CAT Chapter 46: Endless Cycle (8)

Ling Yi woke up early today. After getting ready and taking a dose of nutritional supplement, he said he was going to find Tang Ning and Vivian. Lin Si was about to say something to him, but he gave a helpless smile and let him go.

On Tang Ning’s side, he was loading the emotion module into little Vivian. Due to the enormous computational load required to simulate emotions, only some positive emotions were temporarily imported. Under the influence of these emotions, Vivian showed a strong affection for Ling Yi and made a daily promise to spend some time with her every morning.

A new day began, and everything was as usual. The adjustment of the exoskeletal structure entered the final phase, and it was confirmed that it could be officially put into use. The last batch of cryogenic equipment for Zone 9 was transferred to the ground base. The ‘Expeditioner’ was fully upgraded and was now an independent spacecraft capable of interstellar travel.

There were over 400 personnel involved in the ‘Expeditioner’  mission, with 200 of them undergoing genetic modification under the “Limitless” program. To maximize resource efficiency, the ‘Expeditioner’ adopted a cryogenic mode similar to that of Voyager. Initially, only 100 people would be active aboard the ship, with the remaining crew members thawed according to mission needs.

It was said that soldiers in the entire Zone 3 practically fought for the 200 spots on the spacecraft, and after rigorous selection, only top-tier elites were chosen.

The colonel was very eager for the launch. After the final approval of the material reserves with Zone 2, he was infected by the pre-departure atmosphere and was planning to shout toward the porthole, “The stars! My destination!”

This act of drawing attention from countless people was never carried out, as the poor colonel, just as he was about to muster his emotions, felt a light tap on his shoulder.

The colonel stiffened, and at the same time, his sharp senses detected an extremely cold woody fragrance—a very distinctive scent, one that Lin Si occasionally used.

The colonel immediately showed an unexpected docility, totally unlike his burly physique. Like a chubby cat held by the neck, he followed Lin Si to the office.

“Doctor, what’s the matter?” the colonel asked, closing the door and inquiring with a hint of flattery.

Lin Si sat back at his desk and looked the colonel up and down.

Although the colonel was proud of his ruggedness and toughness, when facing Lin Si, he truly was very obedient.

The immaculate white shirt, the top button fastened, the cold gaze, and the fingers that operated various precise instruments—often made people feel like they were from different worlds.

“Are you excited?” After inspecting the colonel, Lin Si asked indifferently.

“Of course,” the colonel replied.

A floating screen appeared in front of Lin Si, displaying the star map for this journey.

After the ‘Expeditioner’  sets off, it will enter subspace travel near the ER-1836 asteroid, losing contact with the base. There will be three stops, five collection missions, and dozens of mineral planet explorations, finally arriving at the target planet for detailed exploration.

According to preliminary observations and analysis, the elements of the target planet are highly complex, and various terrains and climate environments may emerge. This means the exploration work would be more difficult, but it also means the planet could potentially be habitable.

The entire journey will last anywhere from six to ten years, or even longer.

“According to calculations, without considering the environmental factors of the target planet, your survival probability is around 60%,” said Lin Si. “Our lack of experience in space travel means the simulator results may have some deviations. I’ve applied to Zone 1 for five hundred AI mainframes to set up a small-scale space simulator. With Lucia’s cooperation, the probability should increase by another 10%.”

The colonel naturally intended to do his best, but he wasn’t overly concerned with these probabilities. “As long as you’re there…”

“What I’m trying to tell you,” Lin Si said coldly, “is that the situation is complicated. Madam Chen and the Marshal have spoken to me, and I’m afraid I can’t join the mission.”

For a moment, the colonel was stunned. “Then…”

After a long pause, he finally asked, “Then what should we do?”

Though the Colonel always seemed a bit timid in front of Lin Si, he didn’t dislike him at all. In fact, he trusted Lin Si a great deal. People from the “Limitless” program were used to working closely with Lin Si, so they understood his approach. In the event of unforeseen incidents during the journey, Lin Si’s unique, machine-like ability to make swift and precise judgments was the best reassurance.

“You’ll take Lucia’s core hardware with you, along with a team of researchers from various fields,” Lin Si explained. “Lucia’s processing power exceeds that of any human, so there’s no need to worry.”

The Colonel furrowed his brow, clearly unable to place full trust in Lucia, a machine intelligence. One could imagine that he would go through a painful period of adjustment with Lucia in the future.

However, Lin Si wasn’t worried about this. He already knew Lucia’s capabilities from their escape from the black hole. After working with her for some time, the Colonel would undoubtedly come to appreciate her.

“What if an emergency arises? Can Lucia make the best judgment? She hasn’t been tested in such situations.”

“Human thinking comes from neurons in the brain. Lucia’s thinking comes from computational units. Our neurons are limited, but she has none,” Lin Si said, interlocking his fingers as he slowly addressed the colonel. “There is a saying in the scientific community that quantity changes quality. In some ways, her judgments are more trustworthy than mine, especially after her recent upgrades, which have enhanced her autonomy.”

The Colonel still couldn’t accept it. “We still hope you can join us on the journey.”

“Last night, there was an incident in the underground storage room. The Berlin virus was only a step away from leaking,” Lin Si suddenly said.

The Colonel’s eyes widened.

“Madam Chen wants me to stay in a good scientific research environment, and the Marshal considers me a dangerous individual, so neither of them wants me to join the ‘Expeditioner’,” Lin Si said indifferently. “This isn’t complicated, but it requires a bit of a choice.”

