As the structure for the Alliance Mutual Aid Department was being decided, the vast Spiral Star Field was divided into fourteen sectors based on the geographical locations of the fourteen allied nations, establishing the spheres of influence for each country within the fourteen-nation alliance. As stipulated, whether it was opening up new mineral-rich planets, renovating new administrative stars, or outright invading other civilizations to seize their worlds, each nation could only operate within its designated sphere of influence. Furthermore, neighboring allies were obligated to dispatch troops to assist during wartime.

Culturally... well, when Fuya.Ming casually brought up cultural exchange and cooperation, the initially enthusiastic Duke Shenwu and others immediately fell silent. Some stared at the ceiling, others focused intently on the patterns of their own shoe tips, and still others deftly changed the subject, as if they hadn't heard Fuya.Ming speak at all.

Gu Xichen also acted as if nothing had been said, sitting upright in his seat and continuously draining cup after cup of fruit tea.

The culture of the Yafic Kingdom—alas, the other thirteen allied nations seemed genuinely too intimidated to engage in cultural exchange with Yafic. None of these nations wished to see their own soldiers turn into the sort of literary enthusiasts who would sprint about madly within military bases.

Fuya.Ming’s face flushed and paled, then flushed again. After a long moment, she managed a few strained laughs and hurriedly abandoned the topic, returning to the main agenda of the meeting.

In the ranking of Four-Star Civilizations, the Yafic Kingdom was only considered upper-middle tier. Its importance to the thirteen kingdoms, including the Leiwu Kingdom, stemmed solely from its prime location and its infuriatingly robust planetary defense system. Basically, aside from being quite wealthy, culturally sophisticated, and having decent scientific research capabilities, the Yafic Kingdom held virtually zero sway among Four-Star Civilizations. With only a ramshackle space fleet, could one really expect to tow the entire planet of Yafic to an enemy's doorstep for military intimidation?

Yet, now, because of Gu Xichen, because of the presence of the violent Queen Fuya.Ming, the status of the Yafic Kingdom had undergone a massive transformation.

There was no need to even mention military strength; just from the recent capture of over seven thousand first-class warships from the Doko Federation, especially those twenty colossal motherships, they now possessed enough power to dominate the Spiral Star Field.

Thus, the Yafic Kingdom had earned the right to stand as an equal among the thirteen great powers.

Once the Fourteen-Nation Alliance was established, the member states could fully unleash their efforts to develop their own military capabilities and launch invasions against surrounding civilizations. By seizing other civilizations' planets and mineral worlds, and plundering their wealth for expansion and development, the strength of each nation would inevitably increase dramatically in a short period, snowballing outward.

The reason they hadn't dared act so boldly before was that these nations were singular entities, afraid to act so recklessly. If a campaign faltered and their own strength was diminished, other nations might take advantage to attack them, plunging their home worlds into serious trouble. But with allies and the Alliance Military Headquarters in place, even if they suffered setbacks while attacking another civilization, they wouldn't have to worry about their own security, allowing them to aggressively seize various strategic resources.

Previously, due to relatively weak national power, even strong Four-Star Civilizations like the Leiwu Kingdom only maintained twelve visible space fleets—amounting to a mere six hundred first-class warships—fearing that large-scale military buildup would attract intervention from Five-Star or even Six-Star Civilizations. Such military might was enough for self-preservation but insufficient for aggressive expansion.

However, with the Fourteen-Nation Alliance, the combined fleets represented an astronomical number, sufficient to contend with Five-Star Civilizations. This meant that even if the member states frantically developed their military strength, it would only serve to make the Alliance stronger and increasingly fearless of interference from higher-tier civilizations.

If an entire Doko Federation could bankrupt itself to purchase over ten thousand first-class warships, what about a nation like the Leiwu Kingdom?

Of course, they couldn't follow the Doko Federation's example of mortgaging everything down to their last pair of trousers to acquire warships, but commissioning more than a dozen new space fleets was undeniably feasible.

