But if that civilization still existed, where were they now?
Why had they allowed one of their civilization's spacecraft to go missing? Were they too occupied to care, or was this spacecraft simply insignificant?
Or perhaps the spacecraft's original civilization had already gone extinct. Then why had they perished? The scraps of information from the alien remains had cast mystery after mystery before the scientists. Perhaps they would never find the truth, but that did not stop them from thinking boldly.
"Perhaps." Yue Yuan did not respond to Yi Kai's words. Instead, he asked about something else, scratching at the sudden itch on his face. "Has there been any progress with the serum research?"
Yi Kai had not been at the laboratory when Yue Yuan visited last time. Since they had run into each other now, Yue Yuan decided to ask while he had the chance.
"Same as before. Following up on the original experimental data, all we've found is that the Aging Gene is effectively suppressed and anticancer factors are greatly increased. But we still don't know how that substance works at the genetic level."
Yi Kai shook his head. He seemed to sense that Yue Yuan had much more to ask, so he simply pulled over a stool from nearby and handed it to Yue Yuan, gesturing for him to sit and talk slowly.
However, Yue Yuan did not take it. Instead, he went to fetch a chair himself and sat down with an attentive expression.
Yi Kai did not stand on ceremony either. He moved the small stool beneath himself and sat down.
Sure enough, the moment he sat, Yue Yuan said, "When I returned to the Capital City, I heard the experts there say that the Red Gas might not actually have been gas at all, but some kind of liquid-state volatile substance."
After returning to the Capital City that year, those biologists had eagerly begun their research.
Because he had needed to accept the Major General Rank, Yue Yuan had remained on Earth for quite some time. It was during that period that the biologists in the capital reached their conclusion after researching and analyzing the serum.
Thinking back on it now, Yue Yuan felt that those experts had worked with remarkable efficiency.
Perhaps because his position had been fairly high, Yue Yuan heard a great deal of news during that time. The people participating in the serum research had not merely been conventional biologists; there had also been many renowned medical professors.
Some specialized in modern medicine, while others practiced traditional medicine.
Virtually the nation's finest talents had gathered in that laboratory.
Someone like Yi Kai would certainly have joined them if his lunar research project had not remained unfinished at the time. Fortunately, he had not joined them. Otherwise, Callisto Base would not have such a biologist now.
"I heard about that too." Yi Kai stroked his stubble and continued, "I heard those guys even dug out that antique, the Compendium of Materia Medica, for their research."
Of course they had. It was the traditional medicine experts who had brought out the Compendium of Materia Medica. Yue Yuan had heard that they wanted to use the century-old theory of "qi" to identify herbs with shared properties, such as strengthening the body and replenishing vital energy, from among countless medicinal plants. Then they would combine them for experiments and test them one by one through elimination.
They really looked as though they were preparing for a major undertaking.
"Yes, but just as they were getting started, it was gone." Yue Yuan spoke wistfully.
"They had Earth as their support back then. We have nothing now, only those few lonely serum samples. It's difficult!" Yi Kai shook his head and sighed. "We lost Earth. We lost everything. As they say, even the cleverest housewife cannot cook without rice."
How could Yue Yuan not understand what Yi Kai meant?
When it came to biological genetics research, conducting even a single experiment was difficult without an entire biosphere to support it.
Longevity research differed from other fields. Many ideas could not be tested simply by having a lab mouse. Many things needed to be found in nature, taken from nature, and used for trials.
If humanity still possessed Earth's biosphere, they could have found animals in nature that also had long lifespans, studied them, and run all kinds of comparative experiments against the serum.
Earth's billions of years of biological evolution were also a natural laboratory for the endless evolution of life. Over those billions of years, every evolutionary path life could take had been attempted by some organism.
Humans simply knew of some of them and remained ignorant of others.
That gave Earth limitless possibilities and bestowed upon the humans born and raised there an unparalleled treasure trove.
Four billion years of biological evolution were grand works engraved into life's DNA by the laws of the universe.
Here lay the roots of life's origins and the secrets behind the birth of intelligence.
But humanity had lost that treasure trove.
Without Earth, without biodiversity, biological genetics research had become almost impossible to advance.
"By that logic, this research is in an even worse position than Controlled Nuclear Fusion. Looks like I was being too impatient." Yue Yuan nodded in understanding.
The conditions for researching Controlled Nuclear Fusion could be piled up with supplies and energy, but he could not conjure an entire Earth biosphere out of thin air.
"If only there were more of that Red Gas." Yue Yuan added regretfully.
Yue Yuan pulled his thoughts back, but after a while, Yi Kai still said nothing. He called out again, "Doctor Yi? Old Yi!"
"Oh, sorry. I got lost thinking about something." Yi Kai finally came back to himself, apparently having been deep in thought. He looked at Yue Yuan with an embarrassed expression. "What were we talking about just now?"
"Fuck!" Yue Yuan darkened his face and echoed Yi Kai's usual complaint. So this bastard had not heard a single word of his heartfelt reflections.
"Forget it. There hasn't been any progress anyway, and I can't conjure an Earth biosphere for you." Frustrated, Yue Yuan rose to leave.
Yet Yi Kai looked utterly baffled. "Who said there hasn't been any progress?"
He was only in his seventies. He should not have become senile already. Yue Yuan gave the upturned Yi Kai a suspicious glance, but his expression did not seem feigned.
Yet Yue Yuan clearly remembered Yi Kai saying there had been no progress. Well, he had said things were the same as before, but that meant roughly the same thing.
"Yi Kai said it." Yue Yuan answered irritably.
"Oh~"
Yi Kai nodded as though that made perfect sense, then suddenly grinned. "I said there's been no progress from continuing the research along the original experimental data."
"What do you mean?" Yi Kai's words successfully pulled Yue Yuan back into his seat.
"Exactly what I said." Yi Kai replied with four words, then gestured for Yue Yuan to be patient. After considering his words for a moment, he said, "Following the original line of thinking, we ran into endless difficulties. Every time, we only got as far as the answers already known before we could go no further, so we changed our approach."
"Instead of starting with that specific DNA sequence, we studied the most fundamental driving force of life as an entire system. That has given us some different hypotheses."
"The most fundamental driving force of life?" Yue Yuan interjected out of habit, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he realized he seemed to have interrupted Yi Kai. He hurriedly corrected himself. "Doctor Yi, please continue. Go on."
Before you continue