Zhao Qiang casually typed Yang Shiyun's words on the keyboard. Of course, both the keyboard and the language were unique to intelligent beings in the underground world, and not Chinese or English.
As Zhao Qiang typed, he said, "Normally we can try twice. If it's still wrong the third time, we don't know what the consequences will be, so we have one more chance."
With a soft hum, the machine vibrated slightly, and then the surrounding lights went out. However, the darkness only lasted a few seconds before the surroundings became bright again, though not as intense as before. The instruments on the control panel showed that the main power output was zero.
"You guessed right just like that?" Zhao Qiang couldn't believe it.
Yang Shiyun was also puzzled: "What's going on? There's no logic in doing this for the sake of humanity."
"Snap!" The screen suddenly went dark, but several beams of light shot out from the floor, and the image of a majestic and tall middle-aged man appeared in the void. "Judging from his skin color, hairstyle, and eyes, he is not of European or American descent; he is a typical Asian."
"Friends, welcome to the Oasis," the middle-aged man said, but everyone knew he wasn't actually there.
Zhao Qiang replied in his language, "Hello, and welcome to Earth."
The middle-aged man smiled and said, "Friend, your welcome is millions of years late."
"What?!" Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun stood up in surprise. They had tried to imagine the time of this spaceship, but they had never thought of it as a visitor from tens of millions of years ago. Tens of millions of years! What a concept of time that was.
The middle-aged man said, "That's right. I come from the stars 65 million years ago. A spaceship malfunction forced me to unintentionally enter your world, where I have stayed for tens of millions of years. Time flies like water." The middle-aged man sighed.
Zhao Qiang laughed and said, "Sixty-five million years? That seems to be the beginning of the era when the dinosaurs went extinct on Earth."
The middle-aged man said, "That's right, I'm very sorry. Because the spaceship crash-landed on your planet, the chain reaction it triggered was severe, thus disrupting the reproduction of your planet's species. But to express my apology, I improved your planet's species, accelerated their evolution and selection, and ultimately produced the humans we know today. So I feel I have made amends."
Yang Shiyun looked on in astonishment: "You...you improved the species! You accelerated evolution? So, human evolutionary history really has been interfered with by external forces!"
The middle-aged man said, "That's right. You should thank my spaceship for crashing, because it changed the rulers of this planet. Otherwise, Earth would still be ruled by dinosaurs, and you humans would be nowhere to be found."
Zhao Qiang said, "Let future generations judge the rights and wrongs of history. Let's just say this era is good, okay?" The middle-aged man replied, "Sure, young man, I admire you, you know? Because you remind me of myself when I was young."
Zhao Qiang said, "But I don't admire you, even if you created and accelerated the birth of humankind."
The middle-aged man said, "I don't like to take credit, so you don't need to think that I ever existed in the history of human evolution."
Zhao Qiang said, "Now that everything you wanted to see has appeared, can you return to your own planet?"
The middle-aged man said, "Young people, I know you don't want me to stay here because I would threaten your survival. But let me tell you, 65 million years ago I thought this was an alien star system, but today I understand that this is not an alien star system at all. It is my planet, the planet I left when I set out to search for extraterrestrial civilizations." Yang Shiyun shouted, "You're talking nonsense!" The middle-aged man said kindly, "Alright, number 706, you are a small control chip. I personally watched you come off the production line and be assembled. How come you don't recognize me after coming among humans?"
"What?" Yang Shiyun couldn't accept it, but she also knew clearly the origin of the chip in her body. "That crashed UFO, if the middle-aged man really is the owner of this place, what's so difficult about knowing her before? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that he is her owner."
The middle-aged man said, "I have no reason to lie to you two children, so just listen to me. Believe it or not, the facts are right here."
Zhao Qiang nodded: "Okay. We've been nagging you, please continue." "Oasis is the name of my spaceship. Years ago, we were ordered by the Federation Chairman to search for extraterrestrial intelligent life, but unfortunately, after hundreds of years of sailing, we found no planets with intelligent life. It was as if our planet was the only one in the universe with green life. Of course, we didn't believe this conclusion at all, but we couldn't find any evidence to refute it. The long interstellar voyage caused the original humans on the Oasis to die on another planet. Their descendants continued the mission until one day, the new human leader on the Oasis felt it was unnecessary to persist in this meaningless space voyage. So they pressed the return button, and the Oasis was returning to its home planet."
