The Empire's research ship was equipped with a complete extreme environment adaptation mechanism and a full set of basic laboratories, and could be replaced with special laboratory modules at any time. It was designed to allow the hot-blooded scientists of the Empire, who were no less than the Empire's soldiers, to go to any environment and complete any experiment they wanted. Of course, this included analyzing the oddities collected on the spot. Most of the time, the scientists of the Empire did not have the patience to send these samples back to the rear for research, but chose to start their work at the frontline. The research ship Tawil sent was the latest model, and the main laboratory on board was a sample analysis center that could analyze the structure and all properties of any substance. This center could analyze thousands of items, from physical properties to internal structure to energy spectrum, and even the sample's global "registry information" when connected to the Empire's database. It could be said that Tawil had crazily stuffed all the functions she wanted into the ship.
Fortunately, when faced with the shuttle-shaped unidentified object we found, less than one-tenth of the above functions could be used.
The 5.5-meter-long, pitch-black "space shuttle" with a length of 5.5 meters and two ends glowing red was now quietly suspended above the gravity-free platform of the analysis center. It rotated slowly under the gravitational field. Several small probes were flying around it, using scanning beams or something else that sounded very powerful to examine its structure bit by bit. Unlike the previous crystal ball with a diameter of one kilometer, most of the structure of this black shuttle could be directly scanned, although the scanned images were still confusing. Around the zero-gravity platform were busy assistant technicians. These researchers in white robes seemed to have fallen into a serious disagreement. They were divided into three or four camps and were debating fiercely, each expressing their own opinion. As the debate went on, their three or four camps were also regrouping at any time. Two scientists who were standing on the same point of view a second ago were glaring at each other the next second. Two technicians who were arguing with each other a moment ago were about to reach a consensus now. There was more than one point of debate where they disagreed on, and each point of disagreement produced several different viewpoints. These different viewpoints were completely unsystematic. Almost no two assistant technicians could stand on the same 'camp' from beginning to end. I had been listening for half an hour. The things these scientists were debating were very profound, and my feeling changed from "What are they debating?" to "What are they debating now?"
… …
"I feel like they won't stop arguing for a while …" The elder sister, who was as confused as me, had a puzzled smile on her face. She tilted her head to look at Tawil's projection. As the highest level researcher, Tawil didn't participate in the discussion of the assistants. Instead, she frowned and went into her own thoughts. However, she quickly responded to her elder sister's words, "Oh, it doesn't matter. For us researchers, it's normal for us to argue about experimental projects. Any feasible plan will be shot to death along with it. It's just that today's situation is a bit special. We have never seen such a strange thing before."
"I found this thing, and in theory, it's related to me, but I can't tell what it is." I looked at the black shuttle that was slowly rotating on the gravity-free platform. I frowned and said, "When it was wrapped in the big ball, it said a few words. Now that the ball is gone, it also became silent. Do you think I broke something?"
"No, it shouldn't be." Tawil shook her head. "This is not a result based on data analysis, but a judgment based on my experience and intuition. This shuttle-shaped object is obviously a high-tech man-made product. The previous crystal spherical shell with a diameter of one kilometer should be similar to some kind of armor. Its function is to provide protection for the shuttle-shaped core. According to what you said, this combination first carried out some kind of identity authentication. After confirming your identity, it also notified you in advance that it will remove its shell. Everything shows that the whole process is within the predetermined program of this combination, including the cracking of the thick shell, it must be the result of precise design. This kind of high-tech thing won't break in a simple shell removal program. As for the reason why we can't read the information sent by the black shuttle, it may be that its core uses a different identity authentication method than the shell. For the time being, we don't know what this authentication method is. In theory, yes. "
"Black shuttle? That's a good name. It's quite artistic. "Lin Xue said casually.
"Artistic conception? I don't know what artistic conception it is. I named it because it's very black and looks like a shuttle. " Tawil answered honestly, and the missy almost choked. "You … Forget it, all researchers are like this."
"The authentication method," I thought about it. "It seems that it will fall to me. It seems that only I can connect with this thing."
"Yes, in theory, but I don't recommend you to try a second time immediately. Before we know the origin and function of the black shuttle, letting you contact it rashly has a certain risk, and this risk can't be matched with the value. "
"But the problem is, if you want to know its function, I'm afraid the premise is to pass the authentication." I pointed at the black shuttle with my chin. "You have just tried it. The black shuttle has a self-destruct function. Forcibly destroying the shell or increasing the scanning intensity will cause the core of the thing to produce a sharp energy response. At present, the current dismantling technology of the Empire can't bypass this self-destruct lock that doesn't even have a clear understanding of the principle."
