Chapter 808: Chapter 808. Zone Between The Stars.
While Obsidianis and Liu Shu had their moment, Liu Shu decided to have some private time with all the others to bring down her burning feelings. After all, what she did with Obsidianis could only be considered foreplay, and it quite ignited something in her.
Therefore, she used her real body and roots to make sure none of the four Sylvans could get out of their bed for at least a day.
Seraphina, meanwhile, was unaware and looking forward to her outing with Liu Shu in about two weeks.
Liu Shu, feeling refreshed, moved her attention away to outer space. Her roots had long left the Ceperet Solar System and, according to the Star Map she had, would be able to come in contact with a nearby unpopulated Solar System.
"It’s... that star, right? Still, I am a bit surprised."
She had expected the stretch between stars to be incredibly empty or filled with just some occasional rogue planets and asteroids. However, she was pleasantly surprised to know that in the stretch between stars, <Astraelis> thrived quite abundantly.
Astraelis were beasts that were either born of space or had evolved out of their home planet and become star wanderers. The number of such beasts was so large that, even when hunting was done by most prolific powers, their numbers still remained seemingly endless.
"Another thing I am surprised by is the large amount of structures..."
Structures, or natural formations that didn’t form just from gravity and other forces, were abundant enough to the point that Liu Shu understood why fast travel between stars was somewhat lengthy.
You couldn’t just accelerate to near light speeds and leave yourself without time to dodge because, if the structure you collided with was too solid, the results could be catastrophic. As a matter of fact, accidents in space were not unusual at all.
In summary, the space between stars was surprisingly more dense with interesting things than she initially expected. Her gaze couldn’t help but turn toward the "outside."
"I wonder if the space between galaxies is also as cluttered? Hm... I want to inspect these things a bit more."
Some of her roots manifested around a structure, scaring some nearby <Astraelis> into scurrying away. The sight of several thick, blue-glowing roots tearing the spatial wall and manifesting from nowhere was quite impactful, even for the usual non-intelligent <Astraelis>.
"So... what material are you made of?"
One of her roots opened at the tip, not swallowing but only keeping the materials inside for analysis. "...Oh?"
A surprised sound escaped her. "Sylvanium? And large amounts of it?"
One question she had been confused about was unexpectedly answered here. To create spaceships of A Tier and above, incredibly large amounts of Sylvanium, Celestium, and other similar materials were needed.
No matter how Liu Shu thought about it, the cost was just not worth it. After all, even while producing these materials in abundance daily with her roots, Liu Shu would feel very reluctant to spend them in a starship instead of equipment.
At first, she had just thought that the large powers just pooled resources from several Solar Systems to build them. However, if that was the case, some information she had gained from the several things she "ate" would not make much sense. One of them was the rogue starship merchants.
For someone to open a business and be successful, they needed to make a profit or have a substantial surplus. This was a universal truth.
However, a surplus in something as precious and scarce as Sylvanium, Ascendium, and the like was something Liu Shu found impossible.
"But, if these wild structures are made of natural Sylvanium, Etherium, and the like..."
If that was the truth, things changed quite drastically. It was that interstellar powers were able to pool these resources, but that, since they had conquered the space between several Solar Systems, mining them became possible.
Liu Shu clicked her tongue. "It’s like precious metals like diamonds and the like. These kinds of materials are quite abundant in the Asteroid belt and some Moons. In the end, the ultimate truth is that organic materials are the true scarcity of the universe."
She couldn’t help but sigh and also feel motivated. "With this new knowledge, I must get a hold of my neighboring Solar Systems quickly and form a small defensive line. Unless I can reliably mine these structures, I am nothing."
Another curiosity that popped into her mind was how such things formed. While, because it was the depth of space, distinguishing color was hard, it was not impossible to tell the greenish, bluish, pinkish, and other glimmers on these structures.
While Liu Shu said that they were "made out of Sylvanium," the reason for such wording was that, for such a scarce material, just having a faint layer of it above it was ridiculous.
Imagine finding a mountain whose surface and some of its interior are sprinkled with diamonds. Most people would call that a mountain made out of diamonds.
"Let’s look around... There should be one or two structures mid-forming, right?"
This was something Liu Shu, with her ability to "see" across billions of kilometers at once effortlessly, could do.
"Hm... Not here... not there..." A touch of doubt appeared in her eyes, and then, her eyes cleared. "Ah. So stupid. These processes probably take hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years. How could I ’see’ the formation?"
Only by scanning different zones and comparing data between years would she be able to see such a structure form. "There should be something about it in the Covenant or Nexus databases I’ve... gained."
