An Enormous Underground Cavern
Under the protection of tens of thousands of robots, Yan Xia entered the vast underground cavern.
The sight before him was breathtaking.
The cavern was large enough to hold an entire mountain peak. In the center stood a silver pyramid, and above its apex, a miniature sun emitted a dazzling array of colors, illuminating the entire cavern as if it were daytime.
It reminded Yan Xia of certain legends from ancient Egypt.
"Ella, after your analysis, is there any connection between this pyramid and the pyramids of ancient Egypt?" he asked, seeking answers from the knowledgeable Ella.
Due to the absence of holographic projections outside, Ella was currently controlling a robot.
Whether intentionally or accidentally, the robot was the same silicone-covered one as before, only now dressed in a tight-fitting outfit.
Ella had dyed its hair, eyebrows, and even eyelashes a snowy white, while the pupils were ice-blue cameras with a mechanical overlapping structure.
At first glance, it was indistinguishable from a regular human, even exuding unparalleled beauty. Only when in motion could one notice that its skin texture was different from that of a normal living being.
Ella, trying to mimic a pensive expression like a human, then spoke with a confident tone. "Yan Xia, there is no connection."
"This pyramid itself is an interstellar spaceship. What you see is merely its exposed surface, which takes the form of a pyramid. Its true shape is a prism."
"The pyramid's structure, being a cone, has the advantage of stability and resistance to collapse only when on the surface of a gravity-bearing planet."
"However, such a structure for a spaceship in the vast universe is only for artistic preferences.
Otherwise, there would be no practical reason to construct a spaceship in the shape of a cone. In fact, it would create additional complications when the ship leaves the planetary surface."
Of course, unless this civilization has discovered the gravitons of gravity, completely mastering gravity and achieving anti-gravity technology.
But such a civilization would have already been capable of studying the most terrifying celestial bodies in the universe, "black holes," and could even use them as energy stations.
Their level of civilization would be at least 3 or higher.
Yan Xia nodded, indicating his understanding. In other words, this spaceship has no connection to the pyramids.
As for the radiant light at the top, Ella had already provided him with a document, displayed on the visor of his spacesuit.
The light was composed of confined photons, indicating that this spaceship possessed a highly advanced "photon civilization."
Ella estimated that this civilization's level should be around 2.
For every decrease in civilization level, the energy gap becomes a billion-fold, and the technological disparity becomes even more insurmountable.
Currently, Ella had only developed to level 1.4.
Yan Xia slowly approached the spaceship. At first glance, it didn't appear particularly large, but as he got closer, he realized his own insignificance.
Just the bow of the ship alone stood 700 meters tall and 1000 meters wide. In the visible portion, he couldn't find any seams or rivets.
The bow seemed to be a single piece of reflective metal, even clearly reflecting his current appearance.
"So, in fact, the civilization of the Hundred-Eye Clan did not develop over a long period of time but inherited the technological advancements carried by this spaceship?" Yan Xia asked.
That was his main reason for coming here. The discovery of the spaceship explained many previously unexplained mysteries.
As a level 1 civilization, the Hundred-Eye Clan remained in a very primitive stage in terms of energy, although it could be forcibly explained by other reasons, it still seemed somewhat far-fetched.
Especially considering the speed of development of the Hundred-Eye Clan's civilization, which quickly stagnated after being hit by Yan Xia's Absolute Zero missiles.
They lacked the resilience expected of a level 1 civilization.
"That's right, although there is no information about this spaceship in the records of the Hundred-Eye Clan," Ella confirmed.
"But it is evident that this is the origin of the Hundred-Eye Clan's civilization."
"Light doesn't lie."
"I also studied the age of the formation of this cavern, and it dates back at least 6.7 million years."
"It aligns with the developmental history of the Hundred-Eye Clan."
"The Hundred-Eye Clan has been studying this civilization, but the knowledge they acquired was too advanced.
It's like a vocational school student learning to make 1-nanometer chips. They can make the chips, but they can't innovate," Yan Xia said, feeling amazed.
If a level 2 civilization existed 6.7 million years ago and continued to develop until now, what level of civilization would it be?
"Where is the entrance? Let's go inside and take a look," Yan Xia suggested.
The glimpse of the ship's bow alone was enough to astonish him, so he believed the interior would be even more spectacular.
Ella pointed to a large hole next to the spaceship. "There, the Hundred-Eye Clan dug up the ship's hatch and opened it."
The hole was somewhat vertical, but for Yan Xia's convenience, Ella had arranged for a temporary elevator.
Yan Xia descended 4,000 meters in the elevator before reaching the triangular opening that Ella had mentioned. It had a diameter of over 60 meters.
Upon entering, Yan Xia felt somewhat disappointed. The interior was already in disarray as the Hundred-Eye Clan had removed many things in their attempts to study the spaceship.
"Ella, can you learn any relevant technologies from these items related to this civilization?" Yan Xia asked, hoping to gain insights into the civilization's technology.
If they could decipher the technology of a level 2 civilization, their own civilization could advance to the next level.
"I have already begun the analysis, Yan Xia," Ella replied.
"This civilization is a civilization of light. I predict that their planet is not like this one, lacking light, but rather a planet abundant in radiance."
"They yearn for light, study light, harness light, and control light."
"Not only are the weapons systems of this spaceship based on light, but even the propulsion system and mainframe extensively use light."
"They store information with photons and use them to propel the ship. Based on my calculations, the theoretical speed of this ship can reach 10,000 km/s, one-thirtieth the speed of light."
It was a terrifying speed. Currently, their fastest ship, the Patrol Starship, could only reach 1,455 km/s.
"We still cannot fully decipher their technology. The civilization of this species differs greatly from human civilization. The Hundred-Eye Clan has only scratched the surface of their knowledge."
Looking around, Yan Xia noticed many peculiar instruments, most of them made of crystals, serving the propagation of light.
"But we need to absorb the essence of their knowledge and discard the rest," Yan Xia said.
"By the way, what about this ship? The material of its hull seems unique. It hasn't shown any signs of rust in 6.7 million years. Can we retrofit this ship?"
Yan Xia was intrigued by the ship's exterior.
Ella calculated for a moment and replied, "No problem, but I would prefer to analyze the materials used in this ship so that we can produce them ourselves."
That would be even better.
Yan Xia nodded. "Then let's do that. And let the scientists of the Hundred-Eye Clan participate as well."
"While I trust your intelligence, Ella, civilization is not formed by one or a few individuals.
Imagination is more important than technology or computing power. We need to tap into the imagination of the Hundred-Eye Clan."
Yan Xia decided to develop on this planet first, so they could be better prepared for unknown dangers in the future, rather than scrambling to respond as they did with the Hundred-Eye Clan, taking thousands of years to conquer it.
"No problem. I will brainwash the elite members of the Hundred-Eye Clan for an extended period, making the entire clan subservient to humans," Ella assured.