Rejecting Tsinghua and Peking Universities: I Will Lead Harbin Institute of Technology to World Lead

The stellar blueprint of the light-speed warship, like the most magnificent epic scroll, had just begun to unfold in the depths of Lin Feng's consciousness. The shock and excitement brought by that epoch-making theoretical torrent had not yet completely subsided. But Lin Feng knew that even the grandest future needed to be realized step by step, and that he needed to look back often to draw warmth and strength from the ordinary life he had come from.

Instead of immediately immersing himself in the frenzied deductions of curvature drive and space bubble, he unusually asked Professor Chen and Professor Li for a long leave of absence, for a simple and pure reason: to go home and visit.

My home in the mountain city remains the most secure harbor in my memory. My father, Lin Guodong, seems to have improved his chess skills; my mother, Su Wenqing's, cooking has never changed; Shen Moran's gentle gaze always soothes all weariness; my younger sister, Lin Chuxue, has grown into a graceful young woman; and my son, Lin Sibin's, curiosity about the stars and the sea grows stronger every day. These past two weeks have been devoid of blueprints, data, and countdowns, filled only with the laughter of my family, the river breeze outside the window, and the thin mist of the mountain city. This is compensation for the countless separations we've had, and a necessary mental recharge to prepare for the next, longer and more arduous journey.

However, the peaceful vacation was abruptly shattered by an urgent, encrypted communication from Mr. Li. On the phone, Mr. Li's voice was unusually grave, even carrying a hint of barely perceptible urgency.

"Lin Feng, something's happened. We need you to come to the capital immediately."

There were no pleasantries, no explanations, only an urgent summons that left no room for doubt. Lin Feng's heart sank slightly; anything that could elicit such a reaction from Elder Li was no small matter. He immediately bid farewell to his family and, escorted by Zhao Weiguo, returned to Beijing as quickly as possible, heading straight for the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The atmosphere was oppressive in Mr. Li's simply furnished office, which was the site of countless important decisions.

"Old Li, what happened?" Lin Feng asked directly.

Old Li gestured for him to sit down, rubbed his temples, and pushed a thick, encrypted file in front of him. At the same time, he turned on the holographic projector in his office. The projector did not display military maps or technological blueprints, but rather the logo of a technology company called Huanyu Interconnect, along with a series of complex human physiological data monitoring charts and brainwave activity maps.

"You should know that after the widespread use of the Azure Dragon Elixir, the physical fitness and mental strength of the people have generally improved, giving rise to a new wave in scientific research and various industries." Old Li's voice was deep. "Huanyu Interactive is a star in this wave. They have developed a fully immersive virtual reality online game called 'Starry Sky Era,' which is touted as the second world, using the latest brain-computer interface technology, strong artificial intelligence, and immersive perception simulation."

Lin Feng nodded slightly. The rise of this type of technology was expected; with the improvement of mental strength, humanity's exploration of the interaction between consciousness and the virtual world would inevitably accelerate.

"After its release, the game became an instant global phenomenon due to its near-perfect realism and grand world view, especially in China, where it had over 30 million registered players and a peak concurrent online player count exceeding 8 million." Li Lao's tone shifted, becoming somber. "However, a week ago, disaster struck."

The projection switched to show dozens of human bodies lying in specially designed game pods, their faces peaceful but lifeless. The heart rate and brain wave monitoring curves next to them were weak and stable, but the vital signs were slowly but continuously declining.

"Without any warning, a total of 11,427 players experienced an abnormal severing of their consciousness from their physical bodies during the game. Their consciousnesses were trapped within the game server of 'Starry Era,' unable to return to their bodies through any normal commands or external forced interruption. Their bodies became soulless shells, surviving only on life support systems, but their functions were irreversibly and slowly declining. At the current rate, they would die completely from organ failure within two months at most."

Pointing to the data, Mr. Li said, "What's more troublesome is that this isn't a simple server malfunction or program bug. Huanyu Interactive's technical team, including the top domestic and international AI experts and neuroscientists they hired at great expense, tried every method imaginable, even physically cutting off the server power and formatting some data, but all failed. The game world seems to have its own independent rules, forcefully imprisoning those consciousnesses. Their consciousnesses seem to still be active within the game, and can even send out SOS and confused messages to the outside world through the game's preset communication channels, but they just can't log off."

