On Pandora's Planet V12, a pillar of red light descended from above the colorful poisonous forest. Ding Meng and Ling Xingqi were teleported back to the Divine Arrow spaceship base.
Currently, Silent Entropy was still a top secret. The space station had a chance of capturing the signal if they were teleported directly to the Federation's borders. Thus, Ding Meng and Ling Xingqi were teleported to Planet V12 while Ji Chenxue was sent to the Empire's borders.
Strangely, there was no sign of the Divine Arrow spaceship in the plaza. There was only a tattered specter ship. It was obvious that this was the Blazing Shark spaceship that Meng Yan was used to using.
Someone quickly ran out from the terminal. It was indeed Meng Yan.
"Mr Ting, you're back!" Meng Yan had always been respectful to him. Furthermore, she had expected him to return sooner or later.
Ding Meng was puzzled. "Where are they?"
Meng Yan said, "The princess and the others have gone to the Fertile Chalk System!"
"Fertile Chalk System?" Ding Meng was even more puzzled. "How long have they been gone?"
Meng Yan replied, "It's been two years!"
Ding Meng immediately felt a shadow pass over his heart. Why did he feel that something was not right? "Are you the only one in the base?"
Meng Yan said, "Mr. Xin Jie is here too!"
The sixth floor of the terminal was the command hall. The structure here was the same as the command hall on the starship. The main control panel was lit up with written screens. Xin Jie's hands were operating the screens on all four sides at the same time. All kinds of data images were being refreshed smoothly.
Ding Meng could not be envious of this multitasking ability no matter how strong he was. Only Xin Jie could use it so skillfully.
Xin Jie was not surprised to see Ding Meng enter. He was already used to Ding Meng's long disappearances. However, Xin Jie was still a little surprised to see Ling Xingqi. "Isn't this Miss Ling?
You're still alive! "
Ling Xingqi said, "Did you think I was dead?"
Xin Jie stopped operating his hands and looked at Ding Meng with a smile. "I'm willing to bet that Miss Ling has nothing to do with you."
Ding Meng said, "Why do you say that?"
Xin Jie smiled. "The women you brought back before, I could tell at a glance that your relationship with them wasn't normal. But this time, it's different. Your relationship is normal."
Ling Xingqi said, "What makes you think so?"
Xin Jie snapped his fingers. "It's simple. You look like a man. No matter how perverted Ding Meng is, he can't possibly like a man, right?"
Ling Xingqi almost spat out a mouthful of blood. She was just a little taller, and her looks weren't bad either. In the end, when it came to Xin Jie, she became a man.
Ling Xingqi rolled her eyes at Xin Jie. She decided not to argue with him. Before she came, she already knew that Xin Jie was Ding Meng's hardcore friend from the refugee camp. He was also a top hacker, so it was best not to provoke this guy.
"Have you eaten yet?" Xin Jie suddenly asked such a question.
Ding Meng's eyes lit up. "Steak?"
Xin Jie smiled and said, "All you know is steak. Can't you have a higher goal?"
Ding Meng's eyes lit up even more. "There's something better?"
Xin Jie sighed. "Forget it. You can't stop eating once you start. Let's get down to business first. Sister Yan, please show this kid the information I've compiled!"
Meng Yan had already raised a new screen on the main control console. All kinds of text and data were being refreshed rapidly. With Ding Meng's eyesight, he only needed ten seconds to finish browsing through it.
This information was actually what happened after the battle at the temple. First, the Holy Grail Federation's parliament suddenly announced that President Bai Xingfei and Vice President Lu Ting had resigned from their positions due to unwell health. The parliament, cabinet, and military jointly elected Zheng Fangying as the acting president, and Lu Xiaobing as the acting vice president.
Ding Meng frowned and said, "What's the background of this new president?"
Xin Jie said, "Zheng Fangying is an old subordinate of Bai Xingfei. He's one of the representatives of the Federation's Eagle Faction. He's also a high-ranking general in the military and the commander-in-chief of the Holy Grail Federation's Interstellar Combined Fleet."
Ding Meng thought to himself that President Bai Xingfei had clearly predicted that the trip to the temple would not bode well for him, so he had prepared a backup plan beforehand.
However, how could this Lu Xiaobing be the acting vice president?
This time, it was Ling Xingqi who explained, "The Lu family's influence in the Federation is not to be underestimated. The Rainbow Family, Rabik Family, Jade Family, and the Lu family are the four major families in the Federation. Among them, the Lu family's influence in the political arena is the greatest. Lu Xiaobing is naturally one of their representatives."
Ding Meng nodded and continued reading. The Starbow Corporation had announced that their president would be the Transit String. Starbow had decided to form a comprehensive partnership with the Bingyi Corporation. At this point, the five major financial groups in the Federation had changed into a tripartite situation: Shenghao, Starbow, and the Bingyi Corporation. The Bingyi Corporation was still helmed by Lan Bing, but in reality, the Bingyi Corporation seemed to be vying to be the boss, because the Redmoon Corporation was clearly standing on the side of the Bingyi Corporation.
As for the Norse Empire, there were almost no changes. Wen Yang was still the ruler of the Empire, but there was one thing that was very strange. The war that President Bai Xingfei had predicted did not happen. The Norse Empire had announced plans to restart the war between the Fertile Chalk System and the Frogman Kingdom three years ago.
This was a joint operation plan. The Empire had sent out six legions with a total of twelve interstellar fleets, while the Federation had sent out four legions with a total of four interstellar fleets. Both sides had completely driven the Frogman Kingdom's army out of the Fertile Chalk System in a short three months.
