Is Unlocking the Stellaris Tech Tree in Star Rail Really Okay? [285]

"Aventurine, if you’re just here to mock me, I’m busy. I don’t have time for your sarcasm. I’m hanging up."

Topaz's voice was indifferent.

"Oh! My apologies, my mistake—I forgot you’re my superior now."

On the other end of the earpiece, Aventurine hesitated for a moment.

"How should I put this… I actually feel kind of bad for you. Our old boss, Diamond, was always against this whole thing. But you know how it is—the board was overwhelmingly in favor. Don’t blame him; he’s been looking out for us. Sometimes, in this line of work, you don’t get a choice.

"And besides… from what I hear, that Governor is pretty popular. Maybe you didn’t lose out after all—hell, you might’ve even profited from this."

Topaz scoffed and hung up.

A few seconds later, the communicator buzzed again. She declined the call.

It rang again.

And again.

She kept rejecting it until, after more than ten attempts, she finally picked up.

"I’m giving you three seconds," she said coldly.

"Wait, wait! Don’t hang up!" Aventurine sounded frustrated. "Old friend, looks like you’re really not in the mood for small talk. Fine. I called to give you a heads-up—some information you might find very interesting. Something about your position at headquarters."

"So your idea of small talk is poking at my wounds?"

Topaz’s face remained emotionless, though inwardly, she added bitterly, As if I even deserve to feel hurt.

"Hah, couldn’t help myself—just had to confirm if the photos I saw in the chat were real. But forget that. Let’s talk business."

Aventurine’s tone turned serious.

"Your situation has stirred up a lot of unrest. Plenty of people in the company are getting nervous. I managed to pull some meeting records using… let’s call it ‘unofficial means.’ Once you’re done reading them, wipe them. If the Empire finds out, you’ll be in even more danger."

Topaz hesitated for a moment.

"Details. What did you find?"

"The head of Construction & Logistics has already been won over by Osvaldo. The board has handed over several of your new department’s key authorities to Market Expansion. Tsk tsk… they’re setting up the board. And you know what Osvaldo is like."

Aventurine sighed.

"We used to work together, so here’s my advice: stay out of the crossfire. With your talents, it’d be a damn shame if you got yourself killed."

The company wasn’t without its factions.

When one faction dominated, its members became the company’s main force, spearheading its most critical projects. They called this strategy "setting the board."

Now that the Empire deal had gained overwhelming support—thanks to Osvaldo—the one playing the game was him.

And Topaz?

At best, she was just a key piece on the board.

Osvaldo’s aggressive expansionism had brought IPC its unprecedented prosperity, but his extreme ideology and methods made it impossible to predict his next move.

With his faction calling the shots, Topaz could expect all sorts of unreasonable demands coming her way.

Stuck in the middle, she was now in the most dangerous position of all.

That was precisely why Aventurine didn’t envy her promotion at all—in fact, he pitied her.

If she wanted to survive this financial war, the only thing he could do was remind her of her situation—and secretly feed her information whenever possible, giving her some room to maneuver.

Of course, there was a good chance that Aventurine wasn’t acting alone.

Diamond was probably pulling the strings behind the scenes.

"There’s an old Xianzhou saying—you don’t negotiate with a tiger and expect to come out unscathed. Boss thinks this whole thing is too risky. That Starsea Empire… it’s an ancient monster, no doubt about it.

"And Osvaldo? Well, Osvaldo was already a lunatic to begin with."

Aventurine rambled on—Topaz had always known him to be a chatterbox.

"Anyway, one last thing. Boss says he’s sorry—he couldn’t protect you this time. But if he gets another chance, he’ll try again.

"That’s all. I need to go clean up the ridiculous rumors flying around about you."

The call ended.

Topaz chuckled.

At the same time, she saw—clearer than ever—the true nature of the company’s internal power struggles.

Power. Prestige. Profit.

No matter how you spun it, it always came back to those three things.

She had sensed it before, but she never dared to dig deeper.

Or rather, she never wanted to.

Because IPC was the only game in town.

She had never had a choice.

It was like living in a city where there was only one landowner.

One day, that landowner went out on business and stumbled across hordes of starving refugees.

So he told them:

"I’ll give you food, shelter, and even pay you a single coin a year—just sign this servitude contract. From now on, you and your children will be my servants until your debts are repaid, with interest."

Yes, IPC had saved countless lives.

It wouldn’t be wrong to call it a savior.

But was this kind of "salvation" really something to be grateful for?

Topaz no longer thought so.

After all, when your yearly wage didn’t even cover your food, rent, or interest payments, what were you really being given?

And after receiving guidance from that great figure, after comparing the ideologies of IPC and the Empire—she made her choice.

She would follow the Empire.

She would make sure that their vision spread across the entire universe—that it took root, flourished, and bore fruit.

Even knowing that this double-agent game could get her killed, she felt no fear.

To die for an ideal…

That was worth it.

Topaz glanced at the terminal on her desk, amused.

So even this had been foreseen… No wonder Miss Phantylia holds such terrifying power, yet willingly serves as a mere bodyguard…

Indeed—

To serve Him was the highest honor.

