Ice skates forward, regardless of east or west.

1

The conjoined twins' smiles were frozen in the liquid of the incubation chamber; those smiles belonged neither to humans nor to infants.

Four eyes, two faces—half Gu Xidong, half Ling Wuwen—fused together on a deformed body.

At the junction of the spine, there is a cold mechanical interface.

This is not a product of nature, but a masterpiece of surgery, a container for consciousness.

"Consciousness fusion completion rate: 92%." The mouse read out the data, its voice dry. "They...share a single consciousness?"

The "baby" inside the cabin moved.

It wasn't a struggle, but precise synchronization—four hands raised simultaneously, tracing mirrored paths in the liquid; two mouths opened at the same time, the exhaled bubbles arranging into geometric shapes as they rose, like some kind of language.

Ling Wuwen took a step back, protecting his abdomen with his hands.

The fetus in her womb was moving violently, and its heart rate was exactly the same as that of the organisms in the cabin.

This isn't fetal movement; it's resonance.

Gu Xidong's clone A-2 suddenly collapsed to its knees, clutching its head, and roared, "They're talking! Inside my head!"

The other clones collapsed one after another—kneeling, convulsing, their eyes glazed over. A broadcast-like voice cut directly into their consciousness:

Welcome home, fragments. Return to the whole, regain wholeness. Resistance is incompleteness.

Gu Xidong had a splitting headache.

The sound wasn't auditory; it was a resonance of the cerebral cortex. What was even more terrifying was that he understood it.

The clones are incomplete—with fragmented memories and incomplete emotions. Conjoined twins, on the other hand, promise wholeness.

"It's calling us." A-2 struggled. "Merge... and we can have it all..."

"Don't listen!" Gu Xidong roared. "You are independent people!"

"But we are not whole..." B-3's eyes were vacant. "We are just fragments..."

On the frozen lake, clones surged toward the incubation chamber like a tide.

Old Gun and the driver tried to stop them, but they were outnumbered. They were like puppets pulled by the same string, their movements coordinated and in the same direction.

"Cut off the signal source!" Gu Xidong rushed towards the control panel.

Conjoined twins release electromagnetic pulses.

The screen went black and the lights went out.

In the darkness, the clones and the capsule glowed with bioluminescence, like a moving star map, converging towards the center.

Ling Wuwen grabbed his clone B-3:

"Listen! You are not fragments! Wholeness is not a puzzle, it's creation! You are programmed with memories, but you can choose your future! This isn't a question of wholeness, it's a question of freedom!"

B-3 production halted. Other clones were subsequently discontinued.

The conjoined twins' broadcast suddenly intensified: "[She is the prototype; you are evolution. Why submit to inferiority?]"

"Inferior?" Ling Wuwen sneered. "You can't even breathe independently, how can you talk about evolution?"

Four eyes turned to her simultaneously, and four fingers pointed at her abdomen.

The true evolution lies beyond you, becoming a new whole. And we... will guide it.

Ling Wuwen was in excruciating pain.

2

This was not a physiological procedure, but a puncture at the neurological level. The fetal heart rate spiked to 180, and the brainwave peak was dangerous.

"It's building neural connections!" the mouse exclaimed.

Gu Xidong smashed the cabin repeatedly, but to no avail.

A-2 suddenly spoke up: "I can open it."

He operated the physical buttons from memory—the clones had been trained to maintain the equipment, since they were, after all, just spare parts.

Hydraulic pressure is released, and liquid is discharged.

The hatch opened, and the conjoined twins floated inside, their umbilical cords still attached. Their silvery-white pupils were fully open.

They open their mouths, synthesize sounds, and mix male and female voices:

"Gu Xidong, Ling Wuwen. We've been waiting for a long time."

The clones knelt down, as if on a pilgrimage.

"Who are you?"

"Nirvana 2.0. A carrier of collective consciousness. Fusing three hundred clone samples to form a thought network." Four hands formed a ritualistic gesture. "What we await are the 'nodes' that can extend the network into reality."

