For example, if you sent an alien the words "hello," even if they were a god, they could not possibly know what the words meant without samples for comparison. But if you sent them a copy of Romance of the Three Kingdoms or any other work of Earth literature, there was a good chance they could understand it. Although every civilization evolved and developed differently, they could still find many things in common, to varying degrees. They might not know the significance of the three visits to the thatched cottage, but they would certainly understand attack and slaughter, and they should also understand that Jingzhou, Luzhou, and so on were names of places.
Of course, Hu Yu would not be foolish enough to send Romance of the Three Kingdoms over. Wouldn't that be teaching them how to wage war? All the information sent over had been carefully considered time and again. It would not reveal the slightest useful information about humanity, especially information about the fleet as it currently stood.
As for why they used a lesser-known language, that was also to keep the aliens from deciphering more linguistic information. When the two sides were not too far apart in strength, breaking into the other side's system was no easy task. For two civilizations with entirely different systems, the difficulty was no less than a chicken and a duck discussing whether a dog should eat a bone that evening.
Taking computers alone, even if an alien civilization also used them, theirs might not use binary. They might use octal, hexadecimal, or something else. Humans used electronic and quantum computers, while an alien civilization might use biological computers, optical computers, or other types. Different versions of systems on Earth could be incompatible, let alone the barriers to information between two worlds.
Compiling this dictionary alone had taken the scientists a great deal of work. Besides simple text, it contained more illustrations of all kinds, since images were much easier to understand. It also had to be extremely concise while still allowing normal communication. The more complex the dictionary, the easier it would be for someone to deduce more information from it. On top of that, to be cautious, the scientists had chosen the writing system of a lesser-known language as their means of contact.
"Leader, we just received word that they've fled their planetary base. Can we launch our attack now? We can't let a meal that's already in our mouths get away, can we?" Aguduo, the Sand Python Clan leader's deputy, asked cautiously.
"Fled? How long ago?" the leader asked.
"Leader, we're still a light-year away from them, so the information we're observing is also a year old. They've been fleeing for over a year now, but they're not very fast, only 0.4 times the speed of light, far slower than us. It'll be easy for us to catch them."
"Only 0.4 times the speed of light? They're even weaker than I imagined. I was worried that moving at full speed would scare them away, and chasing them down would take a lot of time," the leader said darkly, licking his scarlet lips.
"Leader, there's something else. They've sent two small spaceships over. It looks like they want to make contact, and they've been sending us messages all along."
"What messages? Can we decipher them?"
"Leader, we can. They're not very stupid. They sent us an interstellar dictionary, and after importing it into our computer, we decoded the messages. They roughly say that this is their territory and warn us to leave."
"How ridiculous. Fleeing while issuing warnings. Could anything be more absurd? Order the research department to study them thoroughly and see if they can find anything useful in the messages and dictionary."
"Leader, they've already been thoroughly analyzed. This food is very cautious and didn't leave any useful information. Leader, should we respond, perhaps deceive or intimidate them, so the food doesn't run too far and waste our mealtime? Leader, it's been a long time since you've enjoyed fresh food, too."
"Aguduo, that's an excellent suggestion. Send them a reply. Tell them that we of the Sand Python Civilization are only passing through. We've been drifting through the universe for a very, very long time, and now we need to replenish our supplies and repair our ships on their planet. Tell them there's no need to be afraid. We're a peace-loving civilization and have never gone to war with another civilization. If they don't want us to stop on their planet, we'll simply pass through their planetary system. However, our energy reserves are limited, so we sincerely hope to receive their help. We're willing to exchange the space technology that allows large spaceships to travel at 0.5 times the speed of light for a planet to use as a supply base."
"Thank you for the praise, Leader. It is Aguduo's honor to ease your burdens." Aguduo bowed and said, "Leader, could we add that we can also give them some of the exquisite delicacies we found only after exploring several planetary systems?"
"Aguduo, you've become wicked. Let's do that. Heh heh, speaking of delicacies, I'm getting a little hungry. Go, pick out a plump Star Herder. I can't wait to taste fresh food. I haven't had a change of flavor in so many years that I'm getting rather tired of it."