Not everyone even had the privilege.

---

A vast, white void stretched endlessly in all directions. Two figures—one tall, one short—stood facing each other in silence.

Chen Lin helped her up, exhaling in exasperation as he broke the awkward quiet.

"Phantylia, be honest with me—are you sick or something?"

"…I… I’m not sick," Phantylia muttered, lowering her head in dejection.

She knew Chen Lin was really asking whether there was something wrong with her physical body.

"Then explain why you were just screaming your lungs out and then suddenly clammed up?"

Phantylia opened her mouth, but not a single sound came out. The next moment, her entire body went limp—collapsing onto the ground and curling up in agony. Cold sweat quickly soaked through her clothes.

Chen Lin stared, utterly baffled.

He had originally come here to check on Phantylia’s work and reassure her that the situation with Topaz had been handled. Everything just needed a little reinforcement moving forward.

But the moment he arrived, he found Phantylia sitting on the ground, hugging her knees, looking like a bundle of nerves.

The second she saw him, she had been so overwhelmed that she clung to his leg, sobbing and begging to be let out—crying about how her work here was far too dangerous.

Yet when he pressed her for details, her speech—both in sound and motion—suddenly became as disjointed as an edited video, cutting off entirely before she collapsed in pain. He couldn’t make out a single coherent word.

When he tried to calm her down and read her memories, he found massive blank sections—entire sequences missing. There was nothing for him to see.

Something had clearly silenced her, erasing whatever had happened and leaving behind only the aftermath—without any trace of the process leading to it. It was as if a part of his own perception had been severed.

Chen Lin’s gaze flicked toward the massive black sphere floating in the distance.

Phantylia had loved her job before. She could go for days without sleep, driven by sheer enthusiasm.

But now? She was trembling like she had been completely drained dry, with no energy left for anything.

Could it be that the changes in the Zroni Nexus had something to do with that sphere?

Scooping up nearly broken fox-girl, Chen Lin tore open a rift and carried her out of the realm.

Damn it—when did my Zroni Nexus start getting this weird?

...

At the door to Chen Lin’s room, Pela looked on with concern, glancing at Phantylia’s deathly pale complexion. Her lips were so devoid of color they looked almost wounded.

"Captain Phantylia, are you… okay?" Pela hesitated. "I should call a doctor, and I’ll have Dunn prepare some food to help you recover—"

"Haha… no need. I just need to rest for a while." Phantylia shook her head lightly.

But her drooping fox ears betrayed her true mood. Pela hesitated, but seeing Phantylia push open the door, she had no choice but to step inside—turning back several times before finally moving forward.

The room had once been Cocolia’s personal chambers, though Chen Lin had since torn it down and rebuilt it from scratch.

The new design, personally drawn by Chen Lin himself, had a grand, palace-like aesthetic.

By the window sat a large desk, covered with freshly printed reports—all sent by Topaz.

Every decision made within the company was laid out in detail, including the very meeting records that Aventurine had secretly passed along.

As Chen Lin read through the internal conflicts and debates among the corporate leadership, he couldn’t help but find Osvaldo’s thoughts amusing.

Yes, it was true that the Empire’s infrastructure, population, and military required considerable maintenance costs.

Yes, it was true that energy was a universal currency, and he could freely exchange it for other resources through void transactions.

But had they ever considered…

What if, in the future, his only concern was having too much money?

Among the [Ascension] Perks granted by the [Elevation] Origin, there was a tier-three ascension under [Basic Armaments] that greatly reduced the construction time for megastructures and removed all limits on how many could be built.

In other words, as long as he had enough stars and resources, he could build a hundred Dyson Spheres, and no one could stop him.

So, they thought a skilled hunter hides as prey?

Had they never heard the phrase—"The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it"?

Or better yet—"The ocelot lurks in the grass, but the lion is watching."

They thought he was playing on the first level, while they strategized on the fifth?

Sorry, but I’m flipping the whole damn board.

Pela quietly peeked over after entering the room—only to lock eyes with Chen Lin.

"You’re here? Come, sit."

"Yes, sir."

She obediently took a seat beside him. As Chen Lin continued flipping through the reports, she curiously glanced over at the contents.

One look—and her mind went completely blank.

These were meeting records from the highest-ranking executives and directors of IPC.

How in the world had he gotten his hands on these?

A few minutes later, Chen Lin set down the files and asked,

"How’s the invitation process going?"

"Ah—cough, cough!" Pela quickly straightened up.

"We’ve sent invitations to 184 civilizations in the surrounding sectors.

"Out of those, 136 are already part of IPC’s trade network.

"As of now, 174 civilizations have responded and confirmed their attendance.

"Every single civilization within IPC’s trade network has agreed to send their leaders to attend our military parade in two months."

"Heh. They responded quickly enough," Chen Lin smirked. "I wouldn’t want to disappoint them, then… What about the other ten?"

"Seven civilizations said they would seriously consider the invitation and respond soon.

"The remaining three… refused outright."

After saying this, Pela glanced at Chen Lin, feeling a surge of excitement.

