Luna turned and saw a stranger.
The stranger approached Luna, awkwardly saying, "Excuse me, I'm bothering you."
"My name is Sora. I heard your lecture at the h2387 conference."
Luna didn't quite remember, but she did occasionally give lectures in Free Star City; her classes were mostly attended by other scholars.
Luna's level was between a three-star and four-star scholar; lecturing to ordinary one-star or two-star scholars was feasible.
Lecturing was also a process of reinforcing her own knowledge. Many oversights in her thinking often became apparent during presentations.
"Yes, what is it?" Luna asked, maintaining her usual aloofness.
To her, everyone present was a stranger.
"I'm here to learn more about how Chötons Corporation develops human potential. Are you here for the same reason, Scholar Luna?"
"May I accompany you?"
He seemed quite naive in front of her.
Luna glanced at his age—only 113 years old, still quite young.
"Yes, you may."
Luna didn't mind. Like when she'd let Silodeyi follow her before, there were no secrets. She actually enjoyed conversing with younger people, learning their perspectives.
However, during these moments, Luna couldn't help but feel her own age.
Although she'd decided countless things and understood countless things, she was completely out of touch with the trends of younger generations.
The difference was that Luna had planned to take a flying vehicle, but Sora opted for the descending train.
Luna, a being nearing 200,000 years old, was unmoved by such thrills, but she followed Sora onto the train.
The rapid descent caused Sora and others to scream, while Luna remained impassive.
The straight descent covered 13,000 meters in 42 seconds; it wasn't slow.
Sora's legs were unsteady as he disembarked. He forced a cheerful laugh, saying, "Scholar Luna, I'm fine, but it seems there's a restroom nearby; I'll go for a moment."
Luna watched his lively back, as if seeing her younger self.
How wonderful!
Sometimes, knowing too much isn't necessarily a good thing.
"But that plan should begin soon. I should experience it as well."
Anticipation flickered in Luna's eyes.
After Sora returned, they walked aimlessly down a street. Numerous shops lined the way; although the primary focus was on strength-enhancing drugs, they weren't the only establishments; a complete infrastructure had been built.
"Chötons Corporation is indeed a large corporation; they can even do this."
Sora excitedly displayed a purchase.
It was a small bottle. Luna casually asked, "What did you buy?"
Federation products cost trillions; Luna wasn't conducting market research; it was normal to not know everything.
"Bynex, a giant Swarm pet."
"Currently, it's difficult to breed biological creatures, mainly due to high costs, resulting in scarcity on the market."
Bynex is a tank-like Swarm insect. In its adult stage, it reaches nearly 200,000 meters in length and weighs 1 quadrillion tons.
However, reaching the adult stage requires massive resource investment. Swarm pets are the same; with abundant resources, it might take a few years to reach adulthood. Without them, hundreds or thousands of years are typical.
Swarm insects typically enter rapid decline after reaching adulthood, lasting about 500 years. If it takes one year to reach adulthood, its lifespan is 501 years.
Conversely, Swarm insects have extremely long lifespans before adulthood, usually between 20,000 and 50,000 years. After this time, they're called rigid insects; even if they haven't reached adulthood, their physical condition deteriorates rapidly.
Two choices: a short lifespan after rapid adulthood, or a long lifespan by slow maturation to adulthood.
Most choose the former; those who choose the latter usually have limited resources.
Insect eggs are cheap; common eggs can be bought for a few energy credits, some are even free, but raising them requires hundreds of energy credits.
A super-sized Swarm pet like Bynex requires tens or even hundreds of thousands of energy credits.
Luna checked the data.
Bynex was a rather unique type of Swarm insect. Due to its massive size, self-sustenance was difficult; after reaching adulthood, it only lived for 30 years. It was a type of short-range parasitic Swarm insect.
Its eggs were carried to the front lines by other Swarm insects. The eggs would hatch into larvae, which would parasitize other Swarm insects, draining their resources to grow.
