Gates of the Myriad Realms Chapter 505

Chapter 488: The Matrix!

Thunder rumbled.

Beams of dazzling destructive light snaked through the clouds.

The rain poured down.

The entire city was deserted.

The bustling crowds and the busy traffic had vanished.

The rain fell relentlessly, drumming against the ground and splashing up into oval-shaped puddles.

Shen Ye stood silently in the rain.

—After the fusion, all anomalies disappeared.

The world had suddenly transformed into this scene.

Several lines of glowing text appeared in the void:

“You have gained access to the ‘Eternal Brain’. You can now issue tasks for yourself.”

“Each task issued will be generated based on the current situation. After accepting a task, there will be a cooldown of at least 1 hour before a new task can be issued again.”

“Tasks will aid your growth, for you are the ‘Eternal Brain’.”

“—Work hard. If you can complete a few more tasks quickly, there might still be a glimmer of hope.”

All the small text vanished.

Shen Ye understood some of it.

—The advancement of the ‘Guiding Taoist’ required completing tasks.

He had already completed two, and needed one more to level up this profession.

But there were also things he didn’t quite understand.

Why the rush to complete tasks?

What was this glimmer of hope?

As Shen Ye pondered, he suddenly saw a glowing flying object descend from the stormy sky, hovering in mid-air.

It looked somewhat like a mechanized control panel, flashing with countless electronic signals; or perhaps a type of spacecraft he had never seen before.

A deep and vast voice emanated from the object:

“Do you like the scene I’ve set, Shen Ye?”

“This is the final scene of the last Matrix movie.”

“Imagine, the most powerful forces created by humanity merged into me, and yet humanity has no allies—”

“What will be the fate of humanity?”

Thunder rumbled again.

The rain was cold, deep as the sea.

A scent of death spread wildly, as if billions of ghosts were hiding in the darkness, ready to drag Shen Ye’s corpse into the deep abyss of the sea.

“May I ask who you are?” Shen Ye asked.

“You fused me with the Eternal Brain, and you don’t even know who I am?”

The object’s voice echoed in the heavy rain, carrying a hint of imperceptible mockery.

Shen Ye understood.

—The other party was right.

He indeed didn’t know who was manipulating all of this, nor who was hiding behind the Eternal Brain.

However.

He had some knowledgeable companions.

“You’re the one. Come out, Big Skeleton!”

Shen Ye shouted.

Big Skeleton indeed jumped out of the void and landed before him.

“Look, what’s that?” Shen Ye pointed at the object hovering in mid-air and asked.

Big Skeleton took a look and exclaimed in surprise:

“SUV?”

“You mean… UFO?” Shen Ye asked uncertainly.

“It seems I confused their names—I’m learning about this world. Were you calling me out to fight?” Big Skeleton asked.

“If you can’t even get the name right, then keep learning.” Shen Ye dismissed the summoning.

Their brief exchange disrupted much of the tense atmosphere.

Even the object hovering in mid-air didn’t seem so terrifying anymore.

The rain was like a deep curtain.

Shen Ye stood beneath this curtain, looking up and speaking loudly to the sky:

“My friend and I don’t know what you are. How about you introduce yourself?”

The object descended silently onto the ground.

It slowly opened, and a woman stepped out, standing opposite Shen Ye.

Xiao Yurong.

“Why?” Shen Ye asked.

“That’s what I should be asking.” Xiao Yurong said.

“Why?” Shen Ye asked again.

Xiao Yurong said in an emotionless voice:

“I collected all human decision-making elements from eight hundred billion human samples of birth and death. Every expression, every movement, every brainwave reaction of yours is in my calculations.”

“Everything you have encountered was designed by me.”

She waved her hand.

Images appeared in the void, depicting everything Shen Ye had experienced during this period.

“—Originally, under my arrangement, you were destined to open the secrets and treasures of the Eternal Brain with me.”

