The news of Lagunis’s death spread like wildfire, igniting a joyous storm across the entire Singer star system. The populace sang and danced; their melodies rose and fell in beautiful harmony, never descending into cacophony despite the sheer number of voices.

Within half an hour, Yang Ying’s exploits had been woven into ballads, sung everywhere. There wasn't just one such song, but dozens, perhaps hundreds. Yang Ying’s sharp hearing allowed him to distinguish each voice, noting the varied lyrics, the majority of which, strangely, were love songs.

Yafei sat at the conference table in the side hall of the golden chamber, also hearing the songs drifting in on the wind. She looked across at Yang Ying and remarked, "It seems Your Excellency is quite popular with the young ladies."

Yang Ying smiled faintly, glancing at the spread of exotic delicacies and fine wines before him. "The songs of the young ladies are a wonderful thing to my ears. Forcing them onto the battlefield would be a true hardship for them. Fortunately, with Karragoonis dead, the trouble posed by the Kustarians has diminished by more than half."

Yafei nodded, lifting a cup of amber-hued wine. "Earthlings have a custom of celebrating victory with drinks. I toast Your Excellency, and I also toast Blade, though he is not present."

Yang Ying raised his glass in return. As for Blade, Yang Ying had arranged an excuse for him to depart earlier.

Setting down her cup, Yafei continued, "Karragoonis's death has fundamentally wounded the Kustarians, yet they still possess territory across two star domains. Their vitality is not entirely depleted; they retain a degree of self-preservation capability. In ordinary times, many would eye their lands, swiftly assembling a grand army to strike the Kustarians. But now—"

Yang Ying knew exactly what she meant. "Now, every race is preparing to claim a piece of the Perseus Arm, unable to spare fleets. Is that what you mean, Excellency Yafei?"

"Precisely," Yafei confirmed. "To speak plainly, we Singers had already made plans to venture into the Perseus Arm. But now, such a golden opportunity has arisen. If the Kustarians manage to recover, dealing with them might cost us several times the effort."

Striking the Kustarians or seizing territory in the Perseus Arm—it was not a simple choice. Many factors needed consideration. Yang Ying understood the dilemma facing the Singers, as he had anticipated this very situation before slaying Karragoonis.

"Excellency Yafei, priorities must be established. With careful consideration, a better path can always be found. The decision the Singers make is certainly not for me to interfere with, but in my view, having a choice is far better than having none. After all, this means if you deem it more advantageous to crush the Kustarians again, rendering them incapable of threatening the Singers further, then making that choice is a clear gain. Conversely, if you believe the expedition into the Perseus Arm to secure more resources is more beneficial to the Singers, then Karragoonis’s death presents no loss at all—in fact, it is a tremendous boon. Is that not so?"

Yang Ying did not wish to sway Yafei’s decision with his opinion, merely presenting the advantages of both paths, leaving the ultimate choice to her. Should Yafei decide for the Singers to proceed with the Perseus Arm expedition and territorial grab, he would not object; at worst, when the Zerg expanded, he would yield ground when encountering Singer fleets.

"That is true," Yafei chuckled. "Regardless, Karragoonis’s fall is the best news I have heard in a millennium. You two Excellencies have eliminated this great enemy for us Singers. On their behalf, I thank you." She rose and performed a deep bow.

"No need for ceremony," Yang Ying replied, rising to return a half-bow. Killing Karragoonis was indeed a massive favor to the Singers, and accepting a half-bow was entirely appropriate.

After a few more pleasantries, Yafei inquired, "What are Your Excellency Yang Ying’s next intentions?"

"We have them," Yang Ying affirmed. "Since we have caused Karragoonis’s demise, an act far more severe than a direct declaration of war, we must assume the Kustarians, with their massive fleet, still pose a significant threat. Once they recover, swift retaliation is certain. Naturally, we will not be lenient toward the Kustarians. Currently, we have mobilized a fleet of two hundred thousand, prepared to advance into the Kustarian star domain."

"Only two hundred thousand ships?" Yafei’s brow furrowed slightly at the number. "Although severely wounded, the Kustarians still command three million main battle fleets and five million vassal fleets; their military strength cannot be underestimated. To launch two hundred thousand ships against the Kustarian Empire’s territory…" She clearly did not view this optimistically.

"The specifics of execution will undoubtedly be thoroughly considered by our staff officers. If the feasibility is low, naturally, we will not act," Yang Ying stated.

"That is for the best."

As Yafei finished speaking, Xinnidi shimmered into existence behind her. "Teacher, the full complement of eight hundred and fifty thousand ships is assembled and ready to depart."

