The stars, but they become the gray wind

"It's about the inter-universe portal at the center of the Milky Way, built on the principle of the strange ring of the Kerr black hole."

"We are currently trying to reverse this process to achieve a smaller scale by peeling back the inner and outer event horizons of a Kerr black hole, creating a second and possibly more such portals to other universes."

"Currently, this type of wormhole connecting different universes, which relies on the naked strange ring at the center of a Kerr black hole, can only be established by supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies. However, we have found a way to establish this naked strange ring wormhole channel on Kerr black holes of smaller mass and diameter."

"any solution?"

"Cosmic strings, or more precisely, cosmic strings in a macroscopic state."

"Build a giant ring of cosmic strings that spins at nearly the speed of light around the naked strange ring of a Kerr black hole stripped of its event horizon, creating a gateway to another universe."

"Um...are you sure this thing isn't some Boulder Ring?"

"The principle is similar, but on a much smaller scale. We currently don't have the ability to construct giant macroscopic cosmic strings like the Zerians, spanning millions of light-years, nor do we need giant wormholes with diameters of over 300 light-years. However, building a much smaller channel to other universes shouldn't be too technically difficult."

"Recently and in the past, I have been screening for suitable stellar-mass black holes within the Milky Way or Andromeda Galaxy."

"Cygnus X-1 is a black hole of just the right size, with a mass about 10 times that of the sun and a diameter of about 60 kilometers. It is perfect for experiments, and the amount of engineering required to construct cosmic strings rotating at close to the speed of light on a black hole of this size is also quite small."

"However, I'm not quite sure what kind of universe the exit at the other end will connect to. Normally, the naked strange-ring channel created by the collapse of the event horizon of a Kerr black hole of this size would connect to a naked strange-ring in another universe with a Kerr black hole of similar mass and diameter. However, we're not sure what kind of universe the other end will connect to, with what specific parameters of physical laws and parameters?"

"Wouldn't you know if you tried this kind of thing?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking. However, it will take some time to build a macroscopic cosmic string of this scale. Do you mind helping me?"

"Of course, how can I not be included in this interesting experiment where the results may be completely random?"

Unlike the Boulder Ring, a massive wormhole with a diameter of a thousand light-years and spanning millions of light-years, the cosmic string Yuki intends to construct is much smaller in scale. As an experimental product, it serves as a small spacetime bridge to other universes. At the center of this cosmic string ring, rotating at near-light speed, a cosmic ring tunnel could be created to connect to other universes. Because it doesn't need to bear the immense burden of the Boulder Ring's massive capacity for the escape ships of every civilization in the universe, the capacity and size of the tunnels created by this facility are necessarily much smaller. Compared to the massive wormhole at the center of the Boulder Ring, with a diameter of 300 light-years, the wormhole tunnel to other universes created by this experimental device would be only tens of kilometers in diameter.

A few months later, macroscopic cosmic string matter with a diameter of more than 0.5 astronomical units was rotating around the Cygnus X-1 black hole at speeds extremely close to the speed of light.

In the distance, the pure black Zerli Night Fighter and the Time-Like Infinity were floating in the void. The Zerli Night Fighter shot out a laser-like gravitational wave ray from the front of the hull. The laser-like gravitational wave ray, traveling at a speed close to the speed of light, hit the outer event horizon of Cygnus X-1, which had become a Kerr black hole, after crossing a long distance of several astronomical units. Under the disintegrating effect of the gravitational wave ray that penetrated eleven dimensions, the event horizon of the outer layer of the Cygnus X-1 black hole disappeared. It was followed by a second gravitational wave ray from the Zerli Night Fighter, and the event horizon of the inner layer of the Kerr black hole also disintegrated, exposing the naked singularity inside the Kerr black hole, which was pulled into a ring due to its own rotation close to the speed of light - the strange ring. In the center of the strange ring is a wormhole with a diameter of 60 kilometers, a space-time bridge leading to other universes.