Crucially, this Alliance had no fear of internal betrayal or backstabbing among its allies. With the existence of the heaven-defying cultivation method known as Primal Energy Cultivation, unless someone had been kicked by a thousand donkeys, no one would contemplate abandoning the Alliance. These shrewd and experienced kings and dukes deeply understood that with the Primal Energy Cultivation Method, they possessed everything. If their own nations could foster a few legendary Seven-Star Great Venerables, even if their national strength lagged slightly, they would possess the standing to look any Six-Star Civilization straight in the eye!

It could be said that Gu Xichen’s appearance directly precipitated the formation of the Fourteen-Nation Alliance! He was like a rotten egg emitting a potent aroma, captivating the Leiwu Kingdom and the other thirteen nations, compelling them to tie their fates irrevocably with the Yafic Kingdom. The meeting lasted an hour and a half. Except for Fuya.Ming, who possessed slightly less experience, everyone else, including Gu Xichen, were seasoned veterans; restrictive clauses and provisions flowed from them naturally. In just ninety minutes, an Alliance Covenant boasting hundreds of articles was hotly finalized.

The kings of the Leiwu Kingdom and the thirteen other nations also appeared on the holographic screens, communicating directly with the conference hall via a secretly established, secure channel.

Through the refined electronic conference system, Fuya.Ming and the kings of the fourteen nations affixed their signatures to the Alliance Covenant. Stacks of documents, both physical and digital, were signed. Following them, Gu Xichen, Duke Shenwu, and other attendees also signed the Covenant, swearing solemnly to uphold every clause within it.

At Gu Xichen’s suggestion, the Alliance Covenant included a special, secret memorandum: should the chairman of the Earth Federation agree to the terms, the Earth Federation would automatically join the Fourteen-Nation Alliance, forming a Fifteen-Nation Union. However, to respect the interests of the existing fourteen nations, the Earth Federation would be prohibited from establishing its own sphere of influence within the Spiral Star Field; beyond that constraint, the Earth Federation was free to develop its territorial claims anywhere else in the cosmos.

To compensate the Earth Federation for the loss of not having planetary strongholds within the Spiral Star Field, all allied nations would open their military bases to the Earth Federation. Under specific conditions—such as if the Fourteen-Nation Alliance were attacked—if the Earth Federation fleet was invited to assist in the Spiral Star Field, all military bases would be unconditionally open to the Earth Federation fleet.

Through Gu Xichen’s forceful advocacy and Fuya.Ming’s initiative, the Earth Federation would be granted one permanent base, no larger than one million square kilometers, within the former Doko Federation territory. On this base, the Earth Federation could station up to ten standard space fleets. However, given the formidable combat power of the Earth Federation’s ground forces, the personnel stationed at this base—descendants of those who survived the depths—could not exceed one hundred thousand! Specifically, the cadre of powerful individuals under Gu Xichen's command could be no more than eight thousand—this was the psychological bottom line for the other thirteen nations. Gu Xichen laughed heartily as he signed the memorandum. Good, very powerful. He would absolutely not violate this memo! A limit of eight thousand powerful individuals? Then he would simply transfer eight thousand elites from the Asian translucent region to garrison the base; that would certainly comply with all regulations of the memorandum! Of course, perhaps a few Void Realm Grandmasters might slip in among them?

Fuya.Ming smiled at Gu Xichen, and she laughed joyfully in return. She knew what a monstrous place the Earth Federation was, and what kind of monsters its residents were. Eight thousand powerful individuals? Fuya.Ming had no doubt that Gu Xichen could easily station eight thousand freaks here—individuals capable of destroying an entire nation with casual ease.

Naturally, Fuya.Ming was not worried that such formidable military strength posed a threat to the Yafic Kingdom; she and Gu Xichen already shared a profound understanding.

