The Ji quickly realized the flaws in their experint.
While cultivating a civilization from scratch with their intervention wasn’t an insurmountable challenge, nurturing it to the level of a worthy adversary was nearly impossible.
The first obstacle was technology. Even if the Ji spared no expense, they couldn’t artificially elevate the technological level of this nascent civilization to anywhere near their own in a short ti.
Scientific progress required a large population of highly skilled individuals to absorb and develop advanced theories. However, training such individuals took ti. Even after absorbing the theories, a robust and mature industrial system was necessary to translate scientific knowledge into tangible applications. And even with an industrial system in place, converting theories into real-world products demanded raw materials.
At that ti, the Ji controlled over fifty star systems, with resources beyond imagination. For a civilization to pose a aningful threat to them, it would need control over at least twenty star systems, just to endure a war of attrition with the Ji. Otherwise, the sheer disparity in resources would allow the Ji to easily outlast and overwhelm their opponent.
Would the Ji willingly allocate twenty star systems to this fledgling civilization? The answer was, of course, a resounding no.
Thus, any civilization incapable of evoking a sense of crisis in the Ji would be ineffective as an external stimulus, even if successfully cultivated.
Moreover, Ji philosophers pointed out a fundantal paradox in this experint. When one civilization perceives another as a potential threat to its dominance—or even its survival—it will, under normal circumstances, preemptively eliminate the threat unless it is an extrely reckless civilization.
The philosophers thus concluded that even if the experint progressed, the looming sense of existential danger at the brink of success would inevitably compel the Ji to terminate it.
The experint was dood to futility.
Faced with failure shortly after the experint began, the Ji, after so disappointnt and introspection, did not give up. Instead, they proposed a new idea: if cultivating an adversary was unfeasible, why not cultivate “their own”?
This “own” referred not to mbers of their species but rather to helpers. The Ji theorized that, in the future, their civilization might once again fall into homogeneity, leading to stagnation. In such a scenario, introducing non-Ji to break the deadlock could be the solution.
Each species perceives the world differently due to its unique physiological structure. For example, the dichromatic vision of Ratfolk would make it impossible for them to conceive of the vibrant 24-color world seen through the multifaceted eyes of a mantis shrimp.
Such variations in perception naturally lead to different understandings of reality. When these diverse perspectives clashed, could they not spark new, brighter flas of innovation?
With this line of thinking, a new experint began.
The Ji artificially cultivated two highly intelligent species and raised their offspring in the sa manner as Ji children, having them progress step by step through various levels of knowledge.
As expected, differences in perception led these non-Ji to question Ji knowledge. For instance, what appeared red to a Ji might appear blue or violet to another species. Because they were taught using Ji concepts, the non-Ji identified their blue as red, but this did not change the fact that their perception of the world remained distinct.
While these fundantal differences were relatively inconsequential, deeper cognitive divergences began to erge as the non-Ji acquired more knowledge.
The results were promising. These clashes of perspective provided the Ji with novel ideas and fresh viewpoints, helping them overco stagnation.
However, it didn’t take long for new problems to arise.
The Ji soon discovered another flaw in their experint. Because these species developed under the Ji’s heavy intervention, their growth environnt mirrored that of the Ji. This led to a high degree of homogeneity, which failed to spark the creative inspiration the Ji had hoped for.
Put simply, these species lacked their own culture. Their perceptions were heavily shaped by the Ji’s influence. For example, regarding the color issue, they believed the blue they saw was the sa as the Ji’s red. But in reality, the color they perceived was sothing entirely different in the Ji’s frawork of knowledge.
This cognitive rigidity stifled the intensity of thought collisions. While so intellectual clashes occurred, they were not significant enough to provide the Ji with aningful breakthroughs.
When problems arose, the Ji sought solutions. If the lack of independent culture and the absence of a natural civilization were the issues, these would need correction.
Fortune seed to favor the Ji. During routine exploratory operations, they discovered a planet teeming with life. This planet was ho to an intelligent species that had already reached the stage of tal slting.
The Ji were ecstatic. They refrained from interfering too much, offering only subtle guidance. When this species’ civilization reached a certain level, the Ji secretly abducted several of their top scientists.
Although these scientists’ knowledge was far inferior to that of the Ji due to the limitations of their own civilization, anyone capable of rising to the top of their field was no ordinary individual.
Once brought to the Ji’s domain, these individuals eagerly absorbed new knowledge and posed nurous questions. Their unique perspectives sparked even more collisions of ideas, providing the Ji with fresh inspiration and novel insights.
The success of this renewed experint greatly encouraged the Ji. However, a new issue soon erged.
Individuals from a natural civilization possessed a strong sense of identity with their own species. While so abductees chose to comply, many viewed the Ji as existential threats and refused to submit, preferring death over cooperation.
This flaw was intolerable to the Ji.
Thus, in the ensuing years, the Ji conducted nurous related experints, eventually evolving their approach into the current system.
Whenever the Ji’s exploration teams discovered a new life-bearing planet with a potentially promising species, they would mark the star system and place it under protection. Additionally, they would bury a small starship on the planet or one of its satellites, a practice colloquially known as “planting goodwill.”
Despite their advanced technology, Ji creations were not impervious to the ravages of ti. Therefore, they would carefully select a point in the species’ developnt, typically between the Stone Age and the early tallurgical Age, to bury the ship.
As the species developed and eventually unearthed this “goodwill,” the Ji would be notified and begin monitoring the civilization closely.
This starship served both as an offering of goodwill and as a “test paper.” By reverse-engineering the ship, the Ji could gather data on the species’ capabilities.
The Ji had developed a mature scoring system for such evaluations.
For example, the Rikens, with their long lifespans, organizational efficiency, and abundance of advanced researchers, demonstrated a quick reverse-engineering capability. They received an “Excellent” rating in the Ji scoring system. This process typically required observation over a century or so.
Once the evaluation was complete, the Ji would make contact, claiming the starship had crashed on the planet long ago. They would retrieve the starship while showcasing their military strength. After subduing the native civilization, they would extend an invitation to visit the Ji’s domain.
The technological superiority of the Ji invariably dazzled these “country bumpkins,” making them more anable to the Ji’s assistance offers.
Of course, this assistance wasn’t free.
The native civilization would be required to send their best scientists to work for the Ji. While these researchers were forbidden from leaking the knowledge they acquired, they could earn points through various contributions. These points could then be exchanged for theoretical knowledge or blueprints.
This transparent and fair system not only maximized the potential of these alien scientists but also minimized resentnt.
Naturally, the Ji also implented a comprehensive anti-leakage system to safeguard their interests.
Through countless experints, the Ji had discovered that a gentle approach yielded far greater benefits than coercion. However, to ensure they weren’t fostering potential threats, each native species was confined to their ho star system. Should any species display ambitions beyond their capabilities, the Ji’s military would intervene decisively.
This Ji-implented order had maintained stability in the region for tens of thousands of years—until one event changed everything.
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