"Yes, Leader. I'd be delighted."
A very plump creature was brought in under guard by two Sand Python guards. The creature, whose head and body were joined as one, kept letting out piercing cries. He knew the horror that was about to happen. On Pasture Star, the leader and the Sand Python Clan had eaten his kind in front of the Star Herders more than once. The vast majority of his people had died and been frozen, while he and a few others had been penned up as delicacies reserved for the leader.
Pasture Star had once been a very peaceful planet, home to countless Star Herders. The Star Herders were gentle by nature and revered nature. They seldom even fought among themselves, let alone waged war. They were not only gentle but also intelligent, progressing from the dawn of sentience to a mid-stage stellar-level civilization in a little over a hundred thousand years.
After entering the stellar level, they had also studied the universe. Although they disliked war, they had still assembled a vast fleet to deal with the environment they might face in space. However, their extreme lack of combat experience had left them almost powerless to fight back in their war with the Sand Python Civilization, even though their warship technology was clearly a level above the Sand Python fleet's, their numbers were no less, and they were fighting on home ground in their own planetary system.
In just a few months, their fleet had been devoured by the Sand Python Civilization. The Sand Python fleet had then descended on Pasture Star. Besides plundering all its wealth, they had begun feasting on the Star Herders' bodies. With their fighting power gone, the Star Herders had been helpless before the Sand Python creatures, who had hunted and slaughtered them at will like hordes of demons. To avoid being eaten alive, countless Star Herders had chosen to end their own lives.
Pasture Star had turned from a paradise into hell. The Star Herders' bones could be seen everywhere on the planet, a sight of extreme horror. But the Sand Python creatures had not cared. They enjoyed killing, and the bloodthirsty genes of primitive creatures still governed their behavior. After discovering that the Star Herders were committing suicide in large numbers, they had forcibly penned them up to secure a long-term supply of delicious food. The Sand Python Civilization had stayed on Pasture Star for decades, replenished its fleet as usual, and set out again. Before leaving, they had likewise driven all the Star Herders aboard the fleet, killing and freezing most of them and keeping only a few penned up.
The leader approached the Star Herder and felt him with a clawed forelimb. Then, with a single movement of his claw, he tore off one of the Star Herder's limbs and began eating amid the Star Herder's miserable screams and the bodily fluids covering the floor. His scarlet maw and rows of fangs made short work of the limb.
Throughout the Milky Way, even though wars and hatred never ceased, one intelligent species eating another was exceedingly rare. There were biological reasons for this, but more than that, it was out of respect for civilization itself and for intelligence. That was why it was called civilization. The Sand Python People were different. Their home planet had been extremely scarce in resources, and they had eaten anything that could be converted into energy, plants or animals, without being picky. Even the old, weak, sick, and disabled among their own kind were eaten. The harsh environment had caused the Sand Python Clan to evolve a special constitution and a cruel nature. Among the Sand Python Clan, there was absolutely no such thing as wasting food.
The leader especially liked eating Star Herders' internal organs. Star Herders could survive for quite a while even after losing them. The leader sliced open the Star Herder's pale, tender chest with a sharp claw, revealing his fresh organs to all the Sand Python People present. The Star Herder watched helplessly as the leader grabbed his organs and stuffed them straight into his mouth. The delicious organs and the Star Herder's screams of agony left the leader utterly enraptured.
After eating the Star Herder's organs in a few mouthfuls, the leader, his belly gradually swelling, glanced at Aguduo beside him, whose drool was nearly dripping onto the floor.
"Aguduo, the rest is yours."
"Ah, thank you, Leader." With that, Aguduo lunged like a ravenous wolf, bit straight into the Star Herder, and tore off a large chunk of flesh. Paying no attention to the Star Herder's screams, Aguduo began eating with relish. As the leader's deputy, Aguduo often got to enjoy fresh, living food, which tasted far better than the frozen stuff.
Amid the raging flames 0.1 astronomical units from Tau Ceti, 200,000 Hunter-Killers had been concealed for over a year. Intense radiation and high-energy particles hid the warships completely. The Hunter-Killers' high-strength composite armor could withstand temperatures above 1,000 degrees, but it could not withstand Tau Ceti's scorching might. The temperature inside the ship was maintained at 25 degrees Celsius, yet Hu Yu still involuntarily made a motion to wipe away sweat. This was Tau Ceti's absolute domain.
