"This is the second direction." Yang Ying looked at the data displayed on the screen and said, "The first two directions have been ruled out, and there are no signs of a magnetic storm erupting in this third direction either. Let's head back; we have three directions left."

"Yes, Commander." The crew responded.

The Jushou ("Behemoth") again turned its bow and plunged into hyperspace toward the gas cloud.

During the hyperspace transit, a staff officer suddenly reported, "Commander, we have movement. The observers stationed in the gas cloud have transmitted intelligence: that Burker exploration fleet has returned. They've brought five warships with them into the gas cloud."

"It seems Bibobarn has realized we are not true humans," Yang Ying said, his expression betraying no surprise. "This is normal. We intentionally let Jiaiyouna spread the rumor that the space-jump technology belonged to the Terrans, precisely to lead others to this conclusion. Bibobarn just woke up a little late."

"Bibobarn bringing warships this time clearly means ill intent. We need to figure out how to deal with them," Howard said seriously.

"Indeed, we need to plan. This is our first encounter with the warships of a higher-order civilization," Yang Ying stated, yet there wasn't a trace of worry on his face.

Exploration is an intensely competitive activity, fraught with high risk yet promising enormous rewards. Therefore, explorers often have military backgrounds; this has happened many times in Earth's history. Yang Ying and Howard found it unsurprising that Bibobarn could procure military vessels for assistance.

The critical question was how to counter them.

The Burkers were the overlords of the surrounding star field and held considerable status in the Orion Arm. An estrangement with them would carry numerous repercussions. For now, it was merely a conflict between two explorers, but sinking their warships would escalate the matter significantly.

Yang Ying brought up the holographic screen, displaying the progress made so far. Dominating the view was a spherical star-field map spanning six hundred light-years in diameter. After a moment of contemplation, Yang Ying made up his mind:

"Looking at this star-field map, the majority of this large sphere falls within Burker territory. If we intend to develop in this region, we might hide here for a short while, but we cannot remain concealed indefinitely. It's inevitable that we will have dealings with the Burkers at some point in the future, and at that time, a hostile relationship will likely be unavoidable. This is because once the Burkers claim that planet, according to the publicly accepted mandates established by the various races of the Orion Arm, the star system to which that planet belongs, and the vast surrounding space, will be allocated entirely to the Burkers—much like the rules for dividing territorial waters in the old globe era."

"Of course, this applies to other races as well. It's just that the Burker territory is closest to this location, and their gains from acquiring that planet would be greater. If they manage to discover the planet's precise location, it will certainly draw the high-level attention of the Burker leadership. And once they learn that we occupy that planet, it is easy to imagine they will not extend a friendly reception to us," Yang Ying elaborated on his thoughts.

Howard chuckled, "Since a strained relationship is inevitable, perhaps we shouldn't dwell too much on minor conflicts. We don't depend on them for anything, nor are we obligated to satisfy them."

"That's absolutely right," Yang Ying laughed. "Now that Bibobarn knows we aren't true humans, he likely won't have any intention of backing down. Supported by five warships, he only needs a bit of coercion and enticement to bind the other explorers to his cause. Explorers are experts in space tracking; they are more professional at finding things than the military. Give them a little more time, and they might even manage to uncover Captain Rall's original flight path."

Howard nodded. "I understand your intent, Commander. Bibobarn's fleet threatens our exploration work; we must strike first to shake off their entanglement. However, one Jushou is not enough to handle those five Burker warships. We need to deploy more battlecruisers."

Yang Ying smiled mysteriously. "Actually, there's no need to go that far. We don't need to offend the Burkers this early. I have a plan. Analyze it for me." Yang Ying explained his strategy.

"As I see it, this plan has a high chance of success!" Howard's eyes lit up after hearing it, and he clapped his hands, laughing.

The Jushou recalibrated its exit coordinates from hyperspace, not appearing inside the gas cloud, but far outside it, at a distance from Bibobarn's fleet great enough that Yang Ying and Howard were confident it would evade the scanners aboard the Burker warships, given the gas cloud's ability to attenuate nearly all signals.

"They haven't detected us." Yang Ying watched Bibobarn's fleet through an observer drone. They remained undisturbed by their arrival, clearly not yet alerted.

"Let's begin the operation," Yang Ying commanded. He piloted a Phantom fighter away from the Jushou. Once cloaked, he dove into the gas cloud. While he foresaw future friction with the Burkers, he felt no need to engage in a direct attack now. For Earth, a newly ascended higher civilization, such an act would be asking for trouble.

Yang Ying mused that the best outcome would be to eliminate the fleet while ensuring the Burkers wouldn't suspect them.

However, the existing bad blood between him and Bibobarn was already known to many—not only to the explorers within the gas cloud, but Bibobarn might also leak the situation after making his own space-jump departure.

Therefore, even if the strike were executed "cleanly," resulting in Bibobarn's mysterious disappearance, the outside world would likely still hold him responsible.

