Age of Cosmic Exploration

Chapter 215: One and a Half Year and Founding Ceremony

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Time flies. It has been one and a half year ever since the wars with the mother nest…

In this year and a half, the foundation of the new capital was completed. There were 4 residential areas, the Human Plaza in the middle of the capital, the planned commerce streets, administrative streets, tourism centers, and other empty spaces reserved for future plans and uses. The new capital was huge, covering a huge plot of land, not something that could be explained with a few lines of words.

Other than the capital's construction, the other major advancement was weapons development. Even though Yao Yuan believed there would not be another major war within his lifetime, or at least in 100 years, it didn’t mean that the cosmos was a safe space.

After they left Earth, the people of the Hope learned a valuable lesson that there were dangers hiding everywhere in space. It might be natural, manmade, or alien-made. The whole cosmos was a veritable battlefield. Survival of the fittest, that was the iron rule of the cosmos. Even though the chance of civil war was low, having a strong enough army and weapons for the sake of defense was necessary. This was agreed upon by more than 90 percent of the population.

In the past year and a half, one-fifth of the productivity was used in war industry. Mines were set up all over the new planet, and then the ores were smelted down by the robots to produce 4th revolution weaponry and siege engines.

Today, mankind had produced 5 Heaven’s Clouds. Each of them was 300 meters tall and 200 meters wide. They could float aboveground for 200 meters, came equipped with a high-voltage supermagnetic shield, an internal polymerized reactor, and every single one of them was capable of two-fifths of the Hope’s firepower. In other words, if their power was pooled, it would be like having 2 Hopes!

There was also a new on-the-ground siege engine. It looked like a mechanical spider, so it was dubbed the Spider Tank. It had 2 Gaussian rotating cannons, could carry 4 passengers, and similarly had an electromagnetic shield. Its maximum speed on land was 160 kilometers per hour and it could adapt easily to rough terrains. It was about 6 meters tall and 3.5 meters wide. The Hope currently had 360 of them, mostly for the Defense Unit’s use.

In terms of air force, the Hope manufactured a simplified version of Space Combat Jet Prototype 003. It could be used within and outside of the ozone layer. Its speed was only one-fifth the speed of space combat jet, but that was already the limit for normal pilot. There were about 300 of these jets in total, and all of them were for the Defense Unit.

Lastly were the three unfinished space battleships…

Each battleship was about 1,700 meters long, 650 meters wide and 400 meters tall. They each came equipped with a polymerized reactor, a cavalcade of Gaussian heavy artilleries, and anti-gravitational system. Other than that, they could also act as a temporary base and garage for Space Combat Jet Prototype 003s.

Humanity’s technology was at the middle of 4th industrial revolution, so it was a stretch handling both weapons manufacturing, construction of the new capital, and these three battleships. The focus was on the previous two, so there was only a frame for each of the three battleships. It would need at least another 2 and a half years before they could be completed.

This concludes the technological and military update on humanity. Next are the societal updates.

The 17 Six-legged Black Dragons had completely melted into the human society. Through daily feeding and interaction, a bond had slowly but surely formed. In the past one and a half years' worth of research, the Academy found out that the Black Dragons possessed intelligence equal to a 4 or 5-yea- old child. However, with daily intake of saltwater fish, their intelligence could evolve further. The analysis result showed that when the Black Dragons’ scales became completely white, they would have intelligence similar to an 8 or 9-year-old human child.

That was scary enough because it meant that they could learn and understand human speech. They could identify more than a thousand words, solve simple logic puzzles, and differentiate between good and evil. After this research result was published, there was a group of people who was worried that the six-legged Black Dragons would one day develop their own civilization and pose a threat to humanity.

