The Professor

Noble people will always receive the noble end they deserve, while scumbags can never escape their own fitting fate. Having apparently realized his death was inevitable, Guixu—who had finally finished wetting himself—could no longer endure this final "humiliation." He let out a hysterical roar at the receding Alliance building. "Utterly idiotic! Handing over the civilized world on a silver platter to the savages of the wasteland!!! You don't deserve to be shelter residents at all! You have betrayed the Human Alliance! Betrayed the people who built the shelters!! Just—just you wait, you won't come to a good end!!" Tears and snot streamed down his contorted face. That hysterical howling and malice didn't just seem barbaric—it hardly seemed human at all. The soldier pinning his shoulders shot him a look of disgust, not wanting the foul liquids to stain his uniform, yet compelled to keep a firm grip on him to prevent suicide. For a man with no hope left of surviving, that was not out of the question. Though whether this fellow actually had that kind of courage was another matter. "Savages of the wasteland, huh... If you let the people who built the shelters know that the residents living in them down the line would call their descendants that, do you think they would have still built them?" "Who's the real traitor, and who betrayed whom—you're at death's door and you still haven't figured it out." Glaring into those eyes—half cowardly, half hysterical—the soldier holding his shoulders said harshly: "When you die, you'd better keep your eyes wide open and see for yourself who's living under retribution, and who won't come to a good end!" ... The trial of Guixu would be held alongside the trials of the high-ranking members of the Enlightenment Society, as well as their accomplices. The Mutual Aid Community would establish a dedicated tribunal and investigative body to settle all of their committed crimes and determine sentencing based on the evidence. As the sunset gradually faded, Chu Guang finished up his work, set his documents aside as usual, pushed open the door, and stepped out of his office right on time. Downstairs, he boarded the private car that had been waiting for him and headed back to the shelter south of Dawn City. Usually, he would close his eyes to rest his mind around this time, but today a sudden whim led him to take in the scenery outside the window. He even instructed the driver to take a detour to check out the city center. The city center of Dawn City had always been north of the Alliance building, quite a distance from Ling Lake Wetland Park to the south. And with the development and expansion of the new eastern district, the city center was gradually shifting toward the former site of Highway Town. That had once been a place soaked in the blood of the Alliance's corps, but now it had transformed into rows upon rows of towering high-rises and plazas bustling with pedestrians. Chu Guang watched in a momentary daze. Only when the reflections of those buildings receded from the car window did he snap out of it, smiling at Lü Bei in the passenger seat. "Things have changed quite a bit here. Sometimes, at first glance, it really feels like another lifetime." Having conscientiously kept his eyes on the road ahead and both sides of the street, Lü Bei hadn't paid much attention to the scenery outside. He froze for a moment before replying with a smile: "Development here has indeed been fast... But that district back there was actually built quite some time ago." "Is that so?" Chu Guang chuckled, saying with a sigh, "Probably because I don't wander around often. Why don't you show me around in a couple of days?" "Yes, sir!" Lü Bei nodded earnestly, putting on an expression that promised the mission would be accomplished. Seeing how seriously the young man took it, Chu Guang said with an easy laugh, "It's just a casual stroll, no need to be so tense... And don't disturb anyone." Lü Bei, who had originally been only normally tense, became even more tense upon hearing that... ... At the entrance of the shelter, an endless stream of players shuttled across the plaza—among them were greenhorns who had just joined the game to report in, as well as veteran players who had recently respawned. The snack street to the north was bustling with people: traveling merchants who had journeyed far and wide exchanged news from across the lands, while players shared the hilarious, unlucky ways they had died three days prior. Chu Guang didn't head straight back into the shelter. Instead, he went to his usual ramen stall. Sitting down, he ordered an extra-large bowl, watching the rowdy players as entertainment while he ate quietly until the sun had completely dipped below the horizon. Feeling that the Administrator had something heavy on his mind, Lü Bei, sitting opposite him, felt embarrassed to pry and could only wait quietly. Unfortunately, Chu Guang didn't voice his thoughts. He simply counted out change onto the table as usual, exchanged a few friendly pleasantries with the noodle-pulling owner who was dripping with sweat, and walked away. Truth be told, Chu Guang was a little puzzled by his own state of mind. The puzzle he had dreamed of solving was right before his eyes, yet he was in no hurry to pull back the veil and reveal the answer. If anything, he wished time would slow down. Still, he knew he couldn't avoid facing the memories outside of time forever. "Just see me this far. I'm going in." "Yes, sir." Watching Chu Guang walk toward the shelter, Lü Bei nodded slightly, yet did not leave. Watching that receding figure, he hesitated for a moment before finally speaking up. "Sir." Chu Guang paused and looked back. Seeing the earnest expression on the young man's face, he smiled and asked, "Is something the matter?" Lü Bei nodded and said earnestly, "I don't have a father, nor any other family. You taught me how to read and write, how to do arithmetic... and so much