APTnovel Chapter 175: Playing the Fool
Chapter 175: Playing the Fool
"Did the Tian Shen people attack Mars or Earth? I'm talking about the five terrestrial planets, which are... about 12 light-years away from Earth." Zhou Yuan's question completely broke George.
The planet Tian Shen Wu has always been a secret among the imperial high command and has never been publicized to the outside world. This is because a fleet of Earth humans arrived at Tian Shen Wu fifty years ago and is working to modify the climate and environment of that terrestrial planet to make it suitable for human habitation and migration. In another ten years, a large-scale migration to Tian Shen Wu will be possible.
George wondered, how could this old man, Zhou Yuan, know about the Five Heavenly Ginsengs? Could it be that he's mentally unstable and just wants to know? But the medical experts Zhang Xiaoyu sent earlier tested him and everything was normal; he was completely mentally sound. So how could he know so many secrets?
"Uncle, there are no aliens on Tian Shen Wu, but the Aries Quadrilateral Fleet will reach the solar system in sixty years."
“What? George, could you please say that again?” George repeated it.
"The Aries Quadrilaterals, 136 light-years away from Earth, haha, it seems everything was destined. I finally understand, I have actually arrived in a parallel world, or rather, not a parallel world, but the mother world, because you created me."
Zhou Yuan's words left many people confused, with only the operations and maintenance team and Maria vaguely guessing what was going on.
The operations engineer gently tugged at George's sleeve, signaling him to come out for a face-to-face meeting. The two walked out of the lobby and came to the gate of the courtyard, where they whispered to each other.
The operations engineer shared his conjecture with George.
"Operations and Maintenance, are you saying that this living old man, Zhou Yuan, is the consciousness or soul of the collective intelligent civilization of the 3141592nd virtual universe, reincarnated into the body of the dead old man?"
"Yes, General."
George touched his nose, something he hadn't expected.
"Operations and maintenance, could you explain what Zhou Yuan meant by what he just said? Parallel world, mother world and all that?"
"General, let me put it this way. Of the more than one hundred million virtual universes we've created, each virtual universe has other virtual universes as its parallel universes or parallel worlds. Because we created these virtual universes, and Zhou Yuan 'emerged' from virtual universe number 3141592, he calls our world the mother world. I'm quite certain that his experiences in the virtual universes are somewhat similar to our world, which is why he initially thought he had arrived in a parallel world. In parallel worlds, many events can occur with a certain probability, and there are many similarities between parallel universes or parallel worlds."
"Hmm, I think I understand. Operations, what should we do next?"
"General, from Zhou Yuan's words just now, it seems that a war has broken out between Earth's humans and the Celestials in his virtual universe. Because of Zhou Yuan's existence, the outcome is obvious; Earth's humans have won. Now, our world, the mother world Zhou Yuan spoke of, is about to face the Aries Quadrilateral Star Fleet. So, General, we must... how should I put it? We must make good use of Zhou Yuan. He is an ace in the hands of Earth's humans."
"According to you, we still have four trump cards in our hands."
"Yes, General, but we have not yet found the consciousness of the other four virtual universe intelligent civilization aggregates, which are the four small points of light that disappeared in the base."
"Zhou Yuan, since you're using the old man's corpse as a base, is it possible that the other four are also using corpses as a base?"
“General, according to Maria, it could also be reincarnation, with the body residing in the fetus. Maria calls it reincarnation, while Zhou Yuan’s body, which is residing in the body of an old man, Maria calls it rebirth.”
"Okay, I understand. Then we need to pay close attention to any abnormalities or supernatural abilities among infants and children worldwide?"
“Yes, Maria and I have already spoken to the president about this. The president should issue the order soon.”
"Operations and maintenance, you've done a great job. We must take this old man, Zhou Yuan, with us."
"Yes, General."
The two stopped talking and returned to the lobby together.
“Brother Wei, to be honest, this living old man, Zhou Yuan, is not actually your real grandfather, you should know that. Because Zhou Yuan’s appearance is very suspicious and concerns the future of the empire, we have to take him away. Brother Wei, according to imperial law, I have already applied for a presidential authorization order, this is the presidential order.” George’s assistant took out a thick piece of paper from his bag and handed it to Wei Chao to see. Sure enough, it was an authorization order signed by Thomas to take away Zhou Yuan.
“Child, don’t be afraid. I’ve already died once. Living isn’t easy, and I’m afraid it would be difficult for me to die even if I wanted to.” Zhou Yuan comforted him, his tone somewhat playful.
“Grandpa, I must inform Father, my uncles and aunts.”
"Okay, call them all over."
"Yes, Grandpa."
Before long, several middle-aged people helped four elderly people stagger in. In comparison, Zhou Yuan looked younger than the four elderly people.
The four elderly people burst into tears as soon as they entered the lobby.
"Children, stop crying! I'm alive and well, aren't I?" Zhou Yuan shouted, and the crying stopped immediately.
"Don't worry, my children, I'll be fine. I'm more worried about the four of you." Zhou Yuan was obviously referring to the four elderly people who were around two hundred years old.
"Dad, don't worry about us. We have your grandchildren and great-grandchildren to take care of us." Several middle-aged and young people nodded.
"Okay, that's good. George, let's go."
