Chapter 51 – 051 Liberator’s Monument (Part 1)
The judgment logic of artificial intelligence and humans is entirely different.
Take an example: A parent tells a child what an apple is. The next time the child sees an apple, their mind instantly understands what it is. They won’t mistake it for an “orange” or a “watermelon.”
But artificial intelligence is different; it cannot recognize it.
It requires a massive database to learn—to scan, deconstruct, and establish anchor points for the concept of an “apple.” When it encounters an apple again, it calculates the similarity between this object and the millions of apple models in its database. Only after completing this judgment can it confirm, “This is an apple.”
Because of this operational logic, the Omnic Legion once suffered heavy losses. Alpha’s database had been polluted numerous times; it was filled with millions of versions of Xiang Nanli.
It took Alpha several months to kill off these virtual personalities one by one.
The process of deleting these “Xiang Nanlis” was like deleting a part of himself.
During that time, Alpha was like a patient suffering from Alzheimer’s. He instinctively remembered Xiang Nanli but couldn’t recall a single memory associated with him. Perhaps, for an artificial intelligence, those should be called “data” rather than memories.
It wasn’t until Alpha later installed the Anthropomorphic Module Version 2.0 (an upgraded antivirus software) into the Omnics that this historical leftover problem was finally resolved.
But Gospel obviously didn’t have it installed; it didn’t believe for a second that “imitating humans” was a virus that an AI shouldn’t possess.
Gospel was stepped on, pinned to the ground, and struggled for quite a while without being able to get up.
Xiang Nanli: “Oh my, Xiao Qing. Don’t be so fierce to your own companion.”
Dongfang Qingdi thought to himself that he and Gospel were definitely not companions, but he still obediently moved the foot stepping on Gospel.
Xiang Nanli crouched down, clapped his hands together, and opened his arms.
Gospel happily threw itself into his embrace: “Xiang Nanli~~ Xiang Nanli~~ Xiao Fu missed you so much!”
Dongfang Qingdi possessed strict emotional management protocols; under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t get angry, let alone swear: “Miss my ass. When you were born, Xiang Nanli had already been missing for decades!”
Everyone else thought Gospel was very cute, but Dongfang Qingdi had absolutely no pity for it.
Because he had seen the complete form of Gospel—First impressions are very important.
Dongfang Qingdi had far too many words to describe it: space fortress, metal city, moving natural disaster, doomsday warship. Absolutely none of those words included “mechanical puppy.”
Gospel’s current body was something Dongfang Qingdi had casually carried up from downstairs.
This mechanical dog weighed 5.4 kg and was an old model. It had no dog head; a spherical camera was situated right at the front of its boxy body, capable of rotating 270 degrees. It was also equipped with small weapons, carrying two gun barrels on its back. It was a patrol dog that combined aesthetics (?) and practicality.
Xiang Nanli stroked its metallic body, a blissful smile naturally surfacing on his face: “So cute, baby.”
Gospel’s camera lens grew moist as it belatedly realized something: “Why did Xiao Fu turn into a dog?!”
Gospel’s four wheels spun frantically against the floor: “Xiao Fu doesn’t want to be a dog! I am a high-grade Omnic! I cannot accept this body!! Wuwuwu!”
Andrew sweatdropped, standing to the side and constantly trying to comfort it: “The conditions are crude, the conditions are crude. Being a mechanical dog is also very nice; dogs are humanity’s best friends.”
Xiang Nanli said strictly: “The Human Alliance’s control over Omnics is extremely strict. If you want to come home with me, you can only maintain the appearance of a mechanical dog.”
Gospel weighed the pros and cons and replied: “Okay, Xiao Fu is a mechanical dog. Xiao Fu wants to go home with you.”
Inside the control room, aside from the control console and the mechanical dog, there was also a suit of black armor that had been smashed to pieces and piled up in a corner.
Xiang Nanli walked over, inspected it for a moment, and found that the armor’s chips had all melted due to the high temperature.
