83: 3 Doubts 83: 3 Doubts Xiang Shan stowed away the storage device and then sent Yuki to sleep in the truck bed of the “donkey.”

Yuki was also tired and, without saying much, went to rest on his own.

By this time, two days had passed since that space-based kinetic weapon bombing.

During these two days, Xiang Shan rested during the day and only took to the road at night after using precious refrigerant to maintain the same temperature as the environment in the vehicle cabin to avoid satellite attention.

That day, after changing into a spare set of limbs, Xiang Shan did his best to clear the traces Yuki left while dragging him.

However, the tracks they made emerging from the earth were too apparent, and he didn’t have enough time, so he had no choice but to give up.

If the “Protector” had any surveillance in place, they should already know that he was still alive.

It was precisely because he knew this that Xiang Shan headed in the direction opposite to the “Great City” and then changed his route several times.

However, considering the satellites overhead, he couldn’t be sure he had really escaped detection.

He remained in a state of “the enemy could appear at any moment.”

Therefore, after his disciple had rested, Xiang Shan took up his rifle, leaped onto the rocks, and kept watch around him.

According to the plan, by tomorrow, he would arrive at the location of another Green Forest Organization’s Great Stockade.

Of course, Xiang Shan still didn’t know the exact location of that Great Stockade—the location of the Great Stockade is crucial information for Green Forest and can be said to be their guarantee of survival.

If the location of the Great Stockade were exposed, the Protectors wouldn’t mind dropping a few dozen space-based pieces of kinetic trash.

Therefore, even if he obtained information about the Z Organization’s Great Stockade, he only knew that this area was under that organization’s influence and that the Great Stockade was probably in that general area.

The specific entrance had to be found through searching.

While keeping watch, Xiang Shan also read “Little Poison Insect’s” Martial Arts.

The meaning behind that Martial Arts was not trivial, as it discussed how to construct a simple identification algorithm within a drone to differentiate and quickly transmit back “computation problems where the human brain has an advantage,” thereby achieving the effect of “extending volition within the machine.”

The method of controlling unmanned drones was just incidental.

Xiang Shan believed it might be a “Training Method,” a precursor to allowing volition to make multiple jumps between different servers.

At least, Xiang Shan was certain that this must be a form of Inner Strength that had developed after his period of slumber.

He had no memory of it.

In the past, Xiang Shan might have devoted himself entirely to studying this Inner Strength.

But now…

His thoughts irresistibly drifted toward the past.

About the content of his own memories.

—Is this current world ruled by aliens?

What was about to appear in his memory was very likely to be aliens.

Because apart from aliens, he really couldn’t think of any project that would require the collaboration of hardware structure designers, behavioral scientists, and linguists.

“An ultra-ancient civilization”?

No, no, that was purely a joke.

The development of a civilization requires fuel.

And the burning of fuel leaves traces in geological layers.

So far, there has been no sign of ancient coal seams being exploited.

Additionally, in the geological layers of each era, there are no traces of a civilization that used chemical energy over a long period.

For instance, since primitive humans spread across Earth and began using fire extensively, the geological layers have accumulated more traces of “combustion” than any previous era.

Moreover, after the industrial era, the chemical products manufactured by humans have also become detectable traces.

Imagine, if a creature were buried in 1970 and became a fossil millions of years later while humanity had unfortunately not survived to that time, then the next civilization would be able to detect significant traces of DDT in the fossil.

Thus, some geologists have suggested that the “Quaternary” ended tens of thousands of years ago, and it should now be named the “Anthropocene.”

And none of these traces have ever appeared.

One could say that humans are the most powerful species known so far.

With their sole power, they established absolute dominion over Earth, leaving indelible traces in the geological layers and initiating the sixth mass extinction.

Humans also stepped off their mother planet, leaving traces on Mars and the Moon.

In terms of “dominance” over the ecosystem, perhaps dinosaurs could be compared to humans.

However, dinosaurs are a superorder, while humans are a species.

An ancient civilization more prosperous than humans couldn’t possibly leave no trace in the geological record.

It would surely leave its mark in the earth’s layers around the world—not a few “relics,” but vast amounts of incompletely burned particles and chemical components produced by industry, and so on.

Therefore, an ultra-ancient civilization couldn’t have existed.

Thus, the only plausible option is “aliens.”

Those who study behaviorism and evolutionary psychology can analyze and speculate on aliens’ thoughts based on their behavior.

And linguists go without saying.

