Rebirth of the Super Battleship

Chapter 461: Luck and Rules

“This is my conjecture about how a Level 5 Civilization breaks through to a Level 6 Civilization.” Luka Two spread his hands to the scientists present and to Xiao Yu, indicating he had finished speaking, then sat down.

The meeting room fell into silence. After a while, Xiao Yu finally spoke, somewhat hesitantly, “Relying on the strength of a single civilization, it is impossible to enter the ranks of Level 6 Civilizations, and we must coordinate and cooperate?”

“It does not necessarily have to be coordination and cooperation.” Luka Two replied. “Cooperation is only one way to obtain the research achievements of other civilizations. Through raiding, through trade, you can obtain the same things. What I am trying to say is that relying solely on the research capability of one civilization cannot bring you into a Level 6 Civilization. Precisely for this reason, within the Milky Way there are so many Level 5 Civilizations, yet only a pitiful few Level 6 Civilizations.”

“I believe that what we are currently encountering is not a technological discontinuity, but insufficient technological accumulation. The development of a civilization does not have a standard model, and at a given stage it is not mandatory to develop a particular technology. Let me give the simplest example, the technological development model of the Molian Civilization. Everyone must know that the Molian Civilization’s computing modules still use large-scale integrated circuits, which is quite a primitive technology. Our computing modules, however, adopt the architecture of quantum computers. This is a divergence in the development of civilizations. I believe that when the Molian Civilization reached a certain stage, they too must have faced the problem of insufficient computing power, yet they chose a different path from ours. We abandoned the direction of large-scale integrated circuits and chose the quantum computer path, while the Molian Civilization did not do so. They remained fixated on large-scale integrated circuits and ultimately, relying on this primitive technology, developed computing modules whose performance, in a performance-first sense, is not inferior to quantum computers. This is very illustrative.” Luka Two explained with great seriousness.

After pausing to let the scientists present digest the message he had conveyed, Luka Two continued, “For us, developing technology with ultra-large-scale integrated circuits to achieve performance not inferior to quantum computers is a kind of accumulation. Before contacting the Molian Civilization, it is obvious that we had not mastered this technology. Is the technological content of this technology higher than that of our quantum computers? It is not. So why did we not master it? Because we believed there was no need to study such a technology, since we already had a substitute. And there is the Droplet probe of the Guardian Civilization that we once encountered. From our current point of view, the Droplet probe has no performance advantage. If we devoted ourselves to research, we too could manufacture a Droplet probe. This shows that the Droplet probe at most falls within the technological scope of a Level 5 Civilization. Yet the Guardian Civilization developed the manufacturing method for the Droplet probe in its developmental process. Why did we not do so? Still because we considered it unnecessary.”

“I have discovered something interesting. Using these two technologies as examples again, it is precisely these technologies that we consider useless that in certain aspects display advantages we did not expect. I have already studied this with Number Three. Next, Number Three will explain.” At this point, Luka Two nodded to Luka Three.

Luka Three stood up and said, “We already have some research into low-power methods of interfering with tachyon communication. Quantum computers directly exposed to the jamming instrument cannot function, whereas the Molian Civilization’s ultra-large-scale integrated circuit computers can operate normally. As for the materials technology of the Droplet probe, it can replace the mirror used in our current optical telescopes. If that technology is applied, it can increase the performance of optical telescopes by at least six percent.”

“Very good.” After Luka Three finished, Luka Two continued, “This represents technological achievements that are completely different from the Divine Ark Civilization’s technological thinking. When applying these technologies to analyze the technology gap we have encountered, I was astonished to find that some small problems that were previously insurmountable were successfully overcome, and we smoothly obtained the answers to those problems. That is why I propose this idea. What we are encountering is not a technological discontinuity, but technological accumulation. As long as all the technologies we have overlooked become known to us, we can complete that accumulation, smoothly cross this barrier, and thereby enter the category of a Level 6 Civilization.”

“In this universe, no, in this galaxy, how many technologies similar to ultra-large-scale integrated circuit computers and the Droplet probe have we overlooked or deemed unnecessary to study? Ten thousand? One hundred thousand? Or perhaps one million, ten million? With the help of these possibly numbering up to one million or ten million distinct technological mindsets, I believe we will certainly be able to break through the obstacle before us.”