"To be on the safe side, should we send a probe over there first?"

On the Time-Like Infinity, Yuki operated in the bridge, and a detector modified from a relativistic missile was launched from the cargo hold of the ship and flew towards the distant Strange Ring Space-Time Bridge at a speed close to the speed of light.

Yuki stared intently at the detector that disappeared at the wormhole in the center of the strange ring on the projection of the machine. If an accident occurred and there was something dangerous on the other side of the channel, the Zelli Night Fighter piloted by Kalisi and the Time-like Infinity would immediately open fire at full power, using entangled naked singularity warheads and laser-generated gravitational wave rays that were powerful enough to destroy black holes to instantly destroy the channel to ensure safety.

But fortunately, the other side of the channel is not a dangerous universe. The images sent by the detector show that the universe on the other side is a three-dimensional universe with physical parameters that are largely similar to the universe where Tiankong Star is located.

"Strange... It seems that the detector has detected something similar to the sub-space attached to the macroscopic three-dimensional universe in the universe over there?" Yuki carefully examined the information sent back by the equipment installed on the detector, which was specifically used to detect the possible existence of four layers of space in a universe. The universe on the other side seemed to have a strange sub-space structure, and it seemed that the energy required to open the entrance and exit to this sub-space seemed to be quite low. In other words, this universe may have a cheaper superluminal travel technology in some sense, which can achieve superluminal travel by tearing a hole in the real universe to the sub-space, moving in the sub-space, and then returning to the real universe.

"Secondary space, isn't it some weird thing like the subspace?"

"It should be... no. The subspace detected by the detector on the other end seems quite calm. It shouldn't be a dangerous thing like a cesspool of subspace."

"Even more interesting is that the various physical parameters of the other universe transmitted by the detector seem to indicate... this universe... allows for superluminal travel without violating the laws of causality?"

"Interesting. In other words, in that universe, faster-than-light travel is possible without breaking the temporal protection mechanism?"

"It's highly likely... If there are civilizations in this universe, their ability to achieve faster-than-light travel would likely be much easier than ours. However, this also means facing the unforeseen dangers of utilizing that universe's unique subspace."

"Although the subspace in the other universe isn't as dangerous as the cesspool-like warp in 40k, using faster-than-light travel technology in that subspace is bound to bring about certain unknown consequences. While the subspace in the other universe appears quite clean, that doesn't mean it's empty of anything but chaotic energy flows."

"Something like a nihilistic or subspace creature?"

"We haven't observed it yet... but we can't guarantee that there aren't any such things in the surrounding sub-spaces."

"The universe across from us is truly interesting in every sense of the word."

"Hmm? What is this?" Yuki suddenly received another signal from the detector. The detector at the other end of the channel detected an image of a ship coming from the edge of the opposite galaxy, which seemed to appear in the galaxy from that subspace.

…………

Major Glad is the captain of a supply ship from the Free Planets Alliance. Over the years, he has relied on luck, good interpersonal relationships, and decent tactical command ability to work diligently and finally get the position of captain of the alliance's supply ship. If nothing unexpected happens, he will be able to stay in this position safely until he retires and returns to his hometown to marry his fiancée.

However, as expected, an unexpected event occurred. The 3000 million-man expedition launched by the Alliance politicians for votes and support put Major Glad and the other crew members on the dilapidated transport ship on the brink of death.

The transport supply ship that Major Grad was in charge of was originally carrying food to the Imperial system occupied by the Alliance Expeditionary Force. The cunning Imperial Army took away all the local food and supplies when they evacuated. The Alliance Expeditionary Force, which was under the pretext of overthrowing authoritarianism, mobilized a large number of supply fleets from the rear to transport food to the front line in order to feed tens of millions of local civilians. At this time, no one, including most of the commanders of this expedition, realized the seriousness of the situation.