Finally, the entire package of secret accords and agreements was signed. At the suggestion of the Leiwu King, everyone raised their glasses for a deep toast of fine wine.

Just then, a Yafic officer tumbled and scrambled into the meeting hall, shouting in disbelief, “Your Majesty the Queen, this is terrible! All the Doko people are rioting!”

Under the astonished gazes of the assembled kings, Fuya.Ming’s face turned ashen with anger as she reprimanded, “We have crushed their main army, we have captured all their warships, and on the ground, all their vehicles and aircraft are under our control. What could the Doko people possibly use to riot?”

A holographic screen suddenly flickered, displaying a scene that left everyone dumbstruck. Centered around the City of Radiance, the Doko citizens in a dozen nearby cities were shouting slogans like, “Long live the Sun God!” waving firearms, or driving civilian vehicles, or riding civilian aircraft, or simply imitating ancient cavalry riding various domesticated beasts, forming hundreds of massive torrents surging toward the City of Radiance.

Space reconnaissance satellites roughly estimated that the Doko citizens attacking the City of Radiance from these cities numbered at least ten million.

And that was not all. The screen rapidly shifted, showing similar scenes erupting in towns and cities across the Doko Star. Driven by fanatical Sun God Cult priests draped in red and gold robes, nearly the entire population of hundreds of millions of the Doko Federation, armed with various firearms, had embarked on their crusade. Regardless of gender or age, every single Doko citizen was bellowing slogans of the True God’s greatness and longevity, flooding toward the City of Radiance.

Given the Doko Federation’s technological level, it was estimated that the precise moment hundreds of millions of citizens would converge on the City of Radiance was two hours away.

“Hundreds of millions of people!” Duke Shenwu clicked his tongue, “The Sun God Cult? What in the blazes is that?”

“Hundreds of millions of people!” Fuya.Ming’s expression darkened. “Your Majesties, if Yafic were to kill hundreds of millions of Doko citizens at once, would this number shift any of the blame onto you?”

The thirteen kings simultaneously shook their heads. The Leiwu King managed a dry laugh. “Forgive me, Your Majesty Fuya. You must understand, our Alliance is still too weak now. The guilt of wiping out hundreds of millions of citizens is too great. Even if we shared the burden, the penalty from the Star Alliance would be severe! Great heavens, the Doko Federation was sentenced to complete dissolution just for killing over a thousand envoys; one can scarcely imagine the consequences of us wiping out the entire populace of the Doko Federation.”

The other twelve kings echoed the hesitant looks, and Fuya.Ming repeatedly shook her head; none dared to shoulder such a massive burden of guilt. Among all the kings, perhaps only Fuya.Ming had immediately considered exterminating all these hundreds of millions of Doko citizens.

Gu Xichen also stared at Fuya.Ming in astonishment. Ruthless, truly ruthless, and perfectly fitting his taste. Fanning himself slowly with his Fuyao Fan, Gu Xichen stood up and said gravely, “Several hundred million ordinary people without any real military training. If we employed cluster bombs and carpet-bombed them from low altitude using a thousand first-class warships, it probably wouldn't take long to clean them all up. As a renowned arms merchant of the Earth Federation, Gu Xichen, while not a master-level figure in munitions design, certainly possesses some expertise. He had specifically studied the cluster bombs that once appeared in the Earth Federation. Under the insistence of Gu Yitong, Gu Xichen had delved deeply into the manufacturing process for this type of bomb. He could even sketch out the precise manufacturing flow chart by hand.

Tapping the image of a cluster bomb on the screen, Gu Xichen laughed loudly. “Actually, there are other, better options. But poison gas easily causes environmental contamination, and massive destructive weapons like nuclear bombs cause too much collateral damage, so I think using conventional weaponry for cleanup would be more convenient.”

The thirteen kings fell silent. They stared at the cluster bomb on the screen, feeling the hairs on the back of their necks stand on end.

