This incident immediately attracted Zhao Changxing's attention. This even made him immediately give up the work at hand, and immediately took the Falcon spacecraft and returned to the Spark spacecraft to check the details.
The Spark spacecraft is equipped with a high-precision antenna, which is currently mainly used for communication with artificial satellites and the Sedna ground base. In the future, it can also undertake long-distance communication tasks over distances of tens to hundreds of millions of kilometers.
At this moment, this information from an unknown source was received by the high-precision antenna.
Generally speaking, there are numerous optical signals of various bands in the natural environment of the universe, ranging from radio to gamma rays. That is to say, in addition to the signals emitted by humans themselves, this antenna can actually receive signals from the background environment at all times.
But this time the signal caught Xiao Xi's attention and caused her to adjust the warning level to notify the captain in real time because it was really strange.
In front of the screen, Zhao Changxing stared blankly at the beating radio signals and murmured: "This, this seems to be regular..."
There are also many regular radio wave signals in the background environment. The most famous is the radio signal that was mistaken for "little green men". At the time, people thought they had received a message from aliens, but it was later discovered that it was actually a signal from a neutron star.
Because the neutron star is rotating at high speed, the super-intense radiation emitted to the outside world along its magnetic poles will sweep across the earth at fixed and regular intervals, so the signals received on the earth will have patterns, and this will lead to a follow-up Series of discoveries.
But the signal received this time is obviously different from the overly mechanical and fixed natural law signal. Judging from the general appearance, Zhao Changxing even felt that it was somewhat similar to the radio signals emitted by humans and carrying meaningful information.
"Can you decipher the message from this?"
Xiao Xi's neutral voice reached Zhao Changxing's ears again: "I'm sorry, Captain, if there is enough information like this for me to build a model, I should be able to try to find the patterns and make some deciphers. But not now. ."
"Can you determine the direction of origin of this message?"
"It cannot be determined too accurately." Xiao Xi said: "Based on the direction of the high-precision antenna on the spacecraft when this message was received, the source of the information is probably the direction of Cygnus. The distance is completely unpredictable."
"In the direction of Cygnus, this is outside the solar system..." Zhao Changxing murmured: "And, it's probably on the ecliptic plane..."
This made Zhao Changxing fall into deep thought.
He didn't know the source of the signal. I don’t know whether it was emitted by some natural process in the universe - just like the "little green men" incident caused by neutron stars, or whether it was really emitted by an intelligent alien civilization.
But one thing is certain, even if this signal with suspected intelligence characteristics is really sent by intelligent life, then this intelligent life will definitely not be human. Because it comes from the outside direction of the solar system, not the inside.
Obviously, humans cannot exist further from the sun than Sedna.
This incident gave Zhao Changxing a strong sense of crisis.
At this moment, I, no, it should be said that there are only eleven people left in the entire human civilization, and I am the only adult. It has no industrial capabilities, cannot build spaceships, cannot build weapons, and has almost no ability to protect itself.
If an alien civilization really comes and is detrimental to human civilization, his only means of resistance is to make a suicidal charge in the Falcon spacecraft. There is no other way.
"Seal this signal." Zhao Changxing made the decision with a solemn expression: "Also, always monitor the direction of Cygnus and adjust the antenna sensitivity to the highest level."
"Okay Captain."
Xiao Xi answered calmly.
After this incident, Zhao Changxing finally made up his mind about another matter that had always made him hesitant.
"The No. 1 base is almost completed. I will soon be freed from the construction task that has lasted for more than ten years, and I will have more energy and time to take care of the children. Besides, this first batch of breeding The ten children who came out are now almost 12 years old. At this age, it is completely possible to take care of the babies."
"Then, let's reproduce the second generation of humans as soon as possible."
That night, Zhao Changxing had dinner with the children, but instead of letting the children move around freely, he took the children to the science classroom.
"Haven't you always wanted to see what the outside world is like? Dad will take you to see it today."
In the eyes of the children, who were full of nervousness and anticipation, Zhao Changxing demonstrated how to put on a space suit, directed the children to put on the children's version of the space suit, carefully checked to make sure there were no omissions, and gave the children the space suit. After fastening the fixed cables of the suit and taking control of the spacesuit in his own hands, Zhao Changxing took the children and set off out of the cabin.
