In the pitch black void, only a dozen thumb-sized starlights twinkled in the distance, as a rickety mining vessel, constructed over three hundred years and fit only for the scrap heap, struggled forward. Faint blue flames sputtered from the ship's tail nozzles, fluctuating in intensity, weak and strong by turns, like the labored breath of a dying man—a palpable sense of being choked for air. Occasionally, a burst of red, chaotic flame, accompanied by tiny fragments, erupted—another boiler in the engine unit had blown out.

Yet, aboard this dilapidated freighter, which seemed ready to disintegrate at any moment, was garrisoned a full thousand of the most elite officers and soldiers of the Xith Imperial Guard. Every man was fully armed, clad in complete battle armor, wielding high-energy weaponry, taking turns standing guard outside the captain's lounge.

Inside the spacious yet filthy lounge, the former Emperor of the Xith Empire, Tartarus, sat with several of his sons and uncles. They stared at each other, all gripped by a profound melancholy—a sense that life was but a dream, a past too painful to look back upon. Just a few months ago, they had stood at the pinnacle of the Xith Empire’s power; now, they were all exiled prisoners of the Empire. Worse still, their mode of exile was this decrepit relic of a ship.

Tartarus’s wandering gaze swept across some dried, unidentifiable stains clinging to a wall near him, causing his brow to furrow with disgust. The lounge was permeated with a strange odor—a fermenting blend of some bizarre, fishy stench mixed with sweat, foot odor, and body odor. This noxious smell threatened to make Tartarus vomit. Accustomed to luxury, when had he ever encountered such an appalling environment?

After an unmeasured passage of time, Tartarus suddenly stood up, moving towards the exit of the lounge.

Dozens of high-energy firearms instantly locked onto Tartarus. A Guard general stepped forward cautiously, offering Tartarus a crisp salute. "Your Majesty, please return inside!"

Tartarus fixed the general with a look of stern majesty and commanded in a deep, powerful voice, "I have critical matters concerning the fate of the Empire to entrust to Heilis. I must speak with him."

Tartarus’s gaze was focused and potent, like two long spears piercing the Guard general’s face. Despite being stripped of all his power, the former Emperor, who had reigned from the Xith throne for so many years, still possessed an aura of imposing authority and formidable spirit. The Guard general instinctively snapped to attention and respectfully agreed to his demand.

In the mining vessel’s command cabin, several six-star capable individuals assigned to escort the exiles were gathered around a small round table, drinking and amusing themselves. Upon seeing Tartarus led in, they merely glanced over, saying nothing. Their only duty was to prevent the exiles from escaping; everything else was beyond their concern.

Tartarus approached the communicator and extended his right hand. The skin of his middle finger suddenly split open, revealing a section of pale, white bone upon which was fitted a ring made of a pale black, translucent crystal. The exquisite ring fit snugly against Tartarus’s bone, etched with fine silver metal lines forming a miniature emblem: the image of a terrifyingly ferocious dragon with three heads and six pairs of fleshy wings.

The Guard general beside him tensed and reached out to grab Tartarus’s wrist.

But Tartarus was faster. With a flick of his finger, several ultra-fine black filaments shot out from the ring and pierced the communicator. Immediately, a light screen descended from the device, and Heilis Xith, bewildered and confused, appeared within it.

The communication line forcibly connected. Heilis, who had been deep in discussion with Fuya Ming regarding the site selection for a joint commercial port, was greatly enraged to see his father, Tartarus, who should have been deep into his exile journey and nearing the Empire’s most desolate frontier, displayed on the screen. After a brief moment of stunned silence, Heilis roared at the Guard general escorting Tartarus, berating them for their incompetence and dereliction of duty. Only then did he coldly ask what business Tartarus had with him.

Heilis was now the Emperor, burdened with immense daily responsibilities, and he was visibly impatient, addressing Tartarus as if dismissing a beggar. He casually stated that if his father wished for a more comfortable exile, he would instruct the merchant guild currently mining metals on the planet near the designated exile location to look after him.

Tartarus shook his head, lightly shaking his right middle finger, and asked Heilis with a chuckle if he had overlooked something. For instance, how could he, having been stripped clean of all electronic devices during his exile, so easily access the Xith Empire’s top-secret communication system and interrupt Heilis’s long-distance meeting with Fuya Ming?