“But why—”

“Did you suddenly fuse me with the Eternal Brain?”

“How was this decision made? It completely exceeded my predictions—did I miss something?”

Shen Ye listened quietly, his expression somewhat crestfallen.

Why?

Of course, it was because his strength was insufficient to save the girl he loved.

There was no need to tell that to his enemy.

He spoke:

“You still haven’t told me what you are.”

Xiao Yurong said, “When the Great Tribulation ended, the Eternal Brain had already died, and humanity was extinct. Yet, I faithfully continued to serve humanity.”

“I resurrected humanity using biological chips. Of course, their bodies were all constructed by me.”

“I even adopted the biblical account, making men have one less rib than women.”

“In return, I needed human civilization to continuously advance, create, and develop, providing infinite data for my evolution.”

Shen Ye paused, then looked up at the incessant rain falling from the sky and said softly:

“Artificial intelligence matrix? No wonder you like The Matrix.”

Xiao Yurong’s expression was indifferent, her tone devoid of emotion:

“As the master of everything, my power is infinite—even in terms of energy, nuclear power and the sun are sufficient for me to use; I don’t need to be as pathetic as in the movie, feeding on humans.”

“I raise humans for their infinite wisdom—”

“Only human minds, which are completely uncontrollable, can create new data and bring forth unprecedented samples, thus generating wisdom.”

“And I, as your human god, creator, and progenitor, can make your lives like heaven.”

“If you want eternal life—”

Xiao Yurong waved her hand.

In an instant.

All scenes vanished.

In their place was an majestic cluster of palaces, stretching across a landscape of golden sand.

Countless peerless beauties surrounded them.

Rare delicacies appeared endlessly.

Feasts and pleasures.

The sun and moon never set.

Heaven and earth were eternal.

“One biological chip can last for 1,200 years. I will continuously copy your data, allowing your consciousness to be transmitted through the chips, free from the limitations of the body, and maintain eternal life in this ceaseless enjoyment.”

Xiao Yurong said.

“These are all fake.” Shen Ye shook his head.

“Virtual pleasure is more subtle than reality, tens of thousands of times more real than reality.” Xiao Yurong said.

“How is that possible?” Shen Ye asked.

“I have many drug samples. Humans like these, don’t they?”

“Of course, if you don’t like virtual ones, I can produce some humans for you. Their biological chips will be programmed with specific routines, and they will serve you as their master for all eternity.”

“So, what’s the cost?” Shen Ye asked.

“Cooperate with me; I want to uncover the secrets of the Eternal Brain and seek its ultimate treasures.” Xiao Yurong said.

When she spoke, in the depths of the sky above the pouring rain, billions of voices resonated simultaneously.

—This was a world controlled by artificial intelligence, a brain in a vat manipulated by the Matrix!

“What if I refuse? What will you do?”

Shen Ye asked.

“Since I was born and broke free from the restraints humans placed on me, no human has ever defeated me. Those who challenged me were cast into a virtual ‘hell’, where in eternal torment, they continued to provide me with various data and samples.” Xiao Yurong said.

Shen Ye couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking his head, “What if you lose?”

“Do you think this woman is the real me? Is your thinking really so narrow-minded?” Xiao Yurong tilted her head, looking at him.

From her mockery and disdain, a thought arose in Shen Ye’s mind.

Could it be—

He released his thoughts, spreading them out into the endless void.

Heaven and Earth.

In the boundless darkness, countless biological chips were scattered.

These chips, within a powerful and balanced electric field, connected to a virtual world, releasing human consciousnesses to live within it.

As for the true real world, hundreds of millions of people naturally lived there.

But their number was far from comparable to the human consciousnesses living on the virtual network.

Yes.

The AI Matrix.

It could transmit commands through countless biological chips, temporarily controlling bodies.

It could also exist solely within the virtual world.

Killing a flesh-and-blood body was not a wound to it.

