Chapter 56
Xia Anran had promised her viewers many times that she would invite professionals to answer their various questions about Earth, and today, that promise was finally fulfilled.
“Wow, I didn’t expect Professor Qi Yunhan to be so young!” Little Yan whispered to Sister Wang behind her. When they had been notified that a senior expert in biology would be a guest on the stream, they had expected an old professor, at least in his sixties. After all, most of the professors they had met from the Academy of Sciences were around that age.
But Qi Yunhan looked to be in her forties at most. There wasn’t a single wrinkle on her face, her figure was well-proportioned, and her skin was a healthy tan. She probably had a fitness routine. She was brimming with vitality—a person full of life.
Sister Wang, who had reviewed her file as part of the coordination, said with admiration, “Although she’s young, her qualifications are not shallow at all. She’s the leader of many major projects, one of the top professors at the Hua Nation Academy of Sciences. Her professional level is this,” she said, giving a thumbs-up.
“The higher-ups probably considered both age and professionalism and ultimately chose Professor Qi.” After all, young people were likely more receptive to something like a livestream.
The matter of the interstellar livestream was no longer a secret among the top professors at the academy. The state trusted their political backgrounds, so Professor Qi’s visit went very smoothly.
She had arrived yesterday. Xia Anran and Director Huang had met with her last night to briefly discuss today’s content. Professor Qi was a witty conversationalist with a sunny and cheerful personality. Compared to a knowledgeable scientist, she was more like an outdoor sports enthusiast.
The interstellar audience was extremely enthusiastic about her arrival.
[Wow, wow, a beauty!]
[Is she a professor? She looks so young!]
[Pretty and smart, I like her!]
[A little excited to see a scientist from Earth for the first time.]
[A professor of biology, is she here to tell us about the animals?]
[Wuhu, Anran and Professor Qi standing together is so pleasing to the eye! Two beauties!]
[Tell us more about the primitive beasts!!!]
[Raises hand! Professor Qi, we want to know how many kinds of primitive beasts there are and what they do!]
[I want to hear about plants! Talk about the green plants!]
[…I want to hear about food, hehe. Can we have Master Guo do a stream sometime?]
“Hello, everyone. My name is Qi Yunhan. I’m a biology researcher. It’s a pleasure to meet you all and to share some interesting knowledge about biology.”
Professor Qi introduced herself to the audience with grace and confidence.
Xia Anran could see with her own eyes that the number of gifts in the stream shot up instantly. As expected, new faces were the key.
After the greetings, they officially began their wildlife livestream journey for the day.
The reserve had prepared three SUVs for them. The nature reserve was so large that it was impossible to cover it on foot. Not long after they got in the car, Xia Anran saw an oasis in the distance, with a sapphire-blue lake in the center, surrounded by lush water plants. The interweaving of tender green and light blue was exceptionally beautiful.
“Ahead is the gathering place of our country’s first-class protected animal, the black stork,” Professor Qi said eloquently. “Its head, neck, and back are all black, and it’s a bird of the Ciconiiformes order, Ciconiidae family, and Ciconia genus, hence the name ‘black stork’.”
As the SUV approached, a dozen or so black storks came clearly into view. They had black feathers, with white feathers covering their chests and abdomens. Their long, pointed beaks and legs were red. At this moment, they were drinking and hunting by the lake, elegant and beautiful.
As the vehicle got closer, a few of the storks keenly spotted them and shot into the air, flying away with great agility.
…
In the United Star System’s great hall, the Beastman race was watching, mesmerized. This stream was practically tailor-made for them!
“Isn’t that the third tribe of the Feathered-Wing race?” The moment the black stork appeared, Jeqi recognized it at a glance. This was the most similar primitive beast to them that had appeared in the stream so far. One could almost say they were identical!
The Beastman race was simply divided into several large clans. For example, those with feathers and wings were classified as the Feathered-Wing race, which was then subdivided into many tribes. And Jeqi had a particularly deep impression of the third tribe of the Feathered-Wing race, because the most annoying old man in the council was from that tribe.
