pjbooks Chapter 464 To Go or Not to Go?
Chapter 464 To Go or Not to Go?
Zhang Yan clicked on it.
There is no text this time.
There is only a slowly rotating star chart, with a flashing coordinate marked at its center.
Immediately afterwards, a new line of text appeared below the coordinates.
As long as the city lord's bloodline endures, Heavenly Craft City will never perish.
We'll be waiting for you at the third rotation point of the Milky Way's cantilever arm.
We have waited for thirty thousand years.
Zhang Yan stared at the coordinates and, without the slightest hesitation, immediately entered them into the public database of the "Cosmic Sea Observation Protocol" for cross-comparison.
The search results popped up quickly.
[Coordinates matched successfully.]
[Civilization ID: Not entered.]
[Civilization Rating: Unrated - Hidden Civilization]
[Note: This coordinate point is heavily obscured, making depth observation impossible.]
The other party deliberately revealed their location.
Either way, it requires absolute trust.
Either you need absolute self-confidence.
I believe Zhang Yan will definitely go, or I'm not afraid of Zhang Yan bringing people with him.
Zhang Yan sent the coordinates to Nie Qingcheng.
A minute later, Nie Qingcheng appeared at the study door wearing a silk nightgown.
She was clearly awakened, but there was no trace of sleepiness in her eyes, only the gleam of a merchant seeing his prey.
"I checked." She walked to Zhang Yan's side. "These coordinates are about four thousand light-years away from Earth."
She bent down and looked into Zhang Yan's eyes.
"In theory, we can reach that point using the 'jump protocol' we've unlocked."
"However," she changed the subject, lowering her voice, "a single jump requires 30% of the Heavenly Craftsman's Heart's total energy reserves."
Thirty percent.
This number made Zhang Yan frown.
This was almost all the energy he expended in a decisive battle against the "community".
"This is more like an invitation, or rather, a test." Nie Qingcheng straightened up.
"They want to see if the new 'young master' has the courage and determination to gamble the safety of the entire Earth for a vague and ethereal 'Heavenly Craft City'."
She walked to the window and looked at the sky in the distance, which was already turning a pale white.
"Now, it's your turn to make a decision."
"To go, or not to go?"
Zhang Yan did not make a decision immediately.
He sent messages to Qin Xiao and Guan Xing, saying that there would be a meeting at the villa at nine o'clock in the morning.
At nine o'clock sharp, Qin Xiao and Guan Xing appeared in the living room on time.
Nie Qingcheng, dressed in a smart women's suit, sat in the main seat, as if this were not the living room of a villa, but the boardroom of Qingcheng International.
Zhang Yan connected his laptop to the projector and laid out everything that had happened in the past few days in detail.
From the first interstellar transaction with the anonymous user to the public opinion storm surrounding the "legacy of the Mohist school" that the other party ignited on the public channel.
Then there were those two golden private messages from "Tiangong City - Inner Palace".
And that coordinate, which is four thousand light-years away.
The living room was completely silent.
Qin Xiao's mouth was open, and he couldn't close it for a long time.
He looked at the star map on the projector, then at Zhang Yan's calm face, and felt that his brain was a little overwhelmed.
Just a few days ago, they were celebrating the resolution of the Earth crisis and preparing to reward those who had contributed.
A few days later, Zhang Yan had already started doing business with aliens, and even gained a group of "retainers" who had been waiting for him for 30,000 years in some unknown corner.
The world is changing so fast.
"Brother Yan," Qin Xiao finally found his voice. He jumped up from the sofa, looking nervous, "You...you don't really want to run off to the depths of the Milky Way alone, do you?"
"That's four thousand light-years away! What if it's a trap?"
"Sit down," Nie Qingcheng said calmly.
Qin Xiao's imposing manner instantly deflated, and he obediently sat back down, but the worry in his eyes did not diminish at all.
Guan Xing kept staring at the two screenshots of the golden private messages, his fingers unconsciously tapping on his knees.
As a member of the Guantian Pavilion, she understood better than Qin Xiao what the five words "Tiangong City Inner Palace" represented.
That was the core and most elite force of the Mohist civilization.
They still exist.
Just then, a red-highlighted announcement popped up on the "Cosmic Sea Observation Protocol" public channel, which had been running on the projection screen.
[Bounty: From the Harvester Alliance (Tier 3 Civilization)]
[Bounty Target: Live biological samples from the civilization (Earth) at coordinates H-001-Ω, quantity unlimited.]
[Reason for reward: To study the genes and related technologies used to construct its 9.6-point spatial barrier.]
[Bounty Price: Each sample unit can be exchanged for 100 units of 'Fifth-Order Energy Crystals' or one set of 'Standard Dimensional Stabilization Technology'.]
The announcement caused an immediate uproar on the public channel.
Numerous civilizations began to post comments and discuss.
The atmosphere in the living room instantly plummeted to freezing point.
"Damn it!" Qin Xiao slammed his fist on the sofa armrest. "These bastards! They're treating us like lab rats!"
The lighthouse had barely lit up when someone put a bounty on it.
This blatant covetousness is more infuriating than a direct threat.
"Don't rush." Zhang Yan's voice wasn't loud, but it immediately calmed the excited Qin Xiao down.
He gestured to Nie Qingcheng: "Write down the ID of this 'Reaper Alliance' that posted the bounty."
Nie Qingcheng nodded, her fingers flying across her tablet.
Zhang Yan looked around at everyone and said, "The reason I called everyone here today is to reach a consensus."
"Regarding the matter of Tiangong City, my decision is to refrain from responding or engaging in any contact for the time being."
"Before verifying the other party's true intentions, it is impossible to determine whether they are friend or foe."
"As for that anonymous buyer, we can continue to contact him, but only for finished product transactions, and we must not disclose any core technology."
"The most important point," Zhang Yan's gaze fell on Qin Xiao, "is that Earth is being targeted, which was to be expected. What we need to do now is not to run out and fight to the death, but to protect our own home first."
He paused, then continued, "The gate network can stop 'colonies' from coming from outside, but it can't stop other civilizations from flying directly to our doorstep using conventional space travel."
"We need to establish our own defense system for conventional spaces."
Qin Xiao nodded vigorously: "Understood! I'll report to Uncle Qin immediately and mobilize military resources to establish early warning and defense outposts on the outskirts of the solar system!"
Zhang Yan looked towards the stars.
Guan Xing seemed to be still thinking when she suddenly looked up and asked a crucial question.
"The observation protocol states that civilizations with a rating of over 9.0 will have their 'first contact' within 100 standard years."
"In what form will this 'first contact' take?"
Zhang Yan remained silent for two seconds.
He reached out and tapped on the underlying details of the observation protocol on the projection screen.
Lines of cold text appeared.
[Introduction to First-Time User Mode:]
[Based on the civilization level and inclinations of the contacting party, and the behavior of the contacted party, the initial contact will be randomly selected from the following three modes.]
【Mode 1: Friendly Visit (Sending envoys to establish diplomatic relations)】
[Mode 2: Technology Assessment (Dispatching a scientific expedition team to assess the civilization's potential)]
【Mode 3: ...】
All eyes were focused on the last line of text.
[Mode 3: Military Strength Assessment (Dispatch reconnaissance fleets to test a civilization's true military strength and war potential through small-scale conflicts)]