Xiao Yu thought for a moment and said, “You mean that in the time to come, our scientific research strength should be devoted to studying those technologies we have overlooked?”“No.” Luka Two flatly rejected Xiao Yu’s wording. “That brings us back to the very first question. Why would the Molian Civilization open the Azure Market when the risk outweighs the return? If we combine this with our analysis, can we not draw the conclusion that the Molian Civilization has already realized that technological accumulation is the key to breaking through to a Level 6 Civilization, and that opening the Azure Market was precisely to collect those technologies they themselves had overlooked? After all, every civilization has its own characteristics. The development model of each civilization will never be exactly the same. In other words, every civilization may possess some technology that is unique in the galaxy. And collecting these unique technologies is the key to completing the technological accumulation.”

Luka Four nodded thoughtfully. “This conjecture is very likely correct. It is just that the Molian Civilization adopted peaceful trade to obtain these things.”

All the scientists sank into deep thought. Luka Two’s view was unprecedented, an alternative approach that expounded from another angle how to enter a Level 6 Civilization.

“Your suggestion is… that we should also carry out such a collection operation, whether by violent plunder or by peaceful trade?”

“Yes, that is exactly my suggestion.” Luka Two said.

“This suggestion makes a great deal of sense. I have decided to give it a try.” After pondering for a moment, Xiao Yu finally made up his mind. “There are many ways to collect technologies. If your conjecture is true, then at least the Molian Civilization’s method of collecting technologies by opening a market has already been proven infeasible. We will complete this technological accumulation by other means.”

“Wait.” Xiao Yu suddenly paused, an unusual expression appearing on his face. After a moment, he spoke with some difficulty. “I more or less understand what that passage the Guardian Civilization told me means.”

“What passage?” the scientists asked one after another.

“Whatever you gain, you must pay for; whatever you damage, you must make whole…” Xiao Yu sighed softly. “Luck, luck.”

“Luck?” Luka Two murmured the two words oddly. All at once his expression froze, and he too said somewhat bitterly, “It really is luck.”

Luka Two’s reaction made the other scientists even more puzzled. “What does completing technological accumulation have to do with luck?”

“Yes, what is the connection between luck and that passage the Guardian Civilization told us about rules?”

The scientists began to discuss it in low voices.

Xiao Yu let out a sigh and said, “Did everyone think the process of completing technological accumulation would be peaceful? While we are completing our technological accumulation, other civilizations are also completing theirs. That is to say, we need the unique technologies of other civilizations, and other civilizations need the unique technologies of our civilization. If completing technological accumulation allows entry into a Level 6 Civilization, then what will we do?”

“We will try our best to preserve our own unique technologies and obstruct other civilizations from entering a Level 6 Civilization, while striving to obtain the unique technologies of other civilizations to help us enter a Level 6 Civilization. This will be our code of conduct, because we hope that in this universe only our civilization will advance to Level 6, and we do not hope that other civilizations will advance to Level 6. I believe this will be the common mindset of every Level 5 Civilization. In other words, not only will we think this way, other Level 5 Civilizations will think this way as well. Then… what does this imply?”

Xiao Yu paused, then uttered a single word, heavy with meaning.

“War.”

“This implies war.”

“This implies that we must annihilate the other Level 5 Civilizations to plunder their technologies, and that only by annihilating enough Level 5 Civilizations and seizing enough technology can we advance into the category of a Level 6 Civilization.”

“If we add in the notion of luck, then can it be said that only by plundering the luck of other civilizations and making it our own can we advance to Level 6? If we also add in what the Guardian Civilization told us about rules, then under conditions where the universe hates intelligent beings, for us to advance to a Level 6 Civilization we must annihilate enough Level 5 Civilizations to maintain the balance of the universe. Our advancement to a Level 6 Civilization will arouse an even stronger aversion from the universe, and only by annihilating a sufficient number of other civilizations can we eliminate this additional aversion the universe bears toward us.”

“Indeed… however much you gain, you must pay that much. However much you damage, you must make up that much…” Xiao Yu sighed.