Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen

Looks like something from ET, but never seen it before.Orwell whispered, "It doesn't look like a breeding nest. No hatch, no power source. What's this?" "I thought it was weird too, so I sent Xinbee to take multi-dimensional photos. You see—" Alexander's voice was full of complacency, and he sent the second picture.Simulate a color scale map.The concentric circles centered on the dome spread out layer by layer, with a diameter a hundred times that of the dome.Orwell was taken aback. "Geothermal distribution. The roots of the dome reach fifty kilometers underground to absorb thermal energy. The energy obtained from this is four to five hundred times that required for reproduction. With this energy alone, they can travel back in time without antiprotons gone."

"Use a nuclear bomb." Orwell said anxiously, "I will send it to you by air immediately. Can it be shipped to Singapore?" "Don't worry, don't worry, it's no fun just like this. I will give you a treasured secret. This retrograde silo is just one of them, and the remaining 139 are all empty." Orwell felt his head spin and he leaned his back against the wall of the building. "And this is only the southern hemisphere. I think you have taken a lot of aerial photos over there. You might as well look at it again. Although it is meaningless."

Alexander was still laughing, a self-deprecating laugh.Orwell couldn't help but want to laugh along with him. The operations so far have had an absolute premise: ET can only obtain energy from sunlight.The ET in the universe has almost been wiped out, and only the surface of the earth remains.Here, sunlight is not a very efficient energy source, so humans have a chance of winning. But now that ETs are using geothermal heat, it's suddenly several levels harder to kill them.Being able to harness geothermal energy means that they can use significantly more energy, making it more difficult to find out where they are.It is equivalent to ET starting to fight guerrilla with humans.

Using these energies to carry out continuous tracing, the entire past of human beings will be threatened. "why……" In the final analysis, ET is just a robot. Why did it show such a deep obsession? Orwell was puzzled.What the hell was the guy who sent these things over thinking? "From the depth of each silo, the amount of energy absorbed can be calculated, and the amount of retrospective time can also be calculated. It has started again. One wave of unrest and another wave." "Chasing away a wave of crabs, another wave of crabs..." "That's the way it is. Xiao Chong's friends are going to have to mobilize the whole army. Bastard, with so many branches, can Miumira keep reading?"

"Maybe you have to wait until the end of the series to read it. Of course, it doesn't have to be a perfect ending." "Don't say sad things." Alexander seemed to make a face.Orwell finally felt a little bit of himself again. "Did you tell Katie?" "Of course. But she's very busy. I don't care about such an important thing, I don't know what I'm doing..." At this point, Katie Sack joins the conversation: "Long wait. Back to support operations now. Cracking a hard code?" "password?" "Yes. It is a signal transmitted from the ET communication base. The laser communication points to Tegaton star twelve light-years away."

"Hey, so you know where they come from?" Alexander interrupted.Cutty Sack doesn't seem to be happy, though. "The Tegaton star is a red dwarf star, and there should be no advanced intelligent life. In the 26th century, humans once established an unmanned observation base on its planet--'ever' is a bit strange to say--and in the end, only Several chemosynthetic bacteria were found." "However, where there is nothing, ET will not send messages there." "Yes, so this matter needs to continue to be investigated. The password is still undecipherable-there is insufficient comparative information. Forget about this, Alexander, your discovery is very important. Just now I also retrieved the photos taken in the northern hemisphere, the total number of silos It seems to be above four hundred."

"Oh, this requires a change in strategy. If ET starts to travel infinitely, we will have to go back infinitely. But the current manpower is definitely not enough. How about we also learn from ET and create comrades through self-replication?" Alexander's radical proposal surprised Orwell. "If even we start to copy, human beings will be completely finished. Don't forget our mission. Contributing to human beings is our fundamental purpose." "Well, and it's not a good way to disperse combat power. We don't have to chase ETs one by one, but we should go back to an even older point in time, and start from there for future defense."

"You said 'more ancient', but where is it appropriate to go back? It is ET that decides this point." "I have a thought on this point—Original and Derivative Messenger, please listen." Katie Sark opened the conversation and spoke to all Messenger on Earth, "First forward the discovery of Alexander. Have you received it? ?Okay, let me state my understanding of this situation. ET already has the ability to go back indefinitely. In theory, they can go back to the root of the time tree and deal a huge blow to the earth billions of years ago. will do." "why?"

"Because human beings have been hit in the long past, human beings will be born again. The adaptability of biological evolution is extremely strong. Even if they suffer a huge blow, as long as there is enough time, they will definitely regenerate. Of course, the regenerated human beings may not be the same as now— Both belong to primates. However, in the bifurcated time branches, there may be parallel evolution. In this sense, only by hitting human beings in the past as recent as possible can their development be hindered for a longer period of time. They should be the plan." "Having said so much, do you have any idea where ET will go?"

"Yes. In my opinion, the most important and dangerous period is the period when human beings are formed as a biological species. In other words, the African continent, going back about 100,000 years from now, requires the messenger to gather all the strength to defend it place. Set up a line of defense there to prevent ET from getting past." Orwell followed Cutty Sack's line of thought while looking for loopholes. "The line of defense you are talking about is not a physical embankment? Or is there any technology that can prevent time travel?" "No. So what I propose is always a plan of action. Once we reach 100,000 years ago, we will be stationed at that time and continue to meet the ETs from the future. It is generally believed that they cannot have the ability to go back 100,000 years at a time. years of energy. We can stop them."

