After leaving Duke Zhum'a's residence, Bai Bai was completely deflated, her spirits sinking. She stared at the ground as she walked, silent for a long while.

"Feeling upset?" Katerina took her hand, her tone gentle. "If something's bothering you, say it out loud. Don't keep it bottled up."

"You already know exactly what I'm thinking, Sister Katerina," Bai Bai pouted petulantly. "You're a Fourth Level Limit entity yourself—so powerful—how could you possibly miss what's going on in my head?" She then glanced over at Yang Ying, her eyes clearly conveying the same sentiment: You too.

Yang Ying smiled faintly.

"Even so," Katerina chuckled, "saying it out loud is different from keeping it inside. How about it? Don't believe me? Want to give it a try?"

Bai Bai paused in thought, then nodded. "Sister Katerina, I feel growing up is so hard. Does it really mean I'm an adult only if I have to be wary of everyone? I truly don't want to live like that; it’s not happy at all. Just thinking about it makes me miserable."

Katerina's gaze softened further, and she said with a slight smile, "After a long, long time, you will eventually understand that worldly happiness cannot last forever. Toil, sorrow, pain—these are things every single person must experience. However, I’m not asking you to grasp that immediately right now. You have plenty of time to learn. If it feels too hard, don't think about it for now."

"But I'm not a child anymore," Bai Bai worried, her anxiety rising. "Every time I see Mother Empress and my sister dealing with endless official duties, and they rarely smile during those times... I don't want that for myself. I really want to help them."

"I know." Katerina gestured to her waist. "The first time I met you, you were only this high." She then moved her hand up to her chest. "And now you're this tall."

The child from before has now truly become a young woman. Time truly flies."

Bai Bai felt a touch of shyness upon hearing this, turning her face slightly away, secretly glancing at Yang Ying. When she saw Yang Ying looking back, she quickly averted her gaze again.

"Rest assured," Katerina said softly, stroking Bai Bai's hair. "Although the problems facing your Mother Empress and your sister seem countless and tangled, you must have faith that things will ultimately improve. No matter how many difficulties arise, or how tough the circumstances may seem, there will be a day when they pass."

While Bai Bai and Katerina were talking, Yang Ying was deeply engaged in a line of thought. In the conversation with Duke Zhum'a just now, several pieces of information had been revealed that Yang Ying considered highly significant.

The past worship of the First Emperor by Sandor, and Sandor's former ambition to change the current state of affairs to restore the era where everyone could Awaken—though judging by the Empire's current condition, Sandor had evidently failed—Igor’s release of the new Awakening Agent showed a distinct overlap with Sandor's past aspirations.

With the propagation of the new Awakening Agent, the Empire would, within a few years, revert to the glorious state of universal Awakening seen tens of thousands of years ago.

For Imperial citizens who had previously used the old types of Gene Stimulation Agents and failed, that failure meant they could never attempt gene stimulation again. This very side effect was overcome by the new Awakening Agent.

The new Awakening Agent and the Gene Stimulation Agents followed two entirely different principles; any person in the Empire, regardless of whether they had undergone gene stimulation before, could use the new Awakening Agent to Awaken.

There was only one remaining problem: the fundamental difference between the Post-Heaven Awakened Sub-humans and the Innate Awakened True Humans still persisted—specifically, Sub-humans encountered a bottleneck when attempting to advance from the Second Level to the Third Level. This was because Sub-humans inherently possessed only the Second Level Soul Essence; even Awakenings via agents were inferior to True Humans who evolved to the Third Level Soul Essence, supported by the Sea of Origin Force.

Universal Awakening was not equivalent to Universal Sainthood; the new Awakening Agent ultimately could not surpass the Sea of Origin Force. However, True Humans also had a disadvantage: they could not leave the Empire for extended periods. Losing the support of the Sea of Origin Force for too long would cause their spiritual power to atrophy. Only those who cultivated to the Fourth Level could, to a certain extent, escape dependence on the Sea of Origin Force.

Conversely, Sub-humans, being unreliant on the Sea of Origin Force, were also unrestricted by it. Their spiritual power would not wither even if they left Imperial borders for long durations—it was a trade-off, having gains and losses.

Faced with the tide of universal Awakening, Sandor, who once aspired to this very goal, would almost certainly not abandon his covetous desire for the new Awakening Agent. This presented him with a chance—perhaps his only chance—to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the First Emperor.

The current internal environment of the Empire was relatively calm, but this was clearly the calm before a storm. A new round of confrontations could erupt at any moment. Since Fourth Level entities possessed precognition, they rarely made a move unless they were certain of success. Once one side initiated action, it was eighty percent certain they had secured their advantage and believed the outcome would be decisive with a single strike, allowing for a full retreat even if complete success wasn't achieved.

