The empty room was silent, save for the faint white noise of electronic components running.

The chair with his back to the door remained motionless, like a silent spectator.

Chu Guang didn't know if the professor's old friend "Observer" was also watching from the side.

But presumably, even if it were, it probably wouldn't be able to jump out and say something.

After all, it says that the next encounter will be in tens of millennia.

If only he could wait until then.

The professor standing on the screen seemed to be caught in a distant memory, and he stood quietly for a long time before speaking in a eloquent tone.

"That was a long, long time ago, more than three hundred years from today."

"I can't remember if that was the first time or the second time I saw it, but it was the first time it had a heart-to-heart conversation with me."

"At that time, I had already grasped the mysteries of the four fundamental forces, and gradually began to use gravity as a medium to touch the boundaries of dimensions...... Just as the observer expected, we have mastered the power of the stars, and we have the key to the starry sky."

Chu Guang had a surprised expression on his face.

"Hyperspace engines? You invented it?"

The professor shook his head.

"No, I'm not very interested in specific applications, and those things are mostly done by my students. However, my research on neutrinos, quark gluon slurry, and gravitons has laid the theoretical foundation for hyperspace engines. Including the bias shield, including the anti-gravity force that you are familiar with, are in fact malleable applications of hyperspace theory......

It's okay not to be interested......

Feeling a rushing smell, Chu Guang unconsciously touched his nose.

Although he knew very well that the other side did not mean to deliberately pretend, he found that he was still pretended.

Maybe this is the art industry has a specialty.

Compared with pretending to be forced, he is still better at having a black belly.

At this point, the professor suddenly stopped talking as if he had thought of something.

"I won't tell you about those complicated things, if you are interested, you can find out for yourself. On the shelves of the library on the b4th floor, there is a popular science book called "Past, Present, Future", which reveals the principle of hyperspace and the FtL engine in plain language, which will be more friendly to amateurs."

Chu Guang nodded.

"I've seen it a long time ago...... What did you write?"

He didn't remember who the author of that book was, but he remembered that the "gravitational bond" mentioned in that book was an eye-opener for him, and it turned out that faster-than-light travel in the era of the human connection was actually played like this.

The professor said with a smile.

"Not really, it was written by my student."

Boy.

It's loaded again!

Chu Guang coughed lightly.

「…… Are we digressing?"

"Sorry, it took a long time."

The professor smiled embarrassedly, resumed his previous tone, and continued.

"Anyway...... In the Nth year after the establishment of the Human Federation, we got the key to the sea of stars and completed the first ascension of the entire human civilization. From that day on, our frontiers were no longer just Earth, but began to expand beyond the Earth-Moon system."

"And just when the Union needed me most, the Observer found me and prophesied about future crises and 'natural disasters'. In the end, it wants me to dig a grave on Mars, one smaller than the ruins of South Gate II...... However, because of some things, I didn't make it."

Chu Guang: "What's the matter?"

The professor was silent for a moment, not wanting to talk about it, but seemed to think that it was a thing of the past, so he finally spoke.

"A little bit of a personal matter...... My wife was very ill, at least at the time, and there was no cure, even though we had the power of the stars at that time. And, the ones who stand in a similar position to you

People didn't want me to take risks, so they persuaded me for a long time...... In the end, I chose to stay in the time I was supposed to be."

"That's really not going to be easy, human nature." Chu Guang nodded, with a bit of appreciation in his eyes.

He's not an emotionless person.

On the contrary, he not only attaches great importance to feelings, but is also very willing to make friends with people who value feelings.

Although this kind of person with weakness may not be a good person, he usually has a bottom line, will pay attention to his appearance, will have scruples, and will not do things that have no *** when he has a son.

By the way, this is also one of the reasons why he has been single so far.

Even if he hasn't done anything like giving birth to a son.

"Huh? You think it's human, right...... And it's not that simple."

The voices floating through the screen are full of mixed emotions, and it is difficult to describe whether they are leaving something behind, or shouldering a responsibility that does not belong to them.

「…… According to what I learned later, the guy was hiding quite important inside information, and there were indeed some 'good things' buried in that tomb, but at that time we didn't have the ability to fully excavate that ruin, and once we got in, we couldn't get out, and anyone could go! No wonder it asked me to go, it was a trap, this guy wanted to kill me!"