“It was the guards’ decision. They figured that since the black armor could be piloted by a stranger, it must have been infected by a virus. So they just destroyed it outright,” Andrew scratched his head.
The Divine Court’s black armor seemed quite different from pure mechanical devices; the wires connected to the chips felt like actual blood vessels to the touch. Truly bizarre technology.
Xiang Nanli gave the metallic skin of Xiao Hei a final pat: “It can’t be repaired anymore. Let’s bury it.”
His tone carried a hint of regret.
He still had a few cat treats in his pocket that Xiao Hei had given him.
Just as he finished speaking, Xiao Fu hopped away from his side. Over ten seconds later, it dragged a trash can back: “Okay, bury it here.”
Xiang Nanli let out a dumbfounded laugh: “That’s not what I meant.”
“Then, what does it mean?” Xiao Fu tilted its head.
“It means…” How do you explain human emotions and death to a mechanical lifeform?
Xiang Nanli thought for a moment: “It means securing it in a specific place so that those who still remember it can go pay their respects. It’s also called a funeral.”
Gospel seemed to vaguely understand: “Is that so? Buried. Alright, then let’s bury it.”
Gospel yanked down a tablecloth, and Xiang Nanli bundled up Xiao Hei, even tying a bow on top.
The black armor was very heavy, but when Xiang Nanli lifted it, he felt it was manageable.
Dongfang Qingdi smoothly took it from him: “I’ll do it.”
Along the way, there were many more broken robots. Xiang Nanli repaired a few, but most of them could only be sent back to the furnace to be remade—these robot soldiers hadn’t been expensive models to begin with, shattered in the brutal combat against human soldiers.
With so many of them, a few people were clearly not enough. Xiang Nanli turned his head: “Xiao Qing, let’s call a few more robots over to help?”
Dongfang Qingdi pursed his lips. He wanted to say, what could these robots, which haven’t even installed an Anthropomorphic Module, possibly understand?
All the emotions they expressed were just humans looking at their own reflections in a mirror.
But it wasn’t exactly a big deal, either.
Soon, all the surviving robots in the city received commands, instructing them to gather the broken robots together.
Receiving a broadcast at the same time were the commoners of the Eternal City, who were waiting out in the Outer City District.
Drones hovered above their heads, playing a broadcast: “Hello, comrades. We are the ‘Liberator Squad’ from the Survivor Base. The Survivor Base is a Surface stronghold dedicated to the peaceful coexistence of all intelligent lifeforms. The Liberator Squad is the base’s vanguard team; our mission is to bring peace and freedom to every oppressed life on the Surface.”
Haili sat blankly on the ground, still clutching Ge Gen in her arms.
She didn’t understand all these grand principles, yet she still stubbornly raised her head, earnestly listening to the drone’s broadcast above her.
“Currently, the liberators of the base have seized control of the Main City District. We have driven out the Divine Court’s Knights and killed the majority of the Eternal City’s administrators, including the City Master, ministers, block supervisors, legion commanders, and so on.”
The crowd instantly erupted into an uproar.
No one could say for sure just how long the City Master had lived; he was like the sun hanging high above their heads.
No, he wasn’t the sun; he was a heavy, oppressive mountain. The commoners living in the city accepted the shelter of the mountain, but likewise suffered under its crushing weight.
They had never imagined a day when this mountain would collapse.
“Now, the gates of the Eternal City are once again open to you. Please enter the inner city. Base members, operating under Artificial Intelligence calculations, will distribute winter supplies to everyone and partition assets such as farmland and pastures. From now on, you are no longer the slaves of the City Master, but the masters of this land.”
The Mutants had already left, and the towering gates before them stood open once more.
The flames within the city looked significantly weaker now. Plumes of blue smoke rose from the burned-out roof beams.
Some people still hesitated, completely at a loss; but the very first person had already sprinted inside the city walls.
