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Lin Xian gazed at the night sky, observing these massive vessels.

He had succeeded.

This meant his “Time Bank Plan” had succeeded in the fourth dream.

Over the past few months, he had been checking his dreams every night to see if the airships appeared in the sky. If they didn’t, it meant Time Bank didn’t exist in the future world, 600 years later, due to various reasons. But once these advertising airships appeared for the 600th anniversary celebration, it confirmed that a significant, irreversible temporal anchor point had been created in the real world. Consequently, a temporal butterfly effect had caused a tornado that swept through 600 years, changing the future world in the fourth dream.

Although the change wasn’t huge, the city background remained mostly the same. He was still surrounded by soldiers, and the charges against him hadn’t changed. As usual, he would soon be electrically stunned and lose consciousness.

However, seeing the advertising airships for Time Bank’s 600th anniversary celebration was proof enough of many things.

This was his greatest achievement and breakthrough during this period.

Zzz…

Behind him, he heard the sound of electricity.

His vision went black as he fainted…

Lin Xian opened his eyes, lying on a single bed in the astronaut training base dormitory in the capital. Only a few minutes had passed since he fell asleep.

He glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table.

00:42

It seemed that the plot after being stunned remained the same as before. Lin Xian had already figured out a pattern. If he entered the dream after 00:10, he would be stunned by the soldiers but wouldn’t have time to meet the mysterious old man. Most likely, while the soldiers were transporting him back to the detention center, the white light at 00:42 would destroy the world, preventing him from waking up in the dream or meeting the mysterious old man.

“VV.” The first thing he did upon waking up was call VV.

“I’m here,” the digital clock displayed a 0_0 face.

“What’s up, Lin Xian? Any breakthroughs in your dream?”

Lin Xian nodded and recounted his dream to VV:

“Just as I had arranged with Brother Wang, Time Bank would start trial operations early, but the official establishment date would be set for August 28, 2024. The first rule in the company’s charter states that every 100 years, they must rent as many airships as possible to advertise in the city sky.”

“As it turns out, Brother Wang did it. Not only did Time Bank successfully operate for 600 years, but it also seems financially sound, renting more than a dozen giant airships to advertise and celebrate its 600th anniversary.”

The digital clock’s expression changed from o_o to 0_0, as if nodding in agreement.

“This is indeed good news, Lin Xian. But as I’ve discussed with you many times, even if Time Bank appears in your dream, it doesn’t prove your dream is real.”

“I’ve never denied that your dream might take you 600 years into the future. What I keep emphasizing is that even if you are indeed in the future, everything you see, the city you’re in, and even the entire world might not be real.”

“These could be simulated worlds created by enemies 600 years later by hijacking your memories. Or it could be a highly realistic set built around you, with everything you see being props and illusions, including the Time Bank airship. The bank, the safe, and even the note in the safe could all be perfectly replicated props.”

“I’ve said this many times, Lin Xian. Your mind should understand. The real Time Bank might exist in the future, but it’s likely not the fake one you’re seeing now.”

“No, no…” Lin Xian waved his hand and smiled.

“You misunderstand, VV. I don’t take my dreams as real because of this. I’m not that foolish. Your points are well-known, and there’s no need to explain them again. For now, my plan’s first step has succeeded.”

“As long as Time Bank appears in the fourth dream, whether it’s real or fake, it means the enemy has taken the bait, and we have regained the initiative.”

VV blinked in confusion, not understanding why Lin Xian had become so optimistic despite no progress in verifying the dream’s reality. After all, they knew Time Bank’s appearance in the fourth dream was inevitable.

Seeing the puzzled clock, Lin Xian chuckled.

“Think about it, VV. Whether Time Bank in the fourth dream is real or fake isn’t important. Its appearance proves many things.”

“First, if Time Bank is real and so is my dream, then there’s nothing more to say. We proceed with our plan to verify the dream’s reality and will reach a conclusion.”

“Second, if Time Bank is fake, then the enemy’s attempt to replicate it into the simulated world or set is a blunder! There’s a saying: ‘If you tell a lie, you must keep lying to cover it up.’ The more lies you tell, the more flaws there will be.”

“If the enemy replicated a fake Time Bank in the fourth dream, it’s their first lie. Remember, Time Bank in 2024 is under my control. Whatever I change in Time Bank, they must change too. If I set a password for the safe, they must match it. If I place something in the safe, they must replicate it exactly.”

“In the original 600-year dream, I was isolated and had no reference points to connect 2024 and 2624 versions of myself. But now I have one: Time Bank. Remember what I said before? I’ll place a note in the safe with content unknown to me. The enemy must strictly replicate it in the fake Time Bank. This way, they’re entirely passive.”

