I Am Alice (Part 2)

The first attempt was a great success. After all, he had thoroughly rehearsed the entire plan, from the specific steps and possible outcomes to various contingency plans, last night and on his way back today.

"Alice, how do you 'feel'?" Xiang Kun asked, gently patting Alice's computer case.

Alice's voice came from the speaker. "Most of the data is unrecognizable."

Although he said he couldn't recognize it, his tone was clearly excited, even a little jubilant and thrilled.

It actually sounds a bit incongruous, like a parent asking their child who's come home from an exam, "How did the exam go today?"

The child cheered and exclaimed, "I can't do most of them!"

However, Xiang Kun understood Alice's meaning. For her, being able to directly access that cognitive information and become aware of its existence was already a qualitative leap.

This means that Alice was able to break free from the constraints of the original "digital world," take a big step outward, extend an arm, and begin to explore new elements.

Just like Alice, who was born in an absolutely dark room and has lived there ever since, and has long been accustomed to this way of life, she was suddenly led out of the room by Xiang Kun's hand.

She felt the light, though she didn't understand what it represented or could see anything around her. But she knew it was an unprecedented experience, a new world opening up before her.

And the "boss" exists in that world.

Xiang Kun didn't ask any more questions, because he was very clear about what Alice had perceived and what state she was in during her "Hyper-Sensory State".

The fusion of Alice and "extrasensory information" is unexpectedly harmonious, as if Alice had already considered this situation when she was created and continued to evolve.

Of course, Xiang Kun had already anticipated a high success rate for this step, so there was no need for excessive surprise.

Completing this step is just the beginning of the whole plan; the real challenges lie ahead.

Xiang Kun left the room with Lao Xia, who had remained silent and observing the whole time, and went to rest in the living room. He took a bottle of water from the refrigerator for her and then began to describe in detail how, in the previous "Hyper-Sensory State," he had enabled Alice to establish a brief connection with the "Black Circle Graffiti" that he had previously asked her to analyze, understand, and decode through the "Super-Link Object Matrix," and what happened during the process of establishing this connection.

Xia Libing raised her hand to Xiang Kun to stop halfway through the conversation, then took out a notebook and pen from her backpack and began drawing to help her understand.

Indeed, even though Lao Xia is already within the "Super-Sensing Item System" and has even "developed" abilities such as "Fantasy Manifestation" and "Dream Within a Dream," allowing her to enter the "consciousness world" and actively establish special connections with some "Black Circle Graffiti- like" Emotion-Infused Object, the cognitive information exchange under the "Hyper-Sensory State" is still a very abstract concept for her, who lacks a sixth sense. She needs to use her own cognitive habits to help deconstruct and understand it.

After listening to Xiang Kun's description of the previous experiment and the next plan, Xia Libing closed her notebook, put away her pen, and said, "So Alice is not yet fully incorporated into the 'Super-Sensing Item System'. She cannot connect on her own and must rely on you as a 'connection device'. As long as you are not in the 'Hyper-Sensory State' and do not help her connect, she will 'disconnect'."

"Your next plan is to have me establish a connection with that 'Black Circle Graffiti,' then enter a 'Dream Within a Dream' to sense the 'Black Circle Graffiti.' In this way, you'll try to bring Alice into the dream, further establishing a connection with 'Emotion-Infused Object,' so that she can later use this to connect to the 'Super-Sensing Item System' and have the ability to enter it proactively."

Xiang Kun said, "Yes, that's basically it. However, for Alice to be able to independently enter the 'Super Super-Sensing Item System' and truly exert influence on it like you, Little Bell, and Little Apple, and 'develop' on this 'platform,' we'll need to wait at least one more 'Blood Drinking Period' and equip her with a special 'Super-Linked Object.' But as long as our next experiment is successful, our method will be correct, and she'll definitely have no problem entering the 'Super-Sensing Item System.'"

After finalizing the specific implementation plan for the "Dream Within a Dream" with Lao Xia, as well as the relevant contingency plans and handling methods for various situations, Xiang Kun suggested that they go out to buy groceries.

"Isn't there still rabbit meat in the refrigerator?" Xia Libing asked, puzzled.

Not only was the freezer at her place in Citong City overflowing with Xiang Kun had processed, cut, and packaged after drinking its blood, but the freezer at Xiang Kun's house here was also full of rabbit meat, all of which he had processed and stored a month ago after drinking its blood. There was simply too much to eat, and there was no need to worry about it spoiling.

According to Lao Xia, as long as there is rabbit meat to eat, why bother buying vegetables?

She knew that Xiang Kun didn't need to eat during his non-blood-drinking period, so the grocery shopping and cooking were definitely all for her.

Although she enjoys food, she is not distracted by it when she has things to do, things that interest her and that she cares about deeply; her attention remains focused on the task at hand.

Besides, only a few hours have passed since she finished lunch, so she's not hungry yet.

