Forty Millenniums of Cultivation, page 781
"Then, here comes the question. My young friend Li Yao, would you rather the monkeys find the 'relic of human beings' or the 'relic of the demons'?"
Chapter 1192: Grandpa Plan! |
Li Yao opened his mouth, only to come up with nothing.
It was not because he did not have any refutation, but because he had found that the old tortoise was not on the same wavelength as himself at all. They were not pursuing the same thing.
With pride beaming out of his face, Gui Suishou said, "The omittance of history equals destruction. On the other hand, creating history equals immortality! The ancestors of my clan realized the logic thousands of years ago. Since then, we have shifted our attention to the preservation of the tinder of our race, instead of focusing ourselves on the current situation of the civilization.
"In our opinion, both Elder Nether Spring's endeavor to create 'the third life form' and the tricks that Jin Tuyi played are ridiculous and meaningless. Only by preserving the tinder of the civilization in a certain way for billions of years will our civilization really be immortalized. It will even be passed on in a brand-new way by being reincarnated in other civilizations!
"Therefore, instead of dwelling on the competition with the civilization of mankind, my ancestors dedicated all their efforts to the extension of their longevity. We abandoned everything and even spent ninety percent of our lifetime hibernating. Finally, we lengthened our life to a thousand years.
"It is not our own immortality that we pursue. We are merely trying to study the history and the essence of our civilization from a longer time span.
"In our long lives, we gather all the history pieces about the civilization of demons. We sort through them, connect them, and establish a systematic plaza with tales, legends, and myths.
"We are also recording everything that is happening right now dutifully, the eventual fall and destruction of the great civilization that has ruled over the sea of stars for thirty thousand years.
"We will preserve the history and all the most important essence of our civilization, namely the epics, classics, arts, dictionaries, and artwork. We will build them into 'tinder' or 'monuments' before we launch them into the universe. They will float in the boundless universe without restraint until they are discovered by new civilizations in billions of years. The essence of the civilization of demons will be revived again at that time!
"This is the destiny of our people. This is also the way we plan to win the war of civilizations!"
Li Yao was so stunned that he did not come to for a long time.
This grandpa's way of thinking was too weird. It was utterly incomprehensible to him.
However, Zhou Yifu, the historian of the federation next to him, was breathing quickly. He exclaimed, "So to speak, Master Gui, you are sort of a historian for the civilization of demons."
Zhou Yifu was more than a hundred and eighty years old. He was often respected as 'Master Zhou'. But in front of Gui Suishou, who was almost a thousand years old, he was as young as a prattling infant!
"I guess you can say that," Gui Suishou said casually. "In our civilization, the historians who share my view are known as the Monument Scholars. We believe that every civilization is running to their inevitable doom from the moment it is born. Therefore, it doesn't matter how the civilization lives. What matters is how to build a magnificent, delicate monument that stores the essence of the civilization!
"The civilization will last forever as long as the monument exists. If the monument is destroyed, the civilization will forever be doomed with no way of coming back!
"From that point of view, historians, who are responsible for building the monument, are the most important profession in a civilization. The historians of two hostile civilizations are often writing history in two opposing ways and having the fiercest collision. Such a smokeless war is in fact a hundred times more appalling than those fought by the warriors of the two civilizations on real battlefields!"
Zhou Yifu nodded quickly. "So, have you come to the Meeting of the Nascent Soul Stage to record the historic moment, Master Gui?"
"It is only part of the reason." Smiling, Gui Suishou replied, "I'm also here because I mean to persuade everybody in the three Sectors, especially the experts of the civilization of human beings, to prepare the tinder and monuments of your own like us."
"Huh?"
Li Yao and Zhou Yifu looked at each other in bewilderment. Li Yao was more or less shocked, but Zhou Yifu was deep in thought.
"I was an unwavering pessimist, and I still am," Gui Suishou said casually. "In the past, I didn't believe that the civilization of demons could defeat the civilization of human beings. Right now, I naturally don't believe that three Sectors will be enough to defeat the magnificent Imperium of True Human Beings and the Alliance of Holy Covenant in the center of the universe!
"I know that you won't give up trying anyway, just like Elder Nether Spring didn't.
"However, while you are struggling, it doesn't hurt to sort through and summarize your civilization. You can condense the best parts of your civilization and find a way to preserve them before you send them to the universe as your tinder and monuments.
"That way, even if your final resistance fails, and the Star Glory Federation and the three Sectors are all destroyed, something will still be out there in the universe proving that we once existed."
Li Yao clenched his fists and gnashed his teeth. "We will definitely, definitely, definitely not lose!"
After a smile, Gui Suishou replied peacefully, "My young friend Li Yao, did you know this? The more you say 'definitely', the less confident you actually are about the matter. You can only count on the word to hypnotize yourself."
Li Yao was rendered speechless and scratched his head hard.
Zhou Yifu pondered for a moment and asked, "I have no doubt that the victory will belong to the federation, but anything can go wrong. Even if the odds of our success are as high as 99%, it doesn't seem to be a bad idea to be well-prepared for the 1% chance of failure. I wonder, what specific plan to you have in mind, Master Gui? What are the 'tinder' and the 'monuments' you described exactly?"