"Not bad research material. Do you plan to break its size limit or increase its lifespan?"
Biologists who buy insect eggs aren't usually doing it for pets; it's mostly for research.
"Break the size limit. The tank-type Swarm's current limit is 1 quadrillion tons. It's still cooler to have something huge."
Tank-type Swarm units are the second-largest Swarm unit; the largest is the energy Swarm, known for its energy storage capacity.
Of course, this energy isn't electricity, but pure matter.
The largest energy Swarm insect is the Astrogenic Harvesters.
It devours a vast amount of matter, storing it in its abdomen. This matter can eventually weigh up to 30 quadrillion tons. During combat, it devours the corpses of other Swarm insects, allowing Bynex, positioned behind it, to rapidly grow by consuming the ejected matter.
It sounds gruesome, but the Astrogenic Harvesters doesn't digest the ingested matter; it ejects the corpses of other Swarm insects.
Once full, it looks like an ant with an abdomen 10,000 times larger than its thorax.
Energy Swarm insects are generally like this; they look bizarre, so most people prefer tank-type Swarm insects, considering them more romantic.
"Perhaps you could try redistributing its mass, concentrating it in a few areas; this would prevent mass accumulation."
"There's some optimization space in the 2631st gene layer."
Swarm genes are extremely complex; a typical Swarm gene has over 100,000 layers, each with tens of thousands of encoded proteins and peptides, forming an incredibly intricate genetic system.
"Thank you, Scholar."
Sora was thrilled with Luna's advice; he recorded it, intending to study it carefully later.
Of course, their main goal was still super-ability development.
Hospital 183.
It didn't look like a serious hospital, but it was one of the publicly accessible super-ability development hospitals here.
Because appointments could be made online, there weren't many people present. Luna and Sora entered, both intending to try it themselves.
The entire hospital was empty. Luna and Sora followed the 3D holographic guide markers into the interior.
They then entered a room where beams of light shot out from the floor and ceiling, scanning their bodies.
[Race] Human
[Gender] Female
[Biological Age] 31
[Height] 191 cm
[Weight] 385 kg
[Body Fat Percentage] 14.2%
[Metal Percentage] 4.9%
[Body Strength] Rank 5
[Psionic] Level 6
[Gene Pool Modification History] Yes
[Super-ability Awakening History] No
[Disease History] No
[Gene Deficiencies] No
Luna received her report; she scanned it, finding no problems.
The entire process took only a few seconds; all her information had been extracted.
This was Luna's first physical examination. She only looked at the first page; the second page contained much more detail, listing the state of virtually every organ.
[Brain] 1620
[Eyes] Left 0.1~7.8, Right 0.1~7.9
[Hearing] 4.1 Hz~580,000 Hz
...
A brain score of 1620 is exceptionally high; it's the current standard for assessing brain processing power, excluding auxiliary brains.
The average score for humans in the 21st century was 0.53, while the current human average is 308. This means that individuals considered intellectually disabled in this era possess processing power surpassing many top scientists in human history.
This isn't just a numerical lead; it's a complete and utter dominance.
The Federation has conducted similar studies, placing a clone with a brain score of 100—a completely unknowledgeable brain—on a barren planet. Within 20 years, this individual could invent explosives, firearms, and even simplified steam engines.
This is a completely from-scratch process, devoid of any prior knowledge. It's not simply a lack of mathematical knowledge or formal education; it's a true infant, lacking even a language system and requiring the learning of basic tool use.
Meanwhile, a brain score of 100 in the Federation is considered intellectually disabled, requiring treatment.
Civilizational advancement has provided Federation citizens with too many perfect things. Every individual is perfect in every aspect. If any of them were sent back to the 21st century, they could guide humanity on how to achieve civilizational advancement and technological leaps. Even if this individual had never learned anything in the Federation, the 21st-century knowledge would be as simple to them as 1+1=? is to a 21st-century person.
