“Ailei, did you know that a person’s death actually occurs in three stages?”
“Three?”
“Yes. The stages are physical death, identity death, and the death of mory.”
Xu Xi explained.
Physical death is the commonly recognized standard—when the body’s functions completely cease.
Identity death occurs when one’s roles and responsibilities co to an end, and they no longer need to carry any burdens.
The death of mory happens when no one rembers the deceased anymore—only then does a person truly beco nothingness.
“Master, are you saying that after death, a person isn’t really gone?”
Ailei blinked calmly. “As long as soone rembers them, they can still be considered alive?”
“Master, that sounds like sothing you’d tell a child. From a scientific perspective, such a conclusion doesn’t hold.”
Xu Xi was speechless.
Ailei was much harder to fool than the princess who enjoyed gnawing on chicken legs.
…
[Your life remains healthy, but under the threat of the Neutron Battle Star, it feels like a flickering candle in the wind—dancing on the edge of extinction.]
[You smile, indifferent to your own life and unconcerned about the erosion of the machine soul.]
[Your only desire is to continue researching technology.]
[You rack your brain countless tis, searching for any possible way to survive, but sadly, the existence of the Neutron Battle Star is an insurmountable abyss. You have no better solution.]
[Prolonged resonance with the machine soul has made you increasingly sluggish, making it hard to feel genuine joy.]
[You force yourself to smile at Ailei, lifting the corners of your mouth into an empty, withered grin.]
[Ailei says nothing but trembles as she holds your hand.]
[This ti, she says it’s her turn to recharge you.]
[In the days that follow, you begin to see more of Ailei’s emotional expressions—clumsy attempts to thaw your rigid heart.]
…
[You feel like ti is passing faster.]
[Your increasingly dull mind makes you resemble a true machine, with little perception of ti’s flow.]
[By the ti you truly focus on it, ti has already slipped away silently through your fingers, vanishing into the void.]
[Simulation Year 400: You are 419 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 397 years.]
[Advancents in technology and materials have allowed Ailei to undergo an upgrade, presenting herself in a more refined form before you.]
Born from illusion, blossoming into reality.
The cold chanical body exuded human emotions.
Under the gentle breeze, the hazy figure walked slowly until she stood before Xu Xi.
She had been ticulously sculpted, a real flower cultivated by Xu Xi’s own hands.
“You look beautiful, Ailei,” Xu Xi said with a rare, genuine smile—soft and warm, though faint.
His half-curved eyes carefully reached out, gently touching the mirror-like perfection.
“…Thank you for the complint.”
Ailei lowered her head and leaned in closer, making it easier for Xu Xi to pat her head without much effort.
Master’s hand… seed a little colder than before.
…
[Simulation Year 401: You are 420 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 398 years.]
[Ailei added a new service for you.]
[It’s called “Daily Hand Warming.”]
[You found this puzzling, and Ailei explained with a straight face that warming your hands daily could improve blood circulation.]
[Her expression was so serious that you almost believed it.]
[Simulation Year 425: You are 444 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 422 years.]
[Ailei considered your age this year to be an ominous number, so she prepared offerings to ward off misfortune.]
[A stellar radiation storm brought destruction.]
[Your machine servant launched an AI-driven onslaught, wiping out entire planetary systems infested with insect swarms.]
[You couldn’t help but wonder if you’d made Ailei too ruthless.]
[Simulation Year 463: You are 482 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 460 years.]
[The Neutron Battle Star arrived late, and you experienced your seventh death. The increasing erosion of the machine soul made you indifferent to dying.]
[Without hesitation, you resud your research on the curvature engine.]
Ti accelerated like a train in motion.
Xu Xi observed the passing landscape outside with a chanical detachnt. Only when he focused did a certain segnt beco clear.
This was a sign of his worsening sluggishness.
But Xu Xi didn’t consider it entirely bad. At least, this dullness helped him ignore the loneliness of the cosmos and the emptiness of ti.
“The seventh ti, huh…”
“So that ans I have three deaths left before the simulation ends.”
“The Neutron Battle Star does have inaccuracies—its attack frequency isn’t exactly a hundred years. It’s likely due to the vast size of the prison.”
“The starry sky is too vast. Even with faster-than-light travel, it can’t clean up all targets instantly.”
In the cold, desolate space,
A dense fleet of warships shielded the central eco-starship.
Inside the ship, 482-year-old Xu Xi sighed softly, contemplating his next step.
It was too difficult.
Far too difficult.
Expecting to develop an FTL curvature engine in just a few centuries was nothing short of wishful thinking. After all this ti, Xu Xi had only scratched the surface.
“Unlike cultivation systems, which focus on individual breakthroughs and overcoming limits…”
“The technological system relies on the accumulation of ti.”
“My ti… is still too little.”
Xu Xi closed his eyes, filled with concern for the future.
The remaining 300 years felt like a countdown to death, hanging over his head like a blade, ready to strike at any mont.
“At this point, I can only rely on Ailei’s observation capabilities and the [Machine Soul Resonance] trait.”
“I don’t need a perfect curvature engine—just a prototype. With the amplification from machine souls, I can force it to function.”
“Just one ship… One ship is enough to take Ailei out of here.”
Artificial sunlight stread down from above, brushing softly against Xu Xi’s face.
It illuminated his closed eyes and indifferent expression.
[You hear the final toll of ti.]
[True death is approaching step by step.]
[Feeling the pressure of ti, you accelerate your research, pushing your already exhausted body to its limits.]
[Simulation Year 475: You are 494 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 472 years.]
[You halted all recreational activities, disregarding your ntal and physical health. Your only goal was to complete the curvature engine, even if it was just a flawed prototype.]
[You felt your body growing “heavier.”]
[Simulation Year 490: You are 509 years old, and Ailei has been with you for 487 years.]
[Relying on your genetically modified body, you worked tirelessly day and night until you finally collapsed from exhaustion.]
[When you woke up, you found yourself lying in bed, covered by a blanket prepared by Ailei.]
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