By the time the royal shuttle landed on the crude, makeshift spaceport on the brown planet, I had already adjusted my mood. I have to say, what Lin Xue once said was true: That's the only strength of Chen Slow-Witted. His ability to recover was stronger than a cockroach's.
Besides, it was a waste of emotion to feel sad for a race that only looked like humans.
"Looks like you've been doing well these past few days."
After I got out of the shuttle, the first thing I saw was a bearded uncle in a heavy suit of power armor standing next to the temporary alloy landing platform and saluting me.
It wasn't a fake greeting, but this man, who had been dispirited and reeking of alcohol, looked to be in good condition.
His eyes were bright and his complexion was rosy. His messy hair, which looked like a chicken's nest, had obviously been trimmed. Or maybe it was all combed back by the lazy man and covered by the helmet of the power armor. The beard on his chin was in line with his style. It hadn't changed at all, but the reeking of alcohol on it was gone.
"I'm wearing this armor again, but I feel different this time." Renault hammered his armor twice. "I don't know if I should call it a new life."
Tykes, who was standing next to him, immediately whistled. "I've taken off that heavy prison cell. Now it's this overly responsible idiot's turn to carry everything."
I curiously moved closer to Renault and wrinkled my nose. Then, I was surprised. "You've really quit drinking this time?"
"Kerrigan doesn't allow me to drink."
Renault's face had a rare blush as he said shyly.
"… Oh …" Everyone in the Empire was speechless.
It seemed that while the entire human race was in the shadows of exile, there were still some people who welcomed their own nourishing lives.
I had said before that Kerrigan would definitely thank us for remodeling her. When Liliana and Tawil worked together to complete the biological repair cabin named "Life One," which was said to be a mixture of occultism and science, and which theoretically wouldn't need to be replaced for a hundred years, she forcefully pushed the Queen of Blades into it. She protested desperately, but in the end, after only an hour of biological modification, the first thing she said when she came out was to thank us.
Therefore, the Empire was a good person. The Empire was full of good people.
Of course, I guess Kerrigan's protest had something to do with the shape of the repair pod. Its shape was designed under the guidance of Tawil. Do you understand the aesthetics of coffin-lovers?
However, when we questioned why the appearance of the new repair pod was so similar to a western coffin even though we had clearly warned her before, Tawil's explanation was rather convincing. "Your Majesty, western coffins all have a flip lid, but mine has a sliding lid!"
A slide-out coffin. I bet Kerrigan is traumatized by it.
"Speaking of which, where's your sister, Blade?" I looked around curiously, but I didn't see the figure of the former Zerg Queen who had returned to her human form, so I blurted out the name I had in mind.
Uncle Reynolds must have been completely immersed in the best moments of his life. He didn't even notice my embarrassing nickname and continued to smile foolishly. "She's cooking at home …"
Me: "..."
At least don't tell me about the blissful life of a hero after a disaster at a time like this! Don't you think you're progressing too fast? You'll be beaten to death by the refugees of New Eden, you bastard!
Uncle Reynolds was no longer the leader of a small terrorist organization, but the new leader of humanity. There was no doubt about it. Not to mention the fact that 90% of the refugees in New Eden were poor people who had been oppressed by Mengsk at the borders of the Independent Federation. These people had almost fanatical admiration for the 'hero Reynolds' who had bravely resisted the tyranny. More importantly, the Kepru Sector had really disappeared as Reynolds had said. He had also found a new refuge for these poor people, just as he had promised. This achievement alone was enough to make him a legendary hero.
But … I couldn't imagine it at all, you bastard!
A few days ago, the Queen of Blades was still the ruler of the Zerg, but now she had started a new life with Uncle Reynolds!? It was as if the words "N years later" were randomly displayed on a black screen, and then you were given a CG picture of the happy daily life of a young couple that was obviously used due to lack of funds by the producers. Even the background music was filled with a sense of déjà vu. What kind of super low-budget development was this, you bastard!
I solemnly declare here: I am absolutely not jealous, absolutely not jealous of this uncle who can already enjoy a new life!
And more importantly, the famous Queen of Blades, Kerrigan, was actually cooking at home! Believe it or not, the first thing that Bubble, an avid gamer, would do when she heard this news would be to throw you, the bad man who had led her 'Queen' astray, into the reactor to be humanely destroyed.
Although I didn't know how many shocking things I had thought of in that instant, Reynolds could still tell something from the sudden change in our expressions. He couldn't help but adjust his expression, and then discreetly gestured for us to pay attention to our surroundings.
I looked around curiously and saw a welcoming party gathering not far away. Half of them were Proteans.
So that was the case. In this case, Kerrigan really could only hide at home and cook.
"What's your situation now? Can the environment of the new colony meet your needs? "
On the way to the capital of the new colony with Reynolds and Zeratul, which was actually an alloy shantytown directly transformed from a huge colony capsule, I asked the indifferent Uncle Z.
