Sir, the last Battlecruiser of the month rolled off the line fourteen minutes, eleven seconds, and twenty-two seconds ago. The construction quota for this month—sixty Battlecruisers—has been successfully met."

Yang Ying was greatly pleased by the news. He returned the salute and smiled, "I hadn't even noticed; time flies. It's been nearly two months since the Pluto Campaign."

During the Pluto Campaign, Yang Ying possessed only ten Battlecruisers. After the campaign came the military's efforts to rally the populace, followed by the initiation of reforms. Now, the external aftershocks of the changes were gradually subsiding, and various regions were stabilizing under the new order—two months had passed.

When the first Behemoth-class Battlecruiser came online, the plan for the first month was to produce ten, which coincided with the Pluto Campaign. The following month saw an even greater output of thirty, which had also been successfully completed long ago. And in this, the third month, the plan called for sixty Battlecruisers to roll off the line, and they had now been completed. Calculated this way, Yang Ying now had one hundred serviceable Battlecruisers.

"With a hundred Battlecruisers in hand, I believe we can handle most emergencies. I plan to take a long trip soon," Yang Ying stated.

"A long trip? Are you leaving the Solar System?" Kaliya inquired.

"Yes."

"Sir, have you chosen a destination?"

"I have, but if you have any suggestions, feel free to offer them now for my consideration," Yang Ying said with a smile.

Kaliya considered this. "I suggest we choose a Type II Supply Star as our first target upon entering the galaxy. They have exchange markets. Although established by lower-level civilizations, there should be many worthwhile items. Running through a few might allow us to unearth some treasures. Furthermore, these lower-level civilizations won't cause us trouble, yet they interact with advanced races constantly, meaning people come and go. We should be able to gather plenty of useful information, providing an opportunity to first become familiar with the general atmosphere of the galaxy."

Clap, clap.

Yang Ying applauded twice. "Very well said. I have nothing to add; my chosen destination is also a Type II Supply Star. Go and make the necessary preparations."

"Yes." Kaliya didn't leave immediately but continued, "Sir, besides reporting the completion of the one-hundredth warship, I have another matter to report."

"Speak, what is it?"

"Following the inspection during the Pluto War, the Research Institute believes the Behemoth-class Battlecruiser still has room for improvement. For the past two months, they have been focused on breakthrough research and have now produced the blueprints for the second-generation Battlecruiser, which has already been approved. The Battlecruisers commencing construction next month will be the Generation II models," Kaliya stated in a clear tone.

"That's excellent news."

Yang Ying smiled slightly, then sighed, "But starting construction next month means they won't be completed for another twenty-two months. It seems the second-generation Battlecruisers won't be ready for another two years."

He paused, shrugged, "But it's fine. Warfare relies partly on brains and partly on weaponry. The Behemoth-class is already close to the threshold of an advanced civilization's standard, and each one is operated by the best personnel. Even if we engage in a direct confrontation with an advanced civilization, we might not necessarily fail. Two more years should be manageable."

Kaliya followed up, "Howard says the same thing."

Yang Ying nodded. "Anything else?"

"One final item," Kaliya continued. "Regarding your last meeting with the Ge Xing ambassador: she asked if you were a true human. You answered yes at the time, but in fact, you are not. If you leave the Solar System and venture out, you are likely to face similar questions from other aliens. Since the Human sub-species is rumored to have no one capable of mastering spatial jump technology, what will you answer then—yes or no?"

"You have a point," Yang Ying admitted, recognizing this as a genuine issue. Jiayouna asked, and others would too. He couldn't admit the truth every time and then demand secrecy, and if the secret leaked, reaching the ears of the Atlantis Empire could cause unnecessary trouble. "Alright, once we're out, if my origins can be concealed, they will be. If they can't, I will act as an Earthling, after all, I was an Earthling five centuries ago, and I remain one now."

"What about the Ge Xing Ambassador?"

"I will speak with Jiayouna and ask her to help unify the narrative, claiming the Terrans have developed spatial jump technology. Ah, lying is indeed wrong; I truly appreciate that sentiment now. This favor I owe her is growing larger." Yang Ying sighed.

"I understand, Sir. Please allow me to take my leave." Kaliya saluted again and turned to exit.

Yang Ying then dialed the contact number for the Ge Xing Embassy, found Jiayouna, and requested that she publicly state that Earthlings had developed spatial jump technology. Jiayouna agreed readily without asking for any terms, clearly still viewing Yang Ying as a true human.

Upon learning that Yang Ying was planning a long voyage, the entire Tran Mercenary Group began preparations, and the departure date drew steadily closer.