Zhang Liming

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhang Liming (张黎明)
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Lanzhou HIRFL; Limiter Array project; associated with the Correctors in alternate-world branches 149 279 403
Occupation/Role	Physicist; chief scientist and laboratory director; heavy-ion and quark-gluon researcher 151 186
Status	Active in some timelines; alternate counterparts are recorded as dead, erased, arrested, or stranded in other worlds 151 257 310 435
First Appearance	Chapter 149

Background / History

Zhang Liming is introduced as the chief scientist of Lanzhou HIRFL and Wang Yifan's prized student. Lin Xu identifies him as an unusually valuable scientific talent capable of accelerating technological development, and brings him to a temporary base near Dizhai Village to study a high-dimensional passage. 149 150

His research concerns heavy-ion physics and quark-gluon studies. He supports the Non-Flat Universe Theory and advocates closing high-dimensional passages. 186

Although he studies Daoism extensively, Zhang does not impose its ideas on others. His conversations are described as engaging and approachable, and he separates Daoist practices from scientific claims. 149 171

In a recorded 2029 discussion, Zhang warns fellow physicists that the unusually smooth technological progress since 2021 conceals a “ghost” in the data: an unaddressed anomaly that could indicate a fundamental barrier in physics. 191 He later develops the idea that the universe may contain a wall or filter that absorbs and releases information, limiting technological or civilizational progress. 193 194

An alternate-world record presents a darker outcome. After becoming Lanzhou HIRFL’s chief scientist and laboratory director in July 2026, he resigns from administration, then leaves all positions in 2027. He remains secluded in Hangzhou until his recorded 2029 suicide, which Wang Yifan considers suspicious and potentially connected to mind control. 151

When Lin Xu suspects that Mnemosyne Technology is targeting key researchers, Zhang is moved to Nanjing under protection. His meeting with Ayana reveals an abnormal connection: she mirrors his posture, speech rhythm, expression, and habitual gestures. 171 172

Zhang later helps Lin Xu connect dimensional ascension with spacetime disruption, explaining that both processes are two sides of the same phenomenon. He transfers to Zhuzhou to work on the particle-collider project and promises an answer within three years. 249

Alternate-World Counterparts

An Alliance Era counterpart of Zhang Liming becomes a leading Corrector and pursues an Ascension Plan centered on the Limiter. His strategy includes disrupting Butterfly’s arrival, repeatedly restarting worlds, using Ayana as a lighthouse to enter other worlds, building a controlled team through mental influence, and eventually creating a stable temporal region for partial ascension before expanding it worldwide. 279

This counterpart treats world progression as something that must remain unique. Once his personality manifests through Ayana, the physical Zhang Liming of that world may erase himself or withdraw from decision-making to prevent two versions of himself from creating uncontrolled interference. 257 258

His conflict with Lin Xu is ideological as well as strategic. Zhang believes small, capable elite groups can force history toward survival, while Lin Xu places greater faith in the broader public. 283 He is willing to coerce Butterfly into advancing the necessary technology, even if cooperation is impossible. 237 283

After being selected to analyze a coordinate in high-dimensional space, Zhang enters a Limiter-generated passage but fails to return before shutdown procedures begin. He emerges in an Alliance Era world, where he cooperates with Bai Mo and begins planning a Time Fragment capable of transmitting information across worlds. 429 435 436 A modified Limiter later allows him to leave information connected to the Tunguska Explosion in a quantum state. 438

Appearance

Zhang Liming usually presents himself more like a Daoist recluse than a conventional high-energy physicist. He favors traditional Chinese-style clothing and carries Daoist accessories despite treating supernatural claims as superstition. 171 230

• Often wears a crisp Chinese-style outfit or a simple Zhongshan suit. 171 237
• Keeps a bagua bracelet on his left wrist and habitually touches it while thinking. 172 272
• Uses prayer beads, which he claims are made of lightning-struck wood. 230
• Appears notably old and worn in a 2029 holographic recording. 191
• Wears a protective suit when entering a Limiter-generated high-dimensional passage. 435

Personality

Zhang Liming is relaxed, humorous, and unusually open in ordinary conversation. He jokes about Daoist rituals and “spirit soldiers,” but explicitly states that such practices have no credible basis in either religious theory or quantum physics. 171