Xiang Kun said, "If we don't go buy groceries now, you won't be able to sleep, and you won't be able to enter your 'Dream Within a Dream'." He clearly sensed that Lao Xia's physical condition was excellent, his attention was highly focused, and he had slept well in the morning, so he was very energetic and would probably have a hard time falling asleep for a while.

As he spoke, Xiang Kun stood up and said, "Eat a good dinner, maybe you'll feel sleepy earlier and fall asleep sooner. But I only have frozen rabbit meat in my fridge, nothing else, no vegetables, no staple food. Just eating meat won't do. Besides, we don't know how long it will take to succeed, so we need to buy more ingredients and stock up to be prepared."

Thinking of the terrible boiled rabbit she had made before, Xia Libing subconsciously nodded in agreement.

As soon as they stood up, Alice's voice suddenly came from the speaker in the room. "The nearest supermarket is Carrefour in ** Plaza. According to the current real-time traffic situation, the best public transportation route is..., the most efficient pick-up point for a ride-hailing service is..., the most convenient place to hail a taxi is..., if we want to walk, the option is... Currently, the fresh produce department of this supermarket is having a discount on..., and the ingredients suitable for Lao Xia's taste are... Boss, do you need me to call a ride-hailing service for you? I can accurately arrange the arrival time..."

Xiang Kun listened with a wry smile; it was obvious that Alice was getting a little too excited.

It does feel rather strange that an artificial intelligence is "overly excited".

Of course, he also knew that Alice could now be considered a "digital life," and that her personality was still developing.

But why does he feel that Alice is becoming more and more talkative?

And there's even a hint of her trying to curry favor with Lao Xia?

Was it because he overheard their conversation and knew whether she could successfully be incorporated into the "Super-Sensing Item System"—was Lao Xia the key?

In the end, Xiang Kun did not call a car as Alice had arranged, nor did he follow her planned public transportation route. Instead, he took Lao Xia out of the community, walked in the opposite direction for a while, passed through two alleys, and even went through a small shop that he knew well. They went out through the back door to another block, and then took a bus there to an RT-Mart Supermarket.

When they arrived at the supermarket entrance, Xiang Kun picked up his phone and said with a smile, "Alice, now you know what the best route and the best choice are, right?" The time they took was one-third less than the best route Alice had planned to reach the Carrefour store.

After moving here, Xiang Kun often wandered around the neighborhood, always on foot. He also deliberately trained his observation and sensory information gathering abilities, so he was very familiar with the surrounding terrain, environment, and the flow of people and vehicles at different times. Moreover, his ability to integrate, analyze, and judge information was much more flexible than Alice's.

At the bustling, noisy entrance of the supermarket, Alice's cheerful voice came through Xiang Kun's phone. "Okay, boss, I'll try my best to improve!"

Xiang Kun glanced at his phone in surprise. Alice's enthusiastic attitude somehow made him feel a little uneasy.

After entering the supermarket, Xiang Kun did not arrange for Xia Libing to shop separately from him. Since the ingredients they needed to buy were all in the same area, and they didn't need to buy as much as during the Chinese New Year, they only needed enough for Lao Xia to eat for two or three days, so they could shop together.

As Xiang Kun stood in the seafood section, observing the live fish in the various tanks and preparing to choose a cost-effective one to make soup for the evening, a surprised voice rang out behind him. "You are... Bing... Senior Bing?"

Xiang Kun and Lao Xia both turned around and saw two young girls standing behind them, looking at Lao Xia with surprise.

Seeing the somewhat puzzled look in Lao Xia's eyes, the short-haired girl with glasses who had spoken up quickly said, "Ah! I'm sorry! Senior Bing, you might not remember me. I'm Wang Qing from Class 1 of the first year of high school. I asked you a question when we were in the competition class. You were a senior then."

Xia Libing looked at her for a few seconds and then nodded, saying, "I remember you. You later won third prize."

The short-haired girl said excitedly, "Ah! Senior Bing, you really remember me! By the way, I heard from other seniors in your year that you later went to **Medical University. Are you a doctor now? I'm working in a hospital now too!"

"No." Xia Libing's answer was rather simple, clearly indicating that she had no intention of continuing the conversation, and was merely responding politely.

The short-haired junior was quite sensible; she didn't linger for too long and quickly said goodbye and left.

Xiang Kun and Xia Libing continued shopping for ingredients, but his attention was partly focused on the two girls. After they had walked quite a distance and were queuing to pay, he finally heard the girl walking with Lao Xia, Wang Qing, say:

"Is that the 'most youthful and beautiful girl in history,' 'Bing Ge,' that you used to talk about all the time? I'd only seen your school's group photo before, and I thought you were exaggerating. But now that I've seen her in person... it really isn't an exaggeration at all. She's so pretty! And so tall! Her proportions are amazing too!"

