Li Yao was deeply awed by the river of time that stretched from the primeval times to the future.
He had thought that the so-called 'Monument Plan' or the 'Tinder Plan' was just one of the hundreds of whimsical plans that the Federation proposed in a hurry under the dual pressure of the Imperium and the Holy League a hundred years ago.
At least, that was the case before he left.
The Monument Plan was a 'fugitive solution' derived from 'absolute pessimism'. Faced with the mainstream ideology of the Federation who was united and determined to fight to the end, it was destined to be unmarketable.
Even the Glorious Sunlight Group, which was under Li Yao's control, only provided the Monument Plan with a symbolic start-up fund for Gui Suishou's sake and left the project to die on its own.
Gui Suishou, the oldest demon of the demon race and the initiator of the Monument Plan at the beginning, was not a man who was good at practical operations.
He was a historian and half a sociological theorist. To quote the Federation at that time, he was a 'civilizationist'.
He could come up with pretentious, mystifying theories that could stun other people, but it was not the old turtle's forte to put the theories into practice.
Therefore, until Li Yao left the Federation, the Monument Plan did not make much progress. Also, it seemed that it would not achieve any substantial results in the decades to come. It was just a theory on paper.
But today, a hundred years later, the Monument Plan had turned into the Tinder Plan, which was already developed to the point where the first batch of 'tinder' could be launched!
The time tunnel constructed by the 3D light beam alone was enough to tell the ambitions of the 'tinder'. They really wanted to condense the origin, development, peak, and future of the civilization of mankind into one moment and pass it on to the brand-new species billions of years later!
Also …
In the 'time tunnel', the ancient fungi were replaced by green algae, which were replaced by trilobites, which were replaced by Devonian fish, which were replaced by dinosaurs, which were replaced by monkeys, which were replaced by human beings … They were gradually replaced, or rather, eliminated.
In the last scene, human beings were replaced and eliminated by some silver balls. What did it mean exactly?
Li Yao was deep in thought. He vaguely felt uncomfortable.
Then, he laughed involuntarily. He laughed at himself for being too sensitive.
If there really was something that couldn't be revealed, it wouldn't be displayed so openly like this!
At this moment, Long Yangjun said to Ling Xiaole with a smile, "I was told that in the age of the ancient Cultivators forty thousand years ago, a lot of ancient sects would set up illusion arrays in front of their headquarters so that the guests could feel the magnificent and intimidating illusions first. Then, they couldn't help but feel awed and yearned for the sect.
"At that time, the illusory formation of the mountain gate represented the strength of a sect!
"Many ancient books described the illusionary arrays of the major sects and clans in an extravagant and bizarre way, as if they had really created a new world in front of their sect.
"I thought that the ancient people were exaggerating, but after seeing the 'modern illusion array' in front of the gate of the Tinder Base today, I finally realized that the ancient people were not lying at all!
"Judging from the deployment of this' modern illusion 'alone, it is not hard to tell that the' Tinder Plan 'has a great plan in mind. That's odd. Why haven't I heard of such a magnificent super plan that has lasted for billions of years? The first launch of the Tinder Plan is going to take place tomorrow, but the media outside barely reported it. Isn't it too low-key? "
"The Tinder Plan is very low-key and mysterious," Ling Xiaole said. "Even I do not know the inside information about it. To be honest, if it weren't for the two of you, a Secret Sword Agent of my level wouldn't have been qualified to come here at all.
"Even the two of you are not allowed to visit the place casually, because the 'Tinder Plan' is not exactly a government project in principle. Professor Mo Xuan owns the absolute majority of the shares himself, and most of the funds are invested by him, too. This base is almost his private property. Therefore, it is only with the permission of Mo Xuan that you are allowed to come here."
"Oh?"
Long Yangjun blinked. "Is there anything here that needs to be kept confidential?"
"It's not exactly confidential."
Ling Xiaole thought for a moment and said, "How should I put it? The antecedent of the Tinder Plan is the Monument Plan, and the word 'monument' sounds rather unlucky. That is exactly the case. It is a pessimistic, escapist plan. It is not even escapist. It is basically saying that we are all going to die anyway, so we might as well carve a beautiful monument and launch it as a souvenir. Then, we will die if we are destined to die. Think about it. With the vigorous, thriving Federation right now, it is the most beautiful golden age. Who would want to know about such a plan?"
Pondering for a moment, Long Yangjun was amused. "That does make sense. A jinx is never welcomed anywhere."
