Chapter 413: Inviting the Guardian

The Divine Vessel Civilization, upon receiving the message from the Guardian, instantly grasped the importance of the information.

Numerous cosmic sociologists, social psychologists, and scholars from various fields embarked on analyzing and extrapolating the content of the message.

However, the paucity of known information shrouded the Guardians' message in fog, making it inscrutable.

In the end, all eyes, whether filled with expectation or doubt, converged upon Lin Sen, hoping that the Navigator of the Divine Vessel would continue to enlighten them.

Lin Sen, after a moment of deep reflection, spoke unhurriedly, his voice soft but heavy with consequence for the entire civilization:

"Every piece of information is a carrier of some intent, understanding the world is not merely about exploring the unknown, but begins with the recognition of what is known. Self-discovery is more crucial than probing the unknown.

"But stepping into the starry sky, we were destined to confront our current situation, which was inevitable.

"Thousands of years ago, we foresaw all of this. Consequently, we dedicated ourselves to establishing an institution to research the future history of the universe. It merged various knowledge systems such as socioemotional studies, future intelligence, cosmic sociology, and future history to project the future of the universe.

"But the results of these projections were undoubtedly despairing; the universe had lost all hope.

"Yet we persevered, for only in persistence might miracles transpire.

"We live by only two tenets: one is to persist, the other is to prepare.

"Just like the current battle with the Guardians, we had predicted their existence on the edge of that black wall a thousand light years away, as long as ten thousand years ago.

"We could have avoided this war, but we chose to engage regardless, and we have been preparing not for a thousand years, but indeed for ten thousand years.

"The key to victory in this battle lies in our precise understanding of the Guardians' psychological state; every move they make is part of our plan.

"In our prophecies, there indeed exists a 20% likelihood that the Guardians would choose to submit.

"But whether they truly submit is irrelevant to them, and pertains only to us.

"For a high-level civilization like the Guardians, the probability of submission due to a fear of death is virtually nil.

"The sole reason they would consider submission is that they believe we harbor the hope of breaking through to the next phase of the Dark Forest Theory, and they wish to see how far we can go.

"This universe is currently experiencing widespread dimensional reduction, a fact that we have long been aware of. According to the predictions of future history, the Guardians would not easily resort to such technology, as their behavioral patterns are clearly outlined in our models.

"In the predictive models of future history, once a civilization reaches a certain level, it will inevitably give rise to 'interest-driven' civilizations like the Singers. Their form of civilization has exceeded our current scope of understanding and is no longer something we can predict."

After a pause, Lin Sen continued:

"As for what the seed is, my conjecture is that it is a high-dimensional platform that can receive all information hidden in space, a platform that could even connect to all intelligent life forms.

"This is the direction our research towards a 2.0 level civilization is headed. The scientific team once made a preliminary prediction on this, and the Guardians' words undoubtedly confirmed our forecast.

"Whether we accept the Guardians or not does not depend on their loyalty, nor on whether we are broad-minded enough to accommodate them, but on whether we share a common goal, a Tower of Meaning."

Only now did many realize that the true preparation for this battle with the Guardians had begun ten thousand years ago.

Treason and loyalty are never simply a matter of individual or collective choice.

The reason why the Divine Vessel Civilization could stand united for ten thousand years was not about how to maintain this relationship but because they were inherently "of the same kind," resonating with civilization at its deepest level.

Ye Chen also stood up at this moment, casting a deep respect towards Lin Sen and his subordinate departments. Then, he turned towards the Science Advisory Board and declared firmly and powerfully:

"If we decide to accept them, is there any way to ensure that we won't be tracked down by their mother civilization?"

The Science Advisory Board contemplated for a while.

"Currently, the most feasible way seems to be to construct a special consciousness carrier for them, extracting their consciousness from their bodies and uploading it onto this carrier.

"I will take only their consciousness, without having to bear the risks that their physical forms might impose."

However, the Science Advisory Board's tone shifted, revealing a hint of anxiety:

"But even so, our understanding of high-dimensional consciousness is still superficial. If Ye Chen's consciousness is a projection of a higher dimension, then the Guardian's Mother Civilization might also be able to track and find us through high-dimensional consciousness, like the 'seeds' they mentioned."

Lin Sen: "No matter the situation, once a decision is made, we must carry it out without looking back. Persevere, for the challenges we face now may not be the same at a new point in time.

"Nothing is absolute, only by moving forward can we find the answers that belong to us."

*

The Guardians' last warships soon received another message:

[Our civilization has always been committed to breaking through the Dark Forest, and on our Tower of Meaning, survival is not the highest priority.

We are a Civilizational Alliance, and at the same time, each civilization is independent of one another, with each having its unique civilizational technology trajectory, drawing its own chapters.

The universe is dark, even despairing, but all our civilizations firmly believe that as long as we persist, there might be new discoveries, new Miracles born.

Are you willing to join us? To witness landscapes unlike any other.]

The Guardians had not expected the Divine Vessel Civilization to agree to accept them so quickly. From the first tentative message they had sent out to the sincere and enthusiastic invitation they had now received, it seemed a long time had passed, yet it was merely a short three minutes.

But those three minutes had decided the fate of many civilizations.

At this moment, the Guardians also opened their hearts:

[On this battlefield we know all too well, each of our warships is capable of contending with opponents of a civilization 0.2 levels higher than ours for extended periods. Here, we are an almost invincible force.

We have witnessed the rise and fall of civilizations, the brilliance of technology, the depth of stratagems, the finesse of tactics, the fierceness of courage... all these we have experienced one by one.

We have also seen the alliances of some Civilizational Alliances, most of them formed temporarily to break through this strong defensive line for coordinated combat.

However, such alliances could at most disperse our forces, a meaningless increase in numbers, with no real significance.

But you—a seemingly weak civilization—have burst forth an unbelievable power in the union.

Even without those strategies that seem like Miracles, we would still nearly be unable to completely eradicate you. The shock you have given us is so intense, so profound.

Such a union of civilizations is something we have never seen, and what puzzles us even more is how you all dare to completely entrust your backs to other civilizations. This kind of trust and tacit understanding is unimaginable to us.

You are the most unique landscape we have seen on this long defensive line. You have transcended all our cognitive frameworks of civilization, which fascinates us immensely.

Encountering you might be the true meaning behind our billions of years of guarding.

The darkness of the universe is not just about the warfare between civilizations; more importantly, it doesn't allow us to see any hope, its conclusion seems to have been predetermined.

Now, major civilizations are busy building their Small Universes or executing their own doomsday plans, because they also have no hope for this universe.

All civilizations will perish with the end of the universe.

However, your existence has made me see that some Miracles may still be born in this universe.

Although we do not believe you can break the Dark Forest, we also wish to follow your footsteps.

To witness different landscapes at the last moments of civilization is our desire.]

This message explained the reason for the Guardians' surrender, although they do not believe that the Divine Vessel Civilization can break the Dark Forest.

In this lost and despairing universe, where everything has lost its meaning, they only wish to follow the Divine Vessel and experience more landscapes.

But the Divine Vessel Civilization's most crucial doubt remains unresolved: if all this is part of the Guardians' plan, then the Divine Vessel Civilization may also face great danger.