When Yang Ying and Dao Feng entered the conference room, after only a few exchanges, Yang Ying asked, "Yafey, are you inviting us here today to discuss the matter of the Amondel Fortress?"

Yafey nodded, then shook her head: "There is actually very little to discuss regarding the Amondel Fortress. Although this fortress rendered invaluable service in the Kusta Empire's suppression of the rebellion in the Dazhuan Sector—destroying tens of millions of warships—that was when the Kusta people had Karagunis, capable of preventing Fourth-level Entities from infiltrating and sabotaging the fortress interior. Now that Karagunis has fallen, taking down that fortress only requires me to open a wormhole, sneak in, and cause widespread havoc; there’s no need to specially invite the two of you for consultation. I issued this invitation for another matter."

Yang Ying inquired, "What is it?"

"Before I discuss that matter, I must first thank the two of you and the three esteemed Protos gentlemen. You rescued my people’s poor children," Yafey said. "Without your help, they would probably still be languishing in sunless concentration camps, living day by day without certainty of the next."

The transfer of the one hundred million Kexing captives was nearly complete. Most Kexing people had returned home happily. However, a very small minority, having witnessed the glorious civilization of the Protos, were unwilling to leave. They requested to remain on Ai'er, to learn the Protos' arts and lifestyle, even at the cost of their freedom, willing to stay as slaves if necessary.

Their pursuit of art and beauty was astonishing; even Cass acknowledged this. However, in his capacity as the High Council Speaker of the Protos, he refused their pleas.

Yafey also did not wish to offend the Protos over this issue, turning a good deed into a bad one. A few days prior, she had issued a mandatory recall edict. Upon receiving this order, though deeply reluctant, that final batch of Kexing people obeyed the gods within their hearts and obediently boarded the last transport ships.

After expressing her thanks, Yafey fell into a brief silence, seemingly pondering how to broach the subject. Yang Ying did not press her; he knew that the more she hesitated, the more serious the impending topic must be.

Yafey pondered for a moment, then spoke slowly, "To my knowledge, Leo of the Kusta people, who was in charge of escorting those poor children, originally received orders to find as many buyers as possible. But after communicating once with the Protos, he quickly changed his mind. I must ask: was Leo placed under a mind control spell by one of the Protos Fourth-level Entities?"

Although Third-level masters could also use mind control magic, Leo himself possessed cultivation at the limit of the Third level and could not be controlled by someone of that same rank. To alter his thinking, a Fourth-level Entity must have intervened.

"That is correct; that did happen," Yang Ying replied readily.

"And then, the Protos attacked the Bokerley Sector, resulting in numerous Bokers defecting and countless surrendering," Yafey continued. "Was there also an element of mind control involved in that?"

Yang Ying remained silent for a moment, simply looking at Yafey.

"I realize my question was rather abrupt," Yafey sighed, her tone laced with worry. "Esteemed sirs, it is not that I wish to meddle, but this practice of mind control is truly alarming. You two, along with the three esteemed Protos figures, do not have deep ties with the mainstream worlds of the Orion Arm. You may not realize how widely despised mind control magic is among the various races."

Yafey proceeded to elaborate on the reason. Mind control magic excessively damaged the balance of power. It was akin to a nuclear state bullying a non-nuclear state—possessing an overwhelming advantage. However, if both conflicting parties possessed nuclear weapons, it could escalate into nuclear war, causing incalculable consequences.

Imagine if Fourth-level Entities on both sides began controlling the opposing side's personnel; the resulting chaos would engulf the world of ordinary beings.

Therefore, the twenty-plus Fourth-level Entities in the Orion Arm had long reached a tacit agreement: they must not use mind control against ordinary people.

However, mind control was vastly different from nuclear bombs. Once a nuclear bomb detonates, the entire planet knows of it. But mind control is an exceptionally covert act. Supervising all Fourth-level Entities is exceedingly difficult, meaning this tacit agreement ultimately remained merely superficial.

For instance, during the millennium-long conflict between the Kexing and Kusta peoples, the Fourth-level Entities on both sides had already discarded all pretense. Yafey and Karagunis had repeatedly and secretly controlled key personnel on the opposing side, influencing the outcome of local wars, or even total war.

Although the agreement was superficial, no one would openly challenge it. Mind control was universally recognized as an evil act. Given that the Protos had recently drawn significant attention, if it were determined that they employed mind control during the subjugation of the Bokers, it could easily trigger widespread fear.

"In the Orion Arm, Fourth-level Entities who treat mind control as child's play are often ostracized," Yafey stated. "Most people are unwilling to associate with such beings, fearing their own consciousness might be influenced at any moment. The reputation for abusing mind control is terrible. If the consequences become more severe, it could even lead to a united assault against them. Therefore, if at all possible, I hope the two sirs would persuade the two Protos esteemed gentlemen not to use mind control so openly again."