Tawil refuted my not very rigorous statement. "Whether the energy response is a self-destruct function is still open to discussion. After all, after we stopped dismantling the shell, the energy response fell back to normal. Although this is not a high-end technology, as a self-destruct device, it is really a useless design. It is like giving a bomb a function to recover all the fragments after the explosion. In theory, yes. "
I waved my hand. "Okay, okay, let's not talk about this. You guys test it first. If it has no abyssal reaction, I still want to try to communicate with that thing again. As long as it is not an abyssal reaction, it should be fine, right? "
Tawil bit her lip and seemed to have made a big decision. After seeing that Sandora didn't dissuade her, she finally nodded. "Okay, but please don't touch this thing before the full scan is over."
It could be seen that Tawil's degree of vigilance toward the black shuttle was not ordinary. This vigilance may have come from the "suspected origin" of the black shuttle. The thing appeared in the abyssal reaction alert area after the world management system issued a false alarm of the Gate of the Abyss. According to the relevant regulations, this kind of object itself should be classified as a temporary Class A dangerous item. Another part of the reason was the technological content of the black shuttle itself. All signs showed that the black shuttle's technological content was enough to challenge the Empire and even the Protoss. Although it was not certain that this thing could surpass the existing technology of the Empire, the way it operated, which confused Technician Schilling, was enough to explain its possible level of technology. This made Tawil, the chief scientist of the Empire, feel a heavy pressure.
Not only did I think of this, even my sister could think of this. She looked at the black shuttle that was being scanned in all directions and frowned. "Tawil, how high do you think the technological content of this thing is? Will the people who made it be a technological race as strong as the Empire? "
Tawil did not avoid this question. She nodded frankly. "Judging from the strength of the black shuttle's material and the way the internal energy flows, the race that made it may not be stronger than the Empire, but it is very likely that their strength is comparable. The operating mechanism of this thing and the energy it uses are inexplicable. It is a product that is completely different from any existing technology tree. But after preliminary simulations, the host computer determined that the Empire can use psionic technology to create equipment similar to it. This means that it comes from a creator who is as advanced as the Empire, but neither magic, nor technology, nor gods. "
"If that's the case, it can't be the Fallen Apostle," Sandora said in a low voice.
At first, she had guessed that the black shuttle came from the Fallen Apostle because that thing could have come from the abyss. And so far, we know that besides the Empire's "Deep Dive Project", only the Fallen Apostle's "Great Cause" would throw artificial objects into the abyss. Sandora suspected that the black shuttle was some new detection device made by the Fallen Apostle. And looking at the technological content of the latter, this guess was reasonable. But after Tawil's research, the technology tree used by the black shuttle did not belong to any of the known records in the Empire's database at all. It came from a third party.
"There is such a super civilization in the void, and neither the Protoss nor the Empire know about it?"
Her sister asked with a frown.
Tawil was silent for a few seconds, and said uncertainly, "In theory, due to the infinite nature of the void, any guess, as long as it is put forward, it is possible. But in reality, apart from the two Protoss and the Empire, the probability of a fourth civilization existing is basically zero. According to the theory of information projection in the void, and the information disturbance model between multiple worlds, any civilization that is powerful to a certain extent will have an information impact on the scope of the void that they are involved in. The most obvious example is that due to the existence of the Protoss, most intelligent species in the multiverse have evolved into humanoid forms, and due to the existence of the Xiling Empire, almost all civilized civilizations in the void quadrant that the Empire has been involved in will have the concept of 'mystery' and 'technology' at the same time. Even if they can only research natural science, they will have a yearning for 'magic' through their fantasy works. Even if their world only has magic, they will also dream of 'technology'. This is the influence of the Xiling Empire on the multiverse at its peak. The scope of this influence can be explained by a very complex mathematical model, but you only need to know the simplified version of the description, which is that the limit of the information influence is equal to the furthest distance that the direct product of the corresponding super civilization can reach. This distance can be physical contact, or it can be some kind of non-contact observation method. "
Sandora seemed to be worried that I did not understand, so she gave a simple example. "Using the Empire as an example, wherever the scanning range of the Departed Garden reaches, our information influence on the ordinary world can also reach there. Within our sight, all worlds will have the phenomenon of 'technology' and 'mystery' appearing at the same time, even if the world can only truly establish one of the two technology trees until its destruction."
"Then this black shuttle in front of us …" I understood what Tawil meant. "Since it can appear in front of us in a physical form, it is reasonable to say that the information about its creator should have already been radiated to the Protoss's territory."
Elson immediately took over. "The world management system can monitor such information disturbances in real time. I am sure that until now, the universe has not been modified by high-level information — oh, except for the influence from the Empire."
In other words, if Tawil's mathematical model was correct, at least within the scope of common sense, the fourth civilization did not exist at all.
