Chapter Thirty-six: The Sentinel Array

In the distant capital of the Star Spirit Empire—Ael—the Council of Light and Shadow naturally sensed the force of time sweeping across the universe. This phenomenon matched precisely the disturbances recorded in ancient texts whenever a deity ascended to the rank of a True God. With only a brief deliberation, the Empire’s leadership arrived at conclusions akin to those of Ael.

After all, the chaotic and malevolent will that could not be ignored had spread throughout the cosmos. The high-ranking Templar Knights of the Empire discerned that this power emanated from the Enemy of the Gods, the faction of the Dark Demon God.

Though they could not pinpoint the exact location of the anomaly, the Empire heightened its vigilance and commanded the Imperial Engineering Institute to develop a device capable of accurately locating the source of temporal disturbances.

Engineers pondered deeply. Such forces, belonging to the True God tier and manifesting within the primary universe—even if only at a demi-god level—were beyond the scope of ordinary detectors. Thus, the Empire’s engineers devised a bold plan: they would construct a detection apparatus capable of monitoring an entire star system, stationed within a resource-rich stellar cluster.

Dubbed the “Interstellar Sentinel,” this installation would be powered by a neutron star. A solar matrix array would envelop the neutron star, channeling the bulk of its energy to the Sentinel. The array would not affect the other planets in the system, though the structure itself would be larger than the neutron star. Should anyone observe the neutron star within this system, they would notice a peculiar “hat” atop it—unless the cloaking field was activated. In reality, with the cloaking field enabled, no one would perceive the new edifice atop the star unless they noticed the neutron star’s energy was mysteriously siphoned away; some alien species might even suspect a hidden black hole nearby.

Some scientists argued that the Empire could simply manufacture an artificial star to meet the energy requirements, but this suggestion was dismissed as wasteful. Since the detection installation need not constantly relocate like an Ark Ship, it could function perfectly as a stationary surveillance base.

Thus, the Council of Light and Shadow approved the construction of the Interstellar Sentinel. The Empire would build Sentinel arrays in every star system within its own territory or that of its allies—a move that required informing the Empire’s current allies.

The Observer Civilization was the first to express support, promising to dispatch a team of Observers to the Sentinel array to monitor other interstellar civilizations. Asgard soon followed, offering not only their endorsement but also to send military forces to safeguard the Sentinel arrays.

The Empire’s first Sentinel array was constructed in the Andromeda galaxy, its primary stronghold—a site traditionally defended with utmost rigor. Yet, this time, the Dark God’s power had spilled over, leaving many planets potentially vulnerable.

With the completion of the Sentinel matrices, vast streams of information converged upon the Purifier artificial matrix within the facility. To process the immense and intricate data, the Empire’s engineers developed a specialized Purifier matrix dedicated to data analysis and information gathering.

Since this matrix lacked true intelligence, one or more Purifiers were required to handle logical tasks, greatly alleviating their employment challenges.

As more Sentinel matrices were deployed, the Empire discovered numerous planets exhibiting signs of temporal fusion, necessitating the dispatch of fleets to address each anomaly. This greatly slowed the Golden Fleet’s campaign against the forces of darkness. The Empire’s population had always been a pressing issue; despite a million years of development, its total population was still less than that of a major nation on Midgard, which had grown for only a few centuries. These concerns troubled other god-tier civilizations as well.

The universe maintains balance; for every gain, there is a loss. While citizens of god-tier civilizations possessed powers and lifespans far beyond others, their reproductive rates were significantly lower. No god-tier civilization’s population could surpass that of a lesser civilization, yet a single citizen of such a civilization could annihilate a lesser one.

Regarding the classification of civilizations, this system was established by the Empire since the founding of the Interstellar Tribunal, after observing other societies. It had gained widespread acceptance, dividing civilizations into five levels: lower, primary, intermediate, advanced, and god-tier.

A lower civilization refers to intelligent species still in the stage of primitive survival, with the spark of civilization barely kindled and no established order; the gap between advanced sentient life and beasts is minimal.

A primary civilization is one where intelligent species comprehend the concept of civilization, establishing nations and laws, understanding propriety and shame, and contemplating the relationship between themselves and the universe. They are now far removed from mere beasts.

An intermediate civilization is characterized by intelligent species venturing beyond their home planet, capable of interstellar travel and colonization, while also facing challenges from other interstellar empires. Most civilizations fall within this tier, though they vary in strength.

An advanced civilization is one that governs an entire star system, possessing its resources and building vast jump networks through stargates. They begin to touch upon the laws of the universe, understanding and cultivating them, with members whose psychic abilities exceed level ten.

God-tier civilizations—such as the Empire, the Observers, and Asgard—stand at the summits of the cosmos, setting order and rules for all. Their technology has reached the pinnacle of the physical universe, enabling feats unimaginable to lesser societies, such as tearing space at will or manipulating time. Their populations are favored by deities; the powerful can become demi-gods or ascend to new divinity. To other civilizations, they appear as gods.

Returning to the Sentinel arrays, though their construction was immense and astonishing, the cloaking fields ensured that nothing below advanced civilization detected any changes. Even advanced civilizations only sensed abnormal energy signals, but since these signals originated within god-tier territories, they could do little but ponder in confusion.

With temporal anomalies detected across major star systems, the Golden Fleet was forced to abandon its previous expedition plans, opting first to return home and uproot these hidden threats. This information was relayed by Artanis to Ael, earning his approval. As for the fleets on expedition in parallel worlds, the Empire considered recalling them, but, realizing the Dark God’s actions affected the entire multiverse, abandoned the notion.