Chapter 580: Cutting or Refining |
Tch.
Said so easily. Use clones.
But Jiang Ye knew instinctively—
The simplest path was often the hardest.
Since he knew the voices in his heart could also read minds, he didn't let his thoughts run wild and directly asked:
"So? Do you know how to turn all these jurors into clones?"
"Of course." That voice replied crisply. "We ourselves are the clones living within your body."
"Or to be more precise, strands of clone consciousness."
"And those twelve puppets are precisely the suitable containers for clones."
"Of course, this also achieves what you were just thinking about—generating clones."
This slightly aloof voice spoke with absolute confidence.
As if the "generating clones" that had just troubled Jiang Ye was really that simple.
But Jiang Ye didn't trust these voices and frowned as he listened.
After a moment of thought, he directly raised a question:
"From what you're saying, you all living inside my body can only be released by me, and can't leave me on your own?"
No voice answered this question.
But Jiang Ye knew this was an admission by default.
Because the purpose of that aloof voice just now was to get him to release it.
This showed it wanted out, it wanted to occupy the red-eyed puppet "container"...
Furthermore, combining this with what Yang Wenchao had shared about the monsters.
Those revived monsters seemed to have a concept of "compatibility" when choosing "containers."
They wouldn't just randomly choose something to parasitize.
They would choose something with high compatibility, or among containers with high compatibility, choose the most powerful.
Then, extrapolating from the monsters' situation to speculate about these so-called "clone consciousnesses" inside him...
Their target was also containers!
Initially, the container they all wanted was Jiang Ye's physical body.
That's why there were all those doubts and interrogations.
They probably wanted to use these means to replace Jiang Ye and become the master of this body.
And after those doubts and interrogations, finding they most likely couldn't replace Jiang Ye, they had to settle for the next best thing and choose other "containers."
Namely, the red-eyed puppets of the "Face Court" right now...
However, after figuring out the intentions of these "clone consciousnesses," Jiang Ye raised a new challenge to the voice in his heart:
"Theoretically, the plan you mentioned is indeed effective."
"Releasing twelve strands of clone consciousness can replace the twelve red-eyed puppet jurors..."
"But the problem is—how do I ensure that after the twelve strands of clone consciousness leave me, they will obediently follow my orders and cast the death penalty votes according to my arrangements?"
Before the voice in his heart could answer, Jiang Ye rested his chin on his hand and pondered briefly.
He quickly analyzed:
"This 'Face Court' isn't essentially a real court, but a stage to clear."
"And the twelve red-eyed puppets should be equivalent to the mini-bosses of this stage. Their reason for existing is to prevent players from clearing it."
"So I'm guessing... there should be a setting in their underlying code that forces them to cast abolition votes."
"Just like my clearance has conditions that must be met."
"For these red-eyed puppets to survive, they should also have conditions that must be met, most likely—casting abolition votes."
"So..."
After this series of deductions, Jiang Ye's tone became resolute:
"Even if I release twelve strands of clone consciousness, it probably won't change anything."
"Instead, it will turn my opposing faction from twelve unconscious pure puppets into twelve formidable enemies, each with their own consciousness!"
After saying this, he fell silent for two seconds, then said to his heart:
"Am I right in my analysis? Now it's your turn to refute me."
The voice in his heart naturally remained silent for a long time.
Because once Jiang Ye was certain about something, it was hard to change.
Even if those "clone consciousnesses" said it was just Jiang Ye's baseless speculation.
They had no way to prove the speculation was wrong...
As long as they couldn't prove the speculation was wrong, they couldn't convince Jiang Ye.
As for gaining Jiang Ye's trust through other means?
Playing a verbal three-part agreement?
That obviously wouldn't work either!
Earlier in the Infinite Grave Mound Zone, they had already engaged in various "verbal battles" with Jiang Ye.
With such a history, no matter how much they claimed they would still obediently listen after acquiring other bodies, Jiang Ye wouldn't believe them.
However...
There was actually one clone that came up with a statement.
Or rather, relying on Jiang Ye's thoughts, it peeked at one of his ideas:
"What if, after injecting a strand of clone consciousness into a red-eyed puppet, we then perform 'clone kills clone' on that red-eyed puppet?"
