The evolution of insect swarms from XNUMX million years ago

Chapter 227 Silence
"We have arrived at the target star system. The system self-test has started. The self-test has been completed. Everything is normal."

A familiar mechanical sound sounded, and on the star map on the screen in front of him, the logo representing the exploration fleet crossed the thin line again, came to the vicinity of the single point of light emitting a yellow halo, and was fixed in its upper right corner.

"The scientific research ship reported that everything is normal and has started long-range scanning. Preliminary results show that the number of rocky planets is 4, of which the third and fourth are in the habitable zone and may be life planets. No artificial structures or complex electromagnetic signals have been found, and there are no signs of civilization. The possibility is extremely low.”

On the interstellar scale of light-years, we can only determine whether a star is surrounded by a planet, but cannot determine the specific type and location of the planet. This is why the exploration fleet was born - traveling to distant star systems through hyperspace channels to determine whether There are habitable planets.

"Report!" Not long after, the signal came again, and this time, the bright light signal flashed, and the correspondent's tone was filled with uncontrollable excitement, "It has been determined that there is liquid water on the surface of the third planet. , initially confirmed to be a living planet.”

"Can you confirm whether there are traces of civilization?"

Warmani still remained calm - in the vast universe far away from the hinterland of civilization, facing an unknown environment in isolation, sufficient caution is what the supreme commander of an exploration fleet must possess.

"It has been determined that there are no man-made structures in orbit. Combined with the fact that no complex electromagnetic signals have been found, the possibility of a civilization close to our technological level is extremely low."

The correspondent's tone also returned to calmness. Members who can board the exploration fleet must have been screened at all levels and must pass the psychological quality test, which is one of the most basic requirements.

"Attention all units, go to the orbit of the third planet, maintain radio silence for the time being, use laser directional communication, and the scientific research ship will continue to observe."

The strange feeling quickly disappeared. After operating his respiratory system for two deep gas exchanges, he quickly put this strange feeling behind him.

In this position, he must stay awake at all times. This strange feeling for no reason may affect his judgment at critical moments, which is very dangerous.

Several laser beams flashed at specific frequencies into the observation system on the ship, which was a signal of confirmation.

The pair of appendages on the head were originally a pair of appendages. After evolving into intelligent creatures, they no longer play a role. The horn-like structure that plays a social role in the Ezki race swings twice, and special color signals appear on the skin. Give yourself some sobriety.

But at this moment, Warmani suddenly had a strange feeling - as if something was watching him in the dark.

Looking around, in the command room, all the members were nervously operating various equipment, without looking at themselves.

In the void, a meteorite-shaped nest detector slightly ejected ions from the attitude adjustment nozzle on the side of the body, and adjusted the front end with a developed eye-like structure to align it with the spacecraft body emitting thermal radiation.

After staring at him for such a long time, if the other party really has any means, he should use them no matter what. But the fact is that the other party did not react at all and continued to sail forward.

There was even a small nest meteorite near the opponent's channel. In terms of the scale of space, the two sides almost passed each other, but the other party still made no move. On the contrary, thanks to this encounter, Lin Yi had roughly guessed the purpose of these man-made spacecrafts based on their appearance.

There are seven of these spaceships in total. On the shells of the outermost five, some hemispherical structures seem to be faintly protruding outwards, and some even have cylindrical structures extending outwards. As for the remaining ones, they cannot be seen clearly.

They all seemed to be weapons, proving that these could be considered battleships. The two spaceships guarded by these five battleships in the center, one is larger and bloated, seems to play the role of transportation or supply, while the other has a large structure that looks like a telescope, perhaps for reconnaissance. ship.

At the same time, other structural details that could be captured as much as possible, such as heat sinks used to take away heat in the form of thermal radiation, etc., made Lin Yi further confirm that the gap between the technological levels of the two parties was not too exaggerated. .

At the very least, I can roughly understand the structure of the opponent's spacecraft - it's like showing a primitive man a sword made of metal. Although he will think it is a magic weapon, he doesn't understand what it is used for. of. And if it were replaced by a gun, or even a more advanced weapon, the opponent would most likely not be able to understand what it was.

He can understand the structure of the other party, which means that they are still under the same technical framework as his own. It may be similar to the difference between copper and iron, or the difference between early shotguns and bolt-action single-shot rifles, but it will not It's the difference between a stone and a stick and a nuclear bomb.

If this is the case, with the home field advantage and the numerical advantage, Lin Yi is not without the strength to fight. It will not happen that a detector sinks two thousand warships with the most primitive impact.

But for a completely unknown civilization, Lin Yi still did not intend to contact it unless absolutely necessary - he did not know whether the real universe was the dark forest described in science fiction works, or some other form.

At least for now, the other party is in the light and he is in the dark. Lin Yi does not intend to expose his existence prematurely, but intends to continue to hide and make plans after getting more information about the other party.

Compared with a civilization that exists in a normal form, the existence of a nest is relatively easy to hide itself - unless the other party has the ability to detect hyperspace synapses, it is impossible to intercept any signal anyway.

If the opponent cannot find space creatures mixed in meteorites in the asteroid belt, then only by reaching the orbit of Mars can we see a large number of structures on Mars. And these structures are not irreplaceable.

On the surface of Mars, most of Lin Yi's structures are based on carpets and carpet rhizomes, and the multi-body characteristics allow the nest colony to move very efficiently.

It is envisaged that most of the ground structure will be dissolved and transferred underground or simply stored directly as concentrated nutrients to grow back when needed.

At that time, only by landing on the surface of Mars can the other party discover the fungus blanket and the structures connected to the ground. Invisibly, this would give Lin Yi a little more initiative.

And if the other party really lands, although it is not known whether the other party's spacecraft has the ability to travel freely inside and outside the atmosphere, this is Lin Yi's real home field after all. If it really comes near the orbit of Mars, Lin Yi's confidence will be even greater. a bit.

(End of this chapter)