Chu Guang was stunned for a few seconds, his face full of astonishment.

"Observer...... Trying to kill you? Why?"

The man on the screen was silent for a moment, and then said after a long time.

"I don't know, maybe it wasn't trying to kill me, maybe it just wanted me to disappear for a while. According to it, I have progressed better than it expected, a cross-regional organization that cooperates on a global scale...... That is, the People's Union was born ahead of schedule, and two centuries earlier than it expected."

"Not only that, but the timing of the inauguration of the first fusion reactor, including the completion of the space elevator, etc., is based on the common prosperity of all mankind."

"Although I don't think it's a big deal, it's a small thing in the face of time, and it's not my credit alone, but it thinks that we in this universe are going too fast, and there is an undercurrent under the vision of prosperity."

"According to its view, the explosive advances in science and technology have allowed us to skip the problems we should have encountered and the real-world tools that we should have gained from solving them. As soon as our speed slows down in the future, the problems that we once skipped will explode in a concentrated manner, and a small risk will undo all our efforts, and that risk will almost certainly happen in the future."

Chu Guang thought about it for a while, trying to sort out the contradictions between the two sides.

To put it simply, the observer wants to give an appropriate intervention, but the result of the intervention is beyond its own expectations.

So it plans to remove the distractions.

Nope-

That's not quite right.

It would be more accurate to say that it gives the professor two options.

Either go to Mars, accept its "macro control", and develop in the direction of the Boundary Breaker.

Either abandon the system and stay on its original timeline, at the cost of removing excessive interference, or taking back the "help from the Void".

According to the professor, he didn't really use the system given to him by the observer anymore.

If there is no higher level of pursuit, there is really no need to be at the mercy of the observer in order to retain the system.

「…… And then?" Chu Guang continued to ask.

The professor on the screen said slowly.

"Then it didn't really matter, it said it would go to the future to find someone else, and then it disappeared with the system it gave me, as if it hadn't been. But it doesn't really matter, as I said before, I didn't really need its help at that time...... But it seemed so lost that it came back to me after many years. It doesn't say why it's coming back, but I can probably guess maybe it's because it found the future gone."

Chu Guang: "What does this 'no' refer to...... There are no more Boundary Breakers

Is it?"

The professor shook his head.

"Everything...... According to it, if I remain on this timeline I am in, our civilization will be overdrawn and lose all its future. Or to put it another way, countless universes with me will be wiped out, and no next 'Boundary Breaker' will be born until the final heat death of the universe."

Chu Guang's throat moved, he was silent for a long time, and said with a sigh of emotion.

"That sounds like an exaggeration."

The professor smiled faintly.

"It's an exaggeration, but it also has its reason, according to its soap bubble theory, the past and the future exist simultaneously in the void, and the multiverse and parallel worlds also exist at the same time. Any decision I make in the timeline of my existence will have changes in future outcomes that were at the same time possible in the early days of the explosion of the universe."

As he said this, the professor's voice suddenly took on a hint of loneliness.

Chu Guang wasn't sure if there was any regret in it, but there was definitely helplessness and chagrin.

"It showed me another kind of future, another possibility of a parallel world, the future after I went to Mars...... There I saw my descendants, and the descendants of many people I knew well, and they all lived well, and although they could not compare with the prosperous era, they were not much inferior."

"At the end of that future, I ended up leaving my home planet, but the future of our civilization is bright. Although there were some twists and turns during this period, it did not collapse like the Wasteland Age...... And in the end, we have taken a new step towards the sea of stars."

Looking at the blurred face, Chu Guang thought for a long time and asked.

"Do you regret it?"

"No, it's just a little regrettable," the professor shook his head and said slowly, "I was actually a little suspicious of its capriciousness at that time, it said it wouldn't come back to me again, and then suddenly came back to me with what it called another future."

"Of course I rejected it, and it went away disappointed...... But when you think about it, that could be the last chance to get history back on track."

"Perhaps, if I die at the right time, it will be the best ending—"

"I can't agree with that."

Chu Guang shook his head and said without thinking.

