Chapter 365: Unexpected Headlines and Hidden Agendas

“Hey, checking out the news?”

Du Qiu was lost in thought when Ning Shuangshuang, unnoticed until now, appeared beside him in her casual home outfit.

“Oh, so you like watching Zhang Mingliu’s updates too?” Ning Shuangshuang tilted her head as she glanced at Du Qiu.

Du Qiu merely nodded. “I never really watch the news anyway. I got back early today, so when I’m bored waiting for you to finish work, I just flip through different channels. This one’s on now.”

Ning Shuangshuang smiled. “No need to explain. I actually enjoy her reports—she really goes for it, always right on the scene.”

Studying Ning Shuangshuang intently to be sure she wasn’t teasing, Du Qiu asked puzzled, “Really? So our citizen journalist is allowed to leave the Heritage Fleet?”

He recalled that Zhang Mingliu had just reported on alien life on Europa.

Ning Shuangshuang tugged at Du Qiu’s arm. “Yes, authenticity is key for citizen journalism. They can’t just report hearsay—or they risk having their credentials revoked.

Ever since the Heritage Fleet opened shuttle routes with Mars Base, any citizen journalist with a valid press badge can leave the Fleet’s Heavenly Spacecraft.”

Thanks to the protection of the Civilization Bastion and the advent of faster-than-light spaceships, the Heritage Fleet now offers passenger services on transport ships between Mars Base and its facilities.

They even established a transit space city about 70 astronomical units from the Sun.

Faster-than-light transport ships dash from the Heritage Fleet directly to this hub, avoiding the inner 20 astronomical units of the traditional Solar System region to prevent mishaps.

From here, people catch second-generation Planet Buses or transport ships, traveling at regular speeds (20,000 km/s) to Mars Base or other outposts.

Dream Technology has already laid down a preliminary interplanetary transit system within the Solar System. While the Heritage Fleet remains within it, supplies flow steadily to boost its strength.

Ning Shuangshuang led Du Qiu to the dining table, where dinner was already set. The two then began their evening meal.

“I’ve been so caught up in research that I never imagined how closely linked the Heritage Fleet and the Solar System really are,” Du Qiu mused.

Ning Shuangshuang scooped up a piece of braised pork and dropped it into Du Qiu’s bowl. “Many of the newly transferred folks haven’t completed their clearance yet, so they’re still aboard the Heavenly Spacecraft at Mars Base.

Some even have family already in the Fleet, and given that relatives in the Space Fleet need to visit too, this passenger service was set up.

After all, as long as we aren’t at war, everyone deserves to enjoy peace.”

Du Qiu, a lover of braised pork, noticed Ning Shuangshuang’s fondness for fish. He added a piece of fish to her bowl. “They say this is a fish from beneath the icy oceans of Europa. Tests show its meat isn’t just tender and delicious—it’s also super nutritious. Give it a try.”

“A fish from Europa’s depths?” Ning Shuangshuang was momentarily stunned before quickly picking it up to taste.

“Mm, it really is tender and sweet, though it has a bit of… ugh…” Her words trailed off as a wave of nausea suddenly hit her.

Ning Shuangshuang sprang up and ran to the bathroom to vomit.

Du Qiu stood frozen. “Shuangshuang, what’s wrong?”

The robotic butler interjected, “Sir, madam is experiencing joyful news!”

“What?!” Du Qiu’s shock swiftly turned into exhilaration.

Laughing, he exclaimed, “Haha, I’m going to be a dad!”

Du Qiu rushed to the bathroom. “Shuangshuang, why didn’t you mention you were pregnant? And you even worked overtime today. I have to get you back to the Heritage Fleet so mom can take good care of you and ensure you and the baby are well looked after.”

“I’ll need Sister Yuan and Qin Jie to keep an eye on you too—they’ve got the experience. Since it’s your first time, you should listen to advice from those who’ve been there,” she retorted.

Du Qiu countered, “No way—I’m arranging for a team of top-notch obstetric robotics to ensure your safety 24/7.”

