by <unknown>
"The few of them are the firmest supporters of the path of the Cultivators. When they saw that our game experts were 'riding the high horse' in the uniform of the Imperium's army over there, they couldn't help but recall their old lives that they would rather forget. In their fury, they committed such folly. Please do forgive them."
"That explains a lot." Li Yao patted Heiye Lan's shoulder heavily and said to Ling Xiaole, somewhat embarrassed, "My secretary has always hoped to seek revenge from the Imperium… for her father's death. That's why she was a bit excited after learning that 'authentic' soldiers of the Imperium are here. Speaking of which, you are even capable of educating the Immortal Cultivators of the Imperium?"
"Of course. If Cultivators can be transformed into Immortal Cultivators, why can't Immortal Cultivators be transformed into Cultivators?" Ling Xiaole said. "There's no need to mention the slave soldiers at the bottom level of the Black Wind Fleet that the so-called 'hominoids' work as. Even the bottom-level officers, namely the Immortal Cultivators in the Refinement Stage and the Building Foundation Stage, are also victims of the 'true path of immortality' and the oppressed class in the Imperium of True Human Beings in our eyes. They are also blinded, enslaved, and demoralized by the Immortal Cultivators of higher levels until they die.
"If you are interested, I will have some records on the education of the war captives delivered in a minute. In the past ten years, through communication with the captives, we have grown a profound understanding about the system and lifestyle of the Black Wind Fleet as well as the many facets of the bottom-level Immortal Cultivators' lives on board.
"You may not know this, but the life of the bottom-level Immortal Cultivators on board was quite miserable. For the needs of the aggression, most of the assets in the Black Wind Fleet were sealed during the hundred-year voyage. The bottom-level Immortal Cultivators had to explore the unknown, highly-dangerous space zones in the universe, and they could've died at any second. On the other hand, they had to be highly wary of each other and keep one eye open when they were sleeping at night in case somebody plunged a poisoned dagger into their stomach.
"Before, when they didn't have a choice, they thought that the true path of immortality was the sole, self-justified truth in the universe. They had no notion of the darkness and misery of their life. So, they did not know how to reflect or resist.
"After they were captured by the federation, they learned a lot of theories on the true path of immortality in the captive camp. It was also arranged for them to participate in debates between Cultivators and Immortal Cultivators. We had the bottom-level Immortal Cultivators form pairs with the 'hominoid' slave soldiers, the ordinary people in the Imperium, forcing them to help each other on equal terms. We even appointed the 'hominoid' slave soldiers to be the captains of the squads in the camp to manage the other Immortal Cultivators. There were many kinds of meetings and get-togethers where everybody discovered the atrocities of the Black Wind Fleet.
"Although they were war captives, the federal government never tortured them. Except for the few inhumane, unpardonable fellows who were sentenced to death after being revealed during the meetings, we tried our best to rescue the regular soldiers and the bottom-level officers who used to be Immortal Cultivators.
"Of course, the living environment in the captive camp was quite rough, but everybody was purely equal. Even their mentors who were Cultivators did not enjoy any more privileges than the captives. Everybody ate together and lived together. They worked, learned, and practiced techniques with each other. Through the meticulous care that the mentors showed to the captives, the captives finally realized for the first time in their life that 'dignity' was not necessarily decided by strength and that two people could actually absolutely trust each other without being vigilant all the time.
"Just like that, almost all the soldiers who used to be ordinary people were awakened in only half a year and joined the federation, completely opposing the Imperium.
"Even most of the Immortal Cultivators in the Refinement Stage and the Building Foundation Stage, who were mostly bottom-level officers or captains in the Black Wind Fleet, were reborn after three to five years.
"At this time, we took the captives to visit all the seven Sectors. We showed them the great achievements that the Star Glory Federation had accomplished in the path of the Cultivators. They saw that all the people in the New Federation were sweating and striving for a better future, regardless of whether they were ordinary people or Cultivators. Of course, the captives saw the 'national treasure' that was 'Civilization', too!
"After everything they went through, most of the captives were completely enlightened. They were set free after three special pardons and would build a future for each other with a hundred billion compatriots of the federation as regular members of the country!"
Ling Xiaole's speech gave Li Yao mixed feelings.
There was no need to mention Heiye Lan, who would have grabbed her hair and screamed out if Li Yao had not transmitted a stream of spiritual energy into her body to hold her back just now.
Calming himself down, Li Yao asked, "Then, what are the captives doing right now?"
"Living on their own in our society, of course," Ling Xiaole said. "They mostly take one of two jobs. Those who are more open-minded often work as 'professionals of the Imperium' and play the role of the Imperium in 'Civilization'. They sometimes work as consultants or coaches for the 'villain teams' like the 'Storm Assault Team', helping them to better every detail and ensure the realism of every simulated battle. The best people in this field are all thriving.
"However, few people are as open-minded as that. Most of the captives, just like the few old veterans just now, hate the guts of the Imperium of True Human Beings.
