Yu Lian could guarantee to his most admired Li Instructor that he genuinely disliked spiritual energy.
Yu Lian believed there were three main culprits that completely led astray the technology trees of all known civilizations in the All-Galaxy and even the Universe. One of them was the so-called spiritual energy. Of course, some called it primal energy, some called it the Force, and some called it psionic energy; in any case, it was roughly this kind of thing.
The more “scientific” explanation is that it is a profound and mysterious energy factor, pervasive in every corner of the Universe yet utterly undetectable by instruments. Gifted life forms can utilize their existence to strengthen themselves, communicate with divine consciousness, tear apart the heavens and earth, traverse the star rivers, much like the omnipotent deities in ancient legends.
Because of the existence of these transcendent beings, the state of civilization throughout the Universe has become somewhat mystical. Fatalism, animism, and even bloodline theory are rampant. It is neither materialistic, scientific, logical, nor progressive.
After all, individuals who can genuinely smash a Universe warship with their bare hands exist in this world! Everyone's confusion is understandable.
When Yu Lian first transmigrated in his previous life, he thought he had arrived in a future cosmic era and felt he might become an “illiterate primitive.” He experienced a significant cultural shock for a time, but he soon discovered it was not like that at all.
Before the 15th century, Earth's history was the same as he knew it, but then, changes occurred with the arrival of visitors from beyond the stars.
When the Empire's and Alliance's space Explore ships arrived in the Solar System almost simultaneously, they were quite pleased to find individuals almost identical to themselves in a corner of the Galaxy and descended upon this remote blue planet in the Galaxy's Third Suspension Arm in an almost ecstatic and crude manner.
Those were truly good times! To discover “kinsmen” in the vast sea of stars was simply the masterful work of the universe spirit. The Empire's Star Seers and the Alliance's academicians of the academy of sciences lingered in the Forbidden City and the Sacred Palace, marveling at the primitive yet brilliant civilization; Star Realm Knights and Guerrillas raised their cups and sang under the gaze of the Sphinx and the Leshan Giant Buddha, and even invited the kneeling Earthlings to join their feast.
Earthlings, who were just preparing to enter the Age of Sail and hadn't even had time to Explore their own planet, were thus led down a path of no return where both their technology and civilization trees were completely askew.
And then, the historical process Yu Lian was familiar with no longer existed.
Yes, although this was also “Earth,” it was not Yu Lian's hometown.
Yu Lian, coming from a materialistic Earth world, was extremely angry. For a time, he felt that the so-called spiritual energy users were the culprits who had completely erased the history and beliefs he was familiar with! He felt that, apart from himself, the entire All-Galaxy was full of hopelessly idealistic idiots.
Wasn't a rigorous and logical scientific worldview good? The so-called spiritual energy, the so-called opening of some “Star Ring in the spiritual Universe,” didn't it all sound like metaphysics?
I, Yu Lian, a fine young man who has received twenty years of materialistic worldview education, even if I am killed by spiritual energy ripples and die in a black hole, I will never become an idealistic idiot!
Perhaps this inner conflict caused his mind to be a bit more fragmented than ordinary people, and thus, in a daze, he opened his Star Ring.
And then, it was truly amazing…
Yu Lian quickly comforted himself, saying that materialism meant that existence was reasonable, and the reason it couldn't be categorized with rigorous scientific models was simply because scientific understanding hadn't reached that level yet.
After all, we can't be fundamentalist, metaphysical pseudo-materialists! Teacher Li would criticize that.
So, spiritual energy is really good!
Very logical! Very materialistic! No problem!
Of course, none of the above is the main point.
Let's go back to spiritual energy.
This transcendent power, which almost represents the strongest and most mysterious in the Universe, only awakens in naturally gifted life forms. The method of awakening varies from person to person, and there are indeed no authoritative textbooks, but once awakened, no matter which path of cultivation is taken, the power of their soul and body will enter the realm of the transcendent.
This can also explain why the support team from Outpost 12 was attacked by the Bug Swarm. For the Bug Swarm, whose ultimate goal is the evolution of their entire species, what could be more valuable than the genes of the awakened ones?
Except for the queen who had fought Yu Lian multiple times in his previous life, the entire vast Bug Swarm, numbering in the trillions, had never given birth to individuals with spiritual energy—in later generations, many speculated that the Bug Swarm was not naturally born but a biological weapon created by some force, which unfortunately lost control and thus became a natural disaster plaguing all civilizations in the Galaxy.
However, the more something does not exist, the more one tries to prove its existence. The more unobtainable it is, the more one yearns for it.
In later generations, the relentless hunting of spiritual energy users across the Universe by the Bug Swarm's elites is clear proof of this.
Ina Shinica, later known by the nickname “Blazing-Eyed Witch,” the most famous sniper in the All-Galaxy, a heroic woman of the Blue Star Commonwealth, and one of the symbols of unyielding resistance in the hearts of Earthlings, is a powerful spiritual energy user.
Of course, at twenty-three years old, she has not yet awakened; at most, she is a sensitive person.