knowledge I never knew. Perhaps you might find it offensive... but I have always seen you as my father." "Hardly offensive, though unexpected, certainly," Chu Guang coughed lightly and said with a smile. "What made you bring this up all of a sudden?" "Nothing..." Lü Bei shook his head slightly, continuing in an earnest tone, "I just wanted to tell you that you will always be the Administrator in my heart. And... I believe it's not just me; many people feel the same way." There wasn't a trace of falsehood on that sincere face; every word came straight from the heart. Dropping his playful tone, Chu Guang's expression turned serious as he said solemnly, "I understand. Thank you." With that, a warm smile returned to his face. He walked back over to Lü Bei and patted the young man's shoulder. "I'm just going home, don't make it seem like I'm heading off somewhere far away." "Remember to pick me up at eight tomorrow morning to show me around Dawn City." "Yes, sir!" Lü Bei snapped to attention and gave an emotional military salute, though he wasn't as tense as before. Chu Guang waved a hand with a smile, telling him not to wait around, then melted into the crowd in the plaza, returning to where it all began... ... Leaving behind the players who tried to "exploit bugs" to cling to his coattails in the elevator, Chu Guang instructed Xiao Qi to send them back to Floor B1 before stepping onto the long-sealed Floor B5 alone. The elevator doors opened onto a vast circular space. The layout here was very similar to Floors B2 and B3, with the sole difference being the absence of living quarters and the hundreds or thousands of single dormitories arranged along the circular corridor. It actually resembled the citizen reception hall of the Alliance building; it had likely served as the administrative section of Shelter 404. Furthermore, unlike the other floors that were pristine and spotless when first unlocked, the alloy floor here was covered in a thick blanket of dust. Even the softest shoe heel would inevitably crunch against it. Evidently, no one had set foot here in a very, very long time, to the point where there was no need to even clean it. Chu Guang stood in place, surveyed the surrounding environment, and then walked down the corridor directly across from the elevator. On Floors B2 and B3, the corridor in this same position led to the storage area. Here, however, it was different. In all likelihood, it led to the Administrator's office. Chu Guang placed his hand on the handle, quickly passing the iris and facial recognition scans. With a soft click, the alloy door that had remained sealed for two centuries was finally unlocked, pulling back an inconspicuous corner of those forgotten years. And at the exact moment the door swung open, a deep, distant voice drifted through the portal, chiming toward him like a far-off wind bell. "You're here." Chu Guang raised an eyebrow. "Were you about to say I shouldn't have come?" Hearing this mood-lightening deadpan joke, dry laughter drifted from ahead. "Hahaha... Not at all." While they exchanged this banter, Chu Guang glanced around the room before him. It was a circular chamber. The furnishings were sparse to the point of barren: there was only a wide curved screen and a chair facing directly toward it. Someone seemed to be sitting in that chair. However, the figure's back was turned to Chu Guang, preventing him from seeing the face, let alone discerning whether the person was still alive. As for the hoarse, low voice, it came from the curved screen right in front of him. "I've waited for you for a very long time." A pair of eyes watched him from somewhere unseen, like gazing upon a child, yet also like gazing upon oneself in a mirror. Chu Guang had experienced a similar feeling once before—when communicating with the Observer. Intriguingly, however, what he read from the two gazes was entirely different. Looking at the fluorescent glow of the screen, Chu Guang asked in a calm voice: "You are the 'Professor'?" To his surprise, the voice made no attempt at concealment and acknowledged it readily. "Yes. I didn't expect to hear that name again after so many years... In truth, that wasn't my original name. People just called me that often, and over time, it became who I was." Chu Guang could hear a trace of nostalgia in the voice, reminiscent of sorrow over how times had changed and old faces had vanished. He could understand that feeling. Even if he had only just begun to understand it. "I've often heard people say that you created the Era of Prosperity." A blurry silhouette appeared on the curved screen mounted on the wall. Chu Guang couldn't make out the face, but he imagined the man was likely quite handsome—though still a bit shy of himself. The figure nodded at him, then gently shook his head, speaking in a meaningful tone: "That's not entirely accurate. At most, I was merely a spark plug; what actually burned was the gasoline in the tank. Even without me, the people of this world would have eventually welcomed their own Era of Prosperity. My existence simply brought that day forward... Of course, that's a story from another world." Chu Guang raised his eyebrows slightly. As expected— Just as he had guessed! This man, whom Doctors Yuan Li, Method, and Conclusion all revered as the Professor, had long since touched upon the secrets of the Void. And that was precisely the prerequisite for scaling up the application of morphogenetic field technology. "You know about the other world?" Chu Guang asked, feigning ignorance. "Of course," the figure on the screen seemed to chuckle softly, continuing in a gentle voice. "In fact, you've known the answer for a long time, haven't you? That soap bubble theory... I wager you must have met the Observer already. I wonder if it ever mentioned the 'Heart of the Galaxy' to you." Chu Guang shook his head. "It didn't mention any Heart of the Galaxy, only Tau Ceti... Speaking of which, what is that?" Seemingly lost in