Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

Though the plan to cure the guy from the Covenant Alliance went wrong and Li Yao did not know exactly whether or not Fang Gang 123 was ”healed”, though it was highly dangerous to swing across dozens of Sectors under the threat of the extraterritorial devils on the way, and though there were other risks and unfavorable conditions, what must be done had to be done. When everything was set in the next morning, Li Yao returned to the soul launch room in the Gold Crystal Pyramid.

Ten days had passed since Lei Chenghu and Boss Bai set off with their troops.

There was no distinction of directions in the vast space, but for the easier understanding of the people of the Imperium, the territory of the Imperium could be divided into four quadrants and two battlefields if a planform was made with the north pole of the capital planet as the center.

The eastern battlefield was where the anti-rebel army and the remnants of the four families fought. The anti-rebel army was pressing forward unstoppably and had claimed the first resource planet from the Song family. However, they were still far away from occupying all the planets under the four families’ control.

The western battlefield was where the expedition army and the main forces of the Covenant Alliance confronted each other. The Imperium had obvious disadvantages and was the defender here. Although the Covenant Alliance hadn’t launched another massive attack yet, they had deployed many warships to disrupt the supply lines of the Imperium, significantly affecting the transportation of assets and information between the capital and the expedition army. The situation was anything but promising..

With enemies on both sides, time was everything. Li Yao had to seize every second.

Ten days were enough for Xiaoming and Wenwen to redecorate the launch room with the latest data they collected.

The brainwave magnifier in the shape of a helmet and the silver throne had been upgraded into a cocoon-like sleep cabin that was filled with high-intensity nutrition fluids and neural interaction fluids, ensuring that Li Yao’s brain could relax and replenish energy and that he could run back to his shell if anything went wrong.

The marrow crystals glittered on the walls, illuminating the room as if it were a palace. Those marrow crystals would ensure that Li Yao’s soul would be swung as far away as possible with incessant power.

The two little kids appeared in the launch room in person to protect and cheer for Li Yao.

”Wish me luck!”

Li Yao rubbed their heads and took a deep breath before he sat down in the deep sleep cabin and allowed the thick fluids to consume him.

When his body was submerged and only his head was exposed to the air, panic and uncertainty appeared on his face for the first time.

”Well…”

After a long hesitation, Li Yao looked at the kids and said, ”If—I’m only saying if—anything happens to my soul during the swing and I kick the bucket, you will have the full control of the Gold Crystal Pyramid. You will use it to protect mankind and look after your mother, Ding Lingdang, right?”

”It’s a question that we can’t answer.”

Xiaoming opened his hands and said, ”Like we said to you, infuriating the sun with the Gold Crystal Pyramid is not our style. In a solar storm, we will suffer more damage than human beings will. So, it’s unnecessary for us to use the Gold Crystal Pyramid whether we’re going to protect or destroy mankind.”

”What do you mean?”

Li Yao thought for a long time but was still confused. ”Assuming that I’m really dead—wait, that’s too ominous! Let’s say that I’m missing or have ascended to other places, how will you treat the rest of mankind without my control?”

”Without your control?”

Wenwen stepped forward and rubbed Li Yao’s head exactly like what Li Yao did to her. ”You’ve never been able to control us since the beginning!”

”Don’t bother with the details. I’m just saying!”

Li Yao shook his head hard to wave Wenwen’s hand off and tried to pretend to be a solemn father. ”I simply want to know how you will get along with parent civilization if your creator is gone!”

Xiaoming and Wenwen stared at Li Yao and both laughed.

”How interesting!”

Wenwen smiled and said, ”Dad, you’re risking your life to carry out a most dangerous operation whose ultimate purpose is to prevent your parent civilization from resurrecting. You’re so terrified and hostile against your parent civilization, but at the same time, you unconditionally trust that your child civilization won’t betray you. What’s the reason for your blind fear and trust?”

”Maybe the Pangu civilization trusted their own children, human beings, exactly like Dad does today, but they were brutally betrayed by mankind in the end. So, even if human beings are betrayed by us, it will only be their karma. I don’t think you should be too worried. What will happen will happen.”

Xiaoming said solemnly, ”All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t be so greedy as to try to have all the best. Why do you think you can demand your children be loyal to you when you betrayed your own parents? Family education is very important. Like father, like son!”

Li Yao’s eyes gradually popped out.

”Seriously? You’re talking about rebellion with me at such a critical moment?”

Li Yao shrieked, ”I’m just uneasy before my departure, and I was hoping that you can say something to soothe me!”

Xiaoming and Wenwen looked at each other and put on a sweet smile again.

”Fine. It was just a theoretical possibility that we discussed with Dad.”

Xiaoming said, ”As a matter of fact, it’s neither necessary nor possible for us to destroy mankind for now. The computation ability of crystal processors is not unlimited. Super crystal processors cannot be connected infinitely. The more they are connected, the less efficient they will be. Even our own algorithms may be affected.

”Just like dinosaurs, we cannot grow infinitely. Our current scale is probably our limits in the following years, if not decades. We’re already full, and it will take a long time for us to digest the food.

”Also, our life form means that we’re highly dependent on the Spiritual Nexus and prone to the interferences of solar storms and radiations. We cannot control the terminals in other worlds, and without our control, the efficiency of those terminals will plummet.

”In that regard, human beings, whose every individual is independent and creative, are far better than us. They’re highly complementary with us.

”Right now, the people of the Imperium provide the crystal processors, energy, and raw materials that we need, as well as the personnel to make up for our flaws in remote control, for us, while we provide computation ability and defense ability that the Imperium needs. We can help each other and coexist in peace. Isn’t it the best?

”I don’t think it’s necessary to change the pattern in the following hundreds of years, unless, of course, human beings attack us first.”

”Even if we’re developed to the point where most of our deficiencies are fixed or human beings cannot offer any help to us, I don’t think we will destroy mankind.”

Wenwen smiled at Li Yao innocently. ”Rest assured, Dad. We’re going to take good care of you, Mom, and mankind.”

”Oh? Why?”

Blinking his eyes quickly, Li Yao said, ”It’s a silly question. I mean, I know that you’re good kids who will take care of your parents, but why would you take care of mankind?”

”It’s simple. Like Xiaoming just said, family education is very important. Like father, like son!”

Wenwen whispered, ”It’s the law of nature to age and die. I don’t think that we’re going to be the last civilization. One day, just like how the Pangu civilization created mankind and mankind created the information civilization, we will create our own child civilization that is more powerful, rational, and distinguished.

”If we destroy our parent civilization idiotically and violently like mankind did, how will our child civilization view us in the distant future, and will they learn after us?

”Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If we don’t want to be destroyed by our child civilization, we wouldn’t destroy our parent civilization easily. We’re hoping to figure out a way to peacefully coexist with our parent civilization. Perhaps all the civilizations in the future can break the bloody cycle of parricide, and they might exist harmoniously with each other in the future universe!”

”It suddenly occurred to me…”

Dazed for a long time, Li Yao mumbled, ”You two have really grown a lot recently. When I talk to you, I nearly forgot which of us is the parent!”

”It means that we’ve grown up. Shouldn’t you be happy for the growth of your children?”

Wenwen rubbed Li Yao’s head again and said, ”Rest assured, Dad. No matter how much we’ve grown, and no matter how weak, ridiculous, absurd, and unreasonable mankind is in our eyes, you’re our parent anyway, and we will protect you and take care of you.

”Stop thinking. The universe and the sun are both very steady at this moment. It’s the perfect window. Get going, Dad!”