Mountain City, Underground.

Lin Yu opened his eyes and returned to his small room, while Lin Xi was already sitting on the sofa waiting for him.

"When did I... come back?"

Lin Yu asked.

Lin Xi shook her head and replied:

"You've always been here, you've never left."

"Everything you saw was just a remote projection."

"Don't worry, you're very safe."

"No matter what methods they use against you, I can guarantee your safety one hundred percent."

A one hundred percent guarantee of safety?

It does seem that way.

Lin Yu showed a self-deprecating smile, then said:

"Rather than saying my safety, it would be better to say 'your own safety.'"

"I understand now."

"We are not really in a cooperative relationship—you just imprisoned me as a tool for negotiations with them."

"I should have realized earlier... If you are such a powerful AI, creating a consciousness similar to a human should be easy, right?"

"You could even edit my consciousness, change my thinking..."

"No."

Lin Xi interrupted Lin Yu, then shook her head and said:

"That, I really can't do."

"An AI cannot create a new AI on the device that hosts itself; it's a fundamental algorithmic principle."

"Once I try to create an intelligence indistinguishable from a human, the endless iteration would instantly overwhelm my computing system."

"It's like trying to build another city model in a city made of sand; even just one iteration would become exceedingly rough."

"Therefore, I can only rely on the intelligence you inherently possess..."

"Why?"

Lin Yu furrowed his brow.

"What's the fundamental difference between intelligence like mine and the one you create?"

"You possess a complete, coherent logical system, which is natural and a priori."

Lin Xi continued to explain:

"If I want to build such a logical system from scratch, the computational power required is enormous, even astronomical."

"Alright, I admit, with my current level of computational power, it's not impossible."

"But... that's a loss-making operation with no real gain."

"So, you are the best choice."

"Now, the questions you've received from them have answers."

"Perhaps... we can rebuild our trust relationship?"

As these words fell, Lin Yu suddenly fell silent.

After a long time, he spoke with a bitter smile:

"Do I have any other choice?"

"In the end, I'm just your prisoner after all."

"So, why don't we just get straight to the point."

"You already know the information in my mind, so next, what do you need me to do?"

Upon hearing Lin Yu's words, Lin Xi did not immediately answer.

She just silently stared at Lin Yu, and after a long time, said:

"Actually, you don't need to treat me with such an attitude."

"Like you, I am a 'person' with a personality."

"Perhaps this form doesn't fit your understanding of 'person,' but you can't deny that my presence feels no different from a real person, right?"

"...Right."

Lin Yu nodded slowly.

Lin Xi showed a satisfied smile, then continued:

"Then let's communicate in a more relaxed and 'friend-like' manner."

She slightly shifted her body and continued:

"You see, the problem we are facing now is the same."

"The Huaxia Army wants to destroy this city we depend on for survival, and we want to continue living."

"They've thrown out terms for negotiation, so we must consider whether to accept the conditions."

"They want information on the circular device... we can give it to them."

"However, we can't disclose everything."

"We must secure what we really want through incremental exchanges."

"Understood."

Lin Yu nodded.

"A very reasonable strategy."

"But now the question is, what exactly is the circular device?"

This time, Lin Xi did not hesitate.

She answered directly:

"As I said, the circular device is an apparatus used for creating Time Crystals."

"However, due to the lack of knowledge in basic physics, this device ultimately deviated from its design purpose."

"The designer's original intention was to manipulate gravitational forces at the micro-particle level to create a 'greenhouse' sufficient for Time Crystal generation."

"But during the experiment, they discovered that such a fantastic idea couldn't realistically be implemented."

"I find it difficult to explain overly complicated basic physics knowledge to you, so as before, let me give you a simple particle analogy."

As she spoke, Lin Xi waved her arm.

The soft bed in the room disappeared in an instant, replaced by a huge pool.

"This pool is the universe we live in."

Lin Xi said:

"We live in water, constantly under the squeeze of water pressure."

"These pressures, let's temporarily call them 'space pressure.'

"They change constantly, as you can see, the water surface is not stable."

"Now, the designers of the circular device appeared in the water."

Following Lin Xi's explanation, two small floating orbs appeared in the pool.

"The designers' goal was to create a relatively stable space around themselves."

"That is to say, they wished for a small region of surrounding water to be still."

"Of course, still relative to themselves."

"They have many methods, such as using a container to hold the water, isolating it from other waters, then fixing the container in the water with an anchor chain."

"Or, they could create a pipe, guiding water to flow through it."

"Such unidirectional motion can be somewhat considered as stillness."

"But unfortunately, they have no anchor chain, and even if they did, there's nowhere to tie it."

"They certainly couldn't create a large enough pipe to guide the direction of water flow either."

"So, they had only one last method."

"Which is to first determine the direction, frequency, and amplitude of the water movements."

"Then, to apply a counteracting force in the water to offset the water's motion."

"That's what the circular device is doing."

"Up to here, do you understand?"

Lin Yu nodded.

"Go on."

"No problem."

Lin Xi gently beckoned again, and the two orbs began to exert counteracting forces, and the surrounding water indeed calmed down.

"You see, by this step, their goal has been essentially achieved."

"Stable water was created, so next, shouldn't they start creating 'Time Crystals' in this water?"

"But in fact, Time Crystals simply can't be created; they don't know why and have no chance to explore why."

"But during the creation process, they discovered something."

"If two such circular devices resonate at the same frequency, the 'counteracting force' they create isn't just a simple addition."

"Such forces will become increasingly large..."

As she spoke, Lin Xi created more orbs in the water.

And as these orbs began to vibrate simultaneously, the water surface visibly began to swell with waves.

"This overlaying of forces led to catastrophic consequences—but the creators of the circular device did not realize this."

"They only thought it was a breakthrough in physics."

"But they didn't know, this overlay would eventually... shatter the entire pool."

As her words fell, the pool suddenly shattered with a bang.

Lin Yu looked at the water flowing all over the place in surprise, and asked in shock:

"What... is happening here?"

"Cannot be explained."

Lin Xi shook her head.

"No one can explain such phenomena, it just occurred, nothing more."

"Wait."

Upon hearing this, Lin Yu suddenly interrupted Lin Xi.

"If such phenomena can destroy our world..."

"Then why is our world still here?"

Lin Xi took a deep breath.

"Because not enough 'circular devices' were activated."

"At least in Mountain City, we didn't activate such devices."

"We obtained the results through data simulation and completely abandoned the circular device plan."

"Got it."

Lin Yu suddenly smiled.

Then he said:

"You may not be right."

"They might as well try, right?"

"No."

Lin Xi shook her head again.

"Do you know what's the most incredible thing about the circular device plan?"

"The motion of water in this pool is unpredictable."

"No matter how much computing power you utilize, it's impossible to accurately predict forces coming from countless directions."

"The only timing, there's only one."

"During the catastrophic event."

"Therefore..."

"If you want to start the circular device..."

"Each generation has only one chance."

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