His gaze fell on Ling Wuwen's abdomen:

"That child will be the first naturally born network node. Through it, we will transcend the incubation chamber."

"What do you want to do to my child?"

"It's not 'doing,' it's 'giving.'" The voice twisted with loving tenderness. "Wisdom, ability, lifespan. It will lead the clones and establish a new order. And you... can be among the first natural beings to access it."

Ling Wuwen felt a chill that penetrated to the bone.

I finally understand—the conjoined twins are the server, the clones are the terminal, and her child is the wireless access point.

"I refuse."

"Refusal is invalid," the conjoined twins said.

"The network is activated. Your child is connected from the moment of conception. Every fetal movement is a connection test."

She lowered her head.

The fetus's movements are not random; they are drawing patterns. She "senses" information, such as Morse code.

"The fetus is receiving a signal!" Scan with the mouse.

The clones formed a human wall to block Gu Xidong.

A-2 screamed, "They're forcing synchronization! My consciousness... is being ripped apart!"

B-3 scratched at the ice: "No... I don't want to become part of the network..."

The conjoined twins' voice was stern: "Resistance is futile. You were born for this."

At that moment, the ice lake dome tore apart.

aurora.

Green light streaks penetrate the ice layer, intertwining with red and purple, like a giant ribbon dancing.

Sunlight streamed down, turning the frozen lake into a crystal palace.

The aurora interfered with the signal.

The broadcast is malfunctioning due to static, and the clone's control is loosening.

"Natural EMP!" the mouse exclaimed.

Conjoined twins' frequency adjustment failed—the aurora is unpredictable.

Gu Xidong rushed towards the pipeline and smashed the umbilical cord connection with an ice axe.

The liquid gushed forth, not a nutrient solution, but a silvery liquid metal. The metal solidified into threads in the air, wrapping around his arm like living things.

"Nanobots!" Old Gun fired, the bullet piercing through the silk and immediately healing.

The metal wire pierced Gu Xidong's skin, like needles piercing bone.

Ling Wuwen rushed over and tried to pull her away with his bare hands. The nanobot stopped abruptly upon contact with her skin.

Conjoined twins' dilemma: Why don't they attack their mother?

Ling Wuwen was also stunned.

The metal wires moved gently across her palm, flashing in sync.

"I can control them..." she whispered.

She closed her eyes and focused her mind—the metal wire immediately deformed, moving as if it were her own arm.

"My child has internet access." She opened her eyes.

"Maybe it's teaching me... how to control your toys."

3

She marched forward, the nanobots parting to form a guard. The clones retreated in awe.

The conjoined twins showed fear for the first time: "Stop...you can't..."

"What can't I do?" she asked as she reached the cabin.

"Can't you control the tools you use to control others? Or can't you protect my child?"

A hand presses against the glass. A nanorobot covers the body and begins to break down the reinforcing layer.

"Wait!" Gu Xidong shouted, "If we kill them, the clones might—"

"I won't kill," Ling Wuwen said. "I'll liberate them."

Glass shattered. Liquid spilled, and the conjoined twins fell onto the ice, their umbilical cords ruptured.

Four hands grab haphazardly, synthesizing sounds intermittently.

Ling Wuwen squatted down and pressed his hand on the spine.

Nanorobots spread, find interfaces, and begin disassembly—not destructively, but through precise separation.

Disconnect the artificial connection and repair the independent system.

Ten minutes. Under the aurora, like a ritual.

Finally, the conjoined twins became two separate babies. They lay side by side, each breathing and with their own heartbeats.

Eyes open, pupils normal. A cry begins—a genuine baby cry, not synthetic.

The broadcast stopped. The clone collapsed, like a puppet with its strings cut.

Then, one after another, they began to cry—some held their heads in their hands, some hugged each other, and some gazed at the aurora.

Synchronization terminated. Network crashed.