"History can't always move at the right pace as we envision, you can't represent right, I can't represent it, and a pair of eyes floating in nothingness can't represent it."

"And if it were right, it wouldn't be me standing here now, but someone else in its prophecy."

Chu Guang could actually understand the professor's deep self-blame in his heart.

Although, as he himself said, no one will blame the "Father of the Prosperity Era" for the Wasteland Era, just as no one will blame Li Shimin for the Anshi Rebellion, and no one will blame World War II on Watt, who invented the steam engine.

There is a generational thing, and even the role of the same person at different stages of life is different.

At most, future generations will blame themselves for failing to live up to the professor's expectations and failing to continue the era of prosperity he started.

However, it is clear that the observer not only revealed another future to him, but also spoiled the wasteland era and the next dozens of millennia, giving him a cause and effect that would not otherwise be possible to know—

Including the Wasteland Age is a foregone conclusion.

No matter how many shelters you build, you won't be able to save everyone, let alone change the outcome of human civilization turning into dust.

And all of this is because of you......

Although no one would ask him for this, he still couldn't get past that level in his heart.

He spent the rest of his life preparing for the catastrophe predicted by observers.

This includes the construction of shelters.

Includes the Black Box of Project Ark.

It even includes the formation of "academies" and so on.

These were back in the boom

The foreshadowing plan that was laid in the middle of the epoch has the shadow of the professor behind it......

If you don't have a strong sense of responsibility, you will never be able to bear the responsibility that these eight poles can't beat.

It is worth mentioning that the "wolf is really coming", and it came at a time when everyone thought that the utopia of infinite prosperity would last forever, so that many old popsicles in the wasteland worshipped the professor as a god.

That included the chief of the Great Rift, the old man of the Riddler.

Also included is Dr. Conclusion, who stands behind the Academy, the guy who is said to have been transformed into a digital life.

They don't know about the Void and the Observer.

From their point of view, and indeed of all the wastelanders, they would never think that this was a remedy, but rather an unquestionable vision.

Chu Guang would know that these were purely due to accidents.

However, his opinion is still the same as before, and he will not change anything because he knows this.

If they refuse to move forward because they are afraid of the downward spiral, humans will probably still be in the trees at this time.

Moreover, they have proved by their actions that their fate is in their own hands, and not manipulated by the ethereal void.

"You just said I don't know what choice I will make, I can tell you now that I may not make the same choice as you, but I will make what I think is the right choice."

The professor standing on the screen was silent for a while, and suddenly laughed out loud.

"I'd like to say it's you, but I think it's a bit weird. We are different, but we still make the same choice...... What I chose was what I thought was the right choice from the bottom of my heart."

He is indeed curious about the Void and eager to understand the origin of the universe, but it is a different matter if it comes at the cost of giving up his human identity to become a pawn of the Observer, the so-called "Boundary Breaker".

Stop the heat death of the universe.

It sounds grandiose, but what does it have to do with being human?

In the face of that endless cause, the entire galaxy is just a mayfly.

Perhaps he in other universes made a different choice and changed or prevented something in the distant future.

But at least in this universe, he chose to live as a human being.

With his loved ones.

Looking at the professor standing on the screen, Chu Guang nodded slightly, always feeling that he had something to say, as if he had known himself a long time ago.

But there's nothing surprising about that.

Since he has passed through the membrane of the universe and projected his mind to another, younger universe, he must have chosen himself after repeated observation and selection.

"You've got the stuff in that ruin?"

It is reasonable to assume that it must be something that is used to form a form-forming field.

As he expected, the professor on the screen nodded and said with an approving smile on his face.

"Yes, I tried to do some remedial work afterwards, including recovering the ruins on Mars...... I'm sure you've guessed the nature of the form-forming field."

Chu Guang also nodded.

"The resonance of the mind can penetrate the membrane of the universe and convey a message that both parties agree on. My conclusion is that you should have found your past self, and most likely your new self."

"Clever," the vague figure snapped its fingers, the admiration in its looming gaze becoming more apparent, "your understanding is not lost to me...... The only regret is that you are not the material for scientific research."

"I'm not interested either, I'm only responsible for making the rules of the game," Chu Guang said with an indifferent expression, "So what did you get from the ruins?"

