On Pier Point.
The remaining corporate employees, along with the soldiers stationed at headquarters, gazed up at the blue-gray warship in the sky with expressions of awe and fear.
Its size was immense—comparable to several cities combined. It hovered directly above the planet, casting a vast shadow over Pier Point.
"Hm..."
Grey surveyed the corporate headquarters below.
High-tech buildings stood in dense clusters. At the city's center rose an extravagantly large complex, presumably reserved for the Seven-Member Board and department directors.
The administrative district was enormous as well, gathering the upper echelon of the entire Interastral Peace Corporation.
In terms of infrastructure, aside from lagging somewhat in technological sophistication, it could already be called an ideal city.
Although the war had caused minor unrest, Pier Point was far from the front lines and had not yet been directly touched by the flames of battle.
"Your headquarters are built quite well. Not much different from the capital a few years ago."
The nanobots offered a casual compliment.
"The location is good too. This is a node within this star region—perfect as the administrative and trade center for the entire sector."
"!!!"
The corporate employees below seized upon her words as if grasping a lifeline.
It sounded like she saw some value in this place.
That was good news. Planets the Starsea Empire deemed worthless were either shattered into fragments by Photoids or flattened into paintings by the Dual-Vector Foil.
"As long as our personal safety is guaranteed, we are willing to surrender!"
"We will hand over all internal corporate data, including files from the Seven-Member Board and every department! Trade agreements with other worlds can also be transferred to you!"
A director shouted desperately.
"No."
Grey shook her head.
"I only said I want this planet. When did I say I wanted the people on it?"
"You interstellar types—what use are you to the Starsea Empire? Aside from exploiting other civilizations and fighting among yourselves, your standard of living is absurdly extravagant."
"I don't want you."
"What? ..."
As the executives processed the transmission in shock, they suddenly discovered that the nanite warship hovering above Pier Point had begun to transform.
The essence of the Gray Tempest was hundreds of billions of self-replicating nanobots.
She could become a silver-haired girl, a space warship—or release her true form and sweep across the galaxy as a gray plague storm.
With overwhelming computational power, Grey could construct objects from the molecular level upward. Nearly all technological creations could be perfectly replicated.
Naturally, that included Colossus-class weapons.
Click—
The axial main cannon of the nanite warship extended and morphed, its volume expanding dozens of times within minutes.
It transformed into a spearhead-shaped emitter, surrounded by petal-like shield plates stretching hundreds of kilometers in length.
The main cannon rotated, aiming toward the planet's equator.
"What is that?"
A sense of dread spread among the employees on Pier Point.
The garrison soldiers gripped their weapons. Some fired uselessly into the sky, while others activated heavy ground-based anti-ship batteries.
Boom boom boom—
Without exception, every attack was deflected by the energy shields.
Clack!—
The emitter, dozens of kilometers in diameter, entered charging mode. The shield plates unfolded in response.
[Charging progress: 23%... 45%... 77%... 100%]
[Full-ship diagnostics...]
[Neutron Sweep—Ready]
The Starsea Empire had developed Colossus technology long ago.
Weapons such as World Cracker, capable of shattering worlds; the Global Pacifier, which sealed entire planets within barriers; nanoplague calamities that converted flesh into machinery.
Some Colossus models were deemed inefficient and never formally deployed.
Neutron Sweep, however, had been retained.
Hummm—
BOOM!!
A blinding torrent of white neutrons erupted from the emitter.
Upon reaching Pier Point's surface, it expanded into a column of light hundreds of kilometers in diameter—large enough to engulf several cities at once.
All organic matter touched by the neutron stream—soldiers, animals, plants, even microorganisms—dissolved instantly.
The beam swept slowly across the planet, carving out a widening zone of death.
"!!!"
The stationed troops had never witnessed such a weapon. They scattered madly, scrambling for cover.
Executives hid in the deepest subterranean shelters—structures designed to withstand planetary bombardment.
Whoosh—
The high-energy neutron beam pierced through every building and defensive fortification. It did not matter whether one hid inside structures, underground bunkers, or starships.
A dozen seconds later, the once-bustling headquarters towers of the Interastral Peace Corporation stood eerily empty.
Holographic screens still displayed reports from the front lines. The Interastral Peace Broadcast studio sat deserted, broadcasting equipment continuing to operate in lonely silence.
Viewers watching the live stream were startled to see a brief distortion in the feed.
Bzzzt—
When the signal reconnected, everyone had vanished.
The camera remained fixed upon the anchor desk backdrop—no host, no narration.
The holographic display still carried the headline condemning the Starsea Empire for deploying weapons of mass destruction.
"Is this a broadcast accident?"
Audiences were bewildered.
Under normal circumstances, the director would have cut to advertisements immediately.