"Tinder and monument are just metaphors. In fact, they shouldn't even be large-scale relics that are easy to find."
Gui Suishou proposed his plan very frankly. "Large-scale relics are very easy to be found out by our enemy. Also, it risks being destroyed by the tide in the river of time.
"The 'tinder' in my plan should be something extremely small. Something like a chip or… a ring. Yes, items like the Cosmos Rings.
"However, while the Cosmos Rings are designed to store materials and real entities, the new rings will be used to store tremendous information.
"We are compressing the vast information of our respective civilization, namely the history, the culture, the strongest technology and techniques, and everything else, into such rings.
"For the convenience of the new civilizations, we can also establish a 'guide' or a 'teacher' inside the ring.
"The 'guide' can be established in two ways.
"Firstly, we condense tremendous telepathic thoughts and produce a highly-developed 'artificial intelligence' with the help of tremendous computational ability.
"Secondly, we preserve the souls of some volunteers, which will be cast into the hibernation state. They will sleep for billions of years in the rings until they are discovered by new civilizations.
"My young friend Li Yao, don't look at me like that. I'm not talking about extracting souls from living people. Aren't there many spectral Cultivators in the federation? They do not have real entities in the first place but are merely amalgamations of tremendous information and spiritual waves. If we can develop a certain secret technique to preserve the frequency of their waves, they will be able to hibernate much longer than living people inside the rings. It is possible that they will be awakened even after billions of years."
Li Yao was utterly alarmed by Gui Suishou's insane idea.
A demon emperor was a demon emperor after all. The plan that he came up with looked evil from every perspective.
Gui Suishou smiled. "If we can produce ten thousand of such rings with the souls of ten thousand spectral Cultivators sealed inside and launch them into the universe, does it really matter if we are destroyed by the Imperium of True Human Beings or the Alliance of the Holy Covenant?
"Imagine this. In billions of years, all the old civilizations have perished, and the new civilizations are only just rising from the dark age.
"Then, there is an ordinary young man in the new civilization, perhaps one whose family is declining and is despised by other people.
"One day, he accidentally gets a mysterious ring, and an omnipotent, omniscient 'grandpa'—let's just call our 'guide' that—jumps out of the ring.
"With the help of the grandpa, the underdog of the new civilization inherits the legacy of our civilization. He masters the best techniques, which entail endless mysteries. Crushing all his foes, he soars unstoppably and finally establishes his own dynasty and his own era!
"Such a dynasty and aura will, of course, be deeply stamped with the traces of our civilization. Who can say that it is not a civilization of mankind or a civilization of the demon race in a completely new form?"
Wei Qingqing, as a spectral Cultivator, had subtle waves in her man-made eyes. She mumbled, "The universe is too vast a place. Even if there are ten thousand rings that store the tinder of our civilization, the odds of them being found by the new civilizations will still be too low, won't they?"
"You don't understand, little girl," Gui Suishou replied tranquilly. "Even the lowest odds, after billions of years, will be magnified to a realizable extent! Or to put it simply, as long as there is enough time, any miracle will happen sooner or later.
"By then, our civilization will be reborn in such a way and revive our glory. The Imperium of True Human Beings and the Alliance of the Holy Covenant, which fear us most right now, will possibly be nothing more than dust!
"This is my way to resist the Imperium of True Human Beings and the Alliance of the Holy Covenant. I'm meaning to fight a protracted war that will last a billion and even ten billion years!
"Let me see. I'll just call it the 'Monument Plan', or if you think that the name is too ominous, you can also call it the 'Grandpa Plan'."
Chapter 1193: Female Teacher in the Future |
Li Yao, Zhou Yifu, and Wei Qingqing were all stunned as if they had been crushed by a super high-speed crystal train. After half a minute of silence, Li Yao asked suspiciously, "Master Gui, you are demon of a senior generation. Are you not hostile to the civilization of mankind? Do you really want the civilization of mankind and that of the demon race to pass on together?"
"I admit that the civilization of mankind and the civilization of demons are antagonistic, but it doesn't mean that I have to hate human beings."
Holding his stick, Gui Suishou said unhurriedly, "Observed from a scale of billions of years, the war between us is just the mutual absorption of two germs. What's there to loathe if one germ devours the other one?
"Besides, the Monument Plan that I just proposed is merely a design. To make it come true, we have to accomplish thousands of breakthroughs in astrology, informatics, artificial intelligence, soul hibernation, space jumps, and many other fields.
"Eventually, we will have to produce such a ring that contains enormous information, we will have to transform countless experts into 'grandpas', and we will have to make sure that those 'grandpas' wake up healthily and retain their normal memories, self-awareness, and thinking ability after sleeping inside the rings for billions of years!
"Also, after we cast the rings into the universe, we will have to ensure that they will not be destroyed by cosmic storms, supernova outbreaks, and black holes in the years to come.
"Think about it. How many technologies will be required in the attempt? The historians, and even the strength of the Blood Demon Sector alone, will not be sufficient to put it into practice.