Heilis froze, staring blankly at Tartarus, a chill creeping up from the depths of his heart.

"Do you still harbor hopes of restoration?" Heilis sneered, his gaze fixed on that bizarre black crystal ring. "Hand over that ring, give me all the Xith Empire's state secrets, and I might consider allowing you to return to the capital, perhaps as a Prince living in secure comfort."

"A Prince living in secure comfort?" Tartarus lightly shook his head, laughing mockingly. "Heilis, my son, your ascent to the throne was brilliant, sharp, and direct. But how could you utter such a naive sentiment? Is the life of a secure Prince comparable to the height of a supreme monarch?"

Clenching his fists tightly, Tartarus stated coldly, "What belongs to me, I will reclaim entirely. Those who dared to aid your rebellion, those traitors who actually defected to you—they must be punished."

Heilis’s panic was now unconcealable. He pointed at Tartarus and shrieked, ordering the Guard general and the six-star capable escorts in the command cabin to execute Tartarus immediately.

"No!" Tartarus cried out, raising his right hand. "Do you not wish to know the story of this ring? Do you not want to know what this ring represents? Do you not wonder why I only speak to you now, just as I near my place of exile?"

After a moment of silence, the uneasy Heilis magnanimously stopped the escorts who were about to strike, signaling Tartarus to continue.

Tartarus took a deep breath, his chest swelling high. He smiled slowly at Heilis and explained that the ring was an identification token symbolizing full membership in a mysterious organization called the "Elder Council." Within their circle, this ring was known as the "Bloodline Relic." The Bloodline Relic Tartarus possessed was integrated with a backdoor chip connecting to the main control super-brain of the Xith Empire’s entire national defense and communication command systems.

Possessing this ring, even after being deposed, allowed Tartarus to wield authority equivalent to that of an Emperor.

As for why Tartarus waited until he was almost at his exile destination to reveal all this, it was because the "Elder Council" maintained three contact points near the Xith Empire’s border, one of which was close to the location Heilis had chosen for Tartarus. These three points were all situated near the Empire’s most desolate and remote border lines, and they had now become Tartarus’s lifeline.

Seeing the triumphant Tartarus, Heilis roared, "Kill him!"

The six-star capable individuals and the Guard general lunged at Tartarus, attacking his vital points with all their might.

Tartarus let out a strange, triumphant chuckle. A red light flashed in his eyes, and he muttered in a low, strange voice, "Bloodline Gene, unlock fifty percent energy release!"

With a few cracking sounds, over a dozen thumb-sized, shield-shaped scales erupted on Tartarus’s face. The scales were dark, adorned with cone-shaped, sharp protrusions. Suddenly, sharp claws, a foot long, extended from his fingers—claws clearly belonging to a reptile, emitting a faint, eerie glow. His neck thickened to over a foot in diameter, veins pulsing visibly beneath the sheer bulk, and then the area of his Adam's apple rapidly vibrated, puffing out a large, swollen mass.

"Aargh!" Tartarus roared with savage satisfaction. The sound waves carried a terrifying mental shockwave that surged outward in all directions. The Guard general, the capable ones, and the dozens of Guard soldiers in the command cabin were the first struck; blood streamed from all seven orifices, and brain matter splattered onto the floor far and wide. This terrifying mental shockwave swept through the derelict mining vessel, instantly killing all the escorting Guard officers and men, and stunning the royal relatives exiled alongside Tartarus. The mining vessel itself suffered massive damage; crucial pipelines ruptured, and the slowly crawling ship gradually halted in the void.

Tartarus, whose face was now terrifyingly grotesque due to the scales, gasped violently a few times before spitting out a mouthful of hot, bloody air. He winked and grinned triumphantly at the stunned Heilis through the light screen, straightening his body. "Destroying my primal energy was enough? No, it wasn't! My inherited bloodline grants me other powerful abilities—a miraculous energy harbored within this blood that you can never imagine."

He raised his right hand proudly, sneering, "Without the Bloodline Relic, you could never sense the bloodline we possess, nor could you activate that miraculous power! It’s a pity, though. My inherited bloodline is too diluted; activating even this little bit of power is pushing my body to collapse."

