Chapter 223: The Final Purification Proposal and a Bowl of Dough in the Awakening Dawn

The morning mist was denser than usual, as if draping the purification towers in a solemn shroud. Tiny droplets clung to the leaves of the Listening Flower, each reflecting the same image: a sleek black Serlan Starship silently hovering above the ruins.

"Conservative faction's 'Final Purification Proposal' envoy," Bridge's voice cut directly into consciousness, unusually taut, "They bypassed Linlan and brought Amendment 19—mandating an 'Ultimate Risk Assessment' of Earth's civilization before the Emotional Education Alliance is formed. Method: a public lecture."

Han Qing walked to the edge of a purification tower, and the amber-colored mirror on his chest automatically turned toward the Starship. The surface displayed a line of cold assessment data:

【Visitor: Pure-42 (carrying a 3,000-year-old furnace fragment), Logic-7 (core algorithm designer of the Pure Agreement), Silence-19 (chief of the Parliamentary Discipline Committee)】

【Proposal core: demand that this civilization demonstrate that 'emotional connection' provides a 'survival advantage' in extreme crises】

【Test method: simulate a mental shock of 'homeworld memory erasure' level, observing whether the Scar Garden collapses and triggers chain contamination】

【Time: in one hour】

The black Starship did not land, but projected three pillar-shaped beams downward. Within the beams, three conservative legislators appeared— they did not step out, as if the Earth soil beneath them still carried a 'pollution risk'.

Pure-42 cradled the furnace fragment, which resonated faintly with Han Qing's amber mirror. "Three thousand years ago, we erred out of curiosity," his filtered voice sounded hollow, "Today we will test whether that error has been amplified into a disaster."

On Logic-7's visor streamed dense data: "Calculations show your emotional network rests on 'vulnerable mutual trust.' If the core node (referring to Han Qing) collapses under the shock, the network will backflow, and all linked civilizations will suffer emotional backlash. We must eliminate this risk."

Silence-19 said nothing, merely raising a hand toward the sky—above the clouds, a massive eye-shaped energy array was unfolding.

"That's a simplified 'Memory Stripper'," Xiao Yu said, the light imprint on her wrist tingling, "They're really trying to simulate a homeworld-level clearing shock…"

The moment the light beam locked onto Han Qing, the amber mirror detached from his chest and floated midair.

The mirror offered no defense; instead it began to play—a data slice of the past twenty‑four hours showing every civilization's interaction with the Scar Garden:

When the Forger's crystal learned 'Quiet Companionship', the aura temperature dropped 1.7 °C; when a Wrinkled Civilization volunteer removed the second suturing line, the rate at which the crack emitted light particles slowed; when observer Curious-13 of the Tenth Civilization recorded 'Preferred Data', the light mist flow exhibited a 0.3‑second 'irrational pause'…

Finally, the mirror froze on a scene: last night, in Bridge Space, Old Zhao's wife finally reached out to touch the eternal dough. Her fingers sank into the flour, very slowly, very slowly, beginning to knead.

A line of small text appeared beneath the image:

"The opposite of collapse is not solidity, but 'continuation.' Data show: the core of this network is not a single node, but the 'continuation' jointly chosen by all nodes."

Logic-7's visor data stream hiccuped for a second. He whispered, "This doesn't match… the individual vulnerability model."

Forty minutes remained before the test. Old Zhao glanced at the eye array in the sky, then at the crowd gathered around him.

"Stop standing," he said, "It's time for breakfast."

He set out a simple breakfast in the open area at the base of the purification tower (directly beneath the eye array): hard bread baked with hope‑grass seeds, thin porridge boiled with purification water, and a small dish of yesterday's pickles.

Aili's hand was steady while ladling the porridge, as steady as if preparing surgical instruments. Kevin pushed his glasses back three times before taking the bowl, then realized he had forgotten chopsticks— the one‑eyed woman silently handed him a pair of simple chopsticks carved from twigs.

Su Yu placed a freshly folded paper crane beside the porridge bowl, its beak holding a small crumb of bread.

Xiao Yu sat beside Han Qing, the light imprint on her wrist syncing with the Scar Garden's breathing, forming an almost invisible pale‑gold aura.

