The overlord of the gods is interrogating the alien female spy.

　The Anjou people's demise is hardly pitiful. Their empire was built on the destruction of other civilizations, so their destruction when faced with a more powerful enemy was entirely deserved.

　This reminded Chen Lingxu of some past events in Terra.

　Of course, not those Tikkaz aliens.

　Rather, it was his great lynx and the destruction of the pre-civilization he had described… that is, the current Imperial Federation.

　During his months here, he witnessed the various aspects of this civilization. It possessed a vast territory spanning thousands of light-years, boasting both formidable military power and advanced technology, while also maintaining a gentle approach to external relations.

　What kind of enemy could have brought such a brilliant civilization to its destruction? And according to Kal'tsit's description, the Imperial Federation's resistance was just as futile as that of the Anjou.

　Countless fleets were destroyed, and colonies were severed from communication one after another, until finally, only Terra remained, a solitary island. Oh, and on that island lived a newly emerging civilization.

　"Pureseth."

　Turning around, the little girl was fast asleep, her chubby little mouth occasionally uttering a murmur like "Xu... woo... no..."

　If she had known that her thriving civilization would soon be destroyed...

　Chen Lingxu looked at the current time.

　How much time is left before the Empire Federation is destroyed?

　ten years? Or twenty years?

　"Ugh……"

　But even if you know that, there's not much you can do to change it.

　Possessing the power of twelve runes, he could roam freely and rule as king on a planet, but outside of Terra and within this interstellar civilization, he would appear powerless and insignificant.

　The Imperial Federation is the same. It can be the leader in this star sector spanning thousands of light-years, with trillions of citizens and a powerful level of technology... but how does it compare to this galaxy?

　Thousands of light-years, tens of thousands of stars—what a vast territory it may seem! Yet, compared to a galaxy spanning hundreds of thousands of light-years and containing hundreds of billions of stars, it appears so insignificant…

　Above the Milky Way, there are galaxy clusters, superclusters, and the Great Wall of the Universe...

　Each former is to the latter as a wave is to the ocean, insignificant and insignificant.

　"well,

　Why think so much?

　Having already lost count of the vastness of the universe, Chen Lingxu abandoned his thoughts and focused his attention on the soul thread connecting him to this ordinary little cat.

　Since things have come to this, let's try to relive the old dream.

　Precys had a dream... the content of which was hard to describe... Anyway, she would need to take a shower and change into dry clothes when she woke up.

　"Are you awake? I've made dinner, Precys."

　"Hmm... Ugh... I'm hungry."

　Precys sat up with a yawn, paused for a moment, and then hurriedly tried to find something to cover her legs so that Chen Lingxu, who was about to come over, would not see her embarrassing state.

　"I've washed your clothes. Take a shower when you feel better to avoid getting sick."

　"Um……"

　But Chen Lingxu didn't seem to care about what happened between the two...

　Perhaps it's simply because he's a robot, less than a year old, and doesn't understand human emotions...

　Precys felt the various emotions emanating from him and felt even more ashamed of his behavior.

　Good heavens! Her daughter is not even a year old! What has she done?!

　Now even the Federal Bureau of Investigation won't believe her testimony.

　"Pureseth..."

　Seeing Precys silently shoveling food into her bowl without eating, Chen Lingxu felt it necessary to give her some advice, otherwise her mukbang wouldn't be entertaining.

　"Huh? What, what's wrong?"

　Precys looked up and saw that the man was leaning his head toward him.

　Will you abandon me?

　"Ugh?!"

　“I’ve seen many examples like this on the forums of the Star Sector Network. After relieving their own stress and desires, people will throw away the tools that accompanied them through that difficult time and never have anything to do with them again… Will that day come for me?”

　The emotion coming from the other end suddenly turned somber and dejected. Precys immediately put down the bowl, cupped his head, and gently patted it like he was patting a watermelon.

　"No, no... I've just never experienced anything like this before, so I'm overthinking things... I won't abandon you. Rukia, please remember, no matter how much time passes, never forget..."

　Under Chen Lingxu's gaze, the girl in front of him conveyed her emotions.

　“You are not my tool. We were friends before, and we will be even closer partners in the future.”

　“Xu, in this universe, you are the only one who is special to me.”

　Chapter Sixteen Kai: Old Wu, Old Wu, Old Wu~

　"..."

　"Prismus, that was a confession..."

　After staring at each other for a while, Chen Lingxu had just spoken when he had already conveyed his emotions through empathy. Precys's little hand came right in front of him. The silly girl was trying to stop the words of a robot that had no mouth and only spoke through a speech device.

　"If you already know, then don't ask!"

　Despite his seemingly 'cold' words, through this strange empathy, Chen Lingxu fully perceived Precys's true emotions.

　“Yes. Precyth... Even if all the stars go out, the universe becomes cold and silent, and all particles cease to move... my love for you will not be frozen…”

　He reached out, cupped the little girl's already warm face, and pressed his forehead against hers.

　The metallic texture and coolness pulled Precys back from her boiling state of mind, but what followed was a rapid increase in temperature, almost causing her head to steam like a machine.

　This stupid machine... I really should make him spend less time online. It's only been around for a short time, and it's already starting to spout those nonsensical romantic tales.

　"Idiot... talking so... enthusiastically. Are you going to reignite the universe after the Great Freeze? Hmm? My savior?"

　She reached out and gently rubbed the mechanical head in her hands, telling jokes to change the subject.

　"Maybe."

　"I believe you... but that future is just too far away. So... Xu. My Xu... we just need to believe that we can meet again tomorrow, and that's enough."

　"But this is the universe, Prisus. Time has no form here, and stars do not fall."

　"That day that belongs to us will never end."

　When it comes to telling sweet nothings about the universe, Precys is no less capable than him.