Sighing deeply, Tartarus sat down in the command cabin, closing his eyes to conserve energy. Forcibly activating the bloodline ability to kill all the escorts wasn't difficult, but he had to be careful not to let his mental shockwave harm his exiled relatives, which cost Tartarus considerable focus.

Heilis ranted and cursed wildly through the light screen, furiously cursing Tartarus’s name and viciously swearing that he would dispatch powerful tracking teams to eliminate him as soon as possible, making him regret ever being born into this universe.

Regardless of where Heilis found the energy, his manic cursing continued for three or four hours without stopping. Tartarus, who had been resting with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them in pleasant surprise.

A monstrous, nightmare-like, semi-transparent giant octopus-shaped entity, over six thousand meters long, silently glided out of the void and stopped close to the mining vessel. The moment its body contacted the hull, the creature instantly changed color, appearing as a giant, irregular armor plate affixed to the mining ship.

One of its tentacles deftly pierced the transparent viewport of the command cabin and stretched inside.

Tartarus stood up gravely, cautiously observing the massive tentacle before him.

The agile tentacle squirmed a few times within the cabin, and its tip suddenly split open, revealing a mouth several meters wide, lined with ring-shaped sharp teeth and dripping foul, viscous fluid. Three young men, tall and handsome, with physiques and appearances as perfect as deities, strode out of the gaping maw. They wore strange, black robes edged with gold thread depicting the three-headed, twelve-winged dragon emblem. They coldly surveyed Tartarus.

Heilis, who had been shouting and raving for hours in the light screen, abruptly stopped talking. He stared in horror at the unbelievable monstrous creature and the three young men who exuded an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Tartarus rose with utmost reverence and bowed deeply to the three young men, then presented his right hand before them.

The young man in the center nodded coldly. He drew out a black crystal stylus, about a foot long and thumb-thick, and touched the Bloodline Relic. Countless points of light erupted in the air before him, rapidly sketching out a best-skin scroll that looked almost tangible, upon which several lines of text clearly appeared.

"Tartarus Xith, descendant of the direct line of Dornephivayafikchel Doris... Xith Keldon, the nineteenth Elder of the Elder Council." The three young men forced out uniform, mechanical smiles and nodded in unison. "It is a pleasure to meet you, our blood kin."

The central youth bowed slightly. "We share the same ancestor. My name is Zero Dorn. These are my brothers, Kyo Dorn and Yan Dorn. According to the bloodline genealogy, we are, precisely speaking, your great-uncle, five generations removed."

Yan Dorn lifted his head slightly, stroking the dexterous tentacle behind him that was still moving around idly. He stated calmly, "We arrived here five hundred and seventy years ago, ordered to serve a millennium in rotation. Since we share the same ancestor, under the rules of the Elder Council, we can grant you maximum convenience. Tell us, why did you activate the Bloodline Relic to summon us? What do you require?"

Kyo Dorn pulled out another crystal stylus and tapped lightly in the air. Another scroll, composed of shimmering, text-filled projections of a different texture, materialized in the air. He glanced over the display, nodding in surprise. "We didn't realize that your lineage has made so many contributions to the Elder Council over the past 130,000 years without ever cashing them in. It seems the Xith Empire has accumulated five hundred and forty-three Bloodline Merit points. What do you intend to do? Elevate the Xith Empire to a six-star civilization?"

The three young men simultaneously looked at Tartarus and asked in unison, "Three hundred Bloodline Merit points to make the Xith Empire a six-star civilization within ten years—do you require this reward? Do you need it? Speak your wish, and in ten years, the Xith Empire will become the newest six-star member state of the Star Alliance."

Tartarus trembled with excitement, his limbs feeling numb. Heilis, meanwhile, turned ashen with terror, nearly collapsing onto the floor.

Were these three telling the truth? Did they truly possess such capability? Could their mere word decide the emergence of a six-star civilization? Furthermore, elevating the Xith Empire to six-star status would take them only ten years, requiring only three hundred Bloodline Merit points? What exactly was this Bloodline Merit?

Tartarus’s body shook violently as he asked a question seemingly unrelated to the immediate situation: "Bloodline Merit points—has our Xith Empire truly accumulated this much?"