"After training, they go to local schools and work as special 'history teachers'. They teach the teenagers of the federation with their life experience, detailing how horrible the Imperium is and how beautiful and hard-earned the teenagers' happy lives today are!
"Such 'history teachers' are very popular. After all, there are only a few of them but so many schools in the seven Sectors of the federation. Do any of the schools not want to get a real-life 'native of the Imperium' to teach their disobedient students a lesson? So, all in all, the new life of the former soldiers of the Imperium in the federation is not bad!"
Li Yao felt stunned again. He looked at Heiye Lan again and said, "This is a lot different from what we imagined on Firefly!"
Ling Xiaole stuck her tongue out and boldly said, "You must blame your 'Speaker Cui' for that. It is because he blocked all the messages about the federation, fearing that the federation would 'corrupt' your 'rightful government', that we were so alien to each other. Thankfully, he has thought it through now. It isn't too late!
"I can basically figure out what is on your mind. Not a second goes by without you thinking of marching back to the center of the cosmos.
"March to the Empyreal Terminus Sector and recover the entire universe. It is a dream for the Star Glory Federation, too. However, since the Imperium of True Human Beings has more than a hundred Sectors and so does the Alliance of the Holy Covenant, how many Immortal Cultivators and how many demi-humans who obey Pangu's Covenant are out there?
"It is impossible for us to kill all the Immortal Cultivators and demi-humans. Are we really going to ignite the fire of war at the center of the cosmos and burn hundreds of Sectors to the ground until blood runs dry? Let's put aside whether or not it is achievable. Even if it is, it will still be an irreversible disaster for the entire civilization of mankind!
"Compared with killing all the Immortal Cultivators and soldiers of the Imperium, we hope that we can transform them and even 'awaken' them instantly in a certain way so that the Imperium of True Human Beings will collapse internally within the shortest amount of time and be drowned by the fury of the people and the bottom-level Cultivators who are awakened!"
Li Yao pondered for a long time. Suddenly, he narrowed his eyes
and said, "Something's not right. You must've arranged everything in advance on purpose so that we could see it, didn't you? Otherwise, there can't be such a coincidence!"
Ling Xiaole grimaced and frankly acknowledged, "Yes. The 'former soldiers' of the Imperium were indeed arranged to come to this place so that they would run into the 'Storm Assault Team'. But we did not write a script. Their reactions and what they did after the two parties ran into each other were completely beyond our control.
"The arrangement is not just intended for you. It is in fact a part of another enormous test program.
"They are captives from the Imperium after all. Right now, a lot of Immortal Cultivators are still lurking within the federation, not to mention evil organizations such as the 'CFIA'. We cannot allow the captives to run about in our society without being monitored at all, which will be irresponsible for both them and the federation.
"Therefore, test procedures like the one we went through just now are necessary to measure their mental state through their reactions, in order to decide whether or not they have been fully reformed and if they are suitable to stay with kids in school.
"You will realize that we would not ask them to act at all if you think about it more carefully. We went through all the trouble of reforming them. Wouldn't we be shaking their belief if we asked them to act in front of you in order to deceive you?
"The test application targeting the few old veterans was issued a few months ago. We merely changed the route so that we would run into them today, which would be a living example to introduce our policies for the captives of the Immortal Cultivators to you and Speaker Cui."
Chapter 1657: A World in a Grain of Sand |
Ling Xiaole paused for a moment and said, "If you are still not convinced, we can still arrange for the two of you to meet the 'former soldiers' of the Imperium by chance later. With your abilities, you will certainly be able to tell whether or not their deepest hatred for the Imperium is faked after a few words with them."
Li Yao thought for a moment but shook his head. "That will not be necessary. Let's go into the 'Civilization Center' now. I almost can't wait to see it."
It was definitely not a joke. Heiye Lan was the user of the most powerful Colossus in the claw fleet captured by the federation. She was also daughter to the commander of the Black Wind Fleet.
Even though she did not know the bottom-level soldiers, it was possible that they would recognize her.
Naturally, before they jumped to the Dragon Snake Space Zone, Li Yao had asked Long Yangjun to heavily disguise Heiye Lan's face. Even her name was a fake one, too.
However, Heiye Lan's mind was obviously unsteady. If she was asked to chitchat with a few 'former soldiers' of the Imperium, it was possible that somebody would see through her.
How should Li Yao summarize the feeling of his visit? The New Federation after a hundred years was indeed more advanced and perfect than Li Yao had imagined, but many aspects, like the statue whose head was loaded with coins, made him feel rather strange.
Dominator of the three Sectors, Father of 'Civilization', and even… Father of the New Federation?
Li Yao shuddered inside his heart.
If he had hair within his internal organs, there would have been goosebumps all over them.
Such titles gave him the feeling that he had been dead for centuries and he was an out-and-out 'ancient person' in today's world.
It was partly understandable for him. Perhaps for the sake of uniting the seven Sectors, perhaps because certain heroes of the past needed to be deified in order to compete with the Imperium, or perhaps because of the interest groups attached to him, such as the Glorious Sunlight Group, Skyfire, the Double Dragons Union, the Grand Desolate War Institution and so on, the image of Vulture Li Yao had finally been sent into the shrines.
