"I assume that what you really want to ask, Fellow Cultivator Li, is the relationship between true human beings and hominoids, especially those who are related by blood, in the Imperium of True Human Beings, right?"
Su Changfa said considerately.
Li Yao nodded in a hurry.
"Yes. According to the theories of the Immortal Cultivators, true human beings and hominoids are indeed two different species," Su Changfa said.
"According to the precise classification of biology, technically speaking, they are two different genera under the animal kingdom, the vertebrates, the mammals, the primates, the anthropoids, and the hominid family. One of them is' true human beings', and the other is' hominoids'. Although there is no reproductive isolation between the two genera, and they can even communicate and transform freely, they are still different after all.
"However, although we believe that hominoids are just a very special, advanced animal and our 'close relatives', and the slavery system is still maintained in the Imperium, the system has long been perfected after a thousand years of development. It is certainly not as bloody, brutal, and disordered as you imagine!
"Hominoids are our gene providers and incubation pools after all. They also boast agility, durability, and autonomy that even spiritual puppets cannot compare to. They are the best, indispensable tools for the construction of the civilization of mankind. Therefore, hominoids have a higher status than regular animals in the Imperium. In terms of legal status, they are almost equal to the rare animals that are on the verge of extinction!
"The rare animals that are on the verge of extinction have the 'Rare Animals Protection Law'. As for hominoids, their basic rights are protected by the 'Hominoids Protection Law', too.
"Look. We are not completely against the protection of animals. We are only against the crazy, extreme approaches! Protecting animals is protecting ourselves. How can we not understand such a simple logic?
"All in all, although hominoids cannot become citizens of the Imperium, as long as they demonstrate their talents in a certain aspect and their value to the Imperium, they can still live a comfortable life. Even if they are slaves, they are still the property of their masters and will be protected by their masters from the scourge of alien species and natural disasters in the sea of stars! The survival rate and the average lifespan are much higher than that of the chaotic worlds outside of the Imperium!
"As for the hominoids who are related to the Immortal Cultivators, such as the parents and children of the Immortal Cultivators, their life will be even less miserable! As the saying goes, 'When a man achieves the Dao, his fowls and dogs ascend to heaven'. Even fowls and dogs can bask in the light, not to mention parents and children! "
"There's nothing dishonorable about this. Although the Empire values bloodlines, they value military achievements even more. They advocate using their weapons and fists to prove the excellence of their genes! Most of the Immortal Cultivators will not deny the blood relationship. They will also arrange a relatively good job for their hominoid relatives, such as managing slaves. "
"Other Immortal Cultivators would not give such hominoids a hard time, either."
"After all, if an Immortal Cultivator is born in the family, it means that the bloodline of the family contains relatively advanced genes. Even if they are hominoids for their entire life, the odds that their offspring will be Immortal Cultivators will be higher! From this point of view, giving them preferential treatment will be of great benefit to the future of human civilization. "
"In the worst-case scenario, even if they are naughty, useless hominoid relatives, we can just keep them as pets. They can at least satisfy the emotional needs of the Immortal Cultivators and relieve our boredom. We are not emotionless monsters!"
"Treating my hominoid relatives as … pets?"
Li Yao found it hard to agree with that.
"Do you feel that your morals have been completely subverted?"
Su Changfa asked unconcernedly.
Li Yao thought for a moment and nodded dutifully.
Even with his fake identity, it was impossible for him to change his mind after hearing such a subversive theory.
As he expected, Su Changfa was not infuriated. He simply smiled and said, "The so-called morals are to adjust the relationship between human beings and society. They are man-made rules and norms. When the social relationships undergo drastic changes, the morals themselves will undergo drastic changes, too!
"Since the ancient times, there has never been an eternally immutable morality. Human beings are evolving. The world is evolving. Naturally, the morals are evolving, too!
"For the simplest example, hundreds of thousands of years ago, when the fire of the civilization of mankind was just ignited, it was a 'matriarchal society'. Everybody only knew their mother and did not know their father. Then, respecting the mother was the greatest virtue, and not knowing or supporting one's father was not exactly 'immoral'!
"Seventy thousand years ago, human beings entered the slave society. At that time, the slavery system was implemented. It was perfectly justified to regard slaves as funerary objects. Around the funerary system, a whole set of strict, all-encompassing etiquette was developed. There was even a saying that 'governing a country with etiquette'. Can we accuse the ancient people at that time of being immoral?
"In the age of the ancient Cultivators, it was not long before civilization began. It was often possible to get married and have children at the age of thirteen. It was decided by objective factors such as the short average life expectancy, the high infant mortality rate, and the necessity to have children as soon as possible. What was so immoral about that?
