The thunderous might of the "Aura-Swelling March," the anthem of the Fengxing Federation during the Ninety-Three War, swelled from an orchestra of five thousand musicians simultaneously. Amidst the soaring, vibrant strains of the military music, Gu Xiechen and a host of Federation high officials filed onto a transport vessel. Escorted by a large contingent of warships, they sped toward the Earth-Moon orbit. Among these officials were not only Du Lang but also Xiao Yusheng, the newly confirmed interim Speaker of the Federation Council by unanimous vote, General Xiao Liefeng of the Federation's East Asia Military Region, and the leading figures from various major Federation departments.

Three super-Dreadnoughts, refitted with enhanced energy engines by Ducart and Little Xiao, hung silently in the void twenty thousand kilometers from the Moon. From a distance, the super-Dreadnoughts appeared with the exquisite, smooth contours of a cicada's shed skin; their armor was a pale gold, adorned with intricate, mysterious patterns. Coupled with the faint, almost porcelain-like sheen of their energy shields, the three motherships presented themselves to the Federation leadership like three hazy, beautiful midsummer night dreams.

It was Du Lang’s first time witnessing such super-Dreadnoughts in person. His first instinct was one of pure greed; he plastered his entire body against the viewport, his nose nearly flattening into a thin strip of flesh against the thick, transparent alloy. He swallowed great gulps of saliva, howling maniacally in a low voice, "Now that is a big toy a man should use, that is the kind of magnificent hardware a man ought to possess! Damn it all, if we'd had toys like this during the Ninety-Three War, we’d have crushed the Romans long ago!"

Gu Xiechen, calmly holding a small personal terminal computer, slowly poured a bucket of cold water over Du Lang's head.

According to design specifications, to achieve maximum combat effectiveness, each of these three super-Dreadnoughts required a minimum complement of seven and a half million soldiers and proficient crew members, over three hundred thousand highly skilled fighter pilots, and extensive, specialized logistical support personnel. The three super-Dreadnoughts currently present only housed an average of two thousand crew and one hundred thousand internal security troops each. They could simply move; they were entirely for show, mere prestige pieces, with combat efficiency barely reaching 0.31% of their design potential.

"The gaps in operational personnel—soldiers, pilots, vehicle drivers—are vast," Gu Xiechen articulated, word by careful word. "Not to mention sufficient master chefs for the galleys and service staff for the recreation areas. According to the standard configuration of Roman super-Dreadnoughts, each vessel carried approximately three hundred thousand female slaves to accompany the expeditionary force."

Du Lang stared at Gu Xiechen with grave seriousness. "We are the Earth Federation Military. Our standard military configuration does not include accompanying female slaves."

Gu Xiechen shot him a glare. "What do you think the strips of bars and nightclubs outside the major Federation military bases are for? Stop playing coy with me. My personal opinion is that, if absolutely necessary, suitable candidates from these roles could be selected from the top tiers of the Paris City underground entertainment centers."

Tapping his personal terminal, Gu Xiechen called up the design philosophy of the Roman super-Dreadnoughts.

The super-Dreadnought was the ultimate deterrent weapon utilized by the ancient Romans to maintain the vast territories of the Roman Empire. Each one was commanded by a War Governor; it was a mobile fortress that rarely docked at spaceports. They constantly traversed the Empire’s domains, moving from one threatened sector to another, suppressing any unrest that dared to challenge Roman dominion. Super-Dreadnoughts often had to sustain continuous voyages in space for ten, fifty, or even over a hundred years. The variables that needed accounting for during these prolonged voyages and military operations were incredibly complex.

"Is the Earth Federation Military capable of sustained operations for that length of time?" Du Lang frowned.

"Why wouldn't it be possible?" He struck at his personal terminal haphazardly, coldly sneering, "In the Star Alliance, the Earth Federation is already registered; we are now a one-star civilization. As we grow and strengthen, our forces will traverse this universe. Wherever these super-Dreadnoughts go, that is the territory of our Federation!"

Du Lang grasped Gu Xiechen's meaning. He lowered his head, his brow furrowed in deep contemplation.

Several admirals from the Federation Military Command gathered around. Du Lang’s most trusted and loyal subordinates all knitted their brows, beginning to contemplate the future path of the Earth Federation. Undeniably, as Gu Xiechen stated, the Earth Federation stood before a road that allowed only forward momentum, with no retreat. Now that they had made contact with the Star Alliance, such interactions would only become more frequent. Not a single person present believed that the Earth Federation could look forward to peace as these contacts grew more common.

War—this was the inevitable road for the Earth Federation to ascend to a top-tier civilization. Unless the Earth Federation was willing to become a vassal and slave to the higher-star civilizations, war was their only choice.

The challenges of extended space travel and space warfare—a concept the Earth Federation Military had never seriously considered—were now laid bare before them.

"Hmm, for all logistical and maintenance personnel, we can recruit female soldiers," Du Lang said, looking up. "Using advanced specialized machinery, female soldiers can capably handle all manner of support tasks. We should strive to ensure the ratio of female personnel on each super-Dreadnought reaches one to one... well, if both parties are willing, they can marry."

