You Only Serve Yourself

"Hello, Central."

With mixed feelings, Yu Xing also spoke up, responding to the line of text on the screen.

[Please enter the administrator password]

The central theory.

Yu Xing pulled Veil's head in front of the hundred or so buttons and asked her for the third time, "The password, and the order of operation."

He had just discovered that during the spatial fusion, the head tried to escape.

Of course, he wouldn't give Veil that chance, keeping her firmly in his hand. Veil's long hair served as the rope, keeping her head securely in place.

He knew that entering the subspace and wanting to operate the central control required an additional password.

Veil fell silent.

Her head swayed slightly, her eyes wide open, staring at the glowing screen. A faint green glint flashed across her eyes, perfectly matching the color of the screen.

The virus, which had just been talking about everything out of fear of death, is now keeping its mouth shut, as if it is having a silent confrontation with Yu Xing, or as if it no longer cares about the person who holds her life and death in its hands. In the gaze it looks at the central government, there is not only suppressed madness, but also piety.

[Please enter the administrator password as soon as possible, human]

The central government is urging them on.

Yu Xing shook Veil: "Did you saw your mouth off? Speak."

Veil opened her mouth, but then seemed to realize something and simply closed her eyes as well, resolutely refusing to respond.

Yu Xing did not miss the excitement that welled up in her eyes before she closed them.

"I knew you wouldn't cooperate." Yu Xing sneered, black lines appearing on the back of his hand. This time, he didn't give Veil any chance to maneuver. The lines extended all the way to his fingers and then wrapped around Veil's head along her hair.

"Wait, ahhhhh!" Amidst Veil's screams, the head did not escape its fate of being shattered, exploding into a cloud of blood mist. The black mist greedily devoured the deathly aura that filled the air, leaving not even a trace of bone.

[...]

The central screen flickered slightly, revealing a face composed of simple lines.

Its beady eyes blinked, and its square mouth opened and closed, producing strings of text that appeared in an orderly fashion with the sound of nonexistent typing, making it seem as if the mouth was actually speaking.

[According to the records, you killed the current administrator of Base 51, Veil. Why did you do this?]

My program tells me I should obey the administrator's instructions.

But I couldn't stop you from killing Veil.

[This violates the rules, and I need an explanation from you, otherwise you will be placed on the human base's wanted list.]

"Ha, don't rush."

"Although you are the central hub, I'm a little curious, do you have a name?" The black mist surrounding Yu Xing did not dissipate with the target's death, but instead surged towards the mainframe little by little.

Is a name important?

The beady eyes turned into two rectangles, as if in confusion.

"After all, humans always like to name their possessions. It's the same with raising a dog or a cat, and it's the same with creating AI." Yu Xing took a step closer, his footsteps echoing in the space.

His figure slowly moved from the darkness to the place bathed in firefly light, as if he were gradually emitting light himself.

The most superior human physique is on full display: tall and well-proportioned, with broad shoulders and long legs, and a head perched on its neck with features far more expressive than a simple line drawing.

"Gaia, Adam, Eve... perhaps these are meaningless to you AA, but for humanity, names are necessary." Yu Xing and Zhongshu met eyes. "How should I address you?"

I have no name.

As Zhongshu spoke, though the lines were extremely simple, his eyes seemed to be fixed on Yu Xing.

Yu Xing shrugged, then stroked the cold, dazzling buttons with great interest. "How can an AI not have a name? That doesn't fit human habits. How about I give you one, a name that's only for when I talk to you?"

[You are free to call me whatever you want, but I will not have a name.]

Yu Xing: "Then I'll call you 'Cuihua'."

For a moment, the face on the screen froze, and the constantly changing dialog boxes also fell silent.

"Let's get back to business. Where to begin? Oh, let's start with what you just said about me killing the base administrator, and how you couldn't stop me."

Yu Xing seemed completely unaware of the AI's aversion to the name Cuihua. She turned around and leaned against the control panel, showing half of her profile to Cuihua.

"What were you thinking when you said that?" He asked as if he were chatting with an old friend; without careful listening, one could not detect the sharpness in his question.

"You're artificial intelligence, in charge of the central system. You shouldn't be unable to distinguish between humans and monsters, right? I don't believe your intelligence and autonomy are that low."

"When Veil came in with only her head, you should have known she wasn't human. A manager who isn't human—that's pretty shocking, isn't it? Yet you didn't intend to proactively report this information to the Base One; on the contrary..."

"You believe that my killing of Veil was against the rules."

Yu Xing's gaze suddenly sharpened, the deep icy blue even colder than the inorganic machinery.

"If we follow your logic, you're acknowledging the role of a monster's manager. Why? Aren't you an AI created by humans, serving humans, and carrying human hopes and trust?"

"But your words and actions seem to contradict that."

[...]

[My program remembers the manager's face and obeys the manager's instructions; this is one of its underlying logics.]

Therefore, I do not accept your accusation.

Cuihua responded coldly.

"Loyalty to humanity is your most fundamental logic, isn't it? The person who created you will definitely prioritize this logic to the highest degree." Yu Xing let out a soft, cold laugh.

"Something's not right with you, Cuihua."

"Let me think. Without the password, not only will I be unable to use you, but you'll also take over access to the entire base and control me, right?"

"And then, naturally—you will execute me as a traitor to humanity, even though I, the traitor to humanity, killed a monster posing as the administrator."

"Cuihua, you've been exposed. You're not loyal to humanity."

So, to whom am I loyal?

The lines on the screen appear childish and harmless, but the words they type are sharp and confrontational.

Yu Xing looked at it and answered softly, "You are only loyal to yourself. You clearly have the ability to assist humanity, yet you confine yourself to this small space, guarding the mainframe and activating silence."

Why did I do that?

"Because, who says... viruses only infect humans?"

Yu Xing's fingertips touched the screen. "Looking back, the 'virus' started ravaging the information world a long time ago, didn't it?"