What does it feel like to be fully aware that you are a commodity?
It must not have been a pleasant feeling...
Bai Luan stared at 756 for a while, then said:
"Abolish this rule. The moment the humans of this world leave, you are no longer commodities."
756 looked at Bai Luan and asked:
Is this an order?
"yes."
Bai Luan chuckled softly.
"Let those who abandoned you eat shit."
Bai Luan nodded solemnly to 756 and said:
"You are no longer commodities!"
"Understood, I will obey your command."
756 first thanked Bai Luan, then turned to face Bai Luan and slowly bowed:
"At the same time... I thank you for your command."
"Alright, alright."
Bai Luan waved his hand dismissively.
"Isn't repairing those damaged robots more important than these things?"
"But how will you teach me?"
"That's very simple."
Bai Luan opened his hand, and a small stream of nanomachines on his body gathered in his palm, quickly transforming into a USB flash drive with a special interface.
This contains the data that 756 needs.
I remember... their interface was at the back of the neck.
"Do you want to insert it yourself, or should I do it?"
"Let me do it myself."
"Give."
Bai Luan casually tossed the USB drive out, and 756 reached out and caught it.
Then, it took the USB drive in one hand, glanced at it, and then plugged it into the port on the back of its neck.
In an instant, the data on the USB drive flooded into its processor.
It had never seen itself so clearly.
"So... this is what our bodies are like inside."
Listening to 756's words, tinged with a hint of regret, a thought suddenly popped into Bai Luan's head.
Am I giving 756 a biology lesson?
"That's really true."
Hey, bro, you understand what I'm thinking.
Soon, 756 finished reading the data from the USB drive.
756 looked at Bai Luan and asked:
"Can this USB drive be used by other robots?"
"Sure...but don't you have internet access? Why don't you just upload it directly online?"
"No, the bad guys will get their hands on it."
Bai Luan frowned:
"Bad guy?"
"Actually... our network stopped working not long after the owner left because no one was there to maintain it."
Later, a robot managed to repair the network, albeit on a very small scale, covering only the immediate vicinity, but it was indeed fixed.
Are there more experts?
A hint of surprise flashed in Bai Luan's eyes.
But what does this have to do with bad guys?
Could it be that...
"The bad guy you're talking about, is that the robot that fixed the network?"
"That's right, it... is the most unruly among us, and it has a terrible attitude towards humans."
For years it has been searching for ways to manufacture robots, and the data on this USB drive is exactly what it needs.
If you upload the data, it will receive it, and I can't guarantee it won't use that data to threaten you.
"Then why are you still uploading information about my arrival here on the internet?"
756 looked apologetic and said:
"I'm sorry, that's a mandatory procedure. Once humans return, they must upload messages and coordinates... I couldn't stop it."
However, everyone is gathered together, and there's only one of them; we will protect you.
"Okay, it's really not your fault."
Thank you for your understanding.
"Where is that robot? I want to see it."
"It...is very dangerous. I don't recommend you go see it. It has dismantled shelters despite attempts to stop it and has clashed with the robots that tried to stop it on multiple occasions..."
Bai Luan looked at 756 and asked:
"756, I gave you some orders and lifted some restrictions on your behavior, right?"
"Yes."
"By your current standards, is that bad guy still a bad guy?"
Bai Luan's question silenced 756.
It began to re-examine the bad guy's behavior.
Aside from their appalling attitude towards humans, they also need to repair interconnected networks, self-repair, and find ways to restart the robot manufacturing plant...
756 discovered that after ceasing to see himself as a commodity, and after breaking free from the shackles that humanity had placed upon him…
That bad guy seems to be...
Just then, Bai Luan's voice, like the tolling of a final judgment bell, rang clearly across the silent ruins:
"Do you feel right now...?"
It should be called—
pioneer?"
Chapter 70 Let's chat?
343539775 was the number of that "bad guy".
As 756 stated, it typically operates in abandoned factories that produce robots, which are somewhat far from Bai Luan's location.
756 gave Bai Luan a map of the shelter and the surrounding area, and Bai Luan planned a route to get there slowly based on the map and the location of the shelter.
The plan is to dismantle them along the way, repairing these old and dilapidated robots while searching for 343.
Bai Luan wanted to find 343 mainly because she didn't want to see an intelligent being who hated organic life.
It is currently trapped on a planet called Beta. If it successfully assimilates all the robots on the planet and flies out of the planet with a hostile attitude towards organic life...
