Chapter 232

Feeling guilty for her oversight, Kristen took off her thick coat to prove that she was not carrying any recording devices.

A cool night breeze caressed my cheeks.

The two went up to the rooftop, where the view was very open, with a little water remaining in one corner.

This is the highest point among the surrounding buildings, so there's no need to worry about being photographed without your consent.

Shi Lei looked up at the starry sky and said:

"I have a friend who is a screenwriter, and his ideas are very imaginative. I learned about the concept of the universe from him. I will try to explain it as simply as possible so that you can understand it thoroughly. But if you can't understand it, I can't explain it any further."

He's a living, breathing person who can sing, dance, rap, and play basketball; he's not an immobile machine. We still have to live on this land, so we can't make any absolute statements.

Kristen nodded in understanding:

"Yes, I understand."

This ancient information, never recorded in any books or computers, belongs to 'forbidden knowledge'. It's perfectly normal that the Terra cannot understand its meaning.

As for her friend who was a screenwriter, she knew it was fake. But there was absolutely no need to expose it.

Kristen was already very satisfied that God was willing to answer so generously; how could she dare to ask for more?

Shi Lei continued to stare at the sky, gazing into the distance:

"The universe is a general concept. It is the collective term for all time, space, matter, and everything that it produces. You can think of Terra Planet and everything outside of it as the universe."

Kristen nodded thoughtfully, then moved on to ask the next question:

How big is the universe?

"The exact value cannot be calculated, but it can be understood as infinite. If we compare the volume of Terra Planet to a very small speck of dust, then the universe is equivalent to Columbia, or even the entire planet."

Kristen appeared calm on the surface, but inside she was experiencing a turbulent storm.

When she first learned about the concept of the universe, she was utterly awestruck. Behind those two words lay such a vast and magnificent expanse of heaven and earth.

It surpasses the barren imagination of the Terra as we know it today; it is a sight beyond words.

How far away are the stars in the sky from us?

"When talking about distance, the first thing you need to understand is the concept of length. The distance that light travels in a vacuum along a straight line in one year is called a light-year."

Different planets are located at distances ranging from tens of light-years to hundreds of billions of light-years from us.

The stars you see right now are not synchronized with your time. If they are a hundred light-years apart, it means the light from that star travels a hundred light-years to reach the sky you see.

Upon hearing this, Kristen's expression turned serious.

The concept of a light-year is so vast that it has exceeded the maximum scope of her comprehension.

Hundreds of billions of light-years, how far is that?

"So the twinkling of stars is irregular because each planet exists independently?"

"Yes, most planets have independent orbits. There's a lot of knowledge involved, which I can't explain in detail to you."

Actually, it's Shi Lei who doesn't understand.

What he is introducing to Kristen so far is astronomical common sense that was almost universally known before his time travel.

Are there people living on every planet?

"Not necessarily. Most planets are too harsh on the environment to support life. Habitable planets like Terra are only a small fraction of the total."

Kristen took a deep breath, unable to describe her feelings at that moment:

Is the sky an illusion?

Shi Lei cannot answer this question using his pre-transmigration worldview. Perhaps a comparison with the False Sky of Genshin Impact would be easier to understand:

"You could say that, or you could say that. In some ways, the sky is more like a protective shield. While preventing us from peering into the universe, it also prevents beings from other galaxies from discovering us."

Shi Lei felt as if he were reviewing geography knowledge from elementary, middle, and high school, breaking down the content and feeding it to Kristen.

Although he could only describe most of the content superficially, it was still beyond her comprehension.

Each word is like an indescribable spell, and its meaning often needs to be confirmed through repeated questioning.

Shi Lei was willing to answer her questions based on a variety of considerations.

The main reason lies with Rhodes Island.

They have just established a long-term Cooperative Relationship with Rhine Lab, which will benefit both parties in all aspects.

If he refuses, it could easily ruin the whole thing, creating a rift between the two parties and potentially leading to trouble.

Secondly, Amiya introduced Shi Lei to the experiences of the Rhine Lab Director General.

Kristen's parents were scientists, and he was deeply influenced by his family from a young age. This research fanatic had an extraordinary obsession with the sky. If he refused the meeting, who knows what kind of madness he might experience later?

Letting her understand the vastness of the universe and the insignificance of the Terra shouldn't be a bad thing. It'll save her from striving in the wrong direction and only realizing the consequences after suffering heavy losses.

Tonight, there are stars.

All the questions that had troubled Kristen for years were answered, some in detail and some briefly.

Does Terra Planet have a base supporting it? What's it like in space? What does Terra Planet look like from space? What are rotation and revolution?

She was like a greedy sponge, constantly throwing out one question after another, absorbing the unknown essence that had settled at the bottom of the ocean of knowledge.

A single jade-like finger sketches a beautiful blueprint from thin air. Two delicate lips distill the central idea, making obscure and difficult new knowledge easily understandable.

Old ideas were broken down, and new knowledge was introduced. Under Shi Lei's patient guidance, Kristen seemed to see a vast universe she had never seen before.

Crushing, filling, grinding, pouring...

Because of her intense concentration, she hadn't even noticed that her back was soaked with sweat.

Despite learning about these things for the first time, Kristen's thirst for knowledge burned like a fireball.

Her head was buzzing; she felt more excited than she had ever been in her life. She felt light as a feather, as if she were walking on cotton, as if she were dreaming.

As the saying goes, opportunity knocks but once. Perhaps if I ask God for guidance later, He won't answer me.

So, before God tires of you, raise all your questions.

Kristen had never been to space, so those were the few questions she could think of. After asking those questions, she began to inquire about this land.

