Three young players roamed the yellow desert, confused as they watched the Zerg, who often rushed past them, ignoring them completely, their faces etched with confusion.
"What's going on? Why are the Zerg acting like they've lost their mother?"
"Are they rushing to a funeral?"
Monkey shrugged at John.
Staring at the panicked Zerg, his eyes lit up.
Thinking back to the laser barrage, perhaps John was right.
According to movies and television dramas, the only thing that could make the Zerg drop everything and rush back to the Queen's aid was a crisis!
With no Zerg to hinder them, the three sped away, soon arriving at the wreckage of a spaceship.
They parked a short distance away and stared at the massive craft.
It turned out to be nothing but a decaying skeleton.
"Biotechnology is ridiculous!"
Monkey tapped his hand on the ground of his infantry fighting vehicle.
What kind of technology could be discovered with just these skeletons?
However, after traveling this far, he couldn't return empty-handed. He had to board a piece and hand in his mission.
...
inside the mothership.
Leon glanced through the projection at the surviving vanguard of the Human Alliance, then calmly turned his gaze to the three young players.
"Grey Wind, I remember you once said that even if you don't have the Empire's scientific research data, you could quickly deduce the Empire's previous technological tree with your powerful computing power. Why are you forcing me to search for researchable samples and data?"
Dots of fluorescence appeared in the hall, condensing into a projection of Lingxu.
He bowed and explained, "Master, Grey Wind said we can deduce the Empire's technological tree even if we lose the Empire's technological data because I know the breakthrough technologies corresponding to each level of civilization.
We only need to follow this path to regain control of the Empire's entire technological tree, without having to explore for hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years like those early civilizations."
"Asking your players to search for technological samples or data actually speeds up my deductions."
He paused.
Generally speaking, there are no shortcuts in scientific and technological research. Even Grey Wind relies on the foundation the Empire has provided us to deduce technology, and uses extremely powerful computing power to deduce it through exhaustive methods.
Perhaps this method was too old-fashioned in the eyes of the master, but like the magic mantra in the master's previous world, "The path of great magic is simple," seemingly complex matters can actually be solved with simple methods.
Furthermore, the advantage of a comprehensive method is that all the possibilities of a particular technology can be calculated, and the best can be selected from them.
And with the empire's previous scientific and technological records, Grey Wind knew the limits of all specific technologies. If it could be obtained in advance through sample research, a great deal of effort and energy could be saved. Even if it wasn't the limit of this technology, it could be used temporarily.
His delicate face suddenly turned serious, and he reminded, "I must remind you, Master, that although the imperial computer carrying the Lingxu is powerful, the energy consumed to research technology is also enormous.
If the energy is insufficient, with the current energy of the mothership, Grey Wind will need tens of thousands of years to deduce all the technologies of a Level 2 civilization!"
Leon rested his chin on the back of his crossed hands, nodded silently, and frowned.
Even a profound deduction would require tens of thousands of years for a Level 2 civilization. Level 3, Level 4… it would take tens or even millions of years.
He, with his immortal body and the blood of the Emperor, could certainly afford to wait, but the players couldn't.
It all came down to energy.
As expected, regardless of the level of civilization, the need for energy is paramount!
"What about a Dyson sphere?"
"A solar sphere?" Grey Wind understood Leon's meaning in less than a second.
He shook his head. "Let's not talk about the technical requirements for building a Dyson sphere. Even if we deconstructed planets beyond the main sequence star where Earth's star is located, we wouldn't be able to build one. That's advanced technology for a Level 3 civilization."
"Furthermore, according to the cosmic light bulb theory, if all the lights in your star system suddenly went out while all the lights were on, it would attract the attention of civilizations in surrounding star systems.
If gravitational detection shows that the star isn't self-destructing, but its brightness is decreasing, then that effectively notifies all civilizations in surrounding star systems that a civilization capable of building a Dyson sphere has emerged.
A weak civilization might not pose a threat to us, but a powerful one, or one of a similar level, would be extremely dangerous."
Leon understood immediately.
As the saying goes, "We can't let others sleep where we live." Although Grey Wind had told him that the Omnic Crisis and the Zerg Catastrophe had brought civilizations across the universe closer together, the darkness of the universe was not to be underestimated!
"Have you found any traces of civilization in the past few hundred thousand years?"
Grey Wind nodded in agreement.
"Of course, but their civilization isn't very powerful. Over a hundred thousand years ago, I picked up a radio transmission from a Level 1 biological civilization.
They foolishly sent their civilization's information and the DNA of all species to the surrounding star systems, but I blocked the signal through gravitational wave interference."
"Is it far from us?" Leon asked with interest.
"They're 250 light-years away."
Rubbing his fingers, Leon pondered.
A few hundred light-years was like the threshold for a civilization capable of interstellar travel. If they haven't appeared in Earth's star system in over a hundred thousand years, then their potential was very low and could be ignored for now.
The most pressing task now is to properly manage Earth Star, accelerate the utilization of this star system's resources, quickly advance to a Level 2 civilization, and expand its reach.
"Master, your player has completed his mission and requests to return."
"Return permitted."
Planet G-4.
The three of them, having sent a communication, sat bored on the roof of their infantry fighting vehicle, admiring the beauty of the desolate planet.
Suddenly, a loud sonic boom in the sky caught their attention.
"They're coming!"
John stood up from his mission pod and looked up at the sky.
Three devices, not quite resembling airdrop containers, descended rapidly, finally stopping in front of them.
The three of them exchanged glances, then carried the boxes containing the spacecraft debris to the airdrop device, fumbled with it, threw the contents inside, and then, following the system's instructions, stepped inside and fastened their seatbelts.
Once everything was ready, they pressed the return button. A thin flame erupted from the bottom of the pod, carrying the three of them swiftly into space.
Seeing the three of them again, Leon remained silent again, and instead gave them two more missions.
"I have two missions here. One: Go to Planet G-2 and build a carbon dioxide extraction plant. Two: A group of rebels has appeared on the planet of a primitive civilization who is about to join the Empire. I want you to exterminate them."
All three of their eyelids twitched at Leon's words.
They didn't care about the first construction mission. They knew they wouldn't return empty-handed if they were asked to build a carbon dioxide extraction plant; they would have already prepared the materials.
However, the second extermination mission was a bit more complicated.
It was just murder, wasn't it?
That's the downside of overly realistic games.
Observing the NPCs, they discovered that each one possessed an independent consciousness, just like a real human being. All three instinctively rejected the idea of killing them.
However, the reward the commander offered was too tempting.
The implantable nano armor—a level one purple item sold in the shop—was indeed tempting.
"I'll choose the construction mission,"
Monkey said first.
He wasn't particularly interested in the action, but the technology in the game piqued his interest.
He wanted to see how a carbon dioxide extraction plant was built, and whether it was just a simple texture.
After all, in the real world, there were carbon dioxide extraction plants used to synthesize chemical products and starch. Although he wasn't a professional, he could see the basic principles at a glance.
If his hypothesis was correct, this game would be amazing!