The fluctuating visual acuity is due to the eyes' ability to adjust focus over a wide range. Luna hadn't undergone any special eye modifications; this is a natural ability of modern humans.
If it were the dual-pupil type of super-ability, the visual acuity would be 0.01~200, or even 2000—that would be a true super-ability.
[Congratulations, you have passed the assessment and can proceed with super-ability activation.]
[Please note: While our super-ability activation process has a high success rate, negative activation is still possible. In case of negative activation, our hospital can provide extra-charge gene restoration and super-ability re-activation; additional Energy Credits will be required.]
"Extra charges? That's to be expected. This kind of directed super-ability activation requires significant investment; it can't be as simple as triggering a common super-ability with a single dose."
Sora glanced at the price.
There were no hidden charges, only one option: 8888 Energy Credits per activation.
Super-ability activation is reversible; it's not a one-time choice. This is similar to respeccing abilities in a game. With the Federation's technology, it's not difficult.
If you find the full-body transparency super-ability boring, you can switch to a speed enhancement super-ability—as long as you have the credits.
Of course, it's not like you can't do this without money. Ordinary super-ability activations cost 99-199 Energy Credits. A typical Federation citizen can easily afford this with a month or two's savings. Moreover, as Sora mentioned, buying ten activations for the price of one allows for dozens or hundreds of activations with a year's savings.
However, not many people activate their super-abilities.
After all, it's not very practical. Wouldn't a strong gene pool be better? Or a liquid body armor?
Super-abilities, being enhancements to inherent physical strength, are not as strong as external abilities. One could easily create a high-voltage energy storage device and become a walking million-volt generator. Why bother activating weak super-abilities?
Most people who activate their super-abilities see it as a hobby; more abilities are always better.
Some people enjoy the sensation, like daily super-ability activation. It's like getting a new super-ability every day. The Federation has vloggers who do just that.
Luna and Sora passed the check-up and were separated into different rooms.
Luna entered a bright white room with a small bed and restraints, suggesting some form of forced compliance.
[Our Biological Corporation's super-ability activation drugs are like targeted medications; they are highly precise. However, this requires selecting beneficial super-ability genes from numerous imprecise activations. Therefore, the process will be somewhat painful. Please be patient.]
The Federation doesn't use anesthesia because Federation citizens have exceptionally strong brains and nervous systems. Anesthesia requires a large amount of medication, which damages the body. While repairable, it incurs extra charges.
Theoretically, anesthesia requires additional payment, so everyone implicitly accepts the lack of it.
There's another reason: Federation citizens can self-shut down their pain receptors. This warning is for those who don't want to shut down their pain receptors, to prevent them from experiencing unbearable pain. After all, pain is subjective and can't be quantified.
Luna lay down; several robotic arms extended, each carrying a needle.
One pierced her brain directly; her limbs, chest, and even her back were injected. Initially, it was tolerable, but the pain intensified, overwhelming her body.
Luna decisively severed her neural connections, a physical severing, destroying the nerves, then letting her internal quark robots repair them.
She knew this pain was insurmountable; it was a terrifying genetic transformation.
Super-ability activation, without the current advancements in technology, would have a high probability of gene disruption, resulting in extremely gruesome death, some even exceeding the horrors of lingchi.
Maintaining her brain's functionality, Luna, by severing the brain's pain processing pathway, didn't feel the pain itself, but she felt her thoughts becoming increasingly chaotic.
Despite all this, her expression remained calm; she even anticipated her new super-ability with some excitement.
The entire procedure took less than ten minutes.
After Luna got off the operating table, she didn't feel any different.
Only when a new scan was performed did she see the changes in her body.
[Body Strength] Rank 6
[Psionic] Level 8
These were her two most significant changes.
With body strength at Rank 3, one could withstand physical projectiles. At Rank 5, one could withstand Gauss rifle rounds. At Rank 6, low-power laser weapons couldn't penetrate her body—although that's limited to non-penetration.
