"Holy crap! Liuli?"
Yin Long's eyes widened. If three years ago, Liuli was a flower bud waiting to bloom, then three years later, she was a rose in full bloom. The girlish feeling had completely disappeared, replaced by a mature and sophisticated young woman.
"Damn it, he doesn't look much different from three years ago, but I feel like he's a completely different person."
Hu Xiao stared wide-eyed in disbelief. Although Liuli was simply wearing a white lab coat, the aura of a highly educated intellectual emanating from her was impossible to conceal.
" Sister Liuli!"
Jiang Sui was overjoyed and threw herself into Liuli's arms, "I've missed you so much!"
"I missed you too, Suisui." Liuli affectionately pinched Jiang Sui's cheek, then looked around at the various expressions on everyone's faces, finally fixing her gentle gaze on Huyan Lan, nodding and saying, "And everyone else."
People are in high spirits when they have a happy occasion, Huyan Lan quickly greeted them, "I knew it! Susu is here, and you would definitely come too. Please have a seat."
Liuli sat down at the reception table and took off her white coat.
Jiang Sui asked impatiently, " Sister Liuli, how have your three years of advanced studies been?"
"Not bad," Liuli recalled. "In 2026, I went to Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States of America as an exchange student from Peking University, and in 2027, I completed my bachelor's, master's, and doctoral studies, earning a PhD in physics."
"In 2028, I will officially begin research in the field of time, establish the Time Research Institute at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and serve as its director."
"By 2029, which is the first half of this year, we will have achieved results, verified many time theories, and confirmed the feasibility of 'time travel,' winning the Einstein Prize and the Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics..."
"Now, as an honorary professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, I think I haven't let everyone down these past three years."
Not only Huyan Lan completely shocked.
Everyone else present was also shocked.
" Sister Liuli is being modest."
Su Sui, standing beside her, recounted, "At only 21 years old, she is now a world-class physicist, a near-legendary figure in physics. Let me put it this way: there are no more than ten physics giants whose achievements surpass hers."
Jiang Sui exclaimed in amazement, "Amazing, Sister Liuli!"
Liuli smiled without saying a word.
After hesitating for a moment, Huyan Lan finally couldn't help but ask, " Liuli, what stage has the research on the time machine reached?"
Liuli's smile vanished instantly, replaced by a serious expression. She said earnestly, "All 20 time theories related to time machines have been verified, but one crucial formula is still missing."
Huyan Lan hurriedly asked, "What formula?"
Liuli said, word by word, " The Time Reversal Formula!"
" Time Reversal Formula?"
Not only Huyan Lan stunned.
Even Jiang Sui, Yin Longhu, Xiao Lian, and the others were stunned.
Her Liuli eyes flickered as she continued, "Simply put, only after deriving the Time Reversal Formula and successfully verifying it at the theoretical level can we begin manufacturing the time machine."
Huyan Lan tensed up and asked, "So, where are you in the deduction so far?"
Liuli's expression turned serious. She pursed her lips and said, " The Time Reversal Formula consists of 30 functions. My research team and I have calculated 29 of them. We only need one more function to derive it successfully."
Huyan Lan's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, settled down, and she smiled, "Isn't this a good thing? As long as you work hard and calculate the last function, I believe you will soon be able to derive the Time Reversal Formula."
"It's not that simple, Sister Xiao Lan," Liuli sighed softly. "The calculation of the last function is so difficult that even using hundreds of millions of computers worldwide, it would take at least 100 years to solve it."
"100 years?"
Huyan Lan's pupils dilated. Leaving aside whether she can live to 100 years later, even if she does, she'll be an old woman with white hair. What's the point of finding Su Hang through a time machine then?
"Isn't there any other way to shorten the calculation time?"
Liuli lowered her eyelids and shook her head, saying, "No."
Huyan Lan's face was pale.
Yin Longhu and the others scratched their heads in frustration, unable to do anything about it.
Jiang Sui suddenly asked tentatively, " Sister Liuli, have you ever asked artificial intelligence?"
Liuli said thoughtfully, "Large-scale artificial intelligence models like Chatgpt and Doubao?"
"Yes, yes." Jiang Sui nodded.
Liuli smiled and explained, "We mostly delegate basic calculations to artificial intelligence, which saves time and effort, but artificial intelligence can also make mistakes..."
" Sister Liuli, you misunderstood me," Su Sui quickly interrupted. "What I meant was, have you asked artificial intelligence what the formula for reversing time is?"
