Playing Along
To be honest, Yue Yuan felt that without Zhao Youqin's research, he might have been forced to agree to the demands of the Kun-Tai Civilization.
It's simple: because humans can't afford to gamble.
The one who reached the end of their rope was not humankind, but the Kun-Tai Civilization.
However, if the situation were to reverse, humanity would probably do the same as the Kun-Tai Civilization, using this kind of false information to fight to the death or escape alive.
Feeling relieved, Yue Yuan stretched his arms and muttered, "If what Pierce said is true, then the Kun-Tai Civilization is truly doomed."
Who can argue with that! That means that when the Kun-Tai Civilization was about to win the war against the Quell Civilization, it happened to be the time of a broadcast by the Silver Heart Alliance.
Thinking about this, Yue Yuan could only say: What a damn coincidence.
Now he understands that the Kun-Tai Civilization is still gambling, betting that humans will delete the broadcast information as soon as they receive it.
Another possibility is that the Kun-Tai Civilization itself was unaware that the broadcast message would disappear on its own after approximately three days.
Yue Yuan thought this was possible, because according to the information from the Kun-Tai Civilization, they were also a new civilization that developed from a fleet after the tragedy of their home planet.
In other words, after realizing that the Silver Heart Alliance was not a benevolent entity, they likely chose to delete the information as soon as they received it.
"Hmm, so this thing is essentially information fraud, and it seems quite useful." Yue Yuan thought to himself, "At least it works against Low-level Civilization that are not very knowledgeable about the world, and the more vigilant a civilization is, the better the effect."
Deceit and treachery abound! With this thought in mind, Yue Yuan already had an answer in his heart as to how to reply to the Kun-Tai Civilization's message.
Of course I have to reply; how can I turn the tables on you if I don't?
However, Yue Yuan did not reply directly. Instead, he shared his thoughts with everyone and came up with a reasoning before replying to Kun-Tai Civilization.
[I must say, your Kun-Tai Civilization is a great civilization. I apologize for the long delay in replying to your message. It's simply because your suggestions are so insightful, so important, and so radical that we had to consider them carefully.]
Yes, we don't want to perish together with you, because in our culture only a madman would do that. Our civilization has a bright future, so after discussion, we've decided to accept your suggestion.
However, we will not provide you with enough fuel to reach your next Star System, because in our culture, asking others for things is a shameful act. We consider your Kun-Tai Civilization to be a great civilization, not a shameful one, so we regret that we cannot agree to this.
Of course, as a great civilization as well, we must share many excellent qualities. Therefore, we now agree to grant you the outermost Asteroid Belt, believing that with your technological capabilities, you will certainly be able to extract hydrogen fuel.
To be honest, we are actually in the same boat. We humans are the same civilization as you, having lost our home planet. There is really no need for us to fight to the death here.
Instead, we should engage in frank and in-depth exchanges, sharing our knowledge and resources, making progress together, and striving towards a Level 2 Civilization. We should climb higher peaks, explore more of the unknown, and witness the endless mysteries of the universe waiting for us to discover.
While it was said to be a counter-strategy, Yue Yuan's idea was actually quite simple: to lure the ten warships of the Kun-Tai Civilization into the Asteroid Belt, and then, using the Asteroid Belt's visual obstruction, eliminate them one by one.
In this way, there is no need to fight them in the open space, thus minimizing the casualty rate.
Furthermore, Yue Yuan was well aware that the Kun-Tai Civilization's Mountain-Class Warship, like humans, lacked the ability to independently mine resources and energy. Therefore, in order to mine resources and energy, the Kun-Tai Civilization would most likely send its remaining Residential Spaceship to the outer edge of the Asteroid Belt.
In that case, if another war breaks out, the Kun-Tai Civilization will definitely not be able to stop paying attention to its Residential Spaceship. With this mindset of having to attend to one thing while neglecting another, humanity's advantage will be further expanded, and they will be able to easily win the space war that was originally somewhat difficult, thus achieving the true disarmament of the Kun-Tai Civilization.
Admittedly, Yue Yuan also considered another possibility: that the Kun-Tai Civilization only sent a small number of its Residential Spaceship to mine resources on the outer edge of the Asteroid Belt.
However, if fewer people come, the mining progress will definitely not be fast. Humans can take advantage of this time to quietly tow the Mountain-Class Warship that were severely damaged in the war to the Space Dock for repairs.
Just considering that humans have been here for so many years, their speed in resource extraction and warship repair is unmatched by the Kun-Tai Civilization, not to mention that humans also have a set of Mechanical Specialization Technology.
The day those Mountain-Class Warships are fully repaired will be the day the Kun-Tai Civilization's armament is completely disarmed.
As for the talk about Human Civilization and culture, it's all nonsense just to highlight the cultural differences among aliens. Yue Yuan knows that using culture as a starting point is a valid argument, but sometimes this kind of bizarre thinking makes it easier for aliens to believe it.
Even if they don't believe it, they are very likely to take it as a difference in perception caused by racial differences.
That said, when humans send messages, they don't just send a simple reply message; they also include star chart attachments.
The star map appendix marks areas of the Asteroid Belt that humanity is willing to cede.
The Lyra was not far from the flagship where Pierce was located. The information was received by the Kun-Tai Civilization only thirty seconds after it was sent out by the Lyra.
However, Yue Yuan waited for several minutes before the reply from the Kun-Tai Civilization arrived.
During previous communication disputes, humans knew that the Kun-Tai Civilization did not respond to messages instantly like the Silver Mist Consciousness, so they considered it normal.
"Oh my, Human Civilization! I'm so glad to see your wise decision. As you can see, our Kun-Tai Civilization is a benevolent civilization. We came here only to resupply, and once we've finished, we'll leave."
However, the area you have allocated to us is far too small to meet our supply requirements. Since you are so insincere, why don't we two civilizations join the Milky Way Galaxy Axis Alliance together?
However, to be fair, Human Civilization, since you are unwilling to transport fuel for us, we will not force you. However, we need half of the Asteroid Belt, and your warships must retreat to the outer edge of the other side of the Asteroid Belt.
Half an Asteroid Belt? And they're using the Silver Heart Alliance's broadcast signals to threaten us?
Hehe, a smile appeared on Yue Yuan's face as he watched the Kun-Tai Civilization become increasingly demanding. The more they pushed their luck, the better. The Kun-Tai Civilization's escalating demands reminded him of the Deterrence Era in the novel.