Chapter 363 Our Journey

(This chapter provides some knowledge and illustrations about universal geography, not suited for the uninterested.)

The four civilizations could all predict the risks and challenges hidden in the path of unification, like a dance on the edge of the abyss, where each step might lead into an unknown disaster, yet they resolutely took the steps toward forming a Civilization Alliance.

Some would believe that the union between Humanity and the Mountain Civilization stemmed from a deep, mutual call for unification in their hearts, a natural expression of their civilizational nature.

In comparison, the participation of Trisolaris and the Dinosaur Civilization seemed more like a forced hand, perhaps out of awe for the combined strength displayed by Humanity and the Mountain Civilization, leaving them with no choice but to join.

However, the truth was far more complex and profound. Trisolaris had been waging war with Humanity for 500 years, and The Head had long since grown weary of it. Once war had begun, it was not something anyone could simply stop.

The Head's Ignition Plan was, ostensibly, a well-planned chess game designed to pull in external powers, to add a bargaining chip for the survival of Trisolaris.

In reality, The Head hoped the emergence of new civilizations could alter the state of warfare between Trisolarans and humans.

Countless histories and lessons from Humanity had warned: bringing in foreign powers often opened Pandora's box, the consequences of which could shake the very foundations of a civilization.

The Head could not have predicted before the Ignition Plan whether the Mountain Civilization was benevolent or malevolent. It was not a desperate gamble, but rather a more complex and subtle chess game.

He intended to use this unknown external force as a sharp blade, suddenly thrusting it into the decades-long tangle of war between humans and Trisolarans, compelling both sides to temporarily set aside their hatred and confront this new threat together.

The plan was as treacherous as a snake in the dark night.

If the arriving civilization was malevolent, The Head would leak the information to Lin Sen in advance, allowing Humanity to strategize early. While Humanity was deeply engaged in warfare with this civilization, Trisolaris would join forces with Humanity to ambush them.

In this way, Humanity and Trisolaris would be tightly bound together by an invisible tie, together facing the sudden enemy, inadvertently forming a new Civilization Alliance.

Trisolaris's Patch the Sky Project significantly enhanced the Trisolarans' strategies; in their calculations, only a true alliance with Humanity would revitalize Trisolaris. Yet this path was fraught with thorns and perils.

Unexpectedly to the Trisolarans, the Mountain Civilization appeared like the brightest star in the night sky, its benevolence beyond imagination, warm and bright, completely overturning the Trisolarans' perception of a dark universe.

So, although the Trisolarans were not the leaders in the Civilization Alliance, their willingness to be part of it was no less than that of Humanity or the Mountain Civilization.

The Dinosaur Civilization might not seem as dazzling; they were more like boulders washed ashore by the tides of history, bearing traces of reluctance and compromise.

Their inclusion seemed like a nod given under duress of great powers, superficially the least influential.

But truly, the Civilization Alliance could scarcely do without them, as they were the only ones who had wandered the stars for sixty million years unharmed. In this endless journey, they had accrued vast wisdom and adaptability, which were precisely the treasures the Civilization Alliance currently lacked most.

Some might scornfully think that although the Dinosaur Civilization's technology was more advanced than that of Trisolaris, if they truly confronted Trisolaris, it was likely the Dinosaurs who would fail. This undoubtedly overlooked the resilience and profundity of the Dinosaur Civilization, forged through countless civilizational battles.

Their failures were more due to emotional fluctuations, a twisted reflection of their deep desire to return to the Solar System, to their home. They were defeated by their own inner urgency and unease, not by the strength of their enemies.

In terms of the art of war command, perhaps the Dinosaur Civilization was the strongest among the four. Humanity was too fixated on strategies, Trisolarans were invariably headstrong, and the Mountain Civilization clearly lacked experience.

The problems of the Dinosaur Civilization might be the greatest, but also the most changeable. If they could choose, like Humanity, to be reborn from the fierce fires, who could say that their achievements could not stand shoulder to shoulder with, or even surpass, the other three civilizations?

Now, the Mountain Civilization was only temporarily ahead. Whether it was Humanity, Trisolaris, or the Dinosaurs, all had planted seeds of surpassing inside their hearts, silently gathering strength, waiting for that moment to arrive.

The Head of the Mountain Civilization slowly said, "Indeed, each civilization in the universe is a unique miracle, shining like stars, each climbing its own peak in the endless cosmos, exploring the unknown mysteries.

"Now we are on the same path, filled with doubts, not knowing if this path leads to the right direction, let alone whether it will bring us to a bright Other Shore or plunge us into endless darkness and destruction.

"But we must go on, no matter how rugged the road is, even if there's a cliff ahead, we will jump off.

"We believe that by not putting ultimate survival as the primary duty of civilization, this universe might bloom with unprecedented beauty.

