After finishing his speech, Ding Yudie left, head held high, his departing figure flamboyant.
Yi Sa watched until he was out of sight before turning to explain to Zong Hang: “Don’t worry, he’s always like this.”
Ding Yudie was decent enough in most aspects, except for one thing: he was too fond of showing off his superiority as a water ghost to others. If others hadn’t discovered something, he had; if others couldn’t do something, he could – earning praise and envious glances was his eternal pursuit.
Ten minutes later, there was another knock at the door.
Opening it revealed Ding Yudie again.
Yi Sa deliberately made a sarcastic comment: “Weren’t you going to have a good talk with Uncle Panling? That was quick.”
Ding Yudie gave her a sidelong glance: “With such a major discovery, it’s normal that my Uncle Panling needs time to process it. I gave him the evidence, and he said he needed time to sort through it. He wants you two to come explain the situation too. Although…” He shrugged disdainfully, the latter half of his words seeming to spray from his nose: “What could you two possibly have to say?”
Yi Sa quickly took a shower and changed into clean clothes.
Taking Zong Hang out, she realized she’d forgotten to ask where to find Ding Panling, but fortunately, they met some Ding family members who led them to a small conference room downstairs.
The moment she pushed open the door and saw Ding Panling and Ding Changsheng inside, with Ding Xi laying out photos on the table – presumably the developed film – she suddenly thought of something and looked up at Zong Hang.
Zong Hang winked at her and whispered: “Don’t worry, I’m clever, I didn’t photograph you.”
Another round of detailed analysis followed, with Zong Hang leading and Yi Sa supplementing. Jiang Taiyue was also patched in by phone, but she stopped listening halfway through.
She really couldn’t understand – at seventy-six, she couldn’t even use a smartphone, how could she comprehend talk of artificial intelligence and reincarnation? If it had been about ghosts and spirits she might have been interested, given her age and beliefs.
But it wasn’t.
So she fully authorized Ding Panling: “You figure it all out, then tell me.”
However, even Ding Panling and the others were bewildered by what they heard.
After listening, it felt like a building had shakily risen before them, with angles and form, but it seemed that pulling out any brick could make it collapse.
Yet they didn’t know where to start pulling.
After a long while, Ding Panling finally spoke: “So what do these people want to do after they’re revived?”
Yi Sa said: “It’s reincarnation, right? It shows we face the same fate as the previous cycle of humans. They might want to help us fight against artificial intelligence.”
Ding Changsheng frowned: “But they killed so many people…”
Yi Sa corrected him: “No, those people in the Breathing Nest weren’t killed by them, they just stored the bodies.”
Ding Changsheng changed tack: “Then what about our people who died in the Drifting Cave in ’96?”
“That’s not killing, that’s failed grafting. Besides, with such a huge project, there are bound to be some casualties, right?”
Ding Changsheng felt his brain turning to paste: “Then why wait several thousand years?”
“Because they had to wait for modern technology to appear. Otherwise, if artificial intelligence hadn’t even emerged yet, who would they fight against after being revived…”
Yi Sa’s explanations became increasingly stumbling, finally complaining: “Don’t ask me, I’m not the one who arranged all this. Uncle Panling, Zong Hang, and I just made up this story based on what we heard, saw, and the fragments of information – it’s just speculation, okay? We’re offering it to you for free as a reference, I’m not a scientist, I’m not even into sci-fi, how can I explain it all?”
Ding Panling smiled wryly, then after a pause looked at Ding Xi: “What do you think?”
Among those present, he was the only one who hadn’t spoken.
Ding Xi smiled: “No thoughts, I don’t know much about these things. Uncle Ling, you could ask some professionals – there must be people in the three families who studied computer science or physics. Anyway, for me… it’s too profound, I can’t understand it.”
A moment of awkward silence followed.
Ding Panling picked up the photos on the table to look at them: probably due to insufficient lighting in the Golden Pool, the images were all rather dark, but what they captured was enough to make one’s tongue-tied.
So there were hidden mysteries beneath Hukou Falls.
Yi Sa carefully gauged Ding Panling’s expression and tentatively probed: “Uncle Panling, there’s nothing more for us to do now, right? We originally came to inform you, that you asked us to help go underwater, and we did…”
She deliberately left the sentence unfinished – surely Ding Panling wasn’t stupid, nor would he pretend to be.
Ding Panling indeed understood, pondered for a moment, then said: “This is a big matter. I need to discuss it further with your Uncle Ding and the others, and there’s still no news from the Drifting Cave… If you’re tired, take a few days’ rest. If we need your help later, I’ll contact you.”
After Yi Sa and Zong Hang left, only insiders remained in the conference room, and the atmosphere immediately relaxed.
Ding Changsheng reminded Ding Panling: “Are we letting them wander freely? Whether Yi Sa is revived or not, Zong Hang is confirmed – not one of us… better have someone watch them.”
Ding Panling remained silent, leaning back in his chair, neck against the top, head suspended backward: “Do you think the story they told is true?”
Ding Changsheng thought he was doubting Yi Sa had made it up: “She probably wasn’t lying. Though Yi Sa has always been a bit clever, to make up such a big story, her brain… doubtful, probably couldn’t manage it.”
Ding Panling pressed his temples: “Just listening to it gives me a headache.”
Ding Changsheng laughed: “Isn’t it? One thing after another sounds scientific at first, even throwing in terms like ‘memory carrier’ and ‘transplant’, but thinking carefully, it’s just an amateur’s forced interpretation. But you can’t blame her – forget about not being a scientist, she’s not even a sci-fi fan. Her level is probably just from watching a few Hollywood movies… Maybe, as Ding Xi said, we should first consult some experts?”
