I became a god by treasure hunting after arriving 500 years early

Chapter 49 - 46: What Kind of Civilization is Stable?

Just then, Li Chunhong pushed the door open and entered. Hearing their discussion, his eyelids involuntarily twitched twice.

With the situation as it is now... is it really necessary to be so reserved?

"On our side... it has completely collapsed, the consortiums have stepped from behind the scenes to the forefront," said Professor Edward from New York City, "Now I serve several major consortiums, and I really can’t do anything for the ordinary people’s lives."

"Things are still relatively normal here, but many people have committed suicide by jumping from buildings, at least a few thousand in one day," said Professor Sanjing from East Gold City, "The Emperor is personally intervening to maintain public order, and the results have been very impressive…"

The Emperor had come forward.

Had the monarchy been restored?

Zhang Hui wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, feeling the world was too fantastical.

But on second thought, it seemed only natural.

Amid global chaos, the presence of the Emperor was like that of a parent, at least a psychological lifeline.

"We’re also relatively normal," he said.

"The ceremonies conducted in the Temple have appeased most of the populace," said Professor Amir Khan from the Old Deli civilization with a laugh, "Haha, it looks like we will soon achieve the ’Stable City’ Milestone."

"Out of consideration for our once fellow humans, we will share, whether or not we receive this reward information."

Hearing them talk like this, Zhang Hui became somewhat nervous, unsure whether this guy was just boasting...

In any case, different civilizations had made different choices.

There were those with stable orders, and those ruled by warlords, oligarchies, plutocracies, restored monarchies, theocracies...

And then there were those that had nothing but chaos, devolving into apocalyptic revelry!

Zhang Hui finally understood why some cities had not come online.

The research institutes had been stormed by mobs; how could they come online?

Perhaps the experts inside had been taken out...

Of course, these few cities would not perish because of the riots; inevitably, a small number of people would survive.

They might even establish a new regime.

But the lost talents could not be resurrected.

Keep in mind, the scientists present were the elites of a civilization, nurtured by a great Earth.

Could a chaotic city still foster the next generation?

It would be difficult even to restore education.

Therefore, the missed time costs were also hard to recover.

They could only stay in the Safe Zone indefinitely.

Another professor said, "Professor Zhang, is your Yunhai City also in chaos? I remember that during the pandemic, you still maintained good stability… You should be able to achieve ’Stable City’ soon, right?"

Zhang Hui immediately replied, "Human nature is universal. Compared to the current disaster, the pandemic was just a minor issue."

"Everything happening now is so sudden; chaos is inevitable when the citizenry is in a state of panic."

Everyone deeply agreed, especially that "human nature is universal" that really resonated with them, everything was chaotic, and Yunhai City couldn’t possibly be harmonious.

Zhang Hui cleared his throat, "Ahem, let’s change the topic. The order of the city is determined by all citizens, it’s not something we can change easily."

"Indeed so."

Beyond that, people discussed some other possible milestones.

Like crafting an Extraordinary Artifact, which Lu Yuan had accomplished, a known milestone.

Proposing supernatural theories, increasing the population to one hundred million, nurturing more experts, hunting powerful Extraordinary Creatures, etc., were these also achievable?

Scientists’ imaginations far surpass those of science fiction writers!

It was foreseeable that most milestones would be quite difficult. A "God" wouldn’t likely set things too easy.

By comparison, "maintaining city stability" seemed to be a relatively easy milestone to achieve.

Whether dispatching soldiers to forcibly suppress or distributing food to appease, as long as the city’s ruler was willing to bear the cost, there were always ways to quickly stabilize the city.

An international conference hurriedly started and ended just as quickly, everyone eager to report this important news to gain an advantage for their cities in the competition.

Meanwhile, Li Chunhong, who was listening on the side, asked, "Professor Zhang, what else is needed to stabilize a city? We are mostly stable now, aren’t we?"

"Why aren’t there any milestone rewards."

"If water, electricity, and communications need to be restored to their original levels to count as stable, that is impossible in the short term…"

Zhang Hui pondered for a moment, "I think water and electricity are not that critical. Who knows, there might be civilizations worse than ours, without any technology at all. Could those civilizations not complete a milestone then?"

"For a civilization, what state is considered stable? We must be lacking something."

This question was quite difficult.

"Food? Do we need to develop enough farmland?"

"Or perhaps it’s… per capita meat consumption? Birth rate? Average lifespan?"

"It could also be the unemployment rate? Our unemployment rate is very high now."

"Minimum annual birth rate, below a few thousand, would lead to extinction, wouldn’t it?"

The scientists had a rich imagination, but Li Chunhong always felt these guys were just talking nonsense and hadn’t found the correct answer.

"Heritage, perhaps... A civilization that can pass down its legacy, I think that counts as stable, everything else is not so important, heritage is most important." A young doctor muttered, "Many ancient civilizations once led the world. But without stable heritage, they vanished into the history."

"There are also many civilizations where the bloodline still exists, but the cultural heritage has already been severed."

Li Chunhong’s eyes lit up, so that was it!

He subconsciously felt this answer was excellent.

So, how to pass down civilization?

Besides stable food, clothing, housing, and transportation, there was also…

Education!

Without education, where would the next generation come from?

Without the next generation, it meant the end of a civilization.

Yunhai City’s education system indeed had not been restored yet. It seemed necessary to arrange that soon.

Thinking this, Li Chunhong became anxious and made several phone calls in quick succession.

"What? Arrange for the kids to go to school as soon as possible?" The secretary’s office was stunned; was this matter that important? What era was it to still need schooling?

"Of course they need to go to school! Aren’t the previous teachers still around? Quickly get them back to work!"

"Only by properly attending school can more hands be freed up, do more things... When people see that children can go to school, won’t they feel more at ease?"

"That seems to make some sense…"

The secretary was quite speechless, but then thought of his own daughter who was celebrating a vacation, not a care in the world about Pangu Continent, monsters, and the like. What did any of this have to do with them?

Yet not even two days into her vacation, she was going to be dragged back to school.

That might be for the best; it would save a lot of effort in managing the kids.

Smiles would only move from the children’s faces to the adults’ faces.