Chapter 385: Fortuitous Encounter

Era of the Divine Vessel, 2074.

It was also the 2593rd year of crisis, the Earth year 4600.

In silence, time flowed on, and the Divine Vessel Civilization had drawn nearly 190 light years away from that azure place in the hearts of humanity—Earth.

The Divine Vessel Civilization, like a solitary skiff, hung suspended in the vast sea of stars, slowly piercing through the endless dark veil. This long journey was not only a migration through space but also an endless wandering through time and emotion.

In this vast interstellar expanse, the Divine Vessel Civilization traveled alone, surrounded only by the eternal night and silence, specks of stars twinkled with weak but resolute light within the boundless void, and the only constant was the sprawling Rongheng Tianhe overhead.

Each star they passed was a page hurriedly turned in the history book of the universe. Though facing the sea of stars, deep inside they could not let go of the longing for the cradle of their civilization.

On this day, the Dinosaur Civilization once again set its sights on an ordinary red dwarf star two light years away.

The area surrounding it was rife with Sophon Blind Zones. Apart from that, all monitoring data indicated nothing exceptional about the red dwarf star, yet it still attracted the attention of the Dinosaur Civilization.

A peculiar sensation quietly took root in the dinosaurs' hearts, neither a premonition of warning nor an omen of fear but an inexplicable magnetism, a profound resonance as if within the depths of that distant red dwarf something that harmonized with their souls lay hidden.

The Dinosaur Civilization had roamed the stars for tens of millions of years, accumulating more than tens of thousands of light years in their interstellar journey, but they had also been circling within a thousand light years.

Behind this were complex reasons, including barriers like the cosmic "black walls," the unpredictable and dangerous environments laden with crises, and more importantly, to steer clear of the gaze of "Hunters" lurking in the dark depths.

Yet, in this span of time long enough to dim even the stars, the Dinosaur Civilization miraculously never encountered an overwhelmingly powerful enemy. This was undeniably a miracle within miracles, a rare stroke of luck in the universe. The key factor behind this luck was their immense heads; their ability to perceive danger was extraordinary, almost as if they were naturally endowed with a magical power to see through darkness and evade crises.

Before their initial contact with Daling Five, the Dinosaur Civilization had captured a distinctive aura from the planet, using their keen intuition. Their premonition was eventually proven correct—Daling Five was hiding a Mo Civilization of Level 1.6.

Because of this, trailing their ample navigational experience and unique perception abilities, the Dinosaur Civilization became the Divine Vessel Civilization's helmsman. In the strategizing of the Divine Vessel Civilization's interstellar journey, the voice of the Dinosaur Civilization was almost always dominant, thus elevating their status to particular reverence.

When the Dinosaur Civilization stumbled upon the anomalies of that red dwarf star, they immediately reported this significant discovery to the Divine Vessel Crisis Prevention Joint Center.

Upon receiving this news, the five leading civilizations within the Shenzhou Alliance, after an urgent and heated discussion and weighing their options, resolutely decided to once again dispatch a joint exploration fleet to explore the mysterious red dwarf star.

By this time, the Divine Vessel Civilization had reached Level 1.7 on the civilization scale. Although they maintained caution and awe during their journey of interstellar navigation, they now dared to explore certain stellar systems.

Adventuring without strength is speculation, while adventuring with strength is exploration.

The Divine Vessel Civilization could already envision the outline of a Level 2.0 civilization; with such elevated awareness, they felt reverence yet not the deep-seated fear of potential alien higher civilizations as in days past.

*

Red dwarf stars, as the name suggests, are red in color. High-temperature stars radiate energy concentrated in the bluish spectrum, while lower-temperature stars appear redder; the surface temperature of a red dwarf is below 3500K. The light it emits is also much weaker than that of the Sun, sometimes even less than a thousandth of the Sun's brightness.

"Dwarf" refers to their relatively small size and mass, most being less than a third of the Sun's, with Proxima Centauri from Trisolaris also being a red dwarf star.

About 75% of the stars in the universe are red dwarfs. Due to their dim light, without the aid of telescopes, we could never see any red dwarf star.

