183: Chapter 183: My brother has just ravaged the entire universe; what will happen to the universe now that he's involved in the Zisha fire?

Xiao Yu slumped on the sofa, letting out a satisfied breath: "Now this is a normal vacation!"

She adjusted the transparent pinhole camera on her beige trench coat, ensuring it could capture the figure of Xiaoyu's brother.

Xiao Yu looked ahead, watching her brother brewing black tea, and couldn't help asking: "Brother, last time you mentioned the first observer in the universe. Do you really know that there are observers in the universe, and do you even know who the first observer is?"

As the livestream began, people who had been waiting for a long time flooded into the stream.

Inside Qingfeng Temple, in the living room, Zheng Ming, Celestial Master Zhang, Wang Chongyang, and Professor Zhang Qinian sat up straight, drinking tea while watching.

Zheng Ming looked at Professor Zhang, "Professor, did you know that Xiaoyu's brother was on TV yesterday, even though his voice was modulated?"

Professor Zhang nodded and snorted coldly, "His first answer was passable, much better than those straight-A students; but the second and third ones are completely unprovable. To fabricate evidence, he even claimed that only he personally knows about the [Doppelgänger Phenomenon]..."

"If I were on the judging panel, I would definitely compete with him!"

Zheng Ming grinned, "As expected of Professor Zhang!"

On the other side, in the principal's office, Principal Fu, Professor Wang Shouren, Xiao Wang, and Old Yu the Physicist were ready.

As for the other teachers, due to the holiday, they weren't too enthusiastic and decided not to return to school temporarily.

In the Huaqing University physics professor dormitory, Professor Ouyang Baili turned off the room's ceiling light, leaving only the light from the large screen. Beside him, Li Mo, Professor Guan Jingming, and Professor Wu were sitting on warm blankets or lying on the sofa, along with several physics students, waiting punctually in front of the screen.

Even the three professors in the living room could cause a bit of a stir if they appeared on TV, just not as much as Jiang Zhe!

At the Kyoto residential compound, Professor Chen Runzhi and the others were also ready.

A large wave of newcomers flooded the livestream, and the screen was filled with comments.

[Dabei University History Department: Lin Ran]: "Came over from the Intelligence Peak Tournament, checking in!"

[Modu Physics Department: Lin Wei]: "+1, wow, is this the brother from TV yesterday with the modulated voice? He's so handsome in person... But claiming to know the first observer of the universe, isn't that a bit too arrogant? There is no consensus in the academic world yet!"

[Huaqing Medical Student: Classmate Zhao]: "A fellow contestant from the same tournament coming to observe. I sat in the back row yesterday, and your answers left us stunned. I didn't expect you old viewers to be used to this already, right?"

[Steel Rain Fan Club No. 1]: "Hahaha, welcome newcomers. You'll get used to it. With Brother, there is nothing he doesn't know, only brain holes you can't keep up with."

[Steel Rain Fan Club No. 2]: "Stay calm, stay calm. If you feel your worldview being refreshed later, remember to hold tight to us veterans!"

"..." Countless comments scrolled by as new and old viewers exchanged a few words.

On screen, in the living room, on the sofa, Xiao Yu watched her brother bring over the black tea, "Brother, who exactly is the first observer in the universe?"

Jiang Zhe gently placed the black tea on the coffee table in front of her and sat down on the sofa opposite.

He didn't answer directly but picked up his tea and blew on it gently: "Xiao Yu, before asking who or where the first observer is, perhaps you should ask another, more fundamental question!"

"A more fundamental question?"

"Yes." Jiang Zhe said calmly, "What you should ask is: If, from the very beginning, there was never a first observer, then what would the universe itself become?"

Xiao Yu was stunned by this reverse question and subconsciously said: "Without a first observer, the universe would..."

At this moment, in the livestream, countless viewers were also taken aback by the sudden question.

"Eh? This angle!"

"Here it comes, the classic Brother-style counter-question. The question itself is the key!"

"Does existence precede observation? Or does observation define existence? This question itself is very philosophical!"

"What does that mean? Without an observer, the universe doesn't exist? Isn't that obvious?"

"The person above is too naive. Brother's question definitely isn't that simple. Just know that it's terrifying the more you think about it."

Inside Qingfeng Temple, Professor Zhang Qinian rolled his eyes at Jiang Zhe on the big screen: "Avoiding the unanswerable question of who is first, and instead discussing the state of the universe without observation... That's a rhetorical trick to avoid direct falsification, but it still sounds empty."

In the Huaqing University lounge, Professor Ouyang Baili nodded slightly: "He is shifting the question from searching for an entity to deducing a state. Interesting—many truths are deduced through thought experiments; he is pushing the necessity of observation to a logical extreme to test the possibilities."

Li Mo and Professor Guan Jingming glanced at each other. Although they didn't know why, they were indeed attracted by this thought experiment.

