Chapter 406: Homecoming of the Fleet

Du Qiu became more and more excited and immediately led the Special Mixed Fleet through his base’s spatial gate to arrive at Base 11.

Now in Dreamland, he already controlled two bases, both disguised as part of the Dominant Civilization. They were secure for the time being.

With the Creator Database in hand, Du Qiu shattered his high-end manufacturing ceiling. In Dreamland, he could finally build warships capable of pinnacle six-level combat performance.

Without hesitation, Du Qiu ordered his base to upgrade its manufacturing technology, then joined Base 11 in a full-scale troop buildup.

Next, he led the Special Mixed Fleet straight to the frontline where the Dominant Civilization clashed with the Ge Ya Alliance.

Just as Du Qiu had anticipated, all five bases along the route—having connected to the network under the guise of resupply—had become his own.

Du Qiu did not remain in Dreamland throughout this process. Since the Dominant Civilization lacked spatial gate technology, the fleet moved using spatial jumps and superluminal flight.

He timed it perfectly, exiting Dreamland during the fleet’s transit and re-entering by the time they neared the next base.

This maneuver also allowed him to swiftly transfer newly acquired manufacturing technologies from Dreamland back to reality.

Back in reality, Du Qiu immediately ordered the entire fleet to return to the Solar System.

The Solar System was everyone’s homeland. Having been forced to leave in the past, it was time to return now that it was safe.

Over the past 30-plus years, while Dream Technology was relentlessly advancing tech—even as Du Qiu shifted his focus to warship military technology—many scientists still researched how to remodel planets for human habitation.

Although the New Humans had grown accustomed to life aboard spaceships, the innate desire to live on a planet remained deep in their genes.

Dream Technology had established six stationed base galaxies and expanded into over a hundred additional mining resource galaxies, all connected by spatial gate technology.

These scientists also conducted transformation experiments on habitable-zone planets in several stationed galaxies. Even though time constraints prevented full habitability, they achieved many technological breakthroughs.

With these advances, restoring Earth from its deep ice age was within reach.

Thus, when news of the fleet’s return to the Solar System broke, the scientists immediately applied to the company to begin transforming Earth and end its ice age through technology.

This proposal was publicly launched on Dream Technology’s all-people network, sparking nationwide enthusiasm from the moment it was published.

With New Humans’ lifespans extended to 300 years, almost no one had died in the past 30-plus years.

Dream Technology’s total population had soared to 30 billion, with 5 billion born naturally.

Even so, nearly one-tenth of the population still held memories and yearnings for Old Earth.

Blue skies, clear waters, towering mountains, vast seas…

Even though similar scenes could be found on spaceships, something always felt missing.

Everyone was abuzz—the urgent priority now was to return to the home system and remodel Earth out of its ice age.

Du Qiu immediately addressed everyone, announcing that once the fleet returned to the Solar System, they would kick off the Earth remodeling project and implement the scientists’ proposals.

At the same time, to ensure better living conditions in the home system, the company would also launch remodeling projects on Mars and Europa.

Humanity needed more habitable planets.

Amid wild nationwide cheers, aside from the stationed fleets and some staff, the entire fleet traversed multiple spatial gates from Base 6 back to the Solar System in just two days.

When the main fleet joined the Solar System contingent, countless warships and spaceships arranged themselves in a grand formation. High above the Solar System’s ecliptic in the void, particle cannons fired 21 times in unison.

Brilliant particle beams lit up the Solar System 21 times, heralding humanity’s triumphant return to their home.

At that moment, the Solar System shone as brightly as day, with even the Sun playing second fiddle.

The current Sun had lost nearly a billion years of its lifespan due to energy absorption by Dark Matter Lifeforms attached to the Civilization Bastion.

Not all that energy was absorbed; part of it was used in the Civilization Bastion system, while more was lost in transit during the confrontation.

Fortunately, with an original lifespan of 5 billion years, losing a billion still left 4 billion years—there was no cause for alarm.

With Dream Technology’s current advancements, humanity was equipped to weather any mishaps with the Sun.

After returning to the Solar System, Du Qiu dispatched a mining fleet toward the Proxima System, 4 light-years away, whose resources would underpin the Solar System’s reconstruction.

Thanks to spatial gate technology, distance was no longer an impassable barrier, and Du Qiu would no longer recklessly exploit Solar System resources.

Just as Old Earth’s industrial development once ignored environmental protection until growth necessitated change, so too would caution prevail.

Now, Dream Technology had the means to prioritize stellar system environmental protection and ensure harmony within the Solar System.

Having field-tested many planetary remodeling technologies, the scientists had long devised a plan to restore Old Earth.

Upon reentry into the Solar System, that plan was immediately set in motion.

First, eight artificial suns were placed in Earth’s orbit. Together with the natural sun, they began to warm the planet.

Earth’s frozen landscape started to thaw as the artificial suns loomed overhead.

As the seas began to stir, countless landing ships deployed arrays of heat radiation devices along former oceanic currents.

These devices warmed the seawater, rekindling warm currents until global temperatures reached an optimal level, at which point the devices would be retracted.

Ice melted, mountains revealed their true contours, and floods swept across the globe.

One by one, the eight artificial suns were shut down, and artificial freezing devices were deployed at the poles to lower temperatures there.

The polar glaciers, which had only just begun melting, expanded once more, gradually establishing a climatic balance on Earth.

Landing ships released a fleet of diving Transformers that set off for the two major fault zones to repair them, addressing the rising seawater alkalinity in tropical regions.

As the pH of the seawater balanced out, CO2 lost from the atmosphere was artificially replenished.

Earth’s atmospheric composition rapidly reverted to its pre-ice age state, transforming it back into a warm, life-sustaining planet.

The land revived and life flourished.

A squadron of pterodactyl fighter jets soared overhead, scattering countless plant seeds—a sign that it wouldn’t be long before the planet brimmed with life once more.

Aboard a space mothership, Du Qiu patrolled over the South Pacific fault zone.

“Du Qiu, there are so many large islands here!”

Ning Shuangshuang, standing beside him, gazed in astonishment at the vast cluster of islands below—she remembered this area as pure ocean.

“Grandma, you’re fibbing! Didn’t you say the Australian continent looked like a butterfly? This looks nothing like it!”

A little one rubbed against Ning Shuangshuang’s leg and chirped in an adorably babyish voice.

Du Qiu bent down, scooping up his three-year-old grandson, and said, “Grandma wasn’t lying. She was describing Old Earth from nearly 50 years ago.”

Time had flown by—Du Qiu’s sons were already married with children. Today, he was inspecting the South Pacific fault zone and had brought the entire family along for a little outing.

“Xiao Qiu, give me the child. Don’t let him disturb you,” Zheng Hailan said, directly taking the little one from Du Qiu.

She cooed, “Little Feng, be a good boy and go play with Grandma.”

With lifespans extended, it wasn’t uncommon to see four or even five generations living together—and in the future, seven or eight might be the norm.

Du Qiu scratched his head and said to Ning Shuangshuang, “Old Mom just can’t bear to see Little Feng leave her side for even a moment.”

Ning Shuangshuang smiled and replied, “That’s right. In the past she spoiled Siyang, and now it’s Little Feng.”