"We need some time to adapt to the environment of the sanctuary, but it is already much better than we expected," Zeratul replied. "The sacred seed allowed these desolate and barren planets to quickly establish a primary ecosystem. Although this unbalanced ecosystem may die out in a few years, it has given us enough time to breathe. We should be able to complete the transformation of those planets. The Proteans have a strong ability to adapt to the environment."
"Furthermore, the environment here isn't too bad for us." Reynolds continued the conversation. "In the slums at the very edge of the Federation, the environment there isn't much better than here. The people at the bottom of the hierarchy of the Federation live a tough life as if they were exploring the universe. But here, although the environment isn't that great, at least they can live for themselves … Other than missing their homeland and other psychological problems, there's nothing to worry about."
"But that is enough to worry about, isn't it?" The fake loli in the priest robe who had been silently following behind me said in a soft and magnetic voice, "The human mind is the most fragile at times like this. They need guidance. Human James Reynolds, can you bear this spiritual pillar?"
"… I don't know," Uncle Reynolds finally let out a long sigh. Uncle Reynolds finally let out a long sigh. "I've fought against tyranny and dictatorship for many years, but now I have to face a challenge that I've never understood before. Interstellar exploration … Humanity has now returned to its starting point … But it doesn't matter. Many years ago, when the human colony ships were lost in this Star Zone, didn't we come here too? And we were attacked by the so-called compatriots of the Earth United Council … "
You don't have to worry about this. Under Liliana's suggestion, the Empire has used a hidden force to seal off this place. Before the New Kepru humans completely become the slaves of the Empire's theocracy, no foreign civilization will be able to find you. Unfortunately, I can't say this out loud.
"What do the people here think about our existence?"
In the end, I threw out the question that I desperately wanted to know the answer to.
"In the eyes of the Proteans, your image is glorious and lofty." Reynolds shrugged. His irresponsible remarks made a bunch of Uncle Z turn his head away and pretend not to see it. "They call you teachers and guides, but in the eyes of humans, your image … Hmm, it's a little complicated."
"In the eyes of some people, the Shiring Apostles are the saviors of this star zone. Even though their hometown was destroyed by your formatting, these people know that this is not your responsibility. These people are mainly the poorest of the poor. They don't have much attachment to their old lives, but they are quite satisfied with this New Eden. As for the other group, although they chose to go into exile, they are still hostile to the outsiders who stirred up chaos in the Imperial Army. They feel that their current terrible situation is all thanks to you. These people are basically the nobles of the past. The destruction of the Kepru left them with nothing, so they have no choice but to work for me, a terrorist that they once looked down on. Hmph … The rest are neutral. There is nothing much to say about this. In short, the mainstream consciousness of the new colony is quite kind to you, but don't expect humans to welcome the Imperial Army."
"Hmm, sounds like a challenge."
Liliana said without rhyme or reason, but only I could understand what she meant.
This girl seemed to have started her plan of sowing theocracy.
The planet that was chosen as the capital of the new colony was located in the middle of nowhere. It was a lonely brown planet orbiting an aging star. The location looked strange. It was not part of the territory of the Proteans' refuge, and it was far away from the New Eden system. Although the environment barely reached the point where it could survive without modification, it was not suitable to be the capital of a new colony. But soon, I understood why such a lonely planet was chosen as the new capital.
It was located in the middle of the refuge of the two races. It was a very ingenious point. The distance between the two races was exactly the same, and it was the only planet that had not been artificially modified by the Empire. In other words, this should be counted as the first colonized planet developed by the two races who entered space.
"This place is called El-Tasani." Reynolds' voice had a heavy sigh. "In memory of our lost homeland."
"Proteans and humans have completely merged together?"
I was surprised by this name that was obviously pieced together. The first half was the mother planet of the Proteans that was destroyed by the Zerg, and the second half was the former capital of the humans that was destroyed in the war. The meaning of such a name was too obvious.
"We won't go so far as to merge, but in this cruel world, at least we are brothers who fled together." Reynolds smiled bitterly and shook his head. "We need to join hands in order to survive in the future … We need the cutting-edge technology of Proteans, but the other party also needs some extreme skills that humans have learned in the long-term struggle against the cruel nature."
"For example, the tenacity of humans," Zeratul added. "In the face of the second destruction of their homeland, many Proteans have fallen into depression. Although a high degree of rationality prevents us from falling into despair, compared to the humans who have been struggling to survive in the Kepru Star Zone with a weak position, we do lack the vigilance and tenacity of the weak. That is not something that can be replaced by cutting-edge technology and racial philosophy."