However, because they are small, the rate of nuclear fusion within them is slow, hence they also possess longer lifespans. The pressure and temperature generated inside are insufficient to fuse helium into heavier elements, so they never swell into red giants; the lifespan of red dwarf stars can last up to hundreds of billions of years, almost as long as the age of the universe.

It is often said that red dwarf systems are unlikely to give birth to life because, given their size and brightness, their habitable zones are very close to the star, even closer than the distance from Mercury to the Sun.

This would lead to several consequences, one being that planets in the habitable zone would be tidally locked, showing only one side to its "sun," and it was virtually impossible for such planets to give birth to anything.

Secondly, with the red dwarf's flares erupting several times a day, ultraviolet radiation could intensify instantly by hundreds to tens of thousands of times, a catastrophic blow for planets so close. Even the stellar wind from a red dwarf could potentially strip away a planet's atmosphere completely.

Of course, the vastness of the universe harbors all sorts of oddities, and the forms of civilization and the emergence of life are also varied. The habitable zone may not necessarily be a prerequisite for the birth of life or even civilization.

The red dwarf observed by the Dinosaur Civilization had weathered its wild youth and entered a stable middle age.

Surrounding it, there was not only a rocky planet within the habitable zone but also a gaseous planet at a greater distance. The existence of these two planets undoubtedly added a touch of mystery and anticipation to the exploratory journey of the Divine Vessel Civilization.

*

The scouting fleet slowly entered the heart of this stellar system, and as they approached the blazing star at a distance of about 30 astronomical units, they broadcast a prime number greeting into the interior of the galaxy.

At the same time, within a secret and profound hall deep within the galaxy, an atmosphere tense as a pre-eruption volcano, several figures were fiercely clashing, their every word seemingly carrying the fate of their civilization.

Speaker A's voice was urgent and resolute, "Leader, we may have already been exposed. Now, every second of hesitation is a crime against our civilization. We must launch the lightspeed spacecraft immediately."

Speaker B appeared calmer, his voice echoing in the spacious hall with a barely perceptible firmness,

"No, Leader, perhaps the situation has not deteriorated to that irreversible step yet, and it is still too early to draw conclusions. According to sociologists' predictions, if the 'Hunters' have found us, they would be more inclined to use an indiscriminate Heisen Strike directly rather than send such a message."

Speaker A's rebuttal was sharp and direct, "But this message could also be a carefully laid trap, designed to entice us to reveal more information."

Speaker B shook his head, "Such a trap is meaningless. A Heisen Strike would be simpler and more efficient compared to sending this kind of greeting as a trap, they have no reason to complicate things unnecessarily.

"This instead indicates they are willing to communicate with us, and once the doors to communication are opened, it is possible to break the dark forests within each other's hearts.

"More importantly, it breaks through the fog of the unknown that surrounds us; this is a step we must take."

Speaker A's voice betrayed a hint of helplessness and anxiety, "I know they could be benevolent, but this is placing the future of our civilization in their goodwill, a hesitation no rational civilization should have, it is utterly irresponsible to our own civilization."

"Leader, you must make a decision quickly!"

Speaker B's voice was low and firm, "I understand, your choice is undoubtedly the most rational one. But we have chosen this path full of unknowns, after overcoming countless hardships, is it not to change something?

"Our parent civilization has most likely perished, and the branch civilizations are faltering under endless trials, losing their way, gradually declining.

"They are even ready to transform the entire stellar system into a low-light-speed black hole, isn't this an act of despair, a complete loss of faith in the future?

"Therefore, we chose to flee, to escape the world about to be consumed by darkness.

"But we also understand, how long can we keep fleeing?

"Perhaps, the real courage and wisdom lie in facing the unknown, daring to explore, rather than constantly fleeing."

The leader did not speak for a long time, looking out at the endless sea of stars, his figure seeming especially old, as if time had eroded not only his body but also heavily bent his once unyielding spine.

Within that nearly worn-out shell, only his eyes still sparkled with an undying flame, the embers of his lifelong beliefs, enduring through the long baptism of time, still as fiery as ever.