What surprised Luna was the change in her psionic abilities. She had no innate talent in psionics; even after tens of thousands of years of training, she only reached Level 6.
Unexpectedly, after triggering her super-ability, it jumped to Level 8. This super-ability enhancement wouldn't increase her lifespan; she would still be capped at Level 6 unless she broke through to Level 9.
Of course, this lifespan limit meant nothing to Luna.
Luna tested her psionic abilities and could manipulate objects she hadn't dared to imagine before.
Psionics are the electromagnetic extension of physical strength; Luna could now utilize far more electromagnetic force.
Ordinary flesh doesn't contain that much electromagnetic force; external equipment is needed to store enough electromagnetic force to move heavy objects.
Luna went to a testing room in the hospital and unleashed her psionic abilities. Her entire body was enveloped in visible electrical arcs, like a human Tesla coil. Then, she channeled all this electricity in one direction; a lightning bolt, as thick as her arm, shot out in front of her. At that moment, she felt like Thor in a movie.
Immediately afterward, she felt short of breath.
An initial check revealed that the air in the room had been ionized by the electricity. While highly ionized air might cause radiation exposure, it wouldn't cause shortness of breath. Further investigation revealed that the air around her had been forcefully displaced by the powerful current.
The air had been electrically dispersed.
More precisely, most of the air was violently displaced by the massive energy from the electric discharge; however, a small amount of air remained in the path of the current. This is because lightning itself is the creation of photons from the collision of electrons and air molecules; this differs from cosmic discharges.
Cosmic discharges are actually the creation of photons from the collision of high-energy electrons, requiring immense energy. The visible electrical discharge in the air is far simpler.
This is essentially a normal electrical discharge phenomenon.
However, upon seeing the vector diagram, Luna froze.
"The electric current pierced the air, causing it to vibrate."
"It created a brief, near-vacuum conduit."
"Could a similar path be created within the dimensional gateway?"
The dimensional gateway itself is a path; the idea of repairing it mid-journey struck Luna as absurd.
But her expression quickly turned serious.
"Why not?"
"The dimensional gateway connects different dimensions. I could create a point in four-dimensional space and a point in three-dimensional space, then connect them, creating a path."
Her idea wasn't about using a rope to connect four-dimensional and three-dimensional space.
The dimensional gateway's path was built by a black hole; therefore, the new path could only be created using a black hole.
The key was the black hole.
Indeed, Luna's actual idea was to create a wormhole between four-dimensional and three-dimensional space via the dimensional gateway.
Was this feasible?
Luna didn't know; it was merely a sudden inspiration.
Furthermore, the Federation currently lacked the capacity to create a wormhole. They couldn't use a wormhole to travel from three dimensions to four; it was an impossible experiment.
But Luna knew this. While they lacked wormholes capable of traversing such distances, they possessed the Olive Branch Civilization's wormhole weapons.
Super-gravitational weapons utilize wormholes, but in a rudimentary way; they require a black hole device at both points A and B.
However, this implies that by moving point B to four-dimensional space, the Federation could establish contact with four-dimensional space.
Whether for offensive or other research purposes,
Dimensional connections could yield many benefits.
"Make a note of that, Ayla. Then conduct an experiment if your plan is successful."
Ayla didn't respond, but the unspoken understanding between Luna and Ayla indicated she had already recorded her thoughts.
At that moment, the door on the opposite side opened, and Sora emerged.
He was an Iridescents; superficially, he was slightly taller, growing from approximately Luna's height to two meters. The scales on his body were more translucent, with a shimmering glass or gemstone-like quality—more opulent.
The key feature was his tail; numerous ionized particles were emitted from its tip. While no electrical arcs were visible, contact would certainly cause a tingling sensation.
"That's a minor super-ability. Scholar Luna, what super-ability did you awaken?"
Sora asked curiously.
Luna didn't hide it.
