122: Chapter 122 The Tragedy of the Lizardmen

The Great Elder arrived soon after.

"Su Fan, have you thought about how to start?" the Great Elder said impatiently as soon as he entered the captain's quarters.

"I have a general framework, but the details are lacking. I was just about to discuss them with you," Su Fan said with a smile.

"Tell me the framework first, then we'll finalize the details," the Great Elder nodded.

"No rush," Su Fan smiled.

"Red Queen, condense and organize the information obtained from hacking the Lizardman Civilization, then tell us about their situation."

"Yes!" Red Queen replied.

...

The Proxima Centauri System has five planets. The second closest planet to Proxima Centauri is the Lizardman Civilization's home planet, Proxima Centauri b.

In terms of distance, Proxima Centauri b is too close to Proxima Centauri.

However, as a yellow dwarf, Proxima Centauri's temperature and radiation are relatively low, allowing Proxima Centauri b to meet the conditions for the survival and reproduction of life.

Proxima Centauri b is slightly larger than Blue Star. Most of its surface consists of Gobi and deserts, with only a few heat-resistant and drought-tolerant plants and animals surviving on the surface.

Compared to the desolation on the surface, the underground world of Proxima Centauri b is the truly prosperous one!

Lizardmen have lived underground for generations. Relying on underground resources, they gradually evolved from indigenous people into a Level 1 Civilization.

Accustomed to living underground, Lizardmen dislike light. Prolonged exposure to sunlight can even damage their skin.

Therefore, even as a Level 1 Civilization, they did not expand to the surface. Instead, they continued to hollow out the planet's interior, establishing a vast nation—the Xikemo United Kingdom.

Although the Xikemo United Kingdom is nominally a unified nation, it is actually composed of three allied countries: the Lizard Kingdom, the Xike Kingdom, and the Ximo Kingdom.

This was somewhat similar to the United Kingdom on Blue Star.

In the last century, the Xikemo Kingdom has been in chaos. The three member states are suspicious of each other and engage in assassinations. While it hasn't reached the level of large-scale warfare, local frictions persist.

The reasons for these conflicts, besides political disagreements, ultimately boil down to the unequal distribution of resources.

The Lizard Kingdom is the strongest and has the best living conditions. Not only is the work easy and the hours short with plenty of vacation time, but the wages are also exceptionally high. With comprehensive social welfare, it is a typical country with equitable wealth distribution, and ordinary Lizardmen live very happily.

The Xike Kingdom is different. Although the country is wealthy, the nobility is tyrannical. One percent of the population controls ninety-nine percent of the society's wealth. Furthermore, they use various means to avoid taxes, and the national wealth is completely drained by these nobles.

The nobility rules the country with no regard for the lives of ordinary Lizardmen, exploiting them in every possible way.

In recent years, the ordinary Lizardmen of the Xike Kingdom seem to have had an epiphany and have gradually started to lie flat.

No marrying, no breeding, no buying cave dwellings, and no buying Flying Cars!

The Xike Kingdom's economy has tanked. The economy once supported by high-priced cave dwellings collapsed rapidly like a bubble!

Moreover, because the young Lizardmen of the Xike Kingdom aren't breeding, the national population quickly fell into severe aging, with a large concentration of elderly Lizardmen retiring.

As more and more elderly Lizardmen retired, a large amount of Lizard Pension was distributed. Meanwhile, because there were fewer and fewer young Lizardmen, the pension contributions became smaller and smaller.

Less coming in, more going out!

The Xike Kingdom's national Lizard Pension account soon ran into trouble.

How to fill such a massive pension deficit?

Should they delay the retirement of elderly Lizardmen or find another way?

This problem also gave the King of the Xike Kingdom a massive headache.

However, the country does not belong to the King alone. At the strong suggestion of the many elderly noble Lizardmen receiving high retirement pensions, the Xike Kingdom delayed the retirement age.

After all, making those elderly Lizardmen—who were already receiving retirement pensions and held the power of discourse in the Lizard Kingdom—angry was far more serious than making those ordinary Lizardmen angry!

But after the retirement age was delayed, many young Lizardmen quit. If they had to work until they died, who would bother paying into the pension fund? They just chose to lie flat. As for breeding? Whoever wants to can do it!

And so, the vicious cycle began.

While the Xike Kingdom suffered from economic recession and social unrest, the Ximo Kingdom began to take advantage of the situation.

As a kingdom with the largest population and a people who loved to breed, the Ximo Kingdom possessed vigorous productivity.

In a nation full of young people, when technological strength is similar, the outcome of bullying an elderly population is predictable.

A large amount of the Xike Kingdom's resources were plundered by the Ximo Kingdom, and the Ximo Kingdom's power began to expand rapidly.

The Lizard Kingdom couldn't stand by and watch, so they also stepped in to grab resources.

However, to prevent the Ximo Kingdom from becoming too powerful, they would help one side then the other, maintaining a delicate balance among the three nations.

But with this continuous friction, ordinary Lizardmen suffered. Many became unemployed, and the economy continued to decline.

After nearly a century of friction, even the Lizardmen of the Ximo Kingdom were no longer willing to breed. Survival was too difficult, and choosing not to breed made it easier to stay alive.

At this time, friction within the Xikemo United Kingdom was intensifying, and a large-scale war could break out at any moment!

Actually, avoiding war is simple: just solve the resource distribution problem.

And the solution to the resource distribution problem is also simple.

Either someone with a big enough fist appears to make others accept their method of resource distribution.

Or their strengths are similar, and they eventually reach a distribution agreement because no one can hold out any longer.

Or they make the cake bigger, so everyone's share grows exponentially and no one cares about the original small amount of resources.

Logically, as a Level 1 Civilization, they should be able to utilize the resources within their own star system.

However, the moons of Proxima Centauri b are too small and were carved up long ago, with not even crumbs remaining.

As for other more distant planets, while resources could be mined, it was difficult—nowhere near as easy as mining their own home planet.

Not all civilizations are far-sighted. Often, most rulers are just temporary makeshift teams; they are proficient in familiar areas or things they've done before.

But once they encounter an unfamiliar field they haven't tried, they too are just crossing the river by feeling the stones.

The Lizardman Civilization made a huge mistake. They were heavy-handed internally, spending most of their time on intrigue and fighting over the home planet's resources.

In terms of technological development, a serious gap emerged.

Many spaceships became capital for nobles to show off or served as private mobile palaces.

Much advanced technology was gradually forgotten because the upper class was either enjoying themselves or fighting each other, leaving no time for scientific research.

As for ordinary Lizardmen, survival was a problem. Every day they thought about food, warmth, and how to pay back loans. How could they possibly think about scientific research!

...