Inside the office.

As the piercing alarm sounded, the holographic projection in front of Lü Yongchang turned blood red.

At the same time, a message with the highest priority popped up right in front of him, overriding all the others.

"Professor, an unidentified flying object has been discovered 4.2 light-years away."

"Preliminary assessment indicates that there is a 99% probability that the spacecraft is a probe from an extraterrestrial civilization."

At the same time, an image from 4.2 light-years away appeared before his eyes.

4.2 light-years?

This familiar distance stirred a ripple in Lü Yongchang's heart.

At that time, the distance between Earth and Proxima Centauri was exactly 4.2 light-years.

What was once a formidable barrier now appears as a small ditch right outside my door.

This stirred countless emotions within Lü Yongchang.

Looking at the slightly worn-out ellipsoidal detector in the holographic projection, he raised an eyebrow slightly and put down his work.

"This is……"

Looking at the extremely familiar engine design behind the ellipsoidal probe, Lü Yongchang's eyes instantly lit up with joy.

"Hall thrusters?"

"What about its flight speed?" Lü Yongchang asked Zero in a slightly hurried tone.

"Current speed: 0.35c".

Lu Yongchang suddenly stood up from his seat, rubbing his hands excitedly: "The sailing speed is quite standard!"

"It should be a probe sent by a Type II or Type III civilization."

"Yongchang!!" Fang Xu's shout came from outside the office.

Swish.

The office door suddenly opened.

Fang Xu rushed into the office with a look of urgency, shouting, "Yongchang, did you see that?!"

"It's here! It's finally here!"

"The Sociology Department just messaged me, asking when..."

"Wait a minute," Lü Yongchang interrupted Fang Xu, "Don't be too happy yet."

Have we forgotten the lessons we learned?

"You mean... this detector might be a smokescreen thrown out by an advanced civilization?" Fang Xu's excited expression gradually faded, and he asked in a low voice.

“Or rather, bait,” Lü Yongchang said softly. “That’s what the space pirate civilization, the Lator civilization, did back then.”

"So you mean..."

Lu Yongchang paced back and forth in his office with his hands behind his back, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

"Prepare for battle!"

A glint flashed in Lü Yongchang's eyes as he made a decision: "Using such an outdated detector as bait, the civilization behind it can't be that powerful."

"Even if it's backed by a Level 5 civilization, humanity today can still put up a fight!"

As he spoke, Lü Yongchang, with the help of the robotic arm, climbed onto the robotic arm-type robot. Then, he waved to Fang Xu and said, "Come on! Follow me to the command center!"

...

Earth Command Center.

In the giant holographic projection, the old ellipsoidal probe still maintained its course, silently sailing forward.

Every now and then, a device resembling a windshield wiper would gently sweep across the vicinity of several lenses, carrying away some interstellar dust that was attached to them.

To its right rear, a spherical detector followed it silently, like a ghost, awaiting the capture command from the command center.

This peaceful and serene scene stood in stark contrast to the tense and anxious atmosphere inside the Earth command center.

"That's strange, hasn't it detected our detector yet?"

He Bilin frowned and muttered to himself, "Why is it still able to maintain its course so calmly?"

"Could it be... a bait thrown out by an advanced civilization?"

He Bilin's words caused a slight commotion.

Lu Yongchang raised an eyebrow and explained softly, "Our detector is currently in a silent state, and it is communicating with us using tachyon communication."

"If the other party is truly a level two or three civilization..."

"At this distance, it really can't detect our detector."

He Bilin's lips twitched slightly: "Then... what if it's bait?"

“Then we’re in big trouble,” Fang Xu continued, “proving that the advanced civilization behind it isn’t worried about us at all.”

"I'm afraid only advanced civilizations at or above level six would have such confidence."

“That doesn’t make sense,” Academician Lin Zile of the Sociology Department interjected. “A Level 6 civilization shouldn’t resort to such petty theft.”

"Just like we can't use an ant as bait."

"The difference between the two is too great!"

Lü Yongchang nodded, expressing his agreement with Academician Lin Zile's words: "Therefore, I am more inclined to believe that the other side is indeed a low-level civilization."

"The key question now is how we can use this detector to pinpoint the location of the other civilization."

...

The question raised by Lü Yongchang sparked a heated debate.

Some academicians believe that they should establish a connection with the other party, gain their trust, and then proceed gradually.

Most of the academicians in the Sociology Department share this idea.

After all, if this plan succeeds, humanity might soon have a truly subservient civilization.

[Nusian Civilization]?

The human fleet has not yet found a suitable planet to serve as their habitat. As of now, the entire Nus civilization still consists of only a small tree living in a laboratory, so it cannot be considered a true subordinate civilization.

Of course, this plan was met with opposition from many people.

It takes too much time and there are too many variables...

In short, the proposal was the first to be rejected due to opposition from the majority of academicians.

The plan that survived to the end was proposed by Academician Yevgeny.

Lu Yongchang's lips twitched as he looked at the extremely simple and crude plan in front of him.

He carefully reviewed the other proposals and finally sighed deeply.

"Let's go with this plan."

"Zero, begin execution."

...

As Lü Yongchang gave his order, undercurrents began to slowly stir in the tranquil universe 4.2 light-years away.

Two spherical probes in the vicinity quickly entered warp drive mode and flew towards their destination.

Given the close proximity of the two sides, the speed of warp drive was kept at 1.01c.

As the other two spherical probes approached the target, the spherical probe that had been following behind the ellipsoidal probe also entered warp drive mode!

As a result, all three spherical probes have disappeared from the visible universe.

Only the remaining ripples in spacetime can prove their existence!

This is one of the key points of Academician Yevgeny's plan!

Using the characteristics of warp drive, they silently approached the ellipsoidal probe!