Have you ever seen a pack animal? What's it like to travel the ocean? Why do Demons appear in the cold, resource-scarce north? Why do the Sarkaz have halos and wings? What's the principle behind the Sarkaz's fall from grace?

Even Shi Lei gradually found himself unable to hold on.

"I'm sorry, I can't answer that."

Even though he reads books every day, there are still many questions he doesn't know the answers to, so he can only gloss over them.

Is Originium an alien creation? Why has there never been any record of Originium before? What is the true purpose of Originium? Can it be used to change the form of objects?

Seeing that Kristen's questions were piling up, seemingly destined to go on forever if he wasn't stopped, Shi Lei quickly pulled out his phone to check the time and promptly put an end to it.

"Alright, that's enough for today."

If you keep asking him, you'll drain his brain dry, leaving him with nothing.

Kristen had already sensed God's displeasure, especially regarding the questions posed to this land.

Those questions have remained unanswered for so many years, perhaps because there are reasons that cannot be made public.

She bowed deeply to the deity with utmost sincerity, and said with a heart full of piety and trepidation:

"Mister Zhongli, may I ask one last question?"

"Okay, go ahead and ask."

"If one day in the future someone breaks the Star Pod, allowing all the people of Terra to see the vast universe beyond the Barrier Layer, what consequences would that cause?"

Upon hearing this, Shi Lei frowned slightly.

He knew very well what the other party meant by asking that question at the end.

"What, you want to be that person?"

The moonlight, like still water, gently illuminated Kristen's beautiful face. She smiled slightly, offering no response to God's question.

But silence can sometimes be an answer.

Shi Lei stared at the woman in front of him. She did not avoid eye contact, nor did she try to look away.

This doesn't seem like just empty talk.

After a brief pause, he solemnly said:

"I guess you think breaking through the Star Pod and entering the universe is an incredibly romantic thing. It's pioneering in space science and has epoch-making significance."

What I want to say is that your thinking is very naive, selfish, and idealistic. Because in your mind, you assume that civilizations on other planets are as friendly and benevolent towards Alien Civilization as you are.

In reality, survival is the primary need of civilization. No matter how much civilization grows and expands, the total amount of matter in the universe will remain constant.

Once you destroy the Star Pod, exposing Terra's location to other civilizations, due to varying conditions for their development and factors such as language barriers, other civilizations cannot determine whether the civilizations of Terra Planet will attack and destroy them.

For example, imagine you're living on a planet inhabited by incredibly resilient cockroaches. Seeing these insect-like beings everywhere, you'd only find them disgusting. From their perspective, they'd also find humans utterly repulsive.

Once a civilization discovers another civilization in the universe, the best course of action is not to send representatives to make contact, but to do everything in its power to destroy the other civilization in order to ensure the survival of its own.

If I ever find out that you're planning to destroy Star Pod, I will kill you without hesitation, no matter where I am, and stop this plan.

After saying that, Shi Lei turned and left.

Only Kristen, dressed in only a thin shirt, stood there with her arms crossed in the night wind.

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After expressing his stance to her, Shi Lei turned and left the rooftop, heading down to the floor below.

He's said everything he needed to say. Whether or not Kristen listens is entirely up to him.

The more stubborn and persistent a person is about something, the more likely they are to get stuck on a rut. If she were to be so opinionated, Shi Lei wouldn't be surprised at all.

But ideas are ideas, and reality is reality.

With Columbia's current technological level, it would be difficult to penetrate the Star Pod within the next hundred years.

Besides reading at home, he also follows political and military news from various countries through his mobile phone.

Airships used in warfare, depending on their size, can fly between 500 and 3,000 meters. There's still a long way to go to reach 6,000 meters in the sky.

If you were to launch a weapon like Energy Cannon from an altitude of 3,000 meters at the Barrier Layer, such a long flight distance would consume a significant amount of energy. Entering the Barrier Layer would then consume even more energy.

Shi Lei had never forcibly broken through Star Pod before and didn't know how thick the Barrier Layer. He wondered how large the airship tasked with the attack would need to be to penetrate it.

It can also be launched from the ground, and the base is more stable, but there is also the problem of energy loss.

Given Terra World's bizarre and complex technology tree, Kristen is currently unable to accomplish this.

If such an action were to occur in the future, and Shi Lei were still alive for that long, he would definitely try to stop it.

Perhaps influenced by the science fiction movies and literature of his pre-transmigration world, he generally held a pessimistic view of Alien Civilization and did not believe that two civilizations could coexist peacefully.

Unless it's Higher Civilizations that comes to the world of a less advanced civilization, there's no need to worry about the less advanced civilization posing a threat due to its rapidly developing technology.

Given the current level of technology on this land, no one has yet ventured into space. If breaking open the Star Pod attracts the covetous eyes of other civilizations, we will only become the ones being bullied.

Population and mineral deposits are both resources.

A civilization capable of landing on Terra Planet would undoubtedly possess a technological level far superior to that of the natives. If things go wrong, it won't be as simple as just inviting trouble.

Shi Lei has been on this planet for over a year, and all he wants to do is enjoy his retirement.

The important task of World Saving is best left to the middle school students in Sakura and the high school students in the USA.

As a laid-back time traveler, he didn't have such lofty ideals. He just hoped to be happy every day and spend joyful time with his friends.

In the quiet of the night, Shi Lei had also thought about this. What if, a hundred years from now, his friends had passed away, and only he was still alive?

But then I thought, if everyone can be happy for decades, what more could we ask for?

Moreover, I've only been here for a year, so it's a bit too early to be thinking about things a hundred years from now.

For now, just enjoy life. There's no need to waste your energy thinking so much and make yourself unhappy.