Yang Ying could sense that Yafey's proposal was sincere, offered as a friendly suggestion out of regard for the one hundred million Kexing people. In truth, Yang Ying had already harbored suspicions regarding this matter.

Fourth-level Entities' mind control was irresistible to ordinary people who had received thought-transplant protection chips, and even to Third-level psychics. Without some form of inhibiting measure, races like the Bokers, lacking the protection of a Fourth-level Entity, would never achieve a Ninth-tier ranking.

It wasn't just the Bokers; the Eighth-ranked Haisens, and several other races, also lacked the patronage of a Fourth-level Entity. The fact that they managed to become high-ranking advanced civilizations was perhaps due to this very "tacit agreement."

Of course, another significant factor was the sheer scarcity of Fourth-level Entities.

There were only about twenty Fourth-level Entities in the Orion Arm, and more than half of them, like the Tibuz family, had absolutely no interest in race or politics.

Furthermore, the Fourth-level Entities who did dedicate themselves to protecting a race had their energies significantly consumed by countless responsibilities. The more prosperous a race, the more numerous the affairs, tying up their focus internally.

Fourth-level Entities are gods, not mere tools for a species. Demanding that every Fourth-level Entity exhaust itself solely for the racial good was perhaps excessive.

All the points mentioned above were crucial internal reasons for the current flourishing of the various races in the Orion Arm.

Fourth-level Entities were not entirely free to act as they pleased.

"I understand," Yang Ying replied. "Working against the mainstream consciousness of the entire Orion Arm is neither our wish nor the Protos' desire. I will advise Speaker Cass to be mindful of the issue of mind control."

"Then I am reassured," Yafey smiled. "The assault on the Amondel Fortress is about to begin. I foresee certain victory for us."

"Esteemed Yafey, perhaps the three of us should go into the Amondel Fortress right now and cause some havoc, to clear a wide path for the fleet," Dao Feng suggested.

Yafey rejoiced, "That is exactly what I intended!"

As the words fell, Dao Feng opened a wormhole and stepped through first.

Yang Ying and Yafey exchanged a glance; Yafey made no attempt to yield and followed immediately. Finally, Yang Ying himself stepped through.

On the other side of the wormhole was a vast space shaped like a hollow cylinder, its base covering at least one square kilometer and its height exceeding ten kilometers.

At the center of this space stood a colossal, transparent pillar reaching from floor to ceiling, about two hundred meters in diameter. A dazzling white energy stream flowed ceaselessly within it, elusive like electricity yet magnificent and beautiful like the Milky Way—a sight of incomparable grandeur that would inspire awe in any ordinary person.

Beep—Beep—

The moment the wormhole materialized, a piercing alarm blared.

"As expected of Dao Feng Esteemed Sir. This is the core of the Amondel Fortress," Yafey observed. "Destroy this, and the fortress will have to rely on backup power. This will reduce the fortress's energy output by at least seventy-five percent."

Yang Ying sensed internally, "The fortress commander already knows that Fourth-level Entities have invaded. Before Karagunis fell, he laid numerous traps within the core zone. They are about to activate!"

As his words ended, millions of runes suddenly materialized in the void, transforming into blood-red fierce flames that rushed toward the three of them.

"So many fierce flames! Karagunis must have spent years setting this trap. This single attack is even more ferocious than his own strongest technique!"

Yafey's voice held little surprise, clearly indicating she had foreseen Karagunis's contingency.

"What harm can a fallen entity inflict?" Yang Ying raised a hand and pointed. The fierce flames seemed to be caught in an invisible net, converging toward his fingertip and forming a tiny ball of fire.

The small flame was no larger than a fingertip, yet it appeared to contain the brilliance of a sun. It flickered twice, suddenly struggling, and its form morphed to resemble Karagunis, with an especially similar facial structure, like a miniature version of Karagunis.

"A residual virtual soul, possessing only shallow awareness, capable of handling simple tasks..." Yang Ying waved his hand, retracting the flame. The flickering little Karagunis dissipated in Yang Ying’s palm without even a chance to resist.

"Impressive." This was the first time Yafey had witnessed Yang Ying act. She calculated that if she had to deal with this fierce flame trap herself, she would need to concentrate fully, unlike Yang Ying, who disposed of the fierce flame with a mere wave of his hand.

Only by being a whole realm higher than her could one achieve this.

Been sleeping too late recently. Only one chapter today; I will make up for it tomorrow. Everyone, please support with monthly tickets; diamonds require more motivation! D