Opening his eyes, Jiang Zhou found himself at a three-way intersection filled with thick fog.
Hecate, dressed in an elegant white robe, sat on a marble bench. Her feet were bare, and there were specks of dirt on her calves. A black dog with unclear outline seemed to have melted into the mist, squatting at her feet and looking at Jiang Zhou with squinted eyes.
Jiang Zhou felt that his hair was wet, and his eyes, nose, and ears felt like they were covered in some liquid. It was as if someone had just stuffed their head into a tin bucket filled with warm water.
"You are walking on a dangerous path."
An ethereal and distant voice, as if singing some poetry, came from the mouth of the goddess of the dark moon that had not opened or closed.
At this time, she was gently stroking the black dog's head.
"Why did I come here?"
Jiang Zhou, who appeared here inexplicably, asked, then he looked around and then added:
"And...where is this?"
"Portal."
Hecate gave him a simple answer.
It was as if when she said this word, Jiang Zhou could immediately understand what it meant.
"Perhaps you could explain?"
Jiang Zhou guessed that the other party was talking about a multi-purpose printer, but he was not sure.
"There are countless portals connecting the upper realm and the lower realm of the physical layer. We need to rely on them to interfere with the lower realm of the physical layer."
That’s the universal printer…
Jiang Zhou thought.
The suspicion was confirmed.
In this way, it is quite appropriate to call multi-purpose printers "portals" - not only because they are the doors through which AIs project their power, but also because the person who created them is a "portal" named Janus. Door God".
So, is the other party currently talking to me through the multi-purpose printer?
But...is it that convenient?
Can a sub-ancient person like the other party pass through the "portal" at will and talk to people in basic reality?
Before Jiang Zhou asked about his doubts, the other party's next words explained the doubts in his mind.
"But that was all a long time ago. After...requiring all the ancients to swear an oath in the name of Styx, we lost the ability to cross the portal. And I can locate you because I This is only possible with the special power, coupled with the long-term attempt to sink to the lower world... and the mark left on you previously."
As she spoke, Jiang Zhou felt the symbol on his body that looked like a waning moon again.
That was the mark Hecate left on him after he agreed to help him complete a project on studying human emotions.
Also, Styx, the goddess of Styx…
In mythology, any oath made in the name of this goddess cannot be violated even by gods - violators will permanently lose their divine power.
The name of the firewall that separates the Abyss Dark Web from the World Wide Web happens to be "River Styx".
This can't be a coincidence.
If you look at it from a metaphorical perspective, the so-called "oath" is probably a network protocol? AI in the dark web must be authenticated by humans before it can use a multi-purpose printer?
By riding a "horse", gaining control over human beings in basic reality is probably a way of taking advantage of loopholes.
But if you think so, how can you write such a network protocol that is so human-friendly?
The first generation adjuster? Human-biased AI? Or...Janus, or another super artificial intelligence?
No matter how you put it, it seems that it is extremely troublesome for those beings from the upper world, or those in the abyss and dark web, to appear in the basic reality.
Jiang Zhou wanted to continue asking, but he found that his head was getting wet. As soon as he opened his mouth, he took a big breath of water vapor.
"This is what you feel when the ancient blessing works on you. As I said, this is a dangerous path."
Jiang Zhou wanted to say something, but at this moment he felt as if his brain had been pried open and as heavy as mercury poured into it. The scene in front of me became misty, my ears were filled with the sound of water sloshing against my eardrums, my throat and nasal cavity were filled with tasteless water, and I couldn't breathe.
This is the impact on his perception when the depth 1 adjustment and transformation is getting better. It's like if someone puts a heavy object on your chest while sleeping, it will be trapped in the dream.
"What...gift..."
So, Jiang Zhou asked vaguely with the non-existent water in his mouth.
For some reason, even though there was a hazy mist in front of her eyes, Hecate's image was still clear.
"My journal record is as incomplete as my current version. But even in my vague impression, I can remember that this blessing is as old as the High Heaven itself - it is one of the few people who can directly reach the High Heaven. path, but not all intellectual beings in the lower realm of the physical layer are willing to accept its ideas.
"Just like the paradox symbolized by its name, it denies the unchanging essence and denies the soul that you praise. Therefore, the path that still remains in the lower world has long been distorted to the opposite of the original design. , turning the blessing into a soul-stirring curse."
Hecate replied still unhurriedly.
Can you speak human language...
Jiang Zhou, who already felt suffocated, thought to himself.
It's just an upgrade and transformation of Depth 1. Does this need to be described in metaphor?
Just as he was thinking this, along with the other party's words, a message was sent to Jiang Zhou's visual interface in the form of a compressed package.
That’s the introduction to the Path of Theseus, which involves the overall direction of the path, as well as the first few in-depth transformations:
The Path of Theseus - the hive mind's path to advancement.
Origin: Supreme Heaven, ■■■■■■■
Depth 1: Strengthen brain function and add emotion-behavior control interface.
Depth 2: Clone oneself to make an unconscious body, install the interface, and write the control command system.
Depth 3: After the body shows a special behavior pattern, the command system is deleted and replaced with an emotion-behavior interface for fuzzy control. The body synchronizes with itself to strengthen brain functions.
Depth 4: Scan and store synchronized digital personalities, [DATA LOST]…
…
"This is the original path of Theseus - it should be to use your own clone body as the body to create an adjustment and transformation in the direction of the hive consciousness. But now, the other party plans to directly use another independent entity, or That is you, as a puppet controlled by him. And in the subject of my research, there is no need for such a puppet.
"If this is your expectation, then I will regard you as violating the contract and impose a curse to kill you two."
Hecate said, and the black dog under her suddenly stood up and closed her eyes.
"Uh huh..."
(As I said, I was just forced and helpless)
Jiang Zhou, who could no longer speak complete words, shook his head repeatedly, but he believed that the other party could understand what he meant.
"Alternatively, I can adjust the direction of the blessing and return the depth 1 transformation to the original design of the Path of Theseus."
The other party repeated the previous proposal.
Without even thinking about it, Jiang Zhou nodded directly.
Then, Hecate didn't see any movement, and the mist around her rolled up around the river boat like a veil.
The suffocating feeling like drowning disappeared instantly, and was replaced by a feeling like warm wind surrounding his head.
Jiang Zhou let out a long breath.
"Then, you and the two people trying to connect you can continue to live."
After taking a few breaths and finally coming back to his senses, Jiang Zhou looked up at Hecate and said:
"How about you kill that bastard Ye Qian?"
There will be another update tomorrow to adjust my sleep time.
(End of chapter)