Ding Panling shook his head, then after a pause said: “Don’t get drawn into their trap.”
Ding Changsheng was startled, and even Ding Xi, who had been lounging disinterestedly in his chair, sat up.
Trap? Was there a trap here? Was Yi Sa setting a trap? That seemed unlikely.
But Ding Changsheng had always valued Ding Panling’s opinions: this man was ordinary in appearance, didn’t talk much, and followed rules and procedures, so much so that many found him unremarkable and bland, but after long association, one would know that without some real ability, he couldn’t lead the water ghosts or be elected to take charge in this matter – Ding Panling either kept his opinions to himself or when he did express them, they were inevitably well thought out.
Ding Changsheng held his breath waiting for the rest.
Ding Panling said: “The problem we’re facing isn’t a scientific puzzle at all. I don’t need to be a scientist, nor do I need to consult scientists.”
“The whole thing has a scientific veneer, but whatever skin it wears, when you strip it down to its core, it’s always about both sides playing mind games. You don’t need to find computer science or physics experts to prove whether AI will destroy humanity, whether the world goes through cycles, or how imprecise Yi Sa’s explanations are – that would be stepping onto the wrong path.”
“Just pull out the key thread: who are they? What’s their purpose?”
At this point, he leaned forward, hands clasped: “Ding Xi, help me out here, I’ll ask, you answer.”
Ding Xi was a bit dazed and anxious: he was used to dealing with Ding Changsheng, but Ding Panling’s style was unfamiliar.
“If everything Yi Sa and Zong Hang said is true, who do you think they are? Don’t try to read between my lines, don’t guess, just say what you think.”
Ding Xi hesitated: “They are humans from the previous civilization cycle, who were destroyed, the cause being artificial intelligence.”
“Then what’s their purpose?”
“To survive the reorganization, enter the new cycle, revive, and fight against the coming artificial intelligence to prevent the tragedy from happening again.”
“What’s your attitude toward this? Welcome them or not? Be honest.”
“Since they’re coming to help us, I think… it’s good. If we face such risks in the future, and they have experience, maybe even solutions, why wouldn’t we welcome them?”
Ding Panling smiled, turning to Ding Changsheng: “See?”
He did see, but what did it prove? Ding Changsheng was confused.
Ding Panling said: “People have a trait – what comes easily is taken for granted, what’s obtained through great effort is treasured even if it’s just grass.”
“Suppose you’re a police officer who’s caught a criminal. If before you use any tactics, he willingly confesses everything, you’d suspect it’s a pre-prepared false confession.”
“Conversely, if he’s stubborn and refuses to talk, but after multiple interrogations and confrontations, you catch a few pieces of information from him, add some scene evidence and exhibits, and rack your brains to reconstruct the crime – you’d likely be predisposed to believe your reconstruction is the truth.”
Ding Changsheng’s mouth was half-open, seemingly starting to get the flavor of it.
Ding Panling continued: “Yi Sa didn’t lie. On the contrary, did you notice? She was quite proud. Being able to reconstruct such a coherent, complex story from some clues and fragments of information shows real ability – others might not be able to do it.”
“The process wasn’t easy, and she got a bit carried away. This pride made her overlook questioning one point: the paintings in the corridor, the scenes in the Breathing Nest, even those fragments that flashed through Zong Hang’s mind – they were all provided by the other side. In other words, it’s one-sided testimony, without any corroboration, because there’s no third party who could corroborate it.”
“So here’s the question: did she deduce this complex story herself, or did the other side consciously guide her to deduce this story?”
Ding Changsheng swallowed, picked up his teacup, then put it down again.
It was true.
Thinking carefully, those clues and fragments appeared interconnected.
— Anyone seeing computer-related rock paintings in an ancient human-built corridor would think along those few lines: time travel, aliens, previous civilization, or someone who came in recently to paint them.
— In the mental fragments, someone was talking about the evolution tree, semi-guidedly mentioning: that at the end of evolution comes extinction, regression, and starting anew – naturally making one think of that repeatedly appearing reincarnation disc.
— In the dim basement, people were meeting, discussing survival and counterattack, successfully creating an atmosphere of desperation yet determination.
…
Ding Panling looked at Ding Xi again: “Earlier when I asked you to answer questions, it was based on ‘if this story is true.’ Now let’s remove that foundation – what if this story isn’t true, and Yi Sa never made anything up?”
Ding Xi’s heart pounded.
If the story wasn’t true, and Yi Sa hadn’t made it up.
That would mean the other side had thrown up a smoke screen, wanting you to believe this story was true, wanting you to believe they were humans who escaped from the previous cycle – which precisely indicates they’re not.
Ding Panling spoke meaningfully: “The previous cycle of humans might truly have faced disaster brought by artificial intelligence, but who lost, who had to flee – nobody knows. Also…”
His gaze swept over the dozens of spread-out photos: “We don’t need to wonder whether Yi Sa is revived or not anymore, she should be.”
“Two reasons.”
“First, Yi Sa has always been very solitary. In all these years, you’ve never seen her particularly close to anyone. Ding Yudie was an exception because they became water ghosts together, sharing many commonalities. Zong Hang being so close to her might be due to romantic feelings, but before two people can develop feelings, they must first be able to get close to each other. Yi Sa allowing Zong Hang to get close to her is likely because they’re the same kind.”
“Second, none of his photos captured her.”