Liuli chuckled and said, " Suisui, you're oversimplifying the issue. Artificial intelligence is a summary and generalization of known human knowledge, like an encyclopedia; it doesn't create new knowledge out of thin air."
"Timmy~ Imperial Emperor Imperial Emperor."
A emotionless voice rang out. "I'm here."
Liuli's heart trembled violently, and she blurted out, "Senior?"
"Oh, Sister Liuli, I forgot to introduce it to you." Su Sui flipped the King of Glory interface on her phone and showed it off, "This is the artificial intelligence developed by our Imperial Crown Team in collaboration with Tencent's research department."
"I see."
The shock in Liuli's eyes faded, and she let out a long sigh of relief, patting her chest. "I thought it was a senior speaking."
" Liuli, this was my own decision," Huyan Lan said apologetically. "I felt it was necessary to let Su Hang live in the hearts of every King of Glory player, so I partnered with Tencent to develop an artificial intelligence called Imperial Emperor."
" Sister Xiao Lan, you did the right thing." A barely perceptible sadness flashed deep in Liuli's eyes as she softly said, "Death is not the end of life; being forgotten is."
"As long as our predecessor lives in the hearts of every King of Glory player, one day he will return to us."
Jiang Sui handed over her phone. " Sister Liuli, why don't you ask her?"
"Good."
Liuli took the phone and looked at the chat interface. The familiar Emperor Hero avatar instantly brought back many sweet memories with her senior. Her sole purpose in devoting herself to scientific research and studying time machines was to find her senior!
Her crimson eyes were irrepressibly gentle; at this moment, she was no longer a world-class physicist, but rather the girl who had once admired her senior.
"Senior, senior, please tell me the formula for reversing time."
A emotionless, mechanical voice announced, " The Time Reversal Formula is y = x⅔ + 0.9 × (N - x²)½ × sin(a × π × x). If π can be calculated to its limit, then time can be reversed."
"How is it, Sister Liuli?" Jiang Sui asked nervously, "Is it the Time Reversal Formula you derived?"
"Pfft~" Liuli suddenly burst out laughing.
"Is it true or not?" Huyan Lan asked impatiently.
"No." Liuli stopped laughing and shook her head. "The time formula is ten thousand times more complicated than this. This is just a very ordinary 'heart function'."
Huyan Lan was greatly disappointed.
Jiang Sui said discontentedly, " Sister Liuli, what are you laughing at?"
"I just think this AI is a lot like my senior's style." Liuli took out paper and pen and said while drawing, "My senior is cold on the outside but warm on the inside, very proud and aloof, and never easily expresses his love, but after you swear absolute loyalty to him..."
"What happened next?" Jiang Sui asked, puzzled.
Liuli displayed a piece of white paper, which had a heart-shaped design with a slightly rounded outline. She smiled and said, "Just like this 'heart function' that symbolizes love, your world will be filled with 'I love you'."
"Yes, I love you, Su Hang." Huyan Lan thought to herself, a bitter smile appearing on her lips. So many years have passed, yet she still couldn't let go. Su Hang chose Liuli, not her, Huyan Lan.
Bang!
A sudden sound of someone slamming their hand on the table rang out.
Huyan Lan's body stiffened. "What's wrong, Liuli?"
Liuli's shoulders trembled violently. She stared at the heart pattern on the white paper, her cheeks flushing crimson at a visible speed. "I... I know what the last function in the Time Reversal Formula is?"
Huyan Lan asked excitedly, "What is it?"
"It's the heart-shaped function!" Liuli exclaimed, tears welling in her eyes. "This heart-shaped function is the final function in the Time Reversal Formula, there's no mistake, it's it!"
Jiang Sui exclaimed with joy, "Really? Sister Liuli!"
"Really, really." Liuli took a deep breath and quickly turned her head to say, " Susu, book the tickets right away, let's go back to the lab immediately."
Jiang Sui urged, "There's no rush to leave after we finish eating."
Liuli wiped away her tears, put on her white lab coat, and said, "No, I need to go back to the lab immediately to verify the function. If everything goes smoothly, we can successfully verify the ' Time Reversal Formula ' in three years."
Soon, Liuli and Su Sui walked out the door.
" Liuli!"
Huyan Lan chased after him out the door, her beautiful eyes glistening with tears, and shouted with all her might, "It must be verified successfully!"
Who do you think I am?
With her hands in her pockets, Liuli turned around, exuding an aura of dominance.
"I am Liuli, a world-class physicist."
Huyan Lan chuckled, "Then see you in three years!"
Liuli turned her back and waved. "See you in 2032!"