Chapter Seventy-Three: Planning a Journey to Space

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Zhang Desen clearly remembered that when he first arrived in this universe and had not yet entered the atmosphere of its Earth, he saw nothing around the sun that could be considered a Dyson sphere—not even a single fragment. With this in mind, Zhang Desen suspected that they might have been exaggerating, perhaps only to bolster their own position and add weight to their bargaining chips. Thinking of this, Zhang Desen picked up the microphone and continued speaking to Yuri Gotner.

“However, Your Excellency, I do have a question...”

Yuri Gotner replied, “Please, go ahead.”

Zhang Desen said, “Before I entered this planet’s atmosphere, I paused for a short while in its synchronous orbit, but I didn’t see anything that could be called a Dyson sphere or even fragments of a Dyson swarm. Isn’t what you mentioned a bit exaggerated?”

Yuri Gotner answered, “You are indeed observant, but you’ve forgotten—I never said that the space station was completed. Well, let’s call it the Dyson sphere, since that's the term you use. For convenience, we'll use that name now.”

Zhang Desen responded, “Thank you, Your Excellency, but you still haven’t answered my question.”

Yuri Gotner said, “I’ll answer you now. In fact, this is a clear path—a path where you could achieve great merit...”

Zhang Desen asked, “How so?”

Yuri Gotner explained, “Here’s how. We have evolved into advanced intelligent beings, but due to some prehistoric disasters, our kind has suffered great losses. As a result, a portion of our people were forced to dwell underground and further developed advanced technology. While we now possess a highly advanced, modern technological civilization, our population has remained small and is even declining due to limited resources. Therefore, we must secure more resources for our survival...”

Zhang Desen interrupted, “What does this have to do with me?”

He was growing impatient—time was running out, and the Mountain Base was about to be destroyed, so he urged Yuri Gotner to get to the point. Yet Yuri Gotner’s tone remained unchanged as he continued:

“No need to worry. I’ll be brief. We now believe that humans would make excellent laborers for us: your species is far more numerous and the planet’s surface is no longer uninhabitable. Thus, we need humans to serve us in the future, to help with production, especially in constructing our Dyson sphere and expanding our domains. Of course, the human population would increase as well. We also need a manager who understands both our technology and humanity, to lead them and ensure our directives are carried out efficiently. Whoever leads them will enjoy special privileges from the Aorme Empire—there will be no loss for them. Naturally, many details can be further discussed. I hope you will consider this.”

By now, Zhang Desen fully understood—they wanted a suitable puppet, and he was an ideal candidate. But, of course, he would never agree.

Remembering earlier intelligence, Zhang Desen thought it wouldn’t hurt to tell them about the Gekur Base, as the previous conversation had indicated that Yuri Gotner would absolutely not tolerate the existence of the Doomsday Volcano, since they needed to expand territory and would not allow a nuclear winter.

At the same time, Zhang Desen still needed to inspect that gigantic satellite of the Aorme Empire. Considering this, he decided it might be best to deal with their common enemy first. So he replied:

“Your Excellency, perhaps some matters can be postponed for now and discussed later...”

Yuri Gotner said, “Do you not wish to stand among higher intelligences?”

Zhang Desen answered, “I only wanted to tell you: you haven’t yet met Comrade Goba Xiaofu, have you?”

Yuri Gotner was taken aback, then said, “I will find him. Do you know where he is?”

Zhang Desen replied, “How about this, Your Excellency—I’ll have Goba Xiaofu’s chief of staff, Comrade Dadu Kur, tell you about their Gekur Base. I believe this will interest you even more.”

Yuri Gotner was puzzled, but since there was no harm in listening, he agreed. In fact, Yuri Gotner was already frustrated that the two leaders of the Mountain Base had disappeared during the incident.

Now seemed a good time to inquire, so he responded:

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“Please treat the prisoner well and bring him out to speak.”

“Very well!” Zhang Desen immediately had Dadu Kur brought forward.

The moment Dadu Kur learned he was to reveal the Gekur Base’s secrets to Yuri Gotner, he nearly broke down. He knew that their unfinished trump card had been exposed and their plans were ruined. Helpless, Dadu Kur could only comply, stepping to the window to relay everything he and Goba Xiaofu had done to Yuri Gotner—much of which was actually news even to Zhang Desen and his group.

As they conversed, Zhang Desen and the others used a translator to record the conversation for future reference.

Yuri Gotner was thoroughly astonished by what he heard, as were the other Aormeans present, such as Kaba Dur.

After digesting some of the intelligence, Yuri Gotner felt the situation had become very troublesome. He pondered a moment, then picked up the translator microphone and spoke to Zhang Desen:

“There are some matters we can leave for later, but I believe we now have something in common to address. I hope you’ll release Dadu Kur immediately. Surely you understand my reason for this—it is our point of common interest.”