In other words, you are envious of the cockroach spirit of humans, right …
"We brought a lot of seeds …" I suddenly thought of this very important matter. I immediately patted Liliana's head and asked her to rummage through her pocket. She immediately rolled her eyes and protested, "Haven't you heard that you can't pat and feed the priestess?"
Reynolds and Zeratul interrupted me at the same time. The expression on their faces told me that they were not very enthusiastic about these seeds.
"If it is those holy seeds, we don't need them anymore," Zeratul shook his head. "Although they can bring us a moment of relaxation, it will destroy the driving force of the development of the two races. Now, the ecological zone we built and the immigration cabin on the spaceship can barely survive. Let us go against the flow of fate …"
"Erm, the ecological circle formed after these seeds are improved is stable …"
"Zeratul, this half is yours." Reynolds took the seeds from my hand without hesitation and passed them to his good friend.
Hey! Uncle Z! At least don't be as unreliable as Uncle Reynolds, okay?
After a simple meeting with the main person in charge of the new colony and a brief explanation of the situation in the sky, there was no need for us to continue staying here. The zerg had already been wiped out, and even the Kepru Star District had been destroyed to the point where not even a single remnant was left. The reconstruction of this place would only be completed after a few decades. It was also impossible for the Fallen Apostle, who had made us suffer a great loss, to appear in this place again. It was time to leave.
When we left, there was only a Proteus fleet to send us off. It wasn't that the humans were so hostile towards the Empire that they didn't even send a fleet to send us off. Instead, it was because they had already used all the things that could fly to the sky to support the construction of the colony. The humans, who were at a disadvantage in terms of technology, could never be compared to the Proteus, who had strong capital. Furthermore, we didn't intend to let the humans put out their precious spaceships for a farewell ceremony just for a little bit of reputation. In fact, if it wasn't for Zeratul's insistence to send us off, this bunch of Empire leaders who had been wandering around for a long time would have already gone home to wash up and sleep …
"We have selectively given you a part of the Empire's technology. That is the technology that has been calculated by our ultimate deduction system to be the most suitable for you. Of course, in order not to disrupt the normal process of a civilization, this part of the technology will not be much higher than your current technology, but it will definitely allow you to take fewer detours."
Before bidding farewell to Zeratul, I said so and handed him a piece of crystal.
"This crystal stores another part of the technology. I will leave it to you for safekeeping. If you can completely decipher the first part of the technology that we have given you within fifty years, you can unseal it. If you can't do it within fifty years, destroy this crystal immediately. The technology here will ruin the future of your entire race."
Zeratul took the crystal with both hands, and the expression on his face suddenly turned solemn.
"You can trust me, respected teacher."
Err, what's with this form of address?
Selectively giving some of the Empire's technology to Proteus was the result of my discussion with Sandora. Proteus was an extremely rare race that had developed super technology and was also highly rational. In ancient times, the Empire had taught its technology to such a civilization with "potential" more than once, and the "potential" here was …
…
Don't think that it was a good thing. It referred to the "potential to become a vassal of the Empire".
Through the guidance of technology, shaping the development process of a civilization was almost a comprehensive control that was even more drastic than a theocratic rule. Aiming at the different levels of civilization and group nature of the two races, Sandora and Liliana worked together to formulate two long-term plans that could bring humans and Proteus under the rule of the Empire. The freedom of humans would end with the Machinery Faith, and the "Protoss" of Proteus would be led onto a path of no return by the Empire's technology.
Speaking of which, as a believer of Jingle, Liliana was busy building a religion that believed in the Shiring Apostles in the universe. Was it really okay?
It was foreseeable that in at most two hundred years, these two races would not be able to break away from the leadership of the Empire. Otherwise, their civilization would collapse overnight.
I wasn't sure if humans had wise enough sages to see this, but the centuries-old sages of Proteus would definitely be able to think of many things. However, they had no other choice. The extreme advancement of the Empire's technology was an irresistible temptation for them. Furthermore, in this dangerous universe, it was not a bad thing to become a vassal of a super powerful civilization. Anyway, we had no ill intentions.
Well, the future of the two races was cut off by the Empire just like that, and we were the ones making the overall plans. This kind of thing really felt a little guilty …
"I'm finally home … I'm so tired!!"
Hey hey hey! You fake loli who only knows how to plant trees and do nothing else, as a military commander, haven't I said that I'm tired yet!
"Tsk, you're more tired than me, aren't you?"
Liliana said in a muffled voice as she threw herself on the carpet in the living room without any care for her image.
Then, the girl let out a loud "Wa!" and jumped over two meters into the air. If there wasn't a roof, I reckon she could have been even higher.
Anveena's head was slowly poking out from the carpet, and she just happened to bump face to face with Liliana … This unrepentant ghost maid was just using her own method to check the hygiene of the basement, and our priestess cum Pope cum Inquisitor cum Inquisitor cum … was scared away by a ghost.
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