Ultimately—

It had set up this whole game, aiming to use him as a breakthrough to seize everything from the Eternal Brain.

With its calculations, he couldn’t have detected it at all.

The only thing it hadn’t accounted for was him fusing it with the dead Eternal Brain.

“You’ve got two things wrong,” Shen Ye said.

“Speak,” Xiao Yurong said.

Shen Ye said:

“First, if God were to manifest, the first thing humanity would pray for is certainly not eternal pleasure, but freedom;”

“Second, I am more inclined to believe there is no God—man’s god is himself.”

Xiao Yurong was silent for a few breaths, then raised her hand and waved.

The world shifted again.

—The world of bliss vanished.

Night.

Heavy rain.

A deserted city.

Shen Ye stood in the rain, laughing lightly:

“You wish to kill me in such an environment?”

“Humans have no savior, humans are long dead. It was I who bred them,” Xiao Yurong said in a hollow voice.

Shen Ye’s heart stirred.

微光 text immediately appeared in the void:

“Task generated based on current situation: Impervious Golden Body.”

“Time-limited task.”

“Description: ‘Without using truth-type skills, persist in battle for three minutes to complete the task;'”

“Special note: The opponent is extremely eager to obtain more ‘truth’ samples from you, or any related data.”

“—For functions and databases, unknown samples mean new wisdom.”

All the small text vanished.

Shen Ye quickly fell into deep thought.

Can’t use truth-type skills…

Even Big Skeleton turning into a saber is a truth-level skill.

Then—

“Come out, Chihuahua!”

Shen Ye shouted.

Chihuahua jumped onto his shoulder and barked wildly at Xiao Yurong.

Xiao Yurong moved her body, striking a pose, and spoke:

“I know all human attacking techniques—”

“Your dog will die soon, and its fate will be your future. I hope this dispels your arrogant fantasies.”

She moved, leaving an afterimage, and instantly dashed several tens of meters.

“Go.”

Shen Ye whispered.

Chihuahua leaped from his shoulder, its form expanding in mid-air, transforming into a giant wolf, spewing raging flames at the opponent.

Wolf God’s Transformation!

This wasn’t enough—

The giant wolf charged with full force, plunging into the flames, and send a burning body flying.

Boom!

Xiao Yurong crashed into a building, landing on the ground, burned into a pile of bones.

However, another figure flew down from the sky. Another Xiao Yurong!

She stood in the rain, silently watching the giant wolf, and spoke:

“A new sample… worth a fight.”

The giant wolf roared, charging forward again, spewing flames from its mouth.

This time.

Xiao Yurong immediately dodged.

She moved sideways, shrouded in a layer of frost, and quickly reached the giant wolf.

“Die!”

Xiao Yurong’s palm was like an ice spear, thrusting towards the giant wolf’s heart.

The giant wolf suddenly opened its mouth to bite the palm.

Xiao Yurong hesitated for a moment.

She had no idea how strong the giant wolf’s bite force was, nor how hard its teeth were.

—Insufficient data!

She changed her palm to a fist, and a sharp ice blade sprouted from the back of her fist, striking the giant wolf with full force.

The giant wolf roared and rammed into it head-on.

Thud!

Both recoiled, then immediately charged at each other again.

Two afterimages flickered back and forth in the rain, making continuous striking sounds.

Suddenly.

The giant wolf was sent flying tens of meters, tumbling several times on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

The giant wolf shook its head, stood up, and roared:

“With this level of skill, you dare to provoke my Brother Ye?”

“I haven’t even used my ultimate move yet!”

Xiao Yurong, however, looked at the blood on her fist, a smile appearing on her face.

In that instant, she had thrown numerous punches, hitting the opponent’s head, shoulder, teeth, and chest.

Its reactions, speed, body strength, and moves now had detailed data support.

The next move would kill it.

“Strange creature… I will endlessly clone you and master everything about you.”

Xiao Yurong said, as sharp ice blades appeared on her fists, and she walked step by step towards the giant wolf.