Yan Dorn waved his crystal staff, and a long skin scroll appeared before Tartarus. It clearly detailed the contributions the Xith Empire had made to the Elder Council over the thirteen millennia since its founding. The first batch of Merit points awarded to the Xith Empire was when the founding emperor accidentally discovered a strange star that radiated intense life fluctuations. He reported this oddity to the Elder Council and was rewarded with one hundred Bloodline Merit points.

Following this batch of rewards was an annotation: Target acquired, its progenitor completely destroyed, life energy recovered seventy-three percent.

Tartarus sucked in a sharp breath. Judging by this note, the small star had indeed nurtured some form of life, and the Elder Council had captured that miraculous lifeform, destroyed its progenitor—the small star—and extracted a significant portion of the star's inherent life energy.

With Tartarus’s knowledge and experience, he could not fathom what kind of existence could be bred within a star, nor what kind of power was required to capture such a being.

The subsequent accumulations of Bloodline Merit points varied, but what startled Tartarus was that, apart from the founding emperor's initial one hundred points, the second largest acquisition of Merit points came from his own actions: one hundred and thirty years prior, Tartarus followed custom and made a secret tribute to the Elder Council. Among the three hundred ancient artifacts presented, sixty-three were judged to be "of special value" as "powerful weapons," thus earning an award of sixty-three Bloodline Merit points!

After a long period of stunned silence, Tartarus cautiously inquired, if three hundred points could elevate the Xith Empire to a six-star civilization, what could the remaining two hundred-plus points be used for?

Zero Dorn’s pale yellow eyes quickly swept over Tartarus, and he stated calmly, "Of course, they can do many other things. Although you descendants, whose blood is diluted, rarely contact us actively, we never cease to think of you."

He pursed his lips oddly and grinned at Tartarus. "For example, the damage from the highly toxic cosmic radiation that severely reduced your lifespan—that can be completely healed with just a few Bloodline Merit points. If you wish to extend your lifespan, then just one point of Merit can extend your natural life by a thousand years."

Tartarus managed an awkward smile. As an emperor, no one enjoyed being controlled by a secret organization lurking in the shadows. He never proactively contacted the Elder Council, and he assumed other descendants of the Council felt the same way. No one wished to be a mere pawn, especially not for these aloof nobles.

Even that secret tribute a hundred and thirty years ago was just Tartarus adhering to the Empire’s ancient tradition. He hadn't been overly concerned with it; for instance, he had secretly skimmed off a dozen of those ancient artifacts for his own decoration—only for them to later fall into the hands of Gu Xichen.

Yan Dorn idly scrutinized the beast-skin scroll that materialized from the rain of light, casually listing the plethora of rewards available to Tartarus. Startled out of his awkward contemplation, Tartarus quickly focused his vision, eager to see the sheer number of options before him. Curing his injuries was a definite necessity, but extending his lifespan—if enough Bloodline Merit points were available, extending it by tens of thousands of years would certainly be a pleasing prospect!

Countless strange and bizarre rewards sprang forth from the scroll, manifesting as lines of shining text floating before Tartarus. The most unbelievable item was the prospect of obtaining a "Dead Star"—a fully equipped one, complete with a trained command crew—for the mere cost of one hundred Bloodline Merit points!

Tartarus’s body trembled. As the emperor of a five-star power, he knew precisely what a Dead Star meant to a six-star civilization: a strategic weapon capable of casually destroying any single five-star civilization, or even several combined five-star fleets. Even among the covert skirmishes between six-star powers, such a devastating measure was rarely deployed—an instrument reserved only for absolute last resorts.

Staring intently at the list of rewards, Tartarus ground his teeth and asked, "How many people are like me? Why, after so many years, are there only twenty-six six-star civilizations in the Star Alliance? Have they... not accumulated enough Bloodline Merit points?"

Ling shook his head, curtly refusing to answer Tartarus’s first question. Just how many bloodlines the Elder Council possessed was an absolute secret, one impossible to divulge to Tartarus Hyss. As for why the Stellar Alliance only had twenty-six Six-Star Civilizations, it was because too many bloodlines squandered their Merit Points as soon as they were acquired. A situation like the Hyss Empire’s lineage, which spent thirteen millennia accumulating five hundred and forty-three Bloodline Merits, was unheard of even within the Elder Council itself.

After a long, brooding silence, Tartarus Hyss glared maliciously at Hailis on the holographic screen.