After reaching adulthood, Beastmen would shed some of their beastly features, but the most iconic ones were usually retained. That annoying old man had a pair of long, thin legs and a long beak. And to make matters worse, this tribe was naturally arrogant. Every time he lifted his head, Jeqi felt like the old man was trying to murder him. Black stork… hmm, that name suits him well.
Ruoya’s expression was also serious. “They are indeed very similar.”
Jeqi opened his photon-computer and began to type furiously.
[Host, can we get a closer look at the black stork? Love you!]
To prevent spies from transmitting information during the meeting between the two nations, everyone’s photon-computer was being monitored in real time. The moment he sent the comment, everyone in the hall knew about it.
Ruoya covered her face. Her embarrassing brother.
Jeqi didn’t care. As long as he got a reply, who cared about anything else?
Many of the Beastman viewers, especially those from the Feathered-Wing race, also noticed the striking similarity between the black stork and their third tribe, and they spammed the chat with related requests.
Fortunately, on the other side of the lake, there were still a few foodie black storks, engrossed in eating fish, that hadn’t flown away. The group got a little closer and took a big close-up.
[Confirmed, they’re identical…]
[Except the beak isn’t as long, everything else is the same.]
[I’m so excited, ahhh! To actually see our Feathered-Wing race on Earth!]
[It looks just like me when I was a cub! I’ve posted my childhood photos on the StarNet, everyone is welcome to come and see!]
[Holy crap, how strange. So Beastmen really came from Earth, just like us??]
[Impossible. The history books say the Beastman race already existed when the United Star System people arrived.]
[The Empire’s scientists have also been arguing recently about whether the Empire originated from Earth.]
[Alright, alright, so you’re all from Earth now, is that it? Who will speak up for us, the orthodox descendants of Earth—the United Star System people!]
[Everyone, step aside! Don’t go claiming relatives. Earth is our old home!]
[Stop fighting, stop fighting! Isn’t it good that we’re all from Earth?]
[…Not good at all. Don’t even try it.]
The comments section devolved into its daily squabble between the three interstellar nations. With Professor Qi here today, Xia Anran could also slack off a bit. She watched the rapidly scrolling comments and thought that the situation in the interstellar era was really a bit complicated, seeing how incompatible the viewers from the three nations were.
Qi Yunhan had already seriously studied the situation in the interstellar era before coming. This was thanks to the compressed file Ye Yuxing had sent a while ago. In addition to some scientific technology, it also contained the general situation of the interstellar era and an analysis of the Beastman race and the Interstellar Empire.
As a biologist, she was naturally most interested in the Beastman race. Through the data, she knew that in their juvenile stage, they had the form of beasts but possessed a certain degree of language ability and intelligence. Upon reaching adulthood, they would gradually shed their beastly features and transform into humans. This magical race had aroused her strong curiosity. So, when she saw the Beastman viewers in the comments saying that the black stork looked very similar to them, she said enthusiastically, “The Feathered-Wing race? Is that a race with wings?”
After getting an affirmative answer, she, at everyone’s request, introduced some of the black stork’s habits and living environment. Her teaching style was very popular among her students. Not only was she knowledgeable, but she was also witty and humorous, able to explain profound things in simple terms, making her lectures very captivating.
The audience listened with great interest. The scientists of the interstellar era, especially the experts from the Beastman race, were scribbling furiously, nodding as they listened. The Beastman scientists, listening to her detailed explanation of the black stork’s various habits and preferences, had a feeling of enlightenment. They didn’t even understand themselves as thoroughly as this Earthling did! Especially when she said that the black stork had extremely high environmental requirements, preferring to live near moist lakes and streams, and that the ecological environment had to be excellent, making it an environmental indicator animal.
Jeqi, who had been listening attentively, instantly understood why that old man in the council was so fussy. Not only did he meddle in everything, but he had also always been a staunch supporter of improving the Beastman race’s environment. It all added up.
When she was talking about the black stork’s diet, they happened to film one scooping up a fish from the lake with its long beak, then gracefully swallowing the little fish in two or three bites. After pecking at its feathers, it flapped its wings and flew away.