But what’s truly perplexing is why they would include a researcher of “dead languages.”

Dead languages, also known as extinct languages or extinct languages, refer to a language that no longer has any native speakers.

If a language cannot be read or written correctly by anyone, then it is indeed “dead.”

The difficulty of deciphering a dead language and a living language is entirely different.

For a living language, two people gesturing blindly can learn quite a bit.

When someone encounters a completely unknown “living language” and communicates with its speakers, they can learn many words—or rather, connect many new “sounds” or “symbols” with the “concepts” they already understand.

Meanwhile, through the process of communication, grammar will also naturally reveal itself.

But dead languages don’t have this convenience.

Because there’s no one to communicate with, it’s impossible to know what specific concepts a particular symbol refers to.

“`

Deciphering dead languages and learning living ones don’t follow completely identical logic.

In other words…

Even if there were aliens, it’s highly likely there would not be any beings with whom we could communicate.

Of course, this is only an inference based on existing memory.

Xiang Shan still wasn’t clear whether the first segment of memory he had accessed truly represented the entirety of the expert group.

[Based on Xiang Shan’s own speculation, the expert group probably consisted of more than just these mere four people]

Perhaps there were other linguists out in the field conducting research!

But the presence of a researcher studying the lost language of the ancient Naxi ethnic group suggested that perhaps those in the know believed that within that “possible alien spaceship,” there might no longer be any beings with whom communication was possible.

But that was only “possible.”

Xiang Shan looked up at the sky.

Despite the brilliant sunlight and cloudless expanse, Xiang Shan knew that above that blue canopy, countless satellites remained hidden.

He murmured, “Are you aliens?”

Would it be aliens that now ruled the Earth?

But the problem is…

Aliens that had the capability to reach Earth would surely possess a force beyond human resistance.

At least before Xiang Shan fell into his deep sleep, humanity did not possess the capability for interstellar travel.

Benchmark Man could survive on electrical energy and possessed a longer life span and greater damage resistance.

But humans still hadn’t managed to build a sub-light speed spacecraft that could guarantee long-term operation without a single incident.

Aliens capable of crossing the star seas to come here would inevitably possess technology beyond human resistance.

And yet, the “Martial Arts” that Xiang Shan envisioned were a “technological concept” aimed at “authoritarianism.”

His target, without a doubt, was humans.

Furthermore, prior to this, the “resistance targets” Xiang Shan had imagined were also “humans.”

If he were a warrior fighting against the rule of an alien civilization, then the slogan shouldn’t be “fighting against authoritarianism” and “the free union of people,” it should be “resisting invaders” instead.

Before he fell into his deep sleep, he had always been at war with humans.

But Xiang Shan was indeed in turmoil.

With a restless heart, he couldn’t comprehend Inner Strength.

Xiang Shan simply let his spirit wander.

About seven hours later, Yuki woke up.

He had intended to greet his master.

But Xiang Shan just shoved a rifle into his hands, then passed him some math problems again, and said, “If you finish the problems, think about designing a protective device for the little guy.

Consider it homework I’m leaving you with.”

Having said that, Xiang Shan once again delved into his own memory.

……………………………………

— Aliens…

This concept unsettled young Xiang Shan.

When he shared this information, the cadre seemed to glance at him through the rearview mirror.

Although Liu immediately scolded him, accusing him of reading too many novels, from his expression it was clear that Liu didn’t disregard it as much as he claimed.

Liu grew up at a time when The Journal of UFO Research and the “Qigong craze” were very popular.

As for the magazine, it’s hard to say whether it was truly scientific or if it leaned towards mystical literature, but it had indeed once sparked public curiosity.

Everyone present was familiar with this topic.

Zhang Qiaoyun didn’t seem to have much interest in the topic, but Li Jiawen’s eyes shone, mumbling under his breath as if pondering the significance of this matter for anthropological research, as well as the potential impact on society and culture.

Meanwhile, Xiang Shan flipped through his passport.

Then, he noticed a fact.

Among the numerous visas in his passport, there was one that wasn’t very prominent but stood out.

Indonesia.

Most of the countries on the visa were from academically more developed regions.

This might be because his work could entail interacting with researchers from various fields around the world.

To avoid trouble, the country might have taken care of these visas all at once.

But Indonesia…

— The spaceship must have landed in Indonesia.

Xiang Shan felt a fire in his heart.

This judgement might be somewhat subjective.

But Xiang Shan felt that this overseas journey would change the face of humanity.

“`