"With this operation, it might just achieve the real—generating a clone."
"A clone with clone-sense and shared consciousness!"
This...
This was indeed a possibility Jiang Ye had just thought of.
But testing this possibility required taking risks.
One was that the effect of "clone kills clone" might not be triggered.
Another was that killing a juror inside the jury room—who knew what the consequences would be...
So another idea popped into Jiang Ye's mind.
And the eavesdropping ghost in his mind directly blurted out his other thought:
"If you really don't dare to take the risk, then let us take it for you!"
"You can simultaneously release two strands of clone consciousness and awaken two red-eyed puppets."
"Then have the two red-eyed puppets fight each other to achieve the effect of 'clone kills clone.'"
"This way, you can not only test the effect of 'clone kills clone,' but also verify what happens when jurors kill each other!"
Jiang Ye had indeed been thinking that.
Having his own thoughts "spoken out first" by "someone else," and then used to convince himself...
What a strange feeling.
Jiang Ye suspected he might have some innate rebellious streak.
Originally, he thought his own idea was pretty good.
But once someone else said it, he felt the idea was full of holes.
"First, how do I ensure that after two strands of consciousness occupy two red-eyed puppets, they will continue to follow my arrangement to kill each other, rather than joining forces to take me out first?"
"Second, even if the two puppets obediently cooperate and achieve the 'clone kills clone' effect, how do I confirm it's really 'clone kills clone'?"
"After all, the resurrection effect of 'clone kills clone' was already perfectly simulated in the Infinite Grave Mound Zone."
"What if the two puppets that have gained 'clone consciousness' join forces to put on a show for me?"
After Jiang Ye raised these questions, the voices in his heart indeed fell silent again.
Time was tight, and he didn't have extra time to let these "clone consciousnesses" figure out how to earn his trust.
Instead, he directly asked another question:
"Speaking of which, do you know the principle behind that resurrection effect similar to 'clone kills clone' that happened in the Grave Mound Zone?"
After this question, there was another few seconds of silence in his heart, before that unique voice belonging to Zhou Qiming suddenly came through:
"What you understand as 'resurrection' might have a more accurate word called—'refresh.'"
"Like monsters in a game, they respawn after death."
"In the Infinite Grave Mound Zone, there is essentially no death. Because like the small monsters in a game, even if they die, they get refreshed."
"This court isn't inside the Grave Mound Zone, so naturally it can't replicate the 'clone kills clone' effect simulated there."
This explanation...
Was similar to what Administrator 4444 had said about the Infinite Grave Mound Zone.
Those infinite grave mounds essentially seemed to "refresh" as well.
However, Jiang Ye had already broken the so-called "refresh" by collecting the grave mound soil into the bone ash box.
The two grave mounds that had been collected into the bone ash box never recovered afterward.
Of course, they hadn't recovered within the time frame Jiang Ye knew about, which didn't mean they absolutely couldn't recover.
Similarly, the Zhou Qiming whose head he had blown off hadn't "refreshed" within his known time and space either.
Thinking this, he asked again: "So, the Zhou Qiming I killed hasn't essentially died either, but can still be 'refreshed'..."
"By the way, are you that Zhou Qiming?"
He was asking the voice belonging to Zhou Qiming in his heart.
At the same time, he wondered if perhaps because he had unscrupulously killed him before, that's why this voice was so hostile toward him?
Unfortunately, this voice belonging to Zhou Qiming didn't answer him.
Instead, like when it had questioned and interrogated him before, it issued some alarming statements:
"You think infinite refreshing without death is a good thing?"
"What I said before wasn't lying to you!"
"Living beings that have experienced the 'refresh' of the grave mound soil are no longer the original beings themselves!"
"You can think of it as a kind of 'contamination.'"
"Everyone who has died in the Grave Mound Zone has been 'contaminated.'"
"All the clone consciousnesses inside your body essentially come from you, but they've all been 'contaminated'!"
"You can think of it this way—precisely because they've been contaminated, the originally pure clone consciousnesses are no longer of one mind."
"And you... do you think you're still clean?"
"You've died too! You've been refreshed too! So you and us, we're essentially no different!"
No difference?
Jiang Ye thought there was.
But to avoid these clone consciousnesses peeking at his thoughts again, he didn't dwell on it.
