Chapter 410 Divine Vessel's Choice

The civilizations of Shenzhou immediately deciphered the Guardian's "greeting":

"Unknown civilizations, greetings!

For hundreds of millions of years, our civilization has guarded this segment of the Orion Arm, and you may call us the Guardian Civilization.

I am the captain of the last remaining Guardian battleship in this battlefield. Our request for communication is not a plea for peace, but merely an offer to have a conversation with you.

In interstellar space, any promise is invalid, but we still promise that we are not trying to buy time or gather more information about you for the Mother Civilization.

We should have at least a few minutes left to talk."

*

In the great hall of the Shenzhou Civilization Joint Military Strategy General Command Virtual World.

Ye Chen said, "What do you all think about the request for communication from the Guardian captain?"

Since it was a joint operation, the assembled advisory groups were formed from the elite of several civilizations, who were the actual decision-makers and implementers.

All major decisions had to go through the judgment of representatives from six major civilizations, similar to a Grand Secretary cabinet system; Ye Chen acted like the Grand Secretary in peacetime and resembled a president during wartime.

The chief adviser of the Military Advisory Group was the first to break the silence, "Based on the current attack intensity and efficiency, that battleship is expected to be destroyed in 7 minutes, so we indeed have a few minutes to talk.

"From a military perspective, we are now truly in an unprecedented crisis; its level of danger far exceeds any previous time.

"Defeating the Guardian's battleships here also undoubtedly broadcasts our existence to all civilizations.

"What's more troubling is that we are surrounded by the Guardian's surveillance devices, which are more difficult to destroy than Sophon and nearly infinite in number. They act like invisible eyes, closely monitoring our every move.

"Our intended path forward will definitely be known to the Mother Civilization behind them, and at this moment, they are undoubtedly mobilizing all available Guardian battleships nearby to converge on us at maximum speed.

"Their choice will certainly be to stealthily move to our front and set a trap.

"Since we know very little about the front lines, every step must be taken with extreme caution, which will undoubtedly slow us down significantly. They are familiar with every space here and can undoubtedly move swiftly through the stars to block our path.

"If they successfully intercept us, a catastrophic strike awaits us, and our hopes of survival will become slim. Therefore, we have no choice but to dispatch a large number of warships as Pioneers at maximum speed. They will act as fearless pathfinders, paving a safe passage for the mother ships behind them at the cost of their lives.

"This exploratory path will see countless warships sacrificed, but only by doing so can we clear a safe passage for the mother ships behind us and break through the Guardian's several light years deep defense line before they can intercept us.

"Exchanges between civilizations always come at a great cost, and if we respond to their request, if they throw out some bait during the communication, we might be entangled for a longer time, which would be lethal given our race against time."

From a military standpoint, engaging in communication with the Guardian is unwise as it is very likely just a tactic to buy time, and for Shenzhou now, every second is crucial.

The Social Science Staff said, "The military advisers' analysis is undoubtedly precise and profound, but the situation is not that simple.

"Their request for communication, the underlying motives, may indeed be as we speculate: a meticulously planned strategy to delay or an intelligence campaign intended to dig deep into our details.

"After all, in this contest, the strength we have demonstrated has undoubtedly left a deep mark in their hearts, stirring their endless curiosity and exploration of us.

"The fact that they dare to make such a request is revealing enough. Under normal circumstances, such a request would be all harm and no benefit to us, and we would never consider it.

"Yet, they still resolutely sent the signal, which can only mean that within their frame of reference, there is a faint possibility they think we might respond, although it's a very slim chance.

"And from the information they conveyed, we can detect a subtle emotion; they are not sending out a communication request in a blind struggle of despair.

"If they were truly seeking a glimmer of hope in their despair, their communication request would certainly contain 'bait' sufficient to attract our attention.

"Their request for communication is more like a probe, a decision based on the principle of 'learning the Dao by day and being willing to die by evening.'

"This must also be a kind of curiosity and pursuit for the 'beyond cognition', and perhaps they also saw the things they 'desire' from our alliance," he said.

Military Advisor: "But could this not possibly be a carefully woven fog by them, where every appearance is just a part of their strategy? Every step of our response strategy may already be within their calculations.

