Chapter 265: The Gap of Review

The investigator from the Cosmic Memory Archive arrived at three a. m. No notice, no request, a pure white light gate opened directly in the center of the Bridge Space kitchen, as if that spot had always been a doorway.

What stepped out of the light gate was not humanoid but a hovering geometric construct—made of countless rotating silver cubes, each cube's surface etched with the script of some civilization. It is the archive's "On‑site Review Unit," code‑named "Archivist‑0."

When it appeared, Han Qing was brewing the third pot of tea for the day in the kitchen—to have warm tea ready for Lao Zhao when he woke. The water had just boiled, and steam condensed into tiny droplets on the Review Unit's icy geometric surface.

"According to Article 7 of the Universal Consciousness Protection Treaty, an emergency review is now initiated concerning Earth civilization's alleged 'illegal extraction of the source of civilizational will.'" Archivist‑0's voice sounded like many books turning pages at once. "Suspects: Han Qing, Zhao Weiguo. Review period: 24 hours. During this time, you may not leave a radius of one kilometre from these coordinates."

Aili instinctively stood in front of the still‑unconscious Lao Zhao's bed. Su Yu's folding‑paper hand halted, the paper crane only half‑folded. Xiao Yu's Light Mark instantly switched to defense mode, but Kevin gently pressed her shoulder—resistance was futile.

Han Qing set the teapot down and wiped his hands with a cloth. A memory lag slowed his reaction by five seconds, and during those five seconds he simply stared at the rotating characters on the Review Unit's surface.

"What do we need to cooperate with?" he finally asked.

Archivist‑0's first command was: "Display the involved carrier."

Han Qing unbuttoned his shirt, revealing the ninth fruit on his chest. The fissure had widened to 0.9 mm, like a black lightning bolt striking the centre of an amber‑coloured balance. Deep within the crack, pearl‑like light points formed by silver roots were slowly rotating, arranging into some unfinished pattern.

The Review Unit extended a slender probe, its tip stopping one centimetre away from the fruit's surface.

"High concentration of 'Will Condensate' detected." Archivist‑0's cubes accelerated their rotation. "Source analysis: 'Persistent Choice Will' from at least 47 civilizations and over 30,000 individuals. Extraction method: passive adsorption via 'Scar Resonance.'"

"Passive?" Su Yu caught the keyword.

"Yes." The probe retracted. "Data stream shows these wills were not actively extracted; when 'Choice Sharing' overloaded, the individuals spontaneously projected their 'Persistent Frequency' onto the carrier as support—like many people reaching out simultaneously as someone else is about to drown."

The kitchen fell silent for a few seconds. Only the porridge's bubbling in the pot could be heard.

Han Qing fastened his buttons again, walked back to the stove and stirred the porridge spoon: "So, we didn't break any law?"

"Legally, no." Archivist‑0's cubes formed a question‑mark shape. "But ethically, you have created a 'Will Dependency Risk.' The individuals who projected their wills now have a faint link to this fruit. If the fruit collapses, they will suffer backlash."

It turned to the unconscious Lao Zhao: "And the 'Will Bridge' individuals have already depleted about 11 % of their life force. This is irreversible."

Aili's hand clenched the medical kit. Her life‑monitor displayed: Lao Zhao's heartbeat was 13 % slower than normal, body temperature 0.5 °C lower—his body was adjusting for that 11 % depletion.

"Is there a treatment plan?" her voice was professional, but her fingertips were white.

"Yes." Archivist‑0 popped up a data panel. "The Cosmic Memory Archive offers a 'Life Force Replenishment Protocol.' Cost: Zhao Weiguo must become a 'Living Archive Officer' for one hundred years, during which he may not leave the archive facility."

"How is that different from imprisonment?" Su Yu's voice was light, but cold.

"The difference is that he will be preserving civilizational memory." Archivist‑0's cubes returned to their original shape. "Alternatively, you may find your own way to replenish life force—within 24 hours."