"The three tubes of potions represent greater physical strength, almost infinite lifespan, and psionic energy. When used properly, it can even change the genetic appearance of the entire human race, but if it is not used well, it can also become a curse, such as allowing people who should not live to live for too long, for example

Let the immature baby hear too much noise from the void."

Just when Chu Guang was listening attentively, the professor on the screen suddenly changed his words and said with a smile.

"Actually, those things don't matter to you, I used them up in the early days of the Prosperous Age."

Chu Guang was stunned.

「…… All of them?"

The professor said with a smile.

"Sort of, although theoretically you can only choose one of the three potions to use, and the mixing of different potions may cause genetic contamination, I came up with a clever way to make the monkey who acted as the test subject drink the potion, and then make up for the strengths and weaknesses of the three different test subjects...... This includes, but is not limited to, allowing them to reproduce with other female monkeys, and crossbreeding their offspring with controlled variables."

This guy didn't choose to drink it himself?

Chu Guang's face was a little surprised.

He thought that he was "ignorant enough", but he didn't expect that there was a guy here who didn't know how to be in awe, and he really didn't take the void into his eyes at all.

There was no surprise at the surprise on Chu Guang's face, and the professor continued.

"The results of the experiment were quite amazing and proved my suspicions. The agent is probably a projection of a high-dimensional substance on a three-dimensional plane, or some kind of higher-dimensional technology that we don't know about, so the permutations and combinations of dNA molecules are extremely complex, like conflicting codes. If these genomes are present in a person's body at the same time, the person's body will undoubtedly 'report error', which is called genetic contamination."

"So I resigned to the next best thing, intercepted the non-conflicting dNA fragments in repeated experiments, rearranged them with the existing technology, and gradually transplanted them to the experimental clones. Although the genotypes formed by rearrangement will be less expressive, they will be stable, and there will be no more genetic contamination."

"And not only that, but my research team also found that as the body and genome adapt to each other, those 'commented codes' will gradually be correctly expressed in a more stable form!"

Chu Guang swallowed.

"Even if you die all over again?"

"That's right, at least for clones that only hold some fragments, as long as they record the evolution of life they have undergone through a culture chamber or scanning device."

The professor nodded lightly and continued.

"The process of genome reexpression can be done in the culture chamber, after all, the life stage of a clone can be artificially defined...... By this point, you've probably realized what your 'players' genetic sequence is."

"I guess I understand. Other words...... You've come up with a huge gene pool through the analysis of the three tubes, and the players' genetic code is the result of the normal genetic permutations of different 'fragments' in different gene pools, and they are responsible for exploring the stable expression of each 'fragment'."

Chu Guang tried to simplify complex issues and then understand them.

Looking at the professor who nodded approvingly, he paused for a moment and continued.

"But there's one more thing I don't understand, what is my genetic sequence?"

As if waiting for him to ask the question, the figure on the screen smiled vaguely.

"This brings us to one of Vault 404's core secrets...... Ever heard of the 'Completed Lifeform Project'?"

"Of course I've heard of ......."

Chu Guang always felt that the eyes staring at him were a little meaningful, and a strange feeling gradually appeared in his heart.

Could it be—

Just as he had almost guessed the answer, the professor standing on the screen revealed the final mystery to him.

"Your dNA contains all the 'fragments' of that gene pool", although most of them are in annotated form."

"This process

In fact, it is full of risks, it is as if you have a nuclear bomb strapped to your body, and the slightest mistake will blow you up to ashes...... But who wants you to be a manager? Don't blame me for being cold-blooded, someone has to take the risk."

"Players take less risk, they are given a small piece of shrapnel and are only responsible for dismantling the shrapnel on their opponents. In addition to carrying the nuclear bomb, you also have to be responsible for the aggregation and integration of information, and dismantle the "nuclear bomb" on your body according to the clues provided by the players...... And that's one of the reasons why your 'Sequence Level' is positively correlated with the Sequence Level and number of players."

"In the whole process of division of labor and cooperation, we did refer to the operation mode of the mutant slime nest, and made some improvements on this basis."

"That's why I'm telling you, you don't have to care what I got from that ruin, because I've put those precious legacies to work on you."

"And you're the 'Completed Lifeform'!"

Free to read.