The night before the promotion

Chapter 10 Tao

Pei Dong stood there without saying a word. His consciousness hidden under the steel machinery was constantly pondering Zhou Si's words, trying to find some truth from them.

Zhou Si did not disturb Pei Dong's meditation, but continued to prepare medicine for her.

After organizing the medicines, Zhou Si tapped on the keyboard and wrote down the relevant medication instructions and medical advice in the document. Pei Dong was attracted by the crisp tapping sound. She looked at Zhou Si who was concentrating and noticed that Zhou Si's left hand was a little stiff.

As if there was something wrong with his nerves, Zhou Si's left hand moved much slower than his right hand. Pei Dong was puzzled for a while, but soon she remembered Zhou Si's horrific appearance covered in blood during the Xianmei accident.

Pei Dong stopped thinking about it.

"Let's add the contact information," Zhou Si saved the document and said with concern, "I'll send you the medication instructions and doctor's orders. If anything happens, you can contact me directly."

"Ok."

Pei Dong told Zhou Si his contact account number, and Zhou Si opened his phone and filled in the number skillfully.

"After you go back, you must take the medicine regularly according to my instructions. You can continue to use your avatar, but there is one thing you must remember: you must not use unregistered avatar shells just for the sake of extreme experiences."

Zhou Si warned seriously, "Those unregistered avatar bodies are not equipped with high walls and large systems. They cannot effectively protect human consciousness, but may accelerate the distortion of consciousness."

"I understand."

Pei Dong nodded. As a former employee of Shenwei Technology, she had a deep understanding of the high-wall system.

The Gaoqiangda system was developed jointly by the two founders of Shenwei Technology, Zuo Zhi and Chen Wen Ge.

Its core concept is to protect the human consciousness that resides within the incarnated body and is stored in the thought storage core.

This system not only provides a safe and isolated space for human consciousness activities, but also ensures that human consciousness is always in a stable and protected environment when controlling the avatar, thereby preventing consciousness from being directly impacted by the huge flow of information on the Internet.

At the same time, the high wall system also bears the responsibility of supervision, and strictly manages and supervises all registered avatar shells to prevent them from being used for illegal activities.

Given its important regulatory functions and influence, the Gaoqiangda system was not handed over to Shenwei Technology for management after its launch, but was directly controlled by official government agencies and the Supervisory Bureau.

The phone vibrated gently a few times, and a notification popped up on the screen, indicating that Zhou Si had added Pei Dong as a friend.

Pei Dong’s user avatar is a face that overlaps with the one in her memory. She stands in the sun, smiling, with mountains and streams behind her, a pleasant scenery.

She is a person who likes outdoor sports. During holidays, Zhou Si just wants to sleep more or play newly released games, while Pei Dong always thinks about traveling and hiking.

Pei Dong likes to experience it all personally, to measure the earth with his real flesh and blood, instead of using an avatar body with strong sensory experience to walk through the mountains and rivers for them like those lazy rich people.

"Come to think of it, why did you disappear completely without a trace after the Immortal Falls incident?"

Pei Dong also received a reminder that Zhou Si’s user avatar was Bt-24.

She said, "I heard that when you were discharged from the hospital, I tried to find you, but you deleted me. I asked other people and they said the same thing. It was as if you had completely evaporated from our complicated social relationship overnight."

Zhou Si was deeply sorry for this. "I'm sorry. During my hospitalization, I went through a very complicated... In short, I went through a very complicated mental journey, which changed me a lot."

"I can see that," Pei Dong looked at Zhou Si, "I still remember how we looked when we first met." Hearing Pei Dong say this, Zhou Si immediately recalled the past. Thinking of his embarrassed appearance, he smiled slightly embarrassedly.

"You're like a...well, yeah, a hamster."

Pei Dong said with a smile, "A hamster that was taken out of a cage looks completely lost in this vast and dangerous world."

She then said, "But now you look completely different. When you first came in, I almost didn't recognize you, even though your appearance hasn't changed much."

Zhou Si listened quietly.

"You are now like... a snake?" Pei Dong used a metaphor uncertainly, "You have changed from prey to hunter, hiding silently in the shadows, full of rationality and coldness."

She concluded, "You have really matured a lot, Zhou Si."

Zhou Si did not comment on this, although compared to his past self, Zhou Si has indeed changed a lot, even beyond recognition.

"Why? Did he finally attain enlightenment after a serious illness?" Pei Dong couldn't help but be curious about Zhou Si's transformation. "I remember Chen Wen Ge often mentioned this point of view before."

“People often only touch the so-called ‘Tao’ after experiencing severe setbacks and undergoing a double baptism of spirit and soul, and thus gain insight into the true meaning of all things in the world.”

Pei Dong's thoughts drifted far away, recalling the various rumors about Chen Wen Ge, "It is said that it was after the loss of his young daughter that Chen Wen Ge truly realized the essence of life, and then began to study the technology of recognizing thoughts, and explored the uploading of consciousness."

"Enlightenment? Do you really believe in such a thing?"

Zhou Si shook his head disapprovingly, saying, "Chen Wen Ge and I are both staunch materialists. He is not superstitious and does not have any religious beliefs. Those so-called incarnations, ascension to heaven, and ascension to heaven are just a romantic cloak he uses to cover science."

He joked, "Don't you think that using so-called immortality, nirvana, Taoism, etc. in the board of directors is very suitable for packaging technology to get those wealthy people who know nothing to pay for it?"

"Is that so?"

Pei Dong was a little disappointed. Although she and Zhou Si were both members of the Ascension Project, Pei Dong had always been on the edge of the Ascension Project. On the contrary, Zhou Si was the core figure of the Ascension Project and had a lot of communication with Chen Wen Ge. Therefore, Zhou Si also knew Chen Wen Ge better than other testers.

At that time, people often said that Zhou Si was Chen Wen Ge's best student.

Pei Dong once again looked around Zhou Si's clinic. "So you became a doctor, a doctor who treats this disease."

"probably."

Zhou Si is also full of uncertainty about this question. It seems that even now, Zhou Si still cannot see his own life clearly.

"After that, I suffered from a very serious case of eczema. Although I miraculously recovered in the end, when I was discharged from the hospital, I had an indescribable feeling."

Zhou Si tried to explain his past actions. "I can't really describe the feeling, but if I have to say something, it's like your life has undergone a drastic and terrible change."

"I didn't know what to do, I was lost in the world, and I panicked for a while until I found this way out for myself."

Zhou Si looked back at the banners on the wall and said, "I found a place for myself to stay."

(End of this chapter)