Chapter 179: Chapter 179: Wait Until You’re Kneeling in Front of Me, Then Continue!
Supreme Sage?
“The highest ruler of the Desert Tower Civilization, with absolute control over the entire civilization. Even for the common and mid-level Desert Tower People, the Supreme Sage is almost mythologized and holds a status akin to that of a deity…” Shen Hao pondered the intelligence on the Supreme Sage.
Actually, the Desert Tower People had sent communication requests more than once before.
But Shen Hao hadn’t bothered to respond.
The reason was simple: it wasn’t an equal exchange.
He was now on this spaceship, and moreover, he had the upper hand. For a civilization with a central ruler, having some “Generals” or “Directors” contact him seemed to Shen Hao quite pointless.
Moreover, diplomacy is based on military power. Even if the goal was to acquire technology and equipment from the Desert Tower Civilization, one had to fight their way in first.
However, now that the message came from the highest ruler of the Desert Tower Civilization, Shen Hao was somewhat interested.
“Connect,” he commanded.
The next moment, a figure appeared on the screen before him.
It seemed to be set in a relatively simple natural environment—a forest, grassland, a few animals. The figure stood therein, dressed in a white simple robe, appearing both tall and thin, with limbs that were very slender. The facial structure was somewhat reminiscent of a canine species.
What was more significant was that there was no sign of much bodily modification.
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“Is this the original appearance of the Desert Tower People?” Shen Hao spoke first, his tone casual.
“Indeed.”
The voice that came from the screen was in standard Mandarin and, judging by the lip movements, it wasn’t translated.
“The Desert Tower People initially looked like this, but now, there aren’t many who wish to keep their original appearance. People’s aesthetics have drastically changed,” the Supreme Sage spoke just as casually, as if this were not an imminent war threatening their entire civilization.
It was more like a casual chat to get to know one another better.
But Shen Hao had no intention of making small talk.
“Since you understand our language, then you should also understand our culture,” Shen Hao said directly. “Open the sunroof.”
“Alright.” The Supreme Sage in the screen nodded and said, “From your civilization’s culture and past actions, it’s clear that your civilization does not pursue destruction. The attack on us is for benefit. Therefore, when negotiation can bring you greater gains than war, there is a foundation for talks.”
“Correct,” Shen Hao nodded, acknowledging this point.
Some might think that Shen Hao, having achieved victory and fulfilled his initial purpose, continued to push forward to enjoy the thrills that military force brings, or that he was dissatisfied with the brutality of the Desert Tower Civilization and wanted to inflict greater damage on it.
But in reality, anyone who knew a bit about Shen Hao wouldn’t think this.
Ever since he became Sovereign, Shen Hao’s self-judgment was not affected by his emotions. To him, all emotions were merely a form of enjoyment under his own volition.
Even anger was the same.
His sole purpose for coming here was clear from the start.
—Equipment, resources, technology on the Path of Technology.
Mere basic items from the White Mall, though sufficient for civilization to rapidly grow on certain paths, were still not comprehensive or in-depth enough.
Not unless all technology and equipment of a particular Level—white, blue, purple, and even gold—were completely mastered, could it be said that the Level had been truly assimilated.
In this case, a faster way was to obtain it from other civilizations.
This was already confirmed by the Sky Spirit Civilization.
The foundation of Human Civilization’s magic was improving at an astonishing rate.
And the Desert Tower Civilization could satisfy the needs of Human Civilization in terms of technology.
Even so, Shen Hao actually had no intention of negotiating at this point.
“Although what you say is not wrong, after a fight, you might have to pay more,” Shen Hao’s gaze fell on the planet before him.
He made no extra movements, but at this moment, all the commanders in the cockpit could feel his confidence as if it were a matter of course.
Indeed, the Desert Tower Planet was on high alert, using the entire civilization’s foundation to oppose his single spaceship.
But from Shen Hao’s current aura, it seemed as though everything before him was but chickens and dogs!
“Your civilization is indeed confident. However, when the risk reaches a certain level, there will always be an opportunity for negotiation,” the Supreme Sage on the screen spoke without much change in expression and swiftly sent over a document.
It was filled with all sorts of information about the Desert Tower Civilization.
Almost the entire situation of the Desert Tower Civilization was laid out before Shen Hao and the others.
