She had not the slightest favorable impression of White Gate. Xia Fan noticed it.
Was it because An had once been defeated by the "Messenger"? But now that she had returned to humanity, she too needed the shelter's protection. There seemed to be a deeper reason behind it.
"What exactly is the World Will?"
"It is an artificial brain created by humans, maintaining the base's normal operations."
"An artificial... brain?" Xia Fan said in surprise. For a moment, he could not tell whether she meant that literally or whether there was some deeper implication.
"That's right." An pointed at Thought Control. "Can you tell whether she's human or machine?"
"Uh..." Xia Fan could not answer right away. He had once been able to tell easily, but now Thought Control felt increasingly no different from a True Person. Even her manner of speaking was no longer as stiff as when they had first met, and she would sometimes even crack deadpan jokes.
"I can tell easily, because no matter how well a simulation system is made, it is never a living being. In other words, it cannot use thought energy." An spoke bluntly. "So she can only assist humanity; she cannot replace Omega."
Xia Fan instinctively glanced at Thought Control. Her expression did not change, as though she tacitly accepted An's words.
"Without the ability to wield qi, it cannot surpass the limits of electronic systems. And to surpass those limits..."
"Then it can no longer be an electronic system," Xia Fan smoothly finished.
"Huh?"
"No... please continue."
An rolled her eyes at Xia Fan—though he could not see it, he felt it clearly. "To surpass those limits, the traditional technological route would not work. So the researchers of that time put forth an idea crazy enough to defy imagination: create