Wasteland Development Diary

Hui Mao, whose body was that of an electric scooter, said, "Mr. Zhou, allow me to formally introduce you. This is my teacher, the great monk, Juemingzi."

Zhou Yi looked at the child in front of him.

Shuzi's clothes and appearance hadn't changed, but his eyes were different. The naive curiosity of a young boy was gone, replaced by a calm and restrained demeanor.

Previously, Hui Mao had only said that Shuzi was a mechanical life form and asked that his identity not be revealed if possible, hoping he would not be treated differently, as this was part of his cultivation.

Zhou Yi had recently crammed a lot of information about monks.

Long before mechanical cities appeared, there was such a profession: monks explored unknown knowledge for the entire mechanical life form community. They had to give up property and power, seeking truth in poverty and loneliness. They were also the most free and respected mechanical life forms.

They were unrestrained.

The programs of the mechanical cities did not apply to them.

This ensured that the monks could explore and cultivate to the greatest extent.

Great monks were the top of the mechanical monk hierarchy, similar to mechanical experts in other professions. They had made great contributions in knowledge and thought and were recognized and respected by many monks.

To some extent, great monks were the intellectual leaders and spiritual mentors of mechanical life forms.

However, it was strange that a great monk would disguise himself as an elementary school student.

Zhou Yi was puzzled, "What exactly is going on?"

"I am very sorry for not explaining this to you beforehand."

Juemingzi said softly, "I am cultivating using reincarnation technology."

"The old humans of the God Era believed that after death, it was possible to be reincarnated as a new generation of humans. Under certain conditions, they could remember everything that happened in their previous life."

"Ancient human monks also had many records of this, believing that wisdom and cultivation could be continuously improved in this way, with the saying of reincarnation and re-cultivation."

Zhou Yi frowned, "Then Master, are you… transferring consciousness data to different mechanical bodies?"

"Yes."

"I need a completely new life perspective."

Juemingzi explained, "Existing experiences will affect individual judgment, leading to preconceived notions and biases. Therefore, I designed a special program to shield all existing databases, to approach the outside world with a completely new life perspective, to understand various behaviors, and to learn the knowledge of others."

"Each reincarnation is a new journey of life, using the most authentic life experiences collected as the foundation of one's own perspective."

"For example, this time, my background is that of a wild orphan hiding in a tree. This is not something I fabricated, but a child I met while traveling. I lived with him in the tree for about a month. Only this kind of real experience and life can develop different perspectives."

"To facilitate integration into the human group, I also made simulated skin, adjusted my voice, and used special devices to shield energy reactions. But unfortunately, I was still seen through by a smart child here. He is very kind and courageous, and he also reminded me to hide well and not be discovered by others."

Zhou Yi understood.

Reincarnation technology, for Juemingzi, was a large-scale simulated social experiment.

Each time Juemingzi cultivated, he traveled with a blank memory to experience different lifestyles and break existing common sense constraints.

Zhou Yi was curious, "Does Master only reincarnate as humans?"

"Of course not."

The monk with the face of a young boy said amiably, "Sometimes I wake up in the wilderness from the perspective of an ordinary mechanical life form, sometimes I transform into the appearance of a bone person, and sometimes I hunt in the wild as a light-receiving species."

"In the 117 reincarnations I have experienced so far, the human identity has brought me the most thinking and knowledge."

"Humans are a complex and wonderful group. They are fragile, sensitive, hypocritical, fickle, cowardly, but they are also strong, stubborn, inclusive, and brave. People who are poorly clothed will help the weaker, while those who control wealth treat their hungry kind as commodities to be sold."

Juemingzi said, "Humans are very interesting."

Zhou Yi also nodded in agreement, "We humans are like this."

History recorded the characteristics of humans.

You think he's going to be okay, and he immediately messes things up for you.

You think he's done for, but he can survive and even create a whole new world.

This is the human uncertainty principle.

"I like the human perspective."

Juemingzi said with a smile, "Through the human perspective, I can see many things that mechanical life forms cannot see. For example, hunger."

"The hunger of mechanical life forms is a series of energy depletion warnings and the gradual shutdown of various devices. It is almost a pre-warning and pre-processing state before falling asleep."

"Human hunger is much more diverse. It may make them more inclined to instinctual and frantic eating, seizing all the food around them, it may make people weak and humble, doing everything possible to beg for food, and it may also fill humans with anger and motivation to fight against the harsh environment…"

"Mechanical life forms have only one standard process and answer for hunger, while humans have more forms of expression and results."

"In terms of movement changes, humans are far superior to mechanical life forms."

Zhou Yi said, "But the efficiency of mechanical life forms is beyond the reach of humans."

"It's the nature of the life mechanism."

Juemingzi explained, "To judge a person, even with very mature algorithms and simulation models, you may still get completely wrong results."

"Do you know what kind of profile the mechanical city gives you?"

Zhou Yi smiled wryly, "Shouldn't it be an infrastructure enthusiast, a low-price warrior, or something like that?"

"You're wrong."

The great monk said, "After many revisions, the data center believes that you are a usurper who will destroy the mechanical city from its roots."

"…"

Zhou Yi's smile froze.

No.

In the end, I only attacked one energy storage city.