He couldn't act secretly, nor could he act openly. The only remaining option was to find a scapegoat.

Fortunately, Yang Ying knew of a very suitable scapegoat within the gas cloud: the Space Wasps!

With their formidable offensive power and sufficient numbers, even the Ximpu fleet, with five thousand warships, had suffered defeat here. What hope did Bibobarn have with only five warships?

The observers within the gas cloud had kept records of the Space Wasps. Yang Ying was also familiar with their distribution and easily located a swarm. He then used his mental control powers to summon this group of over a dozen Space Wasps.

Although the Space Wasps were massive, their minds were simple—they were nothing more than large beasts. Controlling them was not difficult for Yang Ying, whose mental strength was at the peak of Level Three, augmented by the Psionic control techniques of the Protoss.

Next, Yang Ying subdued two more swarms, bringing the total number up to forty.

Forty Space Wasps lined up in four rows within the gas cloud, ten in each row. Each wasp had a body width of five hundred meters. Even without accounting for the space between them, each row stretched five kilometers long. While this formation would be imposing on a planet, in the vastness of space, it was less than a drop in the ocean, with considerable distances separating them.

Yang Ying led the Space Wasp contingent toward Bibobarn. After more than half an hour, he halted on Bibobarn's expected trajectory. He stopped here because a small planet, eighty kilometers in diameter, lay nearby—large enough to conceal the Space Wasp formation.

He commanded the wasps to settle on the planet's surface, awaiting Bibobarn and his fleet.

Meanwhile, aboard Bibobarn's exploration vessel, Bibobarn was raging. "Once I find that Terran, I will make him regret daring to make a fool out of me, Bibobarn! They were only recently recognized by the Ksing People—what does that imply? It implies they were a low-order civilization until very recently. These lowly creatures, having just mastered space-jump technology, dare to oppose us Burkers? They are clearly tired of living!"

After venting, he addressed the crew around him. "Immediately send out the final ultimatum to all other explorers in the gas cloud: either join the Burker exploration fleet under my command, or get out of this star field! Tell them that I, Bibobarn, am claiming that planet. Only the immense glory of discovering the planet can offset the negative impact of that joke!"

The crew dared not defy their captain at this moment and relayed the message accurately. The explorers of various races who received this communication were instantly furious. However, constrained by the presence of five warships, none dared to attack directly.

After some consideration, a portion of the exploration vessels withdrew from the star field, while others moved to align with Bibobarn, sending messages of acceptance.

Seeing that a single word from him could shift the balance of power, Bibobarn calmed down slightly, but the murderous intent toward the Terrans lingered in his mind. He resolved that if he encountered the Terran warship again, even if they offered to join his fleet, he would not accept; instead, he would immediately order the five warships to fire and annihilate them, reasoning that a Terran race just emerging from lower civilization status couldn't possibly pose any real threat to him.

At this point, his fleet gradually approached the asteroid where Yang Ying had set his ambush.

Yang Ying saw them enter attack range. He waited a moment longer, letting them move deeper into the kill zone, before giving the order: "It's time. Space Wasps, attack!"

Instantly, all forty Space Wasps launched simultaneously, spewing their deadly electromagnetic cannons at the fleet!

"Captain, multiple Space Wasps ahead! Thirty, no, forty of them!" a crew member reported in a panicked voice.

"What!" Bibobarn shouted in shock. Forty Space Wasps—even against five Burker warships, they held a significant advantage. "Quick, reverse course, retreat fast!"

At that moment, the electromagnetic cannon barrage struck the fleet. Yang Ying had initially targeted the flagship among the five Burker warships. A full salvo struck what appeared to be the shield, which immediately collapsed. The residual energy of the cannon fire tore the warship apart with explosions erupting across its hull, flames engulfing it, and debris scattering everywhere.

Then, the Space Wasps launched their second wave of attacks, while the remaining four warships returned fire.

Four Space Wasps were struck by the Level Seven main cannons of the four opposing warships, exploding instantly. However, Space Wasps hit by Level Six uranium cannons were only injured and could continue fighting.

The target of the second electromagnetic wave was chosen by Yang Ying, who, from within the Phantom fighter, saw Bibobarn and his five exploration vessels turning to flee. He ordered the Space Wasps to aim their electromagnetic cannons at the five exploration ships.

"Captain, the electromagnetic cannon fire is chasing us from behind!" a crew member shrieked in alarm.

"Engage the super-light speed engine immediately, prepare to jump!" Bibobarn roared.

"Impossible, Captain! Our forward path is blocked by debris from the exploding warship. If we charge through now, we won't enter hyperspace; the hull will be pulverized by the wreckage," the first mate responded.

"Then evade them quickly!" Bibobarn yelled in anger.

"Ah! Too late!" A crew member buried his head in his hands.

Bibobarn felt a violent shudder run through the ship, witnessed a blinding flash of light, cursed under his breath, and knew nothing more.