The review entered its second stage: analyzing the content of those pearl‑like light points.

Archivist‑0 held the probe three centimetres above the fruit and began data acquisition. Each light point was extracted, magnified, and parsed:

· Light Point #0371: Will from the Silent Observer volunteer "Curiosity‑17"—"I choose to keep recording emotional data even though colleagues say I'm contaminated. Because the tremor when I first touched the red paper bird… I want to remember what that feeling was."

· Light Point #1298: From the newly‑emergent civilization in GuiHuaYuan, "NewLeaf‑12" — "My hand hurts, but I want to know what comes after gripping the paper crane tightly. Let go? Or fold a new one?"

· Light Point #2550: From the Refractor civilization "ShatteredLight‑7" — "Twenty‑seven companions have vanished. I must make their 'twinkling starry sky' visible. This is my debt."

· Light Point #3999: From the collective of the Awakened civilization — "We slept too long. It hurts now, but at least we know… we are still alive."

One by one, the voices played in the kitchen like a silent chorus. No grand declarations, only simple, stubborn "I want to continue."

Archivist‑0's cubes gradually slowed their rotation—its hallmark when processing complex emotional data.

"These wills…" it paused unusually for a second. "Purity is extremely high. No performative aspect, no moral blackmail, just a plain 'still want to try again.'"

Han Qing ladled a bowl of porridge onto the warming pad at Lao Zhao's bedside. After completing the act, he spoke slowly:

"Because when it hurts, you can't utter pretty words. What you can say is only 'just hold on a bit longer.'"

The review reached its sixth hour, and Lao Zhao awoke.

He didn't open his eyes immediately; his fingers moved first—reaching for the chest pocket to confirm the mediation notebook was still there. Then he opened his eyes, and his first words were: "What time is it? The trial…"

"It's paused." Aili helped him sit up, handing him warm water. "The Cosmic Memory Archive is reviewing us. You've depleted 11 % of your life force."

Lao Zhao's drinking motion paused for half a second. Then he finished the cup, wiped his mouth corner and said, "Oh. That leaves 89 %."

Archivist‑0 floated to the bedside: "You don't seem surprised."

"When my wife was ill," Lao Zhao's voice was still a bit hoarse, "the doctor said she had only 30 % lung capacity left. She said, 'That's still 30 %, enough to breathe.'"

He picked up the cracked quartz stone from the nightstand, held it in his hand: "Life is about 'how much remains,' not 'how much was lost.'"

At that moment, the "Robe of True Choice" on his shoulder faintly glowed—the braid‑woven grafted saplings were slowly absorbing the lingering aromas of porridge and tea, as well as the frequency of everyone's worry, converting them into a fine stream of life energy that returned to his body.

Archivist‑0's probe detected the phenomenon: "Autonomous life‑force replenishment… via 'Environmental Emotional Nutrients'? This does not fit any known biolife model."

Su Yu whispered, "Because most of what you record are grand civilizational narratives. Rarely do you record… how much strength a bowl of porridge can restore."

The review entered its twelfth hour, and Archivist‑0 encountered a dilemma.

According to the standard procedure of the Consciousness Protection Treaty, it must assess the hazard level of the "Will Extraction Event" for the affected civilizations. Yet all hazard indicators—will contamination level, dependency index, backlash risk—showed "low" or "negligible."

On the contrary, it detected some anomalous positive data:

· Among the individuals who projected their wills, 73 % saw their 'Choice Resolve' increase by 5–15 % after the event.

· The brand on NewLeaf‑12's hand, at the fissure, began sprouting transparent crystal filaments—signs of 'Trauma Transmutation.'

· Even the "Recognition of Rationality" weight inside Pure‑3 Light Sphere increased by three units after the event.

"Logical contradiction." Archivist‑0's cubes arranged into an exclamation‑mark shape. "An alleged Violation produced widespread positive effects. This exceeds my judgment matrix."