"Those things that are absolutely unacceptable in our eyes all fit the social form at that time. At that time, they were all necessary for the development of the civilization.
"On the other hand, of course, we cannot judge the ancient people with the morals of today. Can the ancient people apply their morals to us?
"Think about it. If there is a space-time gate right now that allows people to travel to the past and the future, and three ancient people from the matriarchal society a hundred thousand years ago, the slave society eighty thousand years ago, and the age of the ancient Cultivators fifty thousand years ago arrive in our world, and when they see that we follow our father's surname, that minors are not allowed to copulate with each other, that even the most powerful people should not ask for other people's martyrdom after their death, and so on, they point their fingers at our noses and curse us for being shameless and immoral. What do you think, Fellow Cultivator Li?"
"…"
Li Yao was lost for words.
Su Changfa tapped his temples softly and said, "The biggest problem for the Cultivators is that human beings have obviously evolved into a brand-new social form and begun to struggle for survival in a vaster universe. Yet, they still turn a blind eye to it and cling to the dregs of the morals of the past!
"To be honest, I've run into some 'righteous' Cultivators who would rather die than submit in the past. They were all very righteous. Even when they were about to be killed, they still cursed the Immortal Cultivators for being immoral, inhuman, and unpardonable devils! Fellow Cultivator Li, do you know what I think every time I hear such words? "
Li Yao shook his head hard.
Su Changfa laughed. "I feel that I'm watching a matriarchal leader who has traveled to modern times berating us for not respecting the 'morals' left by our ancestors and for being so 'evil' to take our father's surname instead of respecting the 'morals' left by our ancestors!
"Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes."
Li Yao's throat was extremely dry. His voice seemed to be coming from a broken broadcast rune array. "Senior, you're saying that every era has its own morals. Right now, we are in the age of the grand universe. The morals of the Cultivators are as outdated as the morals of the matriarchal society!"
"You are truly perceptive!"
Su Changfa's smile was even more brilliant. "Although we are making use of you, to be honest, I think more and more highly of you, too. I believe that you will grow into an excellent Immortal Cultivator!"
After hearing the 'compliment', Li Yao felt as disgusted as if he had just swallowed a bunch of flies that were humming inside his head.
The Imperium of True Human Beings was indeed a traditional superpower that had developed for a thousand years. It was hard to tell how strong it was in terms of raw strength, but at the very least, the soft power that could bewitch people was truly dangerous!
No wonder the Immortal Cultivators who believed in such abnormal beliefs could boast such firm beliefs and even have a lot of Yuanying!
As for Su Changfa and Tang Qianhe's theories, Li Yao still needed time to digest them and come up with countermeasures.
In the next moment, he pretended to be the most sincere and followed Tang Qianhe like a primary school student, listening to her bragging about the Imperium of True Human Beings as the 'last guardian of the civilization of mankind' as if it were unparalleled in the world.
Very soon, 'Flourishing Sun', the war base, was right in front of his eyes.
Li Yao was completely dwelling in the dangerous theories of the Immortal Cultivators. Having no time to observe the appearance of Flourishing Sun carefully, he simply followed the three Immortal Cultivators into the base.
The place they entered seemed to be a hangar. The walls around them were emitting a milky white light, and all the corners were in perfect arcs. There was not a single gap to be found, and it gave off a seamless futuristic feeling.
The hangar was half the size of a football field. It was empty, except for a 'light pool' that was emitting green brilliance in a corner. Grand Illusionary Soldiers were popping up from the pool one after another. They walked to a corner of the hangar mechanically and stood still. Then, they entered the hibernation state.
What advanced soundproof and heat-insulating rune arrays!
Li Yao thought to himself.
He knew that the three Immortal Cultivators must've changed the production pattern of the war base after adjusting their strategy and preparing to explore Kunlun. They had been producing new Grand Illusionary Soldiers incessantly to explore the perilous underground world.
However, despite the large-scale production taking place nearby, the noises, quakes, heat, and spiritual waves that he could sense were extremely feeble.
It meant that the Imperium had technologies that were generations ahead of the Federation in the fields of soundproof, heat-insulating, and spiritual energy.
"This way, please, Fellow Cultivator Li!"
The three Immortal Cultivators whispered to each other for a while. Then, Tang Qianhe and Kou Ruhuo entered a pathway enshrouded in ivory brilliance respectively, while Su Changfa stayed next to Li Yao and extended his hand with a smile.
"Actually, I don't like to talk too much about theories. After all, when it comes to theories, everyone has their own reasons. Who is right and who is wrong, in the end, doesn't it all depend on who has the bigger fist?"
"I like to discuss more concrete and practical questions!"
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