98: The power of emotional anchors and the "shutdown" protocol

Excellence's brief, unconscious "divine revelation" that erupted in the middle of the night, like a volcanic explosion, seemed to have exhausted his already fragile mental energy reserves in one go.

In the following days, he fell into a state of extreme lethargy and exhaustion.

That heart-stopping, sharp light, as if possessed by some transcendent wisdom, had completely vanished from his eyes, replaced by a listless sense of fatigue, as if all his strength had been drained away.

He became abnormally sleepy, his waking hours each day significantly shortened. Even when awake, he would often lean against the headboard or sit in his wheelchair with vacant eyes, reacting slowly to things around him, as if a part of his soul was still lingering in that strange dimension filled with complex equations and stellar vortices.

More worryingly, his cognitive state seemed to have regressed to a certain degree.

He had no memory of the deduction process he had written down that night, which would have left top physicists dumbfounded, as if that experience had never happened.

When Su Mu tentatively showed him those draft papers, he just glanced at them blankly, with no flicker of familiarity or understanding in his eyes, as if seeing only a pile of meaningless, chaotic scribbles. He then looked away with a lack of interest, even frowning slightly, revealing a childlike confusion and impatience.

Even the various "hand-crafted" invention projects he had previously been obsessed with and poured great passion into—those whimsical devices pieced together with discarded parts and tape—seemed to have completely lost their appeal to him.

Those semi-finished products on the workbench were left neglected, covered in a thin layer of dust.

His behavioral patterns also became simpler and more instinct-dependent.

Like a small animal seeking shelter after being frightened, he subconsciously clung to Su Mu, almost never leaving her side.

He would silently tug at the corner of Su Mu's clothes, following behind her, or when she sat down, he would quietly lean against her side, resting his head gently on her shoulder, as if only through this direct physical contact could he feel a faint sense of security and confirm his connection to this reality.

Su Mu's voice, her smile, and her familiar scent became the only clear, stable, and warm lighthouse in his ocean of chaotic consciousness, guiding him so he would not be completely lost in the void and fragmented memory lapses within his heart.

This seemingly "regressive" state, on the contrary, made Su Mu and Evelyn, who had been in a state of high tension and worry, secretly breathe a sigh of relief.

Although they felt heartache for Excellence's weakness and confusion, compared to that out-of-control "genius" mode that seemed ready to burn out or trigger unknown risks at any moment, the Excellence before them, who had returned to a kind of childlike simplicity and even some fragility, while heartbreaking, was at least controllable, understandable, and relatively safe according to the vital sign monitoring data.

That late-night intellectual storm was more like a dangerous, overdraft-style accidental discharge, and the current lethargy was perhaps an instinctive protective inhibition of the brain, a forced cooling of the system after overloading.

Therefore, they unanimously adjusted their strategy, shifting the focus of their guardianship from guidance and stimulation to soothing and stabilization.

They decided to use the purest warmth and companionship to build a psychological cocoon for Excellence that was as far from stimulation as possible and full of security, carefully nurturing his flickering mental flame, which was like a candle in the wind.

Su Mu almost put aside all her personal affairs and advanced study plans, devoting all her time and energy to accompanying Excellence in his recovery.

Her role was more like that of a patient and gentle mother or older sister.

She brought many fairy tale books and popular science picture books with beautiful illustrations and simple plots, reading them to him over and over again in a soft and soothing tone. Even though Excellence often just listened quietly, his eyes not focused on the pages, she believed that the rhythm of this familiar voice itself had a soothing effect.

Every day, she insisted on pushing his wheelchair, taking him for slow walks in the Ecological Garden within the base, which simulated a natural environment. She guided him to look at the green leaves stretching under the sunlight, listen to the gurgling sound of the fountain, and feel the touch of the breeze on his cheeks, using the simplest sensory experiences to pull him back to the "here and now."

She also dug out some long-forgotten, simple board games, such as Chinese checkers and Ludo, patiently teaching him the rules and playing with him.