Ling Xiaole nodded and said, "Yes. The public prefers the blood-boiling, impassioned plans, and the government does not want the Monument Plan to be exposed too much, which will lower everybody's morale. The civilization of mankind is destined to perish in billions of years. Such a statement sounds too nihilistic. Nobody likes it.
"The public doesn't like it, and the government is unwilling to publicize it. The project has no choice but to keep a low profile.
"More importantly, even as a 'defeatist' plan, it is impossible for us to know whether or not it will 'succeed' in the end. By 'us', I am not only referring to our generation but also everyone from the past to the future of the civilization of mankind."
Long Yangjun frowned. "I don't understand …"
"Let me give you an example. They will launch the first 'tinder' tomorrow. Naturally, our deep-space cruising technology is very mature. The launch of the tinder won't be a problem."
Ling Xiaole said, "However, the tinder has been set to drift in the universe for at least millions of years in search of a brand-new species. Then, can the tinder drift in the universe for millions of years without being damaged? Will everything contained in the tinder, including Wei Qingqing herself, perish? Can she find a suitable planet and discover new lives, or will she drift in the desolate, boundless universe forever?
"Also, even if she does find a new life, will the new life be a carbon-based multicellular life with a body of flesh and blood like us and be able to understand our civilization, or will it be something … uncanny and mysterious?
"Assuming that a certain life is born on a planet with a day-night temperature difference of more than five hundred degrees and lakes of metal liquid on the surface, I find it hard to believe that it can understand and accept the legacy of the civilization of mankind.
"But it is impossible for us to give answers to all the questions right now. It is possible that we won't have the answers until a million years, ten million years, or even a hundred million years later.
"In your opinion, how can the 'Tinder Plan', which is meaningless to the 'here and now', raise the interest of the public and the media?
"Also, Professor Mo Xuan is indeed a bit of a loner. He intentionally kept a low profile and did not publicize or invite the media on a large scale. The interviews and observations from several major media outlets were all turned down by him. Only the Union Army, parliament, and the Secret Sword Bureau sent some guests to observe the ceremony. To be honest, I'm quite surprised that he agreed to your visit."
Long Yangjun smiled. "Is there anything special about us?"
"Professor Mo Xuan said that the Tinder Plan is a fugitive plan," Ling Xiaole said. "Didn't the f-legitimate government of the Star Ocean Republic flee for a thousand years, too? We are all fugitives to some extent. Perhaps you can understand the essence of the Tinder Plan and share a common language with him, right? Therefore, he is willing to meet the honorable guests from Firefly and talk to you. "
Long Yangjun and Li Yao looked at each other and said, "Then, it will be our great honor. It sounds like this Professor Mo Xuan is a rather weird guy. I once watched a debate between him and Professor Xie Wufeng about the grand-unified Spiritual Nexus and virtual life, which left a deep impression on me.
"Why did Professor Mo Xuan abandon the research on the grand-unified Spiritual Nexus and virtual life and come to lead the Tinder Plan?"
Ling Xiaole shook her head and bit her lips. "I don't know the details. It seems that Professor Mo Xuan suffered major setbacks in the 'Spiritual Nexus and virtual life projects' and abandoned them halfway. But for some reason, he transferred all his passion and even his lifelong efforts to the 'Tinder Plan'.
"In fact, before Professor Mo Xuan joined the project, the original Monument Plan had been in a half-paralyzed state. The initial capital from the 'Glorious Sunlight Group', the initial investor, had almost been spent. Gui Suishou, the manager of the project, was a pure theorist who was not good at promoting such a large-scale, complicated project. Also, he did not have a lot of connections among human beings. Such a pessimistic project was quite unlucky, too. Not many experts were willing to join the project.
"After all, the Federation was thriving in every aspect at that time. There were too many exciting projects and plans. As long as one was a talent, there would be plenty of opportunities for them. Why would they devote their whole life to such an absolutely pessimistic, fugitive plan?
"When the Monument Plan was about to come to an end, Professor Mo Xuan joined the project and bought it from Gui Suishou. Then, he reorganized it into the 'Tinder Plan'.
"In the past hundred years, Professor Mo Xuan had been the president of the Grand Desolate War Institution, the president of the Association of Refiners of the Federation, the president of the Association of Spectral Cultivators of the Federation, and so on. He had guided the promotion and implementation of dozens of large-scale projects in person. His experience and connections in the circle were incomparable to Gui Suishou's.
"Also, Professor Mo Xuan devoted all his belongings to the project. He even sold his shares in the Glorious Sunlight Group and the authorization of all the magical equipment that he had designed and produced in his life, including the 'Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit'. He raised a huge sum of money and invested it all into the Tinder Plan!
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