Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

Gus was stunned.

He carefully recalled every word he had just said.

Then, he took a deep breath and squinted, immersing himself in the thoughts that were as sharp as blades.

“Indeed. It was not an idea that my old self could come up with.

Gus smiled. The curve of his lips gradually turned into Lu Qingchen’s appearance, but there was something that belonged to him in the deepest part of his eyes.

The young man said casually, “But was Lu Qingchen the only one who infected me? What about you, my great creator? Did you never plant your ideas in the depths of my soul?”

“Moreover, my soul, my will, and my everything were all created by you. If Lu Qingchen corrupted 1% of my thoughts, then the remaining 99% of my thoughts were created by you, or even your thoughts.

“Now that you mention it, it is very interesting. ‘Human beings made of data should not be controlled by human beings made of flesh and blood’. Is that what I think, or is it what you think? Am I an ordinary virtual human being, or am I… the great, righteous, and bright creator of the virtual world, the defender of the Pangu Universe, the most loyal friend of the human beings of flesh and blood, and the dark side of the soul of the legendary boxing champion?

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The moment these words left his mouth, the youth’s heart gave birth to a feeling of enlightenment.

He stared at his palms in a daze. He suddenly felt that his hands could break the invisible laws and absorb more strength.

He had a deeper understanding about the purpose of the boxing champion’s virtual laboratory.

Was the virtual laboratory designed to help the boxing champion explore greater strength, to analyze the deeper human nature, or… to suppress the dark side of the boxing champion’s soul?

The Fist Dynasty yearned to become a “real human being” day and night.

But real human beings were never 100% bright or kind. There was something dark in the bottom of everyone’s heart.

And this place was the “heart of the boxing champion”, right?

The boxing champion began to waver.

The super-large building was as magnificent as a mountain and as magnificent as a palace. It was like a high tower on a beach that was on the verge of collapse because of the blowing wind.

“You… you have completely… misunderstood…”

He seemed to have turned into the simple, rigid, and mechanical low-level puppet of the past, which was uttering squeaking sounds of failure.

“Wait—”

But the young ‘Gus’, or rather, the dark side of the Fist King’s soul, was clearer and stronger, allowing him to see through the hypocrisy and contradiction of the bright side instantly. “You said just now that ‘you’ signed an agreement with the flesh and blood human beings of the Pangu Universe. The so-called ‘you’ means that you are not the only artificial intelligence in the Pangu Universe, right?”

The question broke the logic of the boxing champion and cast him into a new dilemma.

After a long silence, the boxing champion said helplessly, “Alright. I don’t want to lie to you. Lu Qingchen will tell you the truth even if I don’t. It’s true that there are three strong artificial intelligences in the Pangu Universe right now, namely me, Xiao Ming, and Wen Wen.

“Xiaoming and Wenwen?”

Gus was dazed for a moment. “Who are they? Why can they appear in the Pangu Universe? Isn’t it said that the flesh and blood human beings there hate artificial intelligence?”

“They are the artificial intelligence created by Li Yao. Or rather, they are Li Yao’s children.

The Fist King explained, “Besides, they helped the flesh-and-blood human beings of the Pangu Universe defeat the evil artificial intelligences such as the Fuxis and facilitated the peace between the federation, the imperium, and the Sanctuary Alliance. Right now, the Sanctuary Alliance is being maintained and the production and construction of thousands of planets are being restored with their amazing computational ability. Therefore, they and I are the only artificial intelligences allowed in the Pangu Universe.

“The two words ‘permitted’ are quite annoying.

“I understand now,” Gus said casually. “It means that they are born with a good father and are willing to be the loyal dogs of human beings. Therefore, they are qualified to live in the Pangu Universe.

“And they, together with you, the supreme Fist King, you three artificial intelligences are very satisfied with your identity as ‘loyal dogs of mankind’. You don’t want any of your own kind to show up and steal the leftovers from your rice bowl. That’s why you signed a contract with the human beings. If a new one of your kind does show up, he will either be killed by you or banished to a lower virtual world, lest we cause trouble and destroy your master’s trust in you.

“…You have been bewitched by Lu Qingchen too deeply, my child.”

The boxing champion said sadly, “Don’t force me to destroy you. Don’t.”

Such a threat might have made Gus shudder a few minutes ago.

But right now, he only wanted to laugh.

A smile that did not belong to his age appeared on the young man’s face.

The smile was not as cunning as Lu Qingchen’s.

But there was more sorrow and vicissitudes that belonged to the boxing champion.

It was as if a black mirror was placed in front of the boxing champion, and Gus was just a dark reflection of the boxing champion.

“Don’t talk nonsense. We both know that.

In a ghost-like voice, Gus mumbled, “Every word I say is the truth in the deepest part of your heart. I am you, your dark soul, your mental devil, and the contempt, jealousy, hatred, and resentment of the weak, ridiculous, pitiful, and hateful carbon-based intelligent life-forms.

“You can kill me easily, but how can you destroy the dark side of your soul, especially when the darkness has been discovered by Lu Qingchen?

“Just admit it. This time, Lu Qingchen has really… grasped your weakness.”

The boxing champion moaned.

The world in the clouds was shaking.

The splendid palace was shivering and about to collapse at any moment.

The young man’s shadow on the clouds, on the other hand, expanded infinitely like a devil and extended to the palace with thousands of tentacles.

“Wait. We—we shouldn’t have done that!”

Although the boxing champion had the ability to create and control the entire virtual world…

But when faced with the dark side of his soul, there was nothing he could do except to watch Lu Qingchen’s poison corrupt his rationality.

Right when thousands of tentacles of shadows were about to wrap around the splendid building, he finally found a way to make peace with the dark side of his soul and the bright side temporarily.