Excellence would sometimes understand, and sometimes make mistakes, but in the process, he would occasionally reveal a long-lost, slightly shy, and happy smile that belonged to his age, which became Su Mu's greatest solace.

Evelyn also completely reined in her professional edge as a top scientist and her habit of leading discussions.

She no longer brought any academic materials or complex questions that might trigger deep thinking, instead turning to provide some gentle sedatives that acted purely on the senses and emotions.

She carefully selected some classical music with extremely soothing melodies and rich harmonies or natural white noise to play while Excellence rested; she used her authority to find some high-quality essential oil aromatherapy with calming effects, such as lavender and sandalwood, letting the recovery room be filled with a faint, relaxing fragrance; more often, she just sat quietly not far away, accompanying Excellence in a daze, or when he interacted with Su Mu, she would hand over a glass of warm water or a small, easily digestible snack, conveying care through this silent and thoughtful presence.

She keenly observed that when she and Su Mu were both present, and both maintained a peaceful, warm, and non-intrusive attitude, a subtle and stable emotional field would form among the three of them.

At this time, Excellence's Emotion-Visualization Device would often present the most reassuring state—projecting a stable and soft warm yellow halo, with patterns mostly being dynamic, like dandelion seeds gently falling or gentle ripples on the water's surface, symbolizing the rare peace and tranquility in his heart.

"For now, a solid emotional connection, especially the deep, almost instinctual reliance and trust between him and Su Mu, may be the most effective, and perhaps the only, 'anchor' to stabilize his mental state."

Evelyn solemnly put forward her analytical conclusion during a routine report to Wang Jianguo, "His world of consciousness is now like a broken ocean that could whip up huge waves at any time, and Su Mu's presence is like the sturdiest lighthouse. We need to do everything possible to strengthen and maintain this positive emotional support environment, using stable, predictable daily rhythms and kind interactions to help him rebuild his sense of internal Order."

Wang Jianguo deeply agreed.

As the highest person in charge of the base, he certainly had to consider macro strategic security and scientific research value, but he also understood that for Excellence at this moment, a safe recovery environment full of humanistic care was far more important than any eager-for-success research exploration.

He specially approved more resources to improve Excellence's daily living conditions.

The recovery room was decorated to be more warm and cozy, with added soft indirect lighting and comfortable soft furnishings; in terms of diet, under the premise of ensuring absolute safety and nutritional balance, he tried his best to satisfy his personal taste preferences; even, after extremely strict safety assessments and medical permission, Wang Jianguo made an exception to allow Su Mu, under close protection, to take Excellence for some richer activities that helped relax the body and mind and facilitate emotional communication.

For example, in a small, highly shielded screening room inside the base, they could watch some nature documentaries or animated films with relaxing content and beautiful visuals; or, under the full supervision of medical staff, he could have contact with a therapy dog that had been strictly trained and had an extremely gentle temperament.

When Excellence carefully reached out his hand for the first time to touch the soft, warm fur of the golden retriever, and saw it wagging its tail in a friendly manner, the simple, almost overflowing joy and relaxation that appeared in his eyes moved everyone present.

However, as a leader burdened with huge responsibilities, Wang Jianguo could never just immerse himself in the warmth before him.

He had to maintain absolute calmness and foresight, preparing for all worst-case scenarios that might occur.

The uncontrolled "divine revelation" Excellence had in the middle of the night, and Evelyn's warning about his consciousness potentially collapsing because he could not control his inner power, hung over his heart like a sharp sword.

He knew deeply that the power sleeping (or rather, already beginning to stir) within Excellence was a true double-edged sword, capable of bringing unimaginable breakthroughs while also potentially leading to devastating consequences.

Once it spiraled out of control, not only would Excellence's own life be at risk, but it could even cause unpredictable threats to the entire base and even wider areas.

