The Mech Touch novel Chapter 5221

The atmosphere in the conference had changed.

After numerous days of lobbying, knowledge exchange and debates about new discoveries, the conference attendees no longer possessed the same mindsets as before.

All of the sessions on topics as varied as E energy manipulation to the estimated warmaking potential of the native alien races had fully made everyone aware of what it meant to enter the Age of Dawn.

Red humanity was not in a good position.

That became clear enough to anyone who attended at least one session centered around aliens.

Too few people had grown up in a time where war against rival alien civilizations had been a major concern.

Aside from a few old fossils such as the Xenotechnician, most people grew up in the heyday of the Age of Mechs. Internal competition against rival human states and organizations dominated everyone's consciousness.

Correcting this outdated mindset was one of the common goals of this conference. People had to stop obsessing over beating their fellow humans and start to put their skills to use against the much more existential threat posed by their external adversaries!

In that, the Survivalists succeeded. No one who spent a few days aboard the Khamatar Reign felt the desire to think about their old struggles anymore. It all sounded trivial and even counterproductive when the aliens clearly benefited if the humans kept their infighting alive.

A common sense of duty and purpose had overtaken the attendees. The Survivalists as well as the elite associates all became infected by a common sense of duty that they must set an example for the rest of red humanity!

The vote on the next day gained a lot more significance now that people knew what was at stake. The expressions on everyone grew graver as the time to determine the future direction of red humanity approached.

Those who had no say in the matter mostly felt relieved that they did not have to bear this heavy burden.

Those who knew that they were one among several hundred people who could condemn a trillion people to death while saving trillions more no longer dared to make any thoughtless remarks.

While the knowledge sharing continued, the members of the three cliques continually appealed to the cadre as well as the few high-tiered associates that had yet to commit to a plan.

Ves did not have a clear idea on where the wind was blowing these days. He only heard snippets of opinions every now and then whenever he participated in different sessions.

"What's the word on the street?" Ves casually asked as he and Jovy took a break in a private lounge.

Ves no longer felt comfortable with staying in open spaces. Word had spread about his personal meetings with the leaders of all three cliques. It added a lot of notoriety towards him as people kept wondering whether there was anything more about him that made him special.

Given how galactic citizenship tiers were essentially labels that confirmed truths that were already in place, Ves had a growing suspicion that tier 4 might not be his current limit.

"I can't tell you much." Jovy said as he nibbled on a materialized muffin. "More and more people are starting to keep their secrets closer to their chests. While retaliation shouldn't exist in our faction, people are still afraid of offending those that they need to depend upon in the future. Few people are willing to oppose the likes of the Xenotechnician and the Polymath directly in their faces. The only ones who dare are those that already chose a side and enjoy the cover of one of the three leaders."

The three leaders of the Survivalist Faction in the Red Ocean had effectively claimed all of the power.

This hadn't been the case in the past. A lot more Survivalists had managed to get by on their own or adopted one of the other god pilots and Star Designers as their patron.

The Great Severing had left behind many of these other leaders, causing a considerable proportion of Survivalists to become orphans.

Many of them had quickly joined one the three camps that were left, but many more thought to make the smarter play by withholding their decisions and wait until it became clear who had the final say.

"It's a gamble." Jovy spoke. "If you join up with one of our leaders, then the probability that your side will 'win' is roughly 33 percent. The rewards are great if the plan supported by your leader has won the support of the majority. That means that the Xenotechnician or anyone else will delegate a lot of authority and power to the men and women he trusts the most. The other Survivalists and associates won't necessarily get left out, but they can expect to receive much less priority unless their skills are indispensable."

"I see." Ves rubbed his hairless chin. "That is literally gambling in my opinion. If you don't have a strong ideological fit with one of the three candidates, then it would be safer to just sit out. Sure, it might be cowardly to do so, but at least you don't piss off anyone important either. Have you adopted this strategy as well, Jovy?" _{ƒгeewёbnovel.com}

The other man chuckled as he finished his cup of coffee before tossing it over the side. The cup dematerialized before it hit the deck.

"I am not a bigshot, Ves. I will still be a tier 6 galactic citizen by the end of this conference. No one really cares about what I think. You are different. People might not have paid as much attention to you as before, but that has definitely changed with each presentation that you have made. You only have one more to go. Do you think that you will be able to blow the minds of your audience once again?"

"I didn't even ask to take part in this secret session. I have plenty of stuff to say about the topic under discussion, but 1 don't think all of those biotech researchers will necessarily be pleased to hear what I have to say. While I think I can offer a lot of vital clarification to their current studies, my solution isn't necessarily more attainable."

"Well, just do your best. Remember that your presumed galactic citizenship tier is no longer as low as before. You don't have to follow the instructions of anyone who is less important than you. If the secret panel members are smart enough, then they will understand that as well and adjust their behavior in advance."

Ves was no longer afraid of this secret session as he was at the start of the conference.

Within the span of a few days, he had successfully raised his status to the point where three faction leaders begged for his services.

This meant that he had become untouchable!

There shouldn't be anyone within the Survivalist Faction who would be stupid enough to forcibly teleport Ves over to a biotech lab and cut his body open to see how the hell a 'human' like him managed to stay alive with traces of phasewater running through his veins!

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