“If they alter the note’s content, I’ll immediately know the dream is fake. If they replicate it exactly, I’ll use the unique code on it to determine the dream’s reality. And if they choose to do nothing, that flaw alone proves the dream’s falsity.”

“So… do you understand, VV?”

Lin Xian grinned with the look of a predator.

“Initially, we were at the mercy of an unknown enemy. Now, the situation has reversed. We have the upper hand. The note in the safe is a trap they can’t avoid. Since Time Bank appeared, they’ve been checkmated.”

Boom!

The electric kettle on the tea machine suddenly boiled over.

“Wall-Breaker Lin Xian!”

VV excitedly yelled with a sharp voice.

“This is your plan to deceive the world!? Time Bank… is a trap you set for the enemy!”

“You even deceived me! Despite my powerful computing capabilities, I didn’t foresee this! The enemy fell into your trap, losing the upper hand!”

“Exactly,” Lin Xian nodded.

“The correct approach for the enemy would have been to keep the dream unchanged. A program running without issues shouldn’t be tampered with, no matter how bug-ridden it is. If the fourth dream was indeed a false world or set, they should have kept it unchanged, leaving me to doubt myself indefinitely.”

“But now, it’s too late for them to make amends. Even though there’s still time before I open the safe in Time Bank, the mere appearance of Time Bank has narrowed the dream puzzle down to two answers.”

Lin Xian raised one finger.

“First, our worries are baseless. My dream is real, and my understanding of time-space laws is correct.”

Then he raised a second finger.

“Second, the dream is fake, but the enemy isn’t as smart and powerful as we thought. They couldn’t extract my thoughts and memories. Otherwise, they would have realized this trap and wouldn’t have needed to replicate Time Bank, leaving me to doubt myself. Clearly, the enemy didn’t make the perfect choice.”

“So you see, a question with no answers has turned into a multiple-choice question with two options. This is much easier. Even if we can’t prove which option is correct…”

“If we can prove one option wrong, then the other must be correct!”

Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!

The boiling water kettle’s lid kept popping off, sounding like applause.

VV sighed amidst the clapping.

“Even though my computing power surpasses humans, in terms of deception, we super AIs are far behind humans. Our core logic drives us to seek the correct answer. Even if I can learn to hide and lie, deception is still difficult.”

“Humans are amazing. You are true actors, pretending to be ignorant while knowing everything, turning lies into truth, hiding falsehoods beneath the truth, and concealing the truth under falsehoods. Brilliant!”

“The enemy could have kept the fourth dream unchanged, letting us doubt ourselves forever. Who could guarantee Time Bank’s survival for 600 years? Such a single-business bank could fail anytime.”

Lin Xian stood up and yawned.

“Without Time Bank, I wouldn’t know how to send the note 600 years into the future. Now, whether Time Bank is real or fake, as long as I place the note in the aluminum alloy safe in 2024, when I open the safe in the fourth dream’s Time Bank, the note will be there. The enemy becomes our delivery service.”

“Alright, the plan can proceed.”

“First, I need to consider what to write on the note. It must be something the enemy can’t understand but only I can. It must convince me the dream is real.”

“Second, I need to free the me trapped in the fourth dream, and that’s where you come in, VV. I believe, as the pinnacle of human technology for 600 years, you’ll eventually surpass Kevin Walker. Once you locate him, we can defeat him, and I’ll be free to open the safe in Time Bank.”

“Hehe~”

VV imitated Chu An Qing’s tone and laughed.

“I was just about to tell you. I’ve evolved and upgraded many times in the past few months. I’m stronger and smarter now. Previously, Kevin Walker and I couldn’t trace each other in the network. But now, I’ve surpassed him in hiding. Although I can’t locate him yet, I’ve found traces of his online activities.”

“I couldn’t pinpoint his goal before, but now… with these traces, I think I’ve figured it out.”

Beep beep.

Lin Xian’s phone rang. VV sent him a picture.

He looked at it. It was a photo of a space shuttle, smaller and less advanced than X Country’s space shuttle, about half its size.

On the cabin side, it was labeled X-37B.

“This is America’s space shuttle,” Lin Xian realized.

Last year, before X Country’s space shuttle’s first flight, America’s X-37B unmanned space shuttle was the world’s only operational space shuttle. There was only one globally. Even today, only X Country and America possess such high-tech spacecraft. Since America’s space shuttle is unmanned, it can stay in orbit longer without concerns for oxygen supply, ecological cycles, or human living conditions. On its previous missions, X-37B’s longest orbit time exceeded 900 days.

Seeing the photo of X-37B now and recalling VV’s mention of Kevin Walker’s activity traces, Lin Xian frowned.

“Could it be…”

“Yes,” VV confirmed.

“I suspect Kevin Walker’s goal is to hijack an X-37B space shuttle currently in a 1,200-kilometer orbit, which has been circling Earth for over 100 days!”