Therefore, under absolute secrecy, Wang Jianguo secretly convened the base's core decision-making layer, top medical experts, neuroscientists, and Evelyn, the technical consultant with valuable "counter-party" experience, to jointly formulate an extreme emergency plan codenamed "Lullaby."

The "Lullaby" plan was a heavy and helpless last resort.

Its core goal was to activate a forced, yet designed-to-be-as-reversible-as-possible "consciousness dormancy" program in extreme cases where Excellence experienced irreversible, self- or others-endangering runaway consciousness, loss of control of abilities, or nervous breakdown.

This program could be called a complex systems engineering project, combining various cutting-edge technologies:

The most potent neuro-sedative drug combination: using precisely calculated, multi-target, potent sedatives to inhibit the over-excitation of the central nervous system as quickly as possible, while strictly controlling the dosage and method of administration to minimize permanent damage to neurons.

Precise Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) intervention: using magnetic fields of specific frequencies and intensities to act precisely on key Nodes of the brain (such as the thalamus and prefrontal cortex), temporarily "interfering" with or "inhibiting" abnormal neural cluster synchronous discharge, breaking the chain of runaway conscious activity.

Neuro-inhibition scheme based on The Foundation's technology improvements: with key parameters provided by Evelyn, targeting the special consciousness activity patterns that "pandora" fragments might trigger, a highly specific bio-electrical signal interference mode was designed, similar to a targeted "consciousness firewall" or "neural lock."

The decision-making power to activate the "Lullaby" plan was firmly held in Wang Jianguo's hands alone.

After the plan was activated, Excellence would be immediately transferred to a specially made medical isolation pod with super-strong shielding and life-support functions, entering a deep state of dormancy, similar to animal hibernation, where physiological metabolism dropped to an extremely low level.

In this state, his dangerous conscious activity would be forcibly "paused," buying valuable rescue time for the medical team, while also controlling potential threats to the minimum range.

The process of discussing and formulating this plan was filled with a repressive and heavy atmosphere.

Every participant was clear that this meant that in a last resort, they would have to personally "shut down" that young and precious consciousness they had tried their best to protect.

This was undoubtedly an extremely painful decision that violated medical ethics and humanistic spirit.

Especially Su Mu, when she, as Excellence's closest guardian, was limitedly informed of the plan's existence (for the sake of stabilizing her emotions, details were not fully disclosed), her face turned pale instantly, tears gushed out like a broken dam, and her body trembled slightly due to immense fear and sadness.

"It won't... it definitely won't reach that point..." she choked, almost unable to speak clearly, clutching Wang Jianguo's arm tightly, as if grabbing the last straw, "Uncle Wang, we will definitely be able to protect him, right? He will definitely get better... we can't... we can't do that to him..."

Wang Jianguo looked at the strong yet currently incredibly fragile girl before him, his heart filled with complex emotions.

He patted her shoulder firmly and solemnly, his tone calm and firm, carrying a promise that could not be doubted, yet also revealing the cold reality that a decision-maker must face: "Su Mu, I promise you, as long as there is the slightest possibility, we will never activate 'Lullaby'. Its meaning is not for use, but to ensure that we always have the final choice, to leave a final glimmer of hope for him, and for all of us, in a true desperate situation. This is responsible for his life, and also responsible for the safety of the base and more people. We must be prepared for the worst in Order to strive for the best result without any worries."

This "shutdown" protocol, hanging high like the Sword of Damocles, cast a cold shadow that was difficult to dispel over the daily life in the base that seemed to be gradually returning to peace and warmth.

It constantly reminded every core participant that what they were guarding was not just a genius boy who needed help, but also a potential "strategic-level" existence whose energy level could not be estimated.

Every day, they walked on thin ice between the two poles of hopeful emotional comfort and cold plans for dealing with the worst-case scenarios.

Warm companionship and harsh plans, like light and shadow, together constituted the complex picture of guarding Excellence, testing everyone's wisdom, courage, and the limits of their inner endurance.