429: Welcome to Tiandao Workshop

The silver-white light dissipated, and ten thousand of the world's top scientists stood together in a vast, boundless space. Beneath their feet was a smooth, mirror-like Nano-Alloy floor that made no sound when stepped upon, yet they could feel a faint warm current of energy spreading throughout their bodies from the soles of their feet.

There were no walls or ceilings around them, only an endless expanse of silver-white light curtains.

"Wha... what is this place?"

Chen Jingming, an academician from Huaxia, spoke Chinese, but miraculously, the other scientists who had never studied Chinese could understand him.

Regardless of whether they spoke English, German, Japanese, Russian, French, or Arabic, everyone could instantly understand, without any barrier, as if an invisible force had uniformly converted all languages into the “Common Tongue” (Chinese).

This translation technology had already surpassed all existing human AI Translation Systems!

The scientists were shocked and immediately began discussing the phenomenon of “language translation.”

"This is definitely not simple language translation!" Elliot, the Core AI Architect of DeepMind, analyzed excitedly. "The most Advanced real-time human translation Systems still have a 0.3% error rate and require network support. Yet here, without any signal towers or electronic devices, we can achieve cross-language communication with zero delay and zero error. The technology behind this is at least a century ahead of Earth!"

"Whoever possesses this technology is definitely not from Earth!" Ivanov said with a solemn expression. "I was in the most Advanced underground Nuclear Physics Laboratory in Bear Country; the defense System can withstand a nuclear attack, yet the opponent instantly took me away. Only an extraterrestrial civilization could achieve this level of Spatial Teleportation Technology!"

"I agree!" Lena nodded. "And look at the spatial structure here—it doesn't belong to any place on Earth. There is only one conclusion: we have been captured by an alien civilization!"

An Astrophysicist from A-San asked in confusion, "If it's an alien civilization, and their technology is so developed, why would they even need Earth scientists like us?"

"No, perhaps what they need is our 'way of thinking'!" Elliot speculated. "The clash of research mindsets from different civilizations often sparks new breakthroughs. They might want to utilize our brains to assist them in more Advanced research!"

"Regardless of their objective, their power is terrifying!" Marcus exclaimed. "To instantly take away ten thousand top scientists, bypass all defenses, create this surreal space, and master Heaven-Defying Simultaneous Translation Technology—this level of power is beyond our comprehension!"

Just then, ripples suddenly appeared in the center of the silver-white space, and a black-robed figure slowly materialized, hovering in mid-air. The black robe flapped loudly, surrounded by a faint Cosmic Nebula Phantom, radiating an unquestionable sense of majesty.

All the scientists instantly fell silent, their eyes fixed on the figure, their hearts filled with tension, anticipation, and awe.

They knew that the mysterious, powerful, god-like mastermind was finally about to reveal himself!

In the silver-white space, everything was silent.

All the scientists' gazes were locked tightly onto the black-robed figure in the center. He hovered in mid-air, his black robe flapping without wind. The surrounding Cosmic Nebula Phantom slowly revolved, sometimes transforming into a Brilliant Starlight River, sometimes condensing into a Black Hole Vortex. His face was obscured, yet he seemed to possess eyes that saw through everything, looking down upon the masses below.

The air seemed to be solidified by an invisible force; even the Data Stream flowing across the light curtain slowed down. Everyone held their breath, awaiting the mysterious powerhouse's opening words.

"Welcome, everyone, to my Mental Space—the Heavenly Dao Workshop."

Lu Chen's voice was calm and steady, yet carried a power that penetrated the Soul, clearly entering the ears of every scientist without any static, like the Heavenly Dao Voice. "I believe many of you are curious about my identity. I won't keep you guessing—I am not an alien, but an Earthling."

This single sentence caused a subtle stir among the crowd.

"But I am different from ordinary Earthlings. I am the Heavenly Dao, similar to the Deities you speak of."

"Deity?" Someone whispered in surprise, their eyes full of disbelief. Although the scene before them already defied scientific understanding, the word "Deity" was still too subversive.

Lu Chen seemed to see through their thoughts and added lightly, "But Deities are not omnipotent. I am just a small god. Outside of Earth, there are countless beings hundreds or thousands of times more powerful than me. Among those known is a place called the Star Vortex Higher Universe. They have likely locked onto Earth's Interstellar Coordinates, and soon, they might even send an Interstellar Fleet to descend upon Earth. If our human technology level doesn't meet the entry standard of the Higher Universe by then, Earth will be razed to the ground, with not a blade of grass remaining!"

If these words were spoken normally, any top scientist would scoff at them as nonsense.

But at this moment, looking at the unfathomable power emanating from Lu Chen, and recalling the instant teleportation, the language interchange, and the extraordinary space, no one dared to question him.

Fear surged into their hearts like a tide.

They were the cream of human civilization, and they understood better than anyone what a Technological Gap meant—it was like primitives facing a modern army, utterly defenseless.

"How do you prove you are an Earthling?"

A steady voice broke the silence. It was Chen Jingming, the Chief Fusion Engineer of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He frowned, staring sharply at Lu Chen: "I suspect you are simply a Spy from the Star Vortex Higher Universe, disguised as an Earthling. Your fleet likely needs thousands of years to arrive, so you captured us scientists early to suppress Earth's future technology!"

Upon hearing this, many scientists nodded in agreement.

A hint of appreciation flashed in Lu Chen's eyes: "That's a good point. From your perspective, that is certainly a possibility."

Lu Chen's frankness momentarily stunned the scientists: "But if I were an alien, given my strength, I wouldn't need to waste words on you. Wouldn't it be far more efficient to directly erase your consciousness and transform you into emotionless research machines? The reason I am telling you this and giving you a choice is because we are all Earthlings, bound by Bloodline. Now, you only have one path: trust me and fight for the survival of Earth!"

"Baka! Why must we trust you?!"

An angry roar sounded from Tanaka Koji, a Quantum Computing Expert from Kyoto University, Japan.

His face flushed red as he pointed at Lu Chen and shouted angrily, "And why must all languages be translated into Chinese? Why not English? You are clearly engaging in Cultural Hegemony, not protecting Earth at all!"