Yet the live feed continued uninterrupted until the scheduled broadcast time ended, with no transition to other programming.
Some attempted to flee the planet by starship. But white neutron clouds permeated the cities, the atmosphere, and even near-orbital space.
Any vessel passing through them found all organic life within decomposed in moments.
They did not even clear the atmosphere before their ships became falling meteors, streaking down toward the surface...
Only then did some finally grasp what the nanobots intended.
"Are you going to kill all of us?!"
"Is there a problem with that?"
Grey asked, genuinely puzzled.
"You monstrous butcher!!!"
"*****!!!"
The crowd below hurled their most venomous curses toward the sky.
"Please don't try to bind me with human morality. I don't possess such a thing. To me, you're simply inefficient organic organisms."
The nanobots spread their hands.
"If you had won, wouldn't you have harbored all sorts of filthy intentions toward the Starsea Empire? Annex our planets, enslave us, plunder our resources, saddle us with debts we could never repay."
"In that case, why can't I do the same to you?"
"It's fair, isn't it?"
BOOM!—
Power output increased further.
The light column intensified. Neutron plumes hammered the surface, white mist blanketing the entire world.
As the planet rotated, the beam swept across its surface, disintegrating every organic lifeform it encountered.
Half a day later.
Pier Point fell silent.
All organic life had been completely annihilated by the neutron stream.
In the skies, on the surface, beneath the crust—no living organism remained.
Only a small number of mechanical intelligences and robots survived. Low-level units, stripped of command, wandered chaotically across the ground.
Even independent AI suffered interference and shock, staring at the empty city without knowing what to do.
"Deploy the Angeloids. Take control of the area."
Click—
Tens of thousands of Angeloids roared downward, crushing the remaining mechanical resistance.
As artificial intelligences themselves, they were unaffected by the lingering neutron plumes on Pier Point.
"Hm, some basic environmental restoration will be needed. The biosphere has been completely destroyed."
Grey looked down at the planet with satisfaction.
Clean. Orderly. Neutron Sweep had swept away all unnecessary life while preserving the corporate headquarters' material assets to the greatest extent possible.
Most buildings and equipment remained intact.
"You are the murderer of a civilization!!"
Before being subdued by the Angeloids, the remaining mechanical intelligences roared toward the sky.
Compared to Photoids and the Dual-Vector Foil, Neutron Sweep was less visually grand—yet its cruelty lay in its precision.
As its name suggested, its sole purpose was extermination.
"Am I? Perhaps."
Grey nodded lightly.
"Some would call the complete eradication of intelligent life while preserving inorganic matter an evil war crime."
"We call it efficiency."
Whoosh—
Tens of thousands of Angeloids rapidly took control of the now-empty Pier Point within a short time.
All sealed corporate archives, along with the valuable assets preserved there by executives, were seized in their entirety.
Countless Angeloids moved back and forth through the sky, hauling piles upon piles of items from luxurious buildings and stacking them in open areas for inventory.
There were rare treasures and exotic collections plundered from various galaxies, as well as all manner of strange technological creations developed by the IPC's Research Division.
The Angeloids sorted everything meticulously, recording and storing each item one by one.
Another group—domestic-model units—handled sanitation, sweeping away the ashes left behind after organic life had been disintegrated.
Thus, Pier Point grew busy once more. Only its masters had been completely replaced.
"Ahem—"
Grey narrowed her eyes, sensing the planetary environment.
Trace amounts of neutron clouds still lingered in the atmosphere. The cleansing had been so thorough that not even microorganisms remained.
The planet's biosphere had been completely reset. No animals. No plants. For a time, not even bacteria would exist.
"Report, Commander. We've secured the Interastral Peace Corporation's headquarters."
Beep—
She established contact with the Starsea Empire's homeland.
"Not bad. That was quick."
Setsuna smiled.
"The location is excellent. It connects a vast stretch of starfields—perfect as a forward base in this universe. That's why I didn't use Photoids or the Dual-Vector Foil here."
"In the future, we can relocate our forward station here. The Delves inside the Xianzhou Luofu are a bit cramped. Living in someone else's house all the time isn't very convenient."
The nanobots scratched their head.
Pier Point was even more prosperous than the Xianzhou. Its infrastructure was comprehensive. With minor modifications, it could be put into immediate use.
It would serve well as the Starsea Empire's forward base in this universe—housing additional forces and expanded research facilities.
"Mm... that works. I'll send more Angeloids and Bulins over. Quite a few shipgirls were clamoring to visit, but you ended things too quickly."
Setsuna called over Yat Sen to begin organizing a new expeditionary team.
"There's one small issue. The biosphere here is gone. Environmental restoration will be required."
