Chapter 49 The Role of the Moon Base_1

Rey Diaz left, and Lin Sen quietly watched his retreating figure. Rey Diaz had seen Lin Sen's intent; the future would be an era of energy hegemony. Lin Sen had brought up controlled nuclear fusion from the start, aiming to compete for the Moon's Helium-3 resources, which would require a certain level of armed defense.

He didn't know Lin Sen's objectives, but if the Moon were to have an independent military force, it would directly confront the PDC, a colossal entity that had integrated global resources. How could Lin Sen dare to oppose it? This was hardly easier than facing the Trisolarans.

No matter what, Rey Diaz had accepted the task, and he even felt a tinge of excitement, though he suppressed it vehemently. For Logic's plan, he could confront the most massive human organization, letting humanity understand the indomitable resistance from a small nation.

The Wallfacer would compete with the PDC and even form his own forces. This was an easy assumption to make, and the plan had also received the support of Chang Weisi, the Space Force Commander. The planned future was vast, indicating that Lin Sen had deeper purposes, which he just couldn't reveal for the time being.

Rey Diaz wasn't very clear about these deeper purposes, but whatever they were, he also believed that the Wallfacer should have his own force. That was enough for him.

Lin Sen placed great importance on the Moon; perhaps the solution to the upcoming Great Ravine lay there. The brain-computer interface proposed at the previous hearing and the artificial intelligence plans at the mobilization meeting were also preparatory work for the Moon Base's construction, which would necessitate relocating many construction personnel to the Moon.

Lin Sen had four objectives: First, the imminent Great Ravine would lead to changes in human societal structure and significant environmental destruction. Partially relocating the population away from Earth could also alleviate social conflicts on Earth. The Moon couldn't accommodate hundreds of millions, but the migration wasn't about relieving resource pressure on Earth (like food supply). Instead, it could ease Earth's social conflicts. With the Moon's environment being better than Earth's, giving Earthlings the opportunity to compete for a chance to go to the Moon offered everyone hope and could also reduce social unrest.

Lin Sen had never thought about eliminating the Great Ravine because it was impossible, but he could alleviate the conflict. Knowing that a group of people just like them was 380,000 kilometers away, those who looked up at the stars would be less concerned with the pettiness before their eyes.

Second, future warships would need complete ecosystems, and the key to constructing the Moon Base was to build a complete ecosystem. On the original timeline, it was after the Great Ravine that humans established a complete ecosystem. The earliest ecosystem built on the Moon, which had been running for over seventy years by the time of the final battle, showed that the Moon was suitable for establishing ecosystems.

Scientists had analyzed that the Moon has water and also abundant Helium-3 resources for controlled nuclear fusion (the energy from the fusion of a truckload of Helium-3 could supply the entire world's electricity consumption). An ecosystem with material cycling could be established on the Moon.

Third, establishing the Moon Base also included researching artificial starch synthesis and artificial protein technology. It was impossible to bring food to the Moon or to farm there (a small amount of soilless cultivation might be possible, but it's inconsequential).

Once controlled nuclear fusion is built, large quantities of food could be produced using genetic technologies, which could help alleviate the impact of the Great Ravine on human society.

These were critical because the biggest harm of the Great Ravine was environmental destruction and widespread reduction in crop yield, leading to global famine. Going out might present a different future. At the moment, Lin Sen hadn't anticipated that the Great Ravine would be much more explosive than he had imagined.

Fourth, in times of pain and despair, the most dangerous thing was the absence of a goal. The future enemy was still 4 light-years away, and the best way out of pain and despair was to give humanity an enemy.

During the Great Ravine, humans needed ideological transformation without ideological revolution. Humanity was treading on this contradictory path: new ideas could be accommodated, but the qualities of the Common Era People should not be lost. The Moon Base also needed to serve as a training ground for the human military, greatly enhancing military capabilities.

Fifth, the Moon Base is involved in another plan for the future, the Solitary Island Project, which Lin Sen does not intend to disclose to anyone for the time being.

Sixth, and the most critical part of Lin Sen's plan, addresses the issue of social formation in the new era, which will be discussed later.

Lin Sen's approval rating for the Common Era People is 80. The people of this era are highly motivated, they know the preciousness of peace and are not afraid of war, nor do they underestimate anyone; they have a clear understanding of themselves.

As for humans during the Doomsday Battle, Lin Sen's approval rating is only 40. They were a generation of apathy, taking war as child's play, lacking self-awareness and even more so awareness of the enemy, arrogant and ignorant, and lacking in basic problem-solving abilities.

The way they dealt with the likes of Zhang Beihai is telling, as they were indifferent toward them before they knew about Thoughtcontrol, and naively thought them to be the most reliable once they did. Zhang Beihai had already hijacked a battleship to flee, yet they still questioned whether he was from the Steel Mark Clan. With leaders of the Human Fleet of such caliber, what more is there to say about the common people?

Regarding the technological revolution driven by the thought revolution, Lin Sen admitted that the later technological revolution had reasons rooted in the thought revolution, but it was not the most crucial factor. During the Great Ravine, the entire structure of human society collapsed; their slogan was "to bestow civilization on the years," which, Lin Sen believed, didn't come from enlightenment but from utter despair.

A part of the reason humanity entered the Great Ravine was also due to every technology hitting a ceiling and being unable to break through, leading some to give in to despair.

Following total despair, the structure of human society was rebuilt, akin to a great reshuffling of cards. What humans needed to do was to live well in the present moment, unburden their minds, focus on all technologies related to people's livelihood. The thriving of civilian technology also propelled the progress of governmental scientific research, ultimately leading to a benign cycle that resulted in a technological explosion.

Therefore, Lin Sen needed to find a way. The current social structure was like stagnant water, destined to soon hit a ceiling – something many people anticipated. It needed shattering, only through rebuilding could human society be revitalized. Yet there was also a need to suppress the mentality of apathy, preventing them from spiraling into complete despair or becoming too arrogant with minor achievements, and maintaining at least some respect for enemies.

Lin Sen's approval rating for humanity after The Deterrence Era was less than 10; were it not for them being species from Earth, Lin Sen would be ashamed to call them human. Electing the Swordholder through a voting system – only those who would pass such a policy could be deemed either foolish or malicious. Even the Armageddon hadn't awakened them. If voting were to take place, the higher the votes, the lower the deterrence implied; with leadership at such a level, humanity might as well be doomed.

In the Broadcast Era, while the Trisolarans desperately fled, only humans leisurely prepared their shelters. Who gave them this confidence? After so many years, there were hardly any significant advancements in technology, the Lightspeed Spacecraft were still Wade's creation, and for fear of exposure, they even banned Wade's research.

At times, their confidence was terrifying, and at others, they trembled under the covers, lacking the courage to wrestle with nature. To speak of wrestling was an exaggeration; they didn't even have the bravery to step outside for a look and became complete vermin, filthy and rotten to the core.

In the Common Era, the PDC could launch the Wallfacer Project, daring to drag all of humanity to the gambling table for a bet of the century. Although they may become adversaries in the future, Lin Sen genuinely admired them. They were the greatest people of their time.

After seeing off Rey Diaz, Lin Sen sat still for a while; darkness had fallen, and the night was the best disguise. It was only in the darkness that he found fleeting tranquility in his heart. He knew that the darkness provided no camouflage against Sophons, but only the night could give him a sense of security.

After sitting alone for a while, he went to the main building where Logic lived; Zhuang Yan and Logic were waiting for Lin Sen to join them for the New Year's Eve dinner, naturally including Logic's daughter who could now speak a few simple words. The warm and fulfilling scene was hard to disturb.