"We believe there is a mountain out there, to stand higher and see farther, we must climb it.

"We dwell in this vast universe, yet we do not know the ultimate purpose of intelligent civilizations in the universe.

"But we firmly believe that the desire that evolution embeds in civilizations to scale the heights hides a deeper meaning behind it. We do not yet know what this meaning is, but we will eventually find out.

"The mountains are everywhere, and we are still at their foothills.

"We will move toward that unknown distant place, never stopping!"

"Until the end of time,

"because exploration is our destiny;

"moving forward is our faith!"

"Are you willing to join us?"

Lin Sen stood up resolutely at that moment, his gaze seemingly piercing through the barriers of space and time, gazing at the unreachable sea of stars:

"We too harbor the dream of climbing that mountain, with a flame of exploring the unknown burning in our hearts.

"In the grand blueprint of humanity's future, we shall embark on an unprecedented magnificent journey, a grand expedition across interstellar space to explore the unknown.

"We will set sail, heading towards Cassiopeia, following the magnificent curve of the Orion Arm, boldly pressing forward until we have fully explored the entire Orion Arm.

"Our footsteps will not halt here. We will cross the interstellar gulf, transitioning to the Perseus Arm, advancing step by step until we touch the core territories of the Milky Way Galaxy.

"This is a grand journey spanning millions of years, a fearless exploration of the unknown universe, a supreme test of human courage and wisdom, and an endless quest for the meaning of life.

"But this will also not be our final stop; our dreams, like those distant stars, will always lie ahead, forever twinkling within that vast, mysterious sea of stars.

"When we were just able to leave our home planet, Shui Wa embarked on his unknown interstellar journey, guiding us to always look beyond. And when the future us have explored the entire Galaxy, a new journey for humanity will also commence.

"Our next targets are the Magellanic Clouds, Andromeda Galaxy, Local Group, Virgo Cluster, Virgo Supercluster, Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster, Peacock-Indian Supercluster, Southern Supercluster, and even the Laniakea Great Attractor ...

"We will step by step move deeper into the universe, exploring its endless mysteries and wonders."

PS: Some readers may not be very familiar with the structure of the cosmic geography, here we use analogies to give everyone a intuitive impression of the size of the observable universe.

We first consider the Solar System as an ordinary detached house, then Earth is a "marble" within this "house".

400 billion houses similar in size to the Solar System come together, forming a "central urban area" with a diameter of 100,000 light years. This "central urban area" is called the Milky Way Galaxy.

Surrounding the Milky Way are two smaller "satellite urban areas" called the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, revolving around the Milky Way.

At a distance of 2.5 million light years from the Milky Way, there is another "central urban area," called the Andromeda Galaxy. These two "central urban areas," together with more than 50 dwarf galaxies within a radius of 10 million light years, form a "city." This "city" is called the Local Group.

The Local Group is just a "small city." 50 million light years away from it is a "large city" consisting of 2000 galaxies, called the Virgo Cluster.

Having the Virgo Cluster as a "provincial capital," along with more than 100 "cities" within a radius of 100 million light years, forms a "province." This "province" is called the Virgo Supercluster.

Around the Virgo Supercluster are three more "provinces," namely the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster, Peacock-Indian Supercluster, and Southern Supercluster.

These four "provinces" surround a "capital" located at the center. This "capital" is called the Great Attractor, 220 million light years away from Earth, with a mass reaching 50 octillion times that of the sun.

Around the "capital," within a span of 500 million light years, is a country-like area shaped like a vast valley. This "country" is called the Laniakea Supercluster.

The Laniakea Supercluster, although not a large country, together with four surrounding "countries," forms a "national alliance" called the Pisces-Cetus Supercluster Complex. This "national alliance" spans 1 billion light years in length and 150 million light years in width.

Larger than the "national alliance" are the "continents," known as the Galactic Superclusters. Among the most famous "continents" are the human-discovered CFA2 Great Wall, the Sloan Great Wall spanning 1.4 billion light years, the giant quasar group spanning 4 billion light years, and the Hercules-Corona∗ Borealis Great Wall spanning 10 billion light years.

This Hercules-Corona Borealis Great Wall, 10 billion light years away from Earth, is the largest cosmic structure discovered by humanity so far.

The many "continents" together form a "planet" with a diameter of 930 billion light years. This "planet" is the observable universe.

This is our observable universe, it is a vast "planet" with a diameter of 93 billion light years, containing thousands of billions of galaxies, composed of various cosmic structures like galaxy groups (small cities), galaxy clusters (large cities), superclusters (provinces or countries), supercluster complexes (national alliances), and galactic superclusters (continents).

Regarding what lies beyond the observable universe, perhaps humanity won't know until it attains a Level 3 civilization.