Sora was quite surprised: "As expected of Scholar Luna, your psionic level has reached Level 6."
The super-ability boosting Luna's psionic level by two didn't surprise Sora. Achieving Level 10 psionics through technology is easy. Frankly, they didn't come here for super-abilities.
"Chötons Corporation's drugs are indeed potent. They stimulate different parts of the body, perhaps targeting the unique genes in each area. I want to research this; Scholar Luna, will you join me?"
Sora looked expectantly at Luna.
But Luna politely refused. She wasn't interested in that topic. Different body parts naturally have different genes because their functions differ; the genes for the left hand and right hand can't be completely identical. Why should the left and right hand have symmetrical genes? Furthermore, the genes for organs and skin would certainly be different.
Chötons' research into these minutiae showed what made them a top-tier bio-corporation.
Luna would certainly gain something from such research, but her interest in biology was now purely recreational. She preferred discovering new genes.
"Perhaps we could visit the Chötons Corporation's research facilities. That might yield greater benefits," Luna said to the slightly disappointed Sora.
Sora was doubtful. He didn't think Chötons Corporation would allow outsiders into their research areas.
Luna stated that she had the authorization, which rekindled Sora's enthusiasm.
...
Luna led Sora to the edge of the open area.
There was a high wall, but it wasn't stone or metal; it was a white light screen, making it impossible to see what lay beyond.
There were no guards; the screen allowed passage based on authorization. Without authorization, it would be difficult to pass through physically, unless one altered their genetic makeup.
But under Luna's guidance, Sora passed through effortlessly.
"This… Scholar Luna, are you perhaps with Chötons Corporation?"
Sora was incredulous, having witnessed such easy access. To enter a Chötons Corporation area, especially to bring others in freely, generally required a certain position within the company.
"No, consider this an exchange."
"Your current role is my assistant. Chötons Corporation has a project that interests me."
An exchange?
Did Scholar Luna possess such authority? Such treatment was normally reserved for top-ranking scholars.
Regardless of Sora's thoughts, Luna led him into a massive laboratory.
This was still a city, easily observable from above, but a dilapidated one. Everything was in ruins, not a single skyscraper intact, pathways buried under collapsed buildings. A putrid smell hung in the air.
Luna heard faint sounds and smelled a trace of blood nearby.
The next moment, a gigantic creature crawled from the ruins—something resembling a Resident Evil Licker, but vastly larger, perhaps over forty meters long. Its head was covered in numerous eyes, the spaces between them filled with countless writhing, fleshy tendrils.
Its body dripped with blood. As it emerged, a wave of foul stench washed over the two. Sora, unable to restrain his sense of smell, vomited.
"What is that?"
Luna didn't know either. The data she possessed only contained a series of numbers; this creature was likely unnamed.
"Don't be surprised; there are many more unknown creatures here."
"The Federation currently has records for 1.3674 quintillion species, but there are also 448.9 quadrillion unregistered species. Many have incomplete data, and some are unfinished products. This is likely one such unfinished product."
Sora knew that the Federation had a vast number of species, but he didn't have the exact figures.
Within the vast Federation system, much information wasn't readily available. Only Ayla had access to everything.
However, Ayla withheld some information from the Federation, particularly comprehensive data.
This meant that scholars like Sora couldn't access accurate information.
Ayla did this because much of the information wasn't necessary for ordinary Federation citizens. In this era, there was an overwhelming amount of data. An average person's auxiliary brain contained a vast quantity of information, but the usable portion was only 0.004% to 0.006%.
Less than one ten-thousandth. Even scholars could only use less than 1% of the available information.
For them, such a massive amount of data was essentially useless. Like showing a 21st-century average person, or even a college student, years of high school graduation exam statistics—it's far less helpful than providing study materials.
So Sora was shocked by this information.
"There are that many?"
"Over ten quadrillion…"
He checked his own files. They didn't mention the total number of species in the Federation, only stating that his original star system contained 157 million species.
