"No..."
His soul squeezed from both sides, Meng Chao's will only grew firmer.
He was unwilling to "live," as Zero had described, in a world that had been meticulously calculated, flawless yet utterly unchanging—a world where one could see through to billions of years hence at a glance—existing as a chess piece, a puppet, or a component.
Nor was he willing to follow the path You had displayed: smashing all order, recognizing no rules, obeying only the primal law of "the strong prey on the weak and survival of the fittest," and joining a pack of kin who had evolved into grotesque forms in their madness, devouring the weak, slaughtering one another, and falling forever into a chaotic Asura Hell.
Between You and Zero, between absolute freedom and absolute order, there had to be a third path. There had to be!
Just as Meng Chao's soul, compressed until it twisted out of shape, let out a hysterical cry, something deep within the vast torrent of information that made up You and Zero seemed to hear his call, resonated with him, and blossomed with a faint yet dazzling light.
"What is that?"
Meng Chao hesitated, uncertain whether what lay hidden deep in the core databases of You and Zero was a path to escape alive or a deadly trap.
But he had no other choice.
Instinctively, he swam with all his strength toward the beacon formed from that brilliant light.
Both You and Zero noticed his unusual movement.
You and Zero, who had stood aloof beyond reach, focusing all their attention on each other and utterly disdaining Meng Chao, suddenly rippled with lights that could make wind and clouds change color.
Two torrents of information, utterly different in form and nature—one majestic and solemn, radiating boundless light; the other strange and