Indeed, it was a civilization that venerated war, with the entire planet almost completely covered with various military factories. Every single one of the Desert Tower People was produced through ex vitro gestation and artificial cloning methods. From birth, one’s status and education were determined; their emotions were suppressed, they wouldn’t experience decay, depression, or seek entertainment and pleasure, but rather grew up mechanically like robots.
Even learning was included.
Occasionally, those with exceptionally unique talents were discovered and would be granted emotions anew, allowing their talents to be better utilized.
Those so-called high-level individuals all came about this way.
However, the true elite weren’t like this.
They were descendants from a handful of families.
That’s right, even positions were inherited within the family.
But these positions didn’t mean much, because the only requirement for these people to hold their positions was to obey the commands of the Supreme Sage; otherwise, they could be stripped of all power and status at any moment.
“The true holder of power in this civilization is only me,” the Supreme Sage said as he spread his arms, slowly but firmly, “I can control the entire civilization like handling a machine. Your civilization should understand the immense power this can unleash. My subjects will not know fear or face threats, nor will I have any interference from inside. With just one order, the entire civilization will advance and throw itself into war without any hesitation.”
The communication screen began to change.
Rows of fully armed soldiers marched neatly into the densely packed array of war machines, with various weapons aimed at the sky, among which even included some exaggeratively huge behemoths. Moreover, the military factories were producing more aircraft and all kinds of weapons at an astonishing rate, even arming new, enormous warships quickly.
As the Supreme Sage had said, the entire planet had entered a stage of comprehensive militarization, with an extraordinarily vast supply of weapons and fully unleashed productivity.
Most importantly, there was clear order, without the slightest chaos.
The destruction of so many warships before, including the rage and fear of those high-level individuals, seemed to affect nothing.
It had to be said, such a scene was indeed shocking.
Shen Hao didn’t show any expression, but he understood why this civilization could achieve the second rank in the civilizational ranking.
Even, during the last Settlement Period, it posed a slight threat to Human Civilization.
Indeed, they had raised the performance against the Civilization Trial to a level hard for ordinary civilizations to reach.
When Human Civilization built its first Underground City, it was necessary to continuously motivate, propagate, and inspire people to commit to the endeavor with hope and aspiration.
It was a miracle that could only be created through the collective effort and united will of countless people.
But for this planet…
Everyone was like a machine, not needing anything but calculation, control, and orders to achieve the utmost under the current conditions.
Even when dealing with the Undead, it was the same.
A chip was implanted in everyone’s body, and their bodies were modified; the position of every individual, including their bodily conditions, were monitored, and even natural death was calculated with precision.
“I’ve always been quite curious and unable to guess,” the Supreme Sage seemed not to notice Shen Hao’s silence, but continued, “I’ve nearly reached the limit of what can be achieved in this Trial and have observed every civilization, ensuring that no civilization could pose a direct threat to our security, which allowed me to devise the ‘Extermination Plan’ to gain more points. However, your arrival has completely shattered my understanding. I’m aware of your strength but did not expect your Store Level, so how exactly did you manage to obtain several times more points than us?”
This indeed was a point of great perplexity for the Supreme Sage.
He had run all kinds of calculations.
He had even considered the possibility of breeding Undead.
But the disparity wasn’t minor; it was several times larger!
What kind of method, what kind of potential could there be to create such a significant gap?
“Do you really think you can foresee everything?” Shen Hao looked at him and finally spoke up, “But as I see it, your civilization may hold some advantage at the forefront of the Civilization Trial, but if I’m not mistaken, amongst your civilization’s Chosen Ones, probably not even one ranks in the top ten.”
That’s right, this civilization had gone to another extreme.
Powerful Extraordinary Powers are miracles born within individuals; only with enough and sufficiently exceptional individuals can such miracles occur.
Suppressing an individual’s emotions is like curbing the potential and talent they have on the Extraordinary Path.
Even Chosen Ones need cultivation and comprehension.
In such a situation, even if a Chosen One with decent talent were luckily to appear, there’s a high probability they would be nurtured into incompetence.
“It seems I’m not mistaken,” Shen Hao said, looking at the silent Supreme Sage, reached out, and grasped the Emperor’s Scepter floating beside him, and slowly continued, “You do not understand the Extraordinary, nor do you understand the Chosen One or the Civilization Trial. Negotiations are meaningless in this state; we might as well continue when you are kneeling before me!”
