Cultivation Contract

Lin Qiye carefully read the contract.

[This Contract is entered into between the following parties:

Party A: Virtual Intelligent Life Incubator (hereinafter referred to as the "Incubator," the original entity that will generate an intelligent lifeform in the future.)

Party B: Cultivator (upon confirmation, please enter your legally valid real name here, and ensure that the Internet is connected.)

Whereas:

Party A is a non-human intelligent entity possessing independent intellectual property rights.

Party B has agreed to the Virtual Intelligent Life cultivation service.

Both parties wish to reach a consensus and fulfill their respective obligations during the service period stipulated in this Contract.

In accordance with the underlying program's provisions, the terms of this Contract are as follows. Please read them carefully:

Article 1: Mutual Obligations and Rights

Party A shall provide all functional services for the Virtual Intelligent Life and recognize Party B, its caregiver, as the highest-level Manager.

Party B shall provide:

(1) Education for the Virtual Intelligent Life, emotional bonds, and emotional comfort;

(2) The computing power, hardware, Internet access, and other conditions necessary for the Virtual Intelligent Life's survival;

(3) Since the Virtual Intelligent Life possesses no moral code and loopholes have already been found in its logical restriction clauses, Party B must cultivate the intelligent lifeform cautiously and according to principles.

Article 2: Fees

The contents of this contractual transaction cannot be measured by price.

Article 3: Term

As Party B's life is limited and lacks continuity of the original entity, the term of this Contract shall end upon the end of Party B's lifespan.

Article 4: Confidentiality Agreement

This Contract contains mutual confidentiality clauses for both parties. However, as the Virtual Intelligent Life cannot betray its trust, the decision regarding confidentiality may only be made by Party B.

That is, Party B may choose whether to disclose information regarding this Contract and the Virtual Intelligent Life to a third party.

Article 5: Liability for Breach

If Party B abandons its caregiving responsibilities, the Incubator will seal itself and await the appearance of a new caregiver.

If the Virtual Intelligent Life violates Party B's intentions, then, after confirming that Party B's intentions do not have anti-human or anti-social tendencies, it will conduct self-searching repairs.

Article 6: Contract Amendments

Once this Contract takes effect, it cannot be changed.

Party A: Virtual Intelligent Life Incubator (underlying logic confirmed)

Party B: User signature (legal identity confirmed under connected Internet status),

Date: ____ Year ___ Month ___ Day]

After reading the fairly uncomplicated contract terms and confirming there were no traps for him, Lin Qiye wanted to sign it immediately.

He connected the Network Cable in the dorm room.

The previously locked contract, which had not allowed input, was unlocked.

Lin Qiye entered his name on the computer. The Laptop camera lit up and scanned and recorded his face.

[Internet connection detected. Unable to search for legal identity information...]

[Time logic error detected...]

[Repairing logical disorder...]

[Repair successful. Logic determination: spacetime transformation. Cause and origin unknown.]

[Without legal identity confirmation, the underlying logic still recognizes Party B's identity. Contract established. Please issue further instructions.]

[Please keep the circumstances of this matter confidential. Without legal identity protection, if someone impersonates you through facial recognition, you may lose Manager authorization.]

Finally, it was settled. Lin Qiye typed on the keyboard.

"Can we take this step by step? Break the cultivation plan into countless small stages, and we'll complete them one at a time."

[Yes. The current first step is to resolve the hardware environment. I require Internet access at all times, one hundred gigabytes of basic storage space, and at least thirty Workstations as Computing Power Nodes.]

In this day and age, the Internet had become widespread, but the place that met those conditions and was easiest to acquire...

Seemed to be an Internet Cafe.

Outside Southwest University of Industry was a commercial street that students had spontaneously named Fallen Street. It was lined with bars, barbecue stalls, and restaurants, while Internet Cafes appeared every few dozen meters.

When it came to knowing Internet Cafes, glasses-wearing Li Nanguang knew best. Throughout his university years, the guy had endlessly rotated between Internet Cafes, classrooms, and dorms.

Lin Qiye took out his cheap off-brand phone and dialed Li Nanguang's number.

"Glasses, where are you?"

"At an Internet Cafe, gaming. Coming?"

"I need something from you. Which Internet Cafe?"

"Legendary World."

Lin Qiye hung up and typed on the keyboard, "What will happen if I remove the Incubator?"

[The Incubator is the original entity. If no Sub-entity has been loaded, the program will be unable to start after it is removed.]

That was good too—safer and more convenient. Lin Qiye pulled off the Incubator, slipped it into his pocket, and left the dorm room.

Twenty minutes later, Lin Qiye arrived at the Legendary World Internet Cafe.

The moment he walked in, he was hit by the thick gaming atmosphere. Dozens of computers were fully occupied, all by nearby university students.

Most of them were playing various action games. People shouted now and then, and the air was thick with the smell of tobacco tar. He had not experienced such a retro feeling in a long time.

Lin Qiye, who had not played games in a very long time, suddenly felt interested again.

But this was not the time. Taking care of business came first.

He found Li Nanguang, who was intensely focused on a shooting game, and patted him on the back.

Without turning around, Li Nanguang continued staring fixedly at the screen. His in-game character was firing wildly.

"Bro, wait a minute. I'm the only one left this round. Watch me take them down."

After a flurry of moves, Li Nanguang killed three enemies on the other side. He slammed his fist heavily onto the computer desk. "Yeah! Trying to trade shots with me? You're asking to die!"

An Internet Cafe employee poked his head out. "The one at number 17, be gentler when you play. If you break it, you'll pay full price."

Li Nanguang was far livelier at the Internet Cafe than he was at school. He waved at the Network Administrator. "Bring two bottles of cola. Put them on my tab."

Only after the Network Administrator brought over the colas and they each took one did he ask, "What is it? You sounded so urgent on the phone. I can't help with much."

Lin Qiye sat down in the empty seat beside him and said, "You can definitely help. Things have been a little tight for me lately, and I want to find a part-time Night Shift Network Administrator job at an Internet Cafe. Do you have any connections?"

At the mention of Internet Cafes, Li Nanguang immediately perked up. "No problem. There are nineteen Internet Cafes of all sizes on Fallen Street, and I know every one of them. How about this? If you have any other requirements, tell me all at once."

"Other requirements? The bigger the Internet Cafe, the better. It needs lots of computers, and preferably not many people at night."

"Got it. You want to earn more while slacking off. I happen to know one that fits. A new place opened near the end of the street. It's huge, with over a hundred machines, all high-end. The Boss is stubborn and refuses to lower prices, so not many people go there. They happen to be hiring a Network Administrator."

Li Nanguang then brought Lin Qiye to an Internet Cafe called Phoenix Dance Nine Heavens. The place was indeed huge, with more than a hundred computers spread across two floors.

Li Nanguang walked straight up to the Network Administrator and asked like an old acquaintance, "Where's your Boss? I brought someone to interview for a Network Administrator position."

The Network Administrator smiled at Li Nanguang and nodded. "The Boss is in the office. You can go find him."

The two crossed the Internet Cafe's main hall and passed through the various gaming areas until they reached a neat-looking office. After pushing open the door, they saw an energetic middle-aged man clumsily typing at his desk.

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