The reason Yang Ying had succeeded in ambushing Sandor in the Solar System last time...

...was precisely because he had occupied Yanji and Sandor had no prior understanding of him, which drew Sandor deep into the trap.

Finding such an opportunity in the future would not be easy.

In the Perseus Arm, near the star sectors occupied by the Zerg, a massive fleet was advancing into Zerg territory.

This fleet seemed endless at a glance; the sheer number of warships was staggering, like countless stars in the heavens, impossible to count.

The fleet comprised dozens of warship styles, spanning varying levels of technological sophistication, clearly originating from different races.

This was the main force of the Orion Arm's joint expeditionary army. They had been terrified by the data regarding the Zerg provided by several Fourth Level entities. After urgent and meticulous study by scientists from various races, they reached the same conclusion as the Fourth Level entities: the Zerg were extremely dangerous to all living things, and for the survival of the expeditionary forces' colonial units, the Zerg must be annihilated!

Thus, this enormous joint fleet was assembled, bringing together an almost unprecedented concentration of Orion Arm forces. In total, there were twenty-five million warships. This number included the initial vanguard of the expeditionary force, supplemented by two subsequent waves of fleets, representing nearly all of the expeditionary force's combat strength. However, those with keen eyes could observe that the Cycro race, ranked second in the Orion Arm, was conspicuously absent from the joint fleet.

Since his last departure, Shalo had refused all invitations from the other races to participate in further eradication efforts. His stated reason was that the Cycro people were silicon-based lifeforms with alloy bodies, having minimal needs regarding organic matter. Since the Zerg threat primarily targeted the survival of carbon-based life, it had nothing to do with him. He had unhesitatingly turned away all emissaries from the other races.

Shalo's self-centered nature was notorious throughout the Orion Arm. The emissaries knew they could not persuade him. Despite considerable effort, they ultimately gave up.

What the joint fleet celebrated, however, was the participation of the Galan race, ranked first in the Orion Arm.

The Galan race possessed the most formidable military strength in the Orion Arm. Among their numerous technological branches, they excelled most notably in biotechnology. The Mind Protection Chip, capable of blocking psychic-based spells, was one of their signature products. Beyond that, they could achieve astonishing feats using biological engineering.

For instance, their warships were living organisms themselves. These biological warships were controlled by powerful biological supercomputers and could launch Level Nine biological Uranium Cannons, as well as biological missiles, biological scouts, biological fighters, biological mechs, and more.

For a significant period, the Galan race was virtually synonymous with biotechnology in the eyes of all Orion Arm races.

But now, they faced another race highly proficient in biotechnology: the Zerg.

The moment the Galan saw the Zerg, they immediately understood this was not a primitive race, but a super-race that appeared primitive yet contained profoundly advanced biological technology.

The races that had previously fought the Zerg had collected some Zerg specimens. Relying on these samples, the Galan conducted a comprehensive assessment of the Zerg, concluding that the Zerg's genetic structure was simple, yet contained an extraordinary complexity within that simplicity—as if touched by divine inspiration, far exceeding their own imagination.

Comparing the gene biology mastered by the Galan race with that of the Zerg was like comparing a struggling craftsman to an artistic master; the gap was too vast for meaningful comparison. The disparity was instantly clear.

To uncover the Zerg's origins, the Galan had arrived in force, bringing nearly all their military assets in the Perseus Arm. Many among them believed that by thoroughly researching the Zerg, the Galan race could achieve an immense leap forward, with limitless prospects!

What the Galan did not know was that while they were analyzing Zerg specimens, the Zerg were simultaneously reverse-analyzing Galan technology through those very same specimens.

Because both sides shared similar technological directions, and the Zerg's level was far superior to the Galan's, the analysis proceeded remarkably smoothly. The Galan didn't even realize they were being reverse-engineered.

Following this reverse analysis, dozens of Overminds communicated through brainwaves and reached a consensus: consuming the Galan race would benefit the Zerg far more than any other race.

The primary reason was that the Galan relied entirely on biological technology; many of their components could be directly utilized by the Zerg, significantly reducing conversion steps. And the simpler the process, the higher the efficiency.

The Zerg favored efficiency.

The problem currently facing the Zerg was that this joint fleet was overwhelmingly powerful, far surpassing the Zerg's current strength. They could easily annihilate the entire Zerg domain; a direct confrontation would only lead to the Zerg's demise.

Fortunately, the Zerg's greatest strength was not in frontal combat power, but in their unparalleled reproductive capability. Now, it was time to leverage their strengths against the enemy's weaknesses.