He could understand the purpose of their endeavor, but it did not mean that he had to be bound by the shrines. For him, he still preferred exploring the interesting and strange new world in a relatively low-key way wearing his beach pants and enjoying iced watermelons.
Therefore, it would be best if he did not reveal openings yet.
Otherwise… with the density of the crowd in the area and their enthusiasm for 'luck', he probably would have been smashed to death by a mountain of coins in five minutes.
They finally entered the lobby of the Civilization Center.
It was a splendid palace, so profound that one could not see the end of it. The cabins that had been established on two sides as dense as honeycombs were all installed with the most advanced immersive game system. Through the floating discs that could come and go swiftly, it was very convenient for the players to fly to the upper level that was dozens of meters high.
The center of the lobby was the arena area and the activity area. Many game experts would choose to compete with each other in the relatively fiercer DLCs, such as virtual crystal suit battles, Colossi battles, starship fleet encounters, and so on. Right next to the areas were young teenagers in fancy clothes who dressed up like game characters. The atmosphere could not have been more heated. No wonder so many people preferred to come to the 'Civilization Center' when everybody had a game cabin in their household.
Above their heads were thousands of enormous 3D light beams. Every 3D light beam was a round ball like colorful huge jellyfish. They were fluctuating, rolling, and extending their tentacles of light into a glamorous, magnificent ocean of light.
Despite the enormity of his computational ability, even Li Yao felt his head going dizzy and dazzled the moment he set foot in the lobby of the game center.
He was like a tiny fish that had suddenly barged into a boundless tide enormous jellyfish. Inside the translucent body of every huge 'jellyfish' was a vivid, wonderful world that was growing, developing, colliding, and perishing!
The ancient Cultivators had once said that a whole world could be built within a grain of sand.
It had originally been a metaphor of training for the Cultivators to clear their soul and mind, but in the modern Cultivation society, with the advanced information technology, it had become reality.
Every enormous 3D light beam represented a blossoming world that one player was dwelling in.
It could be seen that a lot of players chose to enter the world of 'The Imperium's Frustration' as commanders, captains, or the distinguished artillerists, engine specialists, and special forces on a starship. Together with the countless players that were standing against them, they offered the most fascinating performance.
Some other players chose the worlds of simulation and operation. On the resource planets, ranches, carriers, and metropolises that also existed in reality in the seven Sectors of the federation, they worked hard on their tiny 'enterprise'.
The data and random events in the game had all happened in reality before, but the difficulty of the game could be adjusted. The speed of the game could be accelerated, too. The mainframe crystal processor could even help the player deduce the outcome a long time later. Therefore, there was not much bored waiting.
Many other players, however, were not playing virtual games but choose to experience an episode of real life—not their own life, but the life from a different world or a different class.
Ling Xiaole explained it to Li Yao with an example. A miner who lived on the surface of the Uranian Ring Sector, because of the travel expense and the holiday schedule, perhaps would never have a chance to go to the Forest Ocean Sector in person and experience the feelings of the natives of the Forest Ocean Sector when they rode above the boundless primitive forests on the necks of the beasts they had tamed.
But it did not matter. Through certain real-life DLCs of 'Civilization', he could become a native of the Forest Ocean Sector, the Water Crystal Sector, the Flying Star Sector, the Heaven's Origin Sector, or the Blood Demon Sector. After only one second, he would be able to appreciate the magnificent ocean of trees, the ever-expanding deserts, the bizarre scenes in the Blood Demon Sector, and the complicat
ed high-rises in the Heaven's Origin Sector that grew from the underground all the way to beyond the atmosphere!
"The data of all the worlds is real and even reflects real-time changes," Ling Xiaole declared proudly. "A certain player in the Heaven's Origin Sector has captured the view from a certain spot in the Heaven's Origin Sector right now through his crystal camera and uploaded the picture to the crystal processor and the light circuits. In the Uranian Ring Sector, the Forest Ocean Sector, the Nether World Sector, the Blood Demon Sector… Countless players do the same thing in every world and are doing it right now. When everything that the 'eyes' of all the players catch is combined, it forms 'Civilization'.
"From that point of view, every individual of the federation is a producer of 'Civilization'. Everyone perfects the world with their joint effort and adds a certain reality that transcends reality to this virtual world!"
Li Yao observed, sensed, and groped wholeheartedly. The glittering new worlds were slowly blossoming deep inside his eyes.
"Also, speaking of the ongoing competitions in 'The Imperium's Frustration', although the difficulty that some of the players choose is not very high and their tactics may be juvenile, the data is generally authentic.
"The data is collected from the other DLCs as the essence of all the data in the past decades. For example, a DLC named 'Starship Commander' was released before, in which countless players provided tremendous data about every post in a starship. After the data is all packed up, it can be distributed to every starship in the DLC 'The Imperium's Frustration' as a general package.