He possesses a highly resilient mindset and attributes part of his self-discipline to Daoist study. He views the practice as a way to temper his heart and admits that he becomes intensely obsessive once he commits to a goal. 193 231

His self-awareness is unusually blunt. Zhang acknowledges that his personality includes obsession, madness, and self-destructive tendencies; he considers high-dimensional influence capable of making an already extreme version of himself even more dangerous. 249

Abilities & Skills

Theoretical Physics

Zhang is an elite theoretical physicist with expertise in heavy-ion physics, quark-gluon studies, holographic duality, and high-dimensional theory. 186 571

• Identifies a possible flaw in the AdS/CFT correspondence that could undermine quantum-theory-related achievements. 571
• Detects the “ghost” hidden beneath unusually smooth progress in physics and treats it as evidence of a deeper systemic problem. 191
• Interprets “AdS/CFT duality is reversible” as potentially referring to the reversibility of phenomena and processes rather than mathematics alone. 193
• Admits when available information is insufficient, refusing to claim certainty about the exact nature of the physical barrier. 193

Limiter and Ascension Theory

Zhang can derive practical development paths from incomplete information about alternate worlds and high-dimensional phenomena. 249 279

• Explains the relationship between informationalization, reassembly, ascension, spacetime disruption, and the incomplete Limiter. 249
• Provides theoretical support for the Limiter Array and the Zhuzhou Ring project. 314 400 403
• In alternate worlds, develops a plan to create a temporal region, resist the Time Storm, and expand regional ascension to a global scale. 279
• Treats industrial and material limitations as technical problems to be solved rather than immutable barriers. 436

High-Dimensional Adaptability

Zhang is selected for high-dimensional coordinate analysis because of his extensive theoretical knowledge and ability to endure high-dimensional turbulence. 429

• Enters a Limiter-generated high-dimensional passage voluntarily to conduct analysis. 435
• Adapts quickly after being stranded in another world, immediately assessing its industrial and material constraints. 435 436
• Recognizes that introducing new matter or information into another world may intensify its instability. 435 436

Daoist Discipline

Zhang uses Daoist philosophy and physical practices as methods of mental stability and conditioning rather than supernatural power. 149 153 231

• Practices breathing techniques, tai chi, and physical relaxation exercises. 153 193
• Uses Daoist thought to temper his determination and resist psychological collapse. 231
• Tested Ayana’s imitation ability through Daoist hand seals, exposing that she could copy his movements but not accurately reproduce the formulas. 172
• Explicitly rejects “dispatching spirit soldiers” as feudal superstition. 171

Equipment / Items

• Bagua bracelet — Worn on his left wrist; associated with his habitual thinking gesture and Daoist interests. 172
• Prayer beads — A string of beads he says is made from lightning-struck wood. 230
• Protective suit — Used during his Limiter-assisted entry into high-dimensional space. 435

Relationships

• Lin Xu — Scientific collaborator and intellectual counterpart in the main world; an irreconcilable adversary to Zhang’s Alliance Era counterpart, who believes only death could stop him once he commits to a course. 193 231 249
• Wang Yifan — Former teacher and mentor. Wang considers Zhang his prized student and doubts that his alternate-world death was truly suicide. 150 151
• Ayana — Her altered personality mirrors Zhang’s speech and movements; alternate versions of Zhang use her as a lighthouse for cross-world influence and as a vessel for personality manifestation. 172 257 279
• Bai Mo — Works with Zhang on high-dimensional and Limiter-related projects; cooperates with him after his arrival in the Alliance Era world. 435 436
• Jiang Xingye — Communicates with Zhang regarding cross-world information transmission and the Time Fragment plan. 436
• Joanne — Joins the Zhuzhou Ring project, where Zhang initially reacts with surprise to her arrival. 314

Notable Quotes

“On the path of physics, there is a wall.” 191

“You could never convince me through communication. You could only kill me.” 231

“The process of ascension and the process of spacetime disruption were originally two sides of the same coin.” 249

Trivia

• Zhang explains that the so-called “Reviving Yang Recline” is not a Daoist technique, but simply a comfortable way to relax his legs while lying down. 193
• He once drank two bottles of baijiu to suppress his rationality and better understand the mindset of his more extreme alternate-world counterpart. 249
• His interaction with Ayana is so synchronized that Lin Xu compares them to puppets controlled by the same invisible strings. 172