Since the creator of the black shuttle had sent this thing to us, it was equivalent to a connection with the Protoss's territory. If this creator was a civilization as powerful as the Empire, then the world management system would certainly detect the distortion in the world. If no distortion was detected, then the creator of the black shuttle must not be a super civilization. It was as simple as that.
But the structure of the black shuttle itself showed that the technology used to create it was at least on par with the Empire's.
"Do you still remember? It may have come through the abyss," Bryndis pointed at the gravity-free platform. "Although it doesn't have any reaction from the abyss now, when it appeared, 123's world management system reported it. False alarm? I don't think so. Maybe it was a real alarm. The Gate of the Abyss did open, and then this thing jumped out, and then the Gate of the Abyss closed instantly. The Gate of the Abyss was to send this thing out. "
Would the Gate of the Abyss close itself like this? Icetis put forward a very novel and challenging statement. Anyway, in my impression, the Gate of the Abyss has always been evil. Except when it was blown up by us, it never closed itself. But Icetis believed that there was a temporary opening of the Gate of the Abyss at that time, and it was to send the black shuttle to the world of 123 — the purpose was unknown, and it was not malicious.
Icetis saw that everyone was deep in thought, so she reminded them of the second point. "In addition, you have heard a voice from the depths of the abyss. More than once. Think about the Deep Diving Project, and think about Chen's childhood … Chen's human childhood, and the voice he heard. "
All the people who knew these things were awakened by Icetis's words, and all the things were connected in an instant. It was as if a bolt of lightning had cut through the dark night sky. I was blind … No, I was enlightened.
"There is really a world at the bottom of the abyss …" Tawil said blankly, and his voice sounded like he was sleepwalking. "There is even a super civilization, they … are also launching probes, and one of them has successfully arrived!"
"It's just a guess," Icetis patted Tawil's shoulder. "In theory, right?"
"A whole new field!" Tawil suddenly woke up from his daze, and his face was full of excitement. When we felt the pressure, the only thing she could think of was the research challenge that made her inexplicably excited. How should I put it? She is indeed a scientist from the Empire, she is the crazy type.
I felt dizzy, and I didn't even know how the topic gradually changed to whether there was a super civilization at the bottom of the abyss. But no matter how unreliable this guess was, it was still a possibility.
In the era of the old Empire, the Deep Diving Project had heard a "voice" from the bottom of the abyss.
Seventeen years ago, I even had the suspected experience of having a direct conversation with the bottom of the abyss.
All the signs showed that there was a huge difference between the abyss and what we saw on the surface. The abyss showed an extremely calm state.
The black shuttle in front of us had triggered an alarm from the world management system when it appeared, and it was believed that the Gate of the Abyss had opened at that time.
And this black shuttle was inextricably linked to me — which reminded me of the conversation seventeen years ago.
I shook my head hard and put these messy things aside for the time being. I looked at Tawil. "Do you think the maker of the black shuttle is a threat to the Empire?"
"I am just a scientist, not a strategist," Tawil replied frankly. "But I can judge from the information at hand that the other party is not a threat now."
"Oh?" The elder sister raised her eyebrows.
"It was not easy for them to send this detector over," Tawil pointed to the black shuttle. "This detector is protected by a protective layer with a diameter of one kilometer, but that protective layer should only be part of a larger system: it is used to protect the core, so there should be more supporting devices outside, such as the abyss drive engine, navigation device, peripheral shield generator, or other equipment that allows it to move all the way from the bottom of the abyss to the surface. No matter the principle and function of these devices, they should exist. However, we did not see these devices. "
"So they should have been destroyed in the process of 'floating', right?" Sandora nodded and said, "Yes, a complete detector can't just consist of a core and a core protective shell. There should have been something outside the big ball, but it stayed in the abyss for too long and has been destroyed. Ah Jun, you also mentioned what the ball told you. Its system is offline, that is to say, it has no way to establish contact with its starting point … All the signs show that the detector in front of us is also an imperfect experimental product. Therefore, even if there is a super civilization in the depths of the abyss, they will not be stronger than the Empire, and it is even more impossible for them to come out of the abyss. "
Tawil showed an expression of agreement and added, "The deep submersible ships of the old Empire once dived to the 'depth' of the calm zone, but the manned deep submersible ships did not have a final core that could be ejected, so they eventually stopped in front of the calm zone. This detector seems to have absorbed the experience of the old Empire's deep submersible ships. It is unmanned, and it may have abandoned all its peripherals to allow the core to reach our world … It feels like …"
"It seems like an experiment conducted by both sides?" The elder sister said casually.
Suddenly, two words flashed through my mind like lightning:
Bridge!
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