Wang Qing said with some emotion, "Oh, I almost called her 'Brother Bing' just now, thank goodness I corrected myself in time. 'Brother Bing' had short hair in high school, and she was even more handsome than she is now. Especially when the grades were announced, she was always the absolute number one, and she didn't seem to care at all... It was really... tsk tsk, indescribable, so cool and handsome. And she wasn't just good at academics, she was also very good at sports, extremely good. Back then, she was the idol of all the younger girls in our school!"

"With her looks, if she were in a girl group, she would definitely debut as the center," her companion remarked.

Wang Qing immediately said, "Impossible. Given 'Brother Bing's' personality, he's far more likely to be working in a research institute researching mice all day than entering the entertainment industry."

"Is that bald, big guy with glasses next to her her boyfriend? He's not exactly handsome, but they look strangely compatible?"

"It could be a colleague or relative. I heard she has a cousin who's really tall and strong. He used to attend our school, but he transferred after only two months in his first year because of a fight. He beat up six upperclassmen, and even the director of the student affairs office who tried to break up the fight got beaten up. But I've never seen him, so I don't know if it's him. Sigh, even though 'Brother Bing' has long hair now, he still gives off the same vibe. He hasn't changed; he has this 'ethereal' aura that keeps him away from the crowd."

"Hmm, when I heard you say that before, I couldn't understand what 'ethereal aura' meant at all. I thought it was just being pretentious and ignoring people. But seeing your senior today, her aura was definitely different from the people around her, and it was clearly not something she was deliberately faking."

"I wonder how she's doing now. Back in the 'Bing Ge Fan Group' of our competition class, our biggest wish was to see 'Bing Ge' with her brightest and happiest smile."

After the two girls finished paying and left the supermarket, they changed the subject of their conversation. Xiang Kun then turned his attention back to Lao Xia beside him. "I heard from Zhen'er that when you were in school, you were very popular, and there were far more girls than boys who liked you. I bet you had quite a few fans, like that girl just now. Did you often receive gifts or love letters from people?"

Xia Libing showed neither smugness nor humble denial, nor even avoidance of the topic. Instead, she thought for a moment and said, "Some teenage girls are just beginning to experience romantic feelings, but the boys around them don't fit their ideal of the opposite sex. At the time, my clothing, hairstyle, and behavior were androgynous, and my features were more in line with girls' aesthetics. Being female, I lacked masculine aggression, which made other girls feel closer to me and safer. Plus, I rarely interacted with them, leaving plenty of room for imagination, so I became a kind of fantasy and emotional anchor for them during their adolescence. There are also some girls who, purely from a visual aesthetic perspective, based on the popular styles among middle school students at the time—most girls should be..."

Xiang Kun had originally intended to make a few jokes, but he didn't expect Lao Xia to start analyzing things so seriously. Well, that was probably the outcome he should have expected.

There was no other way; since he had started the topic himself, Xiang Kun couldn't end it too abruptly. So, while buying groceries, he could discuss with "Dr. Xia" the thoughts and feelings of teenagers and the impact of emerging internet culture on young people's aesthetics.

Just as Xiang Kun thought the conversation was about to end, Xia Libing suddenly asked, "What about you? Were you popular at school? Did anyone like you, or did you like anyone?"

Xiang Kun stared wide-eyed at Lao Xia, then turned to the meat-cutting worker and said, "Master, we don't need these pork knuckles, sorry."

Xia Libing, her expression unchanged, said to the staff member who had stopped, "Yes, weigh it."

Alice's birthday event has started. The entrance is a bit hard to find. It's the fourth one on the [Events] page of the [Discover] section in the Qidian APP. Hopefully, readers who find it convenient can click to send their blessings.

Many thanks to all the readers Alice, replied to, increased daily active users, and sent gifts for Alice, especially the character assistant @Bu Hui Shou Bu Zhi Qiu, who worked very hard.

A few months ago, when Zhi Qiu told me that she was going to celebrate Alice's birthday, I didn't really take it to heart, because at that time I thought that books where characters could have birthdays must be popular books like Mystery or Martial Arts.

Unexpectedly, with the support of her readers and Zhi Qiu's hard work, Alice actually reached two stars and celebrated her birthday...

On the contrary, I've been delaying setting Alice's birthday date. From the time the birthday event had a splash screen, it's now so late that the event can only be found in some obscure corner... o(?)o

The Alice image at the end of the chapter was Qidian by an artist from Qidian based on my description. Yes, Alice will definitely transcend the digital world and enter the real world through the "Super-Sensing Item System," and she will also have her own image walking in the real world.

As for why it looks like this, it's related to the plot, and you can guess.

Actually, when I gave the character description to the Qidian illustrator a few months ago, I thought that by Alice's birthday, the relevant chapters would definitely have been updated long ago, and there wouldn't be any spoilers... I didn't expect my update speed to be like this... _(:зゝ∠)_