"Good, let me see." Yafei offered a quick apology to Yang Ying before closing her eyes. Her consciousness expanded limitlessly. Yang Ying knew she was employing the Gangzhu Panjue—gazing into the future, perhaps tracking the movements of that million-strong Kustarian fleet.

A moment later, Yafei opened her eyes and instructed Xinnidi, "Inform the fleet: the target will appear in the designated region twenty-eight standard hours from now. Have the fleet intercept them exactly at the twenty-seventh standard hour mark. No earlier, no later. I guarantee we will reap a thoroughly satisfying victory." Just as Yang Ying had predicted.

Receiving the command, Xinnidi acknowledged, "Yes, Teacher," and vanished instantly.

As a Level Four entity, Yafei did not need to accompany the fleet; should the need arise, she could open a wormhole and arrive at the destination instantly.

After their one-on-one victory feast concluded, Yang Ying requested his departure. Before he left, Yafei said, "Your Excellency Yang Ying, I am beginning to feel that we should seize this moment to eliminate the Kustarian threat entirely. I will attempt to persuade the Queen and the Council to revise our next strategic objective, shifting the focus from the Perseus Arm to the Kustarians."

Yang Ying nodded, knowing the most critical part was coming, and listened intently.

"If approved, I hope we can form an alliance to jointly attack the Kustarian Empire. As for the treaty terms, let us stipulate a duration of fifty standard years initially, with provision for extension later. The Kustarian Empire controls two of the twenty-eight star domains in the Orion Arm. If we successfully neutralize the Kustarian threat, our two sides could each claim one domain. Does this proposed division meet with Your Excellency's approval?" Yafei asked, her gaze intense.

She seemed to have discerned some of Yang Ying’s underlying thoughts.

Yang Ying responded, "Your Excellency’s generosity truly inspires my admiration. To refuse such favorable terms would make me no different from a fool."

He mused internally: I must not let Yafei’s beautiful and mature appearance blind me to the fact that she is a Level Four entity with a ten-thousand-year lifespan. Her wisdom is as vast as the sea, having witnessed every manner of great storm—what could possibly deceive her? He suspected, perhaps rightly, that she remained unaware of the numerous Zerg armies he had waiting in the Perseus Arm, poised for mass colonization. Yafei’s proposal, while seemingly ceding territory, effectively secured an alliance with two peak Level Four beings, Yang Ying and Blade, granting the Singers powerful external support in terms of high-level command and combat strength.

After all, in the Orion Arm, only the top-ranked Galan and the third-ranked Loa races boasted three Level Four entities within their species. Others, including the Seckro, the Kustarians, and the Singers, each had only a single Level Four entity anchoring them.

Level Four beings understood the past and future, possessing immense combat power and command capability. The contrast between the Singer fleet with Yafei and the Kustarian fleet without Karragoonis clearly demonstrated the critical importance of a Level Four entity to a race or civilization.

Exiting the Cyclone Cylinder, Yang Ying transformed into a streak of electric light and instantly returned to the Sol System.

The following day, news arrived from the Singer Embassy: the 850,000 Singer fleet had achieved a decisive victory over the million-strong Kustarian fleet. Approximately 200,000 Kustarian warships were sunk, 600,000 were captured, and about 200,000 scattered, their whereabouts unknown.

The Singer fleet sustained losses of only around twelve thousand vessels. Relative to the glorious result, this casualty rate was practically negligible.

This was a rare, monumental victory for the Singers, yet it was entirely within Yang Ying’s expectations. The Kustarians had lost their spiritual leader, and their will to fight had significantly weakened; the capture of 600,000 ships spoke volumes about the morale of that particular fleet.

Furthermore, this engagement instilled immense courage in the Singer people.

Another day passed, and Yafei successfully persuaded the Singer Queen and the Grand Council to pivot their strategic focus. Taking advantage of Karragoonis’s demise, they resolved to commit the entire race to a decisive strike against the Kustarian Empire, aiming to resolve the millennia-old problem once and for all.

Yang Ying recalled the complex expression on Singer Ambassador Jiayouna’s face when she delivered this news to him—a look of bashful hesitation. He recognized it; it was the expression most Singer maidens adopted when composing love songs about his exploits.

However, unlike the other young Singers, Jiayouna's gaze held this expression not for him, but for Blade.

Three more days passed in relative calm. Then, a Berk fleet numbering around two hundred thousand suddenly appeared on the outskirts of the star system containing the planet Aier.

Bringing such a massive fleet clearly indicated they were not visiting for leisure. The Protheans of Aier immediately scrambled all their carriers, preparing for battle. A fleet composed of one hundred thousand carriers launched from Aier.

The Zerg possessed territory in the Perseus Arm, and the Humans secured a Kustarian star domain. It seemed the Protheans would also not be idle.

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