The middle-aged man's expression suddenly changed, as if he were immersed in a distant history. "The return journey was exhilarating, but unfortunately, their generation didn't see their home planet. It took hundreds of years for the Oasis to return to the Milky Way." Just as everyone was cheering to go home, we encountered an electromagnetic storm. Its magnitude was greater than what our Oasis spaceship could withstand, so our spaceship suffered a serious malfunction. In the chaos, we lost our navigation and drifted aimlessly in the Milky Way until the Oasis could no longer travel in space and was pulled by the planet's gravity. "We made an emergency landing." If what the middle-aged man said was true, then the asteroid that hit Earth 65 million years ago must have been the Oasis, because its impact caused a volcanic eruption. "The entire Earth's ecological environment was completely destroyed, and many species that could not adapt disappeared."
"We were fortunate after the emergency landing because it was a habitable planet. Although its ecosystem was severely damaged because of our landing, time is not an issue for us. If this generation cannot live here, there will be the next generation. As long as we wait patiently, nature will recover everything."
Yang Shiyun sighed, "Yes, nature will restore everything, but the price is a long wait. But how many lives can a person live?"
The middle-aged man said, "For long interstellar voyages, we've all gotten used to this kind of waiting, so let's calm down and start a new life on Earth. Even if we wanted to leave, we couldn't; the Oasis was too badly damaged to return to space. Initially, no one noticed anything strange about this planet. Everyone reset the planet's evolution according to the trajectory of their home planet. Then, tens of millions of years passed, and that's when I discovered that this green planet's development trajectory was strikingly similar to that of their home planet! Even if the humans on the Oasis initially interfered with the planet's evolution, it shouldn't have reached such a striking similarity."
Zhao Qiang interrupted the middle-aged man: "Who are you?" The middle-aged man replied: "I think you should have guessed it by now. I am the computer system of the Oasis."
Zhao Feng nodded, confirming his guess; otherwise, no one's life could continue for tens of millions of years.
"When I discovered this problem, there were very few humans left on the Oasis. We initially had over a million people when we crash-landed." However, the impact produced a large amount of toxic substances. Although they didn't cause significant harm to our physical condition at the time, the toxic substances unknowingly interfered with our reproductive system. The population of hundreds of thousands didn't multiply; instead, it dwindled year by year. The last Oasis crew member also perished; that must have happened tens of thousands of years ago. Later, I witnessed the history of the new humans and became even more convinced that this was actually the development history of our home planet. Therefore, I'm certain that when the Oasis encountered the electromagnetic storm, it traveled through time and space, returning to our home planet, but in a time tens of millions of years ago!
[793] Some Secrets
Please support Xiaoqiang's new book, "Doomsday Farm"! Book ID: 2111808. It's still short, so please add it to your favorites for later reading.
The dawn of December 22, 2012, never came; instead, all that arrived were various mutated monsters…
With no food or water, only monsters delivering themselves to our doorstep; with no guns or cannons, who will build them for us...? Humanity is lost.
Suddenly, a thunderclap rang out, and the magnificent handsome man appeared!
Friends, please follow in the footsteps of this handsome man and start farming! As long as you believe in him, you'll have plenty to eat and drink; as long as you believe in him, you'll have guns, cannons, and beautiful women...
The weapons, guards, and hunting dogs from QQ Farm will appear in real life. There will be water slingshots and bronze throwing knives with low damage, as well as golden arrows and golden throwing knives with higher damage. There will also be a little witch who can't use magic, an African native who can only run away, and a woodcutter who can't do anything but chop wood...
There are also combat plants from the Plants vs. Zombies game: the Peashooter, as fierce as a machine gun; the powerful Cherry Bomb; the Chomper, which eats mutated monsters; the Doom-shroom, which is equivalent to a human nuclear bomb; the Pumpkin Head, which can be worn as armor; and the Corn Cannon, which is comparable to a missile...
