Dou Dou waved at the central processor, her face wearing a pure, innocent smile. She seemed unable to understand what "different life forms" meant, and simply regarded the black pillar before her that could think and converse as a new friend. Incredibly, the central processor responded in kind.
Hao Ren held Dou Dou securely in his arms and looked down at the little mermaid. Before arriving here, he had already noticed that Dou Dou had been acting strangely along the way, so he had asked a few questions about her condition. Dou Dou's mind had not yet matured, so she had been unable to clearly describe what she had sensed. But through speculation and deduction, Hao Ren had still vaguely grasped the truth.
Dou Dou had sensed the decline and extinction of an entire race. That race could only have been the humans in the Fortress of the End, and the central processor's malfunction was very likely connected to it.
"To be honest, I've dealt with many races, and all kinds of life forms—including Elemental creatures and pure spirits. But artificial intelligence is the most difficult type I've ever encountered," Hao Ren said as he looked at the central processor. "I don't know how to convince a supercomputer with stubborn logic and a strict thought process, because all the evidence I can provide is vague, unverifiable, and unfalsifiable to you. All I can say is this—if you truly hope to complete your mission, if you're still truly loyal to your creators, then you should at least try believing us outsiders. Even if doing so lacks any logical support, it's still a choice."
The central processor remained silent even longer this time. Even the lights on the black cylinder's surface dimmed by two-thirds. Just as Hao Ren was beginning to think