Chapter 324 Swallower Civilization

Crisis Era, year 373.

The observation system on the Water Droplet Spaceship, stemming from advanced technology during Humanity's 30th year of crisis, had been eroded and aged over 340 years, and its functionality had significantly declined.

Nevertheless, at a distance of nearly 0.13 light-years, or 8000 astronomical units from 82 G. Eridani b, the spaceship still strove to capture every minute change in that swath of the starry sky.

As the blurred images gradually clarified, Shui Wa and the crew were deeply shocked by the scene before them. Near 82 G. Eridani b, a huge tire-shaped object floated silently, its scale so vast and its structure so complex that one could not help but express amazement.

It was obviously not a naturally formed object but the construct of a civilization, and the level of civilization was much higher than that of Humanity.

They immediately realized that they had intruded into the territory of another civilization. Although Shui Wa did not yet understand the Dark Forest, they understood the risks of directly entering the territory of other civilizations.

At that moment, their spaceship was advancing at 3.5% the speed of light, a velocity that made turning back impossible. They had no choice but to steel themselves and continue deeper into this unknown domain.

They understood that with the level of civilization of the other party, their own whereabouts would inevitably be exposed.

Now, the only option was to face it head-on, to enter Proxima Centauri as Civilization Messengers and could only hope that the other party was a benevolent civilization.

After a tense discussion, Shui Wa and the crew decided to broadcast a message to the unknown High-Level Civilization, including a self-translating encoding system.

[Greetings to the world that receives this message.

We are messengers from a distant civilization, our purpose is to seek out other civilizations.

As soon as our civilization had stepped into interstellar space, we embarked on this journey, and now, after drifting in the galaxy for 800 years, our destiny shall also be in the stars.

We look forward to establishing contact with other civilizations in the universe.

We are dedicated to creating an ideal society, where the labor and value of every civilized entity are fully respected, where the material and spiritual needs of civilized entities are fully met, striving to create a wonderful future.

With good wishes, we look forward to creating an even better life together with you in the vast universe.]

Shui Wa also would not reveal any information about Earth civilization, as exposing Humanity to other civilizations again would be extremely dangerous.

Indeed, Shui Wa had anticipated the possibility of encountering other civilizations, but never imagined that their first stop would result in such an encounter.

The technical level of the spaceship would certainly not be concealed from the other party, but the other party would also not know how long they had been traveling.

Drifting in the galaxy for 800 years was merely an expansion of their home star's range to within more than 20 light-years. Shui Wa would have liked to state a longer duration, but according to the erosion of the spaceship's surface, the opponent should have a rough judgment.

Of course, this story had many loopholes and could not truly convince an unknown civilization, but Shui Wa had no other choice.

One concern was that by tracing the Water Droplet Spaceship's trajectory, it would be very easy to deduce that Shui Wa's last stop was the Solar System. If asked about the Solar System, how would Shui Wa respond? Would it reveal Earth?

Another concern was if the other party asked about Shui Wa's journey and the sights along the way, how would Shui Wa respond?

Of course, choosing not to answer was also an option. Many times, silence is the best answer. All information in the Water Droplet Spaceship that could potentially expose Earth and the details of the journey had been deleted.

However, it was very likely that the spaceship would be captured by the other civilization, which might acquire all of their brain's information through technological means.

Thus, Shui Wa had only one path left: to try contacting the unknown civilization first, and if any malicious intent was discovered, to immediately decide to self-destruct the spaceship. This was the only way to protect Earth.

Of course, this would hold true only if the other civilization was within their comprehension. If they were like the Singer Civilization, able to retrieve information from several centuries ago, then any concealment was meaningless.

In the broadcast sent by Shui Wa, stating that their destiny shall also be in the stars was both an expression of sincerity and a warning.

We can talk; we wish to establish relations with benign civilizations. If faced with a malignant one, we would rather self-destruct than reveal information about our civilization.

After the message was sent out, Shui Wa believed they might have to wait over two months to receive a response. However, to their surprise, a reply from the unknown civilization was received the very next day.