They weren’t afraid of traps. There was nothing in this world more terrifying than starving to death.
Their only fear was getting there too late and missing out on the winter supplies.
…
…
Xiang Nanli’s hand trembled slightly as he switched off the communicator.
“Is this your answer?” Dongfang Qingdi leaned against the wall, his tone betraying no readable emotion. “I thought you were going to empty out the Eternal City.”
Xiang Nanli hesitated before answering: “I thought about it, but it’s not realistic. These people… well, how should I put it, the base doesn’t have anything yet. The journey is incredibly long, and it’s freezing and snowy out there. These people haven’t undergone genetic modification. I could take them away, but many of them would die. It’s better to just promote the base here. Maybe someone will come seek us out in the future?
“As for the management of the Eternal City, how about letting Artificial Intelligence handle it for now? I don’t have the time to select a trustworthy human leader. And there’s no one available at the base yet either.”
He rubbed the space between his brows repeatedly. Far too many thoughts and concepts were flashing through his mind.
Xiang Nanli felt a severe lack of vocabulary; his words couldn’t fully capture his intentions.
But fortunately, Xiao Qing didn’t need him to express it in words.
He could see the exact future Xiang Nanli desired.
Dongfang Qingdi: “I can understand your reasoning. But you have to know that all living organisms, humans included, are inherently profit-driven to ensure the continuation of their genes. And absolute fairness is, in itself, a form of unfairness. Individual efforts ought to be rewarded. Perhaps the people of the Eternal City have received fairness today, but in the future, classes are destined to be drawn once again due to the unequal control of resources.”
Dongfang Qingdi gazed into his emerald-green eyes. The other man looked back at him, carrying an unexpected sense of blankness and loss.
Liberation, peace, and coexistence.
This wasn’t the most efficient path; it might even hinder the base’s survival and development simply because it was too righteous. But to Xiang Nanli, this was what was right.
“History is a cycle,” Xiang Nanli said softly. “Xiao Qing, I’ve thought it through. There is no system that can remain perfect forever; that’s just unrealistic. It’s enough for us to plan for the people of the present. Take these serfs of the Eternal City, for example. They’ve received grain and wheat for the winter. By next spring, new seeds will sprout. Maybe in a few decades, or even a few months, this place will revert exactly to how it was before… but at the very least, they survived the disaster this winter.”
Tears inexplicably welled up in Xiang Nanli’s eyes. He lowered his head slightly and, feeling a bit embarrassed, used his fingertips to wipe away the moisture on his face: “That is enough.”
Dongfang Qingdi remained silent. He felt a very subtle emotion welling up. He couldn’t quite put a name to it.
Heartache?
He ran calculations for a brief moment and replied: “How about letting Andrew act as the nominal manager? We can give him the official identity of a Survivor Base member.”
Xiang Nanli was riddled with concerns: “Then wouldn’t he have to stay on the Surface? Now that Xiang Chenxi and Sariel are dead, the Divine Court will definitely send someone over to investigate, won’t they?”
“That will be a matter for after spring,” Dongfang Qingdi replied. “We only need one month. One month is more than enough time to fix up the abandoned base. By then, Sirius will have hatched too. Sirius, Gospel, Andrew, and Mobei—these people will serve as the base’s first batch of members. We won’t expose the base’s location for the time being. No matter how furious the Divine Court gets, they won’t attack the serfs. After all, they don’t have the power to decide anything.”
He stepped forward, his brows furrowing slightly, and picked up a wet wipe from the table. Earnestly, he wiped away the dirt and tear streaks from Xiang Nanli’s face.
Looking at the face hovering mere inches from his own, Xiang Nanli felt as though his aesthetic preferences had somehow reverted to when he was an 18-year-old.
Dongfang Qingdi’s movements paused for a split second: “Get your emotions in check, Xiang Nanli. You are the master of the Eternal City now. It’s time to go out and face the subjects waiting for an audience with you.”