　Shared feelings, brought together by chance, become a feast for the soul when seasoned with language.

　This little emotional exchange was interrupted by the rumbling of Precy's stomach. Precy, who had just been enjoying his mental nourishment, immediately withdrew his hand and hurriedly grabbed the bowl to continue eating.

　"Don't just eat rice, I also pan-fried some pork chops and sprinkled them with rosemary. They smell so good! I can't resist having a piece to taste them myself."

　Having gained a genuine affection, Chen Lingxu looked at the girl in front of him and pushed the meat patty he had carefully cooked towards her.

　"Yes! I will savor it carefully."

　Empathy helps maintain emotional balance and provides comfort from your partner when you are emotionally agitated.

　In this strange state, Precys quickly adapted to their current way of getting along.

　"Let's go to that coordinate point later. Have we found the pulsar?"

　"Yes, we found it before. The coordinates are fifty light-years away."

　"It's a bit far... the energy for leaping..."

　Is the quantity sufficient?

　"It's a little lacking. But I've already looked at the star map. There's a star system twenty light-years away that's been set up as an interstellar market. We can go there and see if there are any jump energy batteries. I saw on the interstellar communications that there are also some rat people there who supposedly sell a lot of amazing gadgets."

　"It's a honey pot, not a rat-man."

　When Precys heard him say that, he smiled and explained it to him.

　"It is said that those honey pots came from visitors of an ancient civilization. They were also very friendly towards the Federation."

　"Could they know the reason for the Anjou people's demise?"

　Chen Lingxu was somewhat curious.

　"I don't know, but since they're in the interstellar market, we can go and take a look."

　"Okay. I'll go set sail. It's estimated to take another ten calendar hours to reach the jump acceleration orbit. Does Little Pu want to sleep a little longer?"

　"Hmm... I'm going to lie down for a while."

　Jump acceleration orbits are a lower-level alternative to stargate highways. Such acceleration orbits are built around galaxies that have not yet established stargates but are closely connected to surrounding galaxies. Using these acceleration orbits for jumps can greatly save jump energy. However, applications must be made to the surrounding customs authorities before use.

　Chen Lingxu adjusted the flight path and leaned back in his chair, quietly waiting to arrive at his destination.

　"Ah Xu... come here for a moment."

　It wasn't Precys calling out to him with his voice, but rather Chen Lingxu's empathy was trembling, allowing him to hear Precys's 'thoughts'.

　"what happened?"

　Two hours passed, and Pu Xiaomao was still not asleep, lying there seemingly suffering from insomnia. I thought about calling him over for a chat.

　"Let's... try that device again."

　"Ok?"

　Suspicion arose from the little robot, and in order to prove that he was not a pleasure-seeking person, Precys immediately exonerated himself.

　"I want to try and see if we can further strengthen our connection through these devices."

　This is a classic case of "protesting too much."

　Chen Lingxu did not expose him. There was still some time before they reached the acceleration orbit, enough time to do it again.

　"Let's try again then. I also want to know to what extent this empathy can be enhanced."

　Perhaps because this is the signature ability of the Hive Consciousness, the emotional connection generated by the Anjou devices is many times stronger than the empathy generated by those produced by the Imperial Federation that rely on analog signals from electronic components.

　Chen Lingxu had long heard that some Sarkaz on Terra in later generations had, by chance, transformed into Sarkaz capable of sensing the emotions of their kin, and were called Angels. He now wanted to see if the Anjou people's technology could make his connection with Prisus even stronger than that of the Sarkaz.

　"Ew... Oh... Ouch..."

　The test ended only when the device failed, the kitten was boiled into boiled cabbage, and the purple grapes were almost dried into raisins.

　Chen Lingxu, having removed the data cable, looked at the connection between the two. It was only slightly more solid than before, but that was all. Both their emotional connection and their mutual perception of each other remained at the same level as before.

　"There haven't been any obvious changes."

　"Perhaps... things have changed in other areas. For example... distance."

　Precys was panting. Looking at their hands, which had somehow become clasped together, she smiled, her eyes narrowed, as she discussed the possible outcomes of the test with Chen Lingxu.

　"It's possible. There's still one capsule left."

　"Ugh... It won't work today, Ah Xu... Let's try again tomorrow."

　"It's 11:15 PM Federal Time now. When Little Pu talks about tomorrow, does he mean after midnight, or the next 11:15 PM?"

　"Oh no... how about the next one at this time?"

　Although it's just a spiritual connection, once or twice is fine for rest and entertainment, but if it happens too often, given Precys' current mental strength, it will become a punishment, causing her to become mentally exhausted.

　"I agree. Entertainment and work should be balanced in order to maintain physical and mental health."

　Chen Lingxu waited for her to get up and go to the bathroom, and also helped her change the bed sheets that she had just changed.

　"Remember to hydrate, Precyth."

　Before heading back to the car, Chen Lingxu didn't forget to give Pu Xiaomao a cup of lightly salted water to replenish her electrolytes.

　"Know it."

　Chapter Seventeen: An unexpected encounter with a penguin girl; unable to resist her cuteness despite all efforts.

　This makeshift interstellar market is more accurately described as an interstellar flea market. Most of the goods sold here are secondhand items acquired by various small organizations or individuals from unknown star sectors, or smuggled goods from interstellar corporations, or gloves looted by pirates… but undeniably, it's a bustling place.

　Upon arriving in this star system, the little bubble's radar was immediately filled with countless spaceships, roughly estimated to be one or two hundred shuttles and escort ships of various types.

　"what the hell."

　As they approached the grassland planet chosen as the trading post location, more spaceships were anchored there; Chen Lingxu even spotted a cruiser. The tiny bubbles drifted past them like krill escaping the mouth of a blue whale.