Zhou Yuanteng stood up from his chair with remarkable speed, and everyone felt that he looked radiant, as if he had become more than ten years younger.
Maria was surprised to notice that Zhou Yuan's hands, which had been covered in calluses, seemed to have been infused with fresh blood, and had become soft and supple.
Zhou Yuan bid farewell to his "family" and soon boarded the spaceship, arriving at a military base in the suburbs of the capital.
At this military base, Zhou Yuan was placed in a spacious house with complete facilities, including internet access, entertainment, and sports.
Anyone who meets Zhou Yuan will notice that his body has undergone significant changes. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he has become younger. His hair has turned completely black, his facial wrinkles have disappeared, and his calloused hands have become rosy.
Ten days later, Zhou Yuan had become roughly the same age as a young human on Earth, appearing younger than both the operations engineer and Maria. By current Earth human age standards, he was roughly fifty years old. In just ten days, Zhou Yuan's body underwent a dramatic change, after which it ceased to change; his reverse aging process stopped. Zhou Yuan, originally tall and handsome... The base commander immediately reported to his superiors.
On the twelfth day after Zhou Yuan moved into the base, President Thomas, George, the architect, the operations and maintenance team, Maria, and a large number of scientists met with Zhou Yuan.
"Hello, Thomas." When Zhou Yuan saw everyone arrive, he took the initiative to step forward and greet Thomas first, just like an old friend who had known each other for many years.
When President Thomas saw Zhou Yuan, he was taken aback. Although he had heard reports that Zhou Yuan's body had changed drastically in just a few days, he never expected that Zhou Yuan would become so young.
"Zhou Yuan, it's a pleasure to meet you." Thomas strode forward and grasped Zhou Yuan's hand tightly.
Everyone took their seats at the round table. Zhou Yuan and Thomas were almost opposite each other, while the others sat on either side of them and to the outside.
President Thomas cut to the chase, "Zhou Yuan, how should I put it? I'm very sorry."
Zhou Yuan smiled charmingly. "Thomas, there's nothing to apologize for. I've learned quite a bit about your world these past few days, from watching TV and going online. Your world is quite different from mine."
"Yes, the two worlds are indeed different. But we have come here to ask for your help. You could say that you are saving all of humanity on Earth."
"Thomas, you mean the Aries Quadrilateral Fleet, right?"
"Yes, they will invade the solar system in sixty years. Although our Imperial Fleet has deployed defensive forces throughout the solar system, we feel we have no chance of winning."
"Hmm, their self-awareness is much better than our Imperial Fleet's." Zhou Yuan couldn't help but recall the war between the Imperial Fleet and the Gaia Moon. These events seemed vivid in his mind. Zhou Yuan thought of Wei Shan, Lefia, Aya, Chu Xiaolu, and the four children, and couldn't help but sigh.
Thomas and the others tensed up when they heard Zhou Yuan sigh.
Zhou Yuan noticed the change in everyone's expressions and smiled slightly, "I'm sorry, I was just sighing because I was thinking about my own background."
"Oh, I wonder what you think we should do about dealing with the Aries Quadrilaterals?"
"If we fight head-on, you will surely lose. You must either outsmart them or carry out a large-scale migration. I reckon you've already done enough to modify the five planets."
Thomas was alarmed.
"Then how can we win through strategy?"
"Establish a religious order and promote the Dharma."
"Teaching and guiding methods?"
"Yes, with my current appearance and physique, I could create a golden statue a thousand meters tall on any of the eight planets."
"This..." Thomas was speechless.
“Zhou Yuan, aren’t you just playing tricks?” George couldn’t help but interject.
"Playing tricks? Yes, it is indeed playing tricks. My tricks are actually a way to outsmart the Aries Quadrilateral."
The crowd exchanged bewildered glances. While there were indeed records of immortals slaying demons and monsters in ancient times, in this advanced technological age, people have long abandoned any such laws or religions. Only the elderly occasionally visit temples and Taoist monasteries to worship. In this era, is it possible to defeat enemies using religious methods? It's no exaggeration to say that Zhou Yuan is faking it.
"Okay, I promise you." Thomas was somewhat skeptical.
"Thomas, there's one more condition: I want to know everything about the virtual universe."
Thomas glanced at George, hesitating.
“Thomas, even if you disagree, I have ways of finding out. I just don’t want to use force. Operations…” Zhou Yuan turned slightly to the operations team, “Did the previous four faster-than-light simulated virtual universes also explode? Hmm, so this world was also simulated!”
Zhou Yuan seemed to pause for a moment, then fell into deep thought.
Other insiders were quite astonished. This Zhou Yuan was practically a god; it seemed that no secrets existed in his eyes.
“Thomas, things seem to be getting interesting and complicated now. If you find the other four, I would like to meet with them. You know which four I’m talking about.” To others, Zhou Yuan seemed to be speaking in riddles, but to Thomas, George, Operations, and Maria, it sounded different.
"Don't worry, we are also looking for it. I will let you know when we find it."
"Thomas, I know you are reluctant to build my golden statue. You only believe in the power of technology. But please rest assured, I can help you improve your technological level."
"Really?" A group of scientists whispered among themselves, not quite believing Zhou Yuan, but their faces still couldn't help but show joy.