Meanwhile, under Reinhard's orders, the Empire gathered all the food and supplies from the colonies along the Allied route and quickly evacuated them. This stretched the enemy's supply lines and placed a heavy strain on the Allied expeditionary force's logistics. Since the Allied expeditionary force was operating under the guise of liberation, it was naturally their responsibility to provide for the local inhabitants of the occupied territories. While the ability to coordinate and feed 3000 million troops was commendable, what if the number were multiplied several times over? How long could the Alliance, already exhausted by years of foreign war, sustain this? Even if strategic reserves from various worlds within the Alliance were utilized, food reserves were ultimately limited. Until the colonies captured by the Alliance could become self-sufficient, the Allied expeditionary force would have to rely on its own strategic reserves of food and supplies.

Whether the alliance's logistics supply fleet can deliver food and supplies to the front line is also a problem. The Imperial Army, which is familiar with the local geographical environment, is very happy to create trouble for these unprotected alliance transport fleets. The continuous harassment from the Imperial Army has made the alliance's logistics transport fleet almost miserable recently.

The transport ship commanded by Major Glad was attacked by a small Imperial fleet just after leaving the exit of the Iserlohn Corridor. In a panic, Major Glad commanded the transport ship, which was severely damaged by the Imperial fleet, to jump into the subspace from the edge of the galaxy and escape to this galaxy that almost no one would visit before. According to the star maps and exploration records of the Empire and Fessar, this galaxy near the entrance of the Iserlohn Corridor has only a black hole of stellar mass and a barren planet orbiting the black hole. The gravitational interference caused by the black hole has made this galaxy almost a Bermuda Triangle that is difficult to navigate. The barren planet without atmosphere near the black hole has almost no high-value resources on it. Usually, almost no people or spacecraft will enter this galaxy. The harsh environment of this galaxy makes it dangerous and worthless both to the Empire and the Alliance.

At this moment, in order to escape the pursuit of the Imperial fleet, the Alliance transport ship, which was fleeing in a panic, jumped from the subspace channel near the edge of the galaxy into this insignificant star system that was worthless in the eyes of both the Alliance and the Empire.

"Report the damage to the ship!" Inside the tattered transport ship, Major Glad pretended to remain calm and gave orders to his crew members in the bridge where sparks were flying everywhere.

"Captain! We're leaking fuel!"

"Serious fire in areas 15 and 18! Closing the airlock!"

"Our reactor is damaged! Emergency shutdown in progress!"

"Get the damage control team in position! Send a distress signal immediately!"

The damage control team on the ship was trying their best to save the ship. As the captain, although Major Glad still maintained a calm expression, he was extremely panicked in his heart. He knew very well that in the current situation, even if the nearest allied fleet could come to rescue in time, the ship's already shaky life support system would not be able to hold out until that time. He could already imagine that when the rescue allied fleet finally arrived, the ship would have become an iron coffin full of corpses floating in space. This desolate galaxy was extremely dangerous because of the gravitational interference of the black hole. It was said that several Feisha merchant ships and imperial warships had wrecked here, and now he had jumped into this dangerous galaxy with a ship full of people in a panic. Major Glad's heart was now filled with despair.

"Captain...Captain?" a crew member on the bridge shouted stutteringly.

"What's wrong? I was hoping for some good news."

"No, the black hole at the center of this galaxy, that black hole seems to look a little bit wrong?"

After being reminded by the crew, Major Glad noticed that there was an obviously abnormal black hole in this star system. On this black hole, Major Glad did not see the almost invisible event horizon and accretion disk of a normal black hole, but a high-speed rotating ring structure where the original black hole should be. And in the center of this high-speed rotating ring structure was a wormhole that Major Glad had never seen before.

"What... is this?" Major Glad swallowed nervously and looked at the scene in surprise. This was obviously beyond his understanding.

…………

"Ah... this..." Yuki and Carlisle, who were monitoring the transportation line communications through detectors on the opposite side of the passage, were confused.

"We...are we...just going to run into the Alliance's 3000 million-man expedition?" Carlisle scratched her head.

"It seems so. So this is Yin Ying's universe across the way? That's really unexpected."