As they moved forward, the gravity under their feet became smaller and smaller, and both the children and Zhao Changxing were suspended in the air.
This novel feeling made all the children laugh.
"Walk."
After reaching the exit cabin, gravity completely disappears.
Zhao Changxing opened the hatch of the Fire spacecraft, and controlled his own spacesuit and the children's spacesuits to move forward slowly until he was several hundred meters away from the Fire spacecraft.
At this moment, the sea of stars is vast and the universe is vast. A huge planet floated quietly beneath his feet, with the Spark spacecraft in front of him.
Viewed from this distance, the Spark spacecraft is also very large.
But the distance between the two sides is still growing. 500 meters, 1000 meters, two thousand meters, until the distance of five thousand meters.
The children were chatting excitedly and laughing in the public channel at first, but at this moment, everyone fell silent.
The planet beneath his feet was still huge, but the Spark spacecraft in front of him had shrunk to a pitiful level.
It floats quietly in the vast and deep universe, quietly orbiting the Sedna Star, while also rotating itself.
The gravity inside the spacecraft, which is equivalent to that on the earth's surface, is created through its rotation.
"Do you think that our spaceship is already the entire universe?"
When the children grow up to this age, they have never experienced a weightless environment and have never left the Spark spacecraft. They subconsciously believe that a small spaceship is already the entire universe and can support people to live a carefree life in it.
But now, their world view has been turned upside down.
"Our home...is so small."
"So small..."
Some low self-talk reached Zhao Changxing's ears.
"Look over there."
Zhao Changxing smiled and controlled the children's spacesuits to change direction and face the sun.
After adjusting the filter and telephoto settings, a small planet flooded by sunlight came into view.
"That's where all of us used to be."
Zhao Changxing spoke slowly, his words full of sacred and solemn meaning. In addition, there is also a trace of sadness and nostalgia.
The children were silent.
Although they are only over 11 years old, they have already received more than half of their junior high school education and have a preliminary understanding of the nature of the universe.
"Now, we have left our hometown and can only survive in such a small spaceship."
"All of us are born with a mission. We are the last surviving human beings in this universe. We have the responsibility and obligation to pass on our civilization."
"Dad is almost 40 years old this year. Dad will grow old and die one day. At that time, the responsibilities and obligations of inheriting our civilization will fall on your shoulders. You will also grow old and you will die. If we die, then this responsibility and obligation will be passed on to the shoulders of the next generation of humans. As long as it is passed down from generation to generation, our civilization will one day restore its former glory."
Recalling the human world living on the earth as shown in movies, TV series, cartoons, documentaries, etc., and recalling the small spacecraft that they now rely on for a living, all the children fell into silence.
Although their world view, universe view, civilization view, etc. are not mature enough, they still think a lot.
Finally, Qian Yue spoke.
"Dad, why are there so few of us?"
After Qian Yue, the children said one after another: "Dad, can you have some more brothers and sisters?"
"Dad, if you are busy, I can also help take care of your little brothers and sisters. I will feed them and change their diapers."
"I can cook for them! I can also see doctors and tell them stories."
"When there are more of us, we can find a way to return to Earth!"
"It is said on TV that there is strength in numbers!"
"Yes, there are many people, and there is great strength." Zhao Changxing turned around quietly and looked at the equally deep and dark universe in the direction of Cygnus. The haze on his face flashed away, and the next moment he returned to his smile: "Okay, Then Dad will 'give birth' to some more little brothers and sisters."
The next day, Zhao Changxing adjusted the children's curriculum and added baby care classes. Perhaps because they knew the size of the population was at stake, the children studied extremely seriously.
Zhao Changxing also took this opportunity to teach his children a real physical hygiene lesson. In the process of breeding a new generation of humans, from artificial insemination, transplantation to artificial wombs, and subsequent stages of embryonic development, Zhao Changxing will carefully explain to the children. This made the children exclaim in surprise.
"Dad, is this how we came here too?"
"Dad, this ball of meat is so ugly. It must be Feng Yu, right?"