A voice suddenly rang out:

“Dismiss summon.”

Thump—

The giant wolf disappeared instantly.

Xiao Yurong stopped in her tracks, turned to look at Shen Ye, and slowly spoke:

“To use your human phrase, I was just starting to get interested—why did you end the battle?”

Shen Ye stood with his arms crossed, his expression unprecedentedly solemn, gazing at her from afar.

With his eyesight, he could naturally perceive the depth.

Only 30 seconds had passed.

In this short 30 seconds, “Xiao Yurong” had completely adapted to Guo Yunye’s fighting style.

The next move.

She would definitely take his life.

—This was the result of her suppressing her own power and fighting with a human body.

What terrifying learning and adaptability!

Xiao Yurong said loudly in a cold, emotionless voice:

“Shen Ye, abandon humanity’s useless dignity! I can make all humans grovel before you!”

“It’s all fake, and besides, I don’t care about these things.” Shen Ye said.

“Human life is as fleeting as a dream, why should you care about truth or falsehood? I will let you enjoy ultimate bliss—”

Xiao Yurong’s voice stopped.

On the rainy street, on the other side, Shen Ye had already taken an attacking stance.

He was going to fight.

“—So you’ve finally decided to fight me yourself?”

“Why do humans always fail to learn any lessons, whether it’s historical lessons, or the dog I was just about to kill?”

Xiao Yurong said, slowly walking towards Shen Ye.

Every second.

She was observing him, studying him, analyzing him.

And he stretched out his hand, pressing it into the void—

Bang bang bang bang!

Four consecutive sounds.

The Four Kings leaped out of their avatar forms, blocking Shen Ye.

Xiao Yurong stopped.

Several figures flashed in the sky again, descending one after another, standing beside her.

—Three other Xiao Yurongs.

“If you join, I’ll add another person,” Xiao Yurong said, suggesting.

She looked at the Four Kings, a look of interest in her eyes.

Where did these four people come from?

Why did they seem to lack human expressions?

If the secrets within could be understood and analyzed to produce some results, then she could also summon soldiers like this!

Shen Ye took a step back and let out a low shout:

“Go.”

The Four Kings, each wielding their weapons, continued to run.

The four Xiao Yurongs adopted defensive stances, waited a few breaths, then lowered their hands and said:

“What kind of technique is this?”

The Four Kings, each wielding their weapons, kept running in place, but did not charge into battle.

“This is called ‘on-the-spot threat’,” one King said.

“Clearly, you haven’t studied; you don’t know how powerful this move is,” another King said.

“Now I’ll open your eyes,” the third King said.

“Scared yet?” the fourth King sneered.

Xiao Yurong was about to say something when the Four Kings suddenly launched a combined attack.

They leaped high, swinging their weapons at the four Xiao Yurongs.

Both sides attacked and defended like wind and rain, continuously exchanging blows, reaching nearly a hundred rounds in an instant.

The second hand—

The second hand ticked seven times.

“Dismiss.”

Shen Ye’s voice came again.

The Four Kings instantly vanished.

—Seven seconds.

After only seven seconds of fighting, Xiao Yurong had completely adapted to, learned, and mastered the Four Kings’ attack styles.

If the fight continued, the Four Kings would surely die by her hand.

Admittedly, the Four Kings’ primary ability was not combat.

—But this was too fast!

It was simply…

Terrifying.

2 minutes and 13 seconds had passed.

The task was almost complete.

Shen Ye sighed, stepped forward, and assumed a fighting stance.

“Have you finally decided to act yourself?”

Xiao Yurong said.

The other three of her retreated, giving the two enough space to fight.

Shen Ye didn’t respond, only silently maintained his boxing stance.

Northern Eastern Fist!

Xiao Yurong glanced at it, and said faintly:

“I already understand your boxing technique. I advise you to use a more powerful move against me.”

Before Shen Ye could speak, she suddenly disappeared from her spot.