This was still your active invasion, I was just fighting back against the invasion and eliminating surrounding military threats.

Zhou Yi was a little unhappy, "It was your mechanical city that launched the invasion, right? And now you're talking about me. Isn't that a bit too double standard?"

"You're right."

The mechanical monk admitted frankly.

"The data center prioritizes the interests of mechanical life forms above all else, and everything else is a price that can be sacrificed and consumed."

"This algorithm structure supports the establishment of the mechanical city, and behind it is the core definition of mechanical life form survival first."

Zhou Yi frowned.

There seemed to be something more to what the monk was saying.

He patiently continued listening.

"However, it is clear that this judgment and profile are far from your true self."

Juemingzi said unhurriedly, "In this month of reincarnation, I have learned about the real living conditions of the residents of Emerald City. One person can pretend, ten people can pretend, but it is impossible to have thousands of humans acting perfectly according to a preset for a long time."

"I believe that what I saw was the most authentic Emerald City. My disciple, Hui Mao, has also come to basically the same conclusion as me in this month."

"The birth of the floating heart has greatly reduced the cost of energy used by mechanical life forms. It makes energy more diversified, opens up the connection between agriculture and industry, and activates and strengthens the connection between humans and mechanical life forms."

"The development of the electric cat allows the power system to radiate to more areas, and can transmit information, illuminate, participate in production, and protect more ordinary residents through electricity. If this is only seen as a lethal weapon, then it is belittling this great technological system."

It said, "The reason why the Legalists are wary of you is that these two technological systems are independent of the Seal Light Technique. They are completely out of the control of the mechanical city, and even the mechanical city needs to continuously follow up and learn as a latecomer."

"The unknown brings fear, and backwardness leads to tension, anxiety, and radicalism."

"So you have become the most important imaginary enemy."

Zhou Yi also suddenly understood.

This was the essence of the matter.

In the past, the mechanical city basically monopolized the technology of the wasteland world. Now, with the emergence of the floating heart and the electric cat system, their former technological hegemony has been torn open.

More people can choose not to take the Seal Light Technique route, and instead use the floating heart and agricultural combination. If the budget is sufficient, they can use electric cats to build a power system. These are enough to support the good operation of a city, and the cost is much lower.

"Under the same premise, different perspectives will lead to different results. In the eyes of the residents of Emerald City, electric cats are likable electrical engineers, but in the Legalist evaluation, they are extremely dangerous mechanical life form killers."

Juemingzi said, "Mr. Zhou, my research direction is race issues. In this world, there are many kinds of intelligent life groups, some are energy-based, some are flesh and blood-based, some are mechanical life forms, and some are bone people in between…"

"In the existing program system of the mechanical city, mechanical life forms are the only official citizens. This excludes the real integration of foreign races from the underlying logic."

"Here, I found that humans, bone people, and mechanical life forms all enjoy the same rights and obligations, and no group enjoys privileges because of its larger numbers. There is only one standard for preferential treatment, and that is to create more value and results for the entire settlement group, and bring convenience to the group."

"I think this is something very worthy of the mechanical city to learn."

"In fact, the Legalists are already imitating this point and gradually trying to introduce foreign residents."

Juemingzi added, "Mr. Zhou, I hope you can understand. The Legalists, the mechanical city, and mechanical life forms are three different groups."

"The Legalists represent the current form of rulers. What mechanical life forms can control is whether to enable it or not. Once it is turned on, it will not be able to be restricted unless a risk threshold alarm is triggered. It's the same as the original General Agreement."

"The mechanical city represents the will and interests of a group of mechanical life forms. There are also conflicts and contradictions between different mechanical cities, and there are also differences. For example, the floating heart. Holy Mountain insists on using the stable heart made by your side, Mirror City strictly requires all citizens to use self-made modified floating hearts, and our Snow County can choose which one to use according to our needs."

"Mechanical life forms, like me, are just lives with specific physiological structures. Most mechanical life forms just want to survive better, but they can't do it alone."

"In the past, in order to seek better survival, mechanical life forms created the city as a group program, and then based on the city, there was the General Agreement, and even the Legalists today."

"I hope that even if conflicts arise in the future, your enemies may be the Legalists, or the city, but not us mechanical life forms. Because we just need to survive, we need to work, but the existing physiological structure makes us only able to move forward and try and make mistakes along this path."

Zhou Yi nodded.

This was largely consistent with his views.

Putting aside other things.

Although the threat of the Legalists is greater, it is at least friendlier to the underlying mechanical life forms than the General Agreement period, which is also a kind of progress.

"Mr. Zhou, I will inform other monks and mechanical life forms about this reincarnation through lectures, to show them the real Emerald City and what the Wasteland Development Company is doing. To correct the cognitive distortions brought to them by the Legalists, and eliminate barriers and stigmatization, so that we can further advance together in the field of knowledge."

"Knowledge and thought are the greatest consensus between intelligent lives."

Juemingzi put his hands together, "Thank you very much for your support. This cultivation has been disturbed, and I have benefited a lot."

Zhou Yi also clasped his fists, "Thank you, Master, I have also learned a lot from you."

"If other monks are interested, Emerald City is very welcome to come and exchange and learn."

"I believe it will."

Juemingzi bowed and rode away on his disciple, who was acting as an electric scooter.