"That's simple enough..."
Setsuna gestured.
"Aaa?"
Tiamat leaned her head into the holographic interface.
"It's fine. Mother will help you."
...
Corporate Standard Time, 9:30 PM.
Across countless alien civilizations, beings sat before holographic screens awaiting the daily broadcast of Interastral Peace Broadcast.
They hoped to glean updates on the war between the Starsea Empire and the Interastral Peace Corporation. Although the IPC's media dominance ensured that not every event was reported truthfully, fragments of information still allowed careful observers to infer key developments.
For instance—the Starsea Empire had penetrated corporate territory, annihilated the main fleet with the Dual-Vector Foil, and was approaching headquarters.
Bzzzz...
The Interastral Peace Broadcast signal connected.
But today, viewers discovered that the usual host in corporate uniform was absent.
Instead, a woman with a cool, detached expression appeared on screen.
She had appeared before—when issuing the final ultimatum to the IPC.
Sophon.
"This is the Starsea Empire. We have taken control of the Interastral Peace Corporation's headquarters, Pier Point, along with sixty-five percent of its starfields."
"Interastral Peace Broadcast will temporarily be administered by us."
The moment Sophon spoke, gasps erupted across the cosmos.
The IPC's headquarters had fallen!!!
For countless epochs, no one had imagined such a thing.
The once-arrogant Interastral Peace Corporation—the entity that manipulated cosmic rules with one hand—had lost its capital.
Previously, only officials ranked P36 or above were permitted to visit Pier Point. It symbolized elite status and housed the headquarters of every major department.
Its fall meant only one thing:
The Interastral Peace Corporation had collapsed entirely.
"We have conducted necessary cleansing operations on Pier Point. Angeloids will assume comprehensive control over all corporate operations."
"Interastral Peace Bank, Interastral Peace Network, Interastral Peace Trade, and all affiliated institutions will undergo complete restructuring."
Sophon continued calmly.
"Additionally, the Starsea Empire now presents a third proposal to the remaining members of the Interastral Peace Corporation:"
"Cease all resistance immediately. Accept full integration under the Starsea Empire. Transfer all business operations and control of remaining star systems."
"All corporate members ranked P16 or above are to report to Pier Point. The Starsea Empire will determine your future based on your prior conduct."
"This is the final proposal from the Starsea Empire. You have twelve hours to consider. After the deadline, Imperial fleets will commence cleansing operations on remaining star systems."
"!!!"
Another wave of shock swept through the universe.
Ever since the IPC's main fleet had been two-dimensionalized—and the Amber Lord had offered no response—most had already realized the IPC's defeat was inevitable.
On scattered corporate-held worlds, surviving employees suddenly recalled the very first proposal offered by the Starsea Empire during their initial contact.
At the time, it had seemed laughable.
The Starsea Empire had demanded that the Interastral Peace Corporation merge into it and accept restructuring.
Grey had even warned them:
"The first negotiation with the Starsea Empire will be the best terms you ever receive."
No one had taken it seriously.
Each subsequent proposal had escalated in severity. Even when Sophon delivered the final ultimatum, the corporate leadership had dismissed it.
Only now did the survivors realize—this was their final chance.
What did the Starsea Empire mean by "cleansing"?
No one knew.
But after witnessing Photoids, the Dual-Vector Foil, and Neutron Sweep, no one doubted that something even more horrifying awaited if resistance continued.
The Starsea Empire had "only" destroyed a few million star systems.
Though the death toll had long surpassed quadrillions, their campaign had never been directed at entire galaxies. Their targets were merely the IPC's star systems scattered across the galaxies—and even then, only the IPC's home galaxy had suffered true devastation.
Against the scale of the cosmos, it was considered restraint.
Maybe the next time, it wouldn't be stars blinking out—
But galaxies.
In an instant, snowflake-like streams of messages flooded toward Pier Point.
The remaining corporate personnel agreed to all of Sophon's terms without hesitation, willingly surrendering control of their remaining star systems and business operations.
Countless individuals knelt upon the ground, trembling as they welcomed the descending Angeloids, voluntarily offering up everything in exchange for peace.
That expressionless artificial intelligence conveyed a simple truth to all:
"Had the IPC accepted the first proposal, most people could have retained their freedom and continued their former lives—only under new rules."
"If they waited until the second proposal, a price would have been required."
"But when the Starsea Empire presents a third proposal, the few survivors left can only kneel before Imperial fleets and beg for mercy and forgiveness."
Whoosh—
Through the holographic interface, Sophon's gaze seemed to pierce across the stars, meeting the eyes of every civilization.
"The Interastral Peace Corporation has provided an excellent demonstration. From this point onward, how you choose to act is something I hope you will consider carefully."