Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [337]

Upon receiving the notification, many civilizations that had established diplomatic relations with the Jarilo sector carefully deliberated before making the decision to evacuate their citizens. Chen Lin assigned twenty large transport ships to assist in these evacuation efforts.

In just four days, all expatriates had been safely evacuated, leaving only the Jarilo people, a significant number of Xianzhou migrants, and immigrants from Sterbe within the sector.

Meanwhile, the public discourse surrounding the Empire's upcoming activation of the L-Gate had reached its peak!

Some believed that this move would bring immeasurable danger to the entire galaxy. Countless innocent lives could be lost, and many civilizations might be forced to abandon the homes their ancestors had inhabited for generations, becoming interstellar refugees…

Others argued that opening the L-Gate could lead to technological leaps, unearthing mysterious materials and ancient technologies yet to be discovered. It might trigger a grand reshuffling of power among galactic civilizations—

The weak might rise like a phoenix from the ashes, while the once-mighty could fade into irrelevance.

There is never a shortage of gamblers in the universe. One might even say that among ten politicians, nine are gamblers, and the last one is an all-in fanatic—someone who stakes everything on every move.

One undeniable fact was that as news of the L-Gate’s imminent activation spread across the stars, even so-called pacifist civilizations, which had long claimed to be without military forces, began expanding their police forces under pressure from public opinion and external threats.

One civilization, which previously had only a police force, managed to increase its police numbers from six million to thirty million in just three days—and that number was still climbing by the hour…

For a time, the name of the nanomachine swarm overshadowed even the infamously notorious Disciples of Sanctus Medicus and the Annihilation Legion, which waged wars of annihilation across the galaxy. The nanomachine swarm became the primary threat countless civilizations sought to guard against.

That’s just how it was—the corporations held off the Legion, the Xianzhou Alliance clashed with the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus, and those who had grown too accustomed to peace had simply forgotten that someone had been carrying the burden of maintaining it.

A lack of vigilance was absolutely unacceptable!

The Stellaron Hunters had prophesied a "calamity," yet such disasters should theoretically only manifest among the stars. Apart from Chen Lin, no one in this world should even be aware of their existence.

But since Elio, the mastermind of the Stellaron Hunters, had foreseen such a possibility, Chen Lin had no choice but to consider the cosmic catastrophes of Stellaris as his ultimate adversary. Even if this hypothetical final enemy never truly appeared, he had to be prepared!

He had always been one to take precautions. Waiting until the house was leaking and the storm was raging before thinking about fixing it? That would be far too late…

At noon, Chen Lin brought Phantylia along for a visit to the Luofu embassy.

It wasn’t because he had any business with Qingque—rather, two judges from the Ten Lords Commission at the embassy had made a request of him. They hoped he could provide a few infected Tamz corpses from those he had recovered.

Delivering corpses was a trivial task that could be handled by just about anyone. Initially, Chen Lin had planned to let Phantylia take care of it. However, realizing that he hadn’t been to the embassy in a while, he decided to go along as well.

Chen Lin had brought back over a hundred bodies, all stored at the Imperial Research Institute for scientists to study at their discretion. Ten corpses for the Luofu embassy wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Sure enough, by the time Chen Lin arrived at the embassy gates, the two judges from the Ten Lords Commission had already been waiting for quite some time.

Hanya seemed surprised that Chen Lin had come in person. She gestured for the staff behind her to begin unloading the corpses from the transport vehicle before quickly stepping forward to greet him.

"Lord Chen, why did you come in person? Are you here to see the Ambassador? If so, I can have someone notify Ambassador Qingque right away—"

Chen Lin waved his hand with a smile. "No need to be so formal, Miss Hanya. I just came to take a look around. As for Sparrow… just tell her to drop by your office when she has time. You seem to have been resting well lately—your complexion looks much better."