Feng Yu immediately shouted: "I'm not ugly, you are!"
"Dad, did you grow up like this too?"
This question makes Zhao Changxing a little difficult to answer. I wanted to explain it to the children, but I felt that the children were still too young and it might not be a good thing to be exposed to this sexual knowledge too early, so I had to be vague.
After the new generation of 30 embryos were placed in the artificial womb and began to develop, observing the growth of the embryos in their spare time became the most interesting thing for the children. The children even competed to select the most "beautiful" embryos and compete to become their sisters or brothers. We quarreled several times and cried several times over this.
Zhao Changxing still maintains the previous pace of life, but thinking about the 30 babies that will be born, he is more motivated to work.
Finally, after more than seven months, the last major building of Humanity Base No. 1, the industrial area, was finally completed. After spending more than a month to organize the entire base, Zhao Changxing could finally declare that Humanity Base No. 1 was completely completed.
This mission, in the original plan, involved the cooperation of 20 astronauts, and the construction period was less than one year. But the reality is that Zhao Changxing spent nearly 14 years in this.
14 years have passed by leisurely. It will take about another five years before Humanity Base No. 1 welcomes new residents besides himself.
Because only then will the children become adults and be able to live in a low-gravity environment for a long time without any impact on their physical development.
Facing this huge building, Zhao Changxing was filled with emotion.
From the outside, Humanity Base No. 1 looks roughly boxy, about three meters high, with several smaller individual buildings extending around it, like legs extending from the body of a big monster. .
"This is probably where I will die."
Zhao Changxing thought silently.
Each generation has its own responsibilities. For Zhao Changxing, as the first generation of humans, his responsibility is to lay the foundation and provide the basis for the subsequent development of mankind.
Walking to the warehouse area, looking at the various storage rooms that were either full or empty, Zhao Changxing said casually: "Xiao Xi, please report the storage capacity of the warehouse."
"Okay Captain. At this stage, the warehouse has 6 tons of wheat, 1.5 tons of corn, 10 tons of soybeans, 11 tons of rice, 10 tons of various vegetables and pastures, 30,000 eggs, 4 tons of poultry, and pork. 4 tons…”
Xiao Xi reported the existing reserves one by one. After doing some mental calculations, Zhao Changxing quickly came to a conclusion.
If this batch of reserves can be fed by adults like myself, it will probably last for decades. But the first ten children will soon be adults. Even if they are still underage, their food intake has been greatly increased than before. It is said that half-grown children eat poor people. With them, the edible time of these reserves will be reduced to It can only last a few years.
Fortunately, Base No. 1 is continuously producing various supplies, so there is no need to worry about the dilemma of running out of food for the time being. Even if all 30 children in this group grow up and the total population increases to 41, it can be maintained for the time being. However, if you want to expand the population again, the output of Base No. 1 alone may be somewhat insufficient.
"I still have time. Take your time." Zhao Changxing thought secretly, "During this period, Xiaoxi didn't receive that kind of strange signal again. Maybe it was just a natural incident and I was too sensitive. ."
This time, when leaving Base No. 1, Zhao Changxing took away a month's worth of rice, wheat, vegetables, meat, eggs, etc. Because the latest batch of 30 babies will be born soon. At this critical moment, he must stay in the Spark spacecraft for a long time and be ready at any time.
"Dad, when will the babies be born?"
Facing the impatient eyes of the children, Zhao Changxing could only comfort him: "It's going to be soon, it's going to be soon."
Realizing that Chen Feng was still unhappy, Zhao Changxing asked, "Chen Feng, what's wrong with you?"
Chen Feng said dullly: "I don't want to be at the same table with Qian Yue, I want to sit with Zheng Yan."
Qian Yue immediately shouted: "It was Teacher Xiao Xi who asked me to sit with you! Your childcare performance is so poor, Teacher Xiao Xi asked me to teach you more!"
"I...I want Zheng Yan to teach me."
"Zheng Yan's grades are also very poor, so I can't teach you!"
"Okay, okay, kids, it's time to eat. Shall we have ribs tonight?"
"Great!"
The children finally cheered.