Based on this, he estimated the Federation to have at most 100 billion species, but the actual number was ten million times higher.
That number was terrifying.
Seeing his shock, Luna said nothing. Sora was too young, and hadn't interacted much with biological companies.
The Federation's Chötons Corporation alone had created over 2 trillion species; that was the capacity of a top-tier biological company.
Of course, the Swarm provided the most, accounting for 94% of all Federation species.
"Let's go; there's more inside."
At that moment, a giant eagle flew overhead. It was unusual, with six heads and two pairs of wings, its flight unsteady and low. Then, a gigantic worm-like creature shot from the ground, seizing the eagle in mid-air, dragging it underground.
Sora noticed that these creatures seemed uninterested in them and asked why.
"These creatures seem independent but are implanted with chips that mask their perception of us."
Luna explained briefly, then headed toward a small phone booth.
She disappeared inside. Sora quickly followed and felt a powerful downward force; in an instant, he was standing on the ground.
It was a stage; the surroundings were a circular room. Luna was already on the stage, looking out through the windows of the nearly 100-meter-diameter circular room.
Outside was a vast forest. Their sphere was embedded in the air; many such spheres were visible, some connected overhead, others floating freely in mid-air.
These spheres were all Chötons Corporation workspaces.
"This is…" Sora was awestruck.
Although Free Star City was similar, it was purely artificial. To create what he saw now would require stripping the planet bare.
Luna seemed to anticipate his thoughts.
"This is the true surface of Chötons c; what we saw earlier was just a shell built by Chötons Corporation."
"Here, Chötons Corporation conducts all kinds of biological research. This is their world."
The platform where Luna and Sora stood suddenly sank, taking them below the circular room and onto a cloud.
"Respected Miss Luna, welcome to Chötons c. I am your personal attendant. You may ask me anything, and I can contact the company's management on your behalf."
"You are free to do as you please here. My superior, Madam Mimi, sends her warmest regards. Madam Mimi has many pressing matters and apologizes that she cannot accompany you in appreciating the beauty of the Chötons c world."
Standing before Luna was a female android; it seemed aware that she was human and had dispatched a human attendant dressed in a maidservant's outfit, acting the part convincingly.
"It's alright; I'm only here to observe something. Please relay that to Madam Mimi."
Luna didn't use her authority to access this place; she had made an appointment with Ayla.
She had come here to see the "Chötons biological world".
...
Rusty star nation.
Giotto, after a long journey, finally arrived.
Before entering Rusty star nation, he stopped at a spaceship rendezvous port to gather information.
As the name suggests, a spaceship rendezvous port is a place where ships gather, then quickly construct a port using miniature factories, serving as a temporary trading hub.
These are usually found in resource-rich areas or regions with convenient spatial access.
Though called temporary, they often last for hundreds of years.
Giotto docked his ship, assigning some personnel to defend it, before taking others to the surface and connecting to the local network.
[Welcome to ch4 City. The city's regulations have been sent to you. Please abide by the relevant regulations. Have a pleasant stay.]
ch4 City, that's the name of this place.
Calling themselves a city is quite presumptuous—or is it? Not at all!
It's vast, covering 300 square kilometers with a population of over one million.
Giotto immediately headed for the crowded area, then paid some locals to gather information about Rusty star nation. He had some prior knowledge, but since his journey took tens of thousands of years, the information was outdated. The information gathered here might be hundreds of years old, but it could still be considered relatively current.
After making inquiries, he received several useful pieces of information.
Rusty star nation publicly declared neutrality in the conflict between the Twenty-Eight Nations Covenant and the Federation, experiencing 28 wars in the last 3000 years. While not exactly a constant warzone, it certainly wasn't peaceful.
Fortunately, while weak, Rusty star nation was still a star nation with over 4 billion inhabitants and several hundred ten-kilometer-class warships. Some tactical maneuvering could at least stabilize the situation.