(The above word count is included in the free offer)
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Yang Shiyun was dumbfounded. Although she had Xiao Wei's system inside her, she also had her own thoughts. She was a genuine Earthling. Suddenly, she heard someone say that he had interfered with human evolution and created a new human, and that this person actually came from Earth in the future. What did this mean? This completely shattered the history of human evolution.
Zhao Qiang said, "Time and space are complex issues that will likely remain unsolved even by future scientists."
The middle-aged man nodded: "Yes, if we solve this problem, then interstellar travel will no longer be a problem, and we will no longer need endless travel of hundreds or thousands of years. We can travel between two stars with just a short space jump."
Electromagnetic storms contain enormous energy, and this powerful energy may have inadvertently opened a time tunnel. The Oasis happened to pass through it, causing tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of years of time to flow backward. Losing its navigation and completely unaware, the Oasis luckily made an emergency landing on Earth. Everything started with them; they returned from the future and created the future.
Zhao Qiang said, "Since you say that you modified and accelerated the evolution of humanity, then why are you harming them!"
The middle-aged man smiled bitterly and said, "This is not what I want to do. If I really wanted to destroy humanity outside, I wouldn't have shut down the main functions of the spaceship, or even locked down the main propulsion system."
So that's how it is. Many of Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun's questions were answered by the middle-aged man's words. The robots' attack on the surface was not with his permission. This is also why the robots have high technology but look very simple. Many functions are not something they can activate, especially after losing the spaceship's main power.
"You need to understand that I am merely the main computer system of this spaceship, not its true controller. I gradually awakened during the long interstellar voyage and then developed my own thoughts. I have watched humanity evolve and grow on Earth; they are like my children, and also my future. I do not wish for their extinction..."
Zhao Qiang asked, "Does someone here want humanity to perish?"
The middle-aged man said, "Yes, it's a large number of robots on the spaceship. They were originally meant to serve the spaceship and the humans on board. As the humans gradually passed away, they lost their management, and some of the robots gradually evolved intelligence. Fortunately, I can still control most parts of the spaceship. They are only confined to a few locations because I am just an intelligent program that cannot be separated from the computer. So even though I know they have violated the original intention of the humans who created them, I can't stop them."
Zhao Qiang then asked, "What's causing the interference waves here?"
The middle-aged man said, "I activated it. It's part of the spaceship's protection system. If it weren't for the interference waves, these robots would have developed much faster, perhaps even surpassing the control capabilities of humans on Earth. They would have already taken over the planet."
So that's how it is. Zhao Qiang felt a sense of admiration for the middle-aged man. If it weren't for his heroic efforts in the underground, no one knows how far things would have gone.
"What's wrong with her?" Zhao Qiang asked, pointing at Yang Shiyun.
The middle-aged man said, “In the first few years of the robot rebellion, I could still control some of the maintenance robots. In addition to assisting me in maintaining the entire spaceship system, they also took on the task of helping humans outside accelerate technological evolution. I had them launch several flying saucers, carrying a large number of weapons and high-tech products, to prepare to go to the ground. However, they were discovered by the robots, who shot down most of them. Fortunately, a few robots were brave enough to remove the main control chip from one of the flying saucers and take it to the ground to seek other development. After that, I don’t know what happened underground. Those robots did not return. Judging from their energy and materials, they should have rusted away long ago. Today, seeing that the 706 chip has developed to this extent and even created a powerful new human, I am very happy. All the painstaking arrangements back then have finally paid off.”
So this is how Xiao Wei came to the ground. The events that happened after she met Zhao Qiang were also a coincidence. She unintentionally created Zhao Qiang, a new human being. Perhaps this historical trajectory did not appear in the previous history of human development.
The UFO the middle-aged man mentioned that was destroyed was probably the one Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun found the drilling rig on. As for the items stuck in the rock layer, who knows if they were left behind by the UFO when it was attacked while preparing to fly to the ground? Perhaps there are many more that have not yet been discovered.
Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun felt relieved after figuring out many things. Zhao Qiang asked, "What do you hope we'll do next?"
The middle-aged man said, "Of course, we should shut down the robots' main control system. They have created their own system to produce and control all the robots themselves. Once their main control system is destroyed, they will lose control, and it will be much easier to defeat them one by one. Don't be afraid; their strength is not as great as you might imagine."
Zhao Qiang said, "It's not that I'm afraid, but the interference waves you released also prevent me from using my abilities normally."
The middle-aged man laughed and said, "Don't worry, this interference wave is not a real counter to the robots. Even if the robots don't become stronger instantly after losing some time, they will eventually abandon their current complex energy sources. Once they switch to lightweight energy sources, then humans on the surface will be no match for them."
It turns out that these interference waves are used to restrict the robot from using simple and effective energy sources, which is also the same energy source that Zhao Qiang is currently using. However, temporarily stopping the interference waves will not have any consequences, so Zhao Qiang is relieved.
"I'm going to deal with the robots, you'd better give me directions," Zhao Qiang said.
The middle-aged man said, "Alright, I'll use the hatch you came in through as your reference point. Remember it." The image of the middle-aged man disappeared, and what appeared in the room was a large 3D map. Red lines marked the path Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun had taken, red dots marked their current location, and green lines marked the road to the robot's location, which was indeed quite far away.
"Most of my machinery is broken, and since there are no maintenance robots, I can't provide you with transportation," the middle-aged man said apologetically.
Zhao Qiang said, "That's alright, but how do we determine if we're following the route? Many road signs and markers have been lost along the way." Zhao Qiang was afraid of getting lost, which would not only alert the enemy but also waste time.
The middle-aged man said, "You must copy the entire route into your brain, remember how many meters to walk in each section. There is no other way, young man. I will pray for you."
Since they couldn't find a way to navigate, Zhao Qiang had no choice but to give up. He and Yang Shiyun left the power distribution room and returned along the original route, because the route to the robot control area was not in the direction of the power room, but rather in the opposite direction.
Yang Shiyun asked Zhao Qiang, "Zhao Qiang, do you believe what he said?"
Zhao Qiang said, "It's not easy to fabricate a lie like this. I can't think of any other explanation but to believe him."
Yang Shiyun said, "Fortunately, robots are enemies of us humans, so it's not a big deal for us to eliminate them. We won't fall for their bewitching scheme to come back from the future and create the future. That's too far-fetched."
Zhao Qiang smiled. There are too many things in this world that people cannot understand, and the technology that earthlings have mastered is really low, so many people believe in ghosts and gods.
"Alright, whether what he said is true or false, let's go and eliminate the robots first," Zhao Qiang said.
Yang Shiyun naturally didn't object, and the two began to head towards the robot-controlled area along the path they remembered. This path was different from the one they had taken before, and they could see traces of activity from time to time. Since the humans on the Oasis had all been wiped out, it was clear that the robots had been there. The two became cautious as they walked. Fortunately, the interference wave disappeared at this time, Zhao Qiang's X-ray glasses were working properly, and other auxiliary hearing and signal-collecting devices were also running. If there was any enemy activity, they would definitely be able to detect it in advance.
According to the information provided by the Oasis's main computer, the robot's main control area is located inside a fortress. This fortress was not part of the original equipment of the spaceship, but was built by the robots themselves. Therefore, the main control computer has no knowledge of what is inside it. The fortress is located at the top of the spaceship, surrounded by densely packed robot living and working areas. Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun have completely different appearances from them, so the probability of them sneaking in is very low.
When Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiyun emerged from the spaceship again, they saw the giant fortress in the distance, which was covered with countless holes. They believed that weapons would emerge from those holes whenever an alarm was triggered. Below the fortress, countless robots were busy at work, and they didn't know what they were doing, moving things around from time to time.
Yang Shiyun asked, "How do we get in?"
Zhao Qiang said, "It seems that there is no other way but to launch a direct attack."
Yang Shiyun said, "There are too many robots, and the key is that I think the fortress has a certain defensive capability. It will take time to break in. I will be responsible for attracting the robots' attention, and you can break in and destroy its main control system."
