Poverty makes me capable of anything.

"Yes."

After a brief exchange, Derrick left the tower.

He had been on edge throughout the long journey, and now he could finally go home and relax.

But to Derrick's surprise, he received a call from the tower before he even entered the house.

"be right back?"

Derrick was completely bewildered.

He had to turn back.

"Those information processing modules have been deciphered." The Grand Secretary's face was very gloomy.

Derrick sensed something unusual in the air around him.

Suppressed?

"See for yourself."

Derrick stared at the intelligence report handed to him by the Grand Secretary for a long time.

The Cult of Machines.

Star Domain Ruler.

An immortal stranger.

One novel term after another flashed before his eyes.

"The fleet you encountered is commanded by a stranger."

Derrick's eyelids twitched slightly.

So that person wasn't lying; he really was in charge of that fleet.

But that's not what Derrick is concerned with.

However, the strength of the Mechanicus Cult alone is almost equivalent to that of their Ascended Civilization, and there are at least a hundred similar forces in the Star Tree Starfield.

There are many more powerful forces above that.

"This is a civilization more powerful than the faithless."

Derrick muttered to himself.

This civilization has now set its sights on the entire "planetary graveyard," a name given to it by those people.

Even if we call the unbelievers over, it would be too difficult to stop this attack.

It should be noted that even the stronghold of the faithless is now facing a crisis.

The Grand Secretary said, “This is the greatest crisis we have faced in our tens of thousands of years of civilization, even worse than when we were driven here last time. Faced with these outsiders, we have only two choices: to submit or to perish. Since our territory is on the road to what they call the new world, we have no third option, and a large-scale withdrawal is impossible.”

A heated discussion broke out in the tower.

Although the two top civilizations of the Star Tree are powerful, their focus is clearly not on the planetary graveyard, so many war enthusiasts feel that this is an opportunity.

"With the help of the unbelievers, we may be able to deal a heavy blow to these invaders."

"Even if we can't cripple them, we can at least repel them. Then we just need to wait for the war over there to end, and maybe we can get through this crisis safely."

Pessimists do not agree with this view.

"At least two superpowers have attacked us; we can't stop them."

"The Star Tree Civilization is too powerful; even with the help of the Unbelievers, it's useless."

The argument lasted for a long time, and the situation was only stabilized after several senior officials stepped in to speak.

The war must continue.

The fleet of the faithless is on its way and will surely arrive here soon.

This is an opportunity.

“Those outsiders were unaware that we had contacted the faithless.”

"Seize this opportunity and strive for even greater victories."

Just before the meeting was about to end, Derrick was called back by the Grand Secretary.

He remained calm, but was genuinely puzzled.

Given his status, he shouldn't have received such high regard from the Grand Secretary.

"Your composure is very good, but sometimes, being too composed is not a good sign."

"?"

"Do you know what would have happened if we hadn't obtained this intelligence?"

"This……"

Derrick hesitated.

"I believe this was just an unintentional mistake on your part. Go back and think about it carefully. We will need your strength in the upcoming war."

Derrick felt a chill run down his spine.

The future of the Ascension Civilization.

This is what he cares about most.

Derrick responded with a resounding "Yes," then turned and left.

……

The first probing attack came five days later.

The communication between the Mechanicus and the Drenthe civilization was very frequent during this period.

With the two sides temporarily forming an alliance, a joint operations meeting was naturally indispensable.

In fact, the Exiled Empire forces that accepted the mission were not limited to the Mechanicus and the Drenthe civilization.

However, those forces were too arrogant and planned to act alone.

"The Feathered Civilization has, after all, experienced a catastrophe, and it is impossible for them to remain indifferent in the face of crisis."

The speaker, Ochano, the commander of the Drenthe civilization fleet, had squinty eyes.

It is said that his eyes embody all his strength.

However, unlike those who have a kind expression when they squint, Ochano's face gives off a fierce feeling even when he squints.

Cherny nodded repeatedly: "You're right."

"Moreover, there are people from Eternal Star Road in this attacking fleet, and they might deliberately cause us some trouble."

Cherny continued to nod: "You're right."

"Fortunately, the group on the Eternal Star Road is not going in the same direction as us."

Cherny replied as always: "You're right."

Ochano opened his mouth, then turned his head away and muttered, "Couldn't you have used a different word?"

Cherny shrugged: "What else can I do? No matter how much you say, it doesn't change the fact that I'm all alone."

There is a spaceship, but everyone has already been safely taken away.

Whether the remaining mechanical puppets will obey him is another matter entirely.

Ochano said, "How about I put you in the vanguard?"

"no."

Ochano shook his head.

No one knows what the prophet of the Cult of Machines said to the higher-ups, but the higher-ups actually let her do whatever she wanted.

In his view, it is more appropriate to conduct this kind of civilizational war in a step-by-step manner.

What they're about to do is destroy an entire civilization!

If there's anything wrong with it, it's that the problem lies in a lack of ability.

"Marching!"

At one point, Ochano suddenly opened his eyes.

With his command, tens of thousands of warships in the vanguard poured out and headed straight for the territory of the Feathered Civilization.

……

The messages transmitted back by the probe made everyone in the command center look extremely serious.

"There are too many."

"Derrick said in a deep voice."

With six screens, a rough estimate suggests at least 200,000 warships.

The Feathered Civilization was not a super civilization based on technology. It developed by relying on religious beliefs, and most of its ships were purchased from outside.

Its performance is naturally not the best.

That's why Derrick felt uneasy.

What troubled him even more was that his allies, who had always been on good terms with the Feathered Civilization, turned into cowards at this critical moment.

Relationships maintained by pretense are so fragile they can't be broken!

Derrick understood that true strength lay in one's own power.

Who can expect an untrustworthy person to genuinely care about them after receiving benefits?

Once the war shows signs of defeat, they will probably withdraw immediately.

"Send the First Fleet out!"

The commander-in-chief's voice rang out in the command room.

Derrick knew that the costly plan had begun.

In order to achieve a balance of power, they had no choice but to do so.