She had a good idea of what he was about to do.

Sure enough, Chen Lin said, "Summon the commander of Legion Four from the Praetorian Guard."

"Understood, sir."

As the chief architect behind the Praetorian Guard, Pela knew exactly what Legion Four specialized in.

The unit consisted of 4,100 of the most elite psychic warriors, forming a highly integrated, regiment-level force within the Psionic Guard Corps.

Officially, they belonged to a military branch known as the ‘Special Armed Operations Bureau.’

The commander of Legion Four was also the head of this bureau, answering directly to Chen Lin and Bronya.

The Special Ops Bureau primarily conducted intelligence gathering, political surveillance, corporate espionage, and covert operations across foreign governments, corporations, organizations, and individuals.

Their records were completely erased from Jarilo-VI’s public databases—all identities replaced with fabricated backgrounds.

In Jarilo, they were the Psionic Guard.

Beyond Jarilo, they became stateless psionic drifters.

And if Chen Lin was calling upon this particular unit…

His intentions were crystal clear.

Pela gave a soft nod and left.

Not long after, a short-haired girl in a beret and military uniform knocked on the door. Once granted entry, she stepped inside, looking slightly nervous.

"Governor," she saluted. "Commander of Psionic Guard Legion Four, Director of the Special Operations Divison—Fizz, reporting in."

Chen Lin waved a hand, signaling that she didn’t need to salute or stand—she could sit and talk freely.

"It’s been a while, Fizz. How have you been since leaving the bookstore?"

"V-Very well, sir. Thanks to you… I’m deeply grateful."

Fizz perched on the edge of the sofa, barely sitting.

Even after a year in the military, the quiet, bookish aura from her past still lingered.

Back when Chen Lin was forced into the Underworld, Fizz had organized and led multiple protests against Cocolia’s regime. She had written numerous essays and novels criticizing the oppressive rule of the Qlipoth Fort.

In retaliation, she was repeatedly targeted by Cocolia’s government and the reactionary Iron Guards, suffering death threats, physical assaults, and brutal reprisals. Ultimately, she was arrested and thrown into prison.

When Cocolia’s rule collapsed and Belobog was finally liberated, Fizz was released from jail and saw daylight once more.

But her bookstore had already been burned to the ground by the reactionary Iron Guards.

Her home had been razed to the ground.

At that moment, she felt an overwhelming sense of despair—to the point where she considered taking her own life.

Fortunately, before she could act on it, Chen Lin happened to find her and pulled her back from the edge.

When he realized that Fizz was the very bookstore owner he had once bought books from, and that she had ended up homeless and ruined because she had supported his cause, he immediately arranged for her to work at the Qlipoth Fort as Pela’s assistant.

It was a simple administrative job, nothing too demanding—but at least it gave her some stability.

During his time in Jarilo, Chen Lin would often visit Fizz to chat with her, helping her work through the psychological trauma caused by long-term hunger and torture.

Under the Governor’s constant care and encouragement, Fizz slowly began to look forward to life again.

She decided that she wanted to see, with her own eyes, how far her homeland could go under his leadership.

That was when she let go of the idea of ending her life.

To Fizz, Chen Lin was different from other leaders.

He didn’t just lead from above—he had suffered with them, fought alongside them, and now, he shared their victories too.

Day by day, life went on.

Then came the Great Awakening.

Fizz became one of the most powerful psionics in existence, her abilities vastly exceeding the norm.

Shortly after, the Psionic Guard Corps was founded—

And without hesitation, she enlisted.

Even in her free time, Fizz often spoke about Chen Lin.

She had even written a novel—now a best-seller across all of Jarilo.

—"The Light of Belobog."

The book contained one of the most famous lines ever written in Jarilo’s modern history:

"Governor Chen Lin is our light!"

For a time, this phrase spread like wildfire across the network, becoming a viral trend.

Chen Lin, upon noticing the sudden fervor, personally stepped in to suppress the hype.

He was worried that if it spiraled out of control, even wilder claims would start circulating.

...

"Seeing you all doing well is enough for me."

Chen Lin spoke after chatting with Fizz for over an hour.

Then, finally, he got to the real reason he had called her here.

"In the coming days, I may need to assign you a rather dangerous mission. You—"

"I accept!"

Chen Lin: "…"

I haven’t even finished explaining, and you’re already this eager…?

…Forget it.

"These are the interstellar coordinates and names of three different civilizations."

"They’re not particularly friendly toward Jarilo, and their governments are likely to be hostile to us."

"You understand what needs to be done?"

Fizz adjusted her beret, barely sparing a glance at the provided civilization reports.

Then, with a gentle, serene smile, she responded softly—

"Three months—no, one month is enough.

"Rest assured, the Special Operations Divison will make sure they receive all the assistance they need…

"To rebuild a healthy, harmonious, and stable political ecosystem."

---

T/N: uhhh i forgetti wahat i was gounna sayu i no spell arighjcj-tfghweofj OH I THINK SUGILITE FROM EBFORE WAS ACC AVENTURINE!

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!