From cannon fodder to sweeping across thousands of stars.

Chapter 837 The Spark and the Prelude to the Final Battle

The silence in the conference room was more suffocating than the cold vacuum of space outside the window.

The story of Aenarion weighs heavily on everyone's heart like a piece of lead.

Franklin was silent for a moment before speaking first, his voice breaking the deathly silence.

“I understand what His Majesty the Phoenix King means. So the core of our Plan B should be to preserve the flame of civilization, rather than simply a large-scale retreat.”

"Time and resources are extremely limited, and we cannot take everyone with us, so we must conduct a screening."

Agnes nodded slightly; the Empress's thinking on this matter coincided with Franklin's.

"I agree that the implementation of this plan must prioritize efficiency. We should prioritize ensuring that scientists, engineers, technicians, and the best samples in the gene bank are preserved."

"These people are the cornerstone of civilization's reconstruction. The value of a top scientist or engineer during the reconstruction period far exceeds that of a million ordinary workers. This is a fact that we must face."

Einarion didn't speak, but his expression said it all.

The elves' actions back then were even more extreme than this.

They took only the noblest members of the royal family and the carriers of knowledge; the rest of their clansmen became the price to be paid.

Amber listened quietly, her expression slowly shifting from solemn to an incredulous coldness.

He stood up, walked step by step to the conference table, placed his hands on the table, and looked down at the three 'rulers' present.

"So, in your plan, those ordinary workers, those farmers, those ordinary people who have never even left their own planet in their entire lives are all the sacrifices that can be made, right?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it was like icicles piercing everyone's ears.

Franklin frowned: "Mr. Amber, this is not a matter of cost, it's a matter of mathematics. We don't have enough spaceships, enough energy, and not enough time to organize a massive evacuation affecting trillions of people! Choosing the optimal solution is the only way."

"Optimal solution?"

Amber shook her head and then laughed, a laugh filled with undisguised sarcasm.

"You high and mighty people only ever calculate the optimal solution! You've forgotten that what constitutes this civilization isn't the millions of people on your elite list, but the hundreds of billions of ordinary people whom you treat as the denominator!"

"It is because of their work in the factories that we have the warships we have today! It is because of their labor in hydroponic towers and automated farms that we are fed! Now that disaster is imminent, you are telling me that they should die for the sake of the 'optimal solution'?"

Amber became unusually agitated, and a powerful aura emanated from him, causing the lights in the conference room to flicker erratically.

"Franklin, Agnes, I always thought we were allies, but I've only just realized that deep down, you're not on the same page as me at all!"

"You've been completely brainwashed by that so-called 'elitism'! You simply don't understand that the true resilience of a civilization lies precisely in its most ordinary individuals!"

This was the first time Agnes had seen Amber in such a mood, and she felt her authority being challenged, so her expression turned sharp.

“Mr. Amber! Watch your words! This isn’t brainwashing, this is reality! Your ideas are too naive, too unrealistic! Are you going to gamble the last hope of civilization for your ridiculous idealism?!”

"I'm not trying to save everyone!"

Amber slammed her hand on the table, causing the holographic star map to shake violently.

"What I mean is, we must do our utmost to save those we can! Not doing anything and doing our best are two completely different concepts!"

"We can modify the existing civilian transport fleet! We can simplify life support systems to allow more people to fit on a single ship! We can requisition all civilian transport capacity! There's always a solution! The key is whether we want to do it!"

"Instead of sitting here, coldly crossing out 99% of the names on the list, and then comfortably telling yourself that it's for the continuation of civilization!"

The argument was so sudden and intense that it caught everyone present off guard.

For the first time, the supreme leaders of the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, and the Atlas Group have experienced such a fundamental divergence in their political philosophies.

The gaze of Ainarion, who had been silent all along, now subtly changed as he looked at Amber.

He had seen far too many monarchs and leaders, and every one of them, when faced with a choice, would unhesitatingly choose the "optimal solution" that Franklin and Agnes spoke of.

Because it's the simplest and most 'correct' way.

But this young man before me, this individual who possesses the power to overturn the universe, is roaring for the most insignificant 'dust'.

This reminded him of the ancient elven legends of the heroic kings who sacrificed themselves to protect every one of their people.

It was a kind of brilliance belonging to idealists that he hadn't seen in a very long time.

Finally, Amber took a deep breath, suppressed his surging emotions, looked around at the three of them, and made a decision in an uncompromising tone.

"Plan B must be implemented. This is not a discussion with you, but an announcement."

"No matter what you do, Atlas Group will provide full technical support and resource allocation to 'ark-ify' all available civilian vessels. Once Plan B is activated, we will not screen or differentiate between social classes; all evacuation slots will be generated through random selection based on communities and families."

"We'll save as many as we can. If it really comes to that, we must make sure everyone sees that we haven't given up on them."

"And I hope you can distinguish between primary and secondary objectives! Plan A is to go all out to win this war! 'Operation Fire Seed' is Plan B, our insurance. We can't stop trying our best to put out the fire just because we have an insurance plan! On the contrary, it is precisely because we have this backup plan that we can devote everything we have to the front lines without any reservations, isn't that right?"

He looked at Franklin and Agnes, his eyes sincere and resolute:
"This plan is not for anyone to escape, but to ensure that the sacrifices of others are not in vain! If we are defeated and our civilization is destroyed, that would be the greatest betrayal of them! As long as the flame remains, their spirit and their struggle will always have the hope of being remembered and passed down."

Franklin and Agnes both fell silent.

They knew that Amber wasn't discussing it.

