Deep space of the Universe.
Chongqing, the Benefactor who wandered the skies, stood on the bridge of a warship piloted by his vassal races, and as he beheld the planet glowing like an illuminated light bulb, he couldn't help but tremble.
Another benefactor, Yunzhi of the majestic Clouds, was also shivering, his teeth chattering as he said, "That's the home planet of a High Level Civilization!"
What could instill such reverence and awe in these normally conceited Benefactors?
The planet, radiating with purple fluoresce, was called Maquivena Star and was the home world of the Maquivena Civilization, a Level 26 High Level Civilization in the Galaxy. The brilliance that made the entire planet glow like a light bulb did not come from anything else, but from hundreds of millions of Controllers.
This was the first time the Benefactors had observed the Controllers in what could be described as "military action" since they were first defeated by the Controllers many years ago. The Benefactors couldn't even be certain if the actions of the Controllers really qualified as military operations, for their conduct was utterly unlike anything the Benefactors understood as military action.
The Maquivena Civilization was a High Level Civilization within the Galaxy known for its relatively mild diplomatic policies, and the race consisted of humanoid Maquivinians. This civilization, due to its advocacy of individualism and lack of a strong central government, never turned into an aggressive expansionist power even though many Maquivinians developed outwardly and even settled in other civilizations.
The Maquivena Civilization was renowned for its contributions to space exploration, commerce, and technological research. It had a certain degree of xenophilia, welcoming visits, trade, and cultural exchanges from other civilizations.
This civilization did not join the Galactic High Governance Council, and although the elders of the Galactic Council once invited this emerging High Level Civilization, the Maquivinians declined. Despite their xenophilia, they held steadfastly to a policy of political nonalignment.
Chongqing stated, "The Maquivena Civilization might not be one of the top High Level Civilizations in the Galaxy, but their all-encompassing technology is indeed commendable. Although the Maquivena Civilization leans towards individualism, many hostile civilizations that had coveted the Maquivena in history were defeated under the formidable military tech of the Maquivinians. Most Maquivinians reside on other planets, or even within other civilizations, but when necessary, they can organize fleets consisting of tens of thousands of interstellar warships."
This Benefactor and high-ranking Evangelist held back a thought without saying it aloud: Although the Benefactor Civilization was also very strong, it dared not provoke the Maquivena Civilization. A Maquivena warship could easily destroy a tactically-challenged Benefactor Fleet by fighting many against one.
Yet, it was this famously renowned civilization in the Galaxy that, in the presence of the Controllers, had their home planet swallowed up without any resistance whatsoever.
Yunzhi, still unable to recover from the shock, acknowledged that the Benefactors had both respected and feared the Controllers for hundreds of years, yet they had no precise understanding of the Controllers' true strength. When the Controllers presented the plan to attack Maquivena Star to the Benefactors, all of them thought the Controllers were insane.
But it was only when the plan was put into action that the Benefactors realized they didn't know nearly enough about their ally, their actual superior.
"At least now we know why the Controllers needed the Eternal Crystal Stone."
At this time on Maquivena Star, it was a hell of panic. The Controllers and Benefactors had disguised themselves, posing as a cultural exchange envoy ship from a mid-level civilization, arriving at the space port of Maquivena Star. Before this, the Benefactors had no idea that their ship actually contained a hundred million Controllers.
In the eyes of ordinary carbon-based life forms, the Controllers were a group of light spheres less than one meter in size, pulsating with energy. However, when the Controllers contracted their form, they could shrink themselves down to the scale of cubic micrometers, invisible to the naked eye, detectable only by energy detectors.
The group the Benefactors and their vassal races impersonated as friendly, claimed to bring a spectacular fireworks display. The unsuspecting Maquivina people gladly allowed them to perform the fireworks display on the planet's surface. However, the large gas tanks used for the fireworks display were not filled with any pyrotechnics, but with Controllers.
The Benefactors had successfully launched the Controllers into the high sky. The scene was indeed beautiful, with blossoming fireworks that were distinctly different from what the ordinary Maquivena people had seen, satisfying them greatly.
But just over ten minutes later, the admiration for the wonderful spectacle transformed into terror.
The gold light clusters that fell like snowflakes captivated the Maquivena people, but soon, these golden light clusters extended tendrils like electric arcs that directly penetrated the brains of the Maquivena people.
During the fireworks display, the Controllers had already mixed in a large amount of Eternal Crystal Stone powder. The abundant Eternal Crystal Stones, when used in a special way, enhanced the abilities of all the Controllers. More terrifyingly, once the Controllers' electric arc-like hands penetrated the brain, they completely extracted the thought consciousness from the human brain. The thing they referred to as soul energy was drawn out and then condensed by the Controllers—immediately transforming into a new Controller.
This was the true method of reproduction for the Controllers!
They used the intelligent beings' spirits, guided by their own energy, to eventually differentiate into new Controllers. The role of the Eternal Crystal Stone in this process was to strengthen the Controllers themselves, constantly enhancing the Controllers' spiritual energy until it was powerful enough to accomplish the series of tasks—extracting the spirit from the human brain, amalgamating the consciousness, and forming new Controllers.
Under normal circumstances, a single reproductive event would exhaust the Controllers' energy, and there was even a certain risk of their demise. For the Controllers, as energy-based life, their lifespans were extremely long, and existing for thousands of years was not difficult. However, facing the risk of death to reproduce new Controllers was something many of them were unwilling to endure.
It was precisely because they discovered the Eternal Crystal Stone, a miraculous mineral that could greatly enhance their energy form, that they were able to reproduce continuously. With the help of the Eternal Crystal Stone, the Controllers steadily increased their population, reaching numbers that a regular intelligent race of a civilization would find difficult to reach in the short term.
The Controllers did not need to be cultivated; after division and proliferation, they possessed the experiences of their parent entities. They had no interest in learning advanced technology either, instead of controlling other species and utilizing their technologies was sufficient for them.
On Maquivena Star, the Controllers conducted a raid that caused massive destruction. The Maquivena people had never prepared to face such an enemy; their kinetic weapons were ineffective against these energy-based life forms. Even using lasers and light beams as energy weapons, the Controllers were able to avoid them by contracting their energy form and anticipating in advance.
Not to mention, after extracting a person's spirit and taking direct control of the body, when the Maquivena people had to face their own kin, they hesitated.
And hesitation meant annihilation.