The entire network suddenly fell silent—one hundred thousand years?Guard the entire history of this period? "Of course, our hardware cannot withstand such long-term activities, so we need to use cryogenic technology to extend the life as much as possible." Kati Sack's subsequent addition did little to assuage the shock that permeated the Internet. She said—perhaps on purpose—in an extremely dismissive tone: "I want to vote on this in a minute. If you have any objections or questions, please speak." The silence lasted for forty-five seconds.That's enough to rival a human for a year for a messenger with high-speed speech and thinking.At the forty-sixth second, Alexander said: "This method is too stupid. Although it is the most reliable method...I say, Katie." "exist." "The story is so long, no one will read it." "Let me summarize." "I'm begging you. I'll write it myself." Someone chuckled—taking this as an opportunity, voting began one after another.In ten seconds, the turnout rate exceeded 50%.In the next few seconds, the turnout rate approached 90%.Cutty Sack said, "So..." "Wait, don't count me in." Orwell thrusts in suddenly.He knows that many people are watching him. Cutty Sack ordered calmly: "Please state the reason." "According to this plan, all time branches passed by ET on the way back will be destroyed." "Yes. We are guarding the time branch after we appeared one hundred thousand years ago. In the past of the current time branch, there is no record of our appearance—that is, we have to abandon The branch of time where this moment is." "Do you know how many branches will be produced in 100,000 years?" "It doesn't matter how many there are. As long as there is a time branch connected to the future." Cutty Sack responded immediately.But Orwell shook his head. "I'm going to guard those branches. After I'm done, I'll go to join you one hundred thousand years ago. It won't reduce the combat power." "Is it possible for one person to chase ETs scattered over four hundred time points?" The Internet was in an uproar.Orwell whispered: "Let me do it according to my own ideas." "Okay, I too—" Several people made voices of approval.Orwell noticed that one of them was the spin-off messenger Quinchi. He could understand how he felt, Orwell thought.The reason why he was born is because Orwell and others restrained ET. The approval of more than two dozen messengers silenced Cutty Sack.She seemed to be hesitating.Orwell added: "I will come back with the experience of four hundred battles." "This matter is related to the overall combat effectiveness, and a vote is also required." The result of the vote surprised Orwell.More than 90% are in favor.This is because all messengers have the same mood, although the degree is different. Resigned, Kati Sack said, "Okay, permitted. However, for support and documentation, please take my subsystem with you, loaded into your weapon." Orwell wanted to say that he could do records and the like, but he held back after thinking about it.He vaguely guessed what Katy Sack was thinking. "Then the discussion is over. After the couriers finish their current operations, please go back in time immediately. Those with insufficient energy will be transported by me. Please gather in London. It's over." As soon as the noise of public discussion disappeared, Orwell's hearing was once again filled with the silence of Snow Country.Occasionally, the sound of military aircraft taking off and landing is also absorbed by the snow, which makes people feel a little weird.There was silence all around. Orwell sat on a discarded empty ammunition box.Shajia's memory gradually recovered, and it was the same as what she had experienced countless times so far. To this day, Orwell can recall everything she said to himself verbatim.This is the so-called intellectual body.However, contrary to her certainty as a data, the palpitations I experienced when I was with her seemed to become more and more uncertain as time went by. She who wants to be loyal to humans...and herself who has a strong sympathy...but in the end, what is the most important, the two are lost.At this moment, in this life, in this place, Orwell has already had an extremely profound and detailed understanding of the giant tree of history—a grand time tree with infinite branches, so detailed that it is almost cold.Every branch and every leaf on this giant tree is engraved with the deep and deep thoughts of human beings.Which root, which piece can be allowed to wither?However Katie.But Sack wants to ignore it fundamentally, and turn it into a simple symbol with ruthless means... There is an insurmountable gap between her and herself... What would it say to Katie Sack if it was changed to Saga? ——Suddenly, the image of that era emerged clearly.She doesn't give in even an inch when arguing with her friends, she should be fundamentally opposed to the time strategy intellectual body.The things the two of them are pursuing are similar on the surface, but the core is completely different.In a sense, it is an old-fashioned proposition in philosophy: Which is more important, the state or the individual? But there is another question, which is heavier than philosophical speculation: which is more important, all the possibilities of a person, or the possibility of the human race? The more he remembered, the more Orwell wanted to return to Shajia, as if the world was real only when Shajia's soft body was in his arms. Disappeared, has completely disappeared, even in the future.Sha Jia's figure, like the flashing snow on a distant mountain peak, is melting and disappearing little by little. "I can't believe it, the manager is so cold." A sigh interrupted Orwell's thoughts.It was Kunchi's voice.Orwell rubbed his face vigorously, pulling himself back to reality. "Hmm... she's very talented. That's how the commander should be. As for the subsystems, it's probably to prevent rebellion." "What a dictatorship!" To Kinch, who was filled with righteous indignation, Orwell said quietly: "Don't blame her. She was designed to be that way. Just as we can't forget individual people, she can't forget the overall situation of the whole human being. Then It's the number one priority for people in the 26th century." In the silence, Orwell suddenly felt that more than 20 people including Kunqi were discussing something.Soon, Kunqi said: "We agree that you should be our commander in the future." "Me? It's too informal." "It's okay, so do we." Orwell gave a wry smile and replied, "It's up to you." "Original messenger, please order." "Gather in London. Get that subsystem... and want to meet you in person." A young Air Force pilot he knew happened to pass by, and Orwell greeted him, "Excuse me, which is the earliest flight to London?" "London? There is no direct flight, but the heavy transport plane over there goes to Oslo. It leaves in twenty minutes." Around the corner, the monstrous-looking six-engine giant was being loaded.Orwell's eyes widened.Such models are rarely seen. "How about I fly you off if something happens? Are you in a hurry?" Orwell turned around.The driver's left hand was bandaged.Last week, while flying a transport plane, he was attacked by ET and was slightly injured. He was banned from flying the plane until he recovered from his injury. But if Orwell asked him by name, even if he was a bit reluctant, he could still get on the plane.This guy must be thinking about it.

---

Notes: