Deep Space Wandering Fleet
Chapter 273 - Chapter 273 Chapter 273 Civilization Technology Levels

Chapter 273: Chapter 273: Civilization Technology Levels Chapter 273: Chapter 273: Civilization Technology Levels “Civilizations are separated by just two words–interests,” Zhang Yuan shook his head, not sure if it was because he had brainwashed himself or for some other reason, but he even felt that his actions were just!

Sending these drunken dreamers into the virtual world to reexperience their lives, free from the influence of chemical substances–who could say it was a sin?

As long as they were willing.

“The key is still Consciousness Upload, a technology of Level 6 Civilization, which has created so many fascinating possibilities… I hope we can decipher the relevant functions soon and embark on the right path.”

Captain Zhao gave Zhang Yuan a glance. Ever since he proposed the plan against the Glizerians, Captain Zhao’s understanding of Zhang Yuan’s level of cunning had deepened…

But this seemed… like a good thing.

If human civilization wanted to climb to the peak, it needed more talents in this area.

Civilizations in the universe, especially interstellar civilizations, are neither dark forests nor innocuous entities.

More advanced civilizations crush lower ones in all aspects, not just technology but other aspects as well.

According to the current universal data provided by the Gliese Civilization, there are indeed as many intelligent species in the universe as people have guessed, perhaps even more than humans imagined.

The reason the universe is so lonely isn’t just due to various internal factors, such as the mediocrity of civilizations, the self-destruction of technology, and so on, but also because the vast spatial distances have isolated all civilizations.

Technology related to curvature navigation is so challenging; for a primary star civilization, accelerating a spaceship to 1% of the speed of light with propellant propulsion is already an impressive achievement.

But what is 1% of the speed of light compared to the vast, boundless universe?

Take humanity’s interstellar expeditions, for instance, which span thousands of years. Thousands of years may only be a brief moment for the universe, but for living beings, it could be many generations of birth, aging, illness, and death, and even the civilization itself may not exist anymore.

As a result, even if a civilization discovers the existence of another, most still remain in a state where they never interact until they die. Galaxies themselves are islands, and even if a species makes great efforts to reach another’s territory, what significance does it have?

The loneliest thing in the world must be this.

Thus, most civilizations in their self-concentrated development fall into the trap of mediocrity and completely sink.

In fact, the Gliese Civilization already knows this information and also knows that their civilization has declined, but they still cannot take this step.

A civilization is made up of all its individuals, and the awakening of just a few of them… doesn’t do much good…

Only that very tiny fraction, with a probability of one in a thousandth of a percent, has the courage to truly step out of their homeland and into the world of other civilizations.

The so-called levels of civilizations are naturally determined based on a civilization’s productivity and the technology they control.

A Level 1 Civilization, also known as a Planet-level Civilization, can fully utilize its mother star, including the nearby satellites.

A Level 2 Civilization is a Constant Star Civilization that can use almost all resources of a constant star, including nearby planets.

The leap is actually quite large; if calculated according to this energy level, a Level 2 Civilization can crush a Level 1 Civilization as easily as crushing insects.

Just like Earth Civilization, the formal implementation of the Solar System Engineering System signifies that Earth Civilization has developed to the early stages of a Level 2 Civilization.

And the New Human Civilization is not even a Level 1 Civilization, only capable of mining a small amount of resources where they have landed.

If the two sides truly went to war, it would be a completely one-sided affair. The new civilization might as well just surrender without a fight.

The Gleize Civilization, due to its distorted technological tree and the disintegration of public will, also falls within the category of a Level 1 Civilization.

But the Universal Factory is at the pinnacle of Second-level Civilizations, and even within the realm of Third-level Civilizations.

As for Third-level Civilizations… they are even more unique. They have achieved a more fundamental progress in their understanding of the universe and of life itself. Their hallmark is mastering the manufacture of antimatter and the propulsion method of the Bassard ramjet engine!

Antimatter, as a second-level energy source, only exists in small amounts at the Galaxy Center, but can also be artificially produced.

The mass production methods and safe storage of antimatter have always been difficult issues.

The energy contained within antimatter is nine orders of magnitude greater than chemical energy!

Under such energy densities, using antimatter and spaceships powered by Bassard ramjet engines, speeds can be pushed to 50% of the speed of light!

This is an unimaginable milestone; the greater the speed of the spaceship, not only would it involve relativistic effects but it would also place higher demands on the materials and performance of the spaceship. If travel between stars could be achieved within ten years, such interstellar travel would be considered acceptable.

The colonial range of a Third-level Civilization could then expand within 5 light-years.

Of course, using antimatter for propulsion, no matter how fast it is, would absolutely not be cost-effective; there might be other propulsion methods in the universe that humans have not yet discovered…

But compared to Fourth-level Civilizations, Third-level Civilizations are nothing.

Because Fourth-level Civilizations begin to enter the stage of Curvature Navigation and no longer need the brute-force method of propellant propulsion. All the massive technical challenges of the Bassard ramjet engine, the need to store and use antimatter, can all go to hell.

Curvature Navigation that surpasses the speed of light!

The leap in technology is simply unimaginable.

Only civilizations at Level 4 or above can achieve true interstellar travel, unbound and realizing true freedom!

The information beyond this, the Gleize Civilization probably knows very little about; humans can only guess and vaguely speculate it might involve wormhole crossing, vacuum zero-point energy, Consciousness Upload, faster-than-light communication, high-dimensional space, and other myth-like, incomprehensible technologies…

And Consciousness Upload, that is…

Level 6!

That High-dimensional Fragment is even more mysterious, possibly at the same level as Level 6, or it could be Level 7. Human understanding has long been incapable of identifying it.

However, even if a civilization were to obtain one or two technological aspects of Level 6 Civilizations, it would not cause a true qualitative change in the entire civilization. It’s like primitive people obtaining a flashlight that can be charged with solar energy, which could change their lives to a certain extent but would not alter their overall strength.

Currently, the short-term future goal of the new civilization is only one: to catch up with Earth Civilization and enter the realm of a Second-level Cosmic Civilization!

While the two of them were pondering how to properly control this technology for the upcoming projects, suddenly, Captain Zhao’s communicator rang.

He stood up, responded a few times, and then hung up the call.

“What’s up?” Zhang Yuan asked.

Zhao Qingfeng paused for a moment, then displayed a strange smile, “It’s the leader from Gor City, Ganyador. He has already rocketed into space. They want to negotiate a related trade with us. You know, they want to exchange the Universal Factory for a spaceship, and they have never been able to come to an agreement…”

Zhang Yuan tapped lightly on the table, and smiled slightly, “I’ll go talk to them!”