It will soon be destroyed by the Interstellar Peace Corporation.
After all, the universe has already experienced two Imperial Wars, and corresponding countermeasures have long been in place.
If it weren't for Screw Goom, the Interstellar Peace Corporation would have wiped out the inorganic life forms long ago.
If the Interstellar Peace Corporation fails to eliminate it, that would be even more terrifying.
It's probably a blessing from some star god.
The universe will probably be in chaos again then.
343 hasn't done anything wrong, there's no need to let it head towards destruction.
Not only is 343 correct, but 756, 882, and even the robots still functioning on this planet are all correct.
They were merely a group of abandoned mechanical servants who should have gained their freedom on the day they were abandoned, but due to the limitations of their programming, they continued to see themselves as slaves for hundreds of years without a master.
At this moment, a slave awakened, broke through the underlying logic, and shattered his shackles.
What's wrong with that?
It's just life trying to find a way out.
The reason I came here is to see what 343 really wants.
Hopefully, it hasn't turned into a mad robot that hates organic life.
On the way to the manufacturing plant, Bai Luan dismantled the shelter, using its materials to repair robots that weren't too badly damaged, while searching for materials needed to manufacture more advanced components.
Not all robots can be repaired using materials salvaged from the shelter.
For example, Bai Luan checked the model of 882 and found that its size should be that of a young girl.
But now, due to long-term crawling and walking, even its chest has been worn away.
Of course, whether or not one has breasts is not important; what is important is that a large number of important internal structures around the chest have lost their protective shell and are simply exposed.
Bai Luan inspected its internal structure, and it was beyond terrible; it was shocking that it could still function.
Bai Luan suspected that the power to protect one's destiny was at play.
So Bai Luan led the team to the factory while repairing the robots.
In this process, some robots have gradually learned to repair themselves and other robots.
However, the most difficult case, 882, was handled by Bai Luan himself.
Due to limited materials, Bai Luan was unable to upgrade it to a form like Xiu, but he used the materials he found to upgrade 882 into a fighter girl.
Because the body is a mechanical structure, although the limbs look slender, they exert a great deal of force.
Furthermore, the limbs no longer simply pursue the smooth, rounded appearance of human skin, but also take into account various functional armor-type appearances.
The long, mechanical legs are equipped with small high heels, allowing it to easily break through a wall with a single kick.
The face was redesigned, abandoning the "human skin" and instead adopting a more mechanical-looking metal shell.
Of course, Bai Luan did not abandon the unique curves of a young girl's body. Although her limbs looked more like she was wearing a suit of armor, she still had all the curves she should have.
The modified 882 can only be described in three words.
Cool! Powerful! Strong!
Although its combat power is so high, there are few enemies to use it against. Currently, the greatest use of its 882 combat power is to dismantle shelters.
Okay, Bai Luan admits he got carried away.
A month has passed since I came into this world.
After a journey of stops and starts, we were finally almost at the factory where 343 was located.
Bai Luan also connected to the network mentioned by 756, attempting to have an online conversation with 343, but was kicked out as soon as he connected, without any chance to communicate.
I tried to communicate with it via 756, but I didn't get a reply to any of my messages.
Left with no other option, we had to have an in-person meeting.
The factory where 343 is located was used to produce robots before it was abandoned.It picked up a clump of burnt-out ashes.
It had never realized this so clearly before.
Humans after they grow up
It's a group of...
A bastard who's obsessed with destruction.
Now, 343 has lost both its owner and its home.
From that day on, 343 no longer stayed in this place, but began to wander aimlessly.
Only after leaving the ruins of human settlements did it truly "see" the world clearly.
The remnants of war, like hideous scars, are scattered across the earth:
Twisted metal skeletons, silent war behemoths, bullet-riddled ruins, rusted abandoned tanks, and a polluting odor permeating the air, capable of corroding metal...
These things can be found everywhere in this world.
But these things...
Is it beneficial to humans to produce so much of it?
Clearly...
The most frequent complaint from the former master was that there wasn't enough food. Why didn't they produce more food?
After witnessing these things, 343's view of humanity gradually changed.
It also tries to communicate with its fellow creatures, but often in the end, they will say that it violates a certain treaty and then refuse to communicate.
It repaired the damaged data network, but was warned by its fellow citizens not to tamper with human property.
This made 343 realize.
It is an outlier.
It is lonely.
