Deposed? I couldn't be happier! I wouldn't even be a dog to the crown prince.

The deep hum of the Tian Shu mainframe instantly filled the Ark command cabin, and the entire black touchscreen exploded with a dense stream of pale blue data, like a surging galaxy, scrolling wildly down the edges of the screen.

Li Chengqian stood barefoot on the cold alloy floor, the hem of his floral shirt swaying gently in the airflow inside the cabin. His fingertips remained pressed on the start button of the traceability protocol, his eyes surging with barely suppressed rage.

A three-dimensional map popped up in the center of the screen, immediately identifying a sample of corrosive fungi collected from the crevices of the Jianmu Pagoda's foundation outside Chang'an. Countless delicate gene chains intertwined into dark green clumps, each base sequence broken down and labeled by the TianShu system. Dense red warning markers covered the map's surface, clearly indicating the fungus's terrifying characteristics—it uses carbon nanotube metals as nutrients, spreads and reproduces through atmospheric airflow, and is a targeted biological weapon specifically developed for space infrastructure.

"Trace the source link and lock the diffusion nodes layer by layer." Tian Shu's monotone electronic voice echoed in the cabin.

The scene suddenly zooms out, with the Jianmu Pagoda in Chang'an as the origin. A dark green light trail pierces through the clouds, crosses mountains and rivers, travels westward across the entire continent, crosses the Gobi Desert, and finally takes root in several hidden valley laboratories in the far west of Rome.

Li Chengqian leaned closer to the screen, lightly tapping the 3D model of the Roman laboratory. Inside the high walls, dozens of constant-temperature incubation chambers were neatly arranged, each filled with the same corrosive fungus, and even dozens of improved variants. The storage terminal next to them clearly recorded the deployment mission number, the deployment carrier route, and the list of spies responsible for infiltrating the Tang Dynasty.

"They've certainly got a good plan." Li Chengqian chuckled softly, but there was no warmth in his laughter. His fingertips swept across the list of spies, from the herbal medicine merchants who had infiltrated the West Market to the foreign craftsmen who had mixed into the armory, and even the members of the Roman mission who had approached the Jianmu Pagoda under the guise of trade to survey the terrain a few months ago. Tian Shu had thoroughly exposed everyone's whereabouts, communication records, and secret meeting points, leaving no room for concealment.

On the city wall of Chang'an below, Li Shimin held an encrypted communication terminal, receiving real-time traceability footage synchronized from the Ark. The old emperor's hand gripping the terminal trembled uncontrollably, his nails almost digging into the device, his eyes filled with shock and rage.

Previously, he had only guessed that Rome was secretly sabotaging the Tower of Babel, but he never thought that the other side would actually develop such a vicious biological weapon, attempting to silently destroy the space infrastructure built by the Tang Dynasty at the cost of countless manpower and gold.

"Very well, very well indeed!" Li Shimin gritted his teeth and growled, turning to Xu Xiao beside him. "Order all the Great Snow Dragon Cavalry Legions on the border to enter full combat readiness! Immediately close all trade ports and investigate all foreign nationals entering the country. Any Roman spies on the list must be detained and interrogated on the spot. Do not let a single one escape!"

Xu Xiao immediately issued military orders through the mech command channel. Tens of thousands of mechs on the wasteland simultaneously lit up their red warning lights, and the steel torrent turned its cannons and lined up neatly towards the western border. The heavy tracks rolled over the soil, kicking up clouds of dust.

Old Wai sat in the cab of his modified crane, peering at the screen to get a clear view of the Roman laboratory, and spat out a mouthful of saliva reeking of engine oil: "These Western barbarians can't build their own Tower of Babel, so all they know is this kind of underhanded trickery! Luckily, His Highness the Crown Prince arrived in time, otherwise we'd all be buried under this tower today!"

The surrounding mech pilots echoed their sentiments, and the public channel was filled with angry shouts. The plasma welding torches of countless engineering mechs lit up with blue light again, as if venting their anger.

Inside the Ark's command center, the Tian Shu system had completed archiving all traceability information, and a global troop and weapon deployment analysis report popped up on the right side of the screen. To coordinate with the fungal corrosion plan, Rome had stockpiled a large number of heavily armed legions and siege equipment on its eastern and western borders, clearly intending to launch a direct invasion of the Guanzhong Plain when the wooden tower collapsed and Chang'an fell into chaos.

Li Chengqian straightened up, stretched his aching knuckles, and walked barefoot to the porthole. He looked down at the towering black tower that had risen straight up again. Tens of thousands of mechs were still surrounding the base, continuing to reinforce and weld the damaged parts. Sparks from the welding rose and fell, forming a dazzling sea of ​​light in the twilight.

This was the starting point for his space infrastructure project, which he had planned with countless resources. All future interstellar ports, orbital space stations, and interstellar travel routes would depend on this building tower. Rome tried to completely tear his entire plan apart with just a word or a dose of fungus, which was simply touching his bottom line.