"I think... we might be in for a good show next."

"Xixi, stay here and don't move. I'll go through the door and say hello to the other side."

Driven by its inertia-free engine, the Time-Like Infinity passed through the wormhole in the center of the strange ring at high speed and arrived at the universe on the other side.

"Captain! A spaceship appeared in the center of that thing!"

"The Imperial Army?" Major Glad's heart suddenly rose to his throat. The spaceship that appeared at this time was most likely not a friendly spaceship.

"No, it's a type we've never seen before. We don't have data on this ship in our identification database."

"I've never seen this type before? Could it be that the Imperial Army has developed some new type of warship?" Major Grad frowned.

"Put the image of that battleship on the big screen!"

After seeing the high-resolution image of the battleship on the big screen, Major Glad was stunned. This spaceship was almost different from any Alliance or Empire spaceship he knew. The long axis of more than 2800 meters made the largest Alliance battleships pale in comparison. The smooth surface made of silver-white material had no trace of seams. The narrow hull obviously had some kind of axial gun design that ran through the center axis of the hull. At the first sight of the ship, Major Glad even suspected that he was looking at an exquisite and expensive work of art, rather than a battleship that pursued pragmatism above all else.

"Number 1, much larger than the Alliance's standard battleship... Location... This... Hiss..."

The radar officer sitting on the bridge gasped, because just now, the strange unidentified warship suddenly disappeared from the radar and visual range in front of him.

"We have lost track of the unidentified warship!" The radar officer shouted to Major Glad, trying to remain calm as much as possible.

This scene was also seen clearly by Glad, who was concentrating on watching the real-time image of the spaceship. The unidentified spaceship disappeared right under his nose.

Then the next second, the huge and unimaginable spaceship suddenly appeared on the port side of the transport ship. Major Glad's heart almost stopped beating at that moment. The distance between the two sides was only a few kilometers at this time. In space, this can be said to be close enough to be face to face. Through the perspective of the camera outside the ship, Major Glad could even see various details on the other side's hull.

After staying within a few kilometers of the transport ship for just a few seconds, the warship's hull emitted a blue light and disappeared in the blink of an eye in front of the transport ship's crew, only to reappear six light-seconds behind the transport ship.

"This is... a jump? And it's happening within a planetary system that's being violently disturbed by the gravity of a black hole? How is this possible?!" Major Grad stared at the ship six light-seconds away, his eyes fixed on disbelief.

Chapter 220: Galaxy's History Takes a Different Direction (6000 words)

Major Glad's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and he felt a chill running down his spine. The unique hull design and structure, which was different from those of the Alliance or the Empire, and the navigation method that seemed to be a short-range superluminal jump, every feature of this spacecraft was jumping around in the common sense of Major Glad and the crew members present.

Although Major Grad's history studies during his time at the military academy weren't particularly impressive, he understood that while the Empire and the Alliance had fought each other for over 150 years, and their military technology had undergone significant changes during that time, ultimately, their technological development paths shared a common origin. Because neither side's hyperdrive engines could operate within the gravity of a solar system, they were forced to rely on conventional propulsion systems, relying on jet fuel to navigate within the system. Like fleet battles of the past, they searched for and engaged the enemy across the vast expanses of the solar system. Under the long-term influence of these tactics and guiding principles, both Alliance and Empire warships required significant range.

Given these specific needs, directed energy weapons like neutron beam cannons naturally replaced older live ammunition, laser, and electron beam weapons as the mainstream weaponry in naval engagements. Missiles, with their continuous tracking and guidance capabilities, became effective auxiliary weapons in fleet warfare. At the same time, to minimize the overall surface area of ​​warships and improve survivability, ships were required to engage enemy ships with their bows facing the enemy. Naturally, the high-power, long-range neutron beam directed energy weapon, the axial cannon design, gradually became the mainstream design for both Imperial and Alliance ships.

At this moment, the spaceship that was circling six light seconds away was completely different from the Alliance and Empire warships that Major Grad knew, making him a little overwhelmed.