Instead, there was another superficial difference he thought he could probe, so he directly asked:
"Since there's essentially no difference..."
"Then essentially, I still think I'm Jiang Ye. What about you?"
"Of course!" This seemed like a pointless question, and immediately many voices in his heart answered confidently.
Clearly, their self-identity was all Jiang Ye.
However, Jiang Ye then asked another question:
"Then essentially, I still care about my original body. What about you?"
This question, unlike just now, didn't immediately receive resolute, firm answers.
But there were indeed a few voices that again responded with "Of course."
With individual voices, Jiang Ye could still distinguish them by tone.
But mixed together, since they were all his own timbre, it was hard to tell apart.
Still, mixed among them, the voice belonging to Zhou Qiming was particularly noticeable.
Jiang Ye didn't directly trust these voices.
Because quite a few voices didn't respond, proving that a considerable portion of the clone consciousnesses didn't care at all about any "original body."
Then the few voices that responded could naturally also be lying.
Just as he was thinking this, Zhou Qiming's voice said:
"They're not lying."
"You can think of it this way—different clone consciousnesses have been contaminated to different degrees."
"Those like you, like the few clone consciousnesses that responded to you, have been 'refreshed' fewer times, so their contamination level is low."
"That's why we're closest to the real Jiang Ye. That's why we care about the original body just as much."
Care about the original body...
Jiang Ye asked again: "Then, would you be willing to die for the original body?"
This time, not a single voice responded.
So Jiang Ye smiled: "Then, the essential difference appears."
He didn't explicitly say what the essential difference was.
However, only a moment later, Zhou Qiming's voice rang out in his heart again:
"No. You think you would die for the original body, but you won't."
"Even if you've only been refreshed once, you still won't."
"Remember what you said earlier when you refuted me?"
"You said—you are you, and no code name can represent you."
"You said—you can betray the past, betray the future, but the present, you must hold firmly in your hands."
"Then I ask you—dying for the original body, wouldn't that be equivalent to voluntarily giving up the 'present' in your hands?"
"So essentially, even you yourself haven't realized it—contaminated as you are, you can no longer die for the original body!"
These words, Zhou Qiming spoke heavily, seemingly pointing directly at a logical flaw in Jiang Ye's thinking.
However, almost the next second, Jiang Ye's smile grew wider, and he repeated: "Then, the essential difference appears. :)"
At that moment, his heart beat heavily as he sensed a flash of panic passing through his mind.
This emotion... seemed to come from Zhou Qiming!
Then came Zhou Qiming's voice: "What do you mean?"
Jiang Ye graciously explained: "What you understood as the essential difference was—I can die for the original body."
"You said I cannot die for the original body."
"But in reality, the essential difference between us is—I firmly believe in my heart, as long as the original body doesn't die, I don't die!"
"So indeed, I cannot die for the original body. Because—as long as the original body doesn't die, I don't die!"
"I am me, I hold the present in my hands... all of this, what I represent, is the will of the original body!"
"Even without memories, I am certain that what I represent is the will of the original body!"
"And you, you are not!"
With these words, Jiang Ye more perfectly dismantled Zhou Qiming's logic.
It also seemed to directly confirm the difference between himself and these so-called contaminated clone consciousnesses.
After a moment of silence in his heart, Zhou Qiming's tone finally lost its strong aggressiveness.
He muttered in a low voice: "Representing the will of the original body?"
This voice wasn't responding to Jiang Ye, but seemed to be experiencing some kind of self-doubt...
Perhaps this consciousness named "Zhou Qiming" didn't even realize—
On the surface, Jiang Ye was debating with him.
But in reality, Jiang Ye was counterattacking!
Just like before, when these voices had tried to seduce him, vowing to make him doubt himself!
What Jiang Ye was doing now was making "Zhou Qiming" doubt himself!
Of course, because "Zhou Qiming" and the other "clone consciousnesses" could all peek at Jiang Ye's thoughts.
So he didn't let these thoughts clearly flash through his mind.
From a fleeting thought to concrete implementation, without going through his brain's conscious deliberation, he had smoothly achieved it.
In fact, setting aside those inner voices, regarding the method of how to generate clones in this court, he also had a vague idea...
Two keywords were—cutting, and refining.