Petrification sickness; self-destructing ore.
No wonder a Stone Kingdom so tempting could stand so aloof among the many interstellar civilizations' universes.
So it was these things that sheltered it.
At once it set Zhao Chen and Lilith thinking.
That being so, "taking" the Stone Kingdom looked like a very hard thing indeed.
"Conquering the Stone Kingdom is hard to manage. But if all you want is to open cooperation with them, there are in fact ways," Huaya Lanlan put in now.
Zhao Chen and Lilith looked at Huaya Lanlan at once.
Huaya Lanlan said, "First, because of the Stone Kingdom's peculiarity, the output of some things is very scarce too. I expect you've all heard of the Stone Kingdom: that the Stone Kingdom's race can eat ore. But that isn't the whole of it. Some ores can serve as their food, but on the whole they're still carbon-based life; they need water, vegetables and other food too. But in the Stone Kingdom these things are all very scarce. Above all, fruit and vegetables! In recent years, of the goods the Stone Kingdom has bought from outside through us Flower-Fairy interstellar traders, a third have been fruit, vegetables and other food. It's said these crops can't be grown in the Stone Kingdom at all."
Fruit and vegetables?
Zhao Chen's heart gave a jolt; what came to mind at once was their Owl Dragon-line Eden-class Starships!
"Besides that, though the Stone Kingdom isn't a warlike race, they're passionately fond of collecting all kinds of powerful interstellar warships. Some of the Stone Kingdom's nobles even buy T6-grade interstellar warships through our Flower-Fairy interstellar traders' channels just to put them on display in their collections. On the whole they have a very great urge to collect."
Hearing Huaya Lanlan's account,
a picture of a certain kind of nouveau riche rose unbidden in Zhao Chen's mind: grown rich on the local specialty, and buying, buying, buying every kind of luxury.
Huaya Lanlan looked at Zhao Chen. "Your Majesty, if you want to build good diplomatic relations with the Stone Kingdom, you can start from these things."
"Then I'll trouble you now to introduce us to the people on the Stone Kingdom's side," Zhao Chen said.
"Introductions aren't a problem. On the Stone Kingdom's side we have people we've worked with too. But the people of the Stone Kingdom have one trait: they don't like listening to what others say with their mouths; they like to see with their own eyes, things they can really touch," Huaya Lanlan said.
Hearing Huaya Lanlan explain this,
Zhao Chen understood at once; he looked at Lilith. "Arrange right now for a fleet to go back to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's universe, have them prepare a batch of 'goods' over there, and bring it here in the shortest time!"
Lilith understood Zhao Chen's meaning at once too, and nodded. "I'll see to it right away. At the speed of our one-way trip before, the round trip should bring that batch of goods here within a week."
When she had said this, Lilith looked at Huaya Lanlan. "May I ask: setting out from here, about how long does it take to reach the Stone Kingdom?"
"We're not far from the Stone Kingdom here; one way takes only a day, and two days is enough for the round trip," Huaya Lanlan said.
"Good. Then please arrange the timing; six days from now at the latest, we set out for the Stone Kingdom!" Lilith had very nearly the whole itinerary arranged in one stroke.
At this point Lilith paused and looked at Huaya Lanlan and Huaya Nini. "You can make preparations on your side too. To save time and resources, you can arrange for your first group of trainees to come with us to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire for the relevant training, to prepare for setting up production lines on your side in future, and for operating those interstellar industrial ships and interstellar transports."
Huaya Nini's eyes lit up; she volunteered at once, looking at her sister. "Sister, a matter this important naturally needs our core people to go. Home needs you here in command. This is naturally something I should be in charge of. I ask to lead the group to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire!"
Her curiosity about the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire made Huaya Nini look forward very much to the journey.
Huaya Lanlan looked at her sister with a complicated expression.
Strictly speaking, Huaya Nini was right: she was indeed the best choice.
But as her elder sister, she still worried for her sister's safety, going off to an interstellar civilization's universe wholly unknown to them.
"Sister, I'm not a child anymore. I'm an interstellar trader who can stand on her own now." Huaya Nini drew herself up straight, a proud, confident look on her face.
Huaya Lanlan sighed and looked at Lilith. "Then we'll do as my lady Secretary-Officer says. I leave my sister in your hands."
"We're allies now; when Miss Huaya Nini comes to our Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's universe, she's our guest. We treat our guests well, no question about it. Please rest assured, Miss Huaya Lanlan."