"I didn't expect this place to be so entangled," Giotto said, having initially believed it to be safe.
Toma K suggested, "Should we go to a more distant star nation?"
A safer option was available, but their goal wasn't safety; it was mission completion.
"Let's stay here. Of the 4 billion inhabitants, only 14% are natural-born humans; the rest are clones."
"The mission requires us to control a power; Rusty star nation is the best choice."
"It's not excessively chaotic here; perhaps we have a chance."
"Let's first establish a factory within the star nation…"
As they spoke, a lone individual approached, putting them on alert.
He smiled, amicable and unthreatening.
"Excuse me, I'm interrupting."
"Don't worry; I'm a story collector from Alpha Eridani Wild Hunt Interstellar Exploration Company. I saw you seem to be new here; you must have many stories from your journey. I'm willing to pay for your stories."
Giotto flatly refused, "We've been in cryosleep the entire journey; we don't have any stories. Go find someone else."
The man didn't press the issue.
"That's such a pity. This is my contact information. If you have any interesting stories, feel free to contact me."
"For a good story, even tens of millions of energy credits won't be a problem."
He left after providing his contact information.
Toma K spoke only after he'd gone, "A story collection company? Alpha Eridani? That's so far away; they've expanded their operations here."
Giotto was also surprised, but such large human civilizations experienced all sorts of occurrences. He didn't worry too much about it.
"Let's purchase some raw materials. We leave in five days."
...
Five days later.
Giotto left ch4 City and journeyed to Rusty star nation.
While called a star nation, there was a vast difference between star nations. Rusty star nation had a small population and few star systems under its control.
The vast majority of its population resided in a single star system: the capital, Rusty.
Rusty star nation was an open-borders star nation; anyone could enter or leave, and the entire nation levied taxes on all transactions within its territory.
Therefore, they entered the star system without issue.
However, upon seeing Rusty, they were astonished.
"This is Rusty?"
They had seen many star cities, but never one so extraordinary.
Before them was a gigantic, transparent whale. It was immense, at least 100,000 kilometers long, and Rusty was located within its transparent body.
If it were merely a projection, they wouldn't have been so impressed, but this was a living being.
It moved through space, its transparent body emitting a faint luminescence.
A truly magnificent and awe-inspiring creature.
"Rusty, the biological city…"
"Captain, I obtained some information from the ch4 population. 6000 years ago, Chötons Corporation collaborated with Rusty star nation, providing biological assistance, including modifying their star city."
"That's when the biological city was created."
Said a crew member.
Though he'd heard and seen images, the sight filled him with profound awe.
"This is illogical. How could such a large organism exist?"
Toma K's eyes shone; this magnificent creature was simply breathtaking.
"The biological city relies on Chötons Corporation's pinnacle of biological engineering: the Chötons bio-world."
"This organism is essentially gaseous, or perhaps a colloidal state. Its interior contains mostly air and no heavy metals."
Existence implies rationality.
The Chötons bio-world.
This was an unparalleled feat; a true biological city.
Their ship drew closer to the colossal being, its beauty becoming increasingly apparent. A transparent layer of scales covered its exterior, emitting a faint iridescent glow.
This was a creature that shouldn't exist in reality.
Giotto was speechless, stunned into silence for a long time.
But his heart burned with ambition. What if—just what if—he could build a city like this?
Was it possible?
Of course, it was.
They carried the mission of a super-civilization, a mission that included the means to accomplish their goals.
This was their strength.
Giotto's heart pounded; he yearned to forge a future here.
"Enter the Starport."
"Gentlemen, this is our final destination."
His words stunned the crew. Weren't they explorers?
"How long will we stay here, Captain?"
Giotto replied, "Forever!"
"My apologies, gentlemen. We're changing professions; we're becoming entrepreneurs. If any of you wish to leave, I won't force you. There are many explorer teams here; you can seek other opportunities."