Chapter 163 Chapter 163: Hesitation and Overcaution, How Then to Wield the Sword?
Chapter 163: Hesitation and Overcaution, How Then to Wield the Sword?
This was something the former Kevin would never have agreed with under any circumstances.
He had always stubbornly believed that as long as the 'Stigmata Plan' could be successfully implemented, even if all humans lost their physical bodies and could only exist as a form of spirit and memory within the mental space, at least human civilization would be preserved.
But it wasn't until recently that he fully understood—that was hardly any success at all, nor was it any continuation of civilization... The moment all humans lost their individuality and their potential, this civilization without a future was already completely dead.
The theory of preserving everyone within the spirit was, in a sense, seemingly no different from simply storing civilization within memories like the Garden of Recollection.
This was merely a means of remembrance and proof that they once existed; it could hardly be called salvation.
"Now, now, now, you can't put it that way, right! Look at me now, I'm also a form of memory, aren't I? Not only do I live more easily and freely than when I was confined to a physical body, but I'm also more carefree!"
"Now I don't have to worry about extreme cold or heat, pain, itchiness, hunger, or thirst. I no longer need to fear harm from blades, guns, or worldly disasters—after all, I'm not even human anymore!"
As the girl's words fell, even Kevin seemed to momentarily experience an illusion—as if this physical body was heavy and sluggish, merely a shell that restricted him, and only by discarding it could one attain true freedom.
Of course, for Kevin, this was merely an illusion. After all, he didn't need to become a Remembrancer and wasn't afraid of those things in the slightest.
"At the same time, without a physical body, there's no adrenaline, no dopamine—none of the hormones that cause humans to experience joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, thereby affecting judgment. This gives me a more neutral perspective to examine human thoughts and desires. It can be said that I've taken a step closer to free will."
"The only cost is—I can only exist and move freely by relying on others' memories... But humans themselves are a social species; who can truly exist completely detached from others?"
The girl spread her palms open, as if becoming a Remembrancer held no downsides for her at all.
"Not being affected by any joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness—is that what freedom means to you?" Kevin looked up at the seemingly quite happy girl, momentarily unsure how to respond.
"Of course! Isn't that enough? Aren't there many people who can't control themselves when they don't want to be sad? They know it will cause big trouble but still can't manage their temper... I'm much better than them." The girl stated matter-of-factly.
"......"
And what responded to her was Kevin's timely silence.
But it is precisely because of joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, and various different emotions and judgments that people can be called human. They possess a multitude of possibilities. Even a child who seems ordinary in youth may grow up to become a protagonist who leads the world.
Because there are countless possibilities, because there is an indefinable future, because they will continue to change themselves—no matter how rich in emotion a machine may be, it remains just a machine. Only such people are truly alive and can be called human.
But this girl before him... The reason she can display such demeanor and such varied emotions is only because she was such a girl when she became a Remembrancer.
Yet from that moment on, she will forever remain just a girl. She will not enter middle age, nor will she become an old woman.
At that moment, emotion and these possibilities were already stripped from her.
Just like the memories in Kevin's mind, she too is already dead.
———— ————
"Hmph, the information I've uncovered is absolutely correct... If nothing unexpected happens, those bandits must have fled near the Scalegorge Waterscape."
Also upon that boundless sea surface, a young-looking boy stood steadily at the very front of a swiftly moving starskiff. Though facing the wind, he remained unruffled.
As his hair rustled loudly in the wind, he didn't forget to reach out and tightly clench his fist in mid-air, displaying the youthful vigor and spirit to the fullest: "It's just that those fellows definitely don't know that the entrance to the Scalegorge Waterscape has always only been freely opened by the Vidyadhara's Dragon Lord. Even if they outsiders find the place, it's completely meaningless."
"I knew all along that the Stellaron Hunters brought the Stellaron to the Luofu for the sake of the Ambrosial Arbor. Once I capture them all, I'll surely be able to share General's burdens."
Speaking up to this point, the young boy suddenly lowered his hand to touch the jade abacus at his waist, feeling somewhat puzzled: "But come to think of it, why haven't there been any news from the Cloud Knights so far... Never mind. A bunch of sneaky thieves can hardly amount to anything significant."
On this Xianzhou Luofu, there is a young boy nearly everyone knows—the youngest Cloud Knight Lieutenant in history and also General Jing Yuan's personal guard: Yanqing.
Throughout thousands of years of development history on the Xianzhou, various laws and regulations are quite comprehensive. There is almost no precedent for joining public office before reaching adulthood... Yet Yanqing broke this rule. Back then, after General Jing Yuan found this orphaned boy on the battlefield, he pushed aside all opposition and recruited him into the Cloud Knights. Not long after, he even promoted him to the rank of Lieutenant.
The fact that there had never been a precedent for minors joining the Cloud Knights wasn't such a big deal. The key issue was that this boy was merely at an age where he still wore his hair in two tufts (a child's hairstyle), yet he held the position of Lieutenant—a rank countless Cloud Knights might never touch in their entire lives. How could this make everyone accept it?
Even though the one who made this choice was Jing Yuan—renowned on the Xianzhou as the 'Eyes-Closed General,' almost never making strategic miscalculations—some inevitably said he practiced favoritism.
But facts proved to everyone that this 'Eyes-Closed General' had not miscalculated this time either. Dozens of dazzling displays on the battlefield all proved—this boy not only possessed the strength to serve as Lieutenant but even surpassed it.
However, although his strength far exceeded his peers', he never changed his youthful nature. His entire person resembled an unsheathed sharp sword, possessing an indomitable momentum.
General Jing Yuan often worried about this. Of course, from the boy's own perspective, perhaps someone his age should rightfully be this spirited and vigorous. Otherwise, what kind of appearance would it be if he were like his own General—often closing his eyes and acting old-fashioned?
If one ponders endlessly, hesitates and looks back and forth—how then can one wield a sword!
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