The senior military officials of Earth convened an emergency meeting.
High general Evander, who was supposed to attend the meeting backed out at the last minute.
No one blamed him though. Steelheart was covering up for Bali's absence and was incredibly busy.
Rumors say that he was searching for the theoretical Time Awakeners so that he could get 25 hours a day.
Alas, the human race doesn't seem to have an affinity with that divine path.
In Evander's stead, Cail Xander headed the meeting.
As the brother of the former Xander family head and Sovereign Ceaser Xander, Cail had a lot of authority.
He had taken a backseat in recent years from the solar politics. Even on earth, he appeared more in academies and training halls and less in barracks.
Yet, no one could deny his influence. Some experts opine that if not for his active withdrawal, he'd have been the high general of Earth, not Evander.
This directly contradicted with friends and followers of Evander and the two sides had a lot of verbal spats.
But the men in question themselves shared a harmonious relationship.
That's why when Evander requested, Cail Xander joined a meeting after nearly three years.
Seated in the central seat on the stage, he addressed the military officers. His voice, calm yet commanding resounded throughout the hall.
"For centuries, we have struggled to deal with Shadow Order. The problem wasn't that they were too strong, but because we couldn't find them.
Still, they were only an annoyance until abyssals arrived. And then, the dynamics changed forever.
Shadow Order emerged as Abyssals' proxy against humans. It undermined the federation's security, impeded our development, and destroyed internal peace.
Now, we're taking the first step to complete eradication of Shadow Order."
His words caused everyone in the hall to straighten their backs and perk their ears.
Cail Xander snapped his fingers and said. "This is the latest creation by the academy of sciences."
A blue glass column appeared on the stage containing a hexagonal crystal device.
"Space Radar." An old man appeared on the stage and said in an awe-inspiring tone.
Everyone recognized the old man. He was the same guy that announced the secret of Enigma's identity—Samar, Dean of Earth's Academy of Sciences.
Samar pointed to the hexagonal device and said. "Space Radar is a breakthrough technology. It can detect spatial fluctuations using the principle of magnet—"
"Whoah, whoah, Dr.Samar." Cail Xander patted him and smiled politely. "Cut them some slack. Just list the uses. They'll study the rest later."
Samar nodded reluctantly and announced.
"In short, it can detect secret realms."
That one sentence was like a boulder thrown into a lake. The military officers stopped breathing for a second before they all raised their hands.
Samar shrugged. "I know what you want to ask. It can be mass-manufactured, but it needs space stones."
The military officers' expressions dulled as they withdrew their hands. If it can't be mass-manufactured at an affordable price, it's of practically no use.
Using Space stones?
Heh. Even a kid would know that space stones always had high demand but low supply.
Recently, the reserves of space stones had decreased yet again. Even several regular space stone sources stated that they were running low on supplies.
There were many speculations and a lot of rumors. There was even a ridiculous rumor that Bali was using those space stones to reach a higher level, presumably Sovereign state.
Of course, no one was stupid enough to fall for that lie.
Dual Awakener and Sovereign? Those two don't mix together.
With high general Evander personally confirming that Bali was on a 'secret mission', the rumor lost the last believers.
The rumors subsided, but the space stone shortage persisted.
That's why the so-called 'Space Radar' was quickly branded as a disappointment by the officers.
"Hey, don't judge it yet!" Samar growled, hurt that such a masterpiece wasn't given due respect.
"This is only the first generation product. After a few more advancements, it'll be economically viable.
In three-five years, we'll have space radars patrolling through every corner of the solar system, at least in our patrol region.
That'd also be the death date of Shadow Order. Comrades, you're witnessing the making of history." Samar spread his arms and said with so much passion that his eyes were almost glowing.
The officers' moods finally brightened up. They were also looking towards a terror-free regime.
"For the worst affected areas, we will send a few space radars. If you face such a situation from Shadow Order, please contact the academy and we'll give you the ultimate locator." Samar smiled and walked off the stage.
Cail Xander announced that the meeting was over and left.
The officers started an intense discussion as they analyzed the pros and cons of ordering a space radar right now.
In a private room, Cail Xander fiddled with the hexagonal device and smiled at Samar. "Thanks, Doc."
"Haha, no worries." Samar waved his hand. "Are you sure Earth's military doesn't need it? Maybe planetary guards can use it, you know?"
Cail shook his head. "Thanks to Dreamer, Shadow Order of Earth is history. We don't need it."
Samar raised a brow. "Then why did your Xander family buy five radars?"
"What?" Cail was taken aback and immediately asked. "When? Who?"
"A few minutes ago…it's Sovereign Julius himself," Samar answered with a confused expression.
Why didn't Cail know?
He didn't have the chance to ask as Cail transformed into a huge panther and vanished.
A space shuttle quickly set out from the military district and reached the Guardian islands.
Cail stormed into the main island and jumped onto the floating guardian palace.
Despite his breach of conduct, the guards didn't dare to stop the old man. He was second only to Julius in terms of power.
So, Cail was standing in front of Julius' desk in no time, glaring at his all-powerful nephew.
"Hey Uncle, why are you in a hurry?" Julius leaned back in his chair and asked with a smile.