038. Frost-Plated Federation
They were all insects.
When the armies of cosmic civilizations descended, it would be the people who followed Li Aozi that would have the easiest time entering space, enjoying the protection of the trailblazer Li Aozi.
But the Four Nations... which of them truly had good relations with Li Aozi?
Frost-Plated's former government, using its harsh environment, personally forced Li Aozi into the Outside World. Then, due to the Abyss Humanitarian issue, they globally hunted him down, and after the Grante incident, they became sworn enemies with him.
Tianhuan's problems were also prominent. They publicly clashed with Li Aozi at the festival, and fought the bloodiest battle of the past decade. It's said that Li Aozi even rescued a key member of the Akaban Squad—this grudge wouldn't be easily resolved.
The Red Arrow Empire, although rumored to have decent relations with Li Aozi, was just that—a rumor. Li Aozi had never set foot on Red Arrow's home soil.
Moreover, most of Li Aozi's actions were carried out under the guise of Red Arrow. If Red Arrow officially acknowledged Li Aozi's citizenship, they'd become the target of everyone.
Zhenxu, although having commercial ties with Li Aozi and seemingly good relations, couldn't stand the idea of becoming the ultimate winner, even more so than the destruction of Frost-Plated.
After David Lin's reminders, the Frost-Plated bureaucrats quickly realized this.
They had achieved their positions of power through the current political system.
But if the people were given the vastness of the universe, would they still choose to remain within their civilization?
Li Aozi was proof—a regular graduate from a technical school who manipulated immigration and public opinion to turn himself from a terrorist into a hero. Now, he could use the same tactics to deceive galactic civilizations.
How was this not a form of escape?
The Frost-Plated bureaucrats had mixed feelings.
It seemed ridiculous. According to Law III's records, Li Aozi was an Omega Energy user who could barely beat slightly stronger enemies, someone who only grew by sacrificing his comrades, a wandering vagabond without a fixed base of operations—yet he reaped all the benefits.
The Frost-Plated people felt imbalanced. They couldn't understand how someone like Li Aozi, whose statistics weren't even comparable to any Gamma-level agents, had succeeded.
If it was luck, no one had ever heard of such good luck, and he had even died a few times himself.
It was as if everyone in this world instinctively treated Li Aozi with kindness.
David Lin did not overestimate Li Aozi.
"The data you see may not be complete. If everything developed according to the data, we wouldn't need free trade; robots would handle the entire market."
David Lin said:
"The more you look down on Li Aozi, the more it proves that the Four Nations, which Li Aozi has manipulated, are even less capable of understanding the rules than a technical school graduate. But each of you has clawed your way up through the ranks, and none of you are strangers to competition or politics."
"So, what do you mean, Your Excellency...?"
"I lean towards the idea that Li Aozi possesses a unique ability. What he does, perhaps only he can do. This may be because our technology isn't advanced enough to fully understand it."
David Lin paused:
"I actually considered approaching Li Aozi while I was in prison. From my perspective, Li Aozi doesn't care about family or money, which makes him difficult to deal with. Fortunately, he's now gone, which benefits all of us."
"Frost-Plated is the same. Some things, only we Frost-Plated people can do."
"The future will definitely be an era of the universe. That's the trend. Don't go against it, or you'll be crushed—but on the flip side, if you ride the wave, even a pig can fly."
On this basis, David Lin proposed his plan:
"The goal for Frost-Plated people is to transform into a spacefaring civilization—that's our long-term project."
"Our perspective must expand. From now on, Frost-Plated should not just be a nation, we must become a civilization."
"Law IV Agency will be recalled to the homeland to become a supervisory and inspection organization under direct national control. And starting now, all research restrictions will be lifted."
David Lin walked to the front of the stage, facing everyone, and said:
"We will activate artificial wombs and establish social care centers. I want to create the largest nurturing center on all of Azure Star, housing the genetic seeds of everyone."
"Within five years, Frost-Plated will eliminate traditional marriage and family structures. Everyone must contribute to the civilization."
"All job restrictions will be abolished. Except for children and the elderly, all men and women can take on any job. Education restrictions will be lifted, and university graduates must reach Beta-level."
"Capitalism does not support freeloaders—if your body is weak, why not modify it with cybernetic implants? If your physical ability is inferior to men's, then you should become a [Warrior]."