memories of the distant past again, the silhouette floating in the void swayed gently for a while before finally giving an ambiguous reply. "Nothing much. That's merely a path to becoming a Boundary Breaker. If that peeping voyeur didn't bring it up, it's either because this universe doesn't have one, or the time hasn't yet arrived... You needn't concern yourself with it." "Needn't concern myself" my foot. How the hell could he not concern himself?! Suppressing his curiosity, Chu Guang gathered himself and continued: "As I recall, the Observer mentioned you... Though it didn't explicitly say who that person was, my intuition told me it was you." The figure on the screen suddenly took an interest and asked curiously: "Is that so? What did it say?" Recalling the conversation from that day, Chu Guang spoke slowly: "It said that the world ending up like this was partly because of you." Appearing dissatisfied with this assessment, the blurry silhouette chuckled and replied derisively: "That fellow certainly didn't tell you that the causality it sees is like the flap of a butterfly's wings and a hurricane over the Pacific. There might indeed be a certain link between them, but it's by no means a direct one... There's an entire Pacific Ocean separating the two." "What it really meant was that the Wasteland Era was the inevitable destiny of the Era of Prosperity, and therefore I, who laid the foundation for the Era of Prosperity, can hardly shirk responsibility. But don't you think that logic is absurd? Would you blame parents for giving birth to a person just because they died of old age?" "That is a bit of a stretch," Chu Guang agreed with a nod, casting him a curious glance. "You two seem quite familiar with each other?" "You could say that." The figure on the screen seemed lost in reminiscence, speaking slowly after a long silence: "A long, long time ago... it gave me a 'System.'" Chu Guang's expression turned odd. "A system? Like the shelter system you gave me?" The Professor on the screen shook his head. "No, they're entirely different. What I gave you was at most a beginner's tutorial. What it gave me was a true 'System'—the kind capable of elevating mental faculties and providing inspiration whenever my research hit a bottleneck." Chu Guang: "Sounds pretty impressive." "It was impressive, but... only to a point. The Observer is not omniscient or omnipotent. The information it can convey to us is limited to what we already know or are on the verge of knowing. When I eventually had no further need of it, it could do nothing but throw a tantrum." The Professor smiled, continuing in a mild tone, "In truth, it's just like the beginner's tutorial I gave you. Once you become familiar with the shelter's operational procedures, you no longer need its guidance. In fact, without its rigid rules and restrictions, you can do even better." "The same applied to me. At first, I too relied on the System's guidance. But as my research deepened, I had less and less need for its assistance. In the end, it was no longer I who sought its help, but it seeking mine." In other words, the Professor had conducted research with the Observer's assistance for a very long period. However, because the two sides had reached a disagreement over something, their cooperation had ceased. The timing of this divergence had likely occurred during the early Era of Prosperity, or perhaps even before entering it. Chu Guang attempted to analyze things from the perspective of motives. The Observer clearly wanted human civilization to play a certain role in the far future, and thus, at the cost of sacrificing humanity's own potential, had actively intervened to accelerate human civilization's progress. However, its interference was strictly measured. In fact, it didn't want human civilization to advance too rapidly—preferably just a tiny bit faster, so that humanity would step into the sea of stars right at the opportune moment. Yet, perhaps due to the interference of the Indescribable Mist, or perhaps because of humanity's innate rebelliousness, curiosity, and yearning—or greed—for the material world, variables arose in its plan. The marble that should have rolled along its predetermined track had veered off course. At the very least, its calculated deductions had deviated in this universe, or rather this worldline. That widely revered "Professor," rather than braking according to the System's guidance at a critical juncture, had slammed the accelerator straight to the floor. An era of boundless prosperity was born. Using only the resources of a single star system, the Human Alliance forged a utopia of infinite abundance. Yet, conversely, this zero-gravity "revelry" also sowed the seeds for paradise's collapse. Long before human civilization entered the Era of Prosperity, the Observer had already calculated the fate of this universe tens of thousands of years into the future. And that was precisely why it ultimately abandoned this universe. As for its later change of heart and its disbelief that "you're actually still alive," that was a story for later. It truly hadn't expected that humanity, having plummeted from heaven into the abyss, could rise again—much less that the morphogenetic field could be used like this, or that a young civilization with even greater cohesion than the Human Alliance would be born atop these ruins. The Professor was right. The Observer was indeed not all-powerful. If it could anticipate everything, it wouldn't have been led around by the nose like a dog by the "Indescribable Mist," nor would it have needed to lurk and spy on screens everywhere. Chu Guang nodded thoughtfully, probing further: "The Observer mentioned to me that it had hoped you would become a 'Boundary Breaker,' yet you seem to have—" "No need to guess." The Professor on the screen interrupted his inquiry, giving an affirmative reply in a complex tone: "I don't know what choice you will make, but back then... I did indeed give up."