If they had ill intentions against humanity, with their growing intelligence and frightening physical strength, humanity would be completely wiped out…

However, accompanying that report was another that squelched this growing fear. The other report said the Hope’s government already possessed something that could counter the Black Dragons’ uprising. It was a virus that could shut down the enzyme within the Dragons’ blood stream. The virus was harmless to human contact but was lethal to the Black Dragons. With the presence of this ultimate weapon, the worry instantly dissipated.

The Dragons’ high intelligence meant that they could communicate better with humanity and provide more services to mankind.

Currently, there were 46 Black Dragons and 3 baby Black Dragons living alongside humanity. The Black Dragon couple that first gained contact with mankind already had their scales turned to a light brown color. However, the discoloration speed had visibly decreased. Maybe the intelligence growth was less conspicuous after adulthood.

In comparison, the baby dragons that had saltwater fish ever since they were born had scaly bodies that were as white as snow. From daily interaction, it was also observable that they were highly intelligent. Simultaneously, they showcased high reliance on mankind. It was only natural, because the first creature they saw when they opened their eyes were human beings, and it was also human beings who fed them every day. Therefore, if there was no accident, the baby dragons would be loyal to humanity for as long as they may live, especially since they had such high intelligence.

The capital’s defense walls were reinforced with support from the 46 adult Black Dragons. They guarded the area like how they guarded their territory, fierce and unyielding. Sometimes, they would even join the Defense Unit or Black Star Troopers on their patrol, and the only thing they asked for in return was a daily supply of saltwater fish…

On the other hand, human society was developing smoothly. In the past one and a half years, a new batch of babies was born. There were about ten thousand of them. Therefore, there were positions like teachers, babysitters, and nurses that needed to be filled. The government helped by building more hospitals and schools.

The only thing that marred this great period of wealth and satisfaction was the enlarged Confinement Order. The Confinement Order banned those without permission from going beyond the capital walls. It irked the scientists that couldn’t get clearance and civilians that wanted to go hunting on the weekends.

Initially, everything was fine, but human beings are creatures that yearn for open space. With the increase in the Black Dragons’ numbers and increasing knowledge of the new planet’s flora and fauna, the demand for the removal of the Confinement Order was getting louder and louder. It was only second to the cries for a founding ceremony…

Yao Yuan sat at the head of the conference table. Before him were representatives from the Academy, Workshop, Barracks, and various government organizations. There were also people of influence from the House of Representatives and the Treasury. There were only in total about 30 people, but they represented every aspect of human society.

This was because the meeting was about the important event that was happening tomorrow. An event that would be one for the history books, something the public had been waiting for. It was the founding ceremony!

"… That’s basically the program for tomorrow. You can refer to the printed document for details. It will begin by the concluding speeches of various departments, then my own speech. After that, it’s the marching ceremony and the fiesta celebration. This day every year will be our new country’s national day. Is there anything anyone would like to add?" Yao Yuan asked the room.

Everyone had already finished reading the document that was set before them. In truth, preparations for the Founding Ceremony had started more than half a year ago. Tomorrow would be the fruition, so everything that needed to be said had been said. However, a representative suddenly said, "Captain, there is nothing more worth discussing, but there are two points that worry me. One is your designation. The title 'chancellor' is a bit…"

Yao Yuan shook his head, saying, "This is a non-issue. We’re a new government on a new planet; whatever the title represented back on old Earth has no relation to what it is now."

The representative nodded his head before adding, "The second issue is the Confinement Order. We all know that the crux of the issue is gun legislation. Captain is going to abolish the Confinement Order tomorrow, but the issue of gun ownership…"

"We allow civilian-used Gaussian pistols and Gaussian hunting rifles," Yao Yuan interrupted. "We can’t violate the people’s right to owning firearms. The key is not allowing military grade firearms for public use. Of course, a lot of amendments are required before it can be listed as law. It’s not something we can come to a conclusion within just a short meeting."

The representative thought about it and concurred.

Yao Yuan addressed the room, "Alright, if there’s nothing else, the meeting ends here. Tomorrow…

"Will be our new government’s Founding Ceremony!"