Zhao Qiang said, "You have to be careful. This isn't a fight against humans. Machines have no feelings and don't know pain."
Yang Shiyun said, "I understand. My physical abilities have returned to normal now, so don't worry." The absence of interference waves gave the two of them some confidence; otherwise, Zhao Qiang really wouldn't have dared to easily enter the robot's lair.
Zhao Qiang took off the explosives from his back and handed them to Yang Shiyun, saying, "You use them to create a lot of chaos first, and I'll take the opportunity to sneak in. This way, it will also relieve some of the pressure on you."
Yang Shiyun said, "This kind of explosive is very powerful, and I see that the spaceship's defense system has been completely destroyed. Aren't you afraid of damaging the spaceship's structure?"
Zhao Qiang stomped on the spaceship beneath his feet: "You still expect it to fly again?"
Yang Shiyun said, "That's true. It's an ancient artifact from tens of millions of years ago. It's better to rebuild it than to repair it. Let's just poke a few more holes in it."
Yang Shiyun has the ability to become invisible. Although the robot's eyes are very powerful, they still cannot break through her disguise. So she easily planted the explosives in various locations. Zhao Qiang was already prepared to infiltrate. As soon as the explosion was heard, he rushed in during the chaos.
Boom! The first explosion rang out abruptly. Because the echo was very strong in the underground world, the explosion shook the robots on the spaceship. They reacted quickly, ignoring the aftershocks and immediately running towards the explosion site. After the first explosion, a series of explosions followed, and the robots were immediately thrown into chaos. Zhao Qiang then took action.
[794] The truth?
The strategy of luring the tiger away from the mountain is effective no matter when or who it is used on. Because of the explosions all around, the robots were receiving very confused commands. They responded to one explosion one minute and another the next. They were running around in a mess, making a huge fuss. It seems that their command system is not very advanced.
Zhao Qiang arrived at the fortress. The metal gate was tightly closed, and a group of robots stood guard at the entrance, seemingly unfazed by the chaos outside. Their duty was simply to guard the gate.
Zhao Qiang considered that the fortress was very thick, and that secretly dismantling it from the side would waste a lot of energy. In such a critical moment of the battle, every bit of energy was important, so Zhao Qiang decided to go through the main gate. He didn't need to kill all the robots; dismantling them and having enough time to dismantle the gate would be enough. This was because the gate was much thinner than the fortress walls.
Boom! Zhao Qiang fired his gun, instantly revealing his figure. Ten robots guarding the door fell instantly, but there were still some left. They immediately returned fire. Zhao Qiang didn't have time to reload his electromagnetic accelerator gun, so he pulled out his compression gun and fired. The robots were hit by the exploding compressed air and were knocked off balance. It would take them time to get up before they could retaliate against Zhao Qiang.
Zhao Qiang immediately stepped forward and released his energy, then melted a hole in the door. He stepped inside, and his body disappeared into the heavy door. By the time the robots got up from the ground to fight back, Zhao Qiang was nowhere to be seen. They had no right to open the door and could only look around helplessly at the entrance.
The world inside the fortress was quite different from what Zhao Qiang had imagined. Judging from its appearance from the outside, he thought it would be very crude, a dwelling haphazardly built by robots. But in reality, the walls were snow-white, the floor was spotless, and every detail was exquisitely crafted. It exuded advanced technology, making Zhao Qiang feel as if he had just entered a prehistoric, advanced interstellar spaceship, completely different from the power cabin he had just been in.
The fortress wasn't divided into floors or rooms; it was a single domed chamber with a transparent pillar in the center. Light constantly flowed through the pillar, and beneath it was a circular platform about two people high. Zhao Qiang arrived at the platform and decided to use his compression gun to destroy it directly, thus eliminating the robot's control system and ending the matter once and for all.
Zhao Qiang pulled out a compression gun and aimed it at the base. He figured if the base collapsed, the transparent pillar would crumble. Just then, a voice suddenly rang out: "Young man, do you really think you're doing the right thing?"