"Academician Zeng, what do you make of this message?" Hu Yu asked inside a command ship converted from a Hunter-Killer warship. Academician Zeng had volunteered to stay behind, while Academician Xiao had remained with the Deep Blue fleet to direct its work.
"Old Hu, do you even have to ask? If you can believe the nonsense these so-called Sand Python People are spouting, you can grind my head against the floor and show me what it means to have an IQ with no lower limit," Wen Zhonghua interjected.
"Chief of Staff Wen is right. This message is full of holes and makes no logical sense. They can't even deceive us properly. It seems the Sand Python Civilization isn't very intelligent."
"Academician, the Sand Python People's story is meant to keep us here. Their target isn't the planet itself, but us. They intend to plunder us," Hu Yu said.
"Exactly. And they've already plundered several civilizations. Not only that, they've very likely done something even more terrifying and cruel," Academician Zeng said, analyzing the message.
"Academician, how can you tell?" Wen Zhonghua asked.
"They said they were willing to exchange technology that lets large spaceships travel at 0.5 times the speed of light for a planet. That part is perfectly normal and reasonable. They must have already learned that our Deep Blue fleet fled at 0.4 times the speed of light. But the next part, where they offered to give us some exquisite delicacies they found only after exploring several planetary systems, is well worth examining. It has nothing to do with our transaction, yet they sent it anyway. If you all think carefully, you should be able to sense what it implies. The Sand Python People certainly didn't search multiple planetary systems just for delicacies, but to plunder other civilizations. Yet why would they describe other civilizations as delicacies? This can only mean one thing: the Sand Python People ate beings from other civilizations, and they still have some stored aboard their fleet."
"That's inconceivable. Academician, I couldn't bring myself to eat another intelligent being," Wen Zhonghua said with some disgust.
"From that sentence, we can see that they're extremely arrogant and describe beings from other civilizations as delicacies without any qualms. I can surmise that they're probably rather bloodthirsty and brutal by nature. But volunteering something so irrelevant to their communication with us suggests they're not very intelligent."
"Academician, you're incredible. You could analyze so much from a single sentence. I'm impressed," Wen Zhonghua said in praise.
"Zhonghua, Academician Zeng is a modern-day Zhuge Liang. His IQ and wisdom are far beyond those of ordinary people. He became an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences before he was forty. He was my idol back then, and he still is," Hu Yu said with a smile.
"All right, you two, don't get sidetracked. We can continue communicating with them now. Perhaps we can obtain more useful information from the conversation."
"All right, Academician. What should we say?"
"Hmm, say we're willing to let them replenish their supplies on the outermost planet, Planet Five, in exchange for 0.5-times-light-speed curvature technology. But we hope they'll obey our rules. Their warships may only stop near Planet Five, and we'll send warships there to monitor them. If they violate our rules, they'll come under fierce attack from our warships," Academician Zeng said after considering it for a moment.
"Academician, wouldn't that expose the fleet at Planet Five ahead of time? Besides, shouldn't we normally demand that their warships remain at a distance? Why let them come to Planet Five? Wouldn't that make our intentions too obvious?" Wen Zhonghua asked.
"Chief of Staff Wen, not only is the fleet at Planet Five impossible to hide, the ones at Planets Three and Four will also be discovered. Only the 200,000 warships here have any chance of remaining concealed. And we need to deliberately appear foolish. Only then can we mislead them more effectively."
"The academician has a point. It's impossible for our fleets to remain completely hidden. The Sand Python People will discover them sooner or later. But even if they do, as long as they underestimate us, they'll fall into our net step by step. When the time comes, we'll launch an all-out attack. Even if they're faster and more numerous than us, that'll give them plenty to deal with. The key is that our main targets are their population ships. Their warships are only a secondary target. As long as we keep their warships firmly drawn to the Solar System and the surprise attack succeeds, we'll be eighty percent of the way to success," Hu Yu explained.
"Good. Compose the message and send it to the Sand Python fleet immediately."