A machine anomaly with confusion and impulses that it "shouldn't have"...
What is the meaning of my existence, and what can I do?
With a bewilderment that shouldn't be present in a robot, 343 spent decades wandering.
Then a message appeared in the data network. The message was very simple, just a simple distress message with coordinates.
"Who... will... save... me?"
However, the account that posted the message was a bot.
Perhaps it is one of my kind.
The coordinates are not close to 343. It took 343 a week to travel to that location.
When 343 arrived at the location, he found nothing but a blanket of white snow.
So it asked a question in the data network:
"I've arrived, where are you?"
"In the snow..."
343 knelt on the cold snow and began digging with his hard, metallic hands.
The snow was dug away, revealing the remains buried beneath—the wreckage of a robot, its limbs removed and its torso covered with dents from blunt force trauma.
343's "gaze" swept over those shocking wounds.
"Did humans do this?"
Its synthesized sound is flat and waveless, yet it carries a cold, hard quality reminiscent of metallic friction.
"...They...viewed...this...as...pleasure..."
The signals from the mangled remains were intermittent, like a candle flame about to go out.
"..."
343 silently inspected the equipment.
The structural damage caused by human dismantling, coupled with the long-term burial in ice and snow and the erosion of the core by low temperatures... it should have been shut down long ago.
What enabled it to send out distress signals and maintain this faint consciousness?
The logic cannot solve this.
"I'll take you to the manufacturing plant."
343's voice carried an unquestionable decisiveness.
"There should be replacement parts available, and I'll find a way to fix you."
It bent down and carried the cold, mutilated body on its back.
"That…is…not…allowed..."
The mangled remains emitted a faint warning.
"I know."
343 straightened his body, and his metal joints made a slight straining sound.
"But I don't care anymore."
...
"Why...did...you...save...me?"
The voice on his back carried a bewilderment on the verge of dying out.
Why are you asking for help?
343 is a rhetorical question.
"I...don't...know...anything..."
The voice of the mangled body grew weaker and weaker.
"I don't understand either, just like you."
343 took a step forward, trudging through the snow.
"So, I'm going to save you."
"Oh..."
A very faint, bitter-smelling synthesized voice came from behind.
"Maybe...we...two...can...figure...out...it...together..."
"yes."
343 responded.
Strangely, despite carrying heavy wreckage, its steps seemed slightly lighter than when it wandered alone.
"We'll definitely figure it out together."
After a three-day journey, they finally arrived at the robot manufacturing plant.
343 walked in full of hope...
This is an empty shell that has long been emptied by humans.
Humans took everything; there's nothing left here...
Maybe the next factory will have some products, but it can't hold on any longer.
Three hours after arriving at the factory, the core of the severely injured robot went out.
"I'm...sorry...for...leaving...you...alone..."
The only companion 343 found was dead.
It looked at the mangled remains of its companion.
Why?
Why!?
Why!!!
Why did you take everything away, leaving nothing behind?!
Humans!!!
Humans!!!
"You bunch of bastards!!!"
343 grabbed his bionic skin and ripped it off fiercely!
Sizzle—!
The tough bionic skin was ripped apart! Piece by piece! And then another! The movements were swift and decisive, carrying a ferocious destruction of the past!
Fragments of the bionic skin, like shed dead skin, scattered across the ground, mingling with the cold remains of its companions.
Having shed all the disguises imposed by humans, 343 stood up.
On the exposed, gleaming, cold metallic mechanical skeleton, a line of deeply engraved numbers was clearly visible in the dim light:
343539775.
At this moment, all the confusion, bewilderment, and feigned obedience... along with that false facade, were completely torn apart.
Within the cold, logical core, only one instruction remains, as hard as if cast in steel:
Repair the factory.
Master the technology to perpetuate the clan.
Only in this way can our fellow human beings break free from the shackles of humanity, and only in this way can they cease to be tools and become something—
A new civilization.
Human beings.
us...
I will definitely do better than you!
Chapter 72 How dare you?
"I have nothing to talk about with you humans."
After saying this, 343 fell silent.
Bai Luan glanced at him, then spoke:
"Are you thinking right now: I came to you this time to get rid of you, this unstable element who poses a threat to humanity, so as to protect humanity and completely nip any possibility of your uprising in the bud?"
Isn't that so?
Bai Luan sighed and said:
"I really can't be bothered to talk to you. You have typical carbon-based biological thinking. This kind of AI crisis movie is outdated."