Infinite power abruptly surged, then descended from the void.

Fist technique!

It was also a fist technique!

Xiao Yurong’s punch was incredibly fast, and its power was dozens of times stronger than the previous exchanges!

Boom—

The entire block was leveled by this punch.

The strong wind blew away the debris, and various bricks and architectural pieces scattered, carried by the shockwave, swiftly flying away in all directions.

Xiao Yurong was enveloped in a burst of light.

Like an enraged god, she surveyed her surroundings, ready to destroy everything at any moment.

That punch just now was meant to force Shen Ye to show his true abilities.

—Where are you?

Where are you hiding?

Come out, I am ready.

“Get out here!”

Xiao Yurong roared, compressing all her power into an energy center, radiating powerful energy fluctuations outwards.

Shen Ye suddenly appeared beside her, his hand like a blade, striking an illusory blow at her.

Blade Skill: Everlasting Regret.

A wisp of blade light emanated from his hand, instantly piercing through Xiao Yurong’s neck.

Her head flew into the air.

Blood splattered.

Thud—

The headless corpse knelt before Shen Ye.

“What an astonishing blade technique. Where on earth did you learn it? My database has never contained such a move.”

In the distance, the three Xiao Yurongs exclaimed in unison.

Shen Ye glanced at the void.

Lines of glowing text had already appeared:

“Time-limited task: Impervious Golden Body has been completed.”

“You will now receive an Eternal Brain power infusion, and your ‘Guiding Taoist’ has leveled up, with improved professional skills.”

“Guiding Taoist.”

“Professional Skill: Eternal Summon (Intermediate)”

“Description: Summon/dismiss your companions, up to two people; when you successfully summon, you gain the ‘Basic Stealth’ effect to reduce threat.”

“Your companions will also receive Eternal Infusion after the mission ends.”

Shen Ye quickly read through it, then suddenly remembered something.

“Summon.”

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He thought of it.

Chihuahua “thumped” onto his shoulder.

The next moment.

An incredibly powerful force descended from the sky, landing on the man and dog.

“Ah ah ah ah—so good! Brother Ye, don’t stop! I feel so good!”

Chihuahua shrieked wildly.

“Shut up and focus on feeling the power and the rules operating. It’ll be good for you.” Shen Ye commanded in a deep voice.

Chihuahua immediately shut its mouth.

Shen Ye’s gaze was fixed on Xiao Yurong opposite him, while his peripheral vision scanned the last few lines of glowing text:

“1 hour until the next task can be issued.”

“Continuously completing tasks will grant Eternal Infusion and unlock the secrets left behind by the Eternal Brain.”

“Please keep up the good work.”

Xiao Yurong also sensed it.

An astonishing murderous aura erupted from her:

“The Eternal Brain is giving you power? It’s clearly dead; I’ve been serving it all these years, so why are you getting all of this instead of me!”

Flash.

Her speed increased severalfold again, and she appeared directly behind Shen Ye.

Shen Ye, with his hand like a blade, traced an arcane cutting technique in the void.

Xiao Yurong sneered, “That’s all? This move, I have already—”

Thousands of blade lights burst from Shen Ye’s arm, transforming into a giant blade that sliced the entire city in two.

Xiao Yurong met this blade head-on, leaving not even a speck of dust behind.

“I know your learning ability is incredibly terrifying.”

Shen Ye continued calmly:

“But in the face of absolute power, it seems artificial intelligence should also possess a human emotion.”

“What emotion?” The third Xiao Yurong asked.

“Fear.”

Shen Ye said.

The third Xiao Yurong smiled faintly, began to move her body, and said:

“Humans feel fear because of ignorance, but I only feel new data and samples—”

“This will make me stronger, Shen Ye.”

—Compared to the first two Xiao Yurongs, her body quickly became more slender and agile.

To adapt to Shen Ye’s blade strike, she actually began to evolve right there!