David Lin opened the legal code, striking through various sections with his pen as he explained:
"We will legally open all cloning, gene-editing, particle collider, and cybernetic prosthetic technologies."
"We will allow corporations and organizations to customize newborns according to their needs."
"After all, these technologies will become obsolete in the universe. Starting now, we will no longer restrict them. We must race against time and lay the foundation for our civilization in space."
Everyone exchanged glances.
These technologies had always existed in Frost-Plated but had never been used because they were too controversial.
But now, the situation had changed. President David Lin had decided to implement these contentious technologies for the sake of the ultimate goal.
The Minister of Finance reminded, "Your Excellency, isn't this thinking too far ahead? Our immediate problems..."
"The immediate problems are tactical, but these measures are strategic. Once you're on the highway, if you miss the exit, you have no choice but to keep going forward. We can't afford to make a directional mistake."
"I support this idea," said a representative from the Science Bureau, raising their hand. "For the past forty years, during Madewy's era, our technology has stagnated severely. If we don't address this through legal means, we'll never progress."
"The military's equipment is outdated too!" A military representative quickly stood up. "The Tianhuan people are already preparing for action. We need more powerful weapons to defend our nation. For that, technological progress is necessary."
"What about the money? Where will the funding come from? We can't make reforms with nothing but passion," the Minister of Construction said worriedly. "Just from this battle, the capital has lost billions in Derbies. I can't imagine what the future will look like."
"And who's going to manage education?" someone from the Education Department grumbled. "Your Excellency, if you eliminate families, how much will we have to invest in raising and educating these new children?"
"No, that's not the issue. During Madewy's era, our population's birth rate was already negative. We lost 14 million people annually. The only reason we maintained such a large base was because the number of refugees from the Outside World exceeded our newborn population—so tell me, is it easier to manage adult refugees or newborns?"
David Lin explained:
"Madewy was dumber than you think—we produced a large number of refined, intelligent, and independent women but couldn't create suitable partners for them, so we had to rely on 'low-class women × refugee men' to boost the population."
"Any woman with a higher education is independent and smart. They know that marriage is a burden—so why not eliminate the need to provide them with partners altogether? Activate mechanical nurseries and AI nanny servants."
"But how will we ensure employment rates?"
"There will be plenty of jobs in the future."
David Lin's vision grew even more radical:
"Starting tomorrow, we will build gravitational wave antennas, and in seven years, we will construct 2,500 of them. We must ensure that once we establish contact between the universe and the surface, we can receive the signals as quickly as possible!"
"The first person to go into space was a Frost-Plated citizen—Li Aozi. We can use this for publicity and accelerate the development of our space program."
"Technological progress will destroy humanity..." someone immediately objected.
"If technology doesn't destroy humanity, the Entropic Lord will."
David Lin wasted no time. Using his presidential authority, he pulled out a document:
"According to GTB observers and reports from Frost-Plated's Air Force, the density of the Calamity is decreasing. In the next 20 years, it will drop below 10,000 meters."
"Once the Calamity's altitude drops to 8,000 meters, all mountains and permanent snow caps will be destroyed by the entropy increase, blocking our ability to expel heat."
"When that happens, we won't be able to release waste heat. The thermal energy from Azure Star alone will incinerate us."
"Why didn't Madewy's faction care about Frost-Plated's gender issues? Why doesn't Tianhuan care about the future as it recklessly expands its territory? Why does Red Arrow focus solely on revenge? Why has Zhenxu abandoned development?"
David Lin looked around at everyone and calmly provided the answer:
"Because in 20 years, all of humanity, along with the elites, will perish!"
"They've chosen to give up, but Frost-Plated won't. Li Aozi has already given us the answer."
"In ten years, Frost-Plated will eliminate gender relations. From now on, we will achieve humanity's second evolution. We will evolve toward becoming a cosmic civilization!"
Even though David Lin had prepared everyone in advance, these explosive remarks still caused many people to gasp.
"Of course, I know you're questioning how we'll get such a large amount of funding, and we don't have the population or resources to build a civilization."
David Lin pointed to the map:
"Our ancestors left us colonies, exploiting them brutally and mercilessly—now, it's time to repay that debt."