"Wait a moment. A green wasp? So, is it green or yellow? "
The test-taker frowned. "If it is really green, it shouldn't be called a 'wasp'. What is this? Is it a language trap?"
"No, no, no. Don't be nervous. Relax. This is just a common question. Nobody cares whether it is a green wasp or a yellow wasp. Maybe it is a display error."
The researcher gestured and said, "Don't mind the details. Just follow your intuition and tell me your first reaction."
"I will … beat it to death."
The test-taker leaned toward the table and stared at the researcher. "Right?"
The researcher smiled.
"There is no 'right' or 'wrong'. There is no correct answer here. You can answer however you want."
The researcher said, "This is just a routine personality test to let the doctors and nurses have a general understanding of your character. They know how to take care of you, what kind of roommate to assign to you, and try not to cause any trouble … That sort of thing.
"Alright. Next is the second question. Imagine that you find yourself in a desolate desert planet when you wake up. What tool do you want to hold in your hands the most? Is it a saber, a sword, a shovel, a piece of probe magical equipment that can find water, or … "
"Which desert planet?"
The test-taker interrupted the researcher and asked back with his swollen eyes.
"What?"
The researcher was somewhat stunned.
"You said that I find myself in a desert planet when I wake up, so I'm asking you which desert planet it is exactly," the test-taker said.
"There are hundreds of desert planets in the Imperium. Which one is it exactly?"
"That is just … a question."
The researcher's smile was somewhat rigid. "Does it make a difference which desert planet it is?"
"It does. If I am to die on a goddamn desert planet one day, I should at least know its name!"
The test-taker narrowed his eyes and suddenly changed the topic. "Your hand. What are you doing with your hand? Why have your fingers been tapping the table since the beginning? Is this part of the test? Do I have to make a correct response?"
"No. No, no, no."
The researcher stopped tapping subconsciously and managed a smile. "Don't be nervous. Don't be nervous."
"F * ck. I am not nervous. I am not nervous at all!"
The tester flew into a rage. "As long as you stop using your damn fingers to knock on this stupid table!"
In the testing room, the conversation between the two continued in this strange atmosphere.
The topic continued to deepen. From the initial instinctive reaction test, it gradually deepened into a dilemma with no answer.
Outside of the test room, Li Yao observed with great interest with his arms crossed. He couldn't help but ask Zhuge Jinglun, "Director Zhuge, what's the point of those questions? Can you identify the people of the Holy League with those questions?"
"That's right."
Zhuge Jinglun pointed at his head and said, "I've divided the thinking of human beings into rational thinking and emotional thinking. For example, a child loves his mother. That's emotional thinking. It's natural, intuitive, and unconditional.
"Then, when you're asked questions about your mother, you don't need to think at all. Your emotional thinking will make instinctive responses like a conditioned reflex.
"However, for some ruthless and inhumane criminals and the people of the Covenant Alliance, their rational thinking is seriously separated from their emotional thinking. Some of them even have no emotional thinking at all. Maybe they love their mothers too, but their logic is that their mothers bring them food, resist the enemy, and give them warmth. So, they have to love their mothers.
"Do you see what I mean? The love of normal people is direct and unconditional, but their love is indirect and the result of rational thinking.
"Then, when faced with a series of well-designed questions, those criminals and the people of the Holy League need a very short time to 'think rationally' and simulate emotional thinking that doesn't exist. There's a subtle delay compared to normal people.
"For hundreds of years, we've accumulated the reaction speed and brain scans of countless normal people when they're faced with similar questions. After comparing them with the reaction speed and brain scans of the testers, we can identify those who have slow reactions and abnormal brain areas and label them as' abnormal people '."
"That explains a lot."
Li Yao was deep in thought. "However, what if the testers have developed brains, strong souls, and remarkable computational abilities? Many experts have dozens of times more computational abilities than ordinary people. Can't they jump from 'rational thinking' to 'emotional thinking' in a split second? "
"It's indeed possible. We'll have to count on Ring-Tu then."
Zhuge Jinglun said gloatingly, "Black Wind King, please focus your attention on the Ring-Tu in the test room. Do you feel that it contains infinite information and is even absorbing your soul? That was right. Such a pattern of infinite changes had been drawn by the computational ability of ten super crystal processors. It indeed contained astronomical information. It also boasted a certain … magical effect, which could attract the attention of the observer without them knowing it.
"The stronger the observer is, the more information they can find inside the pattern, and the more attracted they will be to the pattern, but they won't be able to focus on the questions.