"I need to know when our damn reactor can be restarted! I don't want to stay in this place any longer."

"Captain, the damage control team is still working hard to repair the ship. It will take at least two hours."

"Have the damage control team speed up. I don't want to die inexplicably at the hands of a ship I don't even know what it is."

Major Glad yelled at his crew members in a panic.

"Has the distress signal been sent?"

"Captain, we've sent it, but it will take the nearest allied ship at least 72 hours to get here."

"72 hours? By the time they get here, our bodies will be cold! Hurry up and get the damage control team to repair the reactor and get us out of this damn place!"

Major Glad was feeling a great deal of pressure. First, the transport ship he was commanding was attacked by the Imperial fleet when he was defenseless, and he was forced to jump into the galaxy called the Bermuda Triangle. Then he saw unknown astronomical phenomena and spaceships of unknown origin that were eyeing him covetously. Major Glad now just wanted to get as far away from this hellhole as possible. He didn't want to end up like the Feisha merchant ships that disappeared in this galaxy.

"Ship...Captain!"

"What's wrong again?" Major Glad seemed a little impatient.

"New ships have appeared at the exit of the rear subspace channel... They are... Imperial warships!"

As the captain, Major Glad's heart rose to his throat again.

A slender Imperial destroyer emerged from the Warp lane exit six light seconds behind the transport line.

"Tsk, it's really haunting us." Major Glad complained in a low voice. This destroyer was obviously a member of the small fleet that launched a surprise attack on them before, and it was also the reason why the transport ship was in such a miserable state.

"But...why is there only one ship? Is it just to check if any of us have died in this desolate and uninhabited galaxy?"

Just as the Imperial destroyer had just left the jump, the strange warship of unknown ownership began its own action. The Imperial destroyer that had just entered the gravity well of this galaxy was suddenly pulled in by an invisible force. The Imperial destroyer that was just about to make a finishing blow to the damaged transport line in the distance did not notice the unidentified warship that was almost within reach.

"What a huge warship is this? Is it some secret weapon of the rebels?" The captain of the destroyer exclaimed on the bridge, and then he almost fell to the ground due to the sudden violent shaking.

"What happened to the San Si Jiu Abandoned Parachute Master?

"Sir, our power system has failed! It seems like something is holding us back, and we are approaching... approaching that unidentified warship."

"What?" Looking at the huge ship that was getting bigger and bigger, the captain's heart almost stopped beating. He began to regret why he was so persistent in chasing the enemy and even dared to jump with the enemy into this black hole galaxy with the Bermuda Triangle in space near the entrance of the Iserlohn Corridor. Now he and the entire ship's crew were trapped here, and there was even a possibility that they would not be able to leave alive. The crew on the destroyer looked at the huge ship that was getting closer and closer, and their nerves were suddenly tense to the extreme.

The captain of the destroyer observed that the surface of this strange, unidentified giant ship seemed to be made of a very smooth material, which reminded the captain of the destroyer of the ship's battleship, the Brenhill, which was the flagship of the Imperial Army's Commander-in-Chief Reinhardt, who was known as the Golden Lion. However, Brenhill could not achieve the same level of welding and joining as the giant ship in front of him, not to mention that the length and volume of the giant ship in front of him were almost twice that of Brenhill.

At this time, the captain of the destroyer noticed that the surface of the spacecraft seemed to begin to emit blue light, the surrounding space seemed to be distorted, and various sensors on the destroyer sounded alarms.

"Helmsman, what happened?"

"Sir, the surrounding space is distorting, and severe gravitational field disturbances have been observed!" The helmsman reported to the captain of the destroyer.

"The jump is towards the outside of the planetary system? At least it's good news. We can at least leave this damn place." However, what happened next quickly shattered the destroyer captain's beautiful imagination.

After a brief electromagnetic pulse, the destroyer appeared directly next to the already crumbling Alliance transport ship six light seconds away.