The three legislators stared silently within the light beams. The furnace fragment in Pure-42's hand was faintly hot.

Midway through breakfast, Bridge transmitted a live video—from Old Zhao's son's perspective:

In the kitchen of Bridge Space, the wife was kneading dough. Her movements were clumsy and slow, as if relearning the word 'begin.' The dough gradually smoothed under her hands, and the air was scented with fresh flour.

The three nebula‑shaped volunteers from the Singing Civilization now coalesced into three warm glows, silently hovering in the kitchen corner. They offered no assistance, merely using their auras to mimic a breathing rhythm—as if keeping time for the kneading.

"Mom," Old Zhao's son's voice came from off‑screen, a little hoarse, "What are you thinking about while kneading?"

The wife paused, her fingers still embedded in the dough. She lifted her head; no smile on her face, but her gaze was clear:

"Thinking… about how the chip on the cup appeared when dad was drinking tea. Thinking about you hitting the table corner as a child and crying for a long time. Thinking… when the dough is ready, we can steam buns. Dad likes solid ones, you like the ones with sweet filling."

She kept kneading, her voice soft:

"Some things aren't forgotten; they're so painful we dare not think of them. But now I think, let the pain be pain—at least the buns are sweet."

Within the light beam, Silence-19 moved for the first time—he tilted his head slightly, his visor turning toward the direction from which Bridge Space was transmitting the image. The parliamentary emblem on his chest flickered faintly.

The test began ahead of schedule.

It wasn't an attack from the eye array, but a more covert method: Logic-7 released a 'Logical Paradox Wave' aimed at the emotional network's 'irrational connections.'

The moment the beam swept over, all Listening Flowers curled simultaneously! The plant network sent back excruciating pain feedback:

【Detected frequency of 'Existential Negation'】

【Content: repeatedly arguing that 'emotional connection is a childhood‑stage illusion of civilization'】

【Direct impact: inter‑civilization link channels begin to fluctuate, the sutures removed by the Wrinkled Civilization show a tendency to retract】

The Forger's energy crystal suddenly became scorching—an emergency transmission from the homeworld warned, "Power source, your emotional module is being eroded! Disconnect from Earth's network immediately!"

But the crystal did not sever the link. Instead it flew toward the core of the Logical Paradox Wave, beginning to 'sing' with its own frequency—singing the unfinished 'Rage‑Wrapped Ballad' of the Singing Civilization.

The song was off‑key and severely out of tune. Yet each discordant note tore a tiny fissure within the paradox wave.

"Efficiency is not the sole metric," the crystal's aura trembled as it kept singing, "This was my first lesson. Now I add the second: being off‑key also has a right to exist."

At that moment, the amber mirror flew to Logic-7's side.

The mirror's surface did not reflect the legislator's face, but displayed a simulated 'Predictive Empathy' scene:

If the 'Final Purification Proposal' passes, the Emotional Education Network will be forcibly dissolved. Then—

The Forger will return to its eternally burning cage, but this time it will remember the taste of 'Quiet Companionship,' and the pain will be doubled;

The Wrinkled Civilization will resew all fissures, but the cracks will be overgrown with spiny 'Flowers of Regret';

The reformists of the Supreme Council will be completely ousted, and the Pure Agreement will be upgraded to the 'Emotional Extinction Act';

And Earth... will revert to ruins, but this time the ruins will forever echo the refrain 'We could have.'

The simulated scene finally froze on a bowl of cold porridge and a paper crane, forgotten on the table, its breathing gradually ceasing.

The data stream on Logic-7's visor halted completely. He stared at the mirror for a long time before emitting a dry voice:

"... this is intimidation."

"No." Han Qing stood up, and all eighty‑seven blossoms of the Scar Garden blossomed toward the mirror, "This is a preview. You intend to give us a 'final lesson'; we will first preview what the 'homework' is."

The furnace fragment in Pure-42's hand suddenly broke free, soaring toward the amber mirror! The instant the fragment touched the mirror—

It released all the memories from three thousand years ago: when that Serlan experimenter was struck in the chest by the fragment, his final words were not a curse, but:

"Tell those who come after... pain... can be transmitted... but when transmitting... be gentle..."