Gu Xiechen tossed the personal terminal to Xiao Liefeng, who stood nearby. "These are matters for you generals and politicians to consider. I have brought these grand machines back; my task is complete." He paused, then suddenly gave Du Lang a distinctly wicked wink. "These warships—even if my Hardwood Defense Corporation is half-gifting them to the Federation Military—how much are you willing to spend in funds and resources to purchase a single super-Dreadnought like this?"

Du Lang fell silent. Xiao Liefeng was silent. The military commanders present all averted their gazes or spoke evasively. Some senior officials from the Federation Military Logistics Department even found an urgent excuse to slip away for a bathroom break.

Purchase these super-Dreadnoughts? Preposterous. Compared to the cost of the Federation's old warships, which were only five or six hundred meters long, even emptying the Federation treasury wouldn't be enough to acquire one of these behemoths! To buy them? Did Gu Xiechen actually expect the Federation to pay in installments? Based on the Earth Federation’s current annual GDP, every citizen of the Earth Federation would likely be working for Gu Xiechen alone for the next thousand years.

Consider the might of the ancient Romans: even they, in their prime, never fielded more than five thousand super-Dreadnoughts simultaneously. How many planets did the Romans rule then? Their scientific civilization had reached heights beyond imagination, with productivity far exceeding that of the current Earth Federation by immeasurable degrees. Even so, they could only afford five thousand. With the Earth Federation's present strength, even stripping the nation bare wouldn't secure the three Dreadnoughts before them, let alone the motherships currently deployed to intimidate the Romans in the Thirteen Star Sector.

After a long silence, Du Lang extended both hands and pressed them firmly onto Gu Xiechen's shoulders.

"Brother, the citizens of the Federation will forever remember your contribution to this world. The Federation accepts these super-Dreadnoughts with gratitude. At worst, for all future armaments your Hardwood Defense Corporation sells to the Federation, we grant you tax exemption. Forever tax exemption. How about that?" Du Lang looked at Gu Xiechen with an almost roguish grin.

Gu Xiechen seized the opportunity to state his demands. "I retain half of all super-Dreadnoughts. You must permit Hardwood Defense Corporation to recruit sufficient personnel."

Du Lang’s eyes widened. "What are you trying to do?"

Xiao Yusheng stared at Gu Xiechen in horror. "Mr. Gu, are you intending to establish your own nation? In that case, perhaps I should just yield the position of Council Speaker to you!"

Gu Xiechen bristled with feigned anger. "Why would I build a nation for free?" He let out a few sharp laughs, stretching his voice out lazily. "I simply want to form a pirate fleet. Ah, this pirate fleet will be nominally attached to the Federation Military Logistics Department, registered as the 'Earth Federation Material Recycling and Utilization Center.' How about that arrangement?"

Du Lang opened his mouth but remained silent.

Xiao Yusheng opened his mouth and offered a strained, dry laugh. "Capital, when it comes to this world, has blood and filth oozing from every pore."

However, the eyes of the military leaders lit up. Establishing a pirate fleet—and one of such colossal scale—was clearly a sign that Gu Xiechen did not intend to use this massive military force to attack the Romans. That meant he likely intended to plunder other civilizations within the Star Alliance. In the ancient history of the Earth Federation, pirate raiding groups operating with official backing were numerous, and many commanders were even granted noble titles by the kings they served. This was the fastest shortcut to rapidly enhancing national strength and military power!

The transport vessel and its escort fleet flew directly into the motherships. The three Dreadnoughts rapidly ignited their engines, tracing three vast, graceful blue arcs across the void. Almost immediately upon turning, a vast cloud of hazy blue electronic mist, spanning over a thousand square kilometers, erupted from the vacuum directly ahead of the ships. The massive hulls plunged into the electronic fog without the slightest shudder, entering subspace for faster-than-light travel.

The super-engines, modified by Ducart and Little Xiao, possessed formidable power. Where the old Earth Federation warships required about twenty days to travel from the Earth Federation to the Heaven Star Sector, the new South Heaven Gate and North Heaven Gate class warships still required four to five days. The super-Dreadnoughts, running at only half power, took a mere six hours.

A subspace energy current ahead of the motherships suddenly fractured, causing a large expanse of the void to spread outward like shattered glass. The view snapped to brightness as the three Dreadnoughts burst free of subspace.

Three hundred Roman-built warships, each exceeding ten thousand meters in length, were waiting near the space where the three Dreadnoughts had jumped out. The ships, now bearing the Earth Federation military insignia, spotted the three Dreadnoughts emerging from the electronic fog and immediately closed ranks, forming a standard escort formation around the vessels.

Du Lang, excited, stood on the bridge of a mothership and issued several commands. The immense fleet immediately set course for the Heaven Star, located tens of thousands of kilometers away.

As the motherships approached the atmospheric boundary of the Heaven Star, the Romans' specialized anti-gravity systems activated, minimizing the potential impact of the Dreadnoughts' massive weight on the planet's surface. The ships' powerful fire control systems operated at full capacity; hundreds of giant radars powered up completely, sweeping across all sectors in every frequency band. The dense, powerful radar waves instantly ionized a small section of the Heaven Star's atmosphere, even causing interference to the divine sense emanated by Gu Xiechen.