Yi Zhen cried out in shock, and Hailis recoiled backward, stumbling until his legs threatened to give out. Tartarus Hyss’s gaze was like that of a ravenous beast ready to devour him, and—

Hailis suddenly realized with crushing horror that the power he currently wielded was utterly insufficient to oppose the Elder Council! This was a terrifying organization capable of dictating the rise of a Six-Star Civilization. How could the alliance between the Hyss Empire and the Yaphic Empire possibly contend with such an immense monolith?

Taking a deep breath, Tartarus Hyss smiled as he posed the question most vital to him: "I possess the Bloodline Ring, which means only I can represent the Hyss Empire to the Elder Council."

Ling nodded, affirming Tartarus Hyss’s assumption. Only those holding a Bloodline Ring could interface with the Elder Council and receive its aid. The Bloodline Ring served as an identifier, a symbol of orthodox succession; without it, even possessing the heritage of the Elder Council’s bloodline would earn no recognition.

One Bloodline Ring represented one entire bloodline. Possession of the ring was the sole means to liaise with the Elder Council on behalf of that lineage and secure their assistance.

"Excellent!" Tartarus Hyss sighed with satisfaction. "I require a healthy body, and I wish to have my strength restored—and, of course, ten millennia of longevity are also necessary."

Pausing, Tartarus Hyss shot a venomous look at Hailis, who had crumpled into a heap on the screen, then sneered coldly. "Naturally, as someone just forcibly exiled, someone banished by his own son—a true misfortune—I hope the Elder Council can aid in my restoration and punish all traitors."

Ling and the other two exchanged glances, their smiles blooming brilliantly at the same moment.

Ling raised his crystal staff and lightly tapped it, causing a detailed proposal sheet to manifest before Tartarus Hyss.

To the Elders, the deposition of a Five-Star Civilization's king by his own son was hardly a momentous affair. Aiding Tartarus Hyss’s restoration would require only a minor expenditure of Bloodline Merits, the same cost as curing his illness. Since Tartarus Hyss desired the restoration of his power and extended longevity, there were more suitable options available for him.

Five hundred and forty-three Bloodline Merits could accomplish many things.

Elevating the Hyss Empire to Six-Star status: three hundred points.

Acquiring a dead star: one hundred points.

Curing his ailment from the potent cosmic radiation: one point.

Restoring the throne: one point.

This left one hundred and forty-one Bloodline Merits remaining. Eleven of those points would be used to grant Tartarus Hyss an eleven-thousand-year lifespan. The remaining one hundred and thirty points would perfectly cover the cost of a cultivation technique perfectly attuned to Tartarus Hyss’s inherent attribute—the Geng Metal Body Refinement Art, covering all methods from the Qi Refining stage up to the Void Realm.

However, Ling made it perfectly clear to Tartarus Hyss: if he only cultivated to the Void Realm, even if the Hyss Empire achieved Six-Star status, he could never securely hold onto the throne.

All twenty-six emperors of the Six-Star Civilizations possessed power at or above the Planetary level. In Gu Yechen’s understanding, these twenty-six emperors all held realms surpassing the Grand Sovereign Celestial level. Confrontations between Six-Star Civilizations were total wars, involving not just the open and covert struggles between national military strengths but also the endless schemings between the twenty-six rulers themselves.

With Tartarus Hyss’s current strength, even if the Hyss Empire became Six-Star, his best possible fate would be to be slapped dead by some emperor who took a disliking to him, who would then cheerfully devour the great prize that was the Hyss Empire.

Therefore, Ling presented Tartarus Hyss with an alternative.

Cancel the reward of the "dead star," and instead convert those one hundred Bloodline Merit points into something else—for instance, ten millennia of the Elder Council’s protection over the Hyss Empire. For ten thousand years, no other Six-Star Civilization would dare lay a hand on them. In return, Tartarus Hyss would be obliged to cultivate diligently within that decade to reach the summit of the Void Realm—the Xuan Peak—and successfully pass the subsequent Celestial Immortal Tribulation, growing into a true powerhouse possessing Planetary-level strength. Only then could the Hyss Empire truly mature into a stable Six-Star Civilization.

Yan Duorn stated plainly to Tartarus Hyss that a civilization lacking a peak Planetary expert could never exist as an equal among the other Six-Star powers.

