Chapter 329: Alive?

This sent a cold sweat down Li Qingsong’s back.

A malfunction wasn’t a big deal. Losing a comms link wasn’t either. But both happening at the same time… that was highly unusual.

‘The comms link is down. I’m not the one controlling the ship. So why did its thrusters just fire? Why is it breaking formation?’

‘Who’s controlling my ship right now?’

Li Qingsong was certain that with technology at its current level—at least within the Strong Core Stage—no technique existed that could interfere with quantum entanglement-based Super-distance Communication, let alone one that could directly hack an enemy warship and seize control of it.

But as for whether more advanced civilizations possessed such technology, Li Qingsong couldn’t be sure.

‘So, if some external power is controlling my Mercury-class Warship right now, doesn’t that mean it must be an entity from a civilization more advanced than a Strong Core Civilization?’

‘Has some advanced civilization approached me?’

Li Qingsong immediately put the entire main fleet on high alert. Energy Shields were raised to maximum power. The various warships docked within the Space-Air Carriers undocked from their berths. While coasting on inertia at 80% the speed of light, they began to move into formation. At the same time, they activated all their sensor arrays, conducting a full-sweep search of the surrounding Star Domain.

Li Qingsong also dispatched a small task force to pursue the Mercury-class Warship that was breaking away from the fleet.

‘I have to get it back for a thorough inspection!’

But just then, something even more horrifying occurred.

Within the remote control centers located on the habitat ships, alert after alert began to pop up.

At first, it wasn’t too fast. Over the course of an hour, only a few dozen disconnection alerts appeared. But then, the rate began to accelerate, getting faster and faster.

Eventually, the dense stream of alerts merged into a solid block of text, completely filling the main viewscreen.

In just a single day, a total of 400,000 ships had disconnected!

The ships were of all types: warships, industrial ships, supply ships, as well as logistics support vessels, Mine-Layers, and communications relays.

The only exceptions were the habitat ships.

And every single ship that disconnected performed the exact same maneuver in unison.

The instant they disconnected, they would fire their thrusters, deftly avoid the surrounding vessels, and move to the outskirts of the main fleet. They would finally come to a stop and regroup at a distance of about 10 million kilometers from the main fleet.

Li Qingsong had many opportunities to attack the disconnected ships as they departed from the main fleet.

But Li Qingsong… didn’t dare.

The reason was simple. They were in the heart of his main fleet, surrounded by countless strategically vital assets, like the habitat ships, supply vessels, and Space-Air Carriers.

A battle here would very likely cause collateral damage to those assets.

‘Besides… what if these ships that have broken contact are being controlled by some advanced civilization?’

‘For now, at least, it’s not using these warships to attack me. What if my attacking them provokes it, leading to unforeseeable consequences?’

Taking all these factors into account, Li Qingsong ultimately decided to wait and observe.

And so, the 400,000 assorted ships regrouped into a new fleet. Then, Li Qingsong saw that fleet finally make its move.

One by one, the supply ships and logistics vessels opened their cargo bays. Automated machinery whirred to life. Numerous warships maneuvered themselves into docking berths and began a series of procedures: refueling, replenishing combat supplies, and more. Everything was perfectly orderly and extremely efficient—no less so than when Li Qingsong himself had been in command.

Li Qingsong was very familiar with these procedures. He had done the exact same thing before every battle.

But this time, he wasn’t the one in control!

‘That fleet… it seems to be making preparations for war!’

‘But who’s the target? It… it can only be me! I haven’t detected any other targets in this entire Star Domain besides my fleet and that one!’

“Fuck, what the hell is going on…”

Li Qingsong’s heart grew heavy. Left with no other choice, he too had to begin preparations for battle.

Time flew by, and the pre-battle preparations were soon complete. The breakaway fleet then began a rapid advance, charging aggressively toward his own. Simultaneously, they opened fire with all their weapons: Energy Cannons, Laser Cannons, Missiles, and more.

“They’re attacking me already? What the hell is going on?!”

With no other choice, Li Qingsong commanded his own fleet to return fire.

In the vast emptiness of space, with no celestial bodies for light-years in any direction, two fleets of identical design and configuration engaged in a bizarre interstellar battle.

The battle had barely begun when Li Qingsong discovered something even more terrifying.

Li Qingsong deliberately maneuvered his warships to target the enemy’s communication systems. He launched a successful attack, destroying the comms on at least a thousand vessels, including combat, supply, and logistics ships.

But to Li Qingsong’s horror, even after losing their communication systems, the ships… they were still fighting. They seemed completely unaffected!

This was highly unusual.

He could have understood it if an advanced civilization had intervened, seizing control of his ships through some unknown method.

‘But now their communication systems are gone. They have no way to use Super-distance Communication or standard electromagnetic waves. So how is that advanced civilization controlling them now?’

‘Even if you advanced civilizations have superior communication methods, the ships would still need the corresponding receivers, the right hardware! The hardware is gone, so why are these ships still under control?’

‘Something’s wrong, very wrong…’

Li Qingsong’s countless minds processed the information at high speed.

He reviewed the “enemy” fleet’s operational patterns one more time. He watched the warships maneuver and fight, seemingly without any need for communication. He watched the automated machinery and ships take on supplies, refuel, restock munitions, and repair damage, all on their own. He looked at the perfect, orderly chaos. And as he did, an astonishing, and slightly absurd, hypothesis began to form in his mind.

The moment the hypothesis surfaced, the voice of the clone housing Li Qingsong’s consciousness grew hoarse.

“Shit… Don’t tell me these warships and ships have all… come to life?”