Chapter 114: The Private Army, Part 4

Chapter 114: Private Army (4)

During this period, Liu Shaoyu's life was both passionate and fulfilling, though he still couldn’t quite understand why no one came looking for trouble after he drove away the Battle Dragons.

Given the chaotic state of affairs now, Liu Shaoyu guessed that those people were probably too preoccupied with their own crises to bother with him. For Liu Shaoyu, this was a fortunate situation—it at least gave him enough time to carry out his plans.

What’s meant to happen will happen; it was only a matter of time. Liu Shaoyu was far from naive to think they wouldn’t come knocking eventually. Fortunately, this window was just enough for him to complete what he had set out to do.

Thanks to this buffer period, even the mighty Huaxia was overwhelmed and stretched thin. The sudden developments had shattered many carefully laid plans. The entire Huaxia government was entangled in a complex web of relationships, and with the government’s functional departments streamlined, all secret agencies were now under military jurisdiction.

Within the military, relations were even more convoluted. First, there were the major military districts on Earth. These districts represented the innermost, most critical regions of the Huaxia government, with all district commanders concurrently holding government positions and working within secret agencies.

The military districts on Earth corresponded to core star regions centered around the solar system, each exercising full autonomy over their respective territories.

Each district was led by a Commander-in-Chief, with a Political Commissar elected by the National People's Congress. The Commander-in-Chief was appointed directly by the Chairman of the National Military Commission of Huaxia.

Beyond the core star regions, Huaxia’s military also included large outer star districts that were largely autonomous in practice.

This arrangement bred even more chaos. The high degree of regional autonomy, combined with deliberate leniency from the central authority, meant that the farther out from the core, the more these star regions resembled independent kingdoms.

This situation had not improved over time but instead worsened, spiraling out of control. This was the fundamental reason why star regions kept falling, unable to withstand the encirclement warfare.

The conflict between local factions and central authorities had reached a peak.

Yet now, the situation was deadlocked. New developments meant that this covert struggle could no longer continue indefinitely. Silence now risked becoming permanent.

Although the central government had banned interstellar network transmissions, high-ranking military personnel’s communications remained unimpeded.

If communication signals could be seen as white light, right now those beams would be enough to flood part of the galaxy with their glow.

“Commander Luo, I assume you’re aware of the current situation. There are simply no additional troops available for deployment.”

“Hm, understood. We can increase numbers with clones.”

“Yes, I will arrange transportation. Submit a report, and it will be approved immediately.”

“I don’t want to hear about any more star systems falling.”

Yun Shichu had received many similar messages in recent days. The spread of the Eastern Expedition incident had clearly shifted some people’s stances, but only superficially.

“Those bastards, fattened up so much, yet they still want to take advantage at a time like this,” Yun Shichu grumbled with anger after ending the call.

“Commander Yun, you should know that’s just how they operate.”

“I know, but that doesn’t mean I have to tolerate it. These old bastards need to face the reality of the situation,” Yun Shichu sneered coldly. Then, as if recalling something, he added, “By the way, Advisor Zhou, any news from the Republic’s Glory?”

“None yet. You know, this issue has long been a sore point. It won’t be easy to fix anytime soon,” Zhou Xingtong replied.

Yun Shichu had anticipated this answer and sighed inwardly. “Indeed, trying to change something that’s been entrenched for so many years takes time.”

Zhou Xingtong agreed but felt even heavier at heart.

In this campaign, Zhou Xingtong served as an advisor from the Republic’s Glory, a faction that held a uniquely special position within Huaxia and even the Earth Federation.

This could be seen clearly from the Earth Federation’s highest decision-making body, the Five-Person Panel, whose extraordinary authority stemmed entirely from the Republic’s Glory.

Even high-ranking officials like Yun Shichu only had a vague, mechanical understanding of the Republic’s Glory and the Five-Person Panel. To them, it was merely a tool for use; they knew nothing else.

Historically, it was only known that the Five-Person Panel emerged alongside the Republic’s Glory; where they came from or who they were remained a mystery.

As for their authority— not even the Chairman of Huaxia could alter the Republic’s Glory’s operations. Only the Five-Person Panel had the power to control, maintain, and upgrade it.

The Five-Person Panel seemed like the technicians maintaining a colossal computer, with their decisions effectively originating from the Republic’s Glory itself.

This shroud of mystery made Yun Shichu uneasy. Except for national leaders, no one truly knew the true nature of the Five-Person Panel or the Republic’s Glory.

Advisor Zhou belonged to a subordinate agency of the Republic’s Glory, known simply as Department A—a unit without formal designation or structure.

In some respects, Department A was even more enigmatic than Pangu.

It was because of this incident that Yun Shichu first came into contact with the unique Advisor Zhou.

“Advisor Zhou, perhaps I have the right to know—what exactly caused the Republic’s Glory’s operational collapse?” Yun Shichu asked, despite knowing he might not receive an answer to this long-buried question.

In the past, he would have been met with a simple “insufficient permissions” response, like a personal computer denying access. But things had changed.

“Well, what I can tell you is that the Republic’s Glory has encountered some problems,” Zhou Xingtong said after a moment’s hesitation.

Yun Shichu, naturally, understood that beyond mere technical faults, there still existed a significant number of skeptics toward artificial intelligence on Earth. Many became distrustful of machine intelligence following certain incidents. Clearly, Yun Shichu was among them.

“I understand that machines can fail. There have been previous issues before. Why is this time different? Why is the system affected so severely?” Yun Shichu pressed further.

“What you mentioned were normal wear and tear during the Republic’s Glory’s operation. This time it’s different. You can think of it as… a virus, if you will,” Zhou Xingtong explained, struggling to find the right words.

But the term “virus” was clearly a euphemism for something else, the specifics of which Yun Shichu did not know.

“A virus? That’s troublesome. But I’ve never heard of anyone managing to infect the Republic’s Glory with a virus,” Yun Shichu said. Although distrustful of AI, he still had great faith in the Republic’s Glory, for all Huaxia knew that it was this supercomputer that had elevated Huaxia and even the Earth Federation to their current standing in the universe.

“If that’s the case, then it must have generated the virus itself. You know, the Republic’s Glory is not just a simple machine,” Zhou Xingtong replied.

To the readers:

Some may wonder about the chapter titles in these few chapters. Here, I’ll mention that the universe’s boundary is about to enter a new turning point. Many previously laid plot threads will be resolved during this period. From here on, the world of the universe’s boundary truly unfolds. Are you ready?