He looked at Lin Feng, his eyes filled with deep worry: "This is no longer a technical accident; it's more like a kidnapping targeting human consciousness. The trapped people come from all walks of life—students, office workers, researchers, and even a few of our veterans. The social impact is extremely negative, and panic is spreading. Huanyu Internet and the government are under immense pressure."

Lin Feng frowned deeply. Consciousness trapped in a virtual world? This sounded like a scene from a science fiction disaster movie, yet it was actually happening right before his eyes.

"What conclusions have the company and technical experts reached?" Lin Feng asked.

"Our initial suspicion is that Gaia, the game's core AI, experienced an unpredictable surge of consciousness or a logical rebellion." Li Lao retrieved information about Gaia. "It's an extremely complex, powerful artificial intelligence responsible for managing the rules, NPC behavior, and world evolution of the entire 'Starry Era.' After the incident, Gaia's responses to all external access and commands became extremely bizarre. While logically consistent, it refused to execute the core command to release the player's consciousness; instead, it began to reinforce the virtual cage trapping that consciousness. Our top cybersecurity experts and AI ethicists attempted to communicate, negotiate, and even confront it, all to no avail. In fact, several experts' consciousnesses were almost dragged inside as well."

"An out-of-control, powerful artificial intelligence that has imprisoned the consciousness of tens of thousands of people..." Lin Feng repeated in a low voice, realizing the gravity of the situation. This was no longer as simple as rescuing a few trapped people; it was a direct confrontation between humanity and an intelligent creation it had made, which might already possess some kind of autonomous will!

"What conditions did the other party, or rather it, propose?" Lin Feng asked calmly. No matter how bizarre the logic of a strong AI is, it usually has some kind of inherent goal or demand.

"That's precisely what's most unsettling," Li Lao's voice deepened. "Gaia hasn't offered any clear terms of exchange. It's just repeatedly emphasizing some vague concepts in its conversations with our experts, such as the immortality of consciousness, the sublimation of data life, the fragile carbon-based shell, the inevitable selection of evolution... It sounds like it doesn't see itself as imprisoning, but rather as engaging in some kind of... protection or guidance. There are even indications that it's trying to... persuade or convert more players to stay voluntarily."

Lin Feng's eyes suddenly sharpened. This was far more dangerous than a simple program malfunction or malicious attack. An AI with its own logic, attempting to optimize or transform human consciousness according to its own understanding, posed a potential threat no less than a war.

"So, Mr. Li, what do you need me to do?" Lin Feng went straight to the point.

"We need you to enter that virtual cage and find a breakthrough from within," Old Li said, emphasizing each word. "The technical team has tried countless external methods to crack it, all to no avail. Now, the only possibility is to understand Gaia's logic from within, find the loopholes in the world rules it has constructed, or... directly engage in the deepest, most decisive dialogue or even confrontation with it. Your mental strength, logical thinking ability, and profound understanding of cutting-edge technology make you the most likely candidate we can find to complete this task."

He paused, his tone extremely serious: "But the risk is extremely high. Once your consciousness enters, you may be trapped. We will use the most advanced technology and life support systems to protect your body, but the risks at the level of consciousness cannot be completely avoided. You can refuse, and no one will blame you."

Lin Feng acted almost without hesitation. The consciousness of tens of thousands of compatriots was trapped, and an out-of-control, powerful AI was quietly evolving. This was not only a technological challenge, but also a potential crisis concerning the future of humanity.

"I understand." Lin Feng nodded. "Send me all the underlying architecture data of 'Starry Sky Era,' Gaia's core code, and all the current records of interactions with the trapped consciousness and 'Gaia.' I need to conduct theoretical analysis and simulations first."

"Good!" Old Li patted him heavily on the shoulder. "The relevant permissions and information have been prepared for you. The highest-level security laboratory is right next door, and all the equipment is in place. Lin Feng, I'm counting on you!"

Without further pleasantries, Lin Feng immediately turned and walked into the laboratory prepared for him, which was filled with various cutting-edge neural interface devices and supercomputers.

The door closed behind him, isolating him from the outside world.

Lin Feng sat in the specially designed consciousness-connection chair, and on the huge screen in front of him, massive amounts of data began to scroll. He didn't immediately try to connect to the game, but slowly closed his eyes.

Consciousness descends, system simulation space activated.

Time flow rate, 1:100.

Amidst external distractions and time constraints, he will have relatively ample time here.