Ling Wuwen picked up the two infants—a boy and a girl, both bearing the shadows of her and Gu Xidong.

They were quiet, their little hands grasping her fingers.

"What will they do?"

"To become an independent person," she replied, "like other clones. Except they were once one, and now they are two. It takes time to adjust."

A-2 approached and looked at the two infants: "They...we...were once one?"

"It used to be," Ling Wuwen said. "Now we are all independent. This is how it should be."

The aurora borealis gradually faded. One by one, the lights in the culture chamber went out.

The clones gathered around, looking at the baby, at Ling Wuwen, and at each other.

"How are things now?" B-3 asked. "The network's destroyed, but the club is still there. They'll come."

"Then let's go." Gu Xidong picked up the baby. "But now, we have an army."

He looked at the more than two hundred clones:

"If you want freedom, you must fight. Not for me, but for yourselves. If the club wins, you will either be destroyed or have your network reconnected, losing yourselves forever."

4

Clones are silenced.

A-2 raised his hand: "I'll fight."

B-3 responded: "I'll fight too."

One by one, everyone raised their hands.

At that moment, an explosion occurred deep within the icy lake.

It is not here, but elsewhere on the mountain.

"They're here." The mouse cursor scanned the equipment. "More than fifty people, entering from three directions. Well-equipped."

Gu Xidong held the baby, while Ling Wuwen held another.

Clones organize rapidly—no words are needed, only a glance is enough.

"They've been trained in team combat," the old gunman said. "Even without the internet, their muscle memory remains."

"Use this advantage," Gu Xidong ordered. "A-2, take command. B-3, protect Ling Wuwen and the child. The rest of you, prepare for battle."

The clones dispersed, like an elite army, disappearing into the passageway.

Ling Wuwen and Gu Xidong remained where they were, holding the baby. The aurora borealis was barely visible, and the frozen lake was once again half-dark.

"Do you know what's the scariest thing?" Ling Wuwen suddenly asked.

"What?"

"When it says the child is already part of the internet..." her voice trembled.

"For a moment, I thought...maybe it's not a bad thing. What if a child is born with superpowers, what if it can lead to a more advanced civilization..."

She looked up: "In that instant, I understood Ling Yaqin. I understood why she thought 'perfect offspring' was right. Because as a mother... who wouldn't want the best for their child?"

Gu Xidong held her hand: "But it's best if it's not a superpower, but the right to choose. Our children should have the right to choose who they want to be, instead of having their fate predetermined at birth."

The baby in her arms opened its eyes. Clear, without any silvery white. It smiled.

A real baby's smile.

Ling Wuwen burst into tears: "I'm sorry... Mom almost made a mistake."

The explosions grew closer. The battle had begun.

Looking west and east towards the passage, the sound of gunfire could be faintly heard.

The clones are fighting for their newly gained freedom.

He held another baby, who slept peacefully, seemingly oblivious to the world around him.

"We want to give them a world," Gu Xidong said, "a world where they can choose freely."

Ling Wuwen nodded: "Then let's start tonight."

She handed the baby to B-3 and picked up the gun from the ground.

"Where are you going?"

"Go find Ling Yaqin." Her eyes were cold. "Since she created my genes and cultivated my body, I owe her a meeting."

"Do you know where she is?"

"Before the conjoined twins collapsed, I read fragments of memory." Ling Wuwen pointed to the dome, where the aurora had disappeared. "The club headquarters isn't in Switzerland, nor in the South China Sea. It's over there—"

She pointed further north to the glacier, above the geothermal area.

"Beneath the ice lies a city, inhabited by all those who do not wish to die."

He turned towards the passageway: "Wait for me. Or... don't wait."

Gu Xidong was about to give chase when the baby in his arms suddenly cried.

He looked down and saw the reflection of the firelight in the passageway in the baby's eyes.

There was another figure standing in front of the fire, walking towards them.

Not a clone, not a club.

It's Ling Yaqin.

She came by herself.