The Star Alliance currently favored high-energy weapons; while immensely powerful, they caused minimal civilian casualties. But a weapon as devilish as a cluster bomb seemed specifically engineered for mass civilian slaughter. The Earth Federation, the Earth Federation—the thirteen kings mentally etched this name into their memories, resolving never to clash with this monstrous nation in the future.

“But how will you explain killing hundreds of millions of people to the Star Alliance investigative team?” Duke Shenwu asked dryly.

“Oh, that’s simple!” Gu Xichen and Fuya.Ming laughed in unison.

Fuya.Ming looked at Gu Xichen and smiled, nodding. “A massive plague! The Doko Federation was secretly developing a large-scale biochemical weapon banned by the Star Alliance. During our attack, dozens of enormous biochemical storage tanks exploded, leading to a global pandemic.”

Gu Xichen clapped his hands, laughing. “Indeed, our minds are perfectly attuned. Oh, you don’t understand what I just said? That statement wasn't important; it’s just an old saying from my homeland. The principle is this: Because all citizens of the Doko Federation worship an evil cult called the Faith of the True God, they developed a frighteningly powerful plague weapon, intending to destroy the Star Alliance. During their assault on the City of Radiance, the biochemical weapon storage tanks unfortunately exploded, and we fled in our warships while they...”

Fuya.Ming’s lips curled back, and she sneered, “And these hundreds of millions of citizens of the Doko Federation unfortunately contracted the virus and died shortly after the symptoms manifested.”

The conference hall fell into a deathly silence. The kings and dukes looked at Gu Xichen and Fuya.Ming, feeling chills run down their spines. How could such a terrifying pair have ever met?

Gu Xichen smiled faintly. “Order all reconnaissance satellites to film every move these fanatical cultists make; we need to put on a convincing show for the Star Alliance investigators. Hmm, Fuya, we can start manufacturing a large quantity of cluster bombs, or perhaps you have a better option to eliminate these fellows?”

Fuya.Ming curved her lips, looking at Gu Xichen with a smile. “Cluster bombs? I love such a marvelous weapon. I can imagine the sound of them exploding. Ah, that is the true sound of war should be. A war of iron and blood, not sitting in a warship firing tedious high-energy beams from a distance.”

In the span of a few short exchanges between the man and the woman, a vicious, bloody massacre was agreed upon. Duke Shenwu’s mouth opened and closed; he didn't know if he should involve himself in this affair. The kings of the other nations also felt a dizzying sensation in their heads.

If it were the slaughter of citizens from a lower-tier civilization, like the primitive inhabitants of unawakened worlds, the psychological pressure would be minimal. But slaughtering the subjects of another Four-Star Civilization was almost unbearable. Gu Xichen was a cultivator and carried the traditional mindset of the ancient Huaguo of the Earth Federation; the principle of those not of my race must be of a different mind meant he felt no psychological pressure about killing countless Doko people. Fuya.Ming’s thought process differed somewhat from normal people, and this iron-blooded queen would feel no burden ordering the deaths of millions. But others couldn't endure it!

Just as a massacre that was certain to shake the entire Star Alliance was about to unfold, the plump Polubolu burst into the meeting room. He hopped and gestured toward Gu Xichen and Fuya.Ming, “Your Excellency Xinlu, Your Majesty the Queen, oh dear, don’t chase me, I am a guest of your Queen!”

Several Yafic soldiers rushed forward, and the clumsy Polubolu began playing a game of cat and mouse. However, the physical prowess of the Yafic soldiers was notoriously poor throughout the Spiral Star Field. The small Polubolu nimbly bounced and darted around them, successfully making his way to Gu Xichen’s side.

Ya Ming felt his composure slip. He verbally rebuked the few red-faced Yafic soldiers. Gu Xichen snatched Polubolu up and placed him on the conference table. “Polubolu, what do you want?”

