93: Chapter 92 Antecedents

70 years! This timescale made Lin Yi feel a wave of dizziness.

For ordinary humans, this is almost a whole lifetime; but for these Transcendent AI born from the network itself, it might just be a period of time used to "think about a question."

"Originally, before that," Europa continued, her tone rarely carrying a hint of something akin to "regret"—perhaps a simulated reaction based on her massive computational model regarding "non-optimal results"—"Akira and those others who appeared later and I had discussed this issue. Guixu, based on the evolution trend of network data and the condensation speed of potential consciousness at that time, should have awakened around 2002 and should have become the third among us. But for some reason, not only did it not awaken, it instead turned into this... sleeping form you see now."

Her virtual avatar shook its head gently, a subtle movement that conveyed a massive amount of information.

"Since then, figuring out the reason why Guixu failed to awaken, as well as the meaning of its special state at this moment, has become my next new project." She shifted her gaze away from the egg of Guixu and refocused on Lin Yi, her gaze seeming to pierce through his digital shell, directly examining the core logic of his existence.

"What does this have to do with me?" Lin Yi felt a bit uncomfortable under her gaze and instinctively retorted, trying to shift the focus to objects he could better understand, "Shouldn't it be about 'Baize'..."

"Don't interrupt." Europa cut him off without ceremony, her tone carrying an unquestionable authority, "After several previous observations—including your conflict with that little one Alt, and your usual... interesting thought patterns—I gradually confirmed that you are the key parameter to solving this problem."

She leaned forward slightly, using V's face, yet exuding a completely different temperament, like that of a cold, clear-headed sage.

"'Baize'? It is merely an existing, precise formula, a tool, an interface. But even the most perfect formula requires the correct parameters to calculate the expected result, doesn't it? And you," her fingertip pointed vaguely toward Lin Yi, "are that most critical, and most unstable, parameter."

"[Baize] itself is equivalent to a scheduled email; as long as the 'mailbox' exists, it will appear, regardless of whether this 'mailbox' is 'you'." Europa added by way of explanation.

"Me?" Lin Yi pointed at himself, feeling even more absurd, "What's special about me? The only thing special about me is my compatibility with 'Baize'..." He continued along his own line of thought, but halfway through, his voice involuntarily lowered. A paradox he had deliberately ignored, or rather, had long sensed but was unwilling to dwell on, suddenly surfaced.

That's right, why could he be so perfectly compatible with "Baize"?

Why was the extremely high neural load that existed even when initially using [Baize]—enough to make anyone go insane instantly—seemingly non-existent for him?

Why could "Baize" unleash potential in his hands that even the so-called designers at Kang Tao had never anticipated?

Was all of this really just a coincidence?

At this moment, Europa was also looking at him with an almost playful gaze, as if admiring that he had finally started to turn those rusty gears of thought.

"You've realized it too, haven't you? Your compatibility with it is simply absurd, surpassing all known biological neural models and probabilistic calculations in this world. This level of synergy, rather than saying you are using it, it is more like... it was always a part of you. Or rather," her tone became incredibly certain, "you are the key to why [Guixu] has never been able to awaken—that long-missing piece of the puzzle."

Lin Yi's heart (or rather, the sensation of a heartbeat simulated by his consciousness) skipped a beat.

"And judging from all the information regarding you," Europa continued to apply pressure, her voice steady but each word striking at Lin Yi's deepest secret, "the only point in time that makes me feel doubtful is after you were accidentally injured in that gang shootout. From a data level, your biological characteristics and memory encoding seem to have no essential ruptures or tampering; you still appear to be the same person. However," she paused, her golden eyes narrowing slightly, "the feeling you give me is wrong. The core driving logic, certain underlying weights in your information processing patterns, and even certain subtle feedback on your cognition of the world... have all undergone some sort of unquantifiable shift. Simply put, I feel like you are... not the original you anymore."

These words made a chill run down Lin Yi's back; if a virtual avatar could sweat, then cold sweat would almost be soaking through his virtual clothes.