Ding Meng narrowed his eyes. "It seems that the new president isn't simple."
Xin Jie said seriously, "There's a problem here. The Combined Fleet did not return. Both sides stayed in the depths of the Fertile Chalk System. There was no conflict, and no announcement of cooperation. The strangest thing is that we can't find any traces of them."
Ding Meng was surprised. "You can't find anything either?"
"I can't find anything!" Xin Jie's answer was very straightforward.
Ding Meng pondered and said, "It seems that Little Rascal and the others went for this reason."
Xin Jie frowned. "They've been gone for two years, and there's been no news from them. I can't contact them either."
Ding Meng asked, "Who exactly went?"
Meng Yan quickly said, "Apart from the princess and Little Rascal, there's also Su Lingyue, Elephant, and Little Arrow."
Ding Meng said, "Did you find out why the Combined Fleet stopped?"
Xin Jie shook his head. "It's not easy to find out when you're not around. I can't contact the Transit String on Lan Bing's side, and Miss Qu doesn't know either. Her patrol fleet wasn't sent to the Fertile Chalk System at all, and the Rainbow Family doesn't know either."
Ding Meng pondered and said, "I wonder what this Wen Yang is up to now?"
Xin Jie nodded in agreement. "I think so too. Right now, the Combined Fleet has completely surrounded the Fertile Chalk System. No one is allowed to enter or leave, not even the exploration teams and workshops."
Ling Xingqi said, "Could it be that they want to take the energy from the Temple for themselves?"
Ding Meng shook his head and said, "If they wanted to take it for themselves, they would have done so long ago. With Wen Yang and An Ugly Woman's strength, the two of them could have taken it for themselves. There's no need to make such a big fuss. There must be another reason."
Xin Jie said, "Everyone is waiting for you to come back before making a decision."
Ding Meng said, "What do you think?"
Xin Jie walked back to the main control panel and brought up a galactic map. "According to the information you provided, the Imperial Fleet hidden in the TCP121 nebula was clearly about to start a war. I think there's only one reason for this. Wen Yang and the others have entered the underground world to get their hands on the Temple's energy."
Ling Xingqi immediately retorted, "No matter how many fleets the Imperial Fleet has, it's impossible for them to fight their way to the Holy Planet from the southernmost point of the Federation. This route is too difficult."
Xin Jie nodded. "My guess is that they're pretending to attack the southernmost point, using it as a threat to coerce President Bai Xingfei into sharing the energy. This is Wen Yang's backup plan. In reality, the Federal Empire has no chance of starting a war. No matter which side wins, what benefits will they get?"
Ding Meng and Ling Xingqi both nodded. The purpose of the war was territory. Now that most of the territories had been exploited, they were mostly exiled planets or lawless areas that had no value at all. What could really attract the attention of the higher-ups of both sides were the energy sources.
Ding Meng said, "So far, only people have been to the periphery of the Fertile Chalk System's large stellar vortex, but no one has entered the core of the large stellar vortex for centuries. The Combined Fleet is obviously going for the core."
Xin Jie said, "We'll have to figure out the specific reason."
Ding Meng felt a headache coming on. According to Xin Jie, many people were unaware of the situation. The Transit String, who was most likely to know the news, could not be contacted. He really did not know who to ask.
Can you contact Miss Qu? Ding Meng asked.
Xin Jie flipped through the screen. "Yes!
Her fleet is cruising in the southern part of the Empire! "
The instant communication was quickly connected, but it was only a voice connection. Qu Xiaoqing's voice quickly rang out in the hall. "I'm so sorry, Xin Jie. I still don't know. Even Elder Feng doesn't know. We can't figure out the intentions of the higher-ups this time …"
Hearing this answer, Xin Jie could only shrug.
Ding Meng carefully observed the galactic map. "Taking the direct route won't work."
Xin Jie laughed. "Are you going to take the wrong path?"
Ding Meng said, "You can think of it from another perspective. The Combined Fleet is very strong. They swept through the entire Fertile Chalk System in just a few months, and that was three years ago. But don't you think it's strange?
The Frogmen Kingdom hasn't done anything in the past few years. "
Xin Jie and the other two were stunned. Yes, the Frogmen were strong. Although their technology was not as good as the Federal Empire's, their reproductive ability was extremely strong. There was no reason for them not to fight back.
Looking at the galactic map, Xin Jie immediately understood Ding Meng's thoughts. The four countries had always maintained a relative balance. The Frogmen Kingdom in the Fertile Chalk System kept the Norse Empire in check, while the Devouring World in Zeratul maintained a stalemate with the Holy Grail Federation. But now that the Combined Fleet had swept through the Fertile Chalk System, this balance had been broken. Ordinary people could not see this, but the Frogmen King and the Immortal Elemental Queen would definitely not sit by and watch. The human world had crossed the border, and they would be the unlucky ones.
Ding Meng suddenly said, "Can you contact the commander?"
Contacting the commander obviously meant asking for a starship. Meng Yan could not help but ask, "Where do you want to go?"
Ding Meng said decisively, "To Thousand Sails Planet!"
Xin Jie and Meng Yan were both shocked. "You want to go to the Devouring World again?"
Ding Meng nodded solemnly. "The Immortal Elemental Queen and Leng Yin definitely know the reason. They are the most suitable. Besides, our Bingyi Group has a lot of dealings with the Devouring World. I'm going this time to return the favor to the Immortal Elemental Queen."