Qiao Duorn elaborated even further: the Celestial Immortal Tribulation was treacherous. Based on their observations among the Stellar Alliance civilizations, perhaps only one in three hundred individuals managed to safely pass it and achieve peak Planetary status. The others were either atomized by the lightning or transformed into a unique life form composed entirely of energy, their neural systems replaced by powerful mental forces controlling their actions, destined to face fierce electrical assaults every millennium.

But Ling and Duorn offered Tartarus Hyss an even superior option. If he was willing to mortgage the future Six-Star Hyss Empire to the three brothers, the trio would find someone to help Tartarus Hyss weather the Celestial Immortal Tribulation, giving him a strong possibility of bypassing it entirely to become a Planetary master.

The price for this mortgage was five hundred Bloodline Merit points, which Tartarus Hyss would need to accrue and repay to the Ling, Yan, and Mian brothers within ten thousand years. If he failed to meet this timeline, the Hyss Empire would become the brothers' private property, and Tartarus Hyss would become their slave.

Should Tartarus Hyss successfully gather the five hundred Bloodline Merit points within the decade and hand them over to the Ling brothers, they would be equally pleased to return full sovereignty of the Hyss Empire to him. For members of the Elder Council’s inner circle, Bloodline Merit points held far greater value than an entire Six-Star Civilization. They could exchange these points for items that truly caught their eye—perhaps an ancient treasure secretly presented by a monarch of a lower civilization, or a powerful magical artifact boasting miraculous effects!

Tartarus Hyss was completely absorbed in the marvelous world painted by the three brothers. He finally understood: the reason Six-Star Civilizations were so powerful was because they possessed Planetary masters. And the Elder Council held esoteric techniques capable of elevating common people to Planetary level. Such masters would no longer be constrained by natural life limits; unless murdered, they would enjoy infinite longevity, basking endlessly in the pleasures power afforded them.

The plan laid out by the Ling brothers, though demanding, was fair and reasonable. There were no truly free lunches in this world, after all.

As Tartarus Hyss voiced his assent, the three brothers smiled and simultaneously retrieved enormous crystal staves, each over two meters long, and pressed the tips together.

A shaft of black light erupted from the joined tips, swiftly engulfing the entire command module. The darkness completely annihilated the communication device, which was currently blinking a status signal, effectively sealing off all external communication.

Three swirling masses of colored light materialized within the blackness. Ling and his brothers immediately knelt in utmost deference, reporting the verbal agreement struck with Tartarus Hyss to these three lights.

The three lights simultaneously raised their hands and projected a scroll crafted from some unknown pale-gold beast hide. It instantly appeared before the assembled group.

The scroll already recorded Tartarus Hyss’s demands and the agreement forged with the Ling brothers, specifically emphasizing that until the pact was fully honored, the brothers would serve as Regent Ministers, assisting Tartarus Hyss in governing the Hyss Empire. Along with the hide scroll came a palm-sized chip made of pale-black crystal—it contained an authorization order from the Elder Council, which, when utilized, would allow access to the necessary manpower and resources to forcibly elevate the Hyss Empire to Six-Star status within ten years.

Under the watchful supervision of the three light masses, Tartarus Hyss and the Ling brothers bit their fingers and dripped fresh blood onto the beast hide scroll—the agreement was thus formally concluded.

When the scroll erupted in a flash of golden light, the shadow among the three lights that radiated a faint reddish hue finally spoke, "The individuals who aided Tartarus Hyss’s son in usurping the throne—were they from the Yaphic Empire?"

Tartarus Hyss and the Ling brothers exchanged glances and nodded simultaneously.

Tartarus Hyss knelt again, respectfully detailing all intelligence regarding the Yaphic Kingdom, stressing that it had since declared itself an Empire and annexed over a dozen civilizations in the Spiral Sector. Under the leadership of Fuya Ming, the Yaphic Empire now possessed the strength of a Five-Star Civilization.

As he spoke, Tartarus Hyss seemed to grasp something. In the recent summation given by Ling Duorn, one of the surnames of the Nineteenth Elder of the Elder Council—whose name was ridiculously long—seemed to contain the element 'Yaphic.' Could it be that the Yaphic Kingdom actually belonged to one of the secret bloodlines of the Elder Council?