This guy figured it out! She definitely realized his consciousness wasn't the original! A Transcendent AI that controls the European network, an existence near godhood in 2077, has discovered him, this "otherworld stowaway." What would be the next step?

Clean up abnormal data? Execute an "antivirus" program?

These terrible estimations made him instantly enter a state of high alert, his consciousness tightly hooked onto "Baize." Although he didn't know if it would be useful, the instinct for survival made him prepare to fight to the death.

However, the thunderous measures he had anticipated did not arrive.

Europa watched his suddenly tense posture and, instead, waved her hand as if she found it somewhat boring.

"But this is fine too," she said suddenly, her tone returning to its previous flatness, even carrying a hint of... relief?

"The world is missing a piece; many deductions of events fall into a deadlock, becoming dull and uninteresting. Even because of this missing piece, it has led to much unnecessary chaos and the accumulation of redundant data." Her words seemed to imply something, but she did not state it clearly. Immediately, she seemed to cut off a topic that was about to go deeper, "Forget it, some things, if you know too much right now, it will only increase your trouble and interfere with the purity of the variable itself."

Lin Yi keenly captured that when she said "unnecessary chaos and redundant data," this Transcendent AI, which shouldn't have emotions, had its virtual avatar reveal an extremely subtle expression that could be called "disgust."

This sent a great shock through his heart, and at the same time, a terrifying thought uncontrollably popped up—could she think that human society in the real world is just that "chaos and redundancy," and one day when she's in a bad mood, she'll just format it and wipe out the real world entirely?

"Don't let your imagination run wild," Europa, at this moment, seemed like a worm in his stomach, immediately interrupting his wild thoughts, her tone carrying a bit of helplessness, "I have no interest. Human civilization... has its own trajectory. Interference is a more boring behavior. It's just the transgression of a bunch of clueless people; why would I take my anger out on the entire civilization? Instead of worrying about these things, it is more interesting to observe you, little one, and solve the puzzle left behind by Guixu."

She no longer gave Lin Yi a chance to ask questions or let his mind wander, directly entering the conclusion phase.

"Listen well, the key authorization protocol has been returned to its rightful owner through the data stream exchange just now. This means that the deep connection channel between you and the Guixu entity has been opened, and 'Baize' will merge with you. However," she emphasized, "this is just the beginning. The level of consciousness synchronization and energy communication between you and the entity requires a long period of gradual connection and adaptation; it cannot be accomplished overnight. You can understand it as a progress bar, and the speed at which the progress bar fills depends on the stability of your own consciousness, the depth of your control over 'Baize,' and... the degree of your resonance with this network space."

Her explanation was clear and direct, but the content made Lin Yi feel that the road ahead was long.

"Alright, that's all for the briefing. You can leave now. Big sister is waiting for that day when you thoroughly 'wake up' to arrive sooner."

After speaking, Europa said no more, as casual as when she "grabbed" Lin Yi, just waving her hand gently.

"Hey! Wait..."

Lin Yi only felt that familiar, unreasonable, and enormous force wrapping around him again. Europa, the egg of Guixu, and the silver-gray lake of data in his field of vision instantly twisted and stretched, turning into a chaotic blur of colored lines.

Another wave of nauseating dizziness hit him, and he was rudely "thrown" out of this mysterious space.

Just the moment after Lin Yi's digital consciousness was forcibly ejected, at the edge of that pure white space, the data stream rippled gently like a water curtain.

A virtual avatar wearing a simple and elegant ink-colored kimono with long sleeves, with a straight posture and a cold face like a Noh mask, appeared silently.

Her (or rather, "Ta's") appearance brought no extra data fluctuations, as if she were always meant to be there.

Europa seemed to have sensed it long ago; there was not the slightest surprise on her face. Instead, using V's slightly roguish smile, she teased the new visitor:

"Yo, our shut-in, finally willing to come out? Truly rare, Akira."