But the content of the message was so shocking it almost made them press the spaceship's self-destruct button.

[From the civilization of the third planet of the Solar System, we are very curious about you. Let's talk.

We have to admire your courage and determination; running around so recklessly in the Dark Forest is extremely dangerous.

You have been navigating the stars without any cover for over 300 years, and not being discovered is an extraordinarily fortunate event.]

We have deployed a Faster-Than-Light Communication Device near your spaceship, so we can communicate instantly.

But rest assured, we have no malice!]

Along with the broadcast, the unknown civilization also attached a star map, with particular emphasis marked on the third planet near the Sun.

After the intense shock passed, Shui Wa gradually calmed down, realizing that there seemed to be no secrets about this unknown civilization to himself.

Soon, Shui Wa analyzed several pieces of information.

First, the unknown civilization must have visited the Solar System before, and they might even have had contact with Humanity, because they seem to understand humans quite well.

Second, the unknown civilization mentioned "danger," which at least indicates they are not malicious. Although Shui Wa did not understand what the Dark Forest meant, it might just be the way they refer to space in their universe. It was probably a well-intentioned warning, and a basis for communication.

As for the "unnoticed" mentioned in the conversation, it might also be a reminder, but what that reminder specifically entails, Shui Wa only had an implicit understanding and had not yet made sense of what it specifically pointed to.

It was unlikely to be a lie on their part, as they would not reveal their understanding of Humanity if it were.

If this might also be a deliberate act on their part, they might have divulged this information intentionally, knowing that Humans would think this way, to disguise themselves as a non-malicious civilization. Of course, this was possible, but why would they do that?

This seemed to be entering a chain of suspicion, but it actually wasn't.

There is a misunderstanding about our chain of suspicion; it is not unbreakable. Once communication begins, the chain of suspicion is actually broken.

The essence of a chain of suspicion is not to judge whether the other's information is credible, but rather it makes civilizations refuse to communicate with each other.

Third, the civilization level of the unknown civilization had not exceeded Shui Wa's imagination by much, still within the comprehensible range.

They might not even be stronger than the Trisolarans. In Shui Wa's mind, the fact that they used a Faster-Than-Light Communication Device for surveillance rather than Sophons spoke volumes.

The most crucial piece of information was that Humanity had no secrets left before them.

Human civilization had been exposed entirely; this was Shui Wa's last secret, so there was no longer any obstacle to communicating with the unknown civilization, and naturally, Shui Wa no longer feared facing that unknown civilization.

Even at this moment, Shui Wa had a crazy idea, but whether it was feasible would depend on future contact and understanding of the unknown civilization.

Of course, Shui Wa also understood that since he had entered here, the future was perhaps already destined, beyond his capacity to change.

Shui Wa then broadcast another message, and the exchange between the two sides officially began.

[We extend the highest respect to the unknown civilization.

We mean no offense, we do indeed come from the third planet of the Solar System, and you could probably understand our need for concealment.

We have an infinite longing for the starry skies and are pioneers on this path, hoping to establish contact with other civilizations.

Respected unknown civilization, since you know so much about us, have you ever visited our Solar System?

How may we address you?]

Unknown Civilization: [Your thoughts are too naïve, and very dangerous.

Your Solar System, indeed, is a galaxy that brings back fond memories!

As for us, you may call us... the Swallower Civilization!]

The implication of this name was not very good. It made Shui Wa and his companions nervous, the name carried a clear hint of aggression making it hard to let down their guard completely.

Perhaps the Swallower Civilization is not as imagined; then how credible is their word?

Additionally, calling themselves "Swallowers" also seemed out of the ordinary — isn't basic deception necessary, or is there a problem with the translation?

No matter what the true intentions of the Swallower Civilization were, Shui Wa understood that their communication had become an irreversible process.

Now, what they needed to do was to stay calm and continue to communicate with the Swallower Civilization in order to learn more about their true nature and intentions.