After some talk, what came next was basically settled.
Huaya Lanlan and Huaya Nini left the Dragon Emperor Interstellar Command Ship and went back to their interstellar shuttle, ready to see to their own business.
On the interstellar shuttle,
Huaya Lanlan worked the controls, but her eyes seemed a thousand miles away; she said gravely, "This time we've made a decision that may well shape the future fate of our Bailan Interstellar Trade Group. Since we've made the decision, there's no reason to regret it. Next, we need to work with the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire with all our strength, and lean on this great mountain so our Bailan Interstellar Trade Group can grow strong in a short time. Nini, take care on this trip to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire too. Do everything you can to find out every side of the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire. They're our allies, but we have to understand our allies well enough too, to make our future cooperation all the more perfect."
"Don't worry, Sister; I'll do all of it well." Huaya Nini's eyes now were full of anticipation for the journey!
It had to be said that Flower-Fairy interstellar traders worked truly efficiently.
In under half a day,
a party of nearly thirty thousand was assembled,
every one of them a Flower-Fairy from the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group's own core staff.
These thirty thousand Flower-Fairy core staff boarded an interstellar cruise liner the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group had prepared, and would return to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire under the escort of thirty Emperor's Guard Fleet interstellar warships.
And the one in charge of this Flower-Fairy interstellar cruise liner was Huaya Nini.
The one in charge of the thirty Emperor's Guard Fleet interstellar warships was a deputy commander under Commander Xiong Xiangxiang.
"Report: everything is ready; we can set out at any time." The deputy commander looked at Commander Xiong Xiangxiang, the Owl Dragon Emperor and Secretary-Officer Lilith on the other side of the video window before her.
Zhao Chen nodded slightly.
Commander Xiong Xiangxiang at once began passing on the order to set out.
As Huaya Lanlan watched from her flagship not far off, a sight like "white jade" appeared.
The thirty-one interstellar warships began slowly to pass through this gate of white jade.
Huaya Lanlan had long been prepared for this.
She had guessed long ago that if the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, a T6 technology civilization, could send an interstellar fleet right under her nose without anyone knowing,
it must have mastered technology of this kind for delivering interstellar fleets across universes.
And going by the distance between the two universes, the technology the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire had mastered was far more advanced than the technology their Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes used now.
If it was not too costly to build, it could be put to use in the Bailan Interstellar Trade Group's interstellar trade shipping.
Huaya Lanlan was truly worthy of being an interstellar trader; three sentences never went by without her own old trade in them, and even the thoughts in her head ran that way.
Very soon the thirty-one starships vanished without a trace.
The gate of white jade dispersed too.
All grew calm again.
Though she knew this "business trip" held no danger, Huaya Lanlan could not help worrying about her sister.
But Huaya Lanlan likely never imagined
that the sister she worried about would very soon be so happy in the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire she would forget all about home.
……
At first Huaya Nini was indeed somewhat nervous.
It was not her first time going to another interstellar civilization's universe.
But for those interstellar civilizations' universes, her sister had usually taken her there once beforehand, or given her the relevant data and passed on her experience.
But this trip to the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire was to an interstellar civilization's universe no Flower-Fairy of the Flower-Fairy Federal Tribes had ever been to.
It was her, Huaya Nini's, first time, and her sister had no experience at all to pass on to her.
So it was wholly unlike those journeys before.
Excitement mixed with nerves.
But when she truly reached the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire, the scene before her stunned her.
This was a star system that looked as if it must be a military star system,
for she could see military star ports, and star gates, and some industrial facilities, and the interstellar legion fleets stationed here.
The interstellar warships of those interstellar legion fleets all bore the Owl Dragon crest.
Why was she stunned?
Because the technology in use here was almost all of the T5 grade even at its lowest.
Even the interstellar transports appearing here were T5-grade without exception.
This… just how powerful was this Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire?
To be at such a level!
Just then a video window request popped up.
Huaya Nini clicked to accept at once.
On the other side appeared a succubus, looking at her with a smile.
"Hello, Ms. Huaya Nini. I'm Bessie, Third Secretary-Officer of the Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire's Supreme Secretariat. I've been informed of your cooperation with His Majesty. From now on, everything to do with you and your colleagues in our Owl Dragon Interstellar Empire is in my charge." Secretary-Officer Bessie was modest and courteous.
She had none of Secretary-Officer Lilith's overbearing presence either; far more, she gave one the feeling of a warm spring breeze.