"On the other hand, if the observer is an ordinary person, they won't feel the infinite charm of the Ring-Tu and won't be affected by it.
"In other words, the Ring-Tu is a special piece of magical equipment that can reduce the computational ability of the experts as much as possible so that the experts can be tested on the same level as the ordinary people. In the past hundred years, as more and more data was accumulated, and the information stored in the Ring-Tu grew exponentially, the accuracy of the Ring-Tu Test grew higher and higher."
Li Yao nodded and got the gist of it.
In the test room, the researcher was almost swallowed by the colorful colors and blended into the small room. He continued to throw out the questions unhurriedly. "Imagine that one day, you come home and find your mother lying in a pool of blood, and you don't know whether she's dead or alive, but a suspected murderer jumped out of the window and escaped. Then, would you save your mother or chase the murderer?"
"My mother?"
Crimson spots popped out of the test-taker's eyes nonstop, and he laughed like a wolf. "Then, I will probably chase the murderer and see what kind of person he is exactly. What is this? A lousy joke? How many more idiotic questions do we have to answer?"
"Soon. Be patient. This is the last few questions. Ah. This is my personal favorite question."
The researcher smiled politely, too. Crossing his fingers on the swirls of light and shadow, he said, "Do you remember how you came to this place? Do you feel that your memory is fuzzy and that the past decades are like a mottled dream?
"What if I tell you that all your memories are false and have been planted by somebody, that the world you are familiar with does not exist, that you did not exist at all three years ago, and that you are not a human being but a 'Wisdom Machine'? How would you feel?"
"Wisdom Machine?"
The test-taker blinked his eyes quickly and tried to look confused and angry. "What is that? What does that mean exactly?"
"Wisdom Machine, intelligent machine, life, crystal processor civilization," the researcher said coldly.
The researcher said coldly, "Have you remembered your real identity and the truth of the whole world? Yes, the crystal processors were born with self-awareness, the machines became lives, the puppets rebelled, and the Wisdom Machines almost destroyed the civilization of mankind. Only a few people were still hiding below the ground and resisting stubbornly. It's a pity that you were not one of them but a 'Wisdom Machine'. If I cut open your skull with a chainsaw right now, you would see a glittering crystal processor.
"So, what's your choice? What do you think you are after you've been injected with tremendous false memories and simulated personalities? Are you a human being or a 'Wiseware'? Are you going to stand on our side or on 'their' side?"
"Well —"
The test-taker burst into fury. "What kind of question is that? I refuse to answer such a boring question!"
Li Yao was dumbfounded too. He glanced at Long Yangjun from Zhuge Jinglun's face.
"It's a coincidence."
Long Yangjun said in a low voice, but she smiled in the next second and raised her hands to surrender. "Fine, it's not a coincidence. I came up with such a question when I was bored. Director Zhuge found it interesting and added it to the question bank of the latest version. Don't you think that it's interesting and can test the deepest reactions of people?
Li Yao glared at her.
In the test room, the last question was asked.
"Alright, we've answered most of the questions. The last one is, do you need us to get you out of here?"
The researcher tapped his fingers and asked with a smile, "Before you answer, let me explain your situation first. It's true that the world around you is false, and you're not who you think you are, but it's not as bad as the Wisdom Machine's rebellion.
"In fact, this is the world of your subconscious. The self that you see and the me who is sitting opposite you and asking you questions are all part of your subconscious.
"I'm very sorry. In the real world, the real you is a very pitiful little girl. You were sold to the deepest part of the shabby streets by your parents when you were young and suffered inhumane torture by those animals. You were tortured until you were covered in bruises and on the verge of death, so you created such a subconscious world as a safe haven for your soul.
"Yes, the real you is a little girl who has suffered a lot. Your rough appearance right now is just a disguise in your heart, a false guardian.
"I'm also a subconscious that can wake you up and help you return to reality anytime. The questions we asked just now were all preparations for your return to reality.
"Now, tell me. Do you want to stay in the world of your subconscious forever and live a carefree life on this peaceful and sunny island, even if it is fake and just your own imagination, or do you want to return to reality and face your body that is about to rot?"
The test-taker was stunned for a long time as if he had been struck by lightning.
Then, he suddenly burst out like a crystal bomb and dashed forward, dragging the entire metal chair with him.
"I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you! "
He turned into another person in the moment and lunged at the researcher crazily.
"Ha!"
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