"Facing an old-brand Second Type Civilization that has gone through the ages, we have to admit that their eyes have perhaps witnessed the rise and fall of countless civilizations. Their understanding and research of Cosmic Sociology undoubtedly far surpasses our current knowledge boundaries, a height we find hard to reach.

"In front of such an information gap, we are like blind men feeling an elephant, each step filled with the unknown and danger. Therefore, we cannot, and dare not, easily communicate with them, fearing that we might carelessly fall into the traps they set.

"The chain of suspicion exists not only in the phase of lower civilizations but equally remains in the stage of Higher Civilizations. Especially from High-Level Civilizations to lower ones, the lower civilizations can hardly judge the authenticity of the information given by Higher Civilizations.

"In such a situation, the most rational choice might be to maintain silence, ignoring their attempts."

Upon hearing this, the Social Science Staff's eyes flashed with determination, "However, everything has its dual nature, and the chain of suspicion also applies to all stages of civilization. It is both the shackles and the touchstone of civilization.

"Our Shenzhou United Body has walked this path until now, always on the path against rationality. Our greatest wealth is precisely that courage to challenge the unknown, to forge ahead irrationally.

"Indeed, all this could be the Guardian's strategy, and they might throw more bait, trying to lure us into revealing more information or making the wrong choices. After all, a major advantage of higher civilizations is information suppression, they can manipulate us through information asymmetry.

"But what I want to say is, even if they have indeed come to 'lure' us, even if their Civilization Rank is much higher than ours, they can't truly understand us. Because in terms of information suppression, their impact on us isn't that great. Our will, our determination, our wisdom, are not things they can easily speculate.

"And if it comes to a contest of schemes and wisdom, we can proudly say that we do not fear any civilized opponent. Even the dominators of the Milky Way Galaxy, we are confident to compete against them."

At this moment, Lin Sen remained silent on the side, his gaze filled with respect, watching the fierce debate among the high ranks of Divine Vessel Civilization.

This may indeed be the greatest wealth of the Shenzhou, fearless in strategy against any opponent, this is the answer of Divine Vessel Civilization.

The Dark Forest's solidity, the real reason is the endless scheming and distrust among civilizations, each civilization is like a solitary hunter, it's impossible for them to have any real empathy, only endless suspicion and guard.

However, it is this endless scheming that might also nurture the seeds to break the bonds of the Dark Forest. When a civilization can face any opponent's scheming without fear, daring to confront that endless suspicion and challenge, it may have found the path to break out of the Dark Forest.

The words of the Social Science Staff indeed inspired everyone, fear and apprehension are useless, they only bind our steps, making us lose direction in the Dark Forest.

If Divine Vessel Civilization fears even this bit of scheming, then these millennia of journeys, these countless hardships and efforts, would all be wasted.

Finally, after consulting Lin Sen's opinion, Ye Chen made a decision. He agreed to the request to communicate with the Guardians, despite the unknowns and risks involved, but they were willing to bravely try.

Because it was convened in the Virtual World, though the meeting felt very long, in reality, it was just a second or two.

*

The last Guardian Battleship soon also received a message:

[Guardian Civilization, hello!

We are Shenzhou Civilization, a Civilization Alliance closely linked by the power and wisdom of six distinctive civilizations.

Our civilization is committed to breaking through the shackles of the Dark Forest, to explore the vast and unknown universe. This goal, like a beacon, guides us through the dark fog, and also binds together these six civilizations originally scattered across the universe, connected by a common ideal and pursuit.

Perhaps to you, our goal appears elusive, even inconceivable.

But in this pitch-black universe, what we feel is unprecedented oppression and frustration, and the essence of civilization is to challenge the impossible because it itself is a miracle.

After leaving behind the seeds of civilization, we resolutely embarked on a journey to break through the Dark Forest.

We understand that this is a path full of unknowns and dangers, each step may lead us to an abyss, but we are clearer that only by doing so can we break the chains that bind all civilizations.

Even if our journey is just a fleeting spark in the universe, that is still the meaning of our existence, at least it briefly illuminated this universe.

Starting a war with you was not our intent, but this dark, foggy city wall that acts like chains is also an obstacle we must overcome.]