Zhang Desen replied, “Certainly, Your Excellency, but please wait until we are all safe. Once we’re secure, he will be released. I trust you have no objections?”

Yuri Gotner said, “Very well, you are a wise man. We’ll meet again. Please, go ahead.”

With that, Zhang Desen began organizing the retreat and personally covered the rear. Once everyone had reached the passageway safely, they released Dadu Kur as promised. After retreating into the tunnel, they detonated the explosives in the food chain strategic laboratory. Next, they would deal with the Gekur Base.

Now, making their way through the tunnel, Zhang Desen and the others retraced their steps. Yet Zhang Desen was not convinced that they were completely safe. After all, the tunnel had been a drainage pipe for the Aormeans; even if there were no unexpected incidents, he couldn’t be sure there wouldn't be other Aormeans entering from unexplored exits in a moment of crisis.

After all, less than an hour remained before the Mountain Base would self-destruct, which could cause complications. However, after some thought, Zhang Desen concluded that the risk was low.

First, the Aormean rescue forces had already arrived, and any Aormeans outside would surely regroup with the main force rather than act alone.

Second, it was unlikely that any Aormeans would choose to embark on an “exciting adventure” in this sewer at such a time.

While Zhang Desen was pondering these things, Li Longfang beside him suddenly asked, “Desen, I didn’t really understand that conversation just now—what was going on?”

Zhang Desen answered at once, “Don’t worry, just ask whatever you want, no need to hold back.”

Li Longfang immediately asked, “What exactly was that Yuri Gotner trying to get at?”

“Oh...” Zhang Desen smiled and went on, “They hope I’ll surrender and work for them.”

Li Longfang said, “Hah... wishful thinking. But why do they need us to work for them?”

Zhang Desen replied, “They’re trying to expand their territory, to return to the surface and push into new lands. They urgently need manpower, so they want a much larger human population to serve them and help build up their new civilization. If they can get humans to serve them, and have a human leader who understands their commands, is loyal to them, and knows humanity well, that’s ideal for them. That’s probably what they want me to do...”

Li Longfang declared, “Impossible! You would never betray your own kind...”

But he spoke a bit too loudly, and Zhang Desen quickly said, “Hey, keep your voice down. Of course I wouldn’t betray my people, but we’re not out of here yet—don’t give away our position.”

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Li Longfang, hearing this, felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Sorry, Desen, I just got carried away.”

Zhang Desen said, “It’s fine. The point is, if I were willing to work for them, I’d be the perfect puppet. I might not even need to be modified—look at Tang Shijie, my comrade, as an example! But I would never sell out my own people.”

Li Longfang asked, “But why did they suddenly stop the conversation and only demand we release Dadu Kur?”

Zhang Desen said, “Because they now have a more pressing problem to solve. You remember the intelligence we found about the Doomsday Volcano, right?”

Li Longfang replied, “Yes, I remember.”

Zhang Desen continued, “Since they have ambitions to return to the surface and expand rapidly, they can’t allow a nuclear winter, so they must prevent the completion of this doomsday weapon. Dadu Kur, having been with Goba Xiaofu for so long, knows the details best, so they want to deal with the main contradiction first. My issue can wait.”

Li Longfang asked, “So, Desen, are they going to stop their own kind’s plans?”

Zhang Desen said, “Yes. It seems that because their interests diverge, they’re about to start a civil war.”

Li Longfang said, “Then do we still need to go to the Shuchuan Basin in the Shu Kingdom?”

Zhang Desen replied, “For now, no. We have a new destination. But if they fail to stop it, we’ll still have to go. Don’t be fooled by how much Goba Xiaofu and his group have accomplished at the Gekur Base—the remaining work is so enormous that it’s enough to keep him tied up. We can watch the tigers fight from the mountain.”

Li Longfang said, “But we have to keep track of their actual movements, or we could be in big trouble.”

Zhang Desen reassured him, “No need to worry. I’ve found a way to monitor them easily—they won’t even notice.”

Li Longfang asked, “What should we do?”

Zhang Desen replied, “Don’t worry. I discovered in the command center’s database that they have a geosynchronous satellite in orbit. Much of their communication passes through it. Since there’s little space competition here and the sea monsters rarely venture into space, the satellite is surely poorly guarded. If I can get up there and install a few devices, all their secrets will be laid bare.”

Li Longfang was still confused and scratched his head, saying, “Desen... I’m lost again.”

Zhang Desen said, “Don’t worry, just follow along and you’ll understand in time. For now, we need to get back to the city so I can prepare for the trip to space—I’ve already planned it.”

With that, their conversation paused. Although there were other side passages along the way, none seemed to have any Aormeans coming through. It seemed the sewer had indeed been abandoned for quite some time, and the rescue efforts outside were well coordinated.