"Your Majesty..." the military governor stammered.
Fear gripped the room; the Trisolarans could no longer conceal their thoughts, making the atmosphere even more oppressive.
The Trisolaran leader stared intently at the message transmitted by the Sophon.
"This creature appeared on the *Judgment Day* almost instantly in the Sophon's observation. When it left, it even reached a speed of Mach 10 per unit of Earth. We cannot estimate its maximum speed," the military governor said incredulously.
"Such life exists in the universe?"
The Science Administrator racked his brains. "His planet probably has extremely strong gravity, allowing him to fly away from his home planet. His body density is also extremely high. However, I feel that such an environment shouldn't be able to give rise to life. Perhaps it's silicon-based life?'
The leader looked at the Science Administrator. "Can the low-dimensional expansion of sophons deal with this creature?"
The distance of 4.2 light-years is simply too far. The Trisolarans cannot deploy troops. The only means of attack they have is to expand the dimensions of sophons.
"He hasn't exceeded the limits of the Sophon's response; after all, he's just a living being. But once the Sophon is deployed, it becomes vulnerable to attack, and we only have two Sophons on Earth."
"The more important issue now is that this being is very likely from outer space, meaning Earth's coordinates may have been exposed, and this being is the Vanguard," the Science Administrator said.
A tense atmosphere once again enveloped the room, various thought waves intertwining, and all three couldn't stop their minds from wandering. Should they stop?
"We need to talk," the leader said.
...
Mesa noticed another group of fish leaping out of the water, and he counted them with interest. Münster anxiously twisted his head on his shoulder.
"That Sophon hasn't moved yet. Has your displayed strength frightened them?"
Catching a fish in his palm, Mesa felt that his existence was somewhat challenging the Trisolarans' worldview of physics.
The level of shock was no less than when humans discovered SpongeBob and Patrick Star while exploring the ocean floor.
"I'm afraid we need to lower the rating of Trisolaris. Such life forms are not qualified to be a subordinate force of the Empire," Münster said, somewhat disappointed.
Mesa released the fish back into the colony. "So what about Earth? Human technology is probably even lower than the Trisolarans'."
Münster perked up. "That's completely different. Humans and dimensional beings look almost identical. I scanned that Evans; even their organs are completely similar. This means human DNA is likely almost identical to dimensional beings.
Hybrids of dimensional beings and humans are likely not much different from pure-blooded beings. Such life forms naturally belong to the Empire."
Mesa felt a sense of déjà vu when this AI spoke, and these words reminded him of a certain Fifth Evil God sitting on a golden toilet.
Aliens are all bad; humans are all good currency.
Suddenly, a sense of enveloping energy surrounded him. Mesa's pupils contracted slightly. A transparent giant screen stretched between Earth and the starry sky; the Sophon had begun to unfold.
"Dimensional technology! The Trisolarans' technological methods are quite ingenious," Münster rarely praised.
But it didn't turn into a weapon; a few points of light began to flicker.
Münster calculated the amplitude: "They are communicating with us through a mathematical means. I will translate it for you."
One of us is illiterate, Mesa felt insulted, but not knowing math was truly impossible.
Subtitle: "Who are you?"
"Haha," Münster chuckled excitedly, having prepared his lines for a long time: "Pay homage with the utmost respect. Before you stands the Emperor of the Vitrum Empire, the most esteemed ruler of the entire galaxy, the great His Majesty Karl!"
"Your Majesty, their mathematical level is extremely high. It would take humans many years to decipher the information, but this machine did it in an instant," the Science Administrator said with concern.
The Military Administrator pointed out: "Their system seems to be imperial. This person is the ruler of an entire empire, but whether it represents the greatest civilization in the galaxy remains to be seen."
The Emperor pondered for a moment, then instructed the Sophon to continue asking questions.
Subtitle: "Have you published Earth's coordinates?"
Now it was Münster's turn to be puzzled: "What's there to exchange about planetary coordinates?"
"I'll handle it." The underlying logic of the universe was different; the AI was somewhat short-circuited. Mesa took over.
"We haven't released any coordinates, and we're not interested in destroying life. I can help you solve the Trisolaran problem; you don't need to invade Earth."
The Führer looked at the Science Administrator again: "Help us solve the Trisolaran problem?"
"It would require power beyond the stellar level, which we haven't observed yet, and the universe doesn't suddenly become benevolent."
Subtitle: "I don't believe it, but we don't need to be enemies unless you also want Earth."
"They still dare to covet Earth?" Münster shouted. "We have to teach them a lesson! This is Imperial territory!"
Fortunately, without his permission, Münster's views couldn't be transmitted through the bio-force field; otherwise, war might have already broken out. Mesa tapped its metal head twice.
Since they didn't believe his abilities, Mesa decided to lay his cards on the table: "We can talk face-to-face."
The Führer was puzzled: "What does he mean by that?"
"Perhaps some kind of technology that can project images?" the Science Administrator guessed.
Taking a deep breath, Mesa left Earth and began to accelerate.
"He knows our coordinates!" the Military Administrator exclaimed in shock.
"If they were just using the Dark Forest to threaten us, that would be one thing, but flying straight here? That's a full 4.2 light-years away! Even with our matter-antimatter annihilation engine, it would take several hundred Earth years, and they don't even have a spaceship," the Science Administrator scoffed.
"He has disappeared from the observation range of the sophons." The leader looked at the data.
"That's normal. Two sophons can only cover the Earth."
"I don't understand what he's doing," the military governor said.
Clearly, the three of them were expressing doubt.
As early as when Mesa was in the Pacific Ocean, satellites of several major powers had locked onto him. After Colonel Stanton urgently reported it, the United Nations took it very seriously.
General Wilson stroked his chin: "What is he doing?"
"Waiting for the Trisolarans to talk to him," Mike said.
Everyone looked at him. Da shrugged. "Isn't it obvious? First, he dealt with the Adventists, leaving us a lot of data, and he also showed abilities beyond reality. Now we know that sophons can monitor the whole world, and he's still staying on the sea without moving."
Colonel Stanton stood up: "We have urgently searched all the farms in Kansas and found no one who has adopted aliens. The creators of DC Superman have also been interviewed to understand the details of Superman's setting."
Talking about comics in a formal meeting seemed very informal, but the attendees all looked serious.
Michael said, "Is this really related to Superman? The symbol on his chest isn't an 'S' but a circle, right? And we haven't detected any heat vision yet."
The figure on the satellite image suddenly disappeared. General Wilson watched the signal gradually move away from Earth: "He's left Earth."
Everyone looked at each other, wondering what was going on. Was he just passing by Earth by chance?
...
A point of light appeared in the range of the detectors scattered throughout the Trisolaran system.
The Führer was still ordering the sophons to shrink and continue monitoring humanity. Before he could examine it closely, the military governor's horrified thoughts had already reached him.
"That creature has appeared in our star system!"
The science governor collapsed to the ground: "Impossible! Only a little over a minute has passed. If it really is him, then his speed has reached 2 million times the speed of light! That's impossible! The speed of light cannot be surpassed!"
The Führer's mind went blank; his thoughts were stuck like rusty gears.
Now it was their turn to witness—a miracle.
Mesa felt the radiation from the three yellow suns, and the energy within his body was more abundant than ever before.
Münster trembled with excitement: "That's it, that's it! These bastards dare to defy the Emperor's majesty! This is Witrum!"
Seeing several observers approaching, Mesa spread his hands: "I am Karl, and now I demand to speak with your world."