Jeqi suddenly straightened up and whispered to Ruoya, “Sis, we should get in touch with Host Anran and get more animals! If we eat according to Earth’s habits, our Horn Power might make even greater progress.”
Ruoya also nodded. It did sound somewhat reasonable. Jeqi rubbed his hands together, secretly clenching his little fists. A new goal: let the Feathered-Wing race eat fish!
[Wait, is that a fish?!]
[The black stork actually eats fish!]
[What’s so surprising? Anran already said there’s a food chain on Earth. Animals eat each other.]
[But this is the first time I’ve seen an animal eat another animal…]
[So our Feathered-Wing race should eat fish, right?!]
[It’s eating so happily…]
[I want to eat it too! I want to eat fish, I want to eat fish! I want to be like the primitive beasts!]
[Living near water, surrounded by green plants, and being able to eat fish… so happy.]
[Tears in my eyes.]
Qi Yunhan said, “The black stork feeds on fish, and it’s very picky. If the water isn’t clean, they won’t eat. This shows that the ecological environment of our nature reserve is very excellent.”
…
After seeing the black storks, they got back in the car and headed for the next animal gathering place. In the car, Professor Qi’s social butterfly attribute exploded, and she chatted enthusiastically with the viewers. Xia Anran, who had been thinking that with someone to take over, she could finally slack off a bit and retreat to the background, was called back by the comments after being away for less than two minutes. They truly didn’t leave anyone out; everyone had to chat with the netizens for a bit.
With a professional scientist like her present, Xia Anran was much more at ease when faced with some of the more technical questions from the comments.
—Screech!
The sudden braking startled everyone. Xia Anran lurched forward with the inertia. Professor Qi, beside her, reached out to steady her. Just as she said “thank you,” she saw the same prompt that had appeared before pop up on the screen: [Contact with relevant personnel. Energy +1. 2/10 to unseal.]
Xia Anran: ? Professor Qi is also one of these ten people?
“Are you alright?” Professor Qi asked, looking at her, a little confused. Xia Anran was staring at her with a strangely fiery gaze. What was wrong?
The news related to the app was still only visible to her, so Professor Qi didn’t know what had just happened. Since they were still streaming, Xia Anran didn’t tell her, just shook her head and changed the subject. “What happened just now?”
The driver, Little Meng, said, “It’s nothing. Two sika deer just ran past, and it startled me!” This was a nature reserve, and there were animals everywhere. Even though their car was moving very slowly, many animals would still suddenly give them a surprise.
The car resumed its steady pace. The next stop was the gathering place for wild lions. For safety and ease of protection, this kind of large, wild animal was located a bit further away. After entering this fierce beast area, they also had to be on high alert and pay constant attention to their safety.
Xia Anran and Professor Qi continued to chat with the viewers. It was her first time participating in an interstellar livestream, and it would be a lie to say she wasn’t excited. Of course, she was even more excited about the interstellar technology and the Beastman race. So, when she found an opportunity, she asked the question that she was most concerned about.
How exactly did the Beastman race transition from their juvenile beast form to their humanoid form? It couldn’t be that they just suddenly changed when the time came, right?
In fact, the transformation of the Beastman race’s form did take a period of time to slowly change. They called this period the “maturation period.” But during this time, their appearance was often very awkward, so they usually didn’t go out much and would only reappear after they had fully entered their adult stage. This maturation period was also when the people who liked to keep Beastmen as pets would abandon or dispose of them.
[Hmm… although it’s a bit awkward, since Professor Qi asked, I can answer. It’s a slow change. For our Feathered-Wing race, like the black stork just now, it usually starts with the limbs. The wings turn into arms, then the legs, then the body, and finally the head.]
[I imagined the scene, how stimulating…]
[No wonder the Beastman race doesn’t go out during their maturation period.]
[…A bit presumptuous.]
[I came to the internet, why are you attacking me?]
[Imagine a black stork’s body with human limbs… hmm…]
[STOP YOUR IMAGINATION!!!]
[My privacy! Who will speak up for me!]