Cataclysm: Undead Dragons and Zero Empire

"Attention all personnel, stealth module power increased to 85%, flight path correction."

Captain Rex relayed his orders as he sat in the captain's chair, his hands resting on the control panel. The lines of his prosthetic limbs, a combination of metal and biological tissue, were cold and sharp, and his prosthetic eyes kept flashing. He was rapidly scanning various parameters as he connected to the ship's real-time system.

Rex was once the most outstanding interstellar veteran under the Boros Global Foundation. However, when he was severely injured in a brutal rebellion suppression, he did not have enough funds to undergo cybernetic modifications, nor could he put his mutilated body into a fighting machine to continue fighting.

Soldiers from both civilized and non-civilized backgrounds within the Foundation are required to be self-sufficient in their equipment. Faced with this predicament, the Foundation broke its promise and failed to provide him with the retirement benefits he deserved. Instead, it simply removed him from the combat sequence as if he had disappeared.

Just when Rex was on the verge of despair, his subordinates noticed him and, impressed by his combat skills as a veteran of countless battles, not only provided him with ample funds to replace his prosthetic body and arrange the best surgery, but most importantly, they also gave him respect and trust.

From that moment on, Rex swore allegiance to Karen, not to the cold and rigid Boros Global Foundation.

"Captain, the stealth module is operating stably, and no abnormal signals have been detected," the crew member in charge of the monitoring system reported.

"Stay vigilant and don't let your guard down," Rex's voice was as mechanical and unwavering as ever. "The way the target planet appeared is too bizarre; we can't be sure if they possess a level of technology beyond our expectations."

The ships darted through the starry sky like ghosts, approaching the suddenly appearing planet. Their detection signals revealed the planet's outline, covered by vast snowfields and glaciers, with white as the dominant color.

"Captain, an unusual energy signal has been detected around the target planet!" the alarm was relayed to the captain. "It's a ship that's currently sailing and moving towards a planet on the outer edge of the star system."

Rex perked up and immediately adjusted the monitoring system, zooming in on the image of the ship. He saw that it was a somewhat bulky ship with psionic signals flowing across its surface armor.

The ship was quite outdated for them, but the psionic signal forced Rex to be on high alert. "Increase the output power of the stealth module, evade the enemy's route, and absolutely cannot be detected."

Rex decisively ordered the ship to adjust its attitude and follow an asteroid. "The stealth module's energy output has reached 100%. The ship must remain completely silent."

"Very good," Rex nodded, his prosthetic eye focusing on the unfamiliar ship. "Initiate remote scanning."

An invisible wave spread toward the ship, and a large amount of analytical data appeared like a waterfall. Rex quickly scanned these parameters.

"The propulsion system is the most basic nuclear fusion engine," Rex had obtained a complete model of the enemy ship. "Hmm... it has already surpassed the stages of working propellant engines and nuclear fission engines, and is sufficient to support them in long-distance interplanetary travel within this system."

He had piloted various ships and was quite familiar with different levels of technology. Although the ship in front of him was outdated, it exceeded his expectations for a newly emerging interstellar civilization.

"According to the files provided by His Excellency the Special Envoy, this civilization was still in the agricultural era not long ago, and now it has leaped into the interstellar era..." Rex's tone carried an undisguised sense of emotion, "To have achieved such a huge leap in such a short period of time, technological progress cannot be called development, it should be called an explosion."

Rex had been a soldier who had landed on many colony planets in peripheral star systems and witnessed the rise and fall of various civilizations, but the civilization before him was undoubtedly special, which was perhaps the reason he was sent here.

"Captain, should we conduct a more detailed scan of that ship?" a crew member asked.

"No need," Rex shook his head, always keeping Karen's orders in mind: "Our core mission is observation; there can be no possibility of exposure."

His gaze fell on the slowly moving ship, and he continued, "Record the ship's trajectory. We will continue to approach the target planet and prepare to increase the scanning power. We need to obtain comprehensive data on that planet."

"Understood, Captain."

The crew immediately began recording data, while Rex refocused his attention on the icy planet, setting a course to evade the ship, getting closer and closer to the planet's edge.

Using long-range observation equipment, Rex saw the endless ice sheets on the surface, with occasional huge ice ridges and rifts extending across the ice fields, like solidified scars on the planet's surface.

The ship's design didn't resemble that of a civilization originating from an icy planet, and the records indicated that the planet was once a vibrant, terrestrial planet. Perhaps some unknown changes occurred on this planet during this short period of time.

Rex was not given any information about the purpose of his mission, or even the background of the mission. He was given only a file and orders, and all he had to do was carry them out, even though he was no longer a soldier who risked his life in interstellar space.

Everything was done according to Envoy Karen's wishes. Rex voluntarily became the blade in his hands. As a retired adventurer, his combat power did not decrease but increased.

"Captain, we have detected multiple concentrated energy signal sources on the surface, which are presumably energy supply facilities located in settlement areas. We have also detected a small amount of low-frequency signals, suggesting that they have established a basic communication network covering the entire globe."

Rex recorded everything he saw and heard in his logbook, while the crew busily categorized and organized all the observed data, recording it in detail in the database.

The speed of this civilization's development is too bizarre, completely contrary to the evolutionary laws of conventional civilizations. He must transmit these observations back to Envoy Karen as soon as possible to provide him with the most accurate evidence.

"Maintain the current course and observation distance, continuously monitor the planet's surface energy signals and communication frequencies, and keep an eye on the movement of that exploration ship. Report any abnormalities immediately."

Rex's voice rang out again, "Our mission is covert observation. We must not expose ourselves. Once we have obtained sufficient data, we must immediately withdraw to a safe area and await further instructions."

The ships, like invisible ghosts, moved slowly in orbit around the outer reaches of the planet, spying on this icy world that had suddenly appeared in the starry sky.

The civilization on this planet is unaware that it is being watched by the gaze of distant stars. It continues to develop tenaciously along its own trajectory on the frozen land, taking tentative steps towards the wider universe.