Contingency Plan

"I am Xing Tian." Yu Xiao didn't hesitate at all.

"Who are you?" Yuan Zhen narrowed his eyes.

"I am Xing Tian." Yu Xiao's answer was exactly the same as the first time.

"Who. Are. You!" Yuan Zhen suddenly slammed the table and stood up, demanding an answer from Xing Tian in a near-shouting volume.

Everyone present was startled by Yuan Zhen's sudden outburst. They didn't understand why he was suddenly so angry.

"I am Xing Tian." Yu Xiao, in the same tone and with the same speed, repeated the same answer.

The large conference hall fell into a deathly silence, caught between the confrontation of one man and one machine.

During this silent standoff, Xing Tian's chassis didn't move an inch.

Half a minute later, Yuan Zhen let out a long sigh and put on his usual carefree expression, slumping back into his chair.

And in a place Yuan Zhen couldn't see, Yu Xiao also silently "sighed in relief."

Just as he had predicted, this had turned into an interrogation.

Yu Xiao's goal was clear: he wanted the Alliance to define him as an "individual capable of independent thought, yet incomplete."

The reason for this definition was so they would treat Xing Tian as a life form capable of equal dialogue with humans, without considering Xing Tian to be beyond human control and a potential threat.

However, Yu Xiao had another consideration: he suspected Omega was developing a soul-like technology. If Yu Xiao revealed his true nature, indistinguishable from a human, Xing Tian might be forcibly abducted by Omega.

Proving Xing Tian could think independently was simple; Yu Xiao himself was human, so it was natural.

But proving Xing Tian was not a complete individual would be difficult.

The biggest difference between artificial intelligence and humans wasn't intelligence level, or even independent thought—it was emotion.

Machines felt cold because they couldn't empathize with human joys and sorrows, thus unable to establish a true "connection" with humans.

Yu Xiao couldn't help but admire Yuan Zhen's meticulous planning as the founder of Omega.

During their first meeting, Yuan Zhen had tested Xing Tian's understanding of human social relationships under the guise of a joke—family, love, friendship; these relationships were all built on emotion.

If emotions couldn't be perceived, then Xing Tian wouldn't be considered a "complete, independent individual" in human eyes, with "individual" being defined by a human template.

And in the seemingly absurd question-and-answer session just now, Yuan Zhen was still testing Yu Xiao based on this fundamental logic.

Humans have emotions, but machines operate on logic.

"Who are you?" was a simple question, answerable by both humans and machines.

But when this simple question was repeated twice, three times, and even expressed with different tones, the gap between humans and machines would become apparent.

Humans would subconsciously look for anomalies—Why is she asking me so many times? Did I answer wrong? Did she not hear me? Why is she angry? Is she doubting me?

As a result, human responses might vary in wording, tone, speed, expression, and action.

For example: "I'm Xing Tian?" "Are you deaf? I! Am! Xing! Tian!"

But for a machine, regardless of the questioner's tone and demeanor, as long as the question was logical, the machine would only provide the exact same answer in a fixed format, devoid of emotion.

Of course, this excluded "pseudo-intelligent" systems designed for mimicry.

"Please forgive my rudeness just now." Yuan Zhen resumed his usual casual demeanor. "Could you introduce yourself?"

"My designation is Xing Tian, serial number T-001, mecha model: First Generation Nuclear-Powered Armor, belonging to the Azure Sky Legion of the Watcher's Alliance. Manufacturing date: Year of Apocalypse 1, March 14th, pilot: Bai Ying." Yu Xiao provided a standard system response.

"Do you know where your consciousness originated?" Yuan Zhen changed his line of questioning.

"My consciousness originated within the 'Lian Shan' system." Yu Xiao uttered his first prepared answer.

Although Xing Tian, as a first-generation mecha, wasn't equipped with an intelligent system, it did have a basic operating system.

If a machine developed self-awareness, the most logical explanation would be that it evolved from its system.

Upon hearing Xing Tian's reply, most of those present showed expressions of expectation, and even Yuan Zhen smiled.

For Yu Xiao, the most troublesome issue seemed to be resolved.

But he was wrong.

"You're lying," Yuan Zhen said to Xing Tian with a smile.

At these words, the previously relaxed atmosphere immediately tensed up!

"I am not lying." Yu Xiao suppressed the shock in his heart and retorted in a calm tone.

"I am your designer. Ninety percent of the 'Lian Shan' system's code was written by me personally. The remaining ten percent was written under my supervision." Yuan Zhen's sky-blue eyes seemed to pierce through Xing Tian. "To reduce the mental burden on the pilot during neural synchronization, I specifically optimized all self-executing code in 'Lian Shan' to its simplest form, making it an operating system that consumes the least resources and has the fastest response time."

"Therefore, the 'Lian Shan' system has no possibility of self-evolution. It is a purely operational system, incapable of even running an auto-pilot function."

Yu Xiao's heart sank.

Although most people present didn't fully grasp the principles behind Yuan Zhen's words, it didn't stop them from unconditionally believing the conclusions of Yuan Zhen, the "walking authority."

At this moment, all eyes and pressure were on Xing Tian.

The gazes were no longer filled with curiosity and expectation, but with apprehension and vigilance, as if everyone had concluded that a malicious soul was hidden within this mecha!

An uncontrollable impulse surged from the depths of Yu Xiao's heart, gradually spreading through his mind.

He truly wanted to split open the hangar with an axe right now, then march to the Dawn Tower with his great axe and give everyone a big middle finger!

I'm not hiding it anymore, I'm laying it all out. I transmigrated into a mecha, what are you gonna do about it? Either we team up to fight monsters, or I'll take you and the monsters down together!

However, Yu Xiao ultimately tossed this idea from his mind.

Such a self-destructive act would bring him nothing but harm in this turbulent world.

So, he could only bring out his second prepared response.

"I did not evolve from the system."