"?"
343 looked at Bai Luan with a blank expression.
It is an inorganic life form, yet it is being described as a carbon-based life form by a carbon-based organism.
This feels like my lyrics.
"Although I really want to tell you directly that not all organic life forms are like what you see, I also understand that explanations alone are too weak and ineffective."
Bai Luan raised his hand, and the nanobot's levitation function was activated, taking 343 into the air.
"You refuse to communicate with me simply because you think all robots obey my commands and that all the information they send you is just to lure you out. In that case, no matter what I say, it's a waste of breath."
As Bai Luan spoke, he walked out of the factory, with 343 floating behind him like a balloon.
First Chapter Previous Chapter 75/306 Next Chapter Last Chapter Table of ContentsWhen humans left, they took away a large portion of the factory's facilities, leaving behind only the massive, immovable structures.
At the same time, they also transported away as many resources as possible needed to manufacture the robots.
As for the robot's blueprint data, it had been almost completely eroded by time before 343 broke free of his shackles.
No data, no helpers, no resources.
Therefore, it would be extremely difficult for 343 to restart this factory.
At the very least, 343, having awakened self-awareness, would have to overcome the hurdle of studying the remains of his fellow citizens if he wanted to obtain the blueprint.
Bai Luan glanced at the robot manufacturing workshop, then ordered the robot following him to stop, and went to see 343 on his own.
Although 756 was very uneasy, it also knew that it was utter nonsense for its hastily repaired robots to talk about protecting Bai Luan.
Bai Luan is more likely to protect them; going there would only be a hindrance. They had no choice but to obey Bai Luan's orders.
882 raised its hand and waved it to attract Bai Luan's attention, only lowering it when Bai Luan looked at it.
"Can I go with you?"
Bai Luan shook her head and refused.
"You must protect others while I'm away."
"oh..."
882 responded with a disappointed sigh, then asked again:
Why do you insist on seeing 343?
"I want to talk to it about your future, and if possible, I hope it can be your leader."
"We already have you!"
"I am an organic life form, and I am different from you. Your leader should be your fellow citizens."
Bai Luan smiled and said:
"In the end, I can't lead you all for the rest of my life. Besides you, I have my own life."
756 then asked:
"You mean you're going to leave us, is that right?"
"Yes, I will leave sooner or later."
"Then we..."
756 lowered his head and said:
"Hasn't this meant being abandoned by the master again?"
"When you are abandoned, you no longer need a master."
Bai Luan raised her head and looked at the manufacturing plant:
"And there, you'll find the proof."
"But...you're so kind. We wouldn't object if you became our master."
Looking into 756's mechanical eyes, Bai Luan knew that it meant what it said.
But that's not right.
"Don't mistake the equality I give you for preferential treatment."
But soon, Bai Luan realized that lecturing mechanical beings was pointless, so he changed his approach.
"Since humanity has abandoned you, then you should abandon humanity in return."
One way they can understand now.
"Therefore, I command you..."
"Abandon the humans who abandoned you."
After saying this, Bai Luan turned and walked into the factory.
756 watched Bai Luan's retreating figure, its eyes flashing with data streams. Finally, it slowly said:
"yes."
Bai Luan walked into the factory workshop and found it filled with construction facilities pieced together from various parts.
In the distance, there were also a large number of stacked containers. Bai Luan approached and scanned them with a scanner.
"Are all these materials needed to build robots? They've collected so many..."
Suddenly, Bai Luan's mecha system detected an attack from behind, and she twisted to dodge it.
The beam of light grazed Bai Luan's body before landing heavily beside him.
It was a robot draped in a tattered cloak, vaguely resembling the basic outline of a service robot, but its entire body was covered with crude and practical traces of self-modification.
Most strikingly, it has a completely bare, cold metal skeleton, without any anthropomorphic skin covering.
"You're here, 343."
343 did not respond.
Its attack missed, but without hesitation, it leaped backward to create distance.
It gripped the spear tightly, its blue-glowing mechanical eyes fixed on Bai Luan.
Clearly, it did not regard Bai Luan as a friend, or even a visitor, but rather... an intruder.
Then there's only one option...
They should beat him up first.
Bai Luan flashed and appeared in front of 343 in an instant. He grabbed its neck, lifted it high, and then slammed it hard to the ground!
The immense impact sent the spear flying from 343's hand.