Whether someone is a sensitive person, currently throughout the All-Galaxy, only the Empire's Star Realm Knight Order, the Alliance's Star Guerrilla General Association, and the transcendent Virtual Spirit Temple possess very mystical detection methods; but Yu Lian knows that the Xenomorphs should have them too.
For the Xenomorphs, the genetic information of an unawakened sensitive person might be even more valuable than that of an awakened one.
The Bug Swarm, currently undergoing stealthy development, does not yet have the strength to attack large cities and the Galaxy Native Land, but given the opportunity, they certainly won't miss targets in the wild.
Yu Lian still had some doubts. In his previous life, he had never heard of an attack incident from Ina, and it was during the subsequent Tulon Port siege that she first appeared on the historical stage.
But, if I hadn't been reborn, wouldn't the “Blazing-Eyed Witch” have died prematurely then?
Additionally, he once again carefully searched his memories from his previous life and confirmed that there were no traces left by the Bug Swarm throughout the Tulon Port incident. The first official record of the Bug Swarm's appearance was indeed several years later.
Or, perhaps the Bug Swarm originally had no intention of appearing, but because of my rebirth, they changed their original purpose and appeared earlier?
Hmm, for the Bug Swarm, something more valuable than the gene of one sensitive person is, of course, two.
In other words, I've already started changing history?
Uh... Although that's what I'm saying, it's ultimately just Yu Lian's guess. Since there's no basis, he can only temporarily suppress these doubts in his heart.
In any case, let's bring the focus back to the Present. Yu Lian believed that even if his rebirth and possession did cause some butterfly effect, the Bug Swarm shouldn't reappear anytime soon. Their current policy is stealthy development, and they dare not expose themselves to the sight of major civilizations before forming a significant scale. Therefore, the closer everyone got to the Tulon battlefield, the safer it became.
As Yu Lian pondered, he casually said, “Hmm, if you really have to ask what spiritual energy feels like… Besides having much more physical and mental energy than before, it's probably a stronger sense of perception. However, this also varies from person to person. Every awakened individual has different insights. Some people, having heard some nonsensical gibberish from who knows where, insist they've received guidance from the universe spirit, putting on a show of mystification, spouting a bunch of flawed theories, yet high-ranking officials and nobles still treat them as spiritual leaders. So, you see, don't think that becoming an awakened one is necessarily a good thing. If your will cannot control power, you become a slave to power.”
Most people showed expressions of “I don't understand what you're saying, but it sounds really amazing,” but only the old mechanic shivered in fear, instinctively looking around, and then helplessly said, “Sir, this can only be said here, but certainly not in the Native Land! Especially not in public.”
“Uh… What did I say?”
“The All-Unification Church is supported by quite a few important figures, and there are also many fanatical followers. If you can't keep your mouth shut, it's one thing if it affects your future, but fanatical believers might actually attack you. I once knew a reporter… Oh, never mind.”
“Oh, you mean the one Master Wang started? I swear to the universe spirit, I wasn't making a reference.”
Yes, that wasn't a reference; it was almost directly insulting them.
Ina probably didn't want to continue the topic and interjected, “So, how exactly did you sense those burrowing Xenomorphs? Some kind of spiritual energy technique?”
You actually still remember that part? Yu Lian silently rolled his eyes inwardly, then said earnestly, “It’s the same principle as catching marmots in our hometown. You spread your hands on the ground and feel the subtle vibrations. As long as it’s moving, there will definitely be vibrations, and a specific rhythm. One, two, three, that means it’s approaching. One, two, three, four, that means it’s preparing to attack. An interval of five to six means it’s within two meters of you. Seven to eight, three meters. Nine to ten, five meters. Each finger joint corresponds to the target’s direction, for example, the first joint of the middle finger is three o’clock.”
Everyone looked solemn, either still not understanding but impressed, or just that, only Ina remained full of suspicion: “Is this seriously talking nonsense?”
The hunters on Green Court Star really do catch Silver Beard rats that way, it's just that there are slight differences in the details, and is this less scientific than spiritual energy?
“Alright, then let’s talk about something that isn’t nonsense. When I was in the academy, I also carefully read the early survey reports of New Yumen by the scientific expedition team. They believed that there should be a civilization left by the Enlightener here.”
“Enlightener?” Youyou looked utterly bewildered.
“…I don’t want to give a basic science lesson from scratch; go back to middle school and study for two more years. In short, it’s no secret that the vanished Enlighteners left behind civilizational heritage throughout the Universe for future generations to develop. The reason I was willing to serve here was also to gain insight. And then, when I awakened, I indeed had an inexplicable urge guiding me here. Perhaps, this is the enlightenment given to me by the universe spirit and the ancient ancestors. I figured, since we had to retreat anyway, and there was a high probability of encountering the enemy head-on, why not try our luck in the mountains to the north? If there truly were Enlightener ruins, they could help us escape. And that’s exactly what happened… spiritual energy users, you really must trust your intuition!”