The entire venue had fallen silent, save for the flashes and shutter clicks.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to pay their respects to Lin Qi.
Standing beside the podium, Lin Qi lightly rested a hand on its edge. "Our fate should be in our own hands."
"I know many of you may still be confused. You may be wondering whether what I'm doing has any meaning, or whether there really are aliens—or alien gods—that will come after us."
"To be honest, I don't know either. But I do know one thing: We must approach this world with the utmost caution."
"Any contact with a higher civilization could become the fuse that destroys us. In the presence of a higher civilization, we're no different from the ants in the nest outside your door."
"You wouldn't become friends with them, because they're only ants. That's how a more advanced civilization would see us."
"I don't really want to say these things. There are also guests of Nagaril descent here. But I have to make you understand the cruelty of this world."
"When our ancestors first set foot on this land, they certainly weren't thinking, 'I'll bring stable order and prosperity to this place.' Their minds were filled with thoughts like, 'How much can I sell all this effort for?' and other things."
"If humans treat their own vulnerable kind this way, how can we believe that more advanced and powerful civilizations will treat us with kindness?"
"Food, slaves, resources—that's what we are in their eyes."
"I refuse to become their food, slaves, or resources. So we must hold tightly to our own fate. Our fate can only be controlled by us."
"Some ladies or gentlemen among the evolved may be thinking, 'What does this have to do with me?'