Chapter 457: Jungle Assailants |
"Qualified, survived, cleared..."
Guan Tong stared at the scene on the screen, his mind buzzing with curiosity over whether this was real or fake.
He wasn't about to get as worked up as some people, because everything the "Dialoguer" had said could not be verified as truth or falsehood. Humanity still needed to extract more information from it.
Still, it reminded him of the Kimos Star beasts and the Nano Swarm intelligence.
If the "Dialoguer" was the "qualified survivor" it claimed to be, then could the former two also be similar cases?
And if so, why did they all appear within the Doomsday Rules, or even become the very embodiment of those rules themselves?
"If the 'reward for clearing all the Doomsday Rules' is to become part of the rules themselves... then that really is a future of utter despair..."
Guan Tong mused to himself, but he hadn't forgotten that the "Dialoguer" had just said it hadn't been coerced by the Fire Thief—it had volunteered willingly.
If that was true, what could the reason be?
Guan Tong had too many questions swirling in his heart, but he knew that the still-ongoing Xisiya delegation, along with the Beixing and Suroma delegations yet to come, all harbored the same doubts. They would also seize this opportunity to pose questions and try to seek answers.
For now, the conversation at the scene continued.
Hearing the "Dialoguer" was about to ask a question, the entire Xisiya delegation focused with razor-sharp attention.
They dared not slack off, let alone refuse.
Just as the "Dialoguer" had previously indicated, if humanity failed to take a proper and serious attitude toward its questions, then it would do the same in return.
This meant that if humanity wanted to get information from it, they had to honestly offer up their own information in exchange.
Because humans couldn't tell if it was lying, nor were they sure whether it could detect if humans were lying.
Dialoguer: "My question is, with your current human aerospace technology, how long would it take to leave this present star system?"
As soon as the question was posed, the members of the Xisiya delegation were stunned for a moment, then they all turned in unison to look at one person in their group.
That person happened to be an expert in the aerospace field. Upon hearing the question, he answered without a second thought: "It's fundamentally impossible."
That reflexive speed of response was the fastest. Only after speaking did he realize he was currently being watched by billions of viewers worldwide. He quickly tried to backtrack: "However, since entering the era of the Doomsday Rules, the development of various technologies has become unpredictable. Within our lifetimes, it might be possible..."
His voice trailed off, growing so faint that even the teenage boys and girls could hear just how little confidence he had.
Dialoguer: "Really? Even with the aid of Mind Power items, do you believe humanity can leave this star system and reach other stellar systems within their lifetimes?"
The aerospace expert hesitated for a moment, then finally told the truth: "I don't believe humanity can achieve that, even with the aid of Mind Power items and abilities. In fact, I don't think we can rely on them for it either."
Dialoguer: "Oh? Why?"
Aerospace expert: "Because I've seen people use related Mind Power abilities to construct houses. But building a house is one thing; building a spaceship capable of interstellar travel is another matter entirely... The difficulty of the latter is simply incomparable to the former."
Dialoguer: "So, that means your human plan for Space Migration also seems like a futile effort."
The aerospace expert remained silent. At times like this, silence itself was an attitude.
But just as everyone was still mulling this over, sudden rustling sounds erupted from the forest.
Trees swayed, and countless indistinct figures were weaving through them.
In an instant, the delegation members and the guarding soldiers all snapped to high alert, vigilant against everything around them.
Rustle, rustle...
Crowds of people surged forth from the forest in an endless stream. In no time at all, they had completely surrounded everyone present on the scene.