Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [324]

The full moon hung high in the sky.

Inside the command room of the Belobog military district, Chen Lin sat alongside a group of high-ranking officers and officials.

At the very center of the room, a half-meter-high platform displayed real-time monitoring data of the Rilu Star System. A holographic projection presented hundreds of images of varying sizes and distances, providing a three-dimensional overview of the situation.

The command room maintained direct communication with the frontline fleet. Upon receiving orders, the fleet swiftly activated its warp engines—though the engines required some time to warm up and initiate the jump.

Officers in charge of coordinating the various ships were engaged in tight communication with their respective crews, relaying precise updates on the status of their psionic warp engines. These reports were then passed to Seele, who in turn conveyed them to the supreme leader of the Jarilo Sector.

The atmosphere was markedly different from usual. Today, both Seele, Bronya, and Chen Lin were dressed in their formal attire—not the grand and ornate uniforms of a military parade, but rather modified military dress uniforms, exuding an air of authority and deadly seriousness.

Standing slightly behind Chen Lin, Phantylia rested her hands in front of her. Her usually alluring gaze had turned icy, radiating an aura of intimidation that made others hesitate to approach. At least on camera, she now appeared every bit the proper captain of the guard.

Several officers emerged from an adjacent room, marching with unwavering focus. After a crisp salute, they handed their reports to the fleet commander, Seele, who stood at the entrance, waiting.

"Commander, reporting in! Ships No. 0034, 0041, 0042, and 0075 have successfully warped to a safe zone. Remaining ships still within the system: No. 0045 Destroyer, No. 0049 Destroyer. Estimated time to warp: 15 minutes and 12 seconds."

Seele glanced over the report and gave a slight nod.

"Keep monitoring."

"Yes, ma'am!"

The officer responded firmly before turning on his heel and jogging away in perfect military form.

Holding the reports, Seele passed through several layers of thick blast-resistant glass doors into the command room. She handed the documents to Pela, who merely rubbed her fingers over the papers. Instantly, the reports split into dozens of identical copies, which she distributed to everyone present.

Warp engines consumed an immense amount of energy, and psionic warp engines were particularly costly—one use required months of recharging and cooling.

Fifteen minutes wasn't long. In the vastness of space, some civilizations would take far longer just to start their engines. But psionic warp technology could transport a fleet to a destination others might take months or even years to reach. The speed was already impressive.

While officers and officials quietly discussed the reports with their colleagues, Seele approached Chen Lin, lowering her voice as she asked,

"Brother Lin… is it really necessary to evacuate every single ship?"

A slight relocation would’ve sufficed—moving tens of thousands of kilometers away should be enough. But her orders had been explicit: every fleet within the Rilu System had to retreat beyond the system’s gravitational boundary.

The system bubble was a natural gravitational barrier between star systems. To cross it, one had to either enter a hyperspace corridor or accelerate continuously at superluminal speeds until breaking free.

In other words, Chen Lin's order meant the fleet had to relocate to the next star system rather than simply remaining somewhere within Rilu.

To outsiders, it looked like the Galactic Community was about to impose severe sanctions on the Rilu civilization. To the uninformed, it might even seem as though a massive star in the system was undergoing gravitational collapse, leading to a catastrophic explosion…

Chen Lin set down the report in his hands and replied,

"Yes, it’s necessary. I can't be sure whether they’ll be affected or not. Theoretically, space within 460 light-years of Rilu-Ⅰ could be impacted."

"That serious?!" Seele's eyes widened in shock.

Chen Lin chuckled. "Why else would I order a full retreat? If we left them there, the fleet would have front-row seats to an event of astronomical proportions—might as well let them enjoy the show from a safe distance."

His statement wasn’t without basis. All of these calculations came from none other than Little Shi Sha herself.

Since Chen Lin had activated the [Enable: Eater of Worlds Shi Sha] policy, he wasn’t about to let any of its buffs—whether temporary or permanent—go to waste. So, he had given Shi Sha the equivalent of a ‘Feast Mode: All-You-Can-Eat Buffet.’

From light snacking to mild hunger, from mild hunger to ravenous starvation, and from extreme hunger to complete frenzy.

She didn’t just devour people, planets, or even entire star systems. No, Chen Lin had gone so far as to let Shi Sha feast on an entire neighboring star cluster, ensuring she was well-fed while he reaped all the benefits at someone else’s expense. Why wouldn’t he?