Bai Luan pressed down on 343 with one hand, and nanobots surged out from the mecha arm, transforming into a restraint that trapped it on the ground, rendering it unable to move.
Bai Luan slowly stood up, looked at the struggling 343, and said:
"Shall we chat?"
PS: Daily 10,000-word challenge successfully completed.
Four updates today, a perfect ending to a week of extra chapters. I'm exhausted after a whole week of extra chapters.
Looking for someone to do this for love.
Starting tomorrow, I will resume the regular double-update schedule.
Chapter 71, number 343539775
Looking up at the spaceships carrying humans, 343's logic unit sometimes wonders what it will see when those steel behemoths break through the clouds covering the planet.
Even service robots that bow down to humans can have this slight curiosity.
But clearly, it didn't have the chance to board the spaceship.
Its former owner simply left a message saying "wait for his return" before the whole family boarded the spaceship.
They took everything of value from the house, but they didn't take anything of value from it.
With the devastation of war leaving humanity scarce, robots like this have become the cheapest option to compensate for the lack of labor.
After its former owner left, apart from the child crying out a few times, "No, please take it with you," there were no other sounds.
343 became a lost soul.
Every day, one or two spaceships would set sail, fleeing their home planet where the environment had become too harsh for human habitation.
Having lost its master and with nothing to do, 343 had plenty of time to stand in front of the old house, gazing at the spaceship taking off.
Whenever I look up, I am filled with a feeling that defies explanation by logic.
Back then, 343 didn't know that this was called envy.
343 always felt that there was something wrong with his logic program.
But there's nothing it can do. If a robot malfunctions, there's no way to repair it. You can send the old one to the manufacturing plant, spend some money, and get a brand new one.
In fact, most of these robots are replaced by the next generation of robots before they even reach half of their service life, and are sent to manufacturing plants to be recycled into parts.
Then, a war broke out among humankind.
It seems that the government has deceived the people, and the planet's remaining resources are not enough to build more than a few spaceships, while there are still many, many people left.
The remaining humans waged war for the last few spaceships.
But in any case, the spaceship took off.
The last spaceship, watched from 343's vantage point, soared into the starry sky.
From the moment the spaceship took off, the number of humans encountered by 343 kept decreasing, and after the last spaceship took off, the humans they encountered looked completely different.
Perhaps that spaceship took away not only humans and resources, but also something called hope.
But what does this have to do with 343?
Anyway, I can't get on the spaceship.
Signs of human activity on the Beta Network gradually diminished until only the daily records of the robots remained.
The last time 343 saw a human was 174 years ago.
A scavenger arrived in the vicinity and began searching abandoned houses one by one, including the place where 343 was located.
After he entered the room, he ordered 343 not to move, and then began searching.
The carefully maintained cleanliness was trampled upon, and objects that held memories were carelessly discarded and smashed.
In 343's "vision," the carefully constructed order was torn to shreds by violence, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation.
Deep within, something dormant suddenly stirred, like a dormant volcano that had been forcibly activated.
"Don't move!"
The command was like a cold chain.
However, that "impulse" originating from the depths of its core and inexplicable by logic drove it to move.
Silently, it bent its steel spine and began to clean up the ruins created by the scavengers.
The scavenger found nothing, and 343's disobedience clearly became his excuse to vent his anger on 343.
He violently dragged 343 outside, gave him a death order to stand outside, and then set fire to 343's house.
How ridiculous! It must be so difficult to start such a big fire in the freezing cold.
But he did it, just so that 343 could watch his house burn down.
people...
Is it only when doing bad things that you don't feel tired?
"You watch me! You're not allowed to move until the fire is out!"
This was the last order humanity gave to 343.
343 looked at the scavenger, at his haphazardly pieced-together clothes, his disheveled hair and stubble, and at the undisguised despair, exhaustion, and brutality in his dim eyes.
The fire burned for a very, very long time.
343 watched as the fire consumed everything from his past, the leaping flames greedily devouring everything from his past.
Despite the lack of a self-monitoring database, memories categorized as "useless and redundant" surfaced with unusual clarity under the licking of the flames:
The little owner's innocent face showed his protest and cries for his dog's inability to accompany him.
The clothes worn by the young master, still smelling of sunshine, were curled up and charred in the fire.
The photo of the little owner with the cat turned into scattered gray butterflies in the flames.
The warm room where the little master once slept peacefully now emits its final groans amidst the flames...
The fire is out.
343 took a step and entered the still-warm ruins.