"Tian Shu, retrieve our strategic reserve firepower data for the entire region." Li Chengqian returned to the control panel, casually tossing his sunglasses on a corner of the table, his eyes revealing a cold glint. "No need to hold back. Activate and calibrate all idle orbital strike weapons, and lock onto those biochemical laboratories in Rome and the border stockpiling legion strongholds."

The screen switched instantly, and dozens of heavy kinetic energy strike weapons, silently lying in wait in space orbit, simultaneously lit up with red lock-on lights, their crosshairs precisely targeting key positions within Rome's territory. These weapons, originally intended to deal with extraterrestrial meteorites and unknown interstellar threats, had never been aimed at human territory before, but today, for the first time, they turned their cannons towards an enemy on the same land.

"Your Highness, an urgent report has arrived from the border. The Roman delegation is still stuck at the West Market Inn and has not yet realized that their plan has been exposed." Tian Shu simultaneously uploaded the real-time intelligence from the border guards.

Li Chengqian raised an eyebrow and casually opened the surveillance footage of the post station. Several Roman envoys were sitting around a table, raising their glasses in celebration, their conversation filled with arrogant words about waiting for the wooden pagoda to collapse and for their army to enter the pass and divide up the territory of the Tang Dynasty.

"Trying to sit back and reap the benefits?" Li Chengqian sneered, tapping the screen to issue two commands: "First, send a message to the West Market garrison to immediately surround the post station, detain all members of the delegation, confiscate all communication equipment, and keep them under strict guard; second, send a nationwide open communication to the Roman monarch, simultaneously releasing all evidence of biological weapons, spy lists, and troop deployment plans found by Tian Shu to all civilian and military terminals throughout Rome, so that the entire nation can see the insidious tricks their monarch is playing."

The moment the command was issued, communication signals spanning thousands of miles were instantly deployed.

In the far west of Rome, holographic screens in street shops, command terminals in military camps, and private projectors in noble residences were all uncontrollably and simultaneously playing images of fungal laboratories, spy communications, and border troop deployments. The clear evidence was laid out before everyone, instantly causing a huge uproar in Rome.

Countless people took to the streets to protest, accusing the monarch of disregarding the safety of the people and developing biological weapons of extinction without authorization, thus provoking a war between the two countries; the morale of the soldiers stationed on the border was in turmoil, and many were unwilling to fight for the monarch's sinister plan, secretly laying down their weapons and refusing to defend their strongholds.

As Li Shimin watched the simultaneous broadcast of footage of the turmoil in Rome from the city wall, his tense shoulders relaxed slightly. He turned to look at the dark ark in the stratosphere in the distance, his heart filled with satisfaction and pride.

He used to worry that Li Chengqian was indulging in overseas vacations and focusing on infrastructure construction while ignoring court intrigues. Now he realized that his crown prince not only had the vision to build a vast galaxy, but also the courage to launch a thunderous counterattack and protect the country.

"Order the national treasury to allocate another 30% of the industrial gold, all of which will be distributed to all the mech pilots who carried the tower today," Li Shimin loudly instructed Wang De. "For any mech damaged or destroyed, ten times the gold compensation will be paid immediately; for pilots with minor or serious injuries, all medical expenses will be covered, plus additional compensation and rewards. I will never mistreat my people who risked their lives to protect the city!"

On the wasteland, the old emperor's commendation announcement rang out on the mech public channel, and tens of thousands of pilots cheered instantly. The sound of mechanical horns rose and fell, echoing throughout the Guanzhong Plain and shaking the sky.

Inside the Ark's command module, the Roman monarch's plea for mercy came through the Tian Shu. The other side kept sending requests for negotiation and peace, promising to destroy all biochemical fungi, withdraw border troops, and pay huge reparations, only asking that the Tang Dynasty not use orbital strike weapons.

Li Chengqian glanced at the pop-up window, showing no sign of wavering. He simply issued the order: "Reply to him that reparations and the destruction of weapons are only the basics. Within three days, hand over all researchers who developed biological weapons and the core officials who led the deployment plan, and personally escort them to the outskirts of Chang'an for trial. If they are even one day late, the orbital weapon will destroy a Roman border garrison."

After speaking, he raised his hand to close the communication interface, and his gaze returned to the straight and upright Jianmu Pagoda below.

The newly welded iron plates on the tower are still radiating residual heat, and countless engineering mechs are still inspecting and reinforcing every gap. Workers, soldiers, and folk craftsmen are working together to protect this space foundation that belongs to the Tang Dynasty.

Li Chengqian gently stroked the 3D model of the wooden pagoda on the screen with his fingertips. The fierceness in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a firm expectation.

"If you want to dismantle my space infrastructure, you'll have to pay the price for messing with me." He muttered to himself, "Once I've dealt with the Rome matter, the orbital elevator for the wooden tower will be fully completed. At that time, the interstellar infrastructure will officially begin construction, and no one will be able to stop it."