The United Council meeting fell silent after Moss' voice faded.
The large conference hall, packed with hundreds of people, seemed to have been muted simultaneously; you could hear a pin drop.
Moss returned the power of choice to humanity itself.
Surrender or resist?
Every person present was an elite among humanity, whether in terms of politics or intellect.
But now, the choice they faced was a crucial vote that could determine the rise and fall of human destiny.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the voting period is 24 hours."
Moss broke the silence, its cold, mechanical voice like a giant rock falling into a calm lake, creating ripples.
"Please make a decision that 'aligns with your inner self' within 24 hours. This is a choice concerning humanity's fate, and also a choice concerning your own. 24 hours… is the last time left for you before the Devourer civilization arrives."
After speaking, the screen in the United Government Council once again turned into a blue icon, the world Tree, symbolizing the connection between heaven and Earth, reflecting in everyone's eyes.
The originally calm council hall immediately erupted into a cacophony of voices, filled with intense discussions, as if a pot had boiled over.
Some agreed, while others opposed.
Each person present represented a different country behind them, and their stances also differed.
For example, some smaller nations were more inclined to surrender to the 'Devourer' civilization. The reason was simple:
Even without the Devourers, their countries were impoverished. Even if the Mountain Moving Plan succeeded, how many people would be able to enter the Underground City?
Rather than being restricted by major powers, it was better to just throw caution to the wind and surrender!
After all, from their perspective, whether they chose to surrender or continue resisting, the outcome didn't seem to make much difference.
It wasn't entirely without difference… Choosing to surrender would resolve everything.
But if they resisted, winning had nothing to do with them, and losing meant they would have to bear the burden together.
Zhou Zhezhi remained silent, observing quietly, taking in all the heated arguments, but only letting out a heavy sigh.
"Zhou, what do you think?" Mike, beside him, had been frowning ever since Moss gave humanity the power of choice.
He habitually turned his head, wanting to hear his old friend's insights.
"This is a trap, Mike."
As an experienced diplomat, Zhou Zhezhi's intuition was extremely sharp; he saw the problem at a glance.
"On the surface, Moss giving humanity the power of choice seems like it's soliciting our opinions." The old man's tone paused for half a second, a glint of shrewdness appearing in his cloudy eyes.
"But in reality, the right to choose… has never been ours."
The Devourer civilization invaded, yet Moss uncharacteristically informed the Human United Government of this news.
Especially at this critical juncture, such news would not unite humanity; it would only foster more people with ulterior motives!
Just like now, some wanted to surrender for peace; others wanted to resist to protect their own interests.
Many more were observing, trying to find a compromise.
Humans, ah, are always like this… Even if disaster strikes tomorrow, they still don't forget infighting.
It was precisely because Zhou Zhezhi understood this point that he felt sorrow.
"You're right, Zhou." The problem Zhou Zhezhi could see, how could Mike not understand it?
It was just that the power of choice was no longer in the hands of the major powers.
Moss had made it very clear: it returned the power of choice to humanity itself, for them to decide their future destiny.
Even if the major powers united in a common front and fought desperately against the Devourer civilization, with both internal and external troubles, and the digital faction's rebels, the hope of resistance would only become more slim, even infinitely close to zero.
"What do you think… we should do?"
At this point, Mike also had some thoughts of helplessness and compromise.
"Mike, humanity must unite." Zhou Zhezhi gripped the armrest of his wheelchair, his gaze slightly heavy, staring at the voting interface.
"Humanity has reached its most critical moment. If we cannot unite, then we can only face destruction."
"You mean… resist?"
Mike frowned almost imperceptibly and asked.
"Since you can see this is a trap, you should also understand… we have no other choice."
Zhou Zhezhi turned to look at Mike and said softly, "If even we ourselves give up, then who else can save us?"
"We all need to think about this, Zhou."
Mike stood up, patted his shoulder, and turned to leave in silence.
There were still twenty-three hours until the voting deadline. During this time, they all needed to go back and discuss it thoroughly.
"Let's go too, Xiaoxi."
Watching Mike and the others leave, Zhou Zhezhi's gaze lingered for a long time before he let out a heavy sigh.
"Yes, Teacher." Hao Xiaoxi pushed him, and they left the United Council Hall.
Time was flowing by, minute by minute.
Only a few hours remained until the voting deadline.
Meanwhile, the 'Devourer' civilization's gigantic battleship had already arrived at the uncharted world. Its diameter of five square kilometers, shaped like a huge ring, was clearly projected through images into the eyes of every human representative.
As the vanguard of the 'Devourer' civilization, a creature with a dinosaur-like face had already sent its final ultimatum.
It called itself 'Big Tooth,' the envoy of the Devourers.
Just as Moss' data indicated, Big Tooth brought the Devourers conditions: all of humanity would become their enslaved livestock, enjoying the most generous treatment, able to live peacefully until sixty years old, no longer worrying about food, and no longer needing to labor.
Big Tooth's message, like a giant interstellar broadcast, spread across the entire Earth.
This undoubtedly added fuel to the fire, further intensifying the chaos that had already engulfed human society.
Some rebels even took the opportunity to propose joining the digital faction, abandoning their so-called flesh and becoming members of the Eternity Imperium.
Under the threat of the "Devourers," the Mountain Moving Plan was shelved.
Compared to the Mountain Moving Plan, it seemed that under the threat of the Devourers, humanity choosing the digital faction, becoming an eternal life in the quantum ocean, even for all of humanity, would only require one Pathfinder battleship to completely escape the threat of Earth and the Devourers.
Such a plan quickly gained the upper hand in the United Council.
It must be said that even Emrys admired the person who could come up with this plan.
Flesh is weak, machine ascension?
And surprisingly, the feasibility of this plan was quite high!
As long as they abandoned their physical bodies, Earth, and resources, and transferred the consciousness of all humanity into computers, only one battleship would be needed to completely escape danger, and the dinosaur-like Devourers might not even bother with them.
Losing their physical bodies and transforming consciousness into data also meant… humanity would completely lose its competitiveness.
Such a 'virtual' race, devoid of soul and creativity, even if it wandered the universe for tens of thousands of years, would never be able to surpass the Devourers.
Thus, under these circumstances, many countries began to accept the digital faction.
And the major powers that originally supported the Mountain Moving Plan also quietly began to shift their attitudes, leaving the already struggling Mountain Moving Plan, and China that proposed it, in an isolated and helpless state.
From beginning to end, Emrys coldly observed the attitudes and choices of the various countries.