Besides, he had a compulsion for efficiency—if every policy had its own cooldown timer, he wanted them all to enter cooldown at the same time. If he ever checked and found their timers misaligned, it would irritate him to no end.

However, he hadn't let Shi Sha consume the Rilu Star System itself. Instead, he had directed her toward an unremarkable, nameless cluster nearby. The Rilu System still contained explosive micro-particles he needed—those couldn't be carelessly devoured.

By sacrificing a barren star cluster, he could gauge the full extent of Shi Sha’s destructive potential. It would give him a baseline for future use.

Moreover, from the starmap, that cluster happened to be one of the key hyperspace routes leading to Jarilo-VI. By erasing it, he could reduce the chances of an enemy sneaking up from behind. Efficiency at its finest.

If it were possible, he would rather hide Jarilo-VI entirely, placing it somewhere no one could ever find. After all, Jarilo-VI was the first planet he had obtained upon arriving here, the one he had invested the most resources into. It had the most buffs, the most upgrades—it was his best planet.

If this were a game, this single planet alone would be enough for him to snowball into an unstoppable force. He could run a ‘One-Planet Strategy’ with zero pressure!

"Honestly, I wanna see it too…"

Seele scratched her head sheepishly. "It’s gotta look way cooler than any fireworks."

Chen Lin laughed. "In a way, it is fireworks. Cosmic-scale fireworks, that is."

Since Seele was responsible for managing fleet operations, she had to maintain close communication with them until the last ship had withdrawn from the Rilu System.

After their brief exchange, she returned to her post.

Meanwhile, Bronya was reviewing data on her terminal. She swiped a report onto Chen Lin's screen.

"Mentor, take a look at this intel from Luofu…"

"Hmm?"

It was a heavily encrypted intelligence report, compiled from firsthand sources within the Luofu Divine Strategy Office.

More than six months ago, Chen Lin had advised Jing Yuan to keep a close watch on the Nanocloud Nebula. Clearly, Jing Yuan had taken the warning seriously. The number of reconnaissance operatives monitoring the nebula had increased significantly.

And now, Luofu intelligence had uncovered a shocking discovery ahead of the IPC.

The Nanocloud Nebula had consumed two more civilizations. At present, over ten star systems of varying sizes had been entirely engulfed by its layers of dense, shifting clouds. No external probes could penetrate it, and not a single distress signal had been transmitted from within.

However, just a week ago, one of the engulfed star systems suddenly became visible again.

The eerie Nanocloud Nebula seemed to recede slightly, revealing the star system it had previously swallowed.

Since Luofu was relatively close, they had immediately attempted communication—but received no response.

Determined to confirm whether the afflicted civilization still existed, Jing Yuan had dispatched several teams to investigate.

The Cloud Knights sent to investigate the afflicted civilization never expected to be attacked the moment they landed. The weapons used against them were far beyond what that civilization should have been capable of, and, more disturbingly…

The organic civilization that once lived there was now entirely mechanical.

Caught off guard by the sudden assault, the Cloud Knights scrambled to retreat, suffering heavy casualties. To make matters worse, the Nanocloud Nebula returned, sweeping over the star system at an alarming speed and re-engulfing it completely.

Just as the Divine Strategy Office feared that the entire advance team would be wiped out, the Divination Commission produced a baffling omen—a reading of great fortune.

Hours after the Nanocloud Nebula swallowed the star system once again, the Cloud Knights—who had been presumed lost—re-established contact with Luofu. As suddenly as it had appeared, the dense, all-consuming nebula had inexplicably vanished.

Only then did the Six Commissions learn what had transpired in their absence:

The mechanical beings that had relentlessly attacked the Cloud Knights had all suddenly shut down, one by one, as if an external force had forced them into an emergency reboot. By the end, every single machine lifeform in that civilization had collapsed into lifeless scrap metal.

The Cloud Knights, despite their severe losses, managed to retrieve some of the now-inert mechanical bodies and brought them back for analysis by the Artisanship Commission.

The results came quickly.

Embedded deep within these mechanical husks, the Artisanship Commission detected organic DNA. Some machines contained half a biological brain fused with a central processing unit, while others had limbs interwoven with steel, muscle fibers, and even fat cells.