"After all, artificial intelligence and space jumps are the specialties of the Heaven's Origin Sector and Flying Star Sector!
"That's the reason I'm here to join the meeting in person at the cost of my precious longevity. I'm hoping to concentrate the technology and resources of the three Sectors to accomplish the breakthroughs and realize the Monument Plan!
"After all, the universe is too vast a place, and the hibernation will be too long. The tinder of our civilizations, after floating to the depths of the universe, will be separate from each other. We will root and sprout in a different time and place, never to meet each other again. This is perhaps also a way for us to let go of the hatred between us. Hahahaha!"
Li Yao clicked his tongue and said, "Let's forget the technological difficulties for a moment. It is not going to be easy to find ten thousand 'grandpas' who are willing to hibernate for billions of years, knowing that ninety-nine percent of them are perhaps never going to be awakened again, is it? We will not allow any kind of coercion!"
Gui Suishou smiled and said, "My young friend, it appears to me that you don't know much about humanity after all. You don't need to coerce anybody into doing anything. As long as the news is out, countless spectral Cultivators will definitely volunteer for the job. For example, the little girl next to you is already tempted, isn't she?"
Li Yao was greatly surprised. He turned around, only to discover that Wei Qingqing was in such a trance that her mind seemed to have drifted to billions of years later in the river of time!
"Sister Qingqing, you are not thinking of being one of those 'grandpas', are you?" Li Yao found it hard to believe and even a bit creepy.
"If we are truly running to a dead end, and the Imperium or the Covenant Alliance is about to destroy us, why shouldn't we make such an attempt if the technology allows?"
Wei Qingqing gradually turned solemn and grave. Her shoulders slightly lowered, as if a new mission had been added to them. "Maybe Master Gui is right. We are no match for the Imperium and the Covenant Alliance right now, but in such a way, the tinder of our civilization will be preserved for billions of years, when it will be ignited again in a different time and environment!"
Li Yao frowned. "But isn't it too much a sacrifice for those 'grandpas'? We are talking about a hibernation of billions of years!"
"That isn't really a big deal. Since it is 'hibernation', one will be unconscious as if he is completely dead, right?"
In a smile, Wei Qingqing said, "Is one billion years any different from one year? For this 'grandpa', he will be just a sound sleep. His eyes close and open again, and infinite time has already passed."
Li Yao was somewhat angry. "What if the plan fails? What if the ring is never found by another civilization?"
"If it isn't, the grandpas will be essentially dead forever, but the federation will have been destroyed, and all the Cultivators must've been killed anyway. Does it really matter how the grandpas die?" Wei Qingqing replied disapprovingly.
Li Yao was rendered speechless again.
He had almost forgotten that Wei Qingqing, although leaving the impression that she was just a small orchid, boasted courage that was utterly disproportionate to her weak body.
On the Grand Desolate Plateau, when she had only just graduated from college, she had already been brave enough to stride forward against the furious beast tide!
She was definitely not scared of death!
"Li Yao, I'm different from you."
After a chuckle, Wei Qingqing said, "You are the most gifted and distinguished genius. You are now one of the most influential people of the three Sectors at such a young age. Everything you do right now will very likely influence the outcome of the war and the fate of our civilization immediately.
"What about me?
"I am just a regular, low-level Cultivator. My talents are limited, and I haven't had as many fortuitous encounters as you. However hard I try, the Building Foundation Stage will still be the best I can achieve.
"In such an era, a Building Foundation Stage Cultivator matters little to the federation. In the magnificent war in the sea of stars, I am not important or necessary.
"There's no need to comfort me. We are both clear that it is the truth. For example, if the world that we are living in is a novel or TV series, you will be the well-deserved protagonist and the center of all the spotlights, while people like me will be the supporting characters who cheer and applaud for you.
"Although it is the truth, although I am indeed not smart enough or boast high computational ability and combat ability, and although I seem insignificant, I don't want to applaud as an supporting character and watch you save the world while doing nothing!
"I want to save the federation and our civilization in my own way!"
Wei Qingqing's voice was louder and firmer. Her back that seemed to have shouldered an invisible mission was straightened again while she said solemnly, "The me today is just a trivial character for our civilization.
"But if there is really a way to reignite the essence of our civilization together with my remaining soul in billions of years, when it is discovered by a new, primitive civilization, I will certainly try my best and fulfil my responsibility as a 'guide' by leading the new civilization that is still living in ignorance and darkness. That way, the fire of our civilization will leave ineffaceable traces in a different time and space!
"I think that it will be the greatest contribution that I, an unimportant teacher, can do for our civilization."
Her words made Li Yao grow respectful for her again and review the seemingly absurd 'Grandpa Plan' from a new perspective.
"I've read your files, my young friend Li Yao. Your experiences in the past decade are truly wonderful!" Gui Suishou said with a smile. "I remember that you once encountered an amazing ancient civilization that is made of a Blood Stripe Virus on Iron Plateau in the Flying Star Sector. They were trying to possess a different civilization in order to pass on their own legacy.
