Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!

Chapter 471: Chapter 470: Reflections on the World of the Matrix of Hackers

Fang Zheng had never imagined he would go on a date with his Little Angel during such a support mission.

However, he had to admit, it was indeed a very nice way to relax.

Walking along the artificial lake with Nymph, casually buying two ice creams to enjoy as they strolled, Fang Zheng couldn’t help but feel a bit sentimental watching the lively crowd around them.

”I really didn’t expect, if I hadn’t known in advance, I wouldn’t think of this world as just a virtual one... Hmm, Nymph, what do you think?”

”Huh?”

Caught off guard by Fang Zheng’s question, the Little Angel, who was daintily licking her ice cream, paused for a moment before she hesitantly began to speak.

”This... Master, I think this world and the world we belong to aren’t really that different, um... Of course, from an information data perspective, this world is a bit more rudimentary...”

”I forgot, this is your expertise.”

Patting the Little Angel’s head, Fang Zheng realized his question was kind of silly. Nymph was an Omnipotent Angel who specialized in electronic warfare. In the real world, she could modify and control real-world information elements through hacking. For her, this world was no more than playing ’The Sims’ on a computer within ’The Sims’.

And with this thought, Fang Zheng suddenly began pondering another issue.

If this virtual world was merely a ”replica” of the real world that seemed a bit rough around the edges to the Little Angel, then was the real world truly the real world? What exactly is reality? Humans use computers to process and analyze signals, injecting them into the brain, allowing them to feel the true reality even in this virtual world.

But then, is what they feel in the real world the true reality?

Temperature, taste, touch, all of these can be experienced through the brain. But is the world we see truly as it appears to us? For humans, we believe the sky is blue, the grass is green, fire is red, but that’s only because of the range of colors our human vision captures.

Conversely, for dogs, the world has only black and white. So, which colors are the correct ones in the world seen by dogs and humans?

Take Fang Zheng, for instance. When he activates the Time Dragon mode, he can see the timeline and vague shadows of every person in front of him, representing their past, present, and future. Ordinary life forms cannot perceive these. But for Fang Zheng, who has transcended time, the existence of a person is merely a segment of imagery from one end of the river of time to the other.

So then, is all of that incorrect? The world we live in is merely a result processed by our brains, which instinctively ”filter” out information humans can’t process and understand, retaining only what they can comprehend. But what would happen if the human brain were to bear information it couldn’t understand?

Perhaps, the fresh green grass before our eyes would become filled with tendrils like writhing insects, and the humans walking toward us would appear as disgusting masses of decaying flesh. The air would be filled with all kinds of pungent odors, and even the food in our hands would display a completely different appearance, as if blinking back at us with numerous insect compound eyes...

So, what is the real world? This question...

Is utterly meaningless.

Fang Zheng shook his head, casting aside these wild thoughts from his mind. The philosophy presented by The Matrix of Hackers seemed meaningless to him; it appeared to be a critique of how machines enslave humanity and the sorrow of humans immersed in falsehoods. But haven’t humans always been controlled since their birth? Controlled by air, water, food, unable to fly, unable to move freely in the deep sea.

Humans are so fragile that a single disaster can effortlessly erase their cities and even civilizations. Isn’t that a display of humans being controlled?

So, what then is freedom? Is the deceitful feeling of being free by oneself freedom?

Therefore, in Fang Zheng’s view, this question had no value at all. The first page of the Prophet Mage’s study manual stated, ”Once you become a Prophet Mage, you must remember one thing: as long as you do not feel fate, fate will not control you.”

To put it simply, if you’re not aware of it, then it doesn’t exist.

So in Fang Zheng’s view, torturing oneself with this kind of problem was purely masochistic. Unless one’s head was messed up or terribly bored, who would care about such trivial matters?

As for Mephist and the people of Zion, were they truly fighting for freedom? Fang Zheng was very skeptical about this. After all, according to the story of The Matrix of Hackers, the first batch of people discovered the ”truth” of this world by accident. Perhaps among them, there really were some who wanted to escape the enslavement of machines, but Fang Zheng didn’t believe that all of them felt the same. In his view, it was likely that many of them joined the ”resistance against the Motherbody” movement simply to drag others down with them!

Think about it, they learned the truth of the world, which sounds grand, but then what? Can truth be eaten as food? No! Maybe they were living hazily inside the Motherbody before, but at least they could enjoy delicious food, flirt with beautiful girls, have beach bonfires, and live a comfortable life!

But now what?

They hide in the underground tunnels like sewer rats, eating protein that’s as disgusting as slug slime, and constantly worrying about being caught and killed by those machine octopuses. Even when they return to the Motherbody, they have to be extremely cautious because they’ve been ”banned.” If they get discovered by the agents of the Motherbody, they only have one way out—death!

Really, would anyone be content with such a life?

History teaches us that all revolutions are for a better life and future, but in the case of these people, Fang Zheng couldn’t see any future or hope. Aside from a nebulous concept of ”freedom,” they practically had no tangible ”rewards”!

At least when you overthrow the wealthy you can divide up their land. But freedom? Can it give you land? Can it give you meat to eat? Milk to drink? Girls to woo? A stable job and a peaceful life?

Besides, even if they defeated the Motherbody, what would they gain?

But since they couldn’t go back to the Motherbody, with the mentality that if they’re going to be unlucky, they might as well drag others down too, these people naturally sought out more scapegoats. And when those scapegoats woke up to find themselves banned, they certainly wouldn’t be resigned to their fate, but would go on to seek out more scapegoats themselves... In short, in Fang Zheng’s eyes, these people were just like a pyramid scheme.

No wonder the Motherbody launched a crackdown campaign. After all, pyramid schemes are massively harmful and their poison lingers on...

With these thoughts, Fang Zheng gave a slight smile, pulled his thoughts back, and looked at the Little Angel beside him.

”Nymph, where shall we go next?”

”This... Master... I... I want to watch a movie.”

”Oh?”

Fang Zheng was surprised by Nymph’s suggestion, but after some thought, he realized that he indeed had never watched a movie with the Little Angel. Come to think of it, he wondered what the level of movies was like in this world?

”Alright, let’s go watch a movie then.”

”Phew...”

Upon hearing Fang Zheng’s answer, Nymph’s heart, which had been held in suspense, finally settled down. The little one followed by Fang Zheng’s side, while her mind started to whirl with memories of what Tilia had said during a casual conversation before.

The dating protocol... Yeah, it was to go to the park with Master, watch movies, shop on the streets, then have dinner at a fancy restaurant, and after that, sleep together in a hotel... That way, Master would be very happy!

But... why would sleeping together make Master so happy?

At that thought, Nymph couldn’t help but feel puzzled. Tilia’s expression had been strange at the time, which made it impossible for her to delve deeper into this matter. But... she guessed it was best to just do as Tilia had said...