The cosmos against its black backdrop would drive anyone to develop Deep Space Phobia during the silent voyage, were it not for the existence of StarNet.
Only after venturing into space did Liu Hai realize that cosmic travel lacked the magnificent nebulae and brilliant starscapes of imagination. There was only the eternal black void that had remained unchanged for billions of years.
To witness those spectacular cosmic wonders, one would have to venture beyond star systems or visit special regions where star systems had yet to form.
Liu Hai was staring blankly at the stars outside the viewport when Igor, dressed to the nines, approached with two glasses of alcohol.
"Boss, have a drink," Igor said with a smile, his body adorned with accessories worth up to 100,000 credits, exuding an air of nouveau riche.
"Boss, we'll arrive at Kono Administrative Star this afternoon. The job postings were sent out a month ago, and we already have over 30,000 applicants scheduled. By the time official recruitment begins, there'll be even more people—no need to worry about manpower at all."
Perhaps thinking Liu Hai was concerned about insufficient recruits, Igor went out of his way to reassure him.
Liu Hai shook his head. "I'm not worried about manpower. The Star River Federation's spirit of exploration has never faded. There are more students in military academies than in regular universities, yet fewer than thirty percent ever board starships to traverse the boundless cosmos. Only during wartime does the High Command accept them all. So recruitment isn't my concern."
"What I'm thinking about now is which path I should take. Lucky Igor, do you have any recommendations?"
Igor scratched his head, unfazed by the "lucky" prefix—even curling his lips slightly. If he were truly lucky, would he have spent decades smuggling just to scrape by?
But since it was the boss's chosen title, refusal wasn't an option. He could only accept it.
"Boss, I don't think you should ask me. Once your recruits are in place and you've established a proper staff department, wouldn't it be better to consult them?"
Igor sometimes felt his boss was genuinely a bit... something. From their usual chats and boasts, he could sense that the boss's personality tended toward indecisiveness, yet he often took bold steps. A contradictory character—capable of long-term planning but a mess when it came to details.
Liu Hai dismissed Igor's words. He simply believed Igor was truly blessed with luck. Any task assigned to him was always completed unexpectedly well, occasionally even bringing back extra surprises.
"It's fine. Speak your mind. I'll just take it as a reference."
When the boss makes a decision, it's best to act on it first—even if it's wrong—or you might find yourself in trouble.
Igor turned to pour himself another drink, downed it, and after some thought, finally spoke: "Boss, I remember you saying you wanted to find an uninhabited star system to develop. In that case, you'll definitely need to consider the war factor. Right now, tensions between the Federation and several neighboring civilizations are escalating, with occasional news of patrol fleets being wiped out."
"So personally, I think your best option is to take the Braff Wormhole to the Hera Star System."
"Why is Hera the best choice? Isn't that area currently contested with the Katun Civilization over wormhole access?" Liu Hai found it strange that Igor would suggest the most chaotic region at present.
Igor shook his head with a smile. "It's chaotic, sure, but plenty of people are going there. They've already occupied over five thousand light-years of territory, with influence spanning thirty thousand light-years."
"It looks serious, but full-scale war won't break out. After that initial battle, conflicts between the Katun Civilization and the Federation have always been limited to private explorers competing for mineral resources and habitable planets."
"So given the boss's current strength and choices—avoiding the galactic center he never planned to visit anyway—and heading to the outer spiral arm to develop in a resource-rich star system, even if Katun's exploration fleet discovers us, they won't go all out against the boss. At most, there'll be some small-scale probing and sabotage."
"Eh?" Liu Hai was surprised by Igor's analysis. Could this guy have a talent for command beyond just luck?
"You've got a real knack for strategic planning. The success rate of your approach is over sixty percent. Weren't you a cargo logistics graduate?"
At Liu Hai's words, Igor's face stiffened. Just then, the ship approached the inspection station at the edge of the Kono star system, so he quickly excused himself to the Control Room under the pretense of piloting.
Watching Igor hurry out of the lounge, Liu Hai pulled up the records from the Intelligent Nexus again. Confirming there was no record of formal military academy training, Liu Hai couldn't help wondering—had he actually stumbled upon genuine talent?
The small commercial vessel Star Sea, piloted by Igor, entered the inspection station's waiting light band. From Liu Hai's vantage point, he could clearly see the adjacent exit lanes.
The hundred-kilometer-wide inspection station had four light bands extending from both sides, packed with ships of all types. The largest Liu Hai spotted was a fifteen-kilometer-long luxury liner operated by a tourism company.
For Liu Hai, seeing this interstellar version of a highway toll station for the first time was a novel experience as he took in the surroundings.
Due to Kono Administrative Star's spatial regulations, warp jumps were prohibited within five light-years, and Warp Drive was banned within five light-hours of the Oort Nebula. Thus, all passing ships had to exit the no-fly zones via conventional propulsion before accelerating away.
This resulted in even more ship traffic than in the Third Star System's industrial zone. Unlike there, Kono Administrative Star had looser import/export restrictions—while the Third Star System only allowed weapons exports, other goods only required internal customs clearance since no tariffs were levied anyway.
After nearly three hours passing through inspection and entering the high-speed light band, their destination wasn't Kono Administrative Star itself, but the space station housing Kono Military Academy within the star system.
There, Liu Hai planned to recruit crews for eighteen warships and three cargo spaceships—totaling fifteen thousand personnel.
Of these, fewer than five thousand would be combat personnel. The remaining ten thousand covered all logistical roles—from major warship repairs to kitchen staff, plus ship designers, researchers, and base construction specialists.
While each department would be thinly staffed, Liu Hai prioritized establishing a complete organizational framework first. This initial expedition would serve to break in the team—later, they could simply expand by filling vacancies.
The entire system also adopted the mature lord system, a management framework refined over thousands of years of development—far superior to anything Liu Hai could haphazardly come up with on his own.
The space station had already come into view, and Liu Hai's heart swelled with excitement. This was the starting point, but it would absolutely not be his final destination.
Just as Liu Hai's thoughts began to drift, a fleet of several dozen small ships streaked past from beyond the Light Band at twenty percent of lightspeed, jostling and overtaking each other like reckless street racers.