"Is this... a short-range superluminal jump? But... how is this possible?" The destroyer captain was suddenly in extreme shock. In his common sense, the superluminal engines of the Empire and the Alliance could not be used within the range of interference from the gravitational field of massive objects in the galaxy, let alone making such a short-distance jump within the star system, let alone jumping with another ship.

…………

The Time-Like Infinity was scanning the location where the two ships jumped out, and it had made a lot of new discoveries there.

"Naturally formed fixed subspace channels between stars or other massive celestial bodies? This is really interesting."

"No wonder their spacecraft can only enter superluminal travel when it escapes the gravitational well of a massive object."

"Can we only sail and march along the established paths of the naturally formed and existing intergalactic subspace corridors between massive celestial bodies?"

In the area at the edge of the black hole's gravitational well, Yuki scanned the entrance to the subspace channel. In order to scan the specific conditions of the subspace channel in the nearby area without interference, Yuki ordered the Time-Like Infinity to directly use the tractor beam to catch the destroyer that had just jumped into the galaxy, and then took it on a short warp, throwing it directly to the side of the transport ship six light seconds away, so that it could not interfere with his next actions.

While the Time-Like Infinity was busy scanning the natural subspace channels around the galaxy, the damage control team on the unfortunate transport ship finally repaired the reactor. After the reactor was restarted, Grad immediately ordered his men to stay away from the Imperial destroyer that had beaten him into such a miserable state, and the giant ship that was hovering a few light seconds away with an unclear attitude.

On the Imperial destroyer, the captain and the officers and soldiers on board were mostly attracted by the giant ship and the wormhole in the center of the high-speed rotating strange ring in the center of the galaxy. They had no time to care about the damaged destroyer. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the transport ship that had just barely regained its ability to move immediately started its engines at full speed, and after escaping the influence of the strange wormhole astronomical phenomenon, it jumped into the subspace and escaped.

On the other hand, after the Imperial destroyer repeatedly called out to the giant ship of unknown attitude but received no response, the indecisive destroyer captain asked his signalman to send a communication to Reinhardt, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Army, to explain the situation here. Considering that this place is quite close to the alliance's logistics transportation line, if he continues to stay here, there is a risk of being discovered by the alliance and the ship being destroyed and people killed. After taking pictures of the relevant evidence of the unknown giant ship, the destroyer captain decisively ordered his destroyer to run away immediately.

"In other words... the first thing you saw in the opposite universe was a battered Allied transport ship, then you ran over to scan the Allied transport ship, and in the process of scanning the naturally existing subspace channels around the galaxy, you happened to run into an Imperial battleship, and then, in order to prevent the Imperial battleship from interfering with you, you threw it directly next to the transport ship?" After listening to Yuuki's retelling, Renlong was a little bit unbelievable. She tried to put herself in his perspective. If he was the captain of the transport ship and destroyer, she would find this behavior a bit abstract and inexplicable. This was originally a great opportunity to introduce himself, but Yuuki just ran to scan the data of a subspace channel?

"I don't want to get involved in the Empire and the Alliance's little business for now. Their petty quarrels seem like childish games to us. To be honest, it's best not to get involved for now."

When Yuki said this, she looked indifferent. She didn't care about what threat the universe on the other side could pose to her. The control of the strange ring wormhole channel was in her hands. As long as both sides of the channel were blocked, no one would be able to get close to the entrances and exits at both ends of the channel. What's more, the design of the Time-Like Infinity was itself to deal with this situation. Yuki was confident that she could solve the problem with just the Time-Like Infinity ship.

Renlong estimated that information about what was happening in this galaxy would soon reach the commanders of both fleets. As for what kind of reaction this information would elicit, Renlong remained curious and surprised.

Renlong thought about it carefully and decided to call others to watch a good show together.

On the other hand, just as Renlong and Yuuki expected, the sighting report of the Time-Like Infinity and the video records were quickly delivered to the commanders of both sides, Reinhard and Robos.