Chapter 212: The Arrival of the Interstellar Merchants

“Interstellar merchants?”

“That’s right. That’s how they identified themselves. They even claimed to be merchants from a Level 4 civilization on the main spiral arm.”

Hearing Dawson’s report,

Mu Xingchen’s brow furrowed deep.

Main spiral arm?

Level 4 civilization?

After a peaceful ten years of steady development, it seems…

It’s all coming to an end—again.

“Commander, they’re still waiting for our reply. Should we…?”

“Here’s what we’ll do. Have them wait at Ross 248. Within three days, we’ll assemble a trade delegation and meet them there for negotiations.”

“Understood!”

Dawson snapped a crisp salute before ending the transmission.

Meanwhile, Mu Xingchen called in the current Federation President Tellus and the two deputy commanders of the Federation Fleet, Vladimir and Ryan, for an emergency meeting.

——

Three days later.

An administrative ship from the Presidential Office, flanked by twelve Zhulong-class Type C warships, jumped into the Ross 248 system.

For this trade negotiation, the Federation Fleet wasn’t involved directly—only as an escort.

After all, trade matters fell under administration, so the Fleet had no reason to overstep.

But the choice of negotiation team leader was actually quite interesting.

The one in charge? None other than Mu Qingxue herself.

The reason for choosing her was simple: Mu Qingxue was the Federation’s only administrative officer with direct experience negotiating trade deals with alien civilizations.

In fact, if it weren’t for certain unspoken rules within the Federation’s system, Mu Qingxue’s achievements would’ve already earned her a higher position. She could even be running for President right now, and no one would bat an eye.

There were many in both military and government circles who found this regrettable.

Currently, it’s Federation year 258, and Mu Qingxue is already ninety years old.

Before, at this age, she’d have been considered elderly and settled in for a life of leisure.

But after two eras of hyper-evolution for humanity, Mu Qingxue at ninety looks no older than twenty-something, even younger than when Lin Yu first met her.

Once docking was complete,

Mu Qingxue led the trade negotiation team onto the alien civilization’s ship.

Based on Dawson’s earlier report, these interstellar merchants claimed to hail from the Fanguang Alliance on the First Main Arm—a name with weight.

The Fanguang Alliance was one of the three great Level 4 civilizations on the First Main Spiral Arm.

This civilization was far stronger than the Drac Empire.

And the Fanguang Alliance was famous for being a true merchant society—business was woven into their DNA.

They didn’t even have a standing army.

So, what happened if war broke out?

Funny enough—it’s happened before.

People might think they’re just a roaming civilization of merchants, but when push comes to shove, these merchants quickly band together.

Even the smallest convoys usually field a handful of escort warships. The largest can have fleets numbering in the tens of thousands.

So in just a few months,

The Fanguang Alliance merchants managed to patch together a fleet of over three million Level 4 warships.

And that was only because most of their people were scattered across the Milky Way, trading in far-off corners and couldn’t make it back in time.

Just imagine how powerful they are.

For comparison, the Drac Empire keeps a standing fleet of just one million warships.

There’s even a saying across the galaxy:

Maybe the Fanguang Alliance isn’t the strongest Level 4 civilization, but if it’s warship numbers you’re talking, they easily top the charts.

If they ever fully mobilize, they could field a fleet of tens of millions.

No exaggeration at all.

So why didn’t they bring any escort ships this time?

Simple. They just didn’t feel the need.

Because in the Orion Arm, apart from the Drac Empire, there wasn’t a single civilization that could threaten their ship.

And as for the Drac Empire…

Go ahead and ask if they’d dare mess with a Fanguang Alliance merchant ship.

——

The room exuded luxury from every corner.

But it wasn’t understated—it was flashy, almost gaudy, like a nouveau riche display gone wild.

That was the style of the Fanguang people.

“Hahaha, welcome, my friends!”

As soon as Mu Qingxue and the team entered, a hearty laugh echoed throughout the room.

It came from a plump man—round all over, almost so rotund he looked more like a ball than a person.

Aside from a few minor differences, he looked about ninety percent human, standing around one meter sixty tall.

Mu Qingxue gave him a careful once-over.

And, sure enough…

The man’s entire vibe matched the flamboyant style of the room.

He wore a wildly complicated, ornate outfit, gold and gleaming jewelry dangling from his neck, hands, feet—even his ears and nose.

Didn’t matter the color—every single trinket had one thing in common:

Shiny. Unbelievably shiny and eye-catching.

No wonder they’re called the Fanguang Alliance—guess that’s exactly what the name means.

Everyone was quietly thinking the same thing.

“I am Sandik, a Level 7 merchant of the Fanguang Alliance. I hope we can make a perfect deal today!”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Mu Qingxue, trade representative for the Human Federation. So then, what exactly can you offer us?”

Mu Qingxue didn’t bother with small talk and got straight to the point.

Before coming, she’d already asked the Venus Empire for information on the Fanguang Alliance.

The Venus Empire had been very thorough with their intel for Mu Qingxue, but they’d added one last bit of advice.

“For anything outside of business, never trust a Fanguang Alliance merchant. And never think you’ll forge any kind of friendship.”

“But if it concerns a trade deal, you can trust them one hundred percent.”

“Such is a merchant of the Fanguang Alliance.”

So Mu Qingxue had been prepared—even if they acted warmly, there was no reason to get chummy.

Any matter outside of trade should, if discussed at all, be reframed as a business transaction.

“Rather than just talk, why not take a look yourselves? Come with me to the cargo hold?”

“Sure.”

Mu Qingxue gave a small nod.

——

This ship, stretching nearly ten kilometers long, was actually a custom-armed merchant vessel.

Most of its internal space was taken up by cargo bays.

Sandik’s first stop with Mu Qingxue and the team was the lowest deck of the entire ship.

Unlike the earlier opulence, this area looked more like a sewer—dim, dirty, and cramped.

The air reeked of a sour stench.

The next moment, as Mu Qingxue caught sight of their so-called cargo, she couldn’t help but frown.