The colonel thought for a moment and said, “You mean Voyager is facing some kind of conspiracy?”

“That’s one way to put it, but right now we have no clue about this conspiracy, so we can only guard against it. For example, if I stay here, I can respond to some biochemical crises.”

“I understand.” The colonel’s expression became serious, then he asked, “What about Ling Yi?”

There were four people in Tang Ning’s studio.

Vivian was having her emotion module loaded. Her holographic projection was quietly leaning against Ling Yi, eyes closed with long golden eyelashes drooping.

Tang Ning was watching the floating screen.

Lucia’s holographic projection—the white-armored, blonde knight—stood silently, holding a large sword, her azure eyes wide open, like a calm and undisturbed surface of water.

Although just a hologram, her appearance and demeanor exuded a cold, divine aura.

Ling Yi looked at her, and Lucia returned his gaze.

They both stood still, staring at each other, with an eerie feeling hanging in the air.

On the screen, semi-transparent code flowed like a tide, and when the progress bar reached the end, Lucia’s projection disappeared like a ripple on the water’s surface.

At the same time, Ling Yi looked up at the ceiling, as if seeing streams of information flowing rapidly, instantly covering the entire spacecraft.

“Hello,” a solemn male voice rang out. “This is the navigation system Voyager. Please enter a command.”

Just as Tang Ning was about to enter a command, he and Ling Yi both turned to look at the door.

There was the sound of glass breaking from the room next door, belonging to Zheng Shu. Tang Ning stood up and walked over—he had always been quite concerned about Zheng Shu.

Ling Yi followed him.

Zheng Shu’s door was slightly ajar. Tang Ning knocked and then pushed it open, walking in.

Zheng Shu was sitting with his back to the door. Sure enough, the glass was broken, but he hadn’t cleaned it up. Instead, he was staring at the AI screen in front of him.

Tang Ning walked over. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Zheng Shu said, his face a little pale. “The screen went black suddenly while writing critical code, and I lost control.”

“My bad,” Tang Ning said, picking up the broken glass from the floor, gathering it together, and tossing it away. “I just retracted Lucia and activated the Voyager, which must have caused a bit of disturbance.”

“It’s fine,” Zheng Shu said, restarting the AI. “It wasn’t hard to write.”

“Sorry.” Tang Ning glanced at Zheng Shu, likely confirming that he hadn’t been cut by the glass, then turned to leave the room. “You’re busy.”

Zheng Shu responded, “Thanks.”

Ling Yi noticed that Zheng Shu’s complexion looked off, and before leaving, he turned back to glance at him—Zheng Shu was looking at him too.

That gaze was complicated, and Ling Yi couldn’t quite describe it.

Back in the studio, Tang Ning opened the metal wall and retrieved a rather large, heavy-looking flat black box from among the many complex mechanical parts.

“I’ll go install it on theExpeditioner,” said Tang Ning. “This is Lucia’s core hardware. You must take good care of it while you’re on your journey.”

Ling Yi nodded.

He remembered Tang Ning saying that Lucia’s powerful processing ability relied on this core hardware developed by scientists in the previous round. She couldn’t be copied and could only exist on one spacecraft. She couldn’t serve both the Voyager and the Expeditioner at the same time.

Vivian had apparently woken up at some point, her eyes fixed on the black box containing Lucia, her voice filled with excitement. “Can I take over the spacecraft now?”

“No,” Tang Ning replied calmly. “The spacecraft will be controlled by the initial system Voyager.“

The Voyager program, named after the spacecraft, was the system originally equipped on the ship. After Lucia’s appearance, it was gradually replaced, but the military-affiliated Zone 3 still used it because the system had a distinct military style—cold, strict, and secure. While Lucia’s navigation and analytical abilities were flawless, the Voyager system excelled in confidentiality and security measures.

Now, Lucia had been installed on the Expeditioner spacecraft, and the initial system Voyager had taken control of the ship once again.

Vivian huffed in dissatisfaction.

Tang Ning, usually taciturn, explained for once. “It’s the Marshal’s request.”

Vivian ignored him. “I’m angry!”

Ling Yi looked at her in surprise and then turned to Tang Ning. “Did you load negative emotions into her?”

“No,” Tang Ning said, looking at Vivian. “She might have done some reverse computation… AI intelligence always does some surprising things.”

Everything in humans—emotions, thoughts, and even human nature—can be comprehended through computation in machines. The difference was that humans have limited computational units, while machines are unlimited. Whether this difference in quantity leads to a qualitative change still posed no answer. The leaders of the spacecraft always oversaw such cutting-edge projects, and onced it touched on ethical boundaries, they were halted—like Lin Si’s “Limitless.”

However, the researchers themselves didn’t consider these issues. They were simply amazed and excited by their own achievements—Tang Ning was clearly pleased at this moment, entrusting Ling Yi to deliver the black box to the Expeditioner, while he began studying the new code generated by Vivian’s independent computations.

Ling Yi held the black box and passed through several areas, entering the interior of the Expeditioner. When he reached the control room, about to open the door, he heard muffled voices inside. It was the Colonel speaking with Svenya. The door’s soundproofing was excellent, and even Ling Yi’s sharp hearing couldn’t make out the conversation clearly.

But the next moment, Svenya’s voice rose.

“What did you say?” she asked the colonel. “Lin Si doesn’t plan to join us?”

Ling Yi froze.