In the principal's office, Old Yu the Physicist's eyes lit up, "He's getting to the point. Let's see how he uses everyday examples to explain this extreme thought experiment."

On the big screen, Xiao Yu recovered from her shock, her brows furrowed, "Brother, I don't quite understand what you mean. Without an observer, wouldn't the universe just be a chaotic void, or not exist at all? We discussed this a few days ago!"

"That was the conclusion, not the process." Jiang Zhe put down the black tea, his tone gradually becoming calm, "Brother won't use complex and difficult scientific formulas to deduce it. Brother will use an example that you, I, and everyone in the world can understand to simulate it!"

"Assume that, right at this moment, Brother possesses a conceptual ability beyond understanding, and Brother can indiscriminately kill all things that observe."

"Brother will first make all people on Earth, all living beings capable of producing observational consciousness—from humans to cats and dogs, and even complex life that might possess primitive perception—all of them disappear instantly without pain."

Xiao Yu's eyes widened slightly, "Uh-huh~"

"In this way, within the scope of Earth, there are no observers, but Earth still exists, right?"

Xiao Yu nodded hesitantly.

Jiang Zhe nodded gently and continued, "Then, Brother has to go on a long trip. First, leave Earth and take a tour of the Solar System. Eliminate the microorganisms that might exist on Mars and the fish that might swim in the oceans of Europa—everything in the Solar System that could theoretically give birth to or possess consciousness—let their lives end."

"In this way, within the Solar System, there are also no observers, but the Solar System still exists, right?"

"Right!"

At this moment, countless viewers, teachers, and experts were captivated by this topic. Can the first observer be deduced this way?

"Next, Brother has to go even further." To make the atmosphere less serious, Jiang Zhe cracked a small joke, "Hmm, Brother might first go to the supermarket, pick up two boxes of milk, and go to an extraterrestrial galaxy to give a gift. After all, there must be a justified reason; before killing them, I have to let them have a full meal."

"Then I can incidentally visit other planets in the Milky Way that might harbor intelligent life, such as the Three-Body planet or Centaurus... Whether they are carbon-based, silicon-based, or energy-based life, as long as they have the possibility of looking at the universe, Brother will visit them all and force them to log off and rest."

"Thus, within the Milky Way, there are also no observers, but the Milky Way still exists—because Brother is still observing, right!"

Xiao Yu nodded repeatedly, her beautiful eyes shining. Brother is really ruthless when he kills!

In the Kyoto residential compound, Professor Wang Shouren was somewhat surprised, "Giving gifts, giving milk..."

Professor Chen Runzhi beside him had a very grave expression: "It's not a joke. He is using the most mundane language to describe a thought experiment about what would happen to the universe if no one observed it!"

Soon, Jiang Zhe's voice came again.

"But this is not enough. Brother must continue to walk, continue to search—extragalactic galaxies, the Local Group, the Virgo Supercluster... every corner of the observable universe, every possibility in the unobservable universe—as long as there is a possibility of observation, Brother will raise his hand and force it to zero."

"Kill, or rather, make it stop observing."

"So Brother keeps killing, keeps cleaning—until the entire universe, from its birth to the present, all life or traces that could possibly evolve the act of observation are all erased by Brother."

"Finally, the entire universe—up, down, all directions, throughout time—only Brother, I, remain, still possessing the ability to observe."

Xiao Yu was holding her breath upon hearing this, and her little paws couldn't help but tuck into the pockets of her beige trench coat.

In the livestream, the active comments had long since disappeared, and everyone was listening quietly.

Jiang Zhe nodded slightly, looking at Xiao Yu.

"Xiao Yu, remember this hypothetical state at this moment."

"In this state, Brother, as the only and last observer of the universe, is still sitting here; I can use a super telescope to look at galaxies billions of light-years away; I can examine the beauty of the cosmic microwave background radiation; I can also observe quantum fluctuations... I can still see the appearance of the entire universe, and the existence of the universe is still clear and perceptible to me at this time, right?"

Xiao Yu nodded subconsciously; logically, it seemed correct. As long as there is one observer, the observed state of the universe will continue.

Then, as Jiang Zhe changed the subject, he threw out the ultimate question: "But, here is the point—"

"Now, Brother, this last observer, decides..." He paused for a full 2.5 seconds before speaking: "To commit suicide!"

"When the last living being in the universe, the last consciousness, the last source capable of observation, which is Brother, completely dies, the mind is extinguished, and the act of observation terminates forever!!!"

At this point, Jiang Zhe sat up straight, his gaze cold, "At that time, this universe that was evolving just fine—the sun is the sun, the moon is the moon, the Earth is the Earth; at that time, with the disappearance of the last observer: Brother, what will happen to this Earth, the sun, the moon, and even the entire universe?"