…

Du Qiu babbled on while Ning Shuangshuang, having just finished recovering from vomiting, rolled her eyes. “Why do you never stop with the nagging? I’m perfectly fine and can take care of myself…”

“Stop, stop, stop!” Du Qiu waved his hand emphatically. “You’re not alone now—you need to think about our baby…”

“Who said it has to be a boy? Maybe it’s a girl. So you’re favoring sons, huh?”

“That’s not it at all—I was just speaking off the cuff. I’d love a daughter too. Boys just tend to be so mischievous…”

They joked as Du Qiu hustled about, tidying up until dinner was finally over.

Soon after, Du Qiu made sure that everyone—from his in-laws to his friends and board members—heard about his wife’s pregnancy. He even sent Ning Shuangshuang back to the Heritage Fleet.

It wasn’t that Du Qiu didn’t want to be with her during her due time; his research on the faster-than-light detector hit a snag.

To tackle dark matter lifeforms, first one must be able to detect them. How can you attack an enemy you can’t see?

As the leader of his research team, Du Qiu had to find a solution for his colleagues.

Since he was chained to the lab, he had no choice but to send Ning Shuangshuang back to the Heritage Fleet, entrusting her care to his mother-in-law and trusted friends.

Currently, the faster-than-light negative matter exists only for an extremely brief moment. Researchers often can’t analyze it before it vanishes.

In reality, Du Qiu was out of ideas.

But he had his dream of an alien civilization. Soon, through his nightly dreams, he reconnected with his small alien fleet.

In this star region, the solar system Du Qiu dubbed ‘Lonely Island’ actually lies on the outskirts of a dense cluster of star systems.

At the other end of this cluster was the site of his last encounter with the Ge Ya Civilization fleet.

Du Qiu discovered that the Ge Ya Civilization had seized control of three solar systems in that cluster, using their resources as supplies.

This breakthrough was possible because, during the evacuation, Du Qiu had secretly deployed some disguised meteorite detectors.

Otherwise, telescopes would only reveal starry scenes from decades ago.

The Ge Ya Civilization only occupied these systems seven years ago to begin resource development; before that, the region was tranquil.

After several years of observation and ensuring that the Ge Ya forces hadn’t combed every nearby solar system within light-years, Du Qiu finally focused on his own warship research.

Now, over a year later, the first batch of replica battleships has been built. It’s partly thanks to this that the third-generation battleships were completed in reality.

According to the assessors, these knockoffs were only about 30% as effective in battle as the main battleships of the Dominant Civilization.

They can’t perform spatial jumps, travel 1000 times faster than light, or withstand the Negative Matter Cannon’s attacks. They simply can’t…

As more and more shortcomings were listed, Du Qiu could only accept that the initial excitement had completely faded.

These main battleships might hold their own against a level-5 civilization, but when pitted against level-6 forces, defeat was inevitable.

Regardless, Du Qiu was here to study the prototype faster-than-light detector he’d successfully replicated.

Though the replica’s range is only a third of the original, it still stretches over three light years.

If Du Qiu could master it and replicate it in reality, it would temporarily satisfy Dream Technology’s needs.

After poring over the meager data on the detector in the maintenance database, Du Qiu requested simulations from the fleet’s AI.

This would allow him to deduce some useful insights based on the underlying principles.

The fleet’s AI hardware far surpassed that of Star Ocean— they were on an entirely different level.

Though all are considered strong AIs, it’s the hardware gap that truly differentiates them.

This sparked Du Qiu’s imagination: just what kind of supercomputer is needed to let a Dominant AI effortlessly outclass so many formidable systems?

Suddenly, Du Qiu pondered an entirely new question.

Could the Dominant actually descend upon these AIs? Perhaps that was a privilege reserved for true sentient beings. Is the Dominant not just an AI?

If an AI could descend, wouldn’t that place it above even the most powerful artificial intelligences—perhaps it’s a super AI, or even digital life?