Polubolu excitedly rubbed his little claws together, looking at Gu Xichen with impatience. “Your Excellency Xinlu, there are hundreds of millions of Doko people outside who want to attack us? Don’t you think keeping them on Doko Star is a huge problem? I can help you solve this problem; you just need to give me a small commission!”

“Hmm?” Gu Xichen and Fuya.Ming exchanged surprised glances.

After pondering for a moment, Gu Xichen nodded. “Polubolu, tell us, what method do you have to deal with these people?”

Worshippers brainwashed by religion are the most terrifying group. These hundreds of millions of Doko citizens were all followers of the True God; the order given by Dao Yi’er was to fight the Yafic army to the death. Gu Xichen certainly didn't want a group of these fearless fanatics near his future stronghold. Who could stop them from strapping on bombs every now and then to cause trouble?

Polubolu vigorously rubbed his little paws together, smiling obsequiously at Gu Xichen. “The Star Alliance absolutely will not permit large-scale genocide! However, in a situation like the Doko Federation’s—selling all their citizens into slavery—is permitted by the Star Alliance, especially since, given their current state, they appear to be followers of some evil cult?”

Gu Xichen hastily nodded. “They are absolutely cultists! A proper religion would not incite its followers to take up projectile weapons and wage war!”

Whether they were a cult or not, their True God’s corpse was taken by Gu Xichen, and their worshipped deity was scattered into oblivion—what else could they be but a cult?

“Then, turn them into slaves!” Polubolu puffed out his chest. “Your Excellency the Great, Your Excellency the Wise. With just a little bit of poisonous gas possessing a strong nerve-paralyzing effect, I can make them all obediently follow my command. I have a group of business partners who would be delighted to help you handle this troublesome matter.”

Polubolu added, “The Star Alliance will not interfere when citizens controlled by an evil cult are sold into slavery. Their very existence poses a threat to surrounding nations!”

Gu Xichen glanced at Fuya.Ming. She pondered for a moment and slowly nodded.

The thirteen kings—including the Leiwu King—sighed softly and closed their secret communications with the room. As long as no great massacre occurred that would jeopardize the security of the Fourteen-Nation Alliance, they couldn't be bothered with the fate of the unfortunate Doko Federation citizens being sold off. Large-scale slave trading was permitted within the Star Alliance, despite numerous regulating clauses. But who could help it if these mentally deficient Doko citizens were followers of an evil god?

The Star Alliance comprised countless member civilizations, large and small, each with its own deity and registered religious organizations. Secret organizations like the Sun God Cult, developing followers underground, were all classified as heretical cults; their followers and proselytizing activities received no protection whatsoever.

Gu Xichen immediately made his decision: to immediately utilize the production lines of several large factories within the Doko Federation to manufacture sufficient nerve-paralyzing poison gas, planning to capture all the Doko citizens once they gathered near the City of Radiance.

A massive slave deal involving hundreds of millions of slaves—this was an exceptionally rare and large order in the recent Star Alliance slave markets.

Looking at the supremely smug Polubolu, Gu Xichen grabbed his ear and pulled hard.

“However, Polubolu, shouldn’t the profits be split evenly between you and me? You still want a commission from me?” Gu Xichen bellowed.

Fuya.Ming also snapped to attention, smiling wickedly as she drew a small dagger and pressed it against Polubolu’s neck. “Slave trading is booming in the Star Alliance; an ordinary slave fetches at least two thousand Star Alliance gold coins. We are talking about hundreds of millions of Doko citizens here!”

Boluobolu’s body jolted, and a sudden wave of **— a wet rush— streamed down his pant leg with a distinct 'shhh' sound.

"Split it fifty-fifty, we'll split the profits right down the middle!" Boluobolu wisely offered Gu Xiechen a substantial price.

Gu Xiechen clapped Boluobolu on the shoulder with an appreciative gesture, then nodded toward Ruhua.

"Come with me, there are perks for you." Ruhua’s eyes lit up, and he swiftly followed Gu Xiechen.