Her mind quickly scanned information deep inside, and soon, she recalled something she had ignored. "Ah. Here it is... <Formation Of Core Structures>."
It was something she had not really paid attention to in the past, as she didn’t even know what these structures were. Moreover, with her Lignified architecture, knowledge about normal structures would not really be helpful to her. So, she skimmed over it and forgot about it.
"Let’s see... Aha... space <Structures> manifest after a long time of sub-dimensional erosion grinding ternary essences and <Astraelis> carcasses into dust..."
Liu Shu blinked and chuckled. "Is this like that black tar I found underground, formed of organic matter degrading over many years?"
It was a substance that Liu Shu felt had a good energy retention rate, but after a few tests, its pollutants proved too harsh, and it was quickly marked as useless. There were thousands of better alternatives.
"Sub-dimensions..."
It was something that still called for Liu Shu’s interest. However, knowing that even the place where the Arboreal Winged Serpents was called a Sub-dimension, she didn’t really dare to poke around blindly. Just imagining encountering an equal to that creature that forcefully bound her when she was so young made her feel chills.
While she had been very young back then, the sight of the sky splitting as a sky-blotting serpentine eye looked down like a god sent chills to her even now.
How long was the distance between her and that creature?
How could it, even from such a long distance, make a contract with her?
Moreover, the thing overrode some System messages if Liu Shu did not recall incorrectly. Now that she was Level 200, this information chilled her to the core. ’That thing is probably one of a few existences near that record-bearing creature of Level 900 something.’
Level 900... That means going through nine whole <Ascensions>. If her current species was already quite ridiculous, just imagining herself after seven more evolutions made her want to weep. ’Too strong... QAQ!’
She quickly threw that to the back of her mind. "Alright, not the problem is how to create a mining station here. A teleportation portal so far away was still a touch beyond her ability.
Her Level had been growing steadily, and she was already Level 220. However, even now, Liu Shu still felt like interstellar portals would be a bit too tough for her and Tree to maintain. "I think I need to reach Level 300... Well, it depends on the growth I get during my <Second Ascension>."
With the new dimensional <Title> and the new species, manipulating space was not that complicated.
"I digress..."
Liu Shu chuckled, her eyes moving to the few <Astraelis>. "Honestly... wouldn’t hunting these things be good for my Experience Point gaining?"
There were plenty of Level 200+ creatures that could bring her Experience Points. Only, Liu Shu felt that doing so might go against what a World Tree was. It was the same as when she was young. Liu Shu never went on a hunting spree in the forest and killed thousands of animals to Level Up.
This was not because she didn’t think about it, but more to maintain a natural balance. Of course, the number of creatures she would hunt wouldn’t be enough to even make a dent in the amount that Interstellar powers hunted.
If placed side by side, the order of magnitude might differ by three or four, perhaps more.
"Even then... if I hunt them now, I will hunt in the future. The higher my level, the higher the need for Experience Points."
Eventually, her rampage might become too unhinged. It only took going over one’s bottom line once to become a repeated offender. ’I am not that desperate... yet.’
So, ultimately, she decided not to target the plentiful <Astraelis> roaming in space. These beasts, whose instinct was nothing but super, felt the tense atmosphere relax. For a moment, they had felt as if a calamity was about to befall their kind.
"Anyhow... is there not anything else interesting?"
The wide open void between the stars, which was surprisingly full of things, had piqued Liu Shu’s curiosity. Her eyes scanned the place, and not long after, another discovery was met.
"Oh! Is this... a base of some sort?"
Between some structures, Liu Shu saw a camouflaged metallic base. Focusing her senses there, and with the help of Wisdom and her newfound knowledge of <Arrays> and <Runes>, Liu Shu pierced through the veil.
"Wow~, quite a few people! Moreover, they even have gardens and cattle and such. An autosufficient base?"
As her gaze scanned the area, Wisdom translated their language into her ears. Most conversations were day-to-day exchanges, but a few of them naturally spilled some of the interesting details.
"How long until our next departure?"
"I have no clue. We’ve been trying to intercept some merchant ship routes, but their guard has been quite tight recently."
"Tsk. This area was so easy to move around, but lately, so many new super-powers have started to take a liking to it."
"It’s because of the nearby World Tree that popped out of nowhere."
"Annoying thing."
"Is it?"
"Hm? What do you mean? Our golden apple tree has been strangled by it."
"Or... a larger one has taken over."
"What... ah. Right, since they are trying to stretch out, we can target them. Some accidents for a new power are a shame, but something normal."
Liu Shu chuckled. "Oh my, it seems that these structures are a breeding ground for disgusting parasites."