"Who wouldn’t say so…"

Hanya sighed and glanced at the building behind her. “Compared to the Ten Lords Commission back on the Luofu, there’s very little paperwork at the embassy. It’s rare to spend all day buried in documents, so I actually have time to rest.”

The deep dark circles under her eyes had faded significantly after long-term recuperation, her once-sunken eye sockets now fuller. She looked noticeably more energetic—at least, she no longer had that ethereal, half-dead aura that made it seem like she might drop dead at any moment…

As embassy staff handled the transportation of the Tamz remains, Hanya led Chen Lin and Phantylia inside. At the very back, Huohuo trailed behind, carrying the command flag on her back, looking like she wanted to speak but didn’t dare to.

They took the elevator up from the lobby, arriving at a quiet office floor that seemed largely unoccupied.

Noting Chen Lin’s puzzled expression, Hanya pushed open a door and explained, “This is where Huohuo and I work. Our colleagues… they prefer to keep their distance due to the local customs of the Xianzhou. Most don’t like being around judges from the Ten Lords Commission, so it’s just the two of us on this floor. These are our offices, and at the far end are our quarters.”

The Ten Lords Commission was shrouded in mystery—even many Xianzhou natives didn’t know that a department beyond the Six Commissions even existed. Since most embassy staff came from the Six Commissions, they were aware of the Ten Lords Commission but generally avoided interacting with its members.

After all, the Ten Lords Commission handled cases involving severe Mara strikes. Seeing one of its judges often meant a death sentence was imminent. Under such circumstances, the commission’s image had been heavily demonized…

---

Chen Lin sat down and, after listening to Hanya’s explanation, merely smiled. He had no intention of commenting too much on the Xianzhou’s customs.

Huohuo fumbled around preparing tea, clumsily setting the tray on the table before finally sitting down.

Chen Lin accepted a cup and casually said, “Thanks.”

Huohuo’s hands clenched tightly on her lap as she stammered, “Ah… ah! N-no need to thank me!”

“I just came by to take care of a couple of small matters.”

Setting down his tea, Chen Lin smiled. “I assume Pela has already informed you that the Imperial Research Institute will be activating the L-Gate tomorrow?”

“Advisor Pela has indeed notified us.”

“Good. The gate’s activation is imminent, but I don’t want it to disrupt people’s daily lives or create unnecessary panic—especially not on Jarilo-VI.”

“That’s understandable.”

“Still, there are risks. I also received intelligence that an Elation Emanator, a Masked Fool, has decided to visit Jarilo-VI for some entertainment. They’ve likely already infiltrated the city. So I wanted to ask if you’d like me to assign additional psychic guards to strengthen security at the embassy?”

Fu Xuan had already arrived on the Luofu with the Cloud Knights’ expeditionary force. Just yesterday, she scoured the Divination Commission’s archives and sent Chen Lin all available records on the Sparkle mentioned by Sampo.

According to Xianzhou intelligence, the Masked Fool known as Sparkle was an Emanator—meaning they wielded the powerful blessings of an Aeon. Their combat strength was formidable, and their threat level had been officially classified as: Extremely Dangerous.

For comparison, Phantylia had previously been ranked only as Dangerous by Xianzhou authorities. Yet this Elation Emanator—whom Chen Lin had never even met—was considered two threat levels higher, on par with figures like Osvaldo, the Interastral Peace Corporation’s Pioneer Division Head (also an Emanator), and the Abundance Emanator, Flux. That alone spoke volumes about Sparkle’s terrifying power…

The Luofu Embassy was not the Qlipoth Fort. Its security was limited, and unlike Chen Lin, the staff here didn’t have a Phantylia constantly by their side. If that chaotic Elation Emanator suddenly decided to target the embassy, there wouldn’t be anyone capable of stopping them.

More importantly, his dear friend Qingque was inside. Chen Lin really didn’t want anything happening here.

Given the special diplomatic status of the embassy, it was necessary to consult before deploying additional forces—otherwise, it could damage the Empire’s international image.