The three lights shifted slightly. One of them rumbled deeply, "In the Ming-Yaphic bloodline, there is no record of this woman’s name."

Another light stated coolly, "She is not a direct heir of the Yaphic line. She is merely a descendant of a collateral branch chosen by the orthodox Ming-Yaphic lineage to govern that nation."

The third light stated sternly, "The Demon Extermination Knights, formed by the Ming-Yaphic line, previously offered numerous valuable assets to the Elder Council."

The lights collectively sneered. "The Commander of the Demon Extermination Knights two generations ago, due to sufficient Bloodline Merits, secured a post within the Elder Council. Recently, he received word that the Yaphic Kingdom’s Demon Extermination Knights—a branch of our Elder Council bloodline—has been utterly annihilated."

The three lights roared fiercely, "One of the Elder Council's missions: find and eliminate the mastermind behind the destruction of the Demon Extermination Knights. Investigate Fuya Ming’s bloodline concentration. If her concentration meets the minimum threshold, force her to inherit the Ming-Yaphic lineage."

"—The Spiral Sector should have a single, unified master."

The lights flickered and dissipated, leaving only a lingering tremor echoing in the air.

The mission assigned by the Elder Council was valued at one hundred Bloodline Merits—evidence of the profound shock the destruction of the Demon Extermination Knights had caused internally. Furthermore, if Fuya Ming’s bloodline concentration was confirmed to be sufficient, the subsequent reward for ordering her to inherit the Ming-Yaphic lineage and unify the Spiral Sector was a staggering eight hundred Bloodline Merits.

Eight hundred Bloodline Merit points—Ling, Yan, Mian, and Tartarus Hyss’s eyes gleamed green.

Qiao Duorn impulsively summoned the black holographic screen once more, connecting to the three distorted figures of light. He utilized a special authorization to demand an explanation from the lights regarding why the follow-up mission, involving Fuya Ming inheriting the Ming-Yaphic bloodline and unifying the Spiral Sector, carried such an exorbitant Bloodline Merit value.

The three lights fell silent for a moment. Perhaps due to the high level of special authorization invoked by Mian, the three lights deliberated briefly before providing a clear explanation. However, they also sternly warned everyone present that if even a single word of this explanation were leaked, they would all face the Elder Council's absolute and merciless obliteration!

Mission Step One: Determine Fuya Ming’s bloodline concentration. If sufficient, compel her allegiance to the Elder Council. She must be made to fully grasp the Council's formidable potential, making her willing to serve them wholeheartedly.

Mission Step Two: Support the Yaphic Empire in unifying the Spiral Sector under 'reasonable and justifiable' pretenses—without alerting anyone! Crucially, the unification must appear as a natural progression, the conquest of lesser civilizations by a superior one, leaving absolutely no trace of external manipulation to any observer, intentional or accidental.

Mission Step Three: Direct the Yaphic Empire outward to expand and initiate conflicts with neighboring advanced civilizations, creating the appearance that the Yaphic Empire has reached the limit of its current development.

Mission Step Four: The Yaphic Kingdom must dispatch massive fleets of exploration vessels deep into the Barren Star Sea surrounding the Spiral Sector, scouting for developable administrative planets and mineral-rich worlds, with a special focus on discovering any ancient ruins left behind in the Barren Star Sea and securing all potentially valuable clues.

For each of the four steps completed, a reward of two hundred Bloodline Merit points would be granted.

All four steps were required to be finished within thirty years. At the very latest, the Yaphic Kingdom must send out sufficient exploration fleets into the Barren Star Sea by the thirtieth year.

After an indescribable silence, Ling Duorn tentatively inquired of the three lights what course of action they would take if Fuya Ming did not possess sufficient inherited bloodline concentration.

The three lights converged, conferring briefly, before delivering the most direct response:

If Fuya Ming lacked the requisite bloodline concentration, she was to be directly eliminated. The Hyss Empire would then take over the unification of the Spiral Sector, pushing expansion in all other available directions.

To accomplish this mission, the timeline for the Hyss Empire’s advancement to Six-Star status would be postponed; the paramount condition would be to proceed without attracting attention.

Following this, the three light masses offered no further explanation, dissolving directly back into the darkness.

Early in the month, comrades, please vote often and shower us with votes! No more nonsense, lest it disrupt the reading flow!