Within this alliance, Amber's influence has surpassed that of any one of them.

When he decides to use all his strength to push something forward, no one can stop him.

"I agree." Franklin finally nodded with difficulty.

Agnes snorted coldly and didn't speak, but her silence was a tacit agreement.

"Then, Plan B, codenamed 'Spark,' shall be secretly activated immediately."

Amber's voice regained its composure, but that resolute will remained etched into every corner of the room.

"Hopefully, we'll never need it."
-
While the Alliance's massive war machine was openly operating at full speed, projecting troops into the Eldaram system, an equally powerful undercurrent was quietly brewing in every corner of the civilized world. Project 'Fireseed,' orchestrated by Lilith's terrifying computing power, was unfolding comprehensively in a subtle and pervasive manner.

Soon, in a top-secret starport, the Roma sergeant who had once taught the elven artist how to use a coffee machine was now supervising his comrades as they transported batches of packaged 'civilization information storage units' onto a modified cargo ship bound for various remote colonies.

Those silvery-white metal cubes did not contain ore, but rather everything about human and elven civilization.

From cutting-edge technological blueprints to a third-rate romance film; from masterpieces of symphonic music to hilarious GIFs circulating online; from the complete "Eternal Star Poems" to a recipe for making cheeseburgers.
It encompasses everything, leaving nothing out, big or small.

As Amber said, civilization is not just about the things at the top of the pyramids, but also about the vivid memories that make up daily life.

Just as the 'Fire Seed' project was being prepared, the data transmitted from the monitoring network on the outskirts of the Eldaram system began to become increasingly strange.

Crown Fortress, Intelligence Analysis Center.

Salih stood before the massive data waterfall, her expression more solemn than ever before.

On the holographic model in front of her, the coordinates of the Forerunner reconnaissance unit that had been destroyed by the Combined Fleet were undergoing visible changes.

The spatial parameters there no longer showed a slight decay, but rather exhibited a regular, breathing-like pulsation.

Gravity, dark energy, spatial curvature. All the data oscillate violently at a fixed frequency, and the amplitude is increasing exponentially.

“It seems we’ve reached the final stage before the warp field takes shape,” Salih’s voice was a little hoarse.

"They are remotely modifying the cosmological constant of this coordinate point in ways we cannot understand, 'alienating' the space here, and transforming it into 'soil' suitable for their main force to carry out ultra-long-distance deployments."

Amber stood beside her, quietly watching the increasingly bright spot of light in the model.

"How much longer?"

“I don’t know,” Saleh shook his head. “It could be a week, it could be a day, it could even be the next second. It depends on the size and speed of their main fleet’s assembly.”

"But what is certain is that when these fluctuations stop, when all parameters stabilize at a critical value..."

Salih pointed to the distorted spot of light at the center of the model.

"The door will open."

As soon as she finished speaking, a piercing buzzing sound suddenly erupted throughout the intelligence center!

The curve representing the energy reading of the warp field suddenly surged upwards under everyone's watchful eyes, breaking through one peak after another, and directly piercing the top of the chart!

The pulsating point of light instantly stabilized, emitting a pure darkness that seemed to devour all light like a black hole.

Amber: "Really, the next second? Sallyh, so you have a knack for jinxing things too?"

Salih's lips moved, but no sound came out.

Amber's gaze then turned sharp as a knife.

He knew that the final countdown had begun.

The alarm quickly resounded throughout every corner of the Crowned Banner Fortress.

This is not a drill.

Inside the Supreme Command meeting room, the shadow of war transformed into tangible pressure, making the air thick and heavy.

Holographic images of the supreme commanders of the New Federation, the Star Dragon Empire, the Atlas Group, and all the Elven forces were present, each with a solemn expression that foreshadowed an impending storm.

There was no grand pre-battle mobilization, nor any superfluous lofty pronouncements.

The four people's eyes met on the virtual communication interface, and everything was understood without words.

"Everyone, I think there's no need for further explanation." Amber's voice reached everyone's ears through the encrypted channel.

"The pioneers' warp field is stable, and their main force could arrive at any moment! Our best opportunity to attack is to deliver the most devastating blow the instant they cross the gate and before they have a firm footing."

His gaze swept across the crimson coordinates on the holographic star map, located on the outer edge of the Eldaram system and marked as 'Region Zero'.

Meanwhile, in another asteroid belt within the Eldaram system, the modular 'New Requiem' has completed its final assembly.

Dozens of enormous hexagonal modules are tightly interlocked like a honeycomb, their surface psionic circuits shimmering with a faint blue light, echoing the enormous focusing crystal at the center of the modules, forming a perfect energy cycle.

"Requiem" position report: All modules are fully charged and ready to be activated at any time.

Lilith's unusually calm voice echoed in Amber's mind.

"Very good, remain silent and await my command."

With the Crown Fortress, accompanied by the escort fleet, jumping towards the Eldaram system, the stage for the final battle has been set.
In the vast expanse of space, an unprecedentedly massive fleet is converging from all directions.

Tens of thousands of warships, carrying the styles and hopes of different civilizations, have now formed an unprecedented united front for the same goal.

Several days later, after the Amber warp jump from the Crown Fortress was completed, I gazed through the huge porthole at this massive, mixed fleet.

He could feel the tension, anticipation, and determination emanating from the countless crew members on every warship.

This is no longer a battle he fought alone.

His will was connected with this fleet and with the hundreds of billions of lives behind it.

All the pieces are in place.

Time passes minute by minute.

On the bridge, apart from the slight hum of the instruments, there was no other sound.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for the moment that would decide their fate.

(End of this chapter)