At the mention of a Elation Emanator, Huohuo instinctively shrank back, her tail scolding her, What are you so scared of?! But an Emanator was still an Emanator—one of the strongest combatants in this world. Some even took joy in slaughter…

In other civilizations, the mere mention of certain Emanator names was enough to stop children from crying at night.

Hanya hesitated briefly, then shook her head. “That decision rests with Special Envoy Qingque and Minister Yi Qingzu. I have no authority to interfere.”

She knew full well that Chen Lin was merely saying this for her to hear. Even if she had the authority, she’d still need to consult Qingque first—especially given the… unique relationship between those two.

Everyone at the embassy understood.

Chen Lin had expected this answer. Talking to Hanya first was just a prelude—he had come to her office because he had other questions as well.

Taking a sip of tea, he asked, “The other matter—what exactly do you two need those bodies for? The Cloud Knights already brought back a large number of corpses, so the Ten Lords Commission on the Luofu should have received some as well, shouldn’t they?”

Hanya turned her gaze toward the small fox-eared judge beside her, gesturing to the faintly glowing tail behind Huohuo. “Huohuo and I deal with corpses and spirits regularly as judges, but neither of us are professional medics or thaumaturgists. It’s her tail that’s interested. Seeing how much it was bothering her, I thickened my skin and asked if you could spare a few bodies.”

Chen Lin glanced at Huohuo, thinking to himself, What does the tail need these for?

Phantylia had once pointed out that Huohuo’s tail was special—an assessment Fu Xuan had later confirmed.

The tail was actually a fragment of Liaoyuan, the Great Yang of Calamity, shattered into countless pieces by former Luofu General Teng Xiao. It had a combative nature, but only the Ten Lords Commission knew how it had ended up in its current form.

In any case, this tail wasn’t weak. Even Phantylia had admitted that if her true form hadn’t fused with her current body, the tail might have sensed her real identity.

That alone spoke volumes about its capabilities.

When Huohuo noticed her idol looking at her, she stiffened like a plank, sitting at attention. Her voice trembled as she muttered, “T-Tail Lord, p-please say something…!”

“Why the hell are you making a fuss?! Can’t I just be interested in something and take a closer look?!”

The tail shot up from behind Huohuo, clicking its tongue. “If I wasn’t stuck within five meters of you—if you didn’t get lost the moment you stepped outside—none of this would even be necessary! Useless!”

Huohuo whimpered, covering her head. “Please stop scolding me…”

“Stop scolding?! You’re a grown woman who can’t even navigate! Who else am I supposed to yell at?!”

The tail’s voice was filled with frustration.

Smack. Smack.

Hanya clapped her hands and, with practiced ease, grabbed the tail mid-air, silencing its tirade. Turning to Chen Lin, she said, “If you have questions, just ask the tail directly. It’ll talk.”

“Hmph!” the tail scoffed.

“Uuuhhh…” Huohuo whimpered.

Watching the scene, Chen Lin found this judge duo rather amusing—this must be how they usually interacted.

“This isn’t an interrogation. We’re just chatting as friends. If you don’t want to answer, there’s no need to force yourself.”

Shaking his head with a smile, Chen Lin continued, “It’s just a few corpses. They’re covered in nanomachine remnants. Why are you so interested in them, Tail?”

The tail opened an eye and sneered. “Because I feel like it. What, is that a problem?”

It had disliked Chen Lin ever since arriving in Belobog. No matter how well people lived here, no matter how smoothly things ran, it simply didn’t like this young man.

Every time it heard his name, it got irritated. If it had a real body, it would probably be covered in goosebumps.

And that idiot Huohuo even joined his fan club…

Absolutely disgusting!

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T/N: idk who sparrow is, also just a reminder that stellaris is like 2 to 3x longer than the other translations thats why it takes longer! same with holy grail

This is a fan translation of 在星穹铁道点群星科技树真的没问题吗? by 杏雨诗韵 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!