133: Crazy Resonance

"Of course, my friend." Aris Thorne smiled, personally swiping open the isolation door leading to Eve's work area and making a "please" gesture. "This way, please."

"Dr. Thorne, your hospitality is... I'm truly flattered." Chen Feng played the part of a pedantic scholar, his face showing the perfect mix of excitement and restraint.

"Hospitality?" Aris walked briskly through the pure white corridor without looking back. "No, Professor Feng, this is a thirst for truth! There is no need for red tape between true scholars!"

He stopped abruptly and pointed to a massive glass window, as if showing off his personal collection.

"Behold, my laboratory."

Chen Feng looked in the direction he pointed, and his pupils suddenly contracted. It was a vast, hellish space. Dozens of enormous nutrient tanks contained various bizarrely shaped creatures; further away, transparent cages imprisoned shrieking energy bodies, with countless lightning probes piercing into them as if extracting their very souls.

"Do you see?" Aris spoke in the tone of someone introducing precious collectibles, his face beaming with pride. "These are all believers of the misguided 'Theory of Relative Value'! Their existence, their twisted forms, and their painful wails have all provided the most valuable negative samples for my research!"

Chen Feng suppressed the chill rising from the depths of his soul, but the expression on his face shifted from appropriate shock to the fanaticism of a hunter who had found his prize.

"Incredible! Dr. Thorne, while your methods are effective, if I may be so bold, the efficiency is far too low!"

Aris was indeed intrigued. "Oh? Too low?"

"You are using physical means to extract souls." Chen Feng's voice was even more excited than Aris's. "But 'Subjective Concepts' are informational memes parasitic on the soul structure! Simple extraction is like shaking a tree full of bugs; some bugs will fall, but more will cling to the branches!"

He took a step forward, almost pressing against the glass, his voice full of seduction. "You should... apply a specific resonance frequency to make the 'tree' itself vibrate at high frequency, shaking the bugs off alive! This is my theory of 'Resonant Stripping'!"

A terrifying light erupted in Aris's eyes as he grabbed Chen Feng's arm. "Resonant Stripping... Brilliant! Simply brilliant! A kindred spirit! Professor Feng! You are absolutely my kindred spirit!"

He excitedly pulled Chen Feng forward but suddenly threw out a question.

"However, Professor Feng, I have a small question. Since you also believe that value is real, how do you explain the 'Zeno's Sand' paradox? That is, if the value of a single grain of sand approaches zero, why is the aesthetic value of a desert composed of billions of grains not a summation of zeros, but a brand new, grand concept? Does this not contain a shadow of 'relativity'?"

Chen Feng's heart tightened, knowing the real test had come. Maintaining his smile, he rapidly recalled the abstract of a high-dimensional philosophy paper from the Exchange.

"Doctor, your question hits the core," he began composedly. "But you are confusing 'Quantity-Value' with 'Quality-Value'. A single grain of sand is 'Ontological Value', while a desert is 'Structural Value'. When the quantity of the ontology crosses a certain 'Phase Transition Threshold', its combinatory form itself emerges with a new 'Information Entropy Structure'. This structure is a higher-dimensional 'reality'. Therefore, what we see is not a summation of value, but a 'Dimensional Leap' of value! This precisely proves that reality is layered!"

Aris looked as if he had been struck by lightning. He stood rooted to the spot, muttering to himself, "Dimensional Leap... Structural Value... why didn't I think of that..."

The way he looked at Chen Feng had changed from appreciation to awe and reverence. "Professor Feng, you... you are truly a genius!"

The two finally reached the end of the corridor, with Eve's work area right before them. Just as Chen Feng was about to step closer, Aris suddenly raised his hand to stop him.

"Don't move, Professor Feng."

Aris pointed to the empty floor around Eve's workbench and introduced it proudly. "To ensure our precious 'Sample Zero' isn't contaminated by any external information, I've set up a 'Biometric Silence Field' here."

"Any unauthorized life signs coming within a three-meter radius will trigger the highest alarm and instantly... purify the area." A cold smile appeared on his face. "We wouldn't want our conversation interrupted by a small plasma explosion, would we?"

The fanaticism on Chen Feng's face instantly froze, turning into extreme distress and disappointment. "This... this makes things difficult. My core experimental equipment, the 'Reality Potentiality Disruptor', requires 'Conceptual Field Contact' at extremely close range with the observation target to be calibrated."

A hint of impatience appeared on Aris's face. "Then there's nothing for it. Rules are rules."

"Sigh!" Chen Feng let out a heavy sigh, as if all hope had been shattered. Carrying his briefcase, he turned away in disappointment, seemingly prepared to leave.

The moment he turned, his foot seemed to trip on something. He stumbled, the briefcase flew from his hand, hitting the ground with a "snap" as the latch popped open.

"Oh! Damn it! My babies!" Chen Feng let out an exaggerated cry and lunged toward it.

Several strange-looking "experimental props" rolled out from the case. One was a "Quantum Kaleidoscope" made of seemingly countless lenses, and another was a "Causality Blur Lens" with cloudy glass. Additionally, a nondescript, dark gray data storage device, smaller than a fingernail, rolled silently into a corner.

"Careful! Don't step on them!" Chen Feng crawled on the floor, frantically picking up the flamboyant props, completely ignoring the tiny storage device. "These are fragile works of art! Every curve contains the harmonics of the universe! If my life's work is broken, it's all over!"

His exaggerated actions and noisy complaints successfully drew all of Aris's attention.

Aris's gaze, however, was fixed on the storage device Chen Feng had "forgotten." Under the cover of Chen Feng's shouting and crawling on the floor, he clearly saw a faint emblem consisting of several concentric circles engraved on the corner of the device.

That was... the symbol of the Mechanical Divine Court!

A surge of burning greed instantly clouded Aris's mind.

He took a seemingly casual step forward, using the tip of his shoe to gently nudge the storage device under his foot, and then discreetly stepped on it. The entire movement was seamless. He believed this mad professor, immersed in the pain of his damaged "artworks," would never notice.

Chen Feng finally "rescued" his treasures. Sweating profusely, he stuffed them back into the case and stood up with an apologetic look. "Sorry, Doctor, I lost my composure. These things are too delicate, and I was too anxious about them."

Internally, however, he was perfectly clear: "The fish has taken the bait."

Aris's face wore a smile of being in total control, along with a barely perceptible hint of smugness. He pointed to a more private, higher-security room nearby and said:

"It's fine, Professor Feng. It seems we need a safer and more... private environment to appreciate your 'masterpieces'. How about the advanced observation room next door?"

"...That works too," Chen Feng replied submissively.

"Please." Aris made an inviting gesture, taking the lead to guide Chen Feng away from this area temporarily.

This was both to better "study" this Professor Feng and to create an opportunity for himself to check the spoils under his foot. But he did not know that this was exactly what gave Chen Feng the time to plan the next step and ignite everything.