Deep Space Wandering Fleet
Chapter 382 - 381: Enlightener Civilization

Chapter 382: Chapter 381: Enlightener Civilization

The expert continued, "Only with the birth of writing can cultural heritage be passed on, and even more so, can a splendid civilization develop. Relying solely on oral tradition leads to too much variation. Mathematics, on the other hand, represents a further step beyond language, signifying a capacity for logical thinking and the ability to plan for the future."

"After the birth of mathematics, it then becomes possible to manage larger populations and to establish a range of standards, including reserves of goods, measurement units, currency units, and then a series of transactions, moving from primitive tribes to nations."

"...If we encounter more civilizations that are in the Stone Age during our future travels, we should be able to prove this point."

Zhang Yuan nodded and said, "So, mediocrity seems to have been present from the beginning; not every intelligent species is guaranteed to develop a civilization, much less a technological one. We’re already one of the better species in the universe."

Most species simply cannot fully realize their potential, just like the Riley Civilization, which inexplicably hit a roadblock.

Next, a photo appeared on the screen, taken from the most primitive of archives.

"...Regarding the Moiste Culture of humans, it belongs to the typical artifact range of the Old Stone Age. Look at this picture of unearthed relics, meticulously made from stone slabs as edge scrapers and triangular point tools. Additionally, there are concave tools, saw-toothed tools, stone balls, blunt back stone knives, and small hand axes."

"This indicates that early humans made broader use of various tools in their practices."

The historian said excitedly, "But we cannot be certain whether the humans of ancient times who left Africa and formed what’s known as the Moiste Culture were influenced by the Enlightener Civilization. After all, similar cultures are quite numerous, and the whole process lacks written records."

In the valleys of mediocrity, it’s entirely common for a species to stagnate for tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of years. In contrast, it’s quite abnormal for a species like humans to make rapid technological advances within just a few hundred or thousand years.

"That is to say, according to the current actions of the Enlighteners, they provide appropriate and limited help to species with potential."

If the Enlighteners really visited Earth, then the chances of them having helped humanity to some extent would be quite high.

"There’s another point: if the Enlightener Civilization truly exists, they must be a Fourth-level Civilization or even more powerful. Because the distribution of cosmic strings is not constant—15,000 years ago, the distribution of cosmic strings was not what it is now, and there were no cosmic strings near Earth or the Riley Star. Thus, if the Enlightener Civilization really exists, they probably already have mastered Curvature Navigation and can freely travel between various constant stars..."

"What a civilization full of imaginative ideas and romantic sentiments! What is it that they truly seek?"

"Perhaps this type of inspirational behavior is simply quite interesting to them, yes, interesting. Please forgive my use of the word... more long-lived species undoubtedly think differently to us shorter-lived species."

Next, the expert suddenly shifted directions, "But it could also be for experimentation, or perhaps they have developed a predictive discipline similar to New Civilization History, requiring the evolution of some civilizations as experimental samples."

"So I suggest we conduct a comprehensive search of the Riley Star and its surrounding satellites to find out if there are any Enlightener Civilization observation posts!"

With this statement, everyone was taken aback. Could there really be an advanced civilization’s observation post near the Riley Star? If this were true, it would mean something even bigger... dialogues with a more advanced civilization and superluminal communication!

Without superluminal communication, it would be difficult to transmit large amounts of data to the far reaches of the Milky Way.

Discussing superluminal communication, many experts became excited. This was a technology humanity had dreamed of possessing. If an advanced civilization’s science station was really discovered, what should be done? Should we communicate with them, or should we directly study their technology? Are there any risks involved?

However, Zhang Yuan sat in his place, seemingly nonchalant. This possibility had already been discussed, and military forces had likely been dispatched to search in all directions as soon as the question had arisen.

According to human thinking, the best place for an observation point would be in space or on one of the satellites of the Riley Star.

This natural satellite was much smaller than the Moon and had already been tide-locked, always facing the Riley Star with one side, with infrequent geological activity, making it the perfect observation point.

Yet, no suspicious traces were found by humans... not even the slightest clue.

This indicated that the conjecture was likely incorrect.

Listening to the discussion, Zhang Yuan quickly stood up and announced a conclusion: "Everyone, please listen to me. If the observation post were built on a barren satellite, it should be easy to locate, and yet we have found nothing."

"The search will continue throughout the entire Planet System. However, if the search area is too vast, it is undoubtedly akin to looking for a needle in a haystack."

If an observation post were established on the Riley Star, on one hand it would have to withstand the oxidizing nature of oxygen. What could last tens or hundreds of thousands of years in space might only survive for a few hundred years in an oxygen-rich environment.

On the other hand, it would have to withstand possible geological disasters like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and the data collected from the planet’s surface would be extremely limited.

"Yes, from a logical standpoint, establishing a space observation post is the best choice. Even if the civilization’s technology is advanced, there’s no need to add unnecessary difficulties, right?" another expert stood up and said.

"I don’t think they would set up an observation post here to watch for tens of thousands of years... Because Earth Civilization has also been visited by the Enlighteners, and humanity has developed the Solar System for countless years, covering every planet. If there really were extraterrestrial relics, they should have been discovered long ago."

This made sense, and Zhang Yuan agreed with this perspective. If they weren’t found on Earth, then they probably wouldn’t be found on this planet either.

Yet, many experts looked at each other, not knowing whether to breathe a sigh of relief or express disappointment. It meant that the opportunity for dialogue with a more advanced civilization had vanished, leaving them regrettably feeling like admiring dragons but fearing their real presence.

"I believe that a more advanced civilization would use Virtual World Technology to conduct relevant experiments..."