The Last Commander of the Red Alert

Chapter 383: Lunar People

Su Chen zoomed in on the location of the Soldier and immediately saw a scene. In a large cave, about twenty people stood in front of five Red Alert Soldiers.

They appeared to be human, but that was Su Chen's assumption. They were roughly similar to humans in overall structure: a head, two hands, two feet. However, their facial features were different.

Their mouths were notably large that was Su Chen's initial impression. Their mouths were twice the size of the largest mouths on Earth. Next were their ears, also large, protruding quite prominently.

Their noses, on the other hand, were relatively small. While such features would have been acceptable for females, it was rather odd that males and females looked the same in this regard.

Their hair was black, though it seemed like it hadn't been cut for a long time. Everyone's hair was quite long, at least reaching their buttocks, and some even trailed on the ground.

The most important difference was in their eyes. They had their eyes closed all the time, and only a thin slit remained where their eye sockets were.

"So, these are lunar people? They're quite different from what I imagined." According to Su Chen's understanding, as Earth's closest neighbors, they should have had many humans living there in the early days, which should have resulted in few differences between the two.

However, the differences he observed now were quite significant.

"Who... are... you..." an Old Man with snow-white hair stepped forward and shouted at the Red Alert Soldiers.

Though it sounded strange, their language indeed resembled that of the Soldiers, indicating that they were indeed humans.

In other words, their ancestors had been Earth humans.

But after Earth's civilizations ceased, lunar humans seemed to be forgotten. Over time, they continued to reproduce and survive on the moon. Unfortunately, the moon's environment was not as favorable as Earth's, forcing them to live underground.

Countless years had passed, and their bodies had adapted to the lunar environment. They had larger palms and soles, sturdy bodies, and large mouths for consuming food quickly. Their large ears allowed them to hear distant sounds and avoid danger.

Of course, this was what Yun Ru had said. Su Chen himself was unaware of these details.

A Red Alert Soldier stepped forward. "Don't be afraid, we are from Earth."

"Earth... people?" The Old Man murmured a few times, then seemed to recall something. He turned to a muscular man behind him and said, "Bring me... that thing I've cherished."

"But, Chief, they..." The muscular man appeared somewhat concerned.

"Hurry!"

Before long, Su Chen saw the muscular man approaching while holding a tattered book with yellowed pages. His cautious manner indicated that the book was of great importance.

The Old Man took the book, his expression one of reverence. He extended his trembling right hand and slowly flipped through its pages.

Su Chen wasn't sure what material the book was made of, but the fact that it had survived to this point was remarkable. It seemed like the Old Man had found what he was searching for as he turned the book towards the Red Alert Soldier. "This... is Earth? Are you truly... from Earth?"

Su Chen looked on with surprise. The book contained an aged picture of Earth. However, it differed from what Su Chen knew. In this depiction, Earth was much greener, giving the impression of a green planet.

"Could this be what Earth used to look like?" Su Chen couldn't help but wonder.

But suddenly, he realized something. The Old Man's eyes had been closed the entire time. Did they not use their eyes to see things?

Following Su Chen's instruction, the Red Alert Soldier replied, "Yes, we are from Earth. We came to the moon this time and found signs of your existence. That's why we came here."

Suddenly, the Old Man began to cry. He knelt on the ground, sobbing out, "Ancestors above, Earth has finally remembered us. We haven't been abandoned!"

Other lunar people moved forward to console him. After a while, the Old Man's emotions stabilized. The Red Alert Soldiers took the opportunity to inquire about several things.

According to the lunar people, they had no idea how long their ancestors had been on the moon. They had lived underground since birth, never having been to the surface.

They knew the surface lacked something essential for their survival: oxygen. They had found from books that this thing was called "oxygen." Without it, they couldn't breathe.

To them, the surface was a place of doom!

However, this harsh environment had led to a generally high level of strength among them. For instance, the seemingly frail Old Man was actually a Sixth Order Transcendent!

When he was young, he had ventured outside for a short period of time, relying on his immense strength. Unfortunately, he had appeared on the far side of the moon, where Earth was not visible.

In his eyes, the surface world was pitch-black, with only faint stars visible above. What struck him most was a strange power that made him extremely uncomfortable. Unable to bear it, he returned underground and stayed there until now.

They didn't know when their ancestors arrived on the moon. They had searched through many ancient texts and speculated that it was probably hundreds of thousands of years ago. It was said that at that time, the moon had been as beautiful as Earth. However, something happened later, causing the lunar environment to deteriorate. Forced by circumstances, they had retreated underground.

In theory, humans had strong reproductive capabilities. After so many years, the lunar population should have grown, not declined.

Yet, reality was entirely different. Their numbers were decreasing every day. The primary issue was the scarcity of food underground. If they tried to support a large population, people would inevitably starve to death!

To address this, some influential individuals established a rule: those who didn't contribute to the tribe, like the Old Man and the disabled, had to fight each other within a set timeframe. Only the last survivor would be allowed to continue living.

It was a brutal rule, forced upon them by their circumstances.

Moreover, they controlled the birth rate of newborns, requiring permission to have children.

"Roughly how many of you are there?" Su Chen was quite curious and had the Soldier ask this question.

"I'm not sure of the exact number, but there should be no less than a hundred thousand."

Su Chen's expression turned strange. Was a hundred thousand a large number?

He had more than a hundred thousand under his command, and if this were on Earth, feeding a hundred thousand people wouldn't be difficult at all. Yet, on the moon, a hundred thousand couldn't be sustained. What was going on?

Suddenly, Su Chen thought of a question. "How far is the farthest tribe from here?"

"It should take a day and night to reach."

Su Chen suddenly understood. They must have assumed that this Underworld was limited to this area. They probably never imagined that there were numerous underground spaces on the moon. Not to mention a hundred thousand, even ten times that number wouldn't be a challenge. (To be continued)

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