Han Qing was brewing the fifth pot of tea for the day. He poured a cup and thrust it toward the hovering Review Unit:

"Want a taste? Plain green tea. Might not help, but at least… give the data some warmth."

Archivist‑0's probe reached into the cup, the tip touching the tea surface. Instantly, a faint green pattern appeared on its cubes—recording taste data.

"Bitter." it said. "Then… a bit sweet?"

"That's the aftertaste." Han Qing also took a sip, "Many things are like this. First bitter, then when you get used to the bitterness, you can say…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

The Review Unit remained silent for a full minute. Its cubes kept reconfiguring, as if engaged in intense computation.

Finally it said, "I need more data. About the weight of 'post‑bitter aftertaste' in civilizational decision‑making."

Just as the review seemed to be easing, Archivist‑0 suddenly received a golden command stream.

Its cubes instantly froze, all rotation halted, and complex encrypted runes appeared on the surface—signifying the Cosmic Memory Archive's highest‑level authorization.

Ten seconds later, it resumed operation, but its voice became unusually solemn:

"The Supreme Archives sent a supplementary order: it was detected that the 'Will Pearl' is self-organizing, forming a prototype of the 'Civil Resilience Seed.' According to the 'Ancient Taboo Agreement,' any form of 'collective will construct' must be reported in advance, otherwise it will be regarded as……a 'potential civilizational weapon.'"

"The air in the kitchen solidified."

"\"Weapon? \" Xiao Yu's voice trembled."

"'When collective will is highly condensed, it can exert a suppressive effect on opposing will.' Archivist-0's probe pointed at the fruit on Han Qing's chest, 'If this 'Resilience Seed' fully matures, theoretically it can 'persuade' anyone who comes into contact with it to choose perseverance over giving up—even if that goes against their original intention.'"

"It paused: 'This is called 'benevolent tyranny.' In cosmic history, three civilizations have thus walked toward self-destruction—because everyone was 'too strong,' no one dared to call a halt."

"Han Qing pressed his hand to his chest. The rotation speed of those pearl-like light points was indeed slowly increasing, the pattern becoming ever clearer……"

"\"How do we stop it? \" Su Yu asked."

"'Within 24 hours, prove that the seed's formation is 'natural resonance' rather than 'artificial manufacture.'' Archivist-0 popped up a countdown, 'Otherwise, the memory bank will activate the 'harmlessization procedure'—erasing all related will connections, including the 11% vitality lost by Zhao Weiguo, which cannot be restored.'"

"It looked at Old Zhao: 'That means you will permanently lose that 11%.'"

"Outside the window, dawn was breaking. The braided branches of the grafted saplings swayed gently in the morning light, as if weaving something unseen."

"And the pearl-like light points on Han Qing's chest finally arranged themselves——"

"It was an extremely simple pattern: the outline of a seed, inside which were written two characters."

"Not any known civilization's script. But Old Zhao understood it."

"It was Chen Mo's handwriting, the kind of symbol abbreviation he often used in his notebook."

"Those two characters were:"

"\"Continue\""

"Old Zhao got out of bed, his legs still a bit weak but he stood firm. He walked up to Han Qing and looked at the characters inside the fruit."

"\"Your teacher……\" he said softly, \"even during the review, he was teaching us. \""

"Han Qing nodded, his memory-delayed response coming slowly: \"He's always been like that. When you feel you can't go on, he gives you……something not much use, but a reason to take two more steps. \""

"Archivist-0's cube began to rotate again, but this time slowly, as if thinking."

"\"I need to observe the next twelve hours. \" It finally said, \"Observe the two words 'Continue' and see what effect they have on you. \""

"The countdown kept ticking: 23:47:19."

"And in the kitchen, the porridge had cooled, the tea had cooled."

"But Old Zhao poured the cold porridge back into the pot and turned the heat on again:"

"\"Heat it up, it's still drinkable. Just like that 11%—gone is gone, use the remaining 89%……enough to live to the age one ought to live. \""