Meanwhile, the research team led by Natasha uncovered something even more chilling.

When examined under extreme magnification, the seemingly solid metallic limbs of these machines were actually composed of countless microscopic robots, each too small to be seen with the naked eye.

All of them were now completely nonfunctional—and with them, their hosts had perished as well.

After thorough investigation, the Artisanship Commission and Natasha’s biological research team reached a terrifying conclusion:

These inorganic entities had once been organic beings, forcibly transformed into mechanical lifeforms through a process involving nanoscopic—no, nearly atomic-scale machines that had somehow rewritten their very biology.

The report sent shockwaves through the leadership of the Six Commissions.

It was almost too outlandish to believe, but the Artisanship Commission’s evidence was irrefutable. And this theory was the only plausible explanation for why organic DNA had fused with steel and why some machines still retained remnants of flesh.

After a hasty emergency meeting, Jing Yuan decided to suppress this information for now.

He would first pass it to Chen Lin, allowing him to assess the situation and help determine the best course of action.

The truth was simply too horrific, too reality-shattering. If this leaked, it could send surrounding civilizations into a mass panic, potentially leading to widespread chaos or even war.

Thus, Jing Yuan had Fu Xuan compile the intelligence report and immediately forward it to Chen Lin—the very encrypted file now in Bronya’s hands.

...

"Assimilation Warriors, huh…" Chen Lin felt a chill run down his spine, unable to stop himself from internally cursing.

If not for the number of people in the room—and the setting being entirely inappropriate—he might have blurted out an expletive or two on the spot.

Even in Stellaris, L-Gates didn’t pull off nonsense like this. The Contingency’s Assimilation Plague at least required Colossi to deploy the nanite payload. But here? The L-Gates had gone rogue.

No need for Colossi—just straight-up instant mechanical conversion?!

Bronya’s expression darkened with concern. “Mentor, do you have any insights into this? From what I understand, this could be a catastrophe of unprecedented scale—far worse than the war records stored in the Galactic Library.”

Who could argue with that?

The War in Heaven, at least, had been a war between machines and organics—a struggle fought through industry, logistics, and sheer resource expenditure. It was a war of attrition.

But what Luofu had uncovered was something entirely different.

A self-propagating Nanocloud Nebula that converted organic life into machines against their will—machines that then continued to spread the process.

A galactic-scale zombie plague, but for machines.

One side only grew stronger. The other? Only dwindled.

What kind of sick joke is this…?

To be honest, even Chen Lin was a little shaken. The Dhesanu’s nanite technology in Stellaris was never this ridiculous. When had it ever been capable of instantaneous mechanical assimilation?!

His eyes flicked toward the final section of the report. He pointed at the text and asked,

“Look at this. Don’t you think something about this is… off?”

Bronya leaned closer and read aloud,

“The advance recon team returned with 185 deactivated machine corpses. Upon examination, none of the team members showed any signs of infection…”

Midway through reading, her breath hitched.

“Mentor… are you saying… how did they survive?”

“Not just that.” Chen Lin’s voice was steady but grim. “How did the machines—which had every advantage—suddenly drop dead when the Nanocloud Nebula returned? If anything, shouldn’t they have become even stronger?”

A force with perfect conditions for victory had inexplicably wiped itself out.

That was far too suspicious.

But there was no time to dwell on it right now—because Seele had just rushed over, holding the final evacuation report.

With one last glance at his Stellaris-style UI starmap, triple-checking that no friendly forces remained within the Rilu System, Chen Lin stood up and declared,

“When we get back, I’ll contact Luofu directly and figure this out. I’ll handle this personally.”

Bronya nodded. “Understood.”

With that, Chen Lin firmly pressed the still-confused Seele into his chair, left her with a few instructions, and exited the command room.

---

In an unoccupied corner of the station, Chen Lin stepped into The Shroud.

The environment shifted around him, space distorting as he entered the dimensional realm.

From ahead, a small figure came sprinting toward him with eager little steps.

Crouching down, Chen Lin ruffled Little Shi Sha’s hair, a small smirk on his lips.

“Dinner time.”

“Yay~!”

Before the words had even fully left his mouth, Little Shi Sha was